‘I’ll go. Get well.’ The click of the door as it closed. Patricia squeezed her eyes shut. She had no idea what was going on in Castle House or what would happen to her, but in that moment, without him, she found she missed Edward. Her Edward.
NOW
A skeletal, needle-free Christmas tree leaned against the hedge, a few strands of forgotten tinsel fluttering in the breeze. Elizabeth sighed. Her accommodation for the night didn’t seem promising.
Brian had picked her up from Abbey Court and taken her back to her car in Muirinish. She had asked him about Edward’s marital history but Brian knew nothing. Perhaps his aunt would know more. She followed him in her own car the four or five miles along the coast road till they came to a small cluster of houses. There were two street lights but no sign giving the place an actual name. Brian told her that it was just known locally as Coakley’s Cross but it lacked the pub or shop or chapel that might have elevated it to the status of an actual village.
He led her from the cars to a gate that two houses shared. One was brightly lit and looked freshly painted, while the other was a nondescript bungalow that had seen much better days. Above the abandoned Christmas tree, hanging baskets of dead plants were hung from either side of the shallow porch. Of course this house turned out to be the one belonging to his aunt.
‘Brian!’ The old lady at the door seemed surprised to see her nephew.
‘Auntie Eileen, this is Elizabeth, the woman I told you about.’
Hands were wiped on an apron and then a thin bony paw was held out to be shaken.
‘Nice to meet you, I’m sure.’ Her pale eyes were magnified by her thick glasses so that every blink was like a camera shutter closing. Elizabeth was mesmerised by her.
‘Thanks so much for taking me in.’
Eileen held her head back to get a better look at her visitor through her bifocals. Then she turned and gave her nephew a quizzical glance.
‘I rang earlier.’ Brian was speaking very slowly and clearly. ‘I explained that Elizabeth needed a bed for the night. You said she could stay. Remember?’
The old woman bristled with indignation.
‘Of course I remember! Come in out of the cold. You are very welcome …’ Her voice trailed away.
‘Elizabeth.’
‘Of course, of course. Come in.’
Elizabeth took a step forward but realised that Brian was staying where he was. She turned to him.
‘Thanks, then.’
‘You’re very welcome. Nice to meet you. Sleep well and safe travels.’
‘Thanks. Take care.’
They both hesitated. Was this the moment for a handshake, a hug, a peck on the cheek? It seemed that none of those felt exactly right, as Brian gave an apologetic shrug and started to walk back to his car.
Elizabeth’s heart sank. She did not relish the thought of her night ahead with only Auntie Eileen for company.
‘Close the door. Keep the heat in!’ a voice from within commanded. Elizabeth painted a smile on her face and strode forward. A hall the size of a phone box forced her through the only open door into a dimly lit sitting room. A single bar on an electric heater glowed orange while above it a coal-effect fire moved in slow waves. In the corner of the room the light from a silent television spilled over the small two-seater sofa and a low coffee table, with a half-finished crossword abandoned on it.
‘In here!’ Eileen’s voice called from the door at the other end of the room. Elizabeth was momentarily blinded when she stepped into the bright glare of the kitchen. It was a narrow room but down one wall was a large aquarium. It hummed and the blue-green light spilling from it gave Auntie Eileen the pallor of a Halloween ghoul.
‘Goodness!’ Elizabeth expressed her surprise at finding this enormous tank in such a small room.
‘Beautiful, isn’t it? They all belong to Johnny.’
It crossed Elizabeth’s mind to ask who Johnny was but almost at once she realised that she had no interest in finding out more about him.
The two women stood and watched the small bright fish swimming with purpose on the other side of the expanse of glass.
‘I could watch them all day.’ Auntie Eileen turned and smiled at her visitor. Her large exaggerated eyes reminded Elizabeth of the fish in the tank.
‘I’m sure you could. Very soothing.’ Though Elizabeth wondered how anyone could ever relax in this room lit up like a nuclear reactor.
The old lady scraped a chair back from the Formica-topped table.
‘You’ll have a seat.’ Elizabeth sat down, while the old lady leaned against the draining board of the sink.