into the room he’d turned into an office.
At first she was bewildered by the array of machinery, all of it obviously state-of-the-art. Kate had spoken of wonderful things, but still the variety and magnificence came as a surprise. And one man could control all this?
Darius, in his dressing gown, was sitting at a large screen, his fingers hovering over a keyboard.
‘Don’t come near me,’ he croaked. ‘I’m full of germs.’
‘You shouldn’t be up at all,’ she scolded him, sitting down at a distance. ‘And Kate says you want to go out. That’s madness. It’s far too cold.’
‘I thought summer was supposed to be coming. Is it always like this in May?’
‘The weather can be a bit temperamental. It’s been colder than usual the last few days. It’ll warm up soon, and then we’ll be flooded with tourists. In the meantime, take care.’
‘I just need a new cellphone to replace the one I lost last night. I have a thousand calls to make, and the house phone keeps going dead.’
‘Yes, the line’s faulty and they don’t seem able to repair it. You were lucky it held out last night when you were calling your children. All right, you need one to tide you over. Try this.’
Reaching into her pocket, she handed over the object that had given her such anguish earlier.
‘You’re lending me yours?’ he asked.
‘No, it’s not mine, it … belonged to my husband.’
He took it from her left hand, realising for the first time that she wore a wedding ring.
‘Husband?’ he echoed.
‘He died a year ago. He hadn’t used this for some time because he’d replaced it with a better one. But it might get you through the next few days.’
He seemed uncertain what to say.
‘That’s very kind of you,’ he murmured at last. ‘But—are you sure?’
‘Quite sure. You’ll find it blank. I’ve wiped off every trace of him.’
Something in her voice made him glance at her quickly, but she was looking out of the window.
‘I appreciate this,’ he said. ‘Now I can call my children again. I’ll be in touch as soon as I’m a bit more normal. I still have to thank you properly for saving me. Perhaps we could have dinner.’
‘You don’t need to thank me. I was just doing what I do and I wasn’t alone. What about all the others on the lifeboat?’
‘I’ll show my gratitude by making a donation. But I think you can tell me a lot about Herringdean that I need to know, so I’d appreciate it if you’d agree to dinner.’
‘All right, I’ll look forward to it.’
‘By the way,’ he added as she reached the door, ‘how’s my ghostly friend?’
‘Who?’
‘His name is Phantom, isn’t it?’
She gave an uncertain laugh. ‘You call him your friend?’
‘You assured me he was only being friendly. Tell him I look forward to our next meeting. What kind of bones does he like?’
‘Any kind.’
‘I’ll remember.’
As she left the house Harriet was saying to herself, ‘I don’t believe it. I imagined that conversation. I must have done.’
That evening she poured out her thoughts again to the one friend she knew she could always trust.
‘I don’t know what to think any more. He’s different—well, all right, he nearly died and that changes people—but they change back. In a few days he’ll be talking about showing no mercy again. Hey, don’t do that! Phantom, put that down!—oh, all right, just this once.’
Three days later she looked up from serving in the shop to find Darius standing there.
‘It’s a nice day so I managed to escape,’ he said with a smile. ‘I wanted to bring you this.’ He held out the phone. ‘I’ve got my new one now, but this was invaluable. Thank you. There seems no end to what I owe you.’
‘Did you manage to call your sons?’
‘My son and daughter, yes.’
‘Oh, I thought—Mark and Frank.’
‘Frankie. Her name’s Francesca, but we call her Frankie. It’s a bit like calling you Harry.’
She laughed. ‘Yes, I suppose it is.’
‘And there’s also this,’ he said, reaching into a bag and drawing out a huge bone. ‘This is for Phantom, by the way, not you.’
Her lips twitched. ‘I’m glad you explained that.’
‘About our dinner. Kate’s set her heart on cooking it for us.’
‘Good idea. She’s a great cook, and it would be better for you.’
‘If you say I need to stay indoors for a few more days I shall do something desperate,’ he warned. ‘You two mother hens are driving me crazy.’
‘No, I was only going to say that anywhere else you’ll get stared at. I’ll come to Giant’s Beacon.’
‘You and Phantom.’
‘He’s included?’
‘It wouldn’t be the same without him. Friday evening.’
‘I look forward to it. We’ll look forward to it.’
He thanked her and departed. Outside the shop, he hesitated a moment, then headed for the harbour and the lifeboat station, but after a moment his attention was claimed by a man watching him from across the road with an air of nervousness. Enlightenment dawned, and he crossed over.
‘I know you, don’t I? You were part of the team that saved me from drowning.’
‘I’m glad you remember that,’ Walter said, ‘and not the other thing.’
‘You mean when you advised Harriet to let me drown?’ Darius said, grinning.
‘Ah, yes—’
‘It’s in the past,’ Darius assured him. ‘Look, do you have a moment? There’s a pub over there.’
When they were settled with glasses of ale, Darius said, ‘I want to show my gratitude in a practical way, with a donation to the lifeboat.’ He took out his chequebook. ‘Who do I make it out to?’
Walter
