Page 26 of Second Chance Summer
‘I had no choice,’ he said, then quickly corrected himself. ‘I mean, I needed to build the retreat, for all kinds of reasons,’ he muttered. ‘Let’s go inside.’
Intrigued by his comment, Lily walked inside, staring up at the clear blue skies surrounded by granite walls. Sheimagined people – sick and perhaps dying – looking through the windows, wondering when – or if – they might ever escape these four walls. She shuddered and hugged herself.
‘Those poor sailors. Imagine being abandoned here.’
‘Yes, and some people want me to leave it as a memorial to them.’
‘Will you?’
‘I’d prefer to breathe new life into it, give it a purpose that benefits the living and future generations. If all goes well, this place would be further staff accommodation.’
‘Won’t the staff think it’s creepy?’
‘I’m hoping they’ll be more relieved they have a decent place to live. I was planning to create four bedsits in it with a communal area. With the other studio above reception, that’ll provide accommodation for me and five more people during the season.’
‘You certainly have ambition,’ Lily said, admiring his pragmatism.
‘I’ve never thought I was ambitious. It’s more of a passion – a compulsion. I’ve always wanted to resurrect the island but never dared to.’
‘Until now. What made you decide to go for it?’
‘I don’t know …’ He stopped. ‘Let’s just say that my life took an unexpected turn.’
‘A good one?’ Lily murmured.
‘Not really. I didn’t think so at the time.’
‘And now?’
He kicked at a pebble. ‘It was what it was. I simply came to accept I couldn’t change what had happened. The oldpath was barred forever, and I had no choice but to walk down a new one – or stagnate. I decided that wasn’t for me. It never has been.’
They both fell into silence. The lonely walls, the isolated yet beautiful spot … the contrast of a dark past with the bright promise of a summer’s day … all of it threatened to overwhelm Lily. Sam seemed to be affected too, standing by the wall, gazing out at the vastness of the sea before snapping out of his trance-like state.
‘Come on, I think we’ve had enough doom and gloom. The pest house can wait for now, let me show you something special.’ He smiled. ‘I think it will be exactly what you need.’
CHAPTER EIGHT
Sam’s ‘something special’ was, indeed, exactly what she needed.
For an hour or so, Lily had been completely entranced by the sight of seals basking on the rocks and cute puffins flying in and out of their burrows in the cliffs with their beaks full of sand eels to feed their pufflings. The idea of new life being born around this rugged coast gave her a warm glow. She could see how the natural beauty of Stark would cast a healing spell on anyone.
Even its owner had smiled more in the past hour than he had in the rest of the time since she’d arrived on the island. By the time she’d returned to the retreat hub, she was feeling energised and buzzing with creative inspiration.
While Sam went to work on a nearby cottage, Lily collected her sketch pad and a sandwich and set off to explore on her own. Avoiding the pest house, she returned instead to the cliffs where they’d seen the puffins. The breeze had freshened but the sun was still dazzlingly bright.
She found a sheltered spot on a low grassy bluff out of the wind, kicked off her trainers and sat in the shelter of a large boulder. The granite warmed her back and the sunbrought a pleasant glow to her bare legs. Waves rolled into the cove a few feet below, with soothing regularity. Who in the world had a whole island all to themself? Or almost totally to themself.
She started to sketch, absorbed in capturing the scene, yet after only a few minutes, she was muttering in frustration that she couldn’t do it justice.
She tried again on a fresh sheet of paper … and again … until she was on her sixth attempt.
Flinging down the sketch pad, she let out a cry of frustration. ‘Arghhhhh!’
No one could hear her. It had felt cathartic, so she shouted again. ‘Arghhhh!’
Maybe she needed fresh inspiration. Ahead of her, she found it. Along the beach, beyond a headland, she came across a tiny cove with turquoise water glittering in a pool. The rocks surrounding it shimmered with bright green weed and cormorants perched offshore, drying their batlike wings in the sun.
Lily was seized by the urge to capture the scene. It only took a moment for her to scramble down the few feet to the beach, which was even more beautiful close up. The sand was strewn with tiny shells, in delicate shades of palest pink and cream. She hadn’t beachcombed for years and couldn’t resist popping a few shells into the pocket of her shorts. Soon, she’d abandoned her sketch pad and paints on a rock and given herself over to shell collecting.
