Page 152 of Beneath the Quiet

As soon as Joe’s been caught, and harvesting season is over, I’m going to take my girls on a holiday away from Cloonmara.

My girls. I never thought I’d say those words, yet here I am.

I’m in, Aidan. I’m all the way in.

“Things seem to be going well between the two of you.”

Roísin’s quiet but happy words draw me out of my own head.

I flash her a lighter smile this time. “Yes.”

She grabs the tongs and claps them at my nose, and I bark out a laugh. “Wow, aren’t you a mine of information?” she drawls.

I raise my eyebrows. “I’m a man, Roísin. We don’t gossip like women.”

She sighs, her lips turned up in an annoyed pout. “Fine, I’ll hound Maeve for information instead.”

I reach for my wallet and patiently wait for her to bring me the coffee, staring out of the window again, but I frown when a stranger outside stares right back at me. He’s frowning, his almost-black hair cut close to his head. The hair at the nape of my neck stands up, and I tense when the man keeps staring. I know I can’t go around turning each tourist into a suspect, but this man is creepy. I scan what I can see of his body, memorising each detail I can see from his waist up. Most of his jaw is covered in a full, black beard, bushy black eyebrows pulled low in a frown, and his eyes squint as he scans the lines of baked goods.

“Here you go, Aidan.”

I turn my head from the stranger and place my card on the machine to pay for the goods. When I look up again, the man has gone.

“Thank you, Roísin.”

Her lips turn down in speculation.

“Tell Maeve I’ll text her later, please.”

“Will do.”

I pick up the cups, balancing them in my hands along with the brown paper bag filled with cookies, and once I’m outside the shop, I scan left, then right, looking for the stranger. I push the bag under my arm and reach for my phone in my back pocket. I swipe to find Maeve in my contacts, and my pulse starts to race. I swipe and hold it up to my ear, holding my breath as I listen to it ring.

Relief floods my system when she picks it up.

“Hey, honey.”

I close my eyes and take a deep breath.

“Aidan? Are you okay?”

“Yes, yes. Sorry. Everything’s good. Listen, do the Gardai have a recent photo of Joe that they’ll share with you?”

“I already know what he looks like, and apart from changing his hairstyle or growing a beard, he can’t have changed much. What made you think of that?”

“I’m probably being paranoid, but I just saw a stranger, maybe a tourist, hanging about the bakery, and he gave off a bad vibe. I thought it would help if I knew what Joe looks like.”

“Yes, I agree. I’ll find a photo of him and send it to you. It won’t take long.”

I walk to my car and open it, careful not to spill the coffee all over my leather seats.

“Thank you. I’m on my way with your caffeine fix. I’ll be there in five.”

“Oh, lovely. What is it this time?”

I lift her cup and sniff it. “Ah, I don’t know. It smells heavy on the chocolate, though.”

“Mmm, maybe it’s coffee with a dollop of Nutella.”