by Karen Moore
“Here, let me help,” she said.
The determined frown on Eva’s face softened. “I thought I could do it, but it’s a bit…”
“Heavy? Awkward?”
“Yeah.” Eva looked relieved as Hanna took over the task.
No protest for once. For a little girl she could be notoriously stubborn at times. I wonder where she gets that from, thought Hanna. She filled the bowl and gave it to Cosmo who attacked the food as if he hadn’t eaten for days.
“So, what do you fancy doing today? It’s not very nice outside.”
“Not sure.” Eva shook her head and yawned.
Hanna picked up on the cue. “Did you sleep okay?”
“No, not much. The tree kept banging on my window. I kept thinking someone was outside.”
Hanna looked at her closely. Eva didn’t seem unduly worried, but there was still a nervousness there, left over from the kidnapping. It was probably only to be expected. Hanna wondered whether the trauma had left any deep-seated damage that would come out in later years. The child psychologist she’d consulted in the aftermath had warned her that this might happen. She didn’t want to overreact and make a fuss which could only make matters worse. She vowed to keep an eye on her, as she had ever since it happened. And she’d need to trim that damn tree back.
“So, do you want to go back to bed?”
Eva shook her head again.
“Maybe curl up on the sofa and watch a film?”
Eva’s eyes lit up. “Oooh, yes! That’d be great!”
“Anything in particular you’d like to see?”
The little girl pondered for a few minutes before answering, “How about the one about the rat in the restaurant, or the other one about the sheep?”
Hanna instantly understood what she meant. She’d been clamouring for ages to see both Ratatouille and the Shaun the Sheep movie.
“I’ll see if I can find them. Let’s have breakfast and get dressed first. I’ll light a fire in the lounge so it’s nice and snug. Then we can go out somewhere later if the weather improves.”
Eva beamed and threw her arms around Hanna’s legs in a hug. Hanna bent down to pick her up and tossed her into the air.
“My, you’re getting a bit big for this!” she said, catching the little girl and putting her down again.
“More, more!” insisted the youngster.
“Breakfast!” said Hanna firmly, looking Eva straight in the eye.
“Okay.” A reluctant reply as her daughter started to assemble the breakfast things without being asked.
Hanna smiled. Eva was a real joy. But did she really want another child?
***
Eva was still glued to the antics of Remy the rat, giggling from time to time as the Ratatouille story unfolded on the TV screen. Sitting next to Eva on the sofa, Hanna had her laptop open on her knee. She was idly browsing local history and legends, looking for inspiration for the book she was so keen to write. There was no end of material, from tales of piracy and shipwrecks to endless battles and grisly deaths, and umpteen ghost stories. She hadn’t yet made a start on all the material that Rhys had brought home. She jotted down a few ideas before turning to contemporary news items.
One report in particular caught her eye. It concerned Italy’s struggle to deal with people-trafficking, using the example of the shipwreck off the Sicilian island of Lampedusa where, in 2013, 368 people had died. A handful of arrests were made but no sentences were ever passed down, despite the arrested men languishing in prison for years awaiting trial. The problem wasn’t just confined to Italy. Authorities across Europe had declared war on the people responsible for such tragedies at sea. Their aim was to dismantle the criminal networks behind this human misery and capture the smugglers responsible. But they seemed to be making little progress, and the trafficking continued unabated.
Hanna wondered if Luciano and his family might have been involved in the Lampedusa incident. It was perfectly feasible. Just thinking about her and Eva’s lucky escape from that world made her feel queasy. There’d been a temporary reprieve, for them at least, while he was inside. But now he was free again, who knew what might happen? The fire-bombing of the newspaper offices was a warning, a sign that the underworld still posed a threat. What she didn’t know was whether Luciano posed a threat for her and Eva.
A spasm convulsed through her. She gasped and breathed deeply waiting for it to subside, then stumbled upstairs to the bathroom to splash cold water on her face, resting it against the cool tiles. For the umpteenth time, she wondered if she was doing the right thing by going back to Sicily for the wedding and whether she was putting herself and Rhys in any danger. And what was going on here on her own doorstep? She had a feeling that things were about to unravel.
***
The weather that afternoon showed no sign of abating, growing worse as the day progressed. It was so dark it was as though the day had never properly dawned. The log fire sapped any desire to move away from its comforting warmth.
After lunch, Eva settled down on the sofa again to watch film number two, Shaun the Sheep. Hanna didn’t have the heart to tell her otherwise and cuddled up next to her, the flames from the fire lighting their cheeks in an orange glow. Cosmo leapt onto the sofa, sensing a warm spot. Eva curled up in the crook of her mum’s arm and together they started to watch the antics of Shaun the Sheep. But Hanna couldn’t concentrate, and her mind kept wandering. At some point she must have dozed off, waking halfway through the film with a thumping head and the vague recollection of a jumbled dream, a montage of the past and present, all mixed up with her fears for the future. Eva was still wrapped up in the film, a smile on her face.
