“Sibyl!” Marian Byrne replied and Sibyl broke free of his arm and gave the woman a tight embrace.
“Did you see that?” Sibyl exclaimed when she ended the embrace. She swung toward Colin, her evening’s silent treatment a memory. “That lunatic driver nearly hit us. It was like… it was like he was aiming at us.”
Colin stared at her then swung his head to where the car had gone, his thoughts racing.
She was correct. It seemed exactly as if the car was aiming at them.
Marian Byrne obviously agreed. “I saw it and it did look like he was aiming at you. My goodness gracious, goodness, goodness gracious,” Marian Byrne chanted, her voice filled with alarm.
Colin turned his head again and stared at Mrs. Byrne.
Regardless of what seemed to Colin like a telling coincidence – these two women tended to “run into” each other with alarming frequency – Marian Byrne looked genuinely distraught.
“Mrs. Byrne, you need to sit down.” Sibyl had moved toward the older woman and slid her arm around her. Carefully looking both ways, she guided Mrs. Byrne across the street to a bench under a streetlamp that faced the sea. Colin followed silently and watched as Sibyl crouched down next to the older woman once she was seated.
Sibyl looked up to him.
“Should we take her back to the restaurant, get her a drink?” she asked and in the light of the streetlamp he could see her face was awash with concern.
“I’m fine, I just need to take a few deep breaths,” Marian answered.
“Mrs. Byrne, why are you out tonight?” Sibyl voiced the question to which Colin wanted an answer. “It’s late. You should be home. What if you’d been in the path of that crazy man? You wouldn’t have been able to get out of his way,” she glanced hesitantly at Colin and whispered, “I nearly didn’t get out of the way,” and he realised that was the closest he would likely get to any expression of gratitude.
Marian gave a deep shudder and replied, “I’m restless. I think it’s this unseasonable weather. England is never this sunny and warm in March. At least not in my many years of experience.” She smiled wanly and her hand lifted to pat the hand that Sibyl was resting on her arm.
Finally Colin spoke. “I’ll take you home.”
“Oh no, Mr. Morgan, I live not a five minute walk from here, ten at the most.”
“I insist,” Colin said in a voice that seconded the words he uttered.
When Mrs. Byrne looked like she was going to protest, Sibyl moved closer to her, shifting awkwardly on her crouched legs. “Let Colin take you home, Mrs. Byrne. Please? For me?”
Sibyl smiled at the other woman and Colin noted this smile was not dazzling but faltering. She was still reacting to the near-miss with the car and it became clear, even though he had thought differently moments before, that both of these women had nothing to do with the events of that night.
Marian turned to Colin and gave in to Sibyl’s plea. “Thank you, Mr. Morgan, that would be very kind.”
Colin looked at Sibyl, his car was a two seater and she’d have to wait until he returned from this errand.
“Go to the restaurant,” he ordered curtly, “I’ll be back for you in ten minutes.”
Without a word in protest, she nodded and then gracefully stood. She helped Mrs. Byrne to the car and Colin waited to get in himself while he watched Sibyl, again with great care, her head swinging from side to side as she scanned the road, cross the street. He didn’t get into the car until he saw the restaurant door close safely behind her.
As he drove off, Marian Byrne gave him quick directions and then asked, “Are you quite all right, Mr. Morgan?”
He lied gruffly, “I’m fine.”
“That was a nasty scare,” she noted on a trembling sigh. “Drivers these days. So impatient. You must promise me you’ll be most careful.”
He nodded.
“I take it things with you and Sibyl are on a much better footing now?” she asked, her voice tentative and polite, she knew it was none of her business.
“That depends on how you look at it,” he replied honestly at the same time not giving her very much information.
“Well, Mr. Morgan, considering my tenure at your house and what I know of its history, I look at any time you spend with that delightful girl to be a very, very good thing, if you understand my meaning.”
His eyes slid to her briefly then back to the road.