that he was off pedalling quickly along the harbor wall. Vicky jumped up, shoving the last of her Cornetto in her mouth before grabbing her bike and following.
“Hey, wait,” she called after him through a mouthful of cone.
Neil sped along, flashing past the group of people the boy had been standing next to. He turned sharply down the side street where the boy had gone and then skidded to a stop. The street was empty. Looking back along the harbor Neil could see no sign of him. Looking back up the street all he could see were lines of terraced houses that ended in a hundred meters or so as the road climbed steeply upwards before disappearing around a corner.
Pushing off Neil raced on, pedalling furiously as the road climbed up and curved above the town. Terraces were replaced by cottages spread out between hedgerows and fields. Soon he was way above the town with just fields and the sea for company. Slowing to a stop Neil looked around, forcing himself to admit that he didn’t have a chance of finding the boy now. Feeling a bit foolish he turned round to go back down to the town when he saw his sister coming towards him puffing hard with the effort of the steep climb.
“What kept you?” he asked grinning.
“Perhaps it was you zooming off without warning,” she panted. “So, did you find him?”
“Nope,” said Neil feeling a little frustrated. “He could have gone anywhere.”
“Sure it was him?” Vicky asked.
“Yes, I’m sure,” said Neil offended.
“I don’t like it if we’re being followed,” said Vicky, a cold shiver running down her spine.
“There’s definitely something fishy going on,” said Neil.
“So, what now?” Vicky asked.
“Guess we go back to the cottage,” said Neil releasing his brakes and beginning to move off down the hill. “Last one back does the washing up,” he called over his shoulder to his sister whose bike was still pointing up the hill.
“That’s not fair,” she cried indignantly yanking her bike round and pushing off to follow his fast-retreating figure as quickly as she could. Neither noticed the boy who had been hiding behind a nearby hedgerow. He stood up, watching them intently until they disappeared from view.
Chapter Ten
“It’s so beautiful up here,” said Nicola as they walked along the cliff tops.
“I agree,” said Paul. “Sometimes I feel I am waiting all year just to come back. There is a real atmosphere, a real presence.”
They both fell silent for a while as they enjoyed the warmth of the sun and the light that defined the land and the sea.
“What do you do?” he asked.
“I work for a bank in London but I hate it.”
“That doesn’t sound good,” said Paul. “Why do you hate it?”
“Because of this,” she said raising her arm to take in the sweep of the bay. “I can’t stand being stuck in a cage in a dirty smelly city when this exists and I know that some people make their living by being in and around it.”
“What’s stopping you then?” he asked.
She fell silent. All the thoughts, reasons, and inhibitions for her inaction flooded through her mind and she did not want to admit what she saw as her failure. She felt a sudden upwelling of despair and from nowhere tears filled her eyes. She looked away blinking furiously to hide them. He glanced at her, transfixed by her wild beauty. Seeing her sad made his heart heavy.
“I didn’t mean to upset you,” he said.
She half-laughed, her voice shaky as she said, “I thought you wouldn’t notice.”
He smiled, “Sorry.”
“It’s not your fault,” she said. “I seem to be about to spend my life not doing what I really want to do.”
“If you don’t want to talk about it that’s no problem, but maybe I can help, add a different perspective.”
Again she looked at him, amazed by the maturity he showed on such young shoulders.
He looked back at her hoping for a sign that she liked him, that she felt the same for him as he did for her.
“It’s difficult to express,” she said. “Like I know what I should be doing but I still can’t do it. In my head I know who I am, but in my actions I am someone else. I’m waiting for someone else to come along and hand everything I want to me on a plate, all the time not realizing that the only person who can do that is me.”
“It’s the same question then,” said Paul. “What’s stopping you?”
Nicola was