Hanna wriggled free and went into the kitchen. The digital clock on the cooker indicated 4.28pm. She started to comb through the cupboards and fridge to see what she could rustle up for dinner. With her back was to the window, she had the strange sensation that she was being watched. Goosebumps appeared on her arms, and she could feel the hair at the nape of her neck stand on end.
Whirling around, she fully expected to see a figure outside looking in on her. But all she could make out were the shadows of the bushes framing the window in the fading light. Gathering her courage, she unlocked the kitchen door and stepped outside, triggering the security light as she did so. She couldn’t see anyone or anything. The garden seemed empty. It must have been her imagination.
She breathed a sigh of relief and turned to go back inside. Then she noticed an imprint in the muddy flower bed under the window.
The clear outline of a large boot print.
Chapter Fifteen
“So, how was your day?” asked Hanna, setting down a large bowl of steaming pasta on the table as Rhys sat down.
Before he had chance to answer, Eva butted in, eyeing up the food. “Mmm, that smells good! What’s in the sauce, Mummy?”
Hanna frowned at her; she knew better than to interrupt. “It’s your favourite, tuna,” she replied, ladling out portions into smaller bowls.
Eva grabbed a fork and started to shovel food into her mouth, tuna sauce dribbling down her chin and onto her sweatshirt in her haste.
Rhys smiled. “Hey, take it easy, young lady! You’re almost dropping more than you’re getting in your mouth! “
Eva mumbled something and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.
“Here, try this instead,” Hanna admonished, handing her a paper serviette. Eva accepted it sheepishly.
Bryn sauntered over to the table, sniffing the floor and hovering in the hope that some titbit might fall his way.
Hanna turned to Rhys again. “So, how was work?”
“Pretty full-on as usual. I’ve been more in the office today than out and about. Meetings about the new Partnership Plan that’s due out for consultation next year.”
“Did you get a chance to check the surveillance camera at the cottage?”
Rhys nodded, his mouth full of pasta. He chewed and swallowed before responding. “I did. The only
visitor was a middle-aged woman who arrived with a load of shopping bags from Aldi. She stayed an hour or so and then drove off. No sign of the men or the young girls.”
“A local woman, d’you think?”
“Depends what you mean. She’s obviously not living there. She looked as if she could have been one of the girls’ mothers…”
“You mean she was black?”
Rhys nodded again. “I don’t know what’s going on, but it’s certainly not a holiday let. Let’s see what else the footage throws up before we decide what action to take. What did you two get up to today? Did you brave the atrocious weather?”
Eva launched into an explanation of their lazy day, told in excited bursts between mouthfuls of pasta. Rhys listened patiently. Hanna marvelled at the way the little girl could recall the plot of both films in such detail. She was dying to tell Rhys about the intruder, but she’d have to wait until Eva was in bed.
***
“Did you actually see someone?” Rhys asked, when she’d finished.
“Well, no, not really. But I felt as though I was being watched, and I thought I saw a shadow at the window.”
“Could it just have been your imagination?”
“What about the boot print? Surely that’s proof enough that someone was out there watching us through the window?”
“A hiker who’d strayed off the path, maybe?” suggested Rhys. A public footpath ran down one side of their garden, and more than once they’d found the odd stranger who’d strayed even after they’d put up a low boundary fence.
Hanna shrugged. It was a plausible explanation. Perhaps she’d simply overreacted. “Maybe.”
“I’ll go and take a look to try and put your mind at ease.” Rhys opened the kitchen door to a blast of cold wind and disappeared into the back garden. There had been no let-up in the weather all day.
Hanna could see him clearly through the kitchen window thanks to the security light. The thought suddenly struck her that if someone really had been there, why hadn’t the light activated?
He reappeared a few minutes later. “Looks like the print of a walking boot to me. Must have been a passing hiker. I don’t think it’s anything to worry about. I’ll check the fence tomorrow, when I get chance, in case there’s a gap.”
“Thanks, I just feel a bit on edge…”
“That’s understandable,” he said, coming over and taking her in his arms
“With everything that’s going on…”
“Maybe you need a distraction,” he murmured, nuzzling her hair. He turned her face towards him and kissed her, gently at first, then more insistently, his hands working their way under her sweatshirt.
Hanna felt a surge of passion flood through her body and they both collapsed onto the sofa, all thoughts of a possible intruder forgotten for the moment.
***
The following morning, Hanna awoke with a groggy head as if she had a hangover. It was a hangover, of sorts. Rhys was already up. She could hear the pulsating jets of the shower coming from the bathroom. An image of Rhys’ muscular body flashed through her mind, and her body trembled in response. She tried to summon the energy to get up but failed. Instead, she snuggled up under the duvet for another few minutes. She had almost dozed off again when Rhys appeared with Bryn, tail wagging, at his side. He set a cup of coffee down on the bedside table next to her.
“Sleep well?” he asked, bending down to kiss her, a cheeky grin on his face.
“You bet!” she smiled.
“I’m off in few minutes. Anything you want to confess before I go?”
“Such as?”
“Oh, you know, some wild fantasy or other.”
“I think we worked some of those out last night.”
“Plenty more where that came from!” Another lascivious grin.
