animate object,â Inspector Henderson is said to have reported.
It was dark by the time Alan pulled the car into the driveway at Heather Cottage. He turned off the engine and sat quietly with his hands resting on the steering wheel. Without looking at Lee, his hand sought hers.
âThank you. That was one of the nicest days I have had in a long time.â
Lee started to reply but Alan, lost in his own thoughts, continued determinedly.
âLee, youâve been so good to us all, so understanding. Itâs difficult â¦â Alan stumbled over his words. âIt can be a little difficult, I know ⦠with Vanessa â¦â
âOf course, itâs unbelievably difficult for her, Alan.â Lee sounded more brisk than she intended. âI remember all too well what itâs like when your parents die.â
Alan looked at her startled.
âGod, Lee, I know you do. Iâm sorry, I didnât mean â¦â
Lee opened the car door and stood out. She waited until Alan got out and he looked at her across the roof. To his relief, she smiled at him.
âIâm not upset, Alan. Itâs all a long time ago for me. Iâm just saying I understand Vanessa more than you or she thinks.â
Alan squeezed her hand in his as they walked up to the cottage door. The windows on either side of the front door were lit up and the cottage looked so welcoming.
âI love it here, Lee. I feel as if everything will come right eventually.â Alan looked out at the loch and said absently, âToo late to go out in the boat now.â
âWeâll go out early tomorrow instead,â Lee agreed.
âOur second last day,â Alan added, and Lee could hear the tinge of sadness in his voice.
âItâs even better here in early summer. Weâll come back then.â
Alan smiled back at her fondly. âItâs a gift, you know.â And when Lee looked at him in puzzlement, he added, â To always say the right thing, I mean.â
They could hear the sound of the television on in the sitting room. There was a fire already lit and the cat had taken up a most comfortable position on Ronanâs knee. A sci-fi programme was on and Maggie was busy with her knitting in the corner of the sofa.
âHi, guys, good fishing?â Alan asked.
âOh, Dad, it was fantastic. I caught one this size.â Ronan used his hands exuberantly to show the size and in doing so banged the cat, who rose disdainfully and jumped heavily to the floor.
âMaggie says itâs a trout.â
Alan looked around.
âWhereâs Vanessa? Did she fish with you?â
There was silence, the boys once again engrossed in the TV programme.
âOh, she did, Alan, but the boys said she got tired of it and she went up to her room earlier in the afternoon.â It was Maggie who answered him.
âIâll go up and see her. Are we having fish for supper then?â He laughed. âIâll cook tonight, Maggie. Itâs your night off.â
Alan took the stairs two at a time. He was thinking hard about his excuse for being late and the plan for the loch trip tomorrow morning.
He knocked on Vanessaâs bedroom door but there was no answer. He paused before knocking again. Perhaps she was asleep. He turned to go down the stairs, and then hesitated with his hand on the banisters. It was half past five. It was late enough if she had slept in the afternoon. Time she got up. He turned back and knocked again, louder this time, but there was still no response. Slowly, he pushed open the door and walked into the bedroom.
CHAPTER 19
On 2 February 1959, AA patrolman Mr Hamish Mackintosh saw something out of this world â âas if a dinosaur had reared up out of the lochâ . He saw a broad, humped body, greyish in colour, with a thin neck and head, as tall as 8 feet above the water, moving towards the shore. He was joined by a local from a nearby house and they watched it