Was there something odd in her voice, or was the distortion just from the wind? Libby put it out of her mind for now and focused on the granite building abutting the old garrison wall that her friend indicated. The location was ideal—they’d have views of the other islands, the water, and the town down below. Even from here she could spot a path to the water through the high grasses. And best of all, there were no other houses sharing walls or gardens. She’d have privacy to do whatever she pleased.

As they neared, she spotted a woman of middling years rounding the corner, shielding her eyes from the sun to watch them approach.

“That would be Mrs. Pepper, I imagine. The landlady.” Mabena nodded in satisfaction. “With our keys and no doubt something to sign to let the place officially. I told her which ferry we’d be on.” She darted a glance at Libby. “Could we give her your name? If I mention mine, my family will hear of it before the tide goes out.”

“No objections from me.” It was properly exciting, actually. A holiday cottage, let in her name. She could hardly have helped smiling even had she wanted to as she strode to the matronly woman awaiting them. “How do you do?” she said the moment she was near enough. “Are you the landlady?”

The woman gave a brisk nod, her eyes taking them in with a few quick darting glances that seemed to dismiss Mabena in a second and measure Libby from her new hat to the shoes she’d already muddied. “Mrs. Pepper. You’ll be the young miss who wired about letting the place, then?”

“I am.” More or less. She smiled anew. “Elizabeth Sinclair.”

“Another Elizabeth, is it?” The woman turned with a baffling huff of frustration and waved for them to follow her to the door. “May you be more dependable than the last. That one left me high and dry after sweet-talking me into promising her the whole summer but letting her pay week by week, she did. And then vanished before the second month is out, as good sense should have told me she’d do.”

Libby blinked at the woman’s back . . . and at the deluge of information she had absolutely no need of. “Well, how fortuitous that we were able to take over the vacancy, then. I was quite afraid we’d decided on our plans too late to find anything half as lovely as this.”

“All I needed to know, miss, is that the money you wired to the bank yesterday came through without a hitch. Here.” She opened the front door for them and held its key up, which dangled from her fingers. “You mentioned catering, aye? My daughter or I will bring a basket once a day with all the fixings you’ll need. I trust your maid can discern what to do with it.”