reminded Jade of the cars she drove. She got her rides from a Jo’burg company called Rent a Runner, and every month she switched the car for a different one. Monique’s vehicle was even older than the worst of the Rent a Runners that Jade drove. It seemed to be more rust than metal. The rear windscreen was cracked and the front number plate was missing.
The memory of the beach vagrant returned to Jade as she headed back down the wooden corridor with Craig. As she rounded the corner, stepping out of the lit area and into the darkness, she thought she saw something.
A flash of movement, further up the driveway close to the trees.
Jade stopped and squinted into the gloom, aware that a misty rain had started to fall and was growing heavier by the minute.
The wind was still whipping the trees, their canopies rustling and swaying, but it wasn’t that movement that Jade had seen. She was sure of it. It had been a swift, furtive motion, as if somebody had seen them and wanted to hide.
‘Anything wrong?’
Craig’s voice, softly, behind her.
‘I saw something. Could have been someone. Up there.’
‘Monique?’ Craig sounded surprised.
‘I doubt it. But when I was down on the beach, I noticed a man heading towards the resort—he looked like a vagrant or a tramp. He came up this way.’
‘You want to go check?’
‘Do you have a torch?’
‘In my chalet.’
As they walked back past Monique’s room, Craig glanced down at the champagne bottle that Jade had left outside the door. ‘Could I … would you like me to put that inside for you?’
‘Thanks.’ Jade picked it up and handed it over. She was glad to be rid of it.
Craig walked the short distance to his chalet, unlocked the door and stepped inside. He returned a minute later holding a torch, with a yellow waterproof jacket slung over his shoulders.
In his hand, he held another jacket, this one leather, which he handed to Jade.
‘You want to put this on? It’ll help keep out the worst of the rain.’
‘Thanks.’
Jade had expected that the jacket would be Elsabe’s—a woman’s size—but when she slid her arms into it, the sleeves were far too long, and she realised that this garment must also belong to Craig.
‘Where exactly did you see it?’
‘Right there.’ Jade pointed.
Craig shone the torch onto the shadowy foliage that lined the two brick-paved lanes of the driveway leading up the hill. The beam lit up nothing out of the ordinary.
Jade wrapped the jacket tightly round her shoulders, glad for the protection from the worsening rain, especially since her legs were bare. Craig was also unsuitably clad for the weather in his khaki shorts and Teva leather hiking sandals.
The leather jacket smelled spicy and smoky, making her think of red wine and log fires.
They walked up the driveway, Craig shining the torch to and fro.
‘You know, there are no fences here,’ Jade said. ‘This place is not well secured. It bothers me that anybody can walk off the road or off the beach, right up to the resort.’
Craig nodded. ‘A lot of the smaller resorts here are pretty laid-back about security, especially compared to the big cities. There isn’t the same level of crime here. You get petty theft, the occasional burglary. Maybe, if you’re unlucky, a smashed car window.’
‘Are you from around here?’
He shook his head. ‘From Cape Town, originally. I’ve spent some time doing fieldwork here, though.’ Prompted by Jade’s questioning glance, he continued. ‘There have been some large-scale ecological studies commissioned here, and that’s my field of expertise. Marine ecology.’
‘Sounds interesting,’ Jade said. ‘So was there an oil spill here recently, then?’
‘An oil spill? No, heaven forbid. Absolutely not. Why?’
‘I’ve noticed black streaks in the sand around here. I thought they might be oil. I didn’t know if I should try to avoid them when I walk on the beach.’
‘No, those are mineral deposits,
The memory of the beach vagrant returned to Jade as she headed back down the wooden corridor with Craig. As she rounded the corner, stepping out of the lit area and into the darkness, she thought she saw something.
A flash of movement, further up the driveway close to the trees.
Jade stopped and squinted into the gloom, aware that a misty rain had started to fall and was growing heavier by the minute.
The wind was still whipping the trees, their canopies rustling and swaying, but it wasn’t that movement that Jade had seen. She was sure of it. It had been a swift, furtive motion, as if somebody had seen them and wanted to hide.
‘Anything wrong?’
Craig’s voice, softly, behind her.
‘I saw something. Could have been someone. Up there.’
‘Monique?’ Craig sounded surprised.
‘I doubt it. But when I was down on the beach, I noticed a man heading towards the resort—he looked like a vagrant or a tramp. He came up this way.’
‘You want to go check?’
‘Do you have a torch?’
‘In my chalet.’
As they walked back past Monique’s room, Craig glanced down at the champagne bottle that Jade had left outside the door. ‘Could I … would you like me to put that inside for you?’
‘Thanks.’ Jade picked it up and handed it over. She was glad to be rid of it.
Craig walked the short distance to his chalet, unlocked the door and stepped inside. He returned a minute later holding a torch, with a yellow waterproof jacket slung over his shoulders.
In his hand, he held another jacket, this one leather, which he handed to Jade.
‘You want to put this on? It’ll help keep out the worst of the rain.’
‘Thanks.’
Jade had expected that the jacket would be Elsabe’s—a woman’s size—but when she slid her arms into it, the sleeves were far too long, and she realised that this garment must also belong to Craig.
‘Where exactly did you see it?’
‘Right there.’ Jade pointed.
Craig shone the torch onto the shadowy foliage that lined the two brick-paved lanes of the driveway leading up the hill. The beam lit up nothing out of the ordinary.
Jade wrapped the jacket tightly round her shoulders, glad for the protection from the worsening rain, especially since her legs were bare. Craig was also unsuitably clad for the weather in his khaki shorts and Teva leather hiking sandals.
The leather jacket smelled spicy and smoky, making her think of red wine and log fires.
They walked up the driveway, Craig shining the torch to and fro.
‘You know, there are no fences here,’ Jade said. ‘This place is not well secured. It bothers me that anybody can walk off the road or off the beach, right up to the resort.’
Craig nodded. ‘A lot of the smaller resorts here are pretty laid-back about security, especially compared to the big cities. There isn’t the same level of crime here. You get petty theft, the occasional burglary. Maybe, if you’re unlucky, a smashed car window.’
‘Are you from around here?’
He shook his head. ‘From Cape Town, originally. I’ve spent some time doing fieldwork here, though.’ Prompted by Jade’s questioning glance, he continued. ‘There have been some large-scale ecological studies commissioned here, and that’s my field of expertise. Marine ecology.’
‘Sounds interesting,’ Jade said. ‘So was there an oil spill here recently, then?’
‘An oil spill? No, heaven forbid. Absolutely not. Why?’
‘I’ve noticed black streaks in the sand around here. I thought they might be oil. I didn’t know if I should try to avoid them when I walk on the beach.’
‘No, those are mineral deposits,
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