Ahead of her, Anna heard the splutter of an engine. A motorboat was pulling away from the pier. There were two people standing in it, one of them the old woman who had circled Crovie’s north and south poles twice. At the controls was another figure, too distant to be distinct, but as the boat headed towards Gardenstown it turned, raising one hand in a wave. Anna didn’t know whether the gesture was for her, or some other, unseen recipient, but she lifted a hand and waved back anyway.

When she got back to the Fishergirl’s Luck, she found that a wicker basket had been left on the doorstep. It held a bottle of red wine, a brown paper bag holding four scones, a tin containing a candle, and a sealed envelope. Inside the envelope was a brass key, and a short note.

Dear Ms Campbell,

Welcome to Crovie and the Fishergirl’s Luck. We are so sorry that you didn’t get your key last night, and also that you arrived before we had chance to properly clean the place. Time got away from us! We had hoped to do more than just replace the mattress.

Here’s your key, and a little basket we had meant to leave as a welcoming present. Please accept it with our best wishes and the hope that you are settling in already.

Best wishes,

The MacKenzie family

‘Well then,’ said Frank Thorpe a couple of hours later, as Anna sat down at the kitchen table in the Weaver’s Nook. ‘How was your first night in the Fishergirl’s Luck?’

‘Oh,’ said Anna. ‘Fine. It was… fine.’

‘That doesn’t sound too good,’ said Pat, topping up Anna’s mug with fresh tea. ‘Did you not sleep well? The sea can take a bit of getting used to if you’re new to it.’

Anna smiled at her hostess over a plate of breakfast larger than anything she’d eaten for years. ‘It wasn’t that. I actually liked waking up to the sound of the waves. But… I realized very quickly that I’ve made a terrible mistake. I should never have bought the place.’

Pat looked at her in alarm. ‘Oh no, love, don’t say that! You’ve not been here five minutes!’

‘I know, I know. But the house needs so much work. And it’s so small! I mean, I knew it would be, but now that I’ve actually seen it… I really don’t think it’s for me.’

‘What sort of work does the place need?’ Frank asked. ‘I thought it was pretty solid. You haven’t got a roof leak, have you?’

‘No, it’s nothing like that – or at least, not that I know of,’ Anna said, tucking that new worry away to examine later. ‘But it’s very dirty, and everything is… well, old, I suppose.’