Ross was taken off the ventilator as he was now able to breath on his own, and he continued to improve.
His throat was raw and he could only speak in a rasping voice, but it sounded like music to Evie. He couldn’t remember much about that terrible night, but Evie gently told him not to worry. She could fill him in on all of the sad and sorry details when he was stronger.
He looked thinner and older, bruised and battered, but he gazed at Evie and said: “One thing I do remember is you being here. I could hear your voice reading me stories I hadn’t heard since I was a peedie lad in short pants. It really helped.”
Evie smiled through her tears. “I wasn’t sure you could hear me at all. I kept asking you to wake up. It must have been very annoying.”
He chuckled and then groaned. It hurt to laugh. “No, my precious Evie, you pulled me back. I heard your voice and knew I had to come home to you.”
He took her hand in his. Ross hesitated. What Amelia had done had affected him profoundly. He felt so stupid to have been conned by her and then almost killed by her. He finally managed to speak, his voice thick with emotion and regret, “What if she had hurt you instead of me? What if she had hurt the kids? I can’t stop thinking about it. I’ve gone over and over it in my mind and it’s eating away at me.”
He looked at Evie with such love in his eyes that she wasn’t prepared for what he said next. “I’m not good for you, Evie. I am damaged in more ways than just the injury to my head and my broken arms and leg.”
He swallowed hard. “I’m scared. I can’t sleep without a pill and I just want to hide away and never see anyone ever again. They must all think I’m a right useless lump.”
Evie’s heart was breaking for him, but pretending to be stern she said, “Ross Isbister. I never thought I would see the day when you would feel so sorry for yourself. Shame on you. We held a service for you at the Italian Chapel, hoping you would pull through. Sophia organised it all and so many people turned up they had to stand outside. It brought us all together and it helped. You woke up the very next day. Maybe it was a coincidence, but I like to think it was the power of love.”
Ross looked haunted and ashamed. Evie’s voice softened. “I know you have been through a horrific trauma, and you’ll need time and proper help to get through it, but never forget that so many people love you and can’t wait for you to be up and about so they can tell you themselves.”
“Och, Evie, we are Orcadians. We don’t go in for all that smarmy stuff. If they buy me a pint that will be enough.”
He managed a wobbly grin and then his expression changed. He said hoarsely, “Seriously though. You are too good for me. I don’t deserve you.”
Evie shrugged and picked up the tattered old copy ofTom Sawyer. “Face it, Ross. Your days of being single are long gone. Whether you like it or not, we are together, and as soon as you are out of here, we will be announcing that to our friends and family.”
Ross opened his mouth to speak again but Evie shushed him. “Just accept your fate. You are stuck with me. Now, where was I? Oh yes, Tom and Huckleberry Finn are hunting for buried treasure. I almost know this whole book off by heart.”
“Maybe one day you will read it to our children,” said Ross, which had Evie smothering him in kisses.
Chapter Fifty-Nine
Inganess Beach, a year later
It was a glorious spring day, and the Selkies were out in force at the beach, enjoying the sunshine and getting ready for their usual dook. Freya had been helped from the car and was sitting on a pile of cushions, swathed in blankets and looking almost back to her old self.
She’d never dance again like she had before the stroke, but she had discarded her despised zimmer frame and was slowly learning to shuffle around the house with a stick. She was determined to be able to walk up the aisle to take her seat at the front pew for Sophia and Finn’s wedding. She’d spent many happy hours with Evie planning her outfit, which would be taking her love of colour and silks, satins and bling to a whole new level.
She looked over at Evie. There were new lines on her face and dark circles under her eyes, but she was still a beautiful woman, and she and Ross were in a good place. They had found a quiet contentment in each other’s company and there was a deep understanding between them.
Evie spent a lot more time at his house, keeping an eye on his parents and making sure Ross wasn’t overdoing things. He’d gradually gone back to work and joked he was about two years behind in orders for his famous Orkney chairs. Allof his customers said they were happy to wait. He was busy in his workshop patiently crafting a peedie chair for Ola, and had put hours of love and work into making it perfect for the tiny toddler who wound uncle Ross around her little finger.
Evie and Ross didn’t have a torrid romance full of lust and passion. It was peaceful and restful. They had been through so much together and it had made them strong as steel. They weren’t the sort of people to declare their undying love to one another. They just knew that they were two halves that made a whole.
She had left Ross happily at work, telling him she would see him this afternoon. Knowing she had Ross to go back to, Evie truly felt she had finally come home.
Beside her on the beach, Delima was making sandcastles with Ola and Hari the toddler was once again being handed around like a fat parcel. Neither of the children remembered the dark events of last year. Delima and Jack were the ones who had nightmares and for months wouldn’t let them out of their sight.
Jack still blamed himself for putting his children in danger, but Delima had forgiven him and they were back on an even keel. Amelia’s trial date still hadn’t been set – she’d pleaded not guilty to attempted manslaughter, and it was set to be a huge case in Scotland.
Jack had become a bit of a media sensation himself after the attempted rescue of the pilot whales, and he found himself in demand as a wildlife expert. Saving a handful of them was nothing short of a miracle. TV companies knocked on his door with all sorts of offers and ideas. Jack’s Viking good looks and his way of explaining complex issues so clearly and passionately made him perfect for documentaries, but he turned them down. He didn’t want to leave the island or his family.
Delima, acting as his agent (“Well, we might as well keep the ten per cent in the family,” she said reasonably) had cannily negotiated a deal for him whereby he broadcast live from their sanctuary into the BBC’s acclaimed Spring, Autumn and Winterwatch programmes. He was in the middle of writing a book and put clips on social media that regularly went viral, especially when he was wearing nothing but shorts.
This had seen donations soar, with all the money ploughed back into helping animals and improving and enlarging the sanctuary.
Kate was telling Patsy about her online law course. It was hard work, but Kate was loving every minute and she’d never looked happier. She helped out at Joan McIver’s practice two afternoons a week and Joan had said she’d take her on full time in a heartbeat when she felt ready.
Maureen was bringing Evie and Sophia up to date about the plans she and Andrzej had to foster older children who needed a bit of stability. “It’s all Andrzej’s idea, of course,” she said happily. “He’s really excited about it. He wants to teach them all about Orkney history and he’s thinking of sponsoring the boys and girls who are interested to get an apprenticeship and a chance of a proper trade.”
