Scarred Survival (Scarred Series Book 5)

by Jackie Williams

Patrick huffed as he threw his own apple core. It sailed a good twenty metres past Paul’s effort. He smiled to himself as he answered.

  “Of course not. I’m not closing down the case yet, but I will as soon as I have definite word back from Alex confirming that it was a case of mistaken identity. It’s probably my memory playing up, but I’m still checking it out. There’s something about him that I’m not quite comfortable with.” Patrick pressed his thumb and forefinger over the bridge of his nose. “When I saw him in the kitchen, I really thought that there had been some terrible mistake and that he’d somehow escaped the wreck. If that was so then he could still have been the mole in our team. I just reacted. Luckily for him and for me, Gemma threw herself between us and gave me time to think. Close thing though. I’ll make sure that it doesn’t happen again.” He was clearly disturbed.

  Aaron walked into the empty kitchen and immediately selected three cookery books. He tucked them beneath his arm, opened the kitchen door and walked out onto the kitchen garden path. It was fragrant with fresh herbs and he breathed in the scent of thyme and rosemary before he pushed through a wrought iron gate into the sheltered courtyard where the new outdoor swimming pool was situated.

  He could hear the rumble of voices in the orchard at the other side of the wall and hoped that he hadn’t missed too much of their conversation. The tops of Patrick’s and Paul’s heads were just visible, bobbing slightly as they walked slowly along the outer courtyard wall and Aaron ducked down and sat on one of the benches by the pool. He opened the first cookery book on a random page and began jotting down notes on a recipe for some kind of fish stew which contained an alarming array of ingredients, but from the picture, looked exceedingly tasty. He kept his eyes on the book while he listened to the two men talking.

  Paul walked on and Patrick kept step beside him.

  “I only have his medical record here, nothing about what brought him to us. Busted ankle and fractured shinbone from a bad landing. Pinned and expected to be fully functional within a couple of months. His hand was shredded when he fell through the cabin window and he’s had a lot of work done on it but they’re calling it a massive success. They used some crazy new technology, experimenting with new skin growth and what with the grafts, well, they’re practically growing the tendons and skin back over his hand. Because it’s all still in the experimental stages, his supervisor wants the full works on any side effects or possible PTSD. I can’t say that I noticed that he’s been suffering from anything much apart from a quick temper on occasions, but trauma can be hidden and then crop up unexpectedly, so it could show up. Amy will have any details to hand on that side of things if you want to have a look.”

  Patrick was quiet for a moment as he thought.

  “I don’t think his medical records will help at all really, and there’s no previous question against his name or character on the paperwork that I have either. Clean as a whistle before this crash. Possibly too clean? Seems odd to me that there’s nothing much on him. His statement says he was shot down by a SAM after going in to pick up stranded troops left in a supposed safe zone. Their vehicle had hit some unexpected rocks or debris in the middle of the track and ripped out the underside of their truck. The official story is that he made a gross error of judgement and flew into a known hostile area thereby endangering himself and everyone on board. Unofficial word is that he lost his nerve when faced with enemy fire and crashed the damn helicopter just inside his own lines. At least no one died, says something about his ability to fly if he pulled off that miracle, seeing how helicopters are notoriously bad on their survivor records after a crash.”

  Paul raised an eyebrow.

  “Lost his nerve? Hmm, doesn’t seem likely. He doesn’t seem to be the nervy sort to me, just the opposite in fact, but whatever it was, he’s lucky they all made it out alive or he’d be facing a possible murder charge if they proved him negligent in any way. He certainly wouldn’t be living it up here while his ankle mends.”

  Patrick stopped again.

