BooksBarbecue
Back One Year Later
Chapters (49)
  1. PROLOGUE
  2. PART I
  3. 1
  4. 2
  5. 3
  6. 4
  7. PART II
  8. 5
  9. 6
  10. 7
  11. 8
  12. 9
  13. 10
  14. 11
  15. 12
  16. 13
  17. 14
  18. 15
  19. 16
  20. 17
  21. 18
  22. 19
  23. 20
  24. 21
  25. 22
  26. 23
  27. 24
  28. 25
  29. 26
  30. 27
  31. 28
  32. 29
  33. 30
  34. 31
  35. 32
  36. 33
  37. 34
  38. PART III
  39. 35
  40. 36
  41. 37
  42. 38
  43. 39
  44. PART IV
  45. 40
  46. 41
  47. EPILOGUEAMY
  48. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
  49. BOOK CLUB QUESTIONS

‘A week?’ Amy says. ‘Surely—’

‘Yes. A week! And then it was all gone.’

25

AMY

When they return to Maregiglio, her father’s asleep in the shade, a new book on European politics on his lap, and Bethany is showing Chloe her Instagram feed and telling her which hashtags to use. Chloe is nodding and trying out her aunt’s contour kit. Joe is doing something complicated with a spiky foam roller. Theo and Lotte quickly disappear up to their room. Amy had burst into tears after they’d told her about the ice cream, upsetting both the children, so she still hasn’t managed to say anything to them about the anniversary party. There’s no sign of anyone else.

‘Where’s Matt?’ she asks. Her eyes are red, but Bethany doesn’t notice.

‘He overdid it,’ she says, grinning.

‘What do you mean?’

‘It was hot and he pushed himself too much,’ Joe answers. ‘I tried to get him to stop and go back or just walk the route, but…’

Amy can see it now. Joe running ahead with his shirt off, the muscles in his back rippling, Luca lolloping easily along, Bethany grimly keeping up with the boys, and Matt, determined not to be shown up.

‘Heatstroke,’ Bethany interjects.

The shame and sadness Amy had felt this morning, when she realized she’d barely fed her surviving children for a week after Ruby-May’s death, and the hazelnut liqueur, which has gone straight to her head, threaten to turn into hysteria.

‘Heatstroke? He’s collapsed? On a run where you’re meant to be looking after everyone?’

‘Amy, Joe’s not Matt’s personal trainer! It wasn’t his responsibility!’

‘He hasn’t got heatstroke, more like heat exhaustion,’ Joe says quickly, ‘but he needs to have plenty of fluids.’

‘Where is he? Or did you just leave him lying out on a hillside somewhere?’

‘Amy! When did you turn into such a bitch?’

‘Auntie Bee! Dad’s having a lie-down upstairs,’ Chloe says. ‘He feels sick.’

‘I’m going to check on him.’

‘I’ll do it,’ Joe says, leaping up. ‘Make sure that husband of yours has been drinking the coconut water I left out for him. Got to replace those electrolytes.’

He gives her a sympathetic smile. She puts her hand over her forehead. It feels as if the pain is chiselling into the centre of her skull. She’ll go in a minute, after Joe’s looked in on Matt. She stands at the sink and runs cold water over her wrists to cool herself down and pours a glass of lemonade. She’s angry with Matt for being such an idiot, and with Bethany for bringing this young man into their midst. Nice as Joe is, it’s not appropriate. She adds more ice and takes deep breaths, tries to let her heart rate slow. She crunches a cube and thinks miserably about tomorrow, the day of the anniversary.