Page 119 of Secrets and Seashells at Rainbow Bay
‘Very me meaning . . . very sexy?’
I grin at him. ‘Perhaps.’
My phone beeps in my pocket. ‘He’s here,’ I say, looking at the message from Benji. ‘Brace yourself.’
We wait in the courtyard for Benji and Arthur to escort Toby up the path, in through the archway and under the portcullis.
And as I see the small party appear in the courtyard, I suddenly realise what my ancestors must have felt like when they saw enemies about to invade their home.
‘Ah, here’s our wonderful leader,’ Benji says, as he leads a tall but lanky man towards us wearing an ill-fitting plain grey suit. ‘Amelia, I’d like you to meet Toby. Toby, this is Amelia.’
I just stare at the man in front of me, and he does the same to me.
‘Hello, Amelia,’ he says eventually. ‘It’s been a while.’
‘Hello, Toby,’ I reply, my voice barely audible. ‘Or should I call you Graham?’
Forty-five
Tom and Benji stand silently next to us as the stare-off continues.
‘Do you two already know each other?’ Benji finally asks.
‘You could say that,’ I reply, still glaring at the man opposite.
‘Wait,’ Tom suddenly asks. ‘You called him Graham. Is hethatGraham?’
I nod.
‘What Graham?’ Benji asks, looking perplexed. ‘This is Toby.’
‘That’s what you’re calling yourself now, is it?’ I say scathingly. ‘I heard you’d changed your name, amongstotherthings.’
‘Please, I really don’t understand. Whatisgoing on here?’ Benji asks again.
‘This . . .person,’ Tom says carefully, ‘is Amelia’s ex-husband, I believe. The one that abandoned her and Charlie.’
Graham glances warily at Tom, sensing his anger.
‘What? No, it can’t be,’ Benji says, sounding horrified. ‘Toby?’
‘It’s true,’ Graham says. ‘I’m sorry, Benji, but when you told me all aboutChesterfordCastle, and mentioned the owner was called Amelia and she had a son called Charlie, I just knew it had to be them. Amelia is right: when I left her I changed my name to Toby so I could start afresh without anyone knowing me.’
‘I ought to knock your block off,’ Tom says, squaring up to him. ‘How could you just abandon them like that? Whatever your issues were, you were a coward running away from your problems.’
‘What would you know?’ Graham says, looking angrily at Tom. To my surprise he doesn’t back away from him, even though Tom is taller, broader and would surely throw a far harder punch than Graham could muster. ‘Look at you; you couldn’t possibly understand what I went through.’
‘Actually, I do understand,’ Tom says. ‘I understand a lot more than you think I do. But you still shouldn’t have walked away, leaving your wife and son like that. Have you no honour, man?’
‘Tom, I appreciate you standing up for me like this, really I do,’ I say, putting my hand across his chest to pull him back a little, ‘but I’m strong enough to fight my own battles.’
Tom glares at Graham again before stepping away.
Benji is standing back from us a little, looking extremely agitated.
‘Benji, did you know?’ I ask him.
Benji shakes his head, clearly perplexed.
