Looking down, Jake discovered Marcus sitting on the dampgrass to one side of the gap, his back against the hedge, knees drawn up to his chin. Jake rolled his eyes. ‘For goodness’ sake – why didn’t you say something so that I knew you were there!’ Jake kicked him again, intentionally this time.
‘I just did!’
‘No, I meant when I first walked into the garden. I thought I was alone. This isn’t one of those places that you … well, you know.’ He crouched down opposite Marcus.
‘Thought I was a ghost, did you?’ Marcus said through chattering teeth.
Jake reached out and put a hand on Marcus’s shoulder. ‘Are you intending to sit here all night?’ It was cold, and Marcus had no coat. Jake got up. ‘Come on let’s get out of here.’
‘Jake, I …’ Whatever Marcus was going to say was lost in the attempt to stand up.
Jake watched him take a few faltering steps before grabbing Marcus’s right arm and swinging it around his shoulder. With the other arm wrapped around Marcus’s waist, Jake guided him back up the garden into the beams of light from the waiting car. He was thinking about Marcus’s arrest. In hindsight, Jake had realised that Marcus would not have taken anything with him on the flight or in his luggage – he wasn’t that stupid. So, he must have made arrangements to get hold of something when he landed. Then he had found himself incarcerated overnight in the police station at Inverness with no chance of meeting up with the contact and spending an inordinate amount of money on illegal drugs. And now he was going cold turkey. Jake knew this had not come about through choice.
The police officer was right; if he was any sort of friend, he would get him some help. But they weren’t brothers, and they weren’t friends – not anymore. And yet for all Jake’s desire to see Marcus suffer for his role in Eleanor’s death, the reality of seeing Marcus in such a state was having an unexpected side-effect – Jake was hurting too.
Jake helped Marcus into the front seat of the car and toyed with the idea of asking Gayle to take a look at him when they got back. He got in the car next to Marcus and reversed in an arc away from the gardens.
‘What was that?’ said Marcus.
Jake stopped the car.
‘Did you hear it?’ Marcus turned to Jake.
Jake sat very still and listened intently; there were noises coming from the house.
He put the gear shift in neutral, handbrake on, switched to main beam and opened the car door.
Marcus grabbed his arm. ‘Where are you going?’
‘To take a look. Do you mind?’ said Jake, glancing his way. With the car door open and the interior light on, Jake got a good look at Marcus; he didn’t look well. He was deathly pale, and beads of sweat lined his forehead above black sunken eyes.
Marcus released his grip on Jake’s arm.
Jake got out and stood for a moment, staring at the house. The sight that confronted him was fast approaching the state of Gayle’s house before Robyn had worked her miracle. Jake was amazed at the state of the house. From what he could see, a couple of exterior window shutters had come loose and were swinging in the wind. The paint on the windows was peeling, and a large crack had spread across one of the window panes in the lounge. The glass would need replacing And that was just the downstairs. The upstairs, not illuminated by the headlights, disappeared in a sea of black.
How could a house go downhill like this in such a short space of time? He couldn’t recall the last time the exterior of the house had been painted. As a family, the Rosses had all led busy lives. Hiring a decorator for a holiday home was perhaps not up there on their list of top priorities. At Christmas, he doubted anyonehad really been paying attention to the exterior of the house when they’d all arrived; thoughts of redecorating would have been far from their minds.
Jake heard a loud bang coming from the direction of the house. He ducked his head instinctively and moved out of the glare of the headlight around the side of the car. He looked into the passenger window at Marcus, who had heard it too; he was hunkered down in his seat.
Something banged again.
Jake moved towards the house, but the headlights suddenly went dim. Jake glanced back at the car. Marcus had dipped the headlights and was watching him intently, shaking his head from side to side and motioning for him to get back in the car. Jake ignored him and moved stealthily across the shingle drive, wincing at every crunching step.
At the back of the house, Jake relaxed and stood up straight, grabbing the kitchen door before it swung shut again in the wind. Stepping into the kitchen, he scuffed a pile of dead leaves that had blown in through the open door. He flicked a light switch, but the electricity was out. Jake knew where to find the fuse box, but he didn’t fancy breaking his neck on the steep cellar steps.
He stepped outside and shut the door.
‘What did you find?’ said Marcus as Jake got back in the car.
‘It was just the kitchen door banging in the wind.’ Jake threw the gearshift into first and headed back around the side of the house.
Marcus turned to look out of the back window as they drove down the driveway. Then he faced the front again and turned to Jake. ‘We should have had the place decorated or something. I’m surprised how it’s deteriorated in the last few months.’
Jake nodded.
‘What did it look like inside?’
‘I don’t know.’
