Page 57 of Kilts and Kisses at Highland Hall (Kilts and Kisses #1)

The anger was rising within her. Seriously? Would the world just not cut her a break?

There, on the ground, next to the bottom of the tyre, was the tyre cap.

By the looks of things, it had been knocked off, but how?

Sheep. That was the immediate answer that came into her head.

The flock of sheep earlier in the day would likely be the reason for that, wouldn’t it?

As Bex contemplated the scenarios, questions rose in her mind.

Like, how would they manage to do that? It was a screw cap.

The only way they would have been able to knock it off was if it had been loose in the first place, and even then, didn’t the valves have some sort of safety to mean that the air couldn’t just pour out?

Well, air had definitely poured out of her tyre. The bottom section was totally horizontal, with the rim of the rubber slumping outwards.

‘Everything okay?’

Bex turned around to find Roddy standing behind her, concern etched on his face.

‘Not really,’ she said. Tears were brimming in her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. ‘Honestly, I just wanted to get out of this place and it’s been one thing after another. What with the flood, and the sheep, and now this.’

‘What flood?’ Roddy asked.

‘The ford,’ she told him. ‘The one a couple of miles outside of the village. It was flooded last night when I wanted to leave. Apparently, it was something to do with one of the dams on the loch.’

‘Are you sure?’

‘Yes, I’m sure,’ Bex said, trying not to sound sharp. ‘I was ready to leave, to head back to London, but Niall showed me the photos.’

The frown that had been on Roddy’s face since they started their conversation was still there, only now it was getting deeper.

‘What time was this?’ he said. ‘I came through it about five and everything was bonnie then.’

‘It was a bit later than that. Around seven.’

‘And it was definitely that ford?’

‘Yes. It was.’ Bex knew how exasperated she sounded, but really, after the previous thirty-six hours, the last thing she needed was to go in circles with a conversation that was leading nowhere.

If Roddy would help her with her flat tyre, then great, but if not, this conversation was just more wasted time. Still, he didn’t let the point lie.

‘But it’s summer. The only time I’ve ever known that to happen was when there was daft rainfall,’ he said.

Bex was grinding her teeth again. She was going to have to tell Roddy to stop talking, or at least ask him about the tyre, but he was still prattling on about the bloody flooded ford.

‘Last time was this spring just gone,’ he mused. ‘In April. Then it was really flooded. This poor woman got her wee yellow car stuck in the middle of it and everything?—’

‘Sorry, Roddy, but could you—’ Bex cut herself short. ‘I’m sorry. Did you say it was a yellow car that got stuck?’

‘Yeah, one of those wee things. Three doors. No room to swing a cat. Probably better in a city than somewhere like here, but?—’

‘Do you have a photo?’ Bex asked. Her pulse was rising, as if it was trying to tell her this was more than just a coincidence.

‘Sorry?’ Roddy said.

‘A photo of the car,’ she repeated. ‘Do you have one?’

His nose scrunched a little.

‘I could probably find one online. One sec.’

A minute later, after several taps and sweeps on his screen, Roddy handed Bex his phone to look at. Every muscle in her jaw tensed.

‘Lorna,’ she growled before picking up her phone.