Marina searched the crowds as the sun climbed higher in the sky. She was well into her second hour on the splat the rat stall, but there was still no sign of Lachlan. She hadn’t realised quite how much she wanted him to turn up – for his own sake as well as hers – or how disappointed she might be if he didn’t.
On the upside, her sideshow was doing a roaring trade.
The ‘rat’ was a small furry beanbag with a woollen tail and it was her job to drop it down a piece of plastic drainpipe fixed to a painted wooden board. The goal was to whack the ‘rat’ as it shot out of the tube before it hit the ground. Each go cost fifty pence and there was a small prize for anyone who scored a direct hit.
She’d done the job before and was getting quite good at releasing the rat in such a way as to create maximum surprise for the punters. Like most fairground games, it was actually much harder than it looked because, even if the player was totally focused, they could easily miss the rat. It was also very addictive, and people often tried many times to hit the rat, resulting in a very nice build-up of funds, while families and friends egged each other on.
Once or twice, she had to admit, she’d been more focused on the possible sighting of Lachlan than defeating the customers, so two teenagers had gone away gleefully clutching their prizes. They were only bags of Haribo and Percy Pigs, but hey, everyone loved to win.
From the moment they’d opened, they’d had people of all ages, from toddlers to a ninety-year-old lady from the sheltered housing, eager to have a go. Marina had been lenient with what counted as a ‘hit’ for the tiny ones and the older lady.
‘Hello, Marina. How’s it going?’
‘Oh, hello, Craig.’
Her latest punter was Craig Illogan, one of Nate’s old fishing – aka boozing – mates. He wasn’t a bad bloke but he’d encouraged Nate’s drinking and wilder schemes. Today, he was with his wife, who Marina liked, and their son and daughter, who were both at Porthmellow Primary School.
‘I used to be really good at this when I was a lad,’ Craig declared, holding the stick as if it was a baseball bat. ‘Watch and learn, you two.’
‘You always say that, Dad,’ the little boy muttered.
His wife rolled her eyes and exchanged a smile with Marina.
After half a dozen fruitless splats, Craig was sweating and red in the face, but Marina refused to let him win just to feed his ego. He finally gave up, disgruntled, and she invited the children to have a go. She gave them some tips on how to catch the rat and managed to ensure they both scored a direct hit.
Craig’s daughter jumped up and down in delight. ‘I splatted the rat! I splatted the rat!’ the little girl said.
‘Me too. Hit him right on the nose. Did you see it, Dad?’ the boy shouted
‘Beginners’ luck,’ Craig muttered, earning himself a telling-off from his wife.
And with that, the kids skipped off with their sweets, giggling and teasing their dad, while their mother told him not to be such a bad loser.
‘Hi there.’ Lachlan stepped from behind the stall.
A frisson of pleasure rippled through her. ‘Oh, hello!’ she said, feeling flustered. ‘I didn’t see you.’
‘I’ve been here a moment. I would have come forward sooner but you were busy with that father and his family. He was getting frustrated.’
‘Oh, yes … Craig. That’s typical, I’m afraid, but he had every chance to win.’
‘Too many chances, if you ask me,’ Lachlan said.
‘Hmm.’ So, Lachlan really had been observing carefully. With the crowds and her attention focused on defeating Craig she hadn’t noticed him. ‘He’s always been the same. His own worst enemy.’
‘So he’s a local?’
‘Friend of Nate’s actually.’ She took a breath. ‘Nate was my late husband.’
His mouth opened and closed before he said, so softly she could barely hear, ‘Ah …’
‘He drowned in a boating accident seven years ago.’
‘I’m so sorry for your loss,’ he said. ‘And for speaking out of turn. I didn’t mean to disrespect the man, if he was your husband’s friend.’ Lachlan looked crestfallen so Marina took pity on him. It was always a difficult moment, hearing news like hers. She had no intention of elaborating on it and making an awkward situation worse.
‘Please don’t worry. You’re absolutely right. Craig goes over the top and he can be insensitive to his family, let alone others.’
‘Even so, I should keep my opinions to myself,’ he said, unable to conceal the dismay in his voice. Marina was used to people’s reactions but upset that Lachlan clearly felt so guilty about his comments. ‘Please don’t worry about it,’ she repeated. ‘And I’m so glad you could make the fundraiser,’ she added, keen to change the subject.
