Page 29 of The Sunken Truth
“Really?”
“Yes.” Her eyes slid to Flynn. “Wait, is that legal? I probably need to officially employ them, right?”
“You should keep a record of what you pay them, but I don’t think it’s complicated to hire casual staff. Ask your accountant.” He gave a dismissive, one-shouldered shrug. “Anyway, it sounds like Jessica has everything under control. Which leaves you free to come with me.”
“I don’t know.” She was actually desperate to go with him, but she’d also been planning on visiting Maria later. If she was going to skip out on work, it should probably be for that.
“You have to.” Flynn clamped his hands on her shoulders and gave her a playful shake. “You know I’m useless without you.”
“There is that,” she said, amused.
The weight of his hands on her shoulders made the thought of investigating with him even more appealing. Since their chat about keeping their relationship purely platonic, there’d been a distinct lack of physical contact between them. It felt good now. Probably a little too good.
“Okay,” she said. “I’m in.”
“Have fun,” Jessica said. “And don’t rush back on my account. I’m happy to close up if you’re not back.”
“I’m sure we won’t be that long,” Lily said, then slipped into the back to grab her bag. “Call me if you need me,” she told Jessica before following Flynn out into the bright sunshine.
“First stop eccentric recluse?” Lily asked. “He lives on Bryher, right?”
“Yep.” Flynn’s excitement was almost palpable.
“It’s good to see you so enthusiastic,” she said. “There’s a different energy to you when you have proper policing to do.”
“It’s not just that,” he replied. “This is my chance to prove to the superintendent that I’m good at my job.”
Lily frowned. “You don’t need to turn detective for that. You are good at your job.”
“He doesn’t see that. If I can figure this out, I might win him over. I’m sure the sergeant thinks the same – he specifically asked me to look into this alone. And when the superintendent questioned it, Sergeant Proctor told him I could handle it.”
“Of course you can handle it,” Lily said, then paused. “Does Sergeant Proctor know you were going to get me to tag along?”
“I imagine he knows me well enough to figure that one out.”
Lily grinned and quickened her pace to keep up with Flynn’s excitable tempo.
Chapter Fourteen
They timedit perfectly and arrived at the harbour to get straight on one of the inter-island ferries heading to Bryher. From the small jetty at Church Quay, they set off walking to their destination on the northern part of the peaceful island. Without a lot of chatter, they kept a steady pace on the narrow path that wound past stone-walled cottages.
The brisk sea breeze picked up on the track northward, carrying the scent of wildflowers that tickled Lily’s nostrils and made her sneeze a couple of times. Sweat trickled between her shoulder blades and she cast the odd glance at Flynn, but there were no visible signs of the heat getting to him, despite his uniform.
“I think that’s the place,” he said, breaking the silence as they crested a low hill.
“Wow,” Lily whispered on an exhale.
Nestled among bracken and lonely pines, the large granite house loomed on the cliffs where the land met the sea in a glorious standoff.
“I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a house more suited toan elderly recluse,” Flynn said, a flicker of a smile hitting his lips as they continued towards the unkempt property.
The roof was a patchwork of older and newer slate, and a thick tangle of ivy clung to one side of the house. Way above, a weather vane swayed on the chimney stack – shaped like a regal sailing ship and rusted with age.
Lily hummed thoughtfully. “It would also be suited to a horror film. Imagine it in the dark… or in a storm.”
“True,” Flynn agreed. “It has creepy vibes. Let’s see what the owner’s like.”
The chime of the doorbell was a drawn-out tinny melody that added to Lily’s notion that it was straight out of a scary film.
