‘I’ll pick you up at half-eight, then?’
* * *
The smell of popcorn and a woman standing next to him in the queue for tickets. Ethan hadn’t done this for a while. But Kate was just a friend. They were two people, neither of whom had anyone to go to the cinema with, and who didn’t want to go alone.
As they got to the head of the queue, her phone buzzed. Ethan selected the seats and was about to pay for them when suddenly Kate slammed her hand onto the debit-card reader.
‘I’ll get them.’
‘No.’ When he glanced across at her, Kate was frowning. This didn’t seem like the usual squabble over who paid for tickets. She grabbed his arm, pulling him to one side, apologising to the woman behind the desk, who rolled her eyes.
‘I’ve got a call out. Mountain rescue. Ethan, I’m sorry.’
That was usually his line—called away for an emergency somewhere. He knew just how bad Kate must be feeling at the moment, and was surprised to find that he wasn’t angry in the least. He’d always assumed that other people’s protestations, that it was all right and that he really must go, were just good manners.
‘What’s happened?’ Ethan began to walk towards the exit doors.
‘It’s an old couple. Apparently they went to visit their daughter in the next village this afternoon and she saw them onto the bus home. But they never arrived. They searched everywhere and, when it began to get late, they called for help. The bus goes through...’ She consulted her phone. ‘How do you say that?’
‘Coleswittam. The double “t” is sounded as “th”.’
Kate raised her eyebrows. ‘Right. That’s sure to help a poor, confused Londoner find it. Do you know it?’
‘Yes, it’s to the west of here. Quite a tourist spot in the summer—hill-walking country with caves and a few waterfalls. It’s very beautiful, but not the kind of place an elderly couple should be at night.’
Kate quirked the corners of her mouth down. ‘It doesn’t sound like it. I’m so sorry, Ethan.’
‘Nonsense. Do you want a hand?’
She stopped so suddenly that Ethan almost bumped into her. ‘Well...are you sure?’
‘A doctor might come in useful.’
‘Well, we hope not, but...’ Kate started walking again. ‘Let’s go, then.’
* * *
Ethan drove to his house first, and Kate waited outside while he quickly found a pair of walking boots, stuffing them into a rucksack along with a waterproof jacket. He put his medical bag into the boot of the car and they drove to her cottage to pick up her gear. Then he took the short cut along a dirt track to Coleswittam.
‘Is everyone at the Old Ford?’
‘Yes, that’s the meeting point.’ The car got to the brow of a hill and she pointed ahead of them. ‘There they are.’
The group of men and women seemed well organised. A sandy-haired man who was obviously in charge was splitting everyone up into search parties and showing them which area they should cover on the map. Kate walked towards him and he smiled.
‘Thanks for coming.’ His gaze flipped towards Ethan.
‘This is Ethan Conway. He’s a doctor. Ethan, this is Grant, our team leader.’
‘Good to have you on board, Ethan.’ Grant shook his hand firmly. ‘Kate, I want you and Ethan to go with Mike. You should know that the husband has dementia, so he may have wandered off somewhere and got lost. His wife might be looking for him. We don’t know. I want you to go up to the Kettle—Mike knows where that is—and maybe Maisie can get a scent there.’
The Kettle. Ethan had played there himself when he was a kid, and in the summer it was a great place to bathe, to explore the rocks and caves which surrounded the pool. At night, and with the weather closing in, it wasn’t somewhere he’d want anyone to be lost and alone.
Kate nodded. ‘I’ve got flashlights. Do you have a spare hard hat for Ethan, in case we need to go into the caves?’
‘Back of my truck. We have a medical kit too.’ Grant flashed a querying glance at Ethan.
‘That’s okay, I have my own in the car.’