‘It’s okay, we didn’t have any passengers,’ said Greg. ‘Waves were a bit sloppy coming back, but. Winds were against us all the way. Anyway, we weren’t out on the water all this time – we’ve been securing all the boats. Gave Ishmael an extra knot or two.’
‘You’d better come in and sit down,’ I said. ‘Hannah, move up. I’ll put on some soup.’ I fussed as if they were an inconvenience, but I was pleased to have them there. The hotel had been empty lately and their presence was reassuring.
‘Did you find any?’ Liza put down her newspaper.
‘Not a sign.’ Yoshi fumbled in her pocket and brought out a comb. ‘Something odd’s going on, Liza, I tell you. No dolphins today, either. If they go we’re all in trouble.’
‘Go where?’ Hannah lifted her head.
Liza shot Yoshi a warning look, but it was too late. ‘The dolphins are hiding out somewhere while the weather improves,’ Liza said firmly. ‘They’ll be back soon.’
‘They’re probably sheltering by the rocks,’ said Hannah. ‘I think they hide in that little cove.’
‘More than likely, Squirt,’ said Lance. ‘God, that tastes good,’ he said, as he took his first swig of a beer.
Yoshi leant round the door frame towards the kitchen. ‘Actually, Kathleen, can I have a cup of tea? I need warming up.’
I relaxed a little when I realised the worst of the storm had passed. Since I was a girl I’ve counted the seconds between thunderclaps and flashes of lightning, calculating how many miles away the storm is. It was only now I was sure that the worst was headed back out to sea that I could concentrate on the conversation around me. I still remember the storm of ’48 when two cruising ships were wrecked on our shores, and my father and the other men spent half the night out in the waters picking up survivors. They collected the dead too, but I had not discovered that until years later when my mother confessed the bodies had lain in the museum until the authorities could take them away.
Greg had sat down next to Liza. He muttered something to her, and she nodded vaguely. Then his eyes narrowed. ‘What the hell is he doing here?’ he said sharply.
Mike stood in the doorway, holding a sheaf of papers, a little taken aback to find so many people in the lounge.
‘Paying his way, Greg, just like anyone else.’ I hadn’t told Greg about Mike’s return. I’d figured he’d find out eventually with no input from me, and that it was none of his business.
As I looked now at Liza’s studied indifference, I guessed she had reasoned the same.
Greg made as if to say more, but something in my expression must have stilled him. He gave an audible harrumph and settled into the sofa beside Liza.
Mike walked over to me. ‘The phone lines appear to have gone down,’ he said quietly. ‘I can’t get an Internet connection.’
‘They often do in heavy rain,’ I said. ‘Sit tight, and they’ll be back later. The rain won’t last all night.’
‘What are you doing? Trying to ruin some more businesses?’
‘Leave it, Greg,’ Liza snapped.
‘Why are you defending him? How can you even have him sit here, given what he’s done?’ Greg’s voice had risen to an unattractive whine, and he glared at Mike.
‘I’m not defending him.’
‘You should have slung him out on his ear.’
‘If it was any of your business—’ Liza began.
‘I’m trying to clear up the mess,’ said Mike. ‘Okay? I’m no longer attached to Beaker Holdings. I want to get the development stopped.’
‘Yeah, you say that—’
‘What the hell do you mean?’
Greg looked at me. ‘How do you know he’s not a plant?’
The idea had never occurred to me.
‘His company must know there’s opposition brewing. What’s to stop them sending him here to suss out what’s going on?’
Mike took a step towards him, his voice lowered. ‘Are you calling me a liar?’
I held my breath, feeling the atmosphere start to spin.
Greg’s English accent was mocking: ‘Are you calling me a liar?’
‘I’ve had just about enough of—’
‘Yes, I’m calling you a liar. And howsabout deceiver, cheating, stinking pen-pusher, spiv—’
It was Greg who threw the first punch, his left fist slicing through the air to catch Mike a glancing blow to the side of his head. He stumbled and Greg swung his fist again, but Lance stepped between them, blocking it with an audible grunt. Mike squared up immediately, fists raised. ‘Back off!’ Lance shouted, swinging round and pushing Mike backwards, inadvertently knocking over a side table. ‘For heaven’s sake, back off!’
My heart was thumping so hard I felt almost dizzy. I froze as my room shrank around the men. There seemed to be furniture crashing and people shouting everywhere.
Mike lifted his hand to his face, saw blood on his fingers, and lunged forward. ‘You bastard—’
Yoshi screamed.
‘Stop it! You’re pathetic, the pair of you.’ Liza, on her feet between them, threw up her hands. ‘Get out! You hear me? I won’t have this in my house. I won’t have it.’ She was pushing at Greg, trying to eject him from the living room.
‘What the hell did I do?’ he yelled, as she and Lance manoeuvred him towards the kitchen.
‘I don’t have to take this crap from you!’ Mike shouted.
It was only when they were in separate rooms that my breathing slowed.
‘Jesus Christ,’ said Lance, stepping back into the room. ‘Jesus Christ.’ Mike shook off his arm and began mopping at his cheekbone with a handkerchief. As he stooped to right the side table, I could hear the sound of my niece and Greg engaged in a shouting match in the kitchen.
It was then I noticed Hannah. She was huddled in a corner of the settee, clutching Milly. ‘Sweetie,’ I said, trying to make my own voice steady, ‘it’s okay. It’s just the storm making everyone cranky.’
‘They’re not going to fight again, are they?’ Her brown eyes were wide with fear. ‘Please don’t let them fight.’
I glanced up and Mike was staring at her, horrified by the effect on her of what had happened.
‘Hannah, it’s okay,’ he said. ‘Nothing to be frightened of.’
She was staring at him as if she didn’t know him any more.