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“I have no idea what that is,” says Jack, smiling down at me. “But I can already tell I’m going to hate it.”
“Yup,” I agree cheerfully. “We should probably put a stop to that before she gets the entire village involved.”
We turn and walk back along the sand towards the steps that lead up to the road, our fingers still entwined. It’s just as we reach the road, and Jack stops to press the button on the traffic light, that I hear the telltale ping of my phone inside my pocket.
Not now, anonymous messenger. Please not now. Not when I’ve literally just told Jack I’m never going to think about you again.
I nervously pull the phone out as we cross the road and sneak a quick look at the screen as we’re walking back into the hotel.
UNKNOWN NUMBER: He’s still lying. See you soon. X
Chapter 14
In retrospect, telling Jack about the latest message probably wasn’t my best idea ever: and doing it in front of both our families, plus everyone else in town,definitelywasn’t.
“What are you doing?” Jack hisses, pulling me off to one side of the room and leaving Mum and Dad arguing spiritedly with the Buchanans about who the mystery sender could be. “Emerald, wejusttalked about this. Youliterallyjust promised you were going to let this thing drop.”
“And Iwas,” I tell him, tears pricking dangerously at the back of my eyes. “I promise you I was. But this one says,‘See you soon’. What do you thinkthatmeans?”
“It means ye’ll be gettin’ a visit from a tall, dark stranger,” says a voice from behind me. “One wi’ piercing blue eyes, probably. They always have piercing eyes, the handsome strangers.”
I look round to see Tam, the village bus driver, standing there eating a bag of Bella’s tablet, and listening to our conversation.
I turn back to Jack.
“How would I know what it means?” he asks irritably, all trace of Beach Jack gone. “I’ve told you a million times, it’s just some crank. And now yet another thing has been ruined by it. I don’t know why you didn’t just block the number after the first one; that would’ve been the sensible thing to do.”
I blink up at him, hurt.
“I wouldn’t have told you,” I say carefully. “I was planning to just ignore any more that I got. But this one is different, Jack. This one seems to be saying whoever’s sending these is expecting to see me in person. Doesn’t that worry you?”
“I mean, it’s weird, sure,” Jack concedes, running a hand through his hair. “But it’s probably nothing. Look, I’ll have someone look into it if it’s really bothering you; I just don’t see what I can do right this second, Emerald. We’re supposed to be here sorting stuff out for our wedding.”
“Will you call Dylan, then?” I ask. “I already told him about the first few messages, but he said to come back if I—”
“What?” Jack interrupts. “You went toDylan Fraserabout this? Are you kidding me right now?”
There’s a look on his face I’ve never seen before, but which instantly makes my heart start skittering nervously in my chest.
Shit. I completely forgot about their weird feud.
“We… we talked about this,” I say quietly. “I said I thought we should go to the police, and you said sure. Remember?”
“I said we could go to thepolice,” says Jack, his tone icy. “I didn’t say we should go toDylan Fraser. I mean, he’s hardly fuckingPoirot, is he?”
I flinch as if I’ve been slapped.
I knew Jack and Dylan don’t get along, but I’d always assumed that was more on Dylan’s side than Jack’s. For his part, Jack’s always seemed to be quietly bemused by Dylan’s open hostility; and sure, that hasn’t exactly made him want to be best buddies with the guy, but now I’m wondering if it’s something more than that?
Something to do with whisky, stolen land and a group of men who were let down by the local Laird, say.
“You can’t see Dylan just now anyway,” puts in another voice. This time it’s Katie, the receptionist at theHeather Bay Gazette, who’s now standing beside Tam, and helping herself to his bag of tablet. “He’s away to Glasgow to see his mam this weekend. Scarlett went with him. She’ll be sorry to have missed this, though; she’s been talking about the mystery messages all week.”
“Good grief,” mutters Jack, looking at me as if this is all my fault. “Does everyone in this town have an opinion on our lives, then?”
“Well, aye,” begins Katie, apologetically, but Jack’s no longer listening. Without another word to me (Or to Katie or Tam, who look vaguely offended by this), he goes striding off towards the middle of the room, from which I realize with horror I can hear Mum’s voice, raised above the general hubbub of the crowd.
“I dinnae ken who ye think ye are, talking about oor Emerald like that, and acting like Lady Muck,” Mum says furiously to Kathryn as I approach, hot on Jack’s heels. “Well, I’ve got the measure o’ you, ‘Kate’. I wouldnae be surprised ifyouwere the one sending these messages.”