  “That’s half of what I don’t understand. Aaron clearly isn’t stupid. Why would he lie about the missile? Ridiculous thing to do. The investigating team would have to check it out and they’d spot any missile damage in an instant. It’s bothering me that there’s no evidence or statements from the other men aboard either. Why not? There don’t appear to be any witnesses to what happened, or rather the three other men passengers’ statements haven’t been included in any files that I can get hold of. There’s not even a record of exactly who they were. I’m not happy about any of the explanations, official or otherwise, but can’t see how I can take it any further without driving up suspicion and I don’t want to do that if the guy is telling the truth...” He paused and rubbed his temples. “I’ve been out of it all too long. There’s only Alex from my old team who I have any regular contact with now and he’s not even in the services any longer. Most of my other contacts are either dead or retired and I wouldn’t know who to trust anyway.” He was obviously troubled.

  Paul tapped his cane against his leg as he thought.

  “Hmm, I would think you’d have your answers pretty soon if Alex has anything to do with it. The man may be out of the services, but they’ll never keep him out of any system he wants to get into. You know how good he is with a computer. The guy is a genius and he likes to keep himself well informed. Word has it that he knows what the Queen has on her breakfast menu even before her cook is made aware of Her Majesty’s choices.”

  Patrick laughed for the first time.

  “Yes, I heard that too. He sent us a message that she had grilled kidneys three times one week. Bloody nosey parker. Apart from the slightly interesting fact that the Queen apparently arranges her menus on a computer, why would you even want to know that sort of stuff? He probably has files on all us lot too, just to keep himself up to date on what we are doing. I wonder if he knows that Joe eats about two dozen eggs every week for his breakfasts? Boiled, scrambled, fried, poached and probably a few more ways that I could mention.”

  Paul laughed with him as the two men began walking again, but Aaron sat in his seat in shock.

  His fingers trembled slightly as he scribbled some more notes on fish soup. He guessed that Reeves would probably check up on him, but he hadn’t expected him to get very far or that the man would still have someone who could get inside and check his every move. It seemed that Reeves would soon know as much about the case as he did himself. That he had nearly all the information available, practically at his fingertips was unnerving to say the least. One more leap and he’d know everything.

  He hadn’t noticed that one of the recipe books was slipping sideways from his lap. Startled out of his reverie, he caught it at the last moment before it dropped to the gravel. The papers rustled in the light breeze. Aaron immediately stood up from the bench and backed away from the wall with several quick but quiet steps before he began to walk forwards again just as the top of Patrick’s head turned the corner of the wall and faced towards him. Piercing blue eyes appeared above the ancient brickwork.

  Aaron raised a hand in greeting and smiled widely.

  “Hey! You’re back to give us another lesson? You can bet the guys will all be listening and trying hard today. Did Paul tell you that we’re all going to have a go at cooking a three course meal for each other?” He held up the cookery books and sat down on the bench as though he’d only just arrived. “I’m checking over some ideas I had. This fish recipe looks delicious, but I’m not sure. Any suggestions for two novices? Gemma is going to cook with me.” He tapped the picture on the page he had just opened.

  The two friends walked in at the iron gate and strolled towards Aaron. Patrick frowned at the recipe for the fish stew for a moment and then his face brightened as he turned to Paul.

  “I wasn’t about to demonstrate today actually, but what a brilliant idea.” He turned back to Aaron. “I’m not going to give you any hints about what to cook though. That wouldn’t be fair on the other teams
, though the bouillabaisse does look rather good especially with all the fresh shellfish you can get around here.” He nodded towards the open recipe book “My advice would be to keep it simple and the ingredients fresh and local. Everything tastes best that way anyway.” Patrick laughed at Aaron’s disappointed expression when he realized he wasn’t going to get a leg up in the competition.

  Paul enthused as he swung his white cane across the patio, making sure that he wasn’t going to trip if he moved anywhere.

  “Amy’s sure that this experiment will be the start of the centre’s new venture. We’re hoping that the guys can come up with a few signature dishes that we can then offer to the paying public. Rehab and learning while earning. If it takes off, we’re going to employ a number of local staff too. We’re hoping that one day we’ll be able to open a small restaurant. It would be down to our people to run it but the local staff would be there to help out and offer practical advice. That way if there are any difficulties we’ll have trained staff on hand to help out, but it also gives out guys some genuine experience to add to their C.V.s for when they go home. Amy is aiming high. She’s hoping to have Michelin stars.”

