Page 49 of The Boathouse by the Loch (The Scottish Highlands #4)

Not far along the main road, David took the turn on to the single-track lane by a brown sign indicating a loch.

Robyn could now do this journey with her eyes closed, after countless times up and down this country road.

She knew exactly what was coming. Soon, they’d pass a detached cottage, then a couple of detached bungalows, and lastly a farmhouse.

After that, it was a couple more miles until they reached the loch and the boathouse.

‘Wow, this is quite remote,’ said Judith.

Robyn heard her voice waver. She seemed nervous, for some reason.

Robyn said, ‘When I first did this journey with David’s father, Duncan, to the boathouse …

’ Robyn did not want to get into the falling-out she’d had with David when he’d left the hospital after his knee operation, and how she’d ended up travelling with David’s father to the boathouse instead.

Robyn said, ‘I remember Duncan telling me it was a bit out of the way. But it’s not really. It isn’t that far from the main road, and there are other properties along here. Once we’ve passed the last property, a farmhouse, then it’s only a couple of miles and we’re there.’

She heard Judith exhale in relief. Robyn rested her hand on Judith’s shoulder, wondering why she seemed so nervous. There was nothing to be worried about. ‘Not long now.’

Robyn frowned as her mind wandered back to the drive there with Duncan and what had happened when they’d arrived.

She’d wanted to put that to the back of her mind.

The problem was that every single time she turned up at the boathouse after dark, a troublesome memory resurfaced.

Fortunately, they wouldn’t be arriving after dark that day.

It was the height of the summer, although the weather had changed – it was now cloudy and overcast; not the sort of weather she’d wished for Judith’s arrival.

But at least she was there, and it wasn’t dark.

David had a house alarm fitted. When she’d first arrived with Duncan, he’d forgotten the alarm code, and had inadvertently set it off.

Robyn remembered that. How could she forget?

The sound of that alarm had sent her heart into her throat, and she’d immediately turned around and raced back to the car.

Duncan hadn’t been best pleased, telling her to come over and help him fix the alarm.

They’d figured out the keycode that Duncan had forgotten.

It was the date that Robyn and David had first met, and incidentally the date of the accident – Christmas Day – when their cars had collided on the road while she appeared to be fleeing from Aviemore.

It turned out that wasn’t the only unfortunate event that had befallen David last Christmas. Robyn hadn’t been able to understand why David had had a house alarm fitted all the way out there, but then Duncan had told her what had also happened to David last Christmas.

David had been burgled on Christmas Day while he was out on a walk before he was due to visit his brother and sister-in-law for Christmas dinner.

It was the reason he’d had the alarm fitted.

Robyn had thought how awful it must have been to be robbed over Christmas.

She had wondered how someone would even know a house was there, in the pine forest, by a loch, two miles from the nearest neighbours.

Duncan reckoned that the burglars had got lost down the country lane and happened upon the house. It was unfortunate nobody was in. Duncan told her later that he had already been at Joe and Annie’s house, spending Christmas Eve, as well as Christmas Day, with them and his grandchild.

The burglars hadn’t touched the Christmas presents under the Christmas tree, because they’d found a lot of cash instead.

Robyn had been surprised when Duncan had told her that.

It sounded as though David had cashed in some investments.

But Duncan was right when he’d wondered aloud why David had left that amount of cash lying around.

She’d been shocked to discover that it had been thousands of pounds.

Of course, it wasn’t David’s fault he’d been burgled.

It wouldn’t have been. It was just really bad luck.

But Duncan had been right when he’d questioned why David had taken such a risk.

Robyn remembered asking Duncan what David had needed the money for.

Duncan didn’t know. His son hadn’t wanted to talk about it.

And he still didn’t. He hadn’t mentioned it to her.

She guessed he wouldn’t. Why bring up the fact that he’d been stupid leaving all that cash around and had lost it?

She imagined there was another reason he wouldn’t tell her.

He’d noticed she wasn’t feeling settled in her new home.

The week off on holiday, spent together at the boathouse, had been intended to solve that problem.