“Get away with you! What we do need to talk about is Eva’s birthday trip to Dublin. We haven’t booked the ferry or any attractions yet, what with the cottage and events in Sicily, and it’s only a few days away.”
“You’re the tour guide. What have you got in mind?”
“Ex-tour guide,” Hanna reminded him, sitting up and reaching for her coffee. “And remember I don’t know Dublin at all.”
“No, but you’ll probably have it all worked out.”
“Not really, but we did promise we’d take Eva to the zoo to see the red panda cubs and she’s quite sold on the idea of the ghost bus.”
“Well, why don’t you book tickets for those and we can talk about other ideas tonight?”
“OK, will do. I’d better get up.”
“Stay there and enjoy your coffee. Eva’s still fast asleep. I’ll leave Bryn with you as I’ll be in and out of meetings most of the day.”
With a final kiss, he disappeared out of the door. Hanna listened to him starting up the pick-up and driving away, the sound gradually fading.
***
Later that morning, Hanna watched Eva in the garden from the kitchen window. The little girl’s face screwed up in concentration as she scoured the lawn in search of daisies to make a chain, Bryn by her side. The day was glorious, a light blue sky speckled with the occasional fluffy cloud, and the sun was warm, drying up the damp from the day before. It was if there had been a change of seasons from one day to the next.
Hanna felt cheerful and upbeat, unsure whether it was caused by the weather or the events of the previous evening. She smiled to herself, relishing the inner glow that flowed through her body. As she approached the table to switch on her laptop, ready to book the events in Dublin, her mobile rang.
“More girls have arrived at the cottage!” blurted out an excited Rhys.
Chapter Sixteen
“What? Different girls, or the same ones?” Hanna asked.
“I’m pretty sure these girls are new. It’s the same van, with the two men and that woman I saw the other day. It’s difficult to tell much from the footage as it only gives you a limited view. I’m going to swing over there later if I get a chance. It might have to wait until I finish work, whatever time that is.”
“Be careful, don’t let yourself be seen,” warned Hanna, feeling slightly alarmed. “If there are any connections with Luciano, there’s no telling—”
“Don’t worry, I will. Just thought I’d let you know. Whatever’s going on, the cottage seems to have a pivotal role.”
“And something that may be best left to the authorities to investigate.”
“That’s not what you said before…”
“I know, but that was different. It was personal, I couldn’t risk anything happening to Eva. Don’t get involved. Please tell me you’ll hand it over if there’s anything suspicious.”
A slight pause. Hanna could sense he was reluctant to agree with her.
“OK, OK. Don’t worry, will do,” said Rhys. “But actually, I have every right to intervene on behalf of the Park Authority if they’re in breach of the rental agreement.”
“Fine, but just be careful, that’s all. We’ve been through enough already. We don’t want any reprisals.”
“I won’t do anything that will compromise our situation, I promise. See you later.”
With a final “Take care”, Hanna rang off. She could still see Eva from the kitchen window and was thinking about her old cottage when her mobile rang again. This time it was Ceri.
“Hi, how are things? Has something else happened?” Hanna asked.
“No, thank God. Everything’s gone quiet, but there’s a strange atmosphere in Palermo. Tense, like the calm before the storm, as if there’s something brewing…”
“That must be unnerving.”
“It is, especially with the wedding only three weeks away. Just as well we’re getting married outside the city. You’re both still coming, aren’t you?”
Hanna sighed; she was getting tired of being asked this. “Yes, all being well. Any news of Luciano?”
“None. He seems to be keeping a low profile. That doesn’t mean he’s not up to something, bu
t nothing that’s attracting any attention. How are things with you?”
“Well, the surveillance footage is showing that there’s still movement at the cottage. Rhys is going over there later today to see if we can find out anything further.”
“He’s not thinking of confronting them, is he?”
“I’ve warned him to be careful and to notify the authorities rather than getting involved directly.”
“Quite right, too. I talked to Sergio about it, and he was all for coming over in person to investigate. He’s convinced that this is all part of a network for trafficking women from Africa into Europe via Sicily. If so, it would make a great case study for the story he’s working on.”
“Christ, Ceri, that could be bloody dangerous! I can’t help thinking it’s too much of a coincidence that Luciano’s cousin seems to be involved…”
“I know, you’re still scared for Eva and yourself.”
“For all of us, Ceri. This time, it has to be the authorities that run the risks, not us.”
A deep sigh down the phone. “Tell that to Sergio. He wouldn’t have got the EU farming fraud story without taking chances.”
Hanna felt her heart plummet. “But the stakes are so high. You’re about to get married and have an opportunity to make a new life for yourselves on the mainland.”
“But he’ll always want to hunt down stories and perpetrators of injustice. It’s just the way he is. Even if we did move away, there’d be some peril or other lurking on the horizon.”
Hanna laughed nervously. “Well, I’m fortunate to be well away from that. I swapped life in a Mafia family for a tranquil existence in the Welsh hills.”
“Or did you? What’s going on at the cottage seems to be far from tranquil.”
“Thanks for reminding me. But it’s not affecting any of us directly. Yet.”
“Long may that continue. Well, I’d better be going. Got my stint to do at the refugee centre this afternoon.”