  Patrick looked over the château. It was an ambitious idea but there were limitations.

  “Where do you propose that it’s going to be situated? Looks like you’ve used most of the room here, and I’m not sure that it would be ideal being so close to the centre anyway.”

  Paul and Amy had thought the exact same thing.

  “We’ve had a quote to add a building onto the old pigeonnier down at the end of the drive. It’s in pretty good condition still and would be nearer to the road. We want to keep any new ventures separate from the main building anyway. It wouldn’t be fair to our own guests if there were outsiders coming in all the time. Not all the men can handle the public when in the early stages of rehab, but for those that feel ready to give it a go, it could be a fabulous opportunity. Keeping it separate means that we can offer other things here for the men to try out too. We don’t want to only turn out chefs and waiters. There are plenty of other jobs associated with a catering facility, including business managers and marketing operators. It could really be useful for getting the men used to working back in the public sphere, but who knows where an idea like this could go. We could end up having a complete training facility for all members of the community.”

  Patrick raised his eyebrows in surprise.

  “You know, that’s actually a great idea that we could expand on. Ellen and David have never really liked having to fund either project with outside money. The frequent corporate weekends disrupt us from giving our guys a good time and we’d really rather not do it, but we had never thought of anything else dependable enough to take its place and bring in the kind of money necessary. I wonder if we could get government funding for training places. Joe, Gemma and Geraldine’s brother Jules could train trainers, Rebecca and Delphine are fully qualified and could offer courses for beauticians and masseurs, Geraldine and Amy could help train home-helps in basic nursing. Lucy could bring on those interested in marketing and media. We have so much talent between us that it seems criminal to waste it. We could do less of the corporate and more to do with actual work placed activities.”

  Paul agreed but had a note of caution in his tone when he replied.

  “All good ideas, but I can’t see any of that funding the scheme enough to give up on the corporate events. We could offer outsiders training weeks and charge a premium, I suppose. Amy was also thinking of having a monthly craft or antiques market here in the grounds and charging a fee for the stall holders. It wouldn’t bring in masses of money, but who knows what it could grow into. What with us being right on the coast there are always potential customers about. We were talking about opening up the dining room on market days to serve coffee and cakes, maybe some products from local producers for a start, just to keep it simple. If we can get the local people on side, I’m sure we can make good money out of it and it may give the local economy a boost too.”

  Aaron was glad the conversation had taken a complete new turn and he intended to keep it pointed away from him.

  “I suppose you would need government permission to do any of this, but it sounds like a great idea to me. I’m almost sorry I won’t be here to see it all. I’ll have to book in a visit now and again.” His throat dried as he realized that he meant it and he wondered how he had become so attached to the place so quickly. Even though he knew he was there for different reasons to the other men, he also found it exceptionally comfortable and welcoming. It wasn’t as if he was languishing in the hospital or barracks at home. If it hadn’t been for his need to fly he knew that he wouldn’t be too bothered about going home at all.

  Patrick gave him a quick smile, but it soon turned into something of a grimace.

  “Job prospects in Brittany are pretty terrible. It’s really seasonal here. The place is deserted outside the school summer holidays. The young population all move to the big cities to get jobs. I know that we are not going to fix anything with our little enterprise, but it might make a small difference to some people. I’m going to call a meeting with all of us present to throw around the ideas as well as discuss any potential problems.”

  Paul grinned.

  “You must have been reading Amy’s mind. She was going to ask Ellen for a chat over things when she next saw her. I’ll bring Gemma and the five guys staying here too. We’ll want to know what they think and they have a pretty good spectrum of injuries as well so we should be able to spot any down sides to the plan and any other pitfalls. After that we can see what ideas we can take further.”

  Patrick was still enthused.

