Free Revenge of the Tide by Elizabeth Haynes

side of my boat. The cable to the automatic light in the car park, mangled and snapped. The car, driving away with its lights off.

Seven
     
     
    I hadn’t expected to be able to sleep, but somehow I did. I kept both phones by the bed, mine and Dylan’s, and neither of them rang. Apart from the rain, which grew heavy, and the gentle rise and fall of the river, nothing stirred all night.
    When I looked out of the wheelhouse the next morning, one of the two police cars was still parked in the car park. No sign of anyone in it.
    It was still raining, so I pulled on my thick waterproof jacket and took a plastic bag over to the laundry room with me. My clothes were in a laundry basket by the side of the drier, neatly folded. The washing machine and the drier were both whirring. The room was warm and humid and smelled of fabric conditioner. As I was transferring my clothes to the plastic bag, Josie came in to check on her clothes.
    ‘Did you fold these?’ I said. ‘That was kind. I’m sorry I didn’t take them out of the drier last night.’
    ‘It’s no bother. How did you sleep?’ She was eyeing me, concerned.
    ‘Not bad, considering. You?’
    She laughed. ‘Oh, I always sleep like a log. Nothing ever wakes me. Good job too, with Malcolm’s snoring.’
    ‘Josie,’ I began, talking quickly so I didn’t have a chance to change my mind, ‘I was wondering if Malcolm would help me with something on the boat.’
    ‘Oh, love, you don’t have to ask. You know he’d love to. What is it?’
    I hesitated, the momentum gone. ‘I think – um… I think I’d like to see if I can get the engine started.’
    She stared at me. ‘What’s brought this on?’
    I shrugged. ‘Nothing really. I just thought – you know. It might be nice to take the Revenge on a trip one day.’
    ‘There’s a lot more to it than just getting the engine started – you know that, don’t you?’
    ‘Mm. I just thought, shame to have a boat that never goes anywhere. I need to have a new project, that’s all.’
    ‘Well,’ she said uncertainly, ‘I’ll ask him. Maybe if you wanted to go on a trip he could go with you. Where did you want to go?’
    This was all starting to get a bit too detailed. I should have asked Malcolm, rather than Josie – he wouldn’t have batted an eyelid at the idea.
    ‘Nowhere special. Look – just forget I asked. It’s not a problem.’
    ‘Genevieve,’ she said sternly, ‘are you worried about what happened yesterday? Because I’m sure it was just a one-off. We don’t often get bodies washed up here, you know. I know your boat is the one nearest to the river but you don’t need to worry about it happening again, really you don’t.’
    I picked up my bag full of washing. ‘It’s fine, Josie, honest. It was just a thought.’
     
    I was putting the washing away when I heard a knock at the door to the wheelhouse. It was Malcolm.
    ‘Morning,’ he said cheerily.
    ‘How did the clothes shopping go yesterday? I forgot to ask Josie.’
    ‘Ah,’ he said. ‘Didn’t happen, in the end. Far too much going on here.’
    He filled the kettle and put it on the stove, as if this were his boat and not mine. I didn’t mind, although I probably wasn’t at the stage yet where I could stroll on to Aunty Jean and help myself to whatever I wanted.
    ‘The police, you mean?’
    ‘Yeah. The gavvers.’
    ‘Did they talk to you?’
    ‘Oh, yes. They wanted to come aboard the Jean , but I told them it was too cramped and we sat in the office instead. Good job too.’ He gave me a lopsided smile. ‘I’m not too keen on the gavvers. Although this lot weren’t too bad, to tell the truth.’
    ‘I thought they were alright.’
    ‘Yeah, but see, there’s all sorts of things wrong with that body being there. I don’t think it was washed downriver, for one thing.’
    ‘I’ve been trying not to think about it, to be honest with you.’
    ‘And it didn’t just fall in.’
    ‘No, I guess not,’ I said with a