She stepped back, flustered by his invading presence. She wished she had put the inside chain on the door before opening it, but she hadn’t thought it necessary in this small, quiet village.
“This the Ellis residence?” the man asked.
“Yes, it is,” Cassie said, wondering what this was all about.
“Mr. Ryan Ellis in today?”
“No, he’s at work. Can I help you?”
Cassie was panicking inwardly. For her own safety, she should have said Ryan had gone next door for a minute. She didn’t know who this man was. He was pushy and entitled, and this was not how a delivery person would interact with a customer.
“And you are?” The man smiled slightly, leaning a hand on the doorframe.
“I’m the au pair,” Cassie said defensively, remembering too late she should have said she was a family friend.
“Ah, so he’s hired you? He’s paying you, eh? Where you from? The States?”
Cassie felt breathless. She hadn’t expected this at all, and thought immediately of the deported waitress that the tearoom manager had spoken about yesterday.
She didn’t answer him. Instead, she repeated, “How can I help you?”
She hoped he couldn’t sense how frightened he was.
“I’ve got a special delivery for Mr. Ryan Ellis.”
The man handed her a large manila envelope with Ryan’s name and address handwritten on it.
She placed it on the hall table and he passed her a clipboard.
“Sign here. Your full name, time of delivery, and your phone number.”
So it was just a delivery after all. Cassie felt relieved, but she wasn’t going to relax until this creepy guy was out of the door.
“And your passport, please.”
“My what?”
She stared at him in horror.
“I have to photograph it. If you don’t mind.”
His tone of voice told her that he didn’t care if she minded. He leaned against the wall and checked his watch.
Cassie felt thoroughly flustered. What was this all about? She dreaded it was some sort of illegal worker clampdown.
She couldn’t tell him to get out, although she wanted to. Was photographing this document even legal, or an infringement of her rights? It felt like an attempt at intimidation, but she couldn’t think of a way out without landing herself in even bigger trouble.
“Would you wait outside while I fetch it?” she asked.
He took his time moving onto the porch. Arms folded and that half smile on his round, pale face, he stood and watched.
She closed the front door, wishing she didn’t have to open it again, and rushed to her bedroom to get her passport, with its incriminating visitor’s visa.
Then she went back, opened the door, and handed it to him.
In the meantime he’d lit a cigarette. Placing it between his lips, he took his phone out and flipped through the document’s pages.
She heard the repetitive click of the phone camera. It looked like he was photographing more than one page.
Then he handed it back and took the cigarette out of his mouth.
“Righto. That’s it. Tell Mr. Ellis I’ll be back soon if the notice is not attended to.”
He flicked his smoldering cigarette butt onto the paving, turned away, and strode back to his bike. A minute later, the engine roared and he was gone.
On her hands and knees, Cassie scrabbled to pick up the burning cigarette. She stubbed it out on the damp grass and took the butt to the kitchen, where she threw it away. Her hands were shaking. What had that been about?
She stared at the envelope, held it up to the light, and even turned it over to see if there was any hint as to the sender’s identity, but she could see nothing.
She would have to wait until Ryan got home and tell him about it.
Cassie began to fear that through her presence here, and Ryan’s accommodating kindness, she’d landed him in serious trouble.
CHAPTER NINE
When it was time to fetch the children from school, Cassie did her best to put her worries aside. With the recent divorce, she knew the children had their own stress to deal with, and she didn’t want them to sense her anxiety on top of it all.
Both were waiting at the school gate, and Madison in particular seemed pleased to see her. On the scenic drive home, the young girl talked nonstop about the day’s lessons, which were boring, and math was getting too difficult, and the sport—they’d gone for a cross-country fun run which she’d enjoyed. Cassie found herself smiling, momentarily distracted by the girl’s cheery comments.
The children made short work of the sandwiches she’d made, devouring them in a few minutes before heading purposefully out of the kitchen.
Cassie tidied away lunch and spent a while longer in the kitchen, trying to focus on the food preparation and not worry about what was inside the envelope on the hall table, or what Ryan’s reaction might be when he came home.
It suddenly occurred to her that the house was very quiet.
“Dylan?” she called. “Madison?”
There was no answer.
Anxiety clenched her stomach, like an unwelcome guest who’d been temporarily banished but was waiting to return.
Cassie left the kitchen and checked their rooms. They weren’t there, so she headed out to the backyard, noticing that the chilly wind had dropped.
Dylan, dressed in blue jeans and a red parka, was on the far side of the grassy slope, standing on the bluff that overlooked the ocean. He had his back to the sea and was messaging on his phone. It looked as if he was on the very edge, and there was no rail, only a sheer drop down sandstone cliffs to the gray waters below.
“Dylan, do you mind moving away from there?” she called.
He looked up curiously.
“If you’re texting, don’t go too near the edge,” she explained. “You’re distracted. You could fall over, and sandstone crumbles.”
“Oh. OK.”
He moved a step further in.
“Where’s Madison?”
He shrugged.
“I dunno. I’ve just come out here. I’ve been messaging my mate.”
Dylan lowered his head and turned his full attention back to his phone.
But Cassie had spotted something nearby. She headed to the bluff to see what it was.
A pink
