Page 80 of The High Island

‘It is,’ she said.

‘Then I promise not to kill an albatross en route,’ Ethan told her firmly.

This interchange appeared to ease the initial awkwardness between them, although she still wished Ivan had come along. The young constable, familiar as he was with Hoy and many of its inhabitants, would no doubt have entered into a lively conversation with Ethan and gleaned more from the ferryman during the trip than she ever could.

Now, looking out from her place in the bow towards a fast-approaching Cava, Jo contemplated the fact that this was the trip she’d promised herself, although she’d thought she’d set sail from Houton Bay rather than Lyness. And with Magnus Pirie at the helm.

As they approached the golden sands of Lyrawa Bay, she found her eyes drawn again to the swathe of charred hillside above, even as the memory of its smell assailed her. A wildfire killed more than just the surrounding vegetation, and the air on that hill had been thick with the aroma of the burnt feathers and flesh of small mammals. Such a smell lingered long in the memory and still tasted on the tongue.

Perhaps reading her expression, Ethan suddenly said, ‘I don’tthink the guy who started that fire is the one found dead on the beach.’

‘Who do you think fired the digger?’ she said. She’d heard a lot of theories since she’d landed on Hoy, she might as well hear his.

‘Just like I said back at Moaness. What the Mowats want, the Mowats get.’

‘So you believe someone in the Mowat family started the fire?’

‘Try Ragnar, Harald’s grandson, and Cameron’s Gary.’ When he noted her reaction to this, he added, ‘I see someone’s already alerted you to the terrible twosome. Plenty money. Not much sense.’

‘Where does the Mowat money come from exactly?’ she asked.

‘Lots of different places,’ he told her. ‘But if the rumours are right, and they’re not always right,’ he warned, ‘then the younger Mowats have discovered there’s more money in peddling drugs than in the family’s legitimate businesses.’

‘You think this boat you’ve seen might have something to do with that?’ Jo said.

‘Isn’t that why your boss okayed you to come out here with me?’ he countered.

The moment passed without her attempt at an answer, in part because she was beginning to question whether Ethan Howie was learning more from her than she was from him. Might he have brought her out here for that sole purpose?

She hadn’t felt like that with Maggie, but something about the interchange with Ethan made her feel uneasy. His dislike of the Mowats seemed obvious. Maybe too obvious. And he’d found a way to make her laugh and reveal that her father was a minister. An item of information she didn’t give up easily.

His voice broke into her thoughts. ‘We can go ashore from here by dinghy. The boat was anchored a little further up the coast when I saw it.’

His announcement brought her back to the present with a jolt.

‘Did you spot anyone going ashore from the boat?’ she asked.

‘It was much darker than now, but I thought I saw a light moving between the boat and the shore. And there are derelict crofts in the vicinity,’ he added.

‘Like the old Mowat croft house?’

‘Exactly.’ He indicated she should get into the small dinghy he’d brought alongside. ‘Youcanswim?’ he added, resurrecting their earlier light-hearted tone as she lowered herself down.

Choosing to ignore the question, Jo kept her eyes firmly on the shoreline as he began to paddle.

Ethan joined her in her silence until they made the beach and, crossing the shingle, stepped onto the carpet of lush grass beyond. The light, she realized, was fading fast, the outline of theAngel Heartat anchor already blurring into what would swiftly become a scarlet sunset.

Keeping his voice low, Ethan beckoned her on towards the outline of a low stone building.

‘If they’re using Cava to stash drugs and were moored out there, then this place is definitely worth a look,’ he told her.

Following him into the remnants of the croft house, they were immediately plunged into darkness until they both produced light at the same time. Hers from a standard police-issue torch, his froma more powerful night searcher. Adjusting this to a less powerful glare, he swung it round.

They were in a partly roofed room with a small fireplace and what looked like bedding in the corner. When Jo went to look she discovered a sleeping bag and some food wrappings, reminding her of what they’d found at the Mowat croft.

‘You want to take these back with us?’ Ethan suggested.

‘I’ll take a couple of sample wrappers. If this is being used by your boat people, we don’t want to alert them to our visit.’ Producing an evidence bag and gloves, she made her choice and bagged it.