If she can make it off this island, she plans to find a home in Lancaster and raise her garden there.
A deer bounces along the back of the cabin, its antlers catching the final glows of the sunset. While she misses her family and her home, Melody feels more at home in nature. On her unplanned trip here in Scotland, she has seen more of the Scottish wild than she would normally on her digs.
I’m starting to enjoy these adventures more than my archeological d… she catches herself before admitting she has not given as much thought to archeology since she has been in Scotland. It is a strange place for her to be and she has not experienced it in her career before: possibly letting go of an old dream and making room for a new one to form. What is this island doing to me? She questions.
It’s getting dark. Melody clutches her bag and checks her food is safely packed away to not attract foxes. Then she sees it, the light that she watched each night from the cottage, has now just turned on a short distance away from her. She recognizes it as another man comes around the corner, holding a lantern and quickly enters the cabin.
The light is now reflecting from inside the cabin, shutting her out in darkness. Her plan, however, has not been disturbed. Being on Deacon island so long, she’s learned to think a few steps ahead. Being the only person who didn’t know the dangers that the townspeople knew about, meant that she had to catch up quickly and her informants Emma and Morrison helped her learn. If only she had thought of that before Nell tricked her. A little fifteen-year-old girl… She breaks off the thought process, certain that it will not benefit her current venture or emotional well-being.
Melody wonders, Who is that man? She would be lying if she didn’t admit that she wondered if it could be her father. But again, she cannot tell. She needs to come closer, she needs to see with her own eyes. And as if her body is hearing and responding to her desire, she sneaks up to the cabin, quietly. Slowly, she inches forward with reserve. She lightly walks up along the side of the cabin, towards a window on the other side of the front door.
Crouching low, she avoids being seen from inside. Then, all of a sudden, a hand grabs her shoulder from behind, pulls her up and the grunting voice of a man says, “Follow me.” The voice is stern, sure and Melody must follow it. The man’s face is equally serious. He turns around and leads her to the back of the cabin, where the two men who came to the cave in the morning are sitting. She dares not run or disobey, seeing that the man’s broad, hunched shoulders and sturdy arms could snatch her in a moment. His heavy boots clunk against the cement as his towering stature walks in front of her.
She has been caught, and now, she is in the custody of these men – men who may very well have harmed her father. All of a sudden, Melody feels like she is “the hunted” again.
The fire is going, crackling as sparks fly in the air on an outdoor fire pit. Melody does not speak a word, apprehensively, she observes her surroundings.
When the man who brought her to the back sits down on a chair next to the fire pit, she remains standing, now taking in a full assessment of the back patio.
Unsure what will become of her, she tenses her arms, clutches her backpack straps, then clenches her teeth. She is on her guard, concerned, and wondering, will her father’s fate be her own tonight?
She doesn’t mean to show her apprehension, but it shows through her actions. Even her desire to appear calm and in control is futile as her body fails to cooperate. Now, she takes a good look at the men she followed to the cabin. They sit comfortably, barely making eye contact with Melody when she arrives. Then it hits her, the two fishermen that she saw on the shore the morning she left with Nell and was unceremoniously deposited on the island are sitting by the fire, in front of her.
They knew? Melody steps back, dreading what will happen next. Are they here to help or are they the ones who drugged me? She quickly ponders. Can they be trusted?
One thing Melody has learned is, no one on these islands can be trusted.
Chapter 5
The men are stalky, built to endure harsh sea conditions, unlike Melody’s trim, slight, city build, that’s better suited to sit behind an office desk than wander the Scottish wilderness.
“Aye, she’s here, Boss.” The fisherman on her left confirms, he is jovial, pleasant and a little more eager than the rest. His uneven bob cut makes him look younger than his years, but Melody guesses he’s probably in his early twenties. His smile reveals his high cheek-boned square face with pointy ears that he didn’t quite grow into. He is the one who had the lantern and Melody wondered if it could have been her father, but now she knows with certainty it is not.
He sits with his hands popping out of a dark denim shirt, clinging onto bright blue overalls with a yellow square patch at the top. His shoulders are broad for someone his age, but he remains the trimmest and youngest of the three men – even his cheeks
