Daisy Madigan's Paradise by Suzy Turner

kiss.
    'What's
happened, Dad?' asked Emma as she sat huddled up to her sister on
the bottom step. A clap of thunder made her jump and she shivered,
her eyes wide open with apprehension. Lana rolled her eyes and put
her arm protectively around her sister.
    'Let's have a
cup of cocoa,' Audrey said, recognising the look on her husband's
face. There was bad news.
    While they
waited for the milk to heat up on the stove, Lana went into the
lounge looking for candles as the lights continued to flicker,
constantly threatening to go out for good.
    'I've found
some,' she said, setting them down on the kitchen table with a box
of matches, 'just in case,' she smiled. 'So what's going on, Dad?
Why did you have to go out so late?'
    'He's the
Chief Constable... it's his job,' answered their mother as she
poured steaming milk into the four mugs, before stirring them as
quietly as she could.
    Lana stood
beside her, adding a spoonful of sugar to her own mug before
passing the calming drinks to her family, who stood sipping the
chocolatey goodness silently for a moment.
    Rubbing his
forehead, Patrick put his cocoa down on the table just as the rain
began to clatter loudly on the roof tiles.
    'Oh no,'
whispered Emma as she pulled her feet up towards her bottom and
rocked back and forth in her seat.
    Patrick put
his hand on her shoulder, 'it's okay sweetheart. It's just a storm,
it'll pass. Everything will be all right.'
    'Well then why
did you have to go out in it, Dad?' she asked.
    'I was called
out to the old Grimshaw farm... Josiah was seen wandering close to
the pier again.'
    'What? In this
weather? Does he have a death wish?' said Lana without thinking as
her mother tutted, glancing towards Emma. 'Did you find him? Is he
okay?'
    'I'm afraid
he's nowhere to be seen. