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‘You OK, Mum?’
‘Yes, I… don’t know what happened.’ She tried to speak but her lips felt like cotton wool.
‘You fainted. We found you lying at the bottom of the stairs.’ The kind woman spoke again. ‘Here, try and drink some more water.’
Denise did as she was told.
‘Mrs Hirst, are you sure you don’t want to have a lie down? At least until we go into the courtroom?’ Mr Sawyer failed to keep his mild irritation from his voice.
‘No, really, I’ll be fine. I’m feeling better already.’ She tried her best to sound convincing, a little chirpier. ‘I think I just should have eaten more this morning, that’s all.’
‘Well, I’ll leave you to it, then.’ The woman went to leave. ‘Just shout if you need me again.’
‘Yes, thank you. We will.’ Mr Sawyer shut the door behind her. He waited a few moments whilst Denise sipped slowly from the cup. ‘Now, listen. I need you both to be strong. Stephen, do your best to speak clearly, answer the questions as we’ve discussed. Denise, you’ll be sitting to one side but it’s not a big room: you’ll be able to see Stephen quite clearly. We’ve been through all the “what ifs” but let’s go in there with the right attitude. Are we clear?’
They both nodded.
There was a knock at the door.
Mr Sawyer called out, ‘Thank you.’ He looked back at them and clapped his hands together. ‘Time to go.’
* * *
Flora sat at the tasting counter in the shop, tapping at her laptop, a line of unopened bottles in front of her. She tried to concentrate on the words on the screen, but the cursor had been in the same place, blinking furiously at her, for what seemed like an age.
Mack came down the stairs into the shop carrying a tray. ‘I thought you could do with these.’ He walked across to her, putting a plate of biscuits down in front of her.
Flora looked at the plate. Normally, she’d have fallen on it. She looked up at Mack. ‘It’s the court case today.’
‘I know, Flora. I see you’re trying to distract yourself with work but why don’t you take advice from an old bugger like me and go for a walk on the beach? It’s never not a good idea to go for a walk on the beach.’ He looked at her over his glasses.
‘You’re right. I’d thought I could do something to distract myself but it’s not working. When did Johnny say he’d be back?’
‘He said around two-ish, so you go. I’m fine here.’
‘Excuse me?’ A man who’d been browsing the expensive clarets called over to Mack. ‘Have you got anything really old?’
Mack walked back towards him. He’d been quickly brushed off by the man when he’d first come into the shop. ‘Well, I think we’ve got a ’92 in the back.’
‘But 1992 is hardly old.’ The man scoffed.
‘It’s 1892, sir.’ Mack pushed his glasses up his nose, smiling.
‘Ah, right. Very good. What sort of price are we talking?’
‘Around eight.’
‘Hundred?’
‘Eight thousand.’
‘Maybe something a little younger?’ The man seemed to deflate a little.
Flora stifled a laugh. She closed her laptop and shoved it into her bag, waving at Mack as she slipped out of the shop. She decided to head to one of her favourite spots, a stretch of beach reached by a small path through the hedge just off a lay-by. Somehow it had remained a secret, even among locals. She put the radio on, voices talking about an opera singer she’d never heard of. Hitting the button, she switched station and suddenly the car was filled with the sounds of one of her favourite songs. She turned up the volume, the music taking her back to a time in her parents’ garden when the most fun to be had involved a hosepipe and a sprinkler. She remembered the way she and Billy would race through the spray, watching as the water threw rainbows in the air. She could hear him calling her name, pleading with her to watch as he jumped over the sprinkler, dissolving into fits of laughter as they both got soaked.
She pulled up by the side of the road and headed down to the beach. The tide was out, leaving islands of slick, glossy mud on show, small channels of seawater running between them. Great puffy clouds scooted across the blue sky and the wind carried the scent of salt with it.
Flora buttoned up her coat and walked into the cold wind, the sound echoing in her ears. The waves moved quickly towards the shore, one after the other after the other. She moved from the pebbles onto the sand closer to the shoreline, enjoying the feel of it sinking under her feet. She glanced behind, seeing her footprints being washed away just seconds after leaving them.
