Page 55 of The Sunken Truth
Nothing which made Lily pause.
Regulators hung on the far wall with air hoses attached. She ran her hand along the length of hose closest to her, which had the sheen of new equipment. The next one was slightly more battered and she inspected the length of it, wondering if it were possible that the equipment had failed due to wear and tear, and bad maintenance.
She wouldn’t have thought so.
Her eyes went to the floor and a steel chest below the bench. Crouching, she pulled it out. The numbered padlock prevented her from investigating its contents.
“What are you doing?”
The gravelly voice almost had her leaving her skin. She slapped a hand over her racing heart as she stood and locked eyes with Ryan.
“Hi,” she said, her brain searching for an excuse. “I forgot my sunglasses the other day.” It was an excuse she’d used before when she’d been poking around places she shouldn’t.
“They’re on top of your head,” he said calmly.
“A different pair.”
“I didn’t see any.” He tilted his head, eyeing her suspiciously. “What are you really looking for?”
Her gaze slid to the box by her feet, then up to Ryan. Heblocked the way and was staring at her intently, but she wasn’t getting any threatening vibes from him.
“I’m looking for whatever it was you found at the shipwreck.”
“That’s what I thought.” He shook his head. “I already said I dropped it when someone cut my hose.”
“I know, but someone who was down there isn’t telling the truth. I’d like to figure out who. No offence, but I don’t know you so I don’t know whether to trust your word.”
“Fair enough.” He moved towards her and she took an instinctive step back, but he stopped in front of her and bent to input the code on the padlock. “We keep valuables in here sometimes. Either for guests, or our own. There shouldn’t be anything in here now.”
When he pulled the lid back, Lily leaned forwards, peering over his shoulder.
“That’s Benji’s,” he said, lifting the watch, which was the only item in the box.
“Thanks,” Lily said when he put the watch back and closed the lid.
“I have no problem with you searching the boat. There’s nothing here to find.”
“Because you know it’s elsewhere?” she asked, interested to see how he’d react.
He huffed out an amused breath. “No. Because I don’t have it. You’re searching the wrong boat.”
“You still think it was Harry who sabotaged you?”
“Yes.” He gestured to the steps and she went ahead onto the deck, where the sky was now almost completely overcast.
“Cute photo,” Lily said, nodding at the picture on the console. “Your daughter?”
“Yeah. It’s an old one. She’s sixteen now. At sixth form in Penzance.”
“It must be hard not having her around.”
He shrugged. “She’ll be back soon for the school holidays.”
“I don’t think I know your wife,” Lily remarked, hoping to get more out of him.
“Ex wife,” he said. “She lives in Penzance too.”
“How long are you keeping your business closed for?” she asked, deciding there was no reason not to be blunt with her questions.
