“Aye, that would be suiting us now, would it not?” Ronnie replied, before taking a swig of hot, sweet tea from his mug.

“And what like is it in Oban?” Betty asked.

“Much the same.” He looked out of the window, catching sight of a seagull settling itself awkwardly on the top of the winch drum of one of the trawlers. “There’s quite a stiff breeze down here at the harbour, but the sky seems settled enough.”

“So have you been buying for us today?”

“Aye, I have.” He reached over for his notebook, opened it, and flicked through the pages. “I gave you a call earlier, but your phone was engaged.”

“Och, I can well believe that. It’s been havoc here this morning. Jimmy called in from Buckie, and then Patrick from Mallaig, so the line has been red hot.”

“Patrick’s up in Mallaig, is he? Now, how would he be managing that?”

“He went up with this new chappie from London. Did you not know about him working for us?”

“No. Never heard a word. How long has he been with Seascape?”

“Just over a week now. Dan Porter’s his name. He came up with his son Josh, and they’ve both been working in the packing house to get the feel of the place. This is the first morning that Patrick and he have been off buying together.”

“And what’s this Dan Porter from London like?”

“He seems to be a pleasant enough man. He’s managed to put Patrick in a better mood, at any rate.”

“And does he know anything about the prawn?”

“He knows more now than he did a week ago. He’s been a banker in his life—not a fisherman or the like.”

“A banker, eh? So what happened to the lad that we were to be getting from Ocean Produce in Aberdeen?” Ronnie broke the yoke of his second fried egg with a piece of bread and put it in his mouth.

“The company’s not letting him away for the next four months. Dan Porter is only here temporary-like, just to give Patrick a hand.”

“And how does Patrick seem to be keeping?”

Betty’s voice seemed to hush. “I wouldn’t say he’s that good, Ronnie. When did you last see him?”

“Not for a couple of months or so.”

“Well, you’d see a big change. He’s still walking around on sticks, but to my mind, it’s awful dangerous for him. He’s fallen over in the office a number of times now.”

“Aye, it’s truly a bad thing, especially for a man so active as himself.”

“If he wasn’t so active, it might be a great saving to him. Since Dan Porter has started in the job, Patrick has been coming into the factory at seven o’clock every morning.”

“That’s Patrick for you, though. He’ll keep going to the end.”