Page 114 of The Matchmaker
But now Noah is staring up at Callum with something akin to awe. “In the face or the stomach?”
“The fa—”
“Okay.” Gemma slaps her hands over his ears. “Come on, we’ll miss the show.”
“But—”
“No.”
She takes him by the shoulders and pushes him back toward the pub. Nush lingers.
“Did he cry?”
“I’ll see you inside, Anushka,” I say, and she looks disappointed, but takes the hint.
“I’m getting the feeling the macho thing doesn’t really work for you,” Callum says, when I turn back to him.
“I didn’t saythat,” I mutter, and he grins. “I just don’t want you to hurt yourself. Or your brother.”
“He had it coming,” he says calmly. “And when he wants to apologize to you, we can talk about it. But not until then.”
“Well.” I finish my inspection of his hand, satisfied he hasn’t damaged it, but not exactly sure what it would look like if he did. “Thank you for protecting my honor.”
“Anytime, Katie Collins.”
“We ready to go?” Nush makes a show of pointing to an imaginary watch and gestures toward the pub. Right. Procession. Fireworks.
“I’m going to have champagne,” I say decidedly, and Callum nods like that is a great idea (which it is) and leads me back inside. Thankfully, not many people noticed our absence. Another viral argument probably wouldn’t go my way this time and I slip through the crowd as Bridget starts checking off people on the list. But no sooner have the first people left the pub than the lights flicker above us, sending us briefly into darkness.
Confusion reigns for an instant and then the crowd gasps as one (some of the more overdramatic among us let out a little scream) as the music cuts out and the lights flicker off for good.
Blackout.
A goddamnblackout.
I freeze as nervous laughter gives way to panicked murmurings. I hadn’t prepared for this. A resident of Ennisbawn all of my life and I hadn’t prepared for a blackout.
I suppose we’ve been lucky really to have escaped them for so long and I glance around, waiting for someone to say something and tell us what to do, only to belatedly realize thatI’mthe person that’s meant to do it.
“Get up there,” Gemma hisses, her phone to her ear, hopefully on the line to the electricity company, and I turn with a gulp toward the stage, climbing the steps before I can lose my nerve.
“Um…excuse me? Hello?” My voice grows surer as more people than I’d expected turn to me, seeking guidance.
Project, Nush mouths to me, and I straighten my shoulders like she’s always told me to, calling to be heard with no microphone.
“My name is Katie Collins, and I’m the organizer of this festival. We get these. I’d love to say that this was planned or that we should think of it as romantic, but it’s not. It’s annoying and also a health and safety risk to have people stumble around in the dark. I’m sure you can understand why we have to cut short this evening’s festivities for these reasons.” I pause, using the disappointed grumbles to take a breath. “If everyone could just stay here for the time being, I’d like to do a headcount and then we’ll make sure to get you back to your hotels and accommodation safely. Thank you for bearing with us.”
I quickly climb down while the going is good. I thought I’d be swarmed with people asking questions, but I must have been pretty clear because everyone just kind of lingers in clumps. A few of them even seem to be enjoying themselves, but I can’t shake my worry. The last thing we need is for someone to trip and break their ankle in the dark and sue us for all it’s worth.
“I read a thriller about this happening,” one woman near me mutters, which does not help things.
I jump when someone touches my elbow, but it’s only Callum.
“You okay?”
“I’m fine. Just…” I gesture around me, and he nods.
“We need to make sure everyone gets home safe,” I say. “Let’s contact the hotels and a taxi service and explain what’s going on. Get them to send any cars they have to collect people. We need staff out in hi-vis jackets on the roads and we need to cordon off the paths so we don’t have anyone wandering off and getting lost. Shut the bar and food service down unless anyone needs water. And then we’ll see where we go from there.”
