“If there are two spiral viewing mounds,” she said, “it does suggest that there was some sort of feature between them where the barn is now, doesn’t it? After all, when you’re on the top you’d want to be viewing something.”

“Yeah,” Finn said, “which is why I now think that the moated feature where the barn is now was the center of the whole site.” He paused. “I don’t suppose you saw what it was in your dream, did you? Any clues?”

Lucy looked at him suspiciously but he was deadpan and she wasn’t sure whether he was making fun of her or not. “I’m afraid I wasn’t taking notes,” she said, “but if the dream recurs, I’ll be sure to check.”

“Awesome,” Finn said. He gave her a small smile. “I’m not laughing at you,” he added. “I’ve known people have those sorts of eldritch dreams before.”

“Eldritch?” The word caught Lucy’s attention. “What’s that?”

“My Scots grandmother used to say it,” Finn said. “It means fey or eerie.”

Lucy shivered. She reached for her shoes and the fleece jumper she had brought with her. The shadows were getting longer and the air was cooling by slow degrees. As soon as she had the fleece on, Geoffrey snuggled closer to her.

“Cute,” Finn said, looking at them. “Are you cold?” he added. “I’ve got a blanket in my backpack.”

“I’m fine, thanks,” Lucy said. “Were you planning on staying out late?” she added, noticing that he also had a lantern and a thermos flask and various other supplies in the open rucksack.

“I sometimes camp out here overnight when the weather’s warm enough,” Finn said. “It’s very peaceful. A swim, if there’s enough water, a campfire and some hot chocolate looking at the stars.”

“Lovely,” Lucy said. “Not the swimming at this time of night, but the other parts. Don’t let me stop you if you want to go in,” she added, “I’m sure Geoff would be up for another splash around.”

“I’m all right, thanks,” Finn said. He glanced sideways at her. “Though maybe you’d like to join me another time on a hot day? The water is amazing.”

“That does sound nice,” Lucy admitted, “and when it’s as hot as it’s been today...” She thought about swimming in the pool and lazing around in the sunshine with Finn. It felt rather more appealing than perhaps it should. Then she reminded herself that she needed to relax. She didn’t need to second-guess everything, least of all whether her new, tenuous friendship with Finn would develop into anything else.

“I’m sorry I turned down the chance to help you out with the project when you asked me on the first day,” she said impulsively. “That was really ungracious of me. If I can help, I will.”

Finn’s smile made her feel warm inside. “That’s kind of you,” he said, “and please don’t apologize. I know you’ve got a lot on your mind at the moment and I wasn’t exactly welcoming anyway when you arrived.” He paused and she saw him swallow. “It was Charlie’s birthday that day,” he said, a little gruffly. “It hit me pretty hard.”