doubt; there was still one almighty secret she had to deal with before she could move on.
35
When she got home, Maddie clipped on Taffie’s lead. He was barking at her, delighted to see the lead, knowing it meant a walk on the beach. It was still foul outside, but she wanted to take the poor dog out before it got too dark. His shook himself as his sandy-coloured coat fluffed up, then barked at her. Maddie glanced out of the kitchen doors as she put on her big jacket. It was still sleeting. She yanked on a woolly hat for good measure. She wanted to clear her head.
As she opened the kitchen doors, they were yanked from her grip by a gust of wind and slammed back on themselves into the wall. She tried to close them against the wind and pushed her shoulder against them to lock them. She pulled her hat down over her forehead and headed to the little gate at the back of the garden, which took her straight onto the coastal path.
Turning left, she glanced out to sea and couldn’t even see the horizon; the gathering lead-coloured clouds had merged with the sea. Small boats were bobbing up and down in the bay. Angry white sea foam was dancing all over the surface of the murky waters as the wind picked up speed, sending frenzied waves crashing onto the beach below her. A few of the boats were upturned. Seagulls screeched overhead as the sleet bit into her cheeks.
There was nobody about. Taffie yanked the lead and she carried on, one hand holding on to her hat, her shoulders hunched as she trudged into the wind. Sand whipped up from the beach and stung her face as she winced in pain. How could Tim have destroyed everything they’d built up? Should she tell Ed any of it? Last time she’d heard from him he and Adity had been on the islands to the east coast of Thailand, but she hadn’t heard from him in a while and she didn’t want to worry him.
She made her way along the coastal path, from where it turned from tarmac into rough ground. The path continued along the headland, somewhere she’d never been. Further up, she knew it petered out on the grassy headland, but she didn’t want to go that far.
She kept walking along the path, even though at times the wind almost blew her off. The tide was right in and the furious foam from the waves hurled over the sea wall. The spray splattered all over her, soaking her jacket as she turned around to see if she should go back. Looking out to sea again, she could barely make out any of the boats: mist, sea spray and dark purple clouds merged to form a menacing creature of fury rising above the tides. Taffie yanked on the lead and tugged her forward. Just a few more minutes, she thought, wiping the saltwater from her cheeks.
Suddenly, Taffie yanked her so much that he was free from his lead, and he bounded further up the path, out of sight as it curved round the bay.
‘Taffie!’ she yelled at the wilful terrier. But it was useless. She couldn’t see him. Just then a wave from below crashed over the sea wall below her, sending up a huge plume of water, soaking her right through. She shivered and stood fixed to the spot, water dripping from her nose. Taffie was nowhere to be seen.
‘Taffie!’ she called again, looking up the path. Blasted dog. The waves were engulfing the path. At one point she had to stand, her back pressed to the wall, as a wave rose up, and crashed around her. She looked over at the swirling, angry waves below the wall, lapping at the stones, and whipping up onto the path, like a sea dragon rising from the ocean to claim its prey. Her heart thudded. She had to find Taffie. She couldn’t leave him in case he fell in.
She carried on further up the path, but just as she did, a huge wave crashed right up in front of her, this time, nearly knocking her over. She stood with her back against the wooden fence again, terrified.
What on earth was she going to do? She called again for Taffie, but she could hardly hear her own voice with the roar of the ocean. She marched determinedly along the path, keeping close to the sea wall. She glanced