Page 59 of The Sunken Truth

Tilting her head back, she cursed herself. It was only afew weeks since she’d been trapped on a yacht, sailing out to sea. The thought of it sent a chill down her spine.

This was different, though. There was no need to panic.

She turned her ear to the door.

“All I want is a bit of peace,” Harry grumbled loudly – his voice coming from the cabin now. “Is that too much to ask?”

“You don’t want peace,” Nat said. “You want to avoid talking about things, which is what you always do. I’m sick of it. We’re married, we’re in this together.”

“I told you I would sort out the financial mess I’d made. There was no need for you to get involved. I’d have handled it. I told you that.”

“It’s not just your mess,” Nat said sadly.

“I know! We’re married, so my mess is your mess, but since I got us into it, it should be me who gets us out of it. You should have kept out of it.”

“That wasn’t what I meant,” Nat said quietly.

When the cabin fell into complete silence, Lily risked peeking through the gap in the door. The pair of them were sitting in the galley – Nat with her head in her hands.

“I messed up too,” she finally said. “So I wasn’t just trying to fix your problems, but mine as well. And I should have told you, but I saw a way out… and I knew you wouldn’t agree to it, so I just went for it.”

“What do you mean, you messed up?” Harry asked softly. “What did you do?”

“You know what I did,” she said. “Same thing I always do when I’m stressed.”

“I’m sorry,” Harry whispered.

“Why are you sorry?” Nat sniffed.

“Because it’s me who causes you stress.”

Nat put a hand against the side of his face. “We can sort this mess out. But I need you to stick around and help mework through everything instead of disappearing like you usually do.”

“Sorry,” he muttered.

“Can we go home before the rain starts?” Nat asked.

Lily shifted back against the wall, listening to the creak of the steps as they left the cabin. The boat swayed again, signalling they’d gone, but she waited a few minutes before making a swift exit.

Chapter Twenty-Five

Walking into Pippa’s cafe,Lily’s mind whirred with what she’d overheard. It took her a moment to register Seren, leaning on the counter and chatting away with Pippa.

“We were just talking about you,” Seren said, beaming at Lily. “Have you been off investigating again?”

“Yes.” She handed the boat key to Pippa and thanked her again.

“What have you found?” Seren asked, stepping aside when a couple approached the counter.

Lily tipped her head towards the nearest free table and waited until they were seated before she leaned in and spoke quietly.

“I heard that Harry Wright has some financial problems.”

Seren nodded. “I’ve heard that rumour too. They didn’t take on any seasonal workers this summer, which is unusual. It set tongues wagging.”

“I overheard Harry and Nat arguing. Nat had done something to get them out of their financial situation, and Harry is upset that she didn’t discuss it with him first. But Nat mentioned she’d caused some of their problems,too.”

“Oh.” Seren pressed her lips together. “I might know something about that.”