Page 16 of The Boathouse By the Loch

Robyn. It was vital that he spoke to her before he left. He thought he could just wander into her shop in Aviemore any time, but her busy work commitments meant she might not be there.

He hoped she’d be back in the next few days. In the meantime, he had plenty to occupy his time; there were two other things to get done before he left. With that in mind, Jake put his hand in his jacket pocket.

‘I’ve got something I’d like to show you.’ Jake passed Gayle the photograph of Martha’s son. ‘Do you recognise him?’

‘Should I?’ said Gayle studying the photograph before turning it over and reading the name on the back. Gayle looked up. ‘Who’s Ralph?’

Jake didn’t really expect that Gayle would have the answers he was looking for. ‘There’s a lady called Martha. I’m searching for her son. This is the only photo I have.’

‘You’re searching for a missing child?’

Jake shook his head. ‘No. This photo was taken some years ago. Look, there’s a date on the back. That would make him in his thirties.’

Jake sighed when he caught Gayle staring at him blankly. It wasn’t all that surprising that she didn’t know him. Aviemore might be a small community, but that didn’t mean everybody knew everybody else.

‘I shouldn’t have promised Martha Delaney I’d find her son.’

‘Delaney?’

‘That’s her surname. I believe she was not married when she had her son, which meant he would have been Ralph Delaney before he was adopted.’

Gayle said, ‘The name Delaney rings a bell. Is there any connection to Cedar Grove, by any chance?’

‘Yes, yes. Martha’s father, Angus Delaney, left Cedar Grove in a trust when his son failed to materialise to claim his inheritance.’

‘It’s a care home now,’ said Gayle.

‘You know it?’

Gayle frowned. ‘My brothers and sister were planning to send my mother there.’

‘Oh, I see,’ Jake said, trying to hide his disappointment. For a moment, he’d thought Gayle might be able to help him in his search.

‘I looked it up online. It is a lovely place, but I just didn’t want to send her away.’

Send her away.Jake remembered chatting to the receptionist at Cedar Lodge, whose father had been an amateur local historian. He had speculated as to the reasons why Angus Delaney’s son, Ralph Delaney, also known as Aubrey Jones, had run away from his boarding school and never returned. Angus had sent his wife away; had had her committed to a psychiatric hospital. Sadly, back then that had been a common approach to treating people with mental health conditions, which were often considered nervous disorders.

Jake wondered as to the reasons Ralph had run away and had, at some point, changed his name to Aubrey. The receptionist had speculated that maybe he had been afraid that his father might send him away too. Maybe he had been a shy, introspective childwho was very close to his mother, and had been worried that this would be enough for his father to consider sending him to an institution.

Gayle passed the photo back to Jake. ‘Sorry I can’t be of any help.’

Jake put the photo back in his wallet. He changed the subject. ‘So, do you know when Robyn is due home?’

‘Friday, I think.’

‘Tomorrow?’

‘Yes, I think so. That’s what David said. She’s travelling back from London tomorrow, so they’ll have the whole weekend together. But I’m afraid you won’t see her then.’

‘Oh. How come? She doesn’t work in her shop on Saturdays?’ Jake was visibly disappointed. He thought that as a retail shop, it would be open at the weekend.

‘No, her shop is open, and she does work on a Saturday, but David has arranged with his sister-in-law, Annie, who works part-time in the shop, to work tomorrow and over the weekend. David told me he’s heading into Aviemore to book a stay in a five-star hotel with an evening meal included in their à-la-carte restaurant. There wouldn’t be any point if she had to get up early the next morning for work.’

Jake could see the point regarding work the next morning, but he did wonder why David didn’t just give the hotel a call.

‘Because it’s tomorrow, and he couldn’t get through on the phone, he’s driven there now to book a room in case they all go. I imagine Friday nights are popular. He’s got it into his head that if they just spent some time together, with no distractions, then he might get to the bottom of whatever was going on in London.’

Gayle shook her head as if to say she thought his chances wereslim. Either that, or there really was nothing going on in London, and Robyn was just meeting up with clients like Gayle had said.

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