‘I told you I couldn’t keep away,’ he said, obviously relieved she hadn’t taken offence. He softened the compliment with a smile so she wasn’t quite sure if he was serious or not. She wasn’t sure about anything as far as Lachlan was concerned and she had a feeling he kept his cards very close to his chest. And what a chest it was …
Quite apart from their difficult conversation about Nate, she’d probably underestimated how nervous he was of meeting people en masse. Anyone new was bound to be an object of curiosity at first, as Tiff was probably finding, and with his obvious injuries, their curiosity could well cross the boundary to intrusiveness.
‘The lure of the tombola and the splat the rat stall were too much to resist?’
He laughed. ‘Exactly … Aaron’s a good bloke and I’d not want to let his mum down.’ He held Marina’s gaze. ‘It’s not as if I can hide away forever, is it? I’d have come earlier but I had to deal with a problem with the office IT stems.’
‘It’s OK to hide sometimes … as long it’s not forever.’
‘No.’ He glanced around. ‘How’s it going?’
‘Pretty well. The good weather helps and we’ve got lots of grockles as well as locals.’
‘Grockles?’
‘Tourists.’ She laughed.
He raised his eyebrows. ‘Do I count as a grockle?’
‘Not if you live here.’ Not if you plan on staying for any length of time, she wanted to add.
He took in the blue and orange bunting flying from the lifeboat station and the BBQ stand, which was being run by Marina’s fellow Wave Watchers. Smoke spiralled into the air and the smell of hot dogs made her nose twitch.
‘Have you eaten yet?’ he asked.
‘No time.’
‘Aaron’s gone to the barbecue. Shall I text him to get you something?’
‘That would be great. Thanks.’
Marina was grateful for a slight lull in custom while people focused on getting something to eat themselves so she could have a precious few moments to chat.
Lachlan looked around him. ‘You know, this reminds me a lot of the family days at the base and in the town. We’d have stalls like this and a hog roast, and we’d open up the hangars so the families could see what we did and have a look around the aircraft. My sister’s kids loved it …’ He gave a wry smile. ‘The weather was never this good though. It was usually raining, or about to rain. That’s the Highlands for you.’
She was pleasantly surprised he’d shared even a snippet about his background and for a few minutes they spoke about Scotland, leading Marina to wonder if he missed his homeland, despite any unhappy associations. He must surely miss his family, especially the nephew and niece he’d mentioned. At no point did he even hint at being involved with anyone on the base in the romantic sense.
She could, of course, simply ask Evie, but that would really be stepping over the line. She’d have to be patient and wait for him to tell her, unless any more information came her way by chance. Yet even if it did, she would still want to hear it from him directly. She wanted to hear from him full-stop.
She felt drawn to him and wasn’t quite sure why. Maybe it was because of the empathy she felt for him, or the fact that she thought he had a body that was fit in every sense of the word – reflecting whatever he’d been through with an austere beauty that fascinated her. She’d seen more of it than most people in Porthmellow … and she didn’t have to know him that well to have physical feelings for him every time she glimpsed him from afar or, like now, when he was close enough to touch … It was strange to feel the pull of attraction again. She hadn’t experienced it since Nate, since the ‘honeymoon’ days when they’d spent a lot of time in bed.
Her face warmed at the memory and the association with Lachlan. It unnerved her to be so powerfully drawn to him when he was so unaware.
‘Here you go. I’m starving.’ Aaron returned with the hot dogs and stayed to eat them while his partner, Ellie, went to see her sister on the wild foods stall.
Marina accepted gratefully, having not eaten since breakfast, and took a fifteen-minute break while she ate the hot dog. As soon as she’d finished, she re-opened the sideshow with a warm glow of pleasure when she realised that Lachlan showed no signs of leaving yet.
Aaron rubbed his hands together. ‘Right, mate. Let’s have a go at splatting this rat.’
Lachlan laughed. ‘Not sure I’m in a fit state to splat a marshmallow these days, but I’ll try anything once.’
Marina smiled to herself and got ready, determined to do her best to thwart them.
Aaron went first and missed all three of his goes before handing the splatter – a toy plastic baseball bat – to Lachlan. Marina watched him carefully as he waited at the bottom of the pipe to whack the furry rat. She was determined not to cut him any slack, and managed to defeat him on every round.
‘One more for luck?’ she urged, ever mindful of raising as much as possible and having an excuse to keep him there longer.
Aaron missed with his next three turns.
‘Damn! I thought I had him!’ he groaned. ‘I give up, for now. I’m off to see how Ellie’s getting on.’
Lachlan still seemed in no hurry to leave and hung around, smiling while a couple of guys from the local pub swaggered up and were also defeated. It was hard not to admire his biceps as he stood, arms crossed, waiting for his turn.
‘Another try?’ Marina asked him, half wishing she could leave her post to talk to him properly.
‘Aye.’ He grinned. ‘Why not?’
He took the bat and she poised herself with rat at the top of the pipe. He really was a sight to behold. Eddies of desire stirred low in her stomach. She had a serious crush on him.
‘Yes!’
The rat’s tail had slipped through her fingers while she’d been ogling him and he’d hit it right on target.
She let out a cry of frustration then covered it with a laugh. ‘Well done! Direct hit. Percy Pigs or Haribo?’
He laughed. ‘Thank you, but save them for the kids.’
‘We’re next!’ Two young girls lined up and Marina had to concentrate.
Lachlan drifted off. She saw him chat briefly to Tiff and buy a ticket for the tombola but he soon returned and stood nearby chatting to Dirk Meadows. Evie started to make an announcement about the auction, but people’s attention had been drawn by something in the skies over the sea. They shaded their eyes and started to point at a large red and white helicopter.
‘Now, everyone!’ Evie announced. ‘Here are our friends from the coastguard. Someone needs their help and our Wave Watchers and lifeboat crews are proud to work alongside them as volunteers. This is what we’re raising money for – to help our friends in trouble.’
Evie’s voice, strong though it was, was lost in the whirr of the rotors and engine. The helicopter was almost directly overhead and some people had their hands over their ears. Its rotors were a blur high up against the sky.
She turned to see Lachlan, a few feet away. He was transfixed by the helicopter; his arms were stiff by his sides. He seemed frozen but she could see the gleam of sweat on his face, and he was grey with terror. She’d seen something like it once before, a man having a panic attack on the steep edge of the cliff path … Lachlan was petrified.
She moved quickly, trying to reach him, but a second later, he was off, pushing past people hurrying towards the town. She followed as fast as she could, making her way past families.
‘Excuse me! Sorry. Sorry!’
The crowd thinned as the helicopter circled in a pattern she knew well. It was searching for someone near the lookout station … but that wasn’t her concern right now. There were other volunteers available to help if necessary.
It was Lachlan she was worried about, but she’d no chance of catching him – he was running along the quayside faster than she could ever hope to. Plus, she realised that in her desire to help, she’d left the sideshow and the cashbox.
This was crazy. What did she think she could do to help him, anyway?
He vanished from sight into one of the steep alleyways between the shops that led up to the top of the town. She guessed he was going home where he could feel safe.
Her attempt to draw him into the community again had backfired. Cursing herself, she hurried back to her stall where she found Aaron waiting.
‘What happened?’ he said. ‘I saw you race off. Everything OK?’
‘I’m fine, but Lachlan isn’t. I think the helicopter freaked him out.’ She looked up but the aircraft was flying away now, south-west towards the Lizard.
‘Jesus. I hadn’t realised. I thought he was doing OK,’ Aaron said.
‘What do you mean?’ Marina asked.
‘He was involved in a helicopter crash at his base … but I don’t know exactly what happened. He may be a mate but he’s not comfortable talking about it, to say the least. I tried to get him to open up but he made it very clear I should back off, so I respected that.’
‘Oh no.’ She heaved a sigh. ‘I’d no idea. I didn’t mean to make things worse for him. I ran after him straight away but I shouldn’t have. He probably wants to be alone.’
‘It’s hard to know what to do for the best, so don’t worry,’ Aaron said kindly. ‘Even so, I’ll pop up to the cottage and check on him. Thanks for letting me know.’
However much Marina wanted to make sure Lachlan was OK, she couldn’t leave her stall again, and anyway, if he didn’t want to talk to his buddy, then he certainly wouldn’t open up to a relative stranger. She returned to the sideshow, hoping to at least check he was OK as soon the opportunity presented itself.
He wasn’t the only person who wasn’t enjoying the event. Over by the tombola, Tiff was anxiously scrolling through her phone and looking almost as grey as Lachlan had.