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Tara watched Amelia clutch the mug like it was some kind of lifeline. The woman was wound tighter than a clock spring. ‘I don’t know how to get where I’m going,’ she admitted, her voice soft.

Tara blinked. ‘You’re lost?’

‘I had instructions, but... the man took them.’

‘Instructions for what?’ Tara pressed, keeping her tone light, even though her instincts told her there was more to this.

Amelia hesitated again, her fingers tightening around the mug. ‘Directions. To a hotel. And where my appointment with the government is.’

‘Alright,’ Tara said, leaning back in her chair and studying her. ‘So, no instructions, no idea where you’re headed. And no phone, of course.’

‘It was called... The Meridian... something,’ Amelia said, her brow furrowing. ‘I saw that before the man took my envelope.’ She sighed. ‘I should have read it on the boat, but I was worried about dropping it overboard.’

‘Hey, don’t worry,’ Tara said, softening her tone. ‘We’ll figure it out. You have the word Merdian. We can do something with that,’ she assured her.

She had already found this woman with only the word Selkie. This should be a piece of piss.

‘Alright,’ Tara said, standing up. ‘Let’s start simple. If there’s a Meridian hotel out there, we’ll find it.’

Amelia looked up at her, surprised. ‘Do you have a map,’ she asked, looking around her.

‘This is a map,’ Tara said, grabbing her laptop from the floor and flicking it open, the smooth, glowing screen lighting up instantly.

Amelia stared at it, her eyes wide. The glowing apple on the back of the device, in particular, seemed to catch her attention.

‘What is that?’ Amelia asked, her voice tight with suspicion.

Tara glanced at her, amused by the question. ‘It’s a laptop. A computer. You’ve never seen one before, I take it?’

‘I’ve read about them,’ Amelia said stiffly, her eyes still tracking the device. ‘But I didn’t expect it to look so... strange. Why does it have an apple on it?’ Amelia asked, the suspicion turning into genuine confusion.

Tara suppressed the urge to laugh. She didn’t want Amelia to feel mocked. ‘It’s just the logo. A symbol of the company that they put on everything they make.’

Damn, it was hard talking to Amelia. Tara didn’t know exactly what she knew. She didn’t want to confuse her, but she didn’t want to patronise her either.

Amelia furrowed her brow. ‘Why an apple?’

Tara had an answer for that. ‘I think it represents the apple Eve bit into. Knowledge. Information. That’s what Apple makes. Technology that gives people information.’

Tara was glad to see that Amelia was on firmer ground with that reference.

‘Oh, yes. The apple. That makes sense,’ Amelia responded.

Tara saw an opportunity for a little digging. ‘You’re a… what’s the religion on Solhaven? Christian?’ If she was in a cult, that was a good place to start digging.

‘That’s what is practised on Solhaven, yes,’ Amelia said. ‘Though I know there are some others on the mainland. What’s yours?’

That took Tara by surprise. ‘Oh, I’m… I’m just an atheist.’

‘Oh. Which one’s that again?’

‘It’s not a religion. It means I don’t have one.’

Amelia looked less shocked than Tara might have thought. ‘Ohhhh, you’re a heathen!’ she said, amused and intrigued.

Tara had to laugh. ‘That’s…’ she started, meaning to contradict her before she realised, she actually couldn’t dispute the term. ‘…exactly right.’

OK, well, that little information pump hadn’t gone as Tara had hoped, but she’d circle back around to it later. Tara turned the screen toward Amelia.

‘OK, let’s figure out this hotel situation.’ Tara typed in some keywords and pulled up a list of hotels with the name ‘Meridian’ in it.

Amelia looked at the screen, the glint reflected in her shocked eyes. ‘It’s like a book that moves,’ Amelia said after a long moment. ‘I suppose I’ll get used to it,’ she added with no conviction.

‘Alright,’ Tara said briskly. ‘I’ve got a couple of hotels that fit the bill. The Meridian Arms is close by. Lemme call it.’

Tara grabbed her phone from her pocket and dialled the number. She tried to ignore the way Amelia’s mouth fell open at the sight of it.

The phone rang. And rang. No one picked up.

Tara snapped the laptop shut with a soft click and stood, grabbing her coat off the back of the chair. ‘Alright, nobody’s answering. So, let’s go check it out.’

Amelia didn’t move immediately. Her eyes flickered to the laptop, the unease still written on her face. ‘Is it... safe? Your lap… thing, I mean.’

Tara’s lips twitched. It wasn’t quite a smile, but something close. ‘Safe as anything else.’

It wasn’t a great answer, but it was the truth. Nothing was safe here, not in the way Amelia seemed to understand it.

Tara knew she wasn’t going to get Amelia to fully trust the technology or the city in one go, but that wasn’t her problem. She just needed the woman to trust her—for now.