She guessed he thought it would be really unsettling if she knew strangers had turned up and burgled the place.

He had no clue that Duncan had already told her, and she found it all very unsettling, but not for the reasons he might think.

Robyn remembered asking Duncan a question she really wished she hadn’t: how much cash there had been.

When Duncan had told her the amount of money that had been stolen, Robyn had felt faint.

She’d thought again of the car accident on Christmas Day.

When she’d been discharged from the hospital, and Gayle had taken her back to Lark Lodge, Robyn had looked through her belongings that had been in the car – an old suitcase and a rucksack.

At the bottom of the rucksack, under some clothes, she’d found cash – a lot of cash.

She’d counted it, and the amount had matched the amount of cash that had been stolen from the boathouse.

And now all the cash was gone, spent on her shop outlet, buying materials, helping Duncan out with redecorating and furnishing his flat, and paying him rent for use of part of his shop for her business.

All she could think was that it was a massive coincidence.

How could she possibly have burgled David’s house?

She wasn’t a thief. She was a student at university – until she had dropped out, anyway.

And besides, she didn’t need the money. She glanced at Judith.

Her stepmum had sent her all these generous cheques, which she’d put into a savings account.

Robyn wouldn’t have thought any more about it, if it hadn’t been for the memory that kept resurfacing every time she returned to the boathouse: of sitting alone in a car in the dark and cold outside.

It made no sense because when she’d followed Duncan inside the boathouse for the first time, she’d stood in the entrance hallway and had realised that nothing was familiar.

No memory resurfaced when she caught sight of the large stuffed fish in a glass case on the wall, or the modern glass-panelled open-tread staircase that rose to the next floor, or the impressive kitchen and study she’d seen from the hall.

She remembered the wave of relief that had swept over her when she’d realised she had most likely not been into the house.

When she’d ventured up to the next floor, and had seen the lounge with its exposed brick walls, log burner, beamed ceiling, and double doors out to the wooden balcony, with stunning views of the loch and the snow-capped mountains beyond, she knew she’d never been inside the boathouse until that moment.

Then a horrible thought had come out of nowhere.

She hadn’t been inside the property because she’d been the getaway driver.

Robyn had no idea why she’d thought that – she still didn’t.

She was convinced her imagination had run wild simply because of the huge coincidence over the money in the rucksack.

There had to be a logical explanation. Perhaps it was money she’d inherited from her late father.

Maybe she’d taken it out of a bank for a reason.

David must have had his reasons for taking such a large sum out of his bank.

I must have had my reasons too , thought Robyn.

She turned to gaze at Judith sitting in front of her. Would she know? Could Judith tell her where the money had come from, and perhaps what her intentions had been for it?

Robyn had just opened her mouth to ask, when a thought occurred to her.

Was she taking a risk asking Judith? What if Judith didn’t have a clue where the money had come from?

But it wasn’t just that thought that kept Robyn from asking.

Her gaze shifted to David. He had no clue about the cash she’d discovered in that rucksack.

It clearly wasn’t the time to bring it up, in front of him.

Robyn shut her mouth, wishing again that her memories would come back.

As it was, she’d noticed the change in Judith towards her when she’d mentioned the amnesia.

She wished David hadn’t brought up the car accident.

But I’d have had to tell Judith some time , thought Robyn miserably.

It was bound to become obvious that she couldn’t remember things in her past. She couldn’t even remember Judith.

Robyn sighed. She didn’t want to think about that, or where the money in the rucksack had come from. Instead she turned her thoughts to their imminent arrival. She hoped Judith loved her new home.

‘The scenery is gorgeous – isn’t it?’ Robyn commented, focused on the forest of pines either side of the road, looking forward to Judith’s first glimpse of the boathouse through the trees.

Judith nodded her head. ‘I guess so. Is it far now? It still seems quite a distance from the main road.’

‘Not far at all,’ said David reassuringly.

Robyn frowned. Why was she so concerned about how far it was from the main road? Why wasn’t she just enjoying the scenery?

David said, ‘People come here to walk around the loch and fish. My dad used to bring me and my brother and take a boat out fishing.’