Page 29 of Dead in the Water

His features turned somewhat serious. “They said it was unfair of him to hold them back, and that they all owned the boat, so he didn’t get to decide for all of them. Something like that anyway.” He peeled himself off the desk. “But I guess theysorted it out because they were all in the bar the next night. They were playing cards and chatting. It all seemed amicable.”

“Thanks,” Lily said again, a little more heartfelt this time.

Oscar shifted his weight. “The boss will probably be back soon.”

“I’ll go.” She smiled warmly at him. “Thank you.”

He walked her to the door.

“How’s Katie?” she asked.

All the tension left him at the mention of his girlfriend. “Great, thanks.”

“Bring her in for ice cream sometime,” Lily said. “My treat.”

When he went back inside, Lily lingered for a few minutes, enjoying the view of Hugh Town and the boats swaying on gentle waves in the bay.

Setting off down the hill, it took her a moment to recognise the two figures walking towards her. With her head bowed, Joyce looked as meek and mild as she had in the ice cream shop. Her husband walked beside her with a hand at her back.

They would have walked straight past her, but Lily caught the man’s eye and smiled.

“Oh, hello,” he said.

“Hi.” She smiled at Joyce. “You were in my ice cream shop the other day. I’m Lily.”

“Yes,” Joyce said, her lips twitching in an attempt at a smile. “I remember now.”

“I was very sorry to hear about your friend. It’s so terrible.”

Tears welled in Joyce’s eyes. “Thank you,” she mumbled.

“It must have been such a shock,” Lily went on, hoping to encourage them into chatting.

Joyce merely nodded and glanced at her husband.

“I don’t think it’s really sunk in yet,” he said, rubbing his wife’s back. “It doesn’t seem real, does it, love?”

She shook her head and sniffed. “We don’t know what to do with ourselves. We can’t go home, but it’s not as though we can enjoy a holiday now.”

“How long will you stay?”

“We’re waiting for Joseph’s son to arrive.” Keith sighed. “I think he’ll be here on Thursday so it’s only a couple of nights, but time is moving slowly. It feels as though we’re stuck in limbo.”

“It would feel wrong to leave while Joseph’s body is still here anyway,” Joyce said. “And of course, James needs to go through his things on the boat.”

“James is his son,” Keith offered. “We owned a boat with Joseph.”

“Yes, I know.” Lily winced slightly when they looked at her questioningly. “I spoke to Joseph outside my shop on the evening that he died. He told me about the yacht.”

Joyce let out a faint gasp. “What else did he say?”

“Not much.” Lily chewed on her lip, choosing her words. “He talked about how he missed his wife and how he wanted to spend more time with his grandson.”

Joyce sobbed and was immediately enveloped by her husband’s arm around her shoulder, pulling her against his side.

“Sorry,” Lily said.

“James will be devastated,” Joyce spluttered into Keith’s chest. “And poor little Thomas will be heartbroken. He adores his grandad.”

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