The Innocent Dead

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The April sun was bright, but not strong enough to have made any difference to the temperature of the lochan. In an attempt at bravado, Dougal had waded in already, wearing nothing but his trunks. Julie knew he didn’t like swimming anywhere other than a proper swimming pool, where he could see what lurked beneath him. A calm sea was also manageable provided he wasn’t required to venture out too far and he could see the sandy floor.

A dark-brown loch, on the other hand, was Dougal’s idea of a horror movie, in which he had a starring part. So to get him to come here, Julie had had to agree to an evening doing exactly what Dougal wanted. Julie had no problem with that, since Dougal’s romantic plans for tonight pretty well matched her own.

Without a wetsuit, he won’t last long enough to enjoy the water, Julie thought as she watched him wade in cautiously. Once the tingling in his upper body moved from mild to severe pain, Dougal would be back on shore quicker than he went in.

Ready now, Julie walked in slowly, enjoying the sensation of the water entering her wetsuit to form a warm protective film against her skin. Launching herself forward, she began to swim, feeling the soft peaty water enclose her like brown silk.

Much as she loved swimming in the sea in all seasons, there was nothing to beat a freshwater loch whatever the time of year. Turning, she floated on her back and closed her eyes, enjoying the gentle slurp of water in her ears.

It was Dougal’s sudden shout that disturbed this dream-like state. Julie turned over and took a look, assuming the cold had got to him by now. It certainly appeared that way. He was swimming, seemingly in a great hurry, back to the strip of sand where they’d undressed earlier. ■