Aftermath

29

Short winter days and long nights conspired against all of them. In Chadwick, Cooper and the others spent much of the rest of the day collecting additional supplies, mindful that more than ever, they needed to maximize the usefulness of their time on the mainland. Taking more people back would inevitably reduce the space they had available, but at the same time, the potential increase to the size of Cormansey’s population also meant they needed to take as much as possible. They unpacked and repacked the boats, discarding anything unnecessary and loading the bulk of the supplies onto the Summer Breeze, the slightly smaller of the two. Both of the boats could carry ten people each, maybe more at a push. Working on the assumption that Jas and his inner circle wouldn’t be leaving with them, and with four spare seats in the helicopter, they worked out that they should easily be able to fit all their passengers and their belongings on board the Duchess.

They spent their third night on the mainland on the luxury cruiser again, as comfortable as before but, strangely, more subdued. Maybe the people back at the castle hadn’t shared their enthusiasm for island life? Donna was surprised. She thought a few of them would have turned up by now, at least.

“They’ll be here,” Cooper said, seeming to read her thoughts. “You know what it’s like when you’re leaving somewhere,” he half joked. “There’s always more to sort out than you expect.”

She smiled.

“I know,” she said. “I just want to get going, that’s all. I want to go home.”

* * * height="1em">

At the castle, Driver had moved his tired old bus for the first time in weeks. He drove it out into the center of the courtyard where the helicopter had been standing hours earlier. He checked it over thoroughly, keen to satisfy himself that the vehicle would be able to get them all the fifteen miles or so into Chadwick. The distance was strangely daunting. In times past he’d have covered it in barely any time at all, but things were different now.

Another reason for shifting the bus into a more central position was to allow all those who wanted to leave to get their belongings (and any supplies they could half-hitch in the process) loaded up. There had been a steady stream of people getting on and off the bus for as long as it had been out in the open.

Jackson and Harte watched from a distance.

“First light and we’ll be off, okay?”

“Okay,” Harte said. “The sooner the better. Got any idea how many are leaving?”

“Thirteen or fourteen, I think,” he replied, “including you and me.”

“Good. Just Jas and his mates staying behind, then?”

“Looks that way. Jas, Kieran, Melanie, Ainsworth, and Bayliss, I think. Phil Kent’s undecided.”

“It’s probably for the best. No point in them coming if they’re not committed. Jas does have a point, but we’re all taking risks whatever we do now, and I know where I’d rather be.”

“As long as we’re all happy with our own personal decisions, that’s all that matters.”

* * *

Out of sight on the far side of the bus, Ainsworth, Kieran, and Jas were shifting boxes of supplies from the café kitchen and the back of two trucks and a van, stashing them away, locking them in the gift shop and museum.

“You sure we should be doing this?” Ainsworth asked.

“We need this stuff,” Kieran replied quickly. “There’ll be plenty more where they’re going tomorrow. It’s different for us. We’re not leaving here, so we have to make this last. This is our share. We worked for it and we’re entitled to it. We’re just making sure they don’t take what’s ours.”

“Get as much as you can move,” Jas said. “The more we lock away, the less there is for them to take.”