Death on Lindisfarne (28 page)

“Yes, please! When?” Melangell cried.

Lucy turned more gravely to Aidan. “They released Karen from hospital yesterday. I'll be conducting Rachel's funeral when I get back. It won't be the jolliest of parties, but it would be good to have someone there who knew her, who saw what happened. I'd be glad of the support.”

She held her breath.

“Of course I'll come. But maybe later… if Melangell wants to…”

Lucy's heart dropped a little in disappointment. Would he only come because of Rachel, or Melangell?

His hand closed over hers, warm and firm. “Thanks,” he said, “for a lot of things.”

She ought to give him her enormous thanks for saving her life. But she stood, tongue-tied, conscious of the pressure of his hand, his skin
against her own, the steady light of those grey-blue eyes, the colour of the North Sea behind him.

Too soon, he dropped her hand. They stood awkwardly in silence. Then he shouldered his rucksack and began to move towards their car.

Melangell lingered for a moment. She looked up at Lucy conspiratorially. “He likes you,” she whispered. “He's sad about Mummy, but he likes you too.” She ran forward and put her arms round Lucy's waist. “And so do I.”

Lucy told herself it was the wind whipping tears into her eyes as she watched them board their car. Then she slipped back into the passenger seat and let Peter drive her south along the road the monks of Lindisfarne might have carried Cuthbert's body. Into a new and still unforeseeable reality.

1. Lucy leaves the police force to be ordained. How does the attitude of a police officer to a crime differ from that of a minister?
   
2. How much would eight-year-old Melangell understand about what was going on?
   
3. Are the stories about seventh-century Northumbria relevant to the modern plot?
   
4. Is there anything that could have been done to help or protect Rachel?
   
5. Is the portrayal of the apparently successful pastor James fair?
   
6. Is there a danger in taking a site that is sacred to many people and making it the scene of a violent crime?
   
7. How important is the setting of the novel? Would the story have been the same if it had been set on the mainland?
   
8. How did you find the device of telling the story through alternating viewpoints?
   
9. Did you feel that Aidan was being true to Jenny's memory?
   
10. Is it possible for a crime novel to have a happy ending?