Why did you come here?” Finn shook his head and pushed through the doors

Finn pictured himself burying his fist into Sean Bayliss’s guts, scraping the metal splint on his hand down the guy’s face. He stood there at the side of the bed squeezing his good fist. “You’re an idiot,” he said. Sean smiled. “I’m the idiot who’s going to put you in prison.” Finn shook his head. “I’m not the one going to prison, you are.”

The smile faded from Sean’s face. “It’s you and that psycho b **** that caused all this.” He lifted a hand to the bandages at his head. “Three of my mates are dead and I was in a coma all because the pair of you couldn’t take a joke. I was only messing with you, but you got all macho and had to defend her honour or whatever. Idiot.”

“People like you can’t be allowed to get away with how you behave.”

“Who do you think you are, telling me what I can’t do?” Sean said, voice raised. “You acted like a baby and got everyone on that plane killed. You don’t get to tell me anything.”

“I didn’t kill anyone.” Finn’s voice was raised as well now, tinny in his ears.

“I’m going to make sure you pay for what you did to my mates.”

Finn grabbed Sean’s shoulder tight and shook him. “I didn’t kill anyone.”

Threatening

Sean pushed his hand away and backhanded Finn across the cheek, raising blood to the surface, tears to his eyes. Finn grabbed Sean’s wrist and pushed, then raised his hand to hit him.

“What is going on here?”

A female voice behind him. Finn dropped his hands to his sides as Sean beamed. “It’s OK, nurse, he’s just leaving.” Finn didn’t turn, kept staring at Sean, looking for something in his eyes.

“Are you the other man from the plane?” the nurse said. Finn turned. She was 40-ish and slim, pretty eyes and flat shoes. “That’s him,” Sean said. “You can’t be in here,” the nurse said. “You have to leave immediately.” “That’s what I was telling him,” Sean said.

Finn was unable to speak. The nurse took him by the elbow and guided him towards the door. “I can’t imagine what you think you’re doing here,” she said.

“Threatening me, that’s what he’s doing,” Sean shouted after them. Finn could hear the laughter in Sean’s voice, goading him.

The nurse got him out of the ward and stopped at the first set of doors. She turned to him. “Why did you come here?” Finn shook his head and pushed through the doors.

Cromwell Road was on a rise to the north-east of Kirkwall, views over the marina and beyond that to the harbour. A ferry chugged out into the choppy surface of the sea, heading north to one of the smaller islands, churning water and diving terns in its wake.

The sun was low in the sky, a smattering of high clouds throwing drizzle into the air, a faint whisper of a rainbow over the bay. Finn turned to look at the house. Standard rough-cladding Orkney place, with blue trim around the doors and windows to try to make it stand out.

He checked the number against the information on his phone, walked up the short path and rang the doorbell, stepping back to look at the windows.

A short, solid man in his 50s opened the door. Wavy white hair swept back, blood colouring his cheeks and nose. A drinker. He wore paint-spattered overalls and a checked shirt underneath.

Flustered

“Is Charlotte home?” Finn said. The man frowned. “Who’s asking?” “I’m a friend of hers.”

“No, you’re not.” The man squinted into the light of the huge sky behind Finn, then his eyes widened. “You’re the laddie from the plane.”

“Is she here?”

“You stay away from my Charlotte. You’ve done enough damage.” Finn closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. “It was an accident,” he said. “Fog and turbulence. I had nothing to do with it.”

The man stepped forward and pulled the door behind him. “Do you have any idea what our girl has been through?” Finn wanted to say something but he didn’t.

“She’s been crying her eyes out ever since,” the man continued. “Hasn’t left the house. God knows if she’ll be able to go back to work.”

“I just need to speak to her.”

The man shook his head. “No chance. You’ve got to be kidding.”

“Dad?”

Finn recognised her voice. The door opened and the man looked flustered for a moment, reached for the door handle too late. “Nothing to worry about, love,” he said. “He’s leaving.”

She wore a baggy Aberdeen Uni hoodie and black leggings. Her hair was up in a loose bun and her hands were thrust into the pouch pocket of the hoodie. Her features seemed more raw than on the plane, but her eyes were calm and she didn’t show surprise at the sight of Finn on her front step.

“It’s OK, Dad,” she said, widening the door. “No it bloody isn’t,” her dad said. She was taller than him by a few inches and had a natural authority. She didn’t look like someone suffering from shock, but then what did Finn know about that? She put a hand on her dad’s shoulder and smiled.

“Put the kettle on,” she said. “I’ll speak to him.” Her dad looked from her to Finn then back. “It’s not a good idea.” She rubbed his shoulder and moved aside to let him go back in. “Tea. Go. I’ll be done in two minutes.”

Her dad hesitated then left, looking defeated by his inability to protect his daughter. Charlotte pressed her mouth into a line and turned to Finn. “How are you?” she said.

Difficult

He wasn’t expecting that. He was expecting to be asked what he was doing here, how dare he come.

“OK, considering. How are you?” She pulled a hand from her pocket and pushed a tissue against her nose as she sniffed. She shook her head a little, as if to herself. “Sometimes I think I’m fine, but then I picture it all over again. I saw that English couple, you know. I was right there. I don’t think I’ll ever get that out of my mind.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I tried to go out for a walk earlier. Just along the road, get some air. Everything seemed dialled down, you know? Like the cars weren’t really cars, the houses were only shadows of houses. It’s hard to explain. Do you understand?”

“I think so,” Finn said.

“But then other times it’s the opposite,” Charlotte said. “The world is just too much in your face. Putting clothes on, going to the toilet, it’s all just too bright and difficult.”

She held out her hand, palm up, a red welt along the outer edge. “I burnt myself on the toaster this morning. Just had my hand against it. Didn’t realise until it was already blistered. What’s wrong with me?”

“You’ve been through a lot.”

More tomorrow.