  “I want to know how this cooking week goes before the meeting too as it’s relevant to the discussion. Ellen and David will need the plans and figures for the new building as well, if you have them to hand. They’ll have to look them over to see if it’s at all feasible with their finances.” He glanced over at Aaron’s quizzical stare. “Ellen and David have funded these two projects entirely out of the money they inherited. None of the staff take a big salary out of the place as we all live rent and board free. We want to give as much as we can to our servicemen and women, but what with setting this place up and Ellen’s penchant for high standards, I know that they don’t have much to spare now and certainly nothing to waste. As you can imagine, the upkeep of châteaux like these is enormous.” He looked up at the massive grey stone building. “All new ventures depend on what success we think we might have with self funding.”

  Aaron was surprised. Gemma had told him about the two projects being owned by David and Ellen, but he hadn’t realized that it had cost them their own personal wealth. He had assumed that they had been given funding for both projects from the government, not just for the rehabilitation centre. He looked around him at the beauty of the place. It was all magnificent and he kicked himself for being so stupid. He should have guessed that this wasn’t a normal rehabilitation centre by any stretch of the imagination. No government was going to fund the luxury of a place like this and he suspected that the hotel would be renovated and decorated to an even higher standard. This really didn’t feel like any kind of rehabilitation centre he had ever seen before. It certainly wasn’t anything like the one he’d been in when he suffered a fractured skull. The château had kept all its original grandeur and charm but was completely up to date. No expense had been spared on the equipment or the refurbishment of the beautiful rooms. The staff were of an equally high standard too. They knew exactly what the men were all going through having been through it themselves. There was no pity or condescension. It actually felt more like a very exclusive hotel.

  He looked back at Patrick and Paul the guilt almost swamped him. These were genuinely good people who cared deeply for everyone who came to their establishments. He was a complete and utter fraud and wished desperately that he wasn’t there under false pretences. He felt even worse about eavesdropping on their previous conversatio
n.

  He couldn’t look through the cookery books any longer. Every recipe he glanced at felt as though it would taste like ash in his mouth. He dropped the books onto the bench, lifted his head and let out a deep breath. He knew that he’d have to talk to Paul and Patrick soon but any conversation would have to wait for another few days. Until he had some confirmation of his suspicions he didn’t want to assume the worst. If he opened up now it might spoil things for the other guys. He liked them and didn’t want to upset the friendly atmosphere that had sprung up. He especially didn’t want to lessen himself in Gemma’s eyes.

  Thoughts of her exquisite features suddenly burned through him and he wondered if he’d ever be able to look at another woman again. After knowing someone with such strength and spirit in the face of her own demons he knew that all other women would appear shallow and insignificant to him. That she was an incredible beauty too seemed almost too good to be true. That Gemma didn’t even know she was stunning made her even more beguiling. He didn’t know how he was going to do it but he had to gain more than her trust. It felt more important to him than anything.

  He looked up and discovered Patrick staring right back at him, his gaze knowing and almost accusatory. Aaron’s heart sank. Patrick clearly realized that something was off and Aaron knew that he would have to say something soon. He couldn’t stand the way the man’s eyes seemed to read his every thought. They said confession was good for the soul but right at that moment it didn’t feel much like it. He was about to plunge on but instead raised an eyebrow in surprise as Patrick gave a slight shake of his head. He didn’t have time to consider what that signal might have meant but heard footsteps behind him and he turned to discover Joe watching all three of them carefully.

  “Something wrong?” Joe asked, his eyes automatically resting on Patrick.

  Patrick shook his head and his shoulders visibly relaxed.

  “Not at all. We were discussing having a meeting about the way forward from now. I’m going back home and letting Ellen and David know what we’ve thought of. Paul will fill you in, Joe.” He looked down at his watch. “I must get back. I know the guys who come for a holiday don’t need much looking after but David’s mind isn’t on his job at the moment. He’s not himself at all. This thing with Robbie has really got him down and he’s acting kind of strange.”