Coral met them in the hallway. ‘Good morning, boys.’
‘Good morning, Coral. Lovely to see you up and about. How’s the ankle?’ asked Jason. Everyone followed him into the living room. Max stepped back to let Daisy go in front and she acknowledged his gesture. She was still mad at him for their altercation in the pub and the snide comments at the fête.
Jason put the box on the table and unpacked the items. ‘The documentation isn’t worth anything but a serious GWR collector might give you a few pounds for it.’
‘GWR?’ asked Daisy.
‘Great Western Railways. They ran the branch line that ran from Exeter to here. Some people specialise in certain railway companies,’ said Jason. He continued unpacking. ‘The brush isn’t in great condition but should still fetch a few pounds. These pamphlets are quite interesting.’ He held up three yellowing booklets. ‘These are probably worth about ten pounds each.’
‘Ooh, that’s fabulous, Jason.’ Aunt Coral was leaning forward with interest, whereas Daisy was already quite bored. The effort of selling them was outweighing the return. Max looked similarly uninterested.
‘These photographs were in an envelope and they’re well preserved. Probably local interest only but worth five to ten pounds each. The real star of the show, however, is this.’ He held up the cast iron ‘Beware of the trains’ sign and everyone waited. He was building up his part and even Daisy was a little intrigued. ‘We could be looking at as much as eighty to a hundred pounds for this.’
‘Great,’ said Daisy with a yawn and she went to get the rest of her toast. She paused in the hallway as she heard the conversation start up in the living room after she’d left.
‘Is Daisy okay? Only Tamsyn said she saw her crying at the fête,’ said Jason.
‘Oh, poor love. She tries to put a brave face on it but it must be hard,’ said Aunt Coral.
‘Are we talking about her mother topping herself?’ asked Max.
‘Cause of death was drowning,’ said Jason.
‘She could have drowned herself,’ said Max.
‘It was unclear if abrasions on Sandy’s forehead were caused before or after she died.’ Jason had a look of Hercule Poirot about him.
‘Nobody knows exactly what happened. They just found her washed up on the beach one morning,’ said Aunt Coral with a shudder.
‘Sorry, that was just what I heard,’ said Max, his tone conciliatory.
‘Poor Daisy,’ said Jason. ‘It must be hard being back here with all the memories. It is a proper mystery, perhaps …’ Daisy strolled into the room and Jason stopped speaking. He cleared his throat. ‘Sorry, Daisy.’
‘Is this what it’s going to be like? A year of everyone whispering behind my back. All the speculation dredged up again. Because there are no answers, you know?’ She clutched her locket as she spoke.
‘We just care about you, that’s all,’ said Aunt Coral.
Daisy shook her head. ‘I don’t need you to—’
Max stood up. ‘People around here try and look after each other, you’ll have to get used to it if you’re sticking around.’
‘I don’t know if I’m staying but either way I can look after myself.’ Daisy was trying hard not to shout.
‘You are so selfish and if you don’t appreciate that people will want to help, maybe you should leave.’ Max’s voice rose to match hers.
‘If staying means everyone meddling in my life, then perhaps I should.’
‘If you consider it meddling then, yeah, go!’ shouted Max.
‘Fine!’ Daisy stormed out of the room.
‘Now, Max. That was uncalled for,’ said Aunt Coral, swinging her legs off the cushion and standing up.
Max pushed his hair off his face. ‘I’m sorry, Coral. I didn’t mean to upset you—’
‘But evidently you did mean to upset Daisy,’ she scolded, hobbling out of the room.
Jason carefully put the plaque back in the box and looked at Max. ‘I guess none of us handled that well.’
Max patted him on the back. ‘It’s okay mate. Come on, let’s get going if you’re still giving me a lift to work.’
‘Daisy, please don’t overreact,’ came Coral’s voice. Max and Jason were in the hall when the thundering footsteps on the stairs announced Daisy’s arrival. She was clutching an orange wash bag and wrestling with an overstuffed backpack.
‘I’m sorry Aunt Coral, but Max is right. I don’t belong in Ottercombe Bay and no amount of money is worth staying for.’ She shot a glare at Max whilst she continued to struggle with the rucksack.
Daisy finally got the bag done up and pushed past the men, gaining some satisfaction from shunting Max to one side. She gave the front door a shove and strode outside.
‘You know I really think we should intervene,’ said Jason, watching Daisy over his shoulder as she put on her motorcycle helmet. Jason and Max walked to the police car.
‘She was never going to stay,’ said Max. He shook his head and got in the passenger seat. Aunt Coral was standing in the doorway with a yapping Bugsy under her arm. Both vehicles started at the same time but Daisy got away first. She blew a kiss to Aunt Coral and rode off in front of Jason.
Daisy’s heart was thumping. She was cross and quickly overheating thanks to the combination of leathers, backpack and temper. Max had pressed all her buttons. She had to put herself first, that was how it had always been. If she didn’t look out for herself, who would? It was a self-preservation thing and it had served her well. She indicated and followed the coast road, she may as well have one last look at the sea. She saw the headland and felt a twinge of sadness at seeing her mother’s favourite place. But she felt the locket against her skin and was reassured. Turning her head briefly to catch a glimpse of the coastline something caught her eye. A figure in long flowing clothes was standing on the cliffs. Mum? For a moment Daisy lost concentration and the bike wobbled. She gripped the handlebars and maintained control but a loud noise behind startled her. It was the sound of a police siren. She checked her mirror – it was Jason.
Jason or not, it was still the police so she pulled over and the patrol car stopped behind her, its blue lights flashing wildly. She removed her helmet and took a deep breath. Max glared at her from the passenger seat and Daisy sneered back; she was tempted to stick her tongue out but decided against it.
Jason strode over. ‘Daisy, please don’t go like this.’
‘Jason, you are lovely, but it’s honestly best for everyone if I go.’ She looked over to the headland. The figure in flowing clothes was now walking towards them and she was reassured to see it was Tamsyn. For a moment she’d wondered if she was hallucinating, although that hadn’t happened since the mushroom soup in Goa.
‘You know I could arrest you? If that’s what
