The tension I felt when I initially liftedthe receiver has dissipated somewhat and I realise I’m able to breathe morefreely as though for the past twenty-four hours I’d been holding onto mybreath. But I wasn’t unconcerned. There were still lots of questions to beanswered. What was he up to and who was he staying with? I reason that(hopefully) all will be revealed tomorrow and with that knowledge on board Itake myself off to bed and drift off.
Thomas
Another turn of events! I cannot believe Janey is in Skyeand it makes me anxious. How do I explain to her about why I am here and whatdo I say about George? It sounded as though she was worried I was with anotherwoman, but perhaps that would be an easier tale for her to digest. How do Iexplain why I’m really here? I can’t very well send her packing; she’s venturedall the way up here. Do I turn to George for assistance or come up withsomething myself (but the last thing I want to do is lie to her again!)?
Where is George anyway? I haven’t seen himat all today. He simply left a note saying, ‘Gone out; be back later, rest up.’To be honest I needed today to rest. The car accident has taken its toll and mybones are weary and stiff. The rest has helped the pain in my back, neck, andhead all ease up but I feel a dull throbbing starting up in my head again, morelikely than not as a result of my call with Janey. I have the night to sleep onit so hopefully I can come up with something credible when I see her tomorrow.
Janey
I wake up feeling refreshed, with a renewed vigour, readyto face whatever I am up against today. The fact I know he is not cheating onme has just opened up something in me. Our relationship can get through thiswhatever it is. I feel confident of that.
Using the directions Thomas gave me, Imake the short journey to where he is staying. I am intrigued. This isbeautiful. It looks like a fairly new-build property but it’s evident that lotsof careful thought has went into its design as it manages to maintain its newlook whilst simultaneously merging perfectly into the landscape. There is along private driveway which sounds my arrival as the gravel crunches underneathmy tyres. On approach I notice a section of decking to the left-hand side ofthe property and there sits a solitary figure. Instead of making my way to thefront door to ring the bell I decide instead to get a closer look at thedecking. Even from a distance I can see that it’s Thomas, so I shout over toget his attention and he responds, “Come on in, the front door is open, comeout and join me.” He is clearly enjoying the view too much to see me in.
Once inside, there is further reassurancethat he is not staying with another woman. The house is beautifully decoratedbut has a masculine feel to it with black sofa, black and white prints on thewalls, and everything is minimalistic. What strikes you straight away, however,is not the décor; it is the view – utterly breath-taking. The bifold doors areexpansive and draw the outside inwards. I head towards them and make my way ontothe decking. I am unable to acknowledge Thomas’ presence until I have absorbedthis view. I take it all in; the sight and smell of the bay directly in frontof me with waves gently lapping up. Then, in stark contrast, the jaggedmountainous area on the other side of the bay. “Wow,” I hear myself say.
“It certainly is,” a voice to my leftpipes up. This snaps me back to reality.
“Thomas!” I join him, sitting in a rockingchair by his side.
“You made it,” he says and leans over topour me a coffee. He does a good job of trying to mask it, but I saw him winceas he leaned over.
“Thomas, are you OK? You look as thoughyou’re in pain?”
“I’m fine, Janey, honestly, it’s nothing,probably the way I was lying in bed or something.” I let it go.
“This is some place, Thomas. I amintrigued to find out who you are staying with and what is going on.”
We sit for some time in a comfortablesilence enjoying the coffee and taking in the spectacular view. Withoutpressing him, Thomas leads the conversation. “So, apologies again, Janey, forlying to you. I did that with the best of intentions. I had to come up here onmy own and didn’t want you worrying so it seemed like the best idea at thetime.
Why am I here? It’s complicated and sinceour phone call last night I’ve wrestled over and over in my mind as to what totell you. In the end I concluded that the wrong thing to do would be to lie toyou anymore so here goes … Someone from my past came back into my liferecently. I don’t know if you can remember the night you found me in thefreezing cold at the front door in the middle of the night?” I nod inacknowledgement. “Well, there was someone there who I hadn’t seen in years. Infact, he is the owner of this house. He wanted me to come back to Skye becauseI have unfinished business here. He was also responsible for the postcard.”
I can’t help myself, “This is all verycloak and dagger, Thomas. What do you mean by ‘unfinished business’?”
“To tell you the truth, Janey, I’m notentirely sure myself. It’s hard to explain but something happened here yearsago, and I’ve never came to terms with it, and he knows this. When he asked meto come back, I didn’t want to, but I knew I had to. I plan to stay here at hishouse to get to the bottom of the situation.”
My head was spinning. I had suspected thiscould all be related to his past but what on earth had happened?
