Page 53 of The Castle in the Bay

‘It’s fine. No worries. I was just there myself. Iona persuaded me to surf. I got soaked and I feel a bit yucky. I’m going to have a shower, then head back.’

‘Ah, I see. This is my mum, by the way.’ Catriona turned to the other woman and went on, ‘This is Monty MacNeil. He thinks he might have ancestors here.’

‘Oh really?’ The other woman came forward and held out her hand. ‘I’m Nora. My mother was a MacNeil.’

‘Nice to meet you.’

Catriona smiled. ‘I’ll leave the two of you to chat. Maybe see you later.’

‘Sure,’ Monty waved.

‘So where do your MacNeils fit in?’ Nora asked.

‘I don’t really know. It was my father who was into it all.’

‘And what was his name?’

‘Hector. He died recently. I just scattered his ashes at Kisimul Castle.’

‘Sorry for your loss.’ Nora put a somewhat frail hand on his arm. For someone who didn’t look much over fifty-five, she had a weariness about her.

‘Thank you. My father told a story many times that he was descended from a branch of the MacNeils that were somehow cut from the main family line and diddled out of inheriting the castle.’

Nora nodded. ‘I’ve heard that story too. No one can prove it one way or another now, but I wonder if maybe you’re related to us somehow. My mother definitely talked about that legend before.’

‘Really?’

‘Oh yes. Also, did you know that the castle’s name isn’t pronounced “kissy-mull” but more like “kish-mul”. Only islanders usually pronounce it correctly.’

‘I didn’t realise. Excuse my ignorance.’

‘Don’t worry about it. No one bothers about it. I just thought you might like to know for your own interest. Tourists often think its name had something to do with kissing.’ She let out a little laugh and Monty forced a smile – the name might not have anything to do with that, but he and Iona had done exactly that in its grounds. ‘It actually comes from the Gaelic, Caisteal Chiosmuil and means castle on the rock of the small bay. If you look it up on your internet, you’ll see how to spell that.’

‘Thank you. I appreciate it.’

‘Well, I’ll let you get on, but I’ll also have a look and see if I can find out where your Hector fits into things. My mother had a big box of family tree stuff. I’ll dig it out and see if I can find anything.’

‘That’s really kind, thank you.’

‘Not at all. It’s a job I can do sitting down, and it’ll be fun looking through it.’

He thanked her again, then headed for the annex. The shower was soon piping hot, and he spent longer than was strictly necessary, washing away the salt and sand. His body wasn’t in bad shape, but he’d never manage muscles like Ruaridh or surf-board prowess like the guys back at the beach. All the things he supposed Iona valued.

Why do I care about that?

He emerged feeling refreshed and threw on some clean clothes before heading back to the festival. All the way along the track, his thoughts tumbled about like sheets on a washing line in the Barra winds – a mix of curiosity about his MacNeil connections and Iona, who was always on his mind, it seemed. By the time he got to the top of the dunes and looked down, all the thoughts were tangled and twisted, and he couldn’t make sense of them.

The festival was still in full swing, with people milling about, music playing, and laughter filling the air. As he approached the surf area, he spotted Iona talking to the same two young guys from earlier. Something about the sight made his hackles rise. One of the guys was getting a bit too handsy, his arm snaking around Iona’s waist. She pulled away from him, giving him a dirty look, but he didn’t back off. In fact, he looked to be moving in again for a second try. Iona was more than a match for him. If anyone came off worse from the situation, it would be him, but still. She was obviously trying to maintain politeness. As one of the leaders of the festival, she wouldn’t want to cause a scene, but the guy wasn’t backing away or reading her obvious body language.

Monty made his way towards them, his feet slipping a bit in the dry sand at the top of the beach. Iona caught his gaze and wordlessly expressed her exasperation at the guy with a slight grimace and a flash in her eyes. The look made him keepwalking, and he strode right up to her side. ‘Ah, there you are.’ He slipped his arm around her shoulder. ‘I was looking for you.’

‘And you’ve found me.’ She smiled at him.

The guy frowned, looking Monty up and down. ‘Who are you?’

‘Monty.’ He gave a little shrug, almost bursting with a laugh at the bemused look on the guy’s face.

Iona turned to Monty and slipped her hand around his cheek. ‘I missed you.’ She leaned in and kissed him. He didn’t resist. Sure, she was making a point to this guy, but it felt good.

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