The Survivors(20)

‘Are you doing okay?’ Kieran asked Sean.

‘Yeah. I dunno.’ He rubbed a hand over his face. ‘God, this is all so wrong. What are they saying in town?’

‘Nothing important.’

‘Yeah, right.’ Sean turned back to the water. ‘I can guess.’

Kieran looked over at Olivia, who was wiping her face with a tissue. Ash was rubbing her back.

‘She’d forgotten her yoga mat,’ Ash said to Kieran quietly, and Olivia looked up.

‘That’s how you found Bronte?’ Kieran said to her and she nodded.

‘Mum hadn’t slept well so we were going to the early class. They usually run out of mats, though, so we stopped by my place on the way. Mum waited outside in the car – oh my God.’ Olivia put her hands to her eyes. ‘Can you imagine if Mum had come with me and seen her?’ She looked ill at the thought. ‘I was only going to run in and out, but Bronte’s bedroom door was open, which was a bit weird because it was still early. And I couldn’t hear her in the house, so –’

She stopped. The only sounds were the water lapping against the boats and the distant call of gulls.

‘I could tell from the back door handle that it was unlocked. So I went outside, to see if she was having a coffee or something.’ Olivia stared at the shredded tissue. ‘I saw her lying near the water. She was still in her work clothes. She must have been out there on her own, all night.’

A silence followed.

‘Liv.’ Sean’s voice was quiet, his eyes still on the waves. ‘Did Renn say what they thought had happened?’

‘No.’ Olivia shook her head. ‘But at the station I overheard one of the cops from Hobart say they thought Bronte had been out on the beach for at least five or six hours, so I think that’s why –’ Olivia glanced at Sean, who didn’t look back. ‘– why they wanted to talk to Liam.’

‘Right.’ A shadow crossed Sean’s face. ‘Did they ask about anything else, or was it just Liam?’

‘Other things. They wanted to know if Bronte had a boyfriend. I told them about that guy she was seeing earlier in the summer.’ She looked at Ash. ‘You know, that tourist? Marco something. I couldn’t remember his last name.’

‘That Spanish bloke who was really loud in bed?’ Ash shook his head. ‘I wouldn’t even have remembered his first name. I’ve managed to block him out.’

The way Ash said it made Kieran think he remembered the guy quite well.

‘He was Portuguese, not Spanish.’ Olivia looked down. ‘Probably doesn’t matter, he’s been gone for weeks anyway.’

‘Is there a chance that bloke had anything to do with Bronte hearing noises at night?’ Kieran said. ‘Maybe him coming around to visit her? Bother her?’

Sean looked over at that, as Olivia frowned and shook her head.

‘I think he’d left before that started. The cops were very interested in why Bronte hadn’t reported it, though. Or me. I mean, God –’ She rubbed her eyes. ‘I said I obviously wish we had.’

Ash frowned. ‘You didn’t do anything wrong, Liv.’

‘Didn’t I?’ A gust of wind blew through the marina and the empty masts whistled and swayed. ‘If I’d been there –’

Ash shook his head sharply. ‘No. If you’d been there last night, who knows what might have happened?’

‘Maybe nothing would have happened.’

‘Yeah, or maybe it would.’

They all fell quiet. Kieran could hear the dock creak as the boats rocked and resettled. Beyond the trees, the red brick of the police station was visible.

‘Do you always stay with your mum on Saturday nights?’ he asked.

‘Lately I have been. If I’m not working we’ll watch a movie or something. Go to yoga in the morning.’

‘So people might know that was a regular thing?’ Kieran said. ‘That Bronte would be alone in the house?’

Olivia went very still. ‘Yeah. I suppose some people might.’

‘People do know that, Liv.’ Sean’s voice was caught by the wind. He didn’t look over as he spoke. ‘Most people who know you, know that.’

Olivia stared at him, her face tense. Then she blinked hard. ‘Oh my God, I wish I’d –’

‘Stop.’ Ash’s voice was firm. ‘Stop that now.’

Olivia fell silent but Kieran could guess what she was thinking. The road not travelled. He had enough of those thoughts himself, and they never led anywhere good.

‘Ash is right,’ he said, and Olivia looked up. ‘I know you know that, Liv, but it’s true. I mean, Mia and I sat on the beach for twenty minutes last night. If we’d walked back along the sand instead of –’

Kieran stopped, remembering the walk home. Dark and still, and then, all of a sudden, not.

‘What?’ Sean said.

‘We saw a car. Last night. Driving way too fast not far from Fisherman’s Cottage.’

‘What kind of car?’ Sean asked, but Kieran could hear the real question loud and clear. Was it Liam’s five-year-old white Holden? Kieran didn’t know what the right answer was.

‘I’m not sure,’ he said, truthfully.