Page 81 of Someone in the Water
31st July
‘Is she there?’ I ask, my voice trembling. Why the hell did I let myself get distracted? My eyes flit across the room, powered by panic and guilt. But the crowd has thinned to a few groups of people finishing up their wine.
Dom shakes his head. ‘I’ve searched the whole bar, and the courtyard at the front. Maybe she’s out the back?’
‘I already checked out there. And the toilets. She’s not here.’
‘Can you check her location on your phone?’ he asks.
I shake my head, dig my nails into my palm. Why did I buy her such a cheap phone with no option to download apps?
‘Can you call her?’
‘Yes,’ I breathe. I fumble for my phone, press on her number. It rings out. Has it run out of battery again? Or is she in trouble? ‘No answer.’ The words catch in my throat as I think about the narrow alleyway we walked through to get to the bar. How threatening it felt. I imagine Lola lying on the cold flagstones, her chest oozing blood like the eagle owl in my dream.
But I need to hold it together. ‘Is Patrick here?’ I ask. ‘He’ll know where she is.’
‘Patrick?’ Dom looks confused.
‘They’re …’ I struggle for the right words. ‘Having a holiday romance.’
‘Oh right. Well, he’s a good kid. Came and visited his grandfather loads when Salvo got sick. And you’re right, I’m pretty sure he’s not here either. But that’s good news, right? Them just having a little private moment somewhere close by?’
‘Yes,’ I whisper, desperately hoping he’s right. ‘That will be it.’
‘Look, there’s Anna. Let’s see if she knows where they are.’
I let Dom guide me past the dwindling group of mourners. Anna is standing with Raphael. His ebony hair is swept away from his face and his eyes have narrowed, like two black slashes on a sallow face. He must sense me staring because he turns slightly. Our eyes catch and his shine with hatred.
Maybe there was something going on between him and Izzy all those years ago. It’s difficult to believe she had strong feelings for him; she was such a free spirit. But maybe he fell hard for her. Could all this be about a broken heart?
But Raphael is in here, I remind myself. Not outside hunting my daughter.
Does that mean Lola is safe? Or are my instincts wrong again?
‘Hey, guys,’ Dom says. He’s trying to be cheerful, and it sounds so out of place, but still, I try to match it with a smile. ‘We’re looking for Lola,’ he goes on. ‘Have you seen her?’
Anna nods. ‘Yes, she and Patrick left together. Lola wanted to tell you, so that you wouldn’t worry, but apparently you two were having a pretty intense – her words – conversation and she didn’t want to interrupt.’
I want Anna’s words to soothe me, my daughter’s thoughtfulness, but I won’t feel better until I find her. ‘Where did they go?’ But before Anna gets chance to answer, a phone bursts into life, making me jump.
Raphael pulls out his phone and squints at the screen. Then he backs away a few feet and twists around as he puts it to his ear. I look back at Anna.
‘I think he’s taken Lola to the vineyard,’ she says. ‘It’s only ten minutes away in the car, and Patrick probably wanted to show it off. He loves that place, poor kid.’ She sighs – it sounds like Anna knows more about Salvo’s will than Patrick does – then looks up. ‘Anyway, it seems that Raphael is otherwise engaged, so I better go and settle up with the bar, if you’ll excuse me.’
‘A car journey away,’ I say, as Anna glides off with her usual elegance.
‘I can take you,’ Dom cuts in. ‘But I’ll need to ask Raphael for directions; I’ve never been there.’
‘No, not him.’ But as I shake my head, an idea spills out. ‘We can ask Jack.’
‘Jack?’
I know Patrick asked me to keep it a secret, but this is an emergency. ‘Jack owns half the vineyard.’
‘He does?’ Dom looks at me in confusion.
I turn, grab his arm. ‘Can we just find him?’
