It was easy to believe the world had ceased to exist. Beyond the twin pools of light there was nothing but black, and Harri convinced herself that if she veered off the narrow country lane, the car would tumble into a void. There were no stars in the sky; obscured by clouds, perhaps? Or lost to the endless abyss? She was glad she wasn’t alone. Not that Sabih was much company. He’d fallen asleep on the drive through Hanley, and his chest was rising and falling to the rhythm of a dream. At least she’d have someone’s hand to hold if she drove them off the edge of the world.
But I don’t want his hand, she thought. I want Ben’s.
She was conflicted, traveling to investigate a man she still loved. How could she begin to be objective? What would she do if they discovered compelling evidence of his involvement in Elizabeth Asha’s death? Police procedure was clear, but as a private citizen she didn’t have to declare the conflict to Sabih, and that made her feel worse. Ashamed and a little guilty.
She followed the road round a bend and finally saw light up ahead. She relaxed almost instantly and thought it was funny that a single bulb or candle against a vast backdrop of nothing could have that effect. Wasn’t that the essence of hope? Optimism against overwhelming odds. A distant light touched something even more primal. It was a sign we weren’t alone and that others were also determined to hold back the void. It was a symbol of shared hope.
She drove towards it, and a few minutes later she pulled to a halt just before the driveway that led to Longhaven, the Asha family home.
Sabih stretched, yawned, and smacked his lips as he woke up.
“Where the hell are we?” He looked around in mock dismay. “This really is the middle of nowhere.”
Harri switched off the headlights and the world was lost to darkness. Only the single window in the farthest corner of Longhaven resisted the night.
“A kid lives here?” Sabid asked. “What the heck is there to do? Count all the nothing?”
They got out and walked up the drive to the cottage. Harri knocked. A few moments later, Cynthia Hughes opened the door. Her face fell the instant she registered who was calling.
“Mr. Elmys said you’d be back.”
“Did he?” Harri asked.
“He says you’ve got a thing for him.” Cynthia smiled. “That you still fancy him. You’ve got to move on. This family’s suffered enough. The boys don’t need you coming here with ideas of revenge. I know it’s hard, love, but you’ve got to accept he’s not interested.”
Harri flushed. This was an excruciating humiliation. It was bad enough to have been rejected by the man, but to be chastised by the housekeeper in front of Sabih was too much.
“We’re here investigating a suspicious death,” Sabih said, producing his warrant card and saving her from further embarrassment. “Detective Sergeant Sabih Khan.”
“I don’t have anything to say,” Cynthia replied.
“Is Mr. Elmys home?” Harri asked, regaining her composure.
“No.”
“Will he be back later?” Harri pressed.
“He’s on a research trip.”
“I thought he’d left the university,” Harri remarked.
“It’s his own research. For a personal project,” Cynthia replied.
“Does he take many of these trips?” Sabih asked.
Harri could see he was thinking along the same lines as her. A scientist without a job going on late-night research trips could be up to all sorts of mischief.
“Take your search for scandal somewhere else,” Cynthia replied. “These lads have been through enough. These are good people. This is a good house.”
She started to shut the door, but Harri put her foot in the gap and stopped her. She couldn’t bear the thought of coming away with nothing. She had to know the truth, but she wasn’t sure which one was of more interest. The truth about what happened to David and Beth Asha? Or the truth about why Ben had ghosted her?
“Can I use your toilet?”
Cynthia eyed her with suspicion.
“We’ve been driving for ages, and it’s a long way back to civilization.”
Cynthia didn’t respond.
“Please,” Harri said. “Don’t make me go by the side of the road. Not in the dark.”
Cynthia looked at Sabih. “You stay here.”
Harri glanced at him, and he shrugged.
Cynthia opened the door and allowed Harri inside. The hallway had a black slate floor and was lined with full-length bookcases. The shelves were packed, mostly with nonfiction science books, which stood behind photographs of David and Beth Asha and their son, Elliot. They looked like a kindly, happy couple, and the love they had for Elliot was clear in every picture.
“Must be difficult for the boy to grow up surrounded by memories of his parents,” Harri observed.
“Where else would he go? This is his home,” Cynthia replied. “Here it is.”
She stopped outside a dark wooden door. The brass handle gleamed like a honey sun and reflected a miniature figure. Harri glanced to her right and saw Elliot sitting on the floor of a large room, surrounded by papers and A3 pages covered in scribblings.
“Mind your business,” Cynthia said crossly, and as she reached for the door, Elliot turned and caught Harri’s eye. He kept his gaze fixed on her, and his eyes burned like a couple of coals blazing in a hearth.
Does he hate me? Harri wondered as the door clicked shut.
“Well, go on then,” Cynthia urged.
Harri stepped into the small room and found an old-fashioned brass-lever light switch. She flipped it on before closing the door and sliding the lock into place.
The tiny room was lined with family photographs, and Harri studied them carefully. The biggest was on the wall beside the mirror, and it was the only one that featured the three Ashas with Ben Elmys. He was as handsome as ever, and the photograph captured some of the charms that had attracted Harri the first time they’d met, but the warmth and kindness that had struck her were absent. The others were smiling, but he seemed angry, and she got the sense he was looking out of the image and accusing her. She caught sight of her reflection and told herself not to be such a sensationalist. It was just one bad photo.
Then she saw it, hanging on the other side of the mirror, by the door. A picture frame, but this one wasn’t home to a photograph. Instead, there was a piece of paper with words printed in a font Harri recognized. She stepped closer to read it.
At the edge you stand
Searching for truth
From Elsewhere
I watch and wait
Back turned
Soul distant
But I keep faith
Now and forever
We will be together
When this life is done