The downpour hadn’t ceased, but it had definitely lessened. Helena had been dozing on the bed. Having camped for a succession of nights, the luxury of a mattress had proved too enticing for her aching limbs.
As the thick cloud parted, a shaft of sunlight had invaded her room and woken her. Rising from the bed, she’d surveyed the weather prospects, deciding that a walk as far as a signal was now a possibility, if not as far as the stones themselves.
She retrieved her mobile and headed downstairs.
Megan spotted her descent. ‘When do you want to eat?’
‘I was just going to check my mobile. When I get back?’
‘Fish and chips do? Fish freshly caught this morning.’
‘Sounds great.’ And it did. Helena’s stomach rumbled in anticipation. At the price she’d been quoted, she could add on a pint of lager.
She took herself down the road following Megan’s directions, keeping an eye on her mobile screen. The road ahead rose to top a hill with a great view of a deep glen heading west. Higher hills rose to either side, explaining the blocked signals. But here she had a couple of bars, possibly enough.
A series of pings suggested she was right.
Helena scanned the list eagerly, but none of them were from the puppetmaster. However, there were a couple of missed calls from her flatmate Jolene and a text. Helena clicked it open.
Call me.
Helena was pretty sure it would be about the rent. She’d told Jolene she would be back on Wednesday and would pay it then. So, she was three days late. What was the big deal?
She flicked through the others, but there was nothing worth reading.
A surge of guilty conscience made her write a swift reply to Jolene.
Back Sunday. No worries.
That should keep Jolene off her back.
She stood for a bit, silently wishing that another more interesting message would arrive. Eventually she gave up. She would head back and eat, then try a little later. As though to urge her on, another sweep of rain was heading her way. The glen was no longer visible, it and the neighbouring mountains swathed in black cloud.
Helena turned and made her way swiftly back towards the hotel.