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‘What happens now? What do I need to do?’ Holly paced the dining area. The others had all headed outside to give the illusion of privacy, but the glass doors were wide open and when she glanced outside, she could see them listening in.
‘You don’t need to do anything, darling. It’s all sorted, everything is with the police. I wasn’t going to tell you at all until you got back, but I didn’t want you to find out from someone else.’
The words of truth offered a fraction more comfort, though another bucket load of guilt. It had taken her mother a full day to pluck up the courage to call her, not wanting to ruin her day. If Holly could be half the mother to Hope that Wendy was to her, she knew she’d be on the right track.
‘I guess I should just carry on and try to forget about it, then? Though I’m not sure that’ll be so easy.’
‘Don’t be like that. I wouldn’t have rung you if I thought it would bring you down. Promise me you’re still going to have fun?’
Holly glanced back out the window only for the others to suddenly start chatting as if they hadn’t been eavesdropping the whole time. Only one face continued to look straight at her. Evan’s. His smile was ever so slight, but exactly what Holly needed.
‘Don’t worry. I’m fine. Just make sure that Dad isn’t under too much stress, okay? The last thing I want is for this to put extra pressure on him.’
‘Don’t you worry about that. I’ve got a close eye on him. Now you go and have a couple of drinks for me. Love you, Holly bear.’
‘Love you too, Mum.’
When the phone went dead, Holly moved over to the sofa, dropped onto the seat, and continued to stare at her phone. So much for thinking she should try to make holidays a regular thing. Perhaps she was just one of those people that was destined never to leave their home without disaster striking.
‘Hey.’ Jamie came over and sat on the sofa next to her. ‘Really sorry. We all heard about what happened. That seriously sucks.’
Holly rubbed her temples, trying to ease the headache she could feel forming.
‘Thank you. Mum says it’s not that bad. They didn’t take anything and I know it would have happened even if I’d stayed at home. But it puts them under extra stress, you know? And now Ben has looked after Hope for all these extra hours, and he’s going to be stressed because he’s behind on work.’
‘And there is absolutely nothing you can do about that.’
Jamie was always blunt, so it shouldn’t have come as a surprise that she was so matter of fact.
‘So, you can either worry about things that you have no control over, or you can enjoy your holiday with us. Particularly as your ankle looks fine now. You know you were pacing the room like a caged tiger then, right?’
She was right, Holly realised. She had been walking up and down and hadn’t even thought of her ankle.
‘The boys are going to put on the barbecue in a minute. Why don’t you pour yourself a big glass of wine and come outside and join us?’
‘That sounds like a good idea.’ Holly was about to stand up when Evan appeared in front of them.
‘On second thoughts, Jamie, I need to get my towel from my room and message Ben to make sure everything’s all right with Hope. You go outside without me.’
‘Okay, but don’t be long. We’ve said we’re going to have a water polo game, and I need you on my team to make sure we win.’
It was a definite lie as Jamie would most likely thrash the boys without any help at all, but she appreciated the comment.
‘You okay?’ Evan said when Jamie was out of earshot. ‘I feel like the afternoon has gone rapidly downhill since the others came back.’
He offered her a small, slanted grin. Holly knew she was meant to reciprocate, but she couldn’t find the energy.
‘I’m sorry. I’m not exactly the best company. Maybe I should go up to my room, have another afternoon nap.’
‘Really? You’ve been inside all day. Perhaps what you need is to get out of the house.’
The thought of seeing a bit more of the countryside was definitely appealing but she wasn’t sure she had the energy.
‘Honestly, it’s not exactly a tough house to be trapped in. Besides, my ankle’s only just fine to walk on. I’m not sure I should push it.’
The slight grin that had graced Evan’s lips lifted higher until it was an outright grin.
‘Who said anything about walking?’
