Chapter 11

The next morning, Kate stood in line at the coffee stand, her thoughts drifting to Maddie. She couldn’t shake her worry—Maddie’s vivid imagination, her hormones, and the way she’d been so unsettled lately. Kate sighed, rubbing her temples as she absently moved forward in the line.

As she reached for her coffee, she brushed past a large man in sunglasses and a baseball cap. He was very overweight, wearing a loose-fitting Hawaiian shirt that screamed “tourist.” Typical American, she thought, shuddering inwardly at how large they could let themselves get.

Kate barely gave him a second glance, her focus already elsewhere. With the sunglasses and hat, and in this unfamiliar setting, she didn’t recognize the man at all. Gone was the distinctive bandaging she might have remembered, and his face was caked in orange makeup to cover his facial scarring—so much so that he bore an uncanny resemblance to Donald Trump.

She didn’t realize it was Edward Pembroke.

Maddie strolled along the path, her gaze drifting across the calm surface of the loch. She kicked at loose stones absentmindedly, fiddling with the hem of her t-shirt as her thoughts wandered. The summer felt like a blur—hiking, camping, and trying to pretend everything was fine. But deep down, she knew it wasn’t.

It wasn’t just the changes in her body or the relentless pull of her hormones. It was that terrible thing. The assault—or had it been? So much time had passed, yet the memory still clung to her. It didn’t always feel real, like it had been some distorted nightmare. Yet she couldn’t shake it off, it invaded her thoughts at all times.

She thought of her mother, of the things she hadn’t said but needed to. Maybe it was time to open up, to tell her everything. It seemed almost ridiculous now—a huge, fat, ugly man with bandages over his face. If she said it aloud, her mother might dismiss it as another wild dream. But Maddie knew it wasn’t just in her head.

She had to share it, no matter how absurd it sounded. It was the only way to start the process of getting over it.

Suddenly, a strange sensation crept over her—an icy prickle on the back of her neck. She was being watched. Maddie stopped abruptly, and turned around.

Her eyes landed on a man standing a little way off. He was large, overweight, with sunglasses and a baseball cap. Dressed smartly in a polo shirt, he didn’t look threatening, but something about him tugged at her memory. He looked familiar, yet different.

No, she thought, shaking her head. This is silly. She had to stop imagining things, had to stop seeing the monster, her attacker, everywhere.

Maddie knew she couldn’t keep this bottled up much longer. The confusion, the fear—it was too much. She needed to talk to her mother, no matter how ridiculous or painful it might feel.

Gerry, Kate, and Maddie were having their evening dinner at the restaurant just a short walk from their tents. Maddie smiled as she watched her parents interact, amused by how much they still loved each other after all these years. Despite hearing them fucking almost every night, she still hoped that one day, she might find someone to share a love like theirs.

“Your father has a great body, even if he eats like a horse,” Kate teased, patting Gerry’s stomach as he tucked into his meal.

“Not like some,” she added with a giggle, nodding toward the fat tourist from earlier.

Gerry turned around, curious, just as the man in the dark sunglasses and baseball cap sharply turned his face away. Gerry narrowed his eyes, a flicker of recognition passing through his mind, but the man quickly shuffled off, his body jiggling under his t-shirt.

“God, those Americans get so fat,” Gerry said with a laugh.

Kate burst out laughing, shaking her head. “Seriously, how do they let themselves get like that? It’s disgusting!” she added with mock disbelief.

“Careful, Mummy,” Maddie giggled. “I think he heard us.”

The three of them laughed together, watching the man slink away, his head down and shoulders hunched as though embarrassed.

A little while later, Gerry excused himself to use the restroom.

“Mummy, can I say something?” Maddie asked, her voice suddenly more serious.

“Of course, darling. Say anything,” Kate said, her earlier laughter softening into concern as she turned to her daughter.