Perfect Match. Amber Aitken

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СКАЧАТЬ just mean that I haven’t seen one quite like it before,” added Nicks’s mum.

      “That’s because it’s a theatre masterpiece – a work of art,” explained Coral.

      “We bought it second-hand from the theatre company’s stall at the seaside market,” added Nicks matter-of-factly.

      “This waistcoat has seen its share of the bright lights – it’s vintage,” added Coral whose face said ‘SECOND-HAND, PAH!’ ).

      “It’s eye-catching and quite unusual,” said Ben with an interested nod.

      “It certainly is,” agreed Coral. “And look, it even has a pocket.” She rubbed her fingers against its satin lining. This waistcoat was useful as well as eye-catching. “Ooh, hold on, this pocket isn’t empty,” she suddenly murmured.

      “I hope you haven’t found a used tissue,” yelped Nicks with a wrinkled-up nose. Miss Honey wrinkled her nose up too, as if she understood everything.

      “There’s more than one thing, there’s…” added Coral in a breathy voice, “a piece of paper and a coin.” She held both up in the air and then brought them close to her nose for inspection. The coin was copper with a star on one side and the words ONE PENNY pressed into the other. It didn’t look familiar. Next she unfolded the paper, square by square. “It’s got writing across it,” she whispered out loud.

      “It’s probably a shopping list,” said Nicks, who was fed up with the waistcoat already and desperately wanted to get back to Cupid Company business. They had so much to do!

      “It looks like a letter,” revealed Coral. She began reading:

       My dear Sam,

       This letter is a difficult one to write but the time has come for me to say goodbye to you and this lovely little seaside town. I am not getting any younger and there is still so much I need to discover about myself. And it is something I need to do alone. I will miss the company and closeness we have shared for the past six years but will always keep your love and those memories alive in my heart. How I shall miss old Mr Morris Minor! Do take care of yourself and perhaps we will meet again one day – in this life or the next. Be happy always.

       Yours,

       CBA

      For a few moments nobody spoke. Even the pups remained stock still, their furry ears stirring slightly in the cool evening breeze.

      “Poor Sam,” murmured Ben thoughtfully.

      “What were the chances of you finding a letter like that?” commented Nicks’s mum. She was a schoolteacher and quite used to giving most things careful consideration.

      Nicks set her jaw and rested her chin in her hand. She sighed. When it came to Coral, the chances of finding something out of the ordinary were usually rather good. Drama and her best friend went together like salt on a sea breeze. And of course Nicks knew exactly what was coming next.

      “There’s only one thing for it,” declared Coral. “We must track poor heartbroken Sam down and help him – or her – find love again!”

      Nicks groaned. She really had hoped to make the Spikers their priority. Sunday Harbour depended on it.

      Chapter 4

       love in Many languages

      Coral Hut always looked its brightest and most beautiful first thing in the morning. The pale-gold early sunlight shone down on the beach like a light from heaven and the hut’s yellow, mint-green and pale pink painted stripes sparkled like sugar crystals in the glow.

      Inside the hut, the girls sat perched on the daybed – one at each side – surrounded by cool, whitewashed walls and pretty patterned rugs and cushions. Romeo and Miss Honey lay cuddled up near the door, enjoying the beachy views.

      “We really do have a lot to do,” said Coral thoughtfully.

      Nicks was busy making notes but paused to nod. “Yup, we have two rather complex Cupid Company cases. Now, what are we going to do about Cecily and the Spikers?”

      Both girls fell silent. Nicks tapped her pen. Coral chewed her thumb. Nicks scratched her head. Coral exhaled loudly and stared through the open door at the small, curling waves crashing on the beach.

      A tall, athletic young man appeared, running along the sand with a bright orange towel hanging around his neck. He stopped with his back to Coral Hut, put the orange towel on the sand and immediately waded into the ocean. And then he was gone, swimming freestyle and cutting through the waves in the direction of the horizon. He was obviously a very good swimmer and was a small speck in no time at all.

      “Maybe we should concentrate on the mystery of Sam first?” Coral finally suggested.

      Nicks nodded her agreement. “Let’s begin by analysing the letter for clues to Sam’s identity.”

      But Coral was one step ahead of her friend and had already got the letter open. She scanned its contents before speaking. “Mmm, so CBA used to live in Sunday Harbour but has now moved far away.”

      Nicks stared at her detective friend. She had clearly been hoping for more than that.

      “But is CBA a man or a woman?” she asked. “Because Sam could be a woman or a man too.”

      “Oh, CBA is definitely a woman,” announced Coral with conviction as she held the letter up to Nicks. “See, patterned paper. And look at the writing – it’s pretty and wavy. Also, ‘discovering yourself’ is more of a female thing to do. And as for keeping ‘those memories alive in my heart’ – that’s a woman’s touch too.”

      Coral hadn’t proved a thing, but what she was saying did make sense.

      “I agree,” replied Nicks. “CBA is probably a woman. And I think she – and Sam – are both older because only old people talk about ‘not getting any younger’. And young people don’t think about meeting in the next life; they’re too busy with this one. As for ‘Mr Morris Minor’, CBA clearly states that he’s old too. Old people have old friends.”

      Coral considered this for a silent moment and bobbed her head up and down. And then her face crumpled. “So Sam is a lonely old man,” she whispered. “How sad.”

      But Nicks was still focused on the facts. “We’re really not much closer to finding out who Sam is though.”

      “Maybe the coin—” began Coral. And then she stopped. She’d just been blinded by a giant roll of aluminium foil walking right past the hut. Nicks had seen it too. Both girls jumped up and tiptoed across the floor as if it was made of hot coals. Stopping at the door, they stared for a few silent moments.

      It wasn’t a walking roll of aluminium foil but a small woman wearing a shiny, silver-quilted tracksuit. She looked older than their parents but younger than their grandparents, and her skin was tanned with deep wrinkles that looked like cracks in the mud at the bottom of a dried-up river.

      The silver and brown woman hadn’t noticed the girls. Quietly, she climbed the stairs and unlocked the door to the neighbouring red beach hut which had recently acquired a plywood FOR RENT sign. СКАЧАТЬ