Page 79 of Savage Justice

I make my way down from the tower studio. I don’t know when to expect Nico back from whatever business he’s involved in on the mainland, but perhaps one of the men will be able to tell me. Or even Ethan. I can swing by the main office, see who’s around.

The drone of a helicopter reaches me as I arrive at the first floor. Is he back already? I peer out of the window overlooking the cobbled forecourt.

No, it’s not a helicopter returning, it’s the spare one preparing for takeoff. Magda is on board, and the rotors are slowly spinning. As I watch, Megan, the Caraksay medic, sprints across the cobbles from the direction of her clinic. She’s carrying her medical bag.

Ethan and Aaron appear on the main castle steps, and they, too, jog over to the aircraft. All three leap on board, and the chopper immediately rises into the air. Magda circles the battlements just once, then sets a course heading east, towards the Scottish mainland.

What’s got them in such a hurry? I dread to think, and happily it’s none of my business. I carry on along the upper hallway to the main office.

Cristina is there, seated at her husband’s desk. She lifts her gaze when I appear in the doorway. “Ah, Molly. I was just about to come and find you.”

“Well, I saved you the trouble. Is it about the school?” Maybe she’s spoken already to the headteacher at Glencruitten.

“What? No, not that. I… I have bad news…”

My heart lurches. “Is it Lucy?” She was okay an hour ago when she came up to the tower room to ask if she could go down to the beach with Beth and Faith. “Has she—?”

“No, not Lucy. She’s fine. It… it’s Nico.”

“Nico?”

“He’s been hurt.”

Does she mean our row? I know he was upset, but…

“Hurt?” I echo. “I know, I said some things…” But so did he.

She shakes her head. “I’m sorry, Molly. He’s been stabbed.”

I collapse onto the closest chair. “No!”

Cristina is beside me. “Can I get you anything?”

“Stabbed? Did you say…?”

“I’m sorry,” she repeats.

“Is he… Is he alive?” Please, God, let him be alive. I can’t lose him, not like this, not now.

“He is. Ethan and Megan are on their way there. We’ll have news soon.”

“I just saw them… The helicopter…” It makes sense now. “Where is he? I need to go to him.”

“He’s in hospital, in Inverness. He’s in the best possible hands, and—”

I leap to my feet. “I need to be there.”

“Soon. Megan needed to get to him straight away, and Ethan and Aaron jumped in with her. The chopper will drop them off and be back for you.”

“I need…” My face crumples, and I’m sobbing. “We argued, I said…I said…” I can’t remember exactly what I said, but it wasn’t nice. “What if that’s the last time…?” I can’t even say it. If I say the words, it becomes real.

“It won’t be. He’s at The Richmond clinic. There are surgeons, they’ll take care of him, and Megan is on her way there.”

“I need to tell him I’m sorry.”

“You can, and you will. Soon.”

The awful reality of her words is beginning to settle. I’m processing, trying to make sense, but my head is bursting with questions.

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