Henry sat back and crossed his arms, looking pleased with himself. ‘And as your reward on afternoons you need a break, I’ll take you for a little hike while Susannah has a nap. How’s that sound?’
Emer’s initial response was to say no. She couldn’t help thinking of Lars, but then she thought of Susannah’s cross face and all those lonely afternoons and evenings in her house where there wouldn’t be that much for her to do apart from cook and clean, and to keep an eye on Susannah’s pain management.
‘Oh, that’s very kind of you, but really, you don’t have to do that.’
‘Well, what about I’d like to?’ Henry insisted. ‘There are so many beauty spots on Vinalhaven, but you need a vehicle to reach them and a guide to know the best trails.’
He was so warm and friendly. Where was the harm? As long as she made it clear, they were just friends. She could do with a friend right now.
On the way back from the market store, it began to rain. The wind had picked up and the rain lashed into Emer as she struggled up the hill with her bags of shopping. She hadn’t intended to leave Susannah for so long. The anxiety began to build inside her. What kind of nurse was she, to walk out without even telling her patient where she was going? She’d been gone for hours. The chat with Henry had felt so good. Which had confused her further. Talking to Henry made her miss Lars even more.
After Henry and his husky, Shadow, had driven off, she’d spent way too long in the market store, excited by all the vegan possibilities, and had spent a fortune on all sorts of treats: olives, hummus, seaweed snacks, chips and vegan ice cream.
It almost felt as if the darkness of the rain outside had permeated through the walls of Susannah’s house. Emer stepped into the gloom of her new home, switching on the lamp in the hall, immediately noting the quiet. Susannah was no longer typing. She knocked on the door of her study. No answer. She knocked again and softly pushed the door open. No Susannah. The room appeared to be in great disarray. Papers balanced everywhere in piles, books opened up and littering the floor. Shutting the door, Emer went upstairs and knocked on Susannah’s bedroom door, but she wasn’t in there either. She searched the whole house and it was quite clear Susannah was nowhere to be seen. But the town was so small: there was only one food market, and not much else. If Susannah had been there, surely they would have passed one another on the road? Moreover, Susannah’s pick-up was still parked outside. She must be walking distance away. Emer looked out into the gathering dusk. The rain was even heavier now. Where was Susannah?
This was her fault. Maybe the old lady had gone looking for her? She pulled on her boots and coat, and braced herself for the elements again.
Outside, she was pushed back down the hill by the wind. Susannah could have gone to look for her back down at the ferry terminal. Just as she was going to take a turn to the right, she saw a small road to the left she hadn’t noticed before. Leaves were twirling off the trees. One landed on her boot. It was exactly the same shade of red as her sister’s hair.
Something told her to take the turn. She walked down the little road, arriving at the entrance to a cemetery. As soon as she walked into the small field of headstones, she could see a figure bent in the wind, standing before one of the graves. It was her patient. Head tucked into her chest, her coat flapping open like two big black bird wings.
Emer called to her, but either Susannah didn’t hear her, or she was ignoring her.
Emer was soaked through as she pushed through the wind and rain. She put a hand on Susannah’s shoulder.
‘Susannah, I’ve been looking for you everywhere!’
But Susannah was transfixed. Staring at the gravestone in front of her.
Kate Young
Beloved wife, mother, daughter and sister.
1940 – 1966
She’d been young. Only twenty-six years old. The same age as Orla when she died.
‘Are you okay?’ Emer asked Susannah. ‘Is Kate your sister?’ She remembered Susannah saying that Rebecca’s mother Kate had made the quilt. The same young woman she had looked at in the photograph on Susannah’s desk that morning.
Susannah suddenly whipped around, yelling at her with blazing eyes. ‘What are you doing here? Why are you always spying on me?’
Emer felt stung by her hostility, but she controlled her emotions. Despite the older woman’s fury, Emer could see her face was wet not just with rain, but with tears.
She’s frightened, Emer heard Orla tell her. Help her.
‘I was worried about you,’ Emer said in a firm voice. ‘Your niece employed me to look after you, and whether you like it or not, that’s what I’m going to do.’
Susannah looked as if she’d slapped her in the face, opening her mouth only to close it again without saying a word.
‘Now, you’re coming home with me before you catch your death.’ The words were out before she could stop them.
Susannah gave a cheerless laugh. ‘Well now, we wouldn’t want that, would we?’ she said bitterly. ‘I am staying right here. You go before you catch your death.’
‘I’m not going anywhere,’ Emer insisted.
The two women commenced a stand-off, but the wind was battering into them. Emer could see Susannah shivering with the cold. With her coat open, the rain had drenched her sweater. Emer was worried she was going to get pneumonia.
‘Please, Susannah, come home with me.’ Emer held out her hand.
Susannah ignored her, turning her attention back to the headstone. She put a blue hand on the wet marble.
‘I’m the only one who looks after Kate’s grave. Rebecca comes when she visits, but
