Page 94 of The Sisters at the Last House Before the Sea

‘Why would you say that?’

‘Because he can be quite forceful and he’s not always kind to you.’

‘We argue sometimes and I’m sure I’m not always kind to him.’

‘He comes across as quite controlling and jealous.’ When anger flashed across her sister’s face, Caitlin knew she’d gone too far but it was too late now. ‘He seems to suck the joy out of you,’ she told her. ‘He keeps you small.’

‘That’s a horrible thing to say. Are you jealous because your relationship has disintegrated? You’ve always had more than me – you made sure of that. And now I’ve got a relationship and you haven’t, you’re trying to wreck it.’

‘That’s not true,’ spluttered Caitlin.

But Isla was on her feet, her cheeks bright red. ‘I get what this is. You’re hoping I’ll break up with Paul and go travelling with Ben, so you can sell this house and get your hands on the money. That’s what you’ve wanted all along.’

Caitlin felt so winded by Isla’s accusations, she leaned forward to catch her breath. Isla watched her, the flush in her cheeks starting to fade.

‘If you want to go travelling,’ said Caitlin, keeping her voice as level as possible, ‘I’ll back you because I think you shouldget to see the world and have the adventure that I had. If you want to stay here with Paul, I’ll back you too because all I want is for you to be happy. Do you really believe I’d be willing to wreck your happiness, for money? Do you think so little of me?’

Isla ran a hand across her face. ‘I don’t know. I don’t know you any more, Caitlin. I thought we were getting closer, getting back to how we used to be, but now you throw this at me. Paul loves me and I love him and he’d never do anything to hurt me, so you’re wrong.’

She pushed her way past the detritus in the attic and had reached the stairs when Caitlin called after her, ‘He ruined Mum’s dress on purpose.’

Isla stopped and turned around, her expression blank. ‘What are you talking about?’

‘You looked amazing in that dress and when Paul saw Ben looking at you, he couldn’t stand it, so he deliberately pushed the curry into your lap.’

An emotion flickered across Isla’s face. Caitlin was expecting fury, surprise, contempt, but it was none of those. It seemed more like resignation. But then Isla snapped: ‘That’s ridiculous.’

‘Are you sure? Paul said it himself, he’s not a clumsy man, and I saw the jealousy on his face just before the accident happened. He did it deliberately, even though he knew that spoiling Mum’s special dress would break your heart.’

Isla shook her head. ‘I can’t believe how low you’d stoop to get your hands on this house, Caitlin. It’s pathetic and I really hate you.’

‘But I don’t want to sell this house,’ Caitlin blurted out, realising for the first time that it was true. ‘I’ve changed my mind and feel like I belong here.’

But Isla was clomping furiously down the stairs and didn’t hear.

Caitlin sat quietly for a moment, not sure what to do next. Not only had her relationship with Isla sunk to new depths, she’d also admitted to herself what she’d been trying to ignore – that she’d been putting off returning to London because she liked being at Rose Cottage and wouldn’t mind staying in Heaven’s Cove for longer.

A crashing of feet on the stairs broke into her thoughts. Was Isla coming back? Caitlin wiped tears from her cheeks and tried to hide her disappointment when Maisie appeared.

‘What’s going on?’ she demanded. ‘And where the hell am I? Ugh, this place is totally gross. What are those pellet things on the floor?’

‘Mouse droppings,’ said Caitlin wearily.

‘What the…? That is disgusting. This place should be condemned.’ Her nose wrinkled in distaste as she edged forwards. ‘So why are you up here and why did Isla just run past my room? Have you two been fighting?’

When Caitlin nodded miserably, Maisie frowned and began to fidget. ‘Well,’ she said after a while, ‘you should come down. Right now.’

Caitlin began to cry. She hadn’t meant to dissolve into tears, especially not in front of Maisie, who was coping with enough. But after the last few weeks she’d had, the row with Isla was the final straw.

As fat tears rolled down her face, Maisie stared at her in horror.

‘Stop!’ she insisted.

But Caitlin couldn’t. She scrabbled in her pocket for a tissue and dabbed at her nose. ‘Sorry,’ she managed between gulps. ‘Go downstairs.’ But Maisie didn’t move. ‘Please,’ she begged, desperate to bring her emotions under control.

Maisie watched her, wide-eyed, and then walked across the attic, through the mouse droppings, and put an arm around Caitlin’s shoulder. ‘All right?’ she asked, awkwardly patting her arm.

Caitlin leaned against her stepdaughter for a moment before pulling herself together with a herculean effort and wiping her eyes. The weight of Maisie’s arm across her shoulders was comforting.

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