Page 34 of Coming Home to Winter Island
‘And where’s the bottle now?’ He looks around, as do I.
‘I don’t know. He must have taken it!’ I look at Lachlan and he holds his hands to his head, then runs them through his long curly hair.
‘We need to find him. He’s not well. He’s forgetful, and if he’s drinking as well...The dogs are probably with him, but his balance isn’t good even on that crutch—’
‘He’s not on the crutch...he’s on a walking stick,’ I say, my voice thinning out as my throat tightens with tension.
Lachlan turns to the back door and grabs two torches. He checks they’re working, then hands one to me.
‘It’s going to be getting dark soon. We need to find him. But let’s start with the house.’ He takes the wide wooden stairs two at a time. I follow. ‘I’ll do the first floor, you check upstairs! Hector?!’ he calls, opening each door in turn.
I turn to the door to the next level and put my hand on the cold latch. I hesitate for a moment, feeling like I’m intruding on Lachlan’s private world. But we have to find Hector. This is my fault. I fling back the door and run up the narrow wooden stairs. I stick my head into the room that is clearly Lachlan’s bedroom, and catch a glimpse of the amazing views from the window in the sloping ceiling, across the loch and beyond to the sea. Then I check an unused room that seems to be a storeroom, and the bathroom with its big old rolltop bath. Hector isn’t here. I run back down the stairs, practically colliding with Lachlan on the landing.
‘Sorry.’ I jump back, as does he, and shake my head. ‘Not there.’
‘I’ll check the cellar!’ he calls, running downstairs. I follow and head to the kitchen and the door I’m presuming is the cellar. He’s out of there as soon as I arrive, pushing back his hair. ‘We’ll check the outbuildings next, and the distillery.’
Again I follow him, down the path to the outbuildings. He pushes open the door where I found him earlier.
‘Hector! Hector!’ we both shout, and somehow my voice lets me.
‘What is this place?’ I ask as we move around the big copper drum and into a back room.
‘The distillery. Where the gin was made. Well, first whisky, then gin. That’s what I was doing when I asked you to keep an eye on Hector. Trying to get the still up and running again and make the wash, the basic clear alcohol.’ He sounds cross. I can’t reply. ‘Why couldn’t you just have waited?’ he asks. ‘We’d’ve found the recipe!’
‘I just thought...’
‘That you could rush it. Get it sorted and get to your retreat thingy. I know! You have a plan! But there’s an old expression: what’s meant for you won’t pass you by. If we’re meant to find that recipe, it’ll happen.’
I can’t say anything. His words sting. Maybe it’s the truth in them that hurts the most. Tears prick my eyes. Hot and embarrassed.
‘Let’s get in the car,’ he says, grabbing keys from the work surface covered with jars and pots and large test tubes of who knows what.
‘Maybe you could show me around tomorrow,’ I say with a croak. ‘I’d like to know more. That’s if...unless...’
Neither of us finishes the sentence. Instead, he leads the way, leaving the door unlocked in case Hector returns, and we both run to the old red Land Rover on the drive.
‘He was here, Lachlan. Not that long ago. He wanted chocolate bars, but he didn’t have any money. I’ve put it on the account.’
‘Thank you,’ Lachlan says as we stand in the shop. ‘Take it from my wages.’
I look at him.
‘Lachlan does more than anyone around here, what with his work with the class at the school, and the food he cooks for the café,’ says Lena with a proud smile.
‘And looking after Hector,’ adds Lexie.
‘He could’ve left us a long time ago. It’s not been easy for him since—’
I’m not sure if Lachlan’s embarrassed by the praise or just worried about Hector. He quickly puts a stop to the conversation.
‘Right, well, we’ll crack on. Hang on to him if you see him!’ he says, moving towards the low door.
The light outside is fading fast. The sky is turning an inky blue.
‘I tried to give him a cup of tea,’ Lena calls after him, ‘but he just got up and left. I was about to ring your mobile.’
‘Okay. Call me if he comes back,’ Lachlan says over his shoulder. ‘We’ll take a drive around the island. He can’t have got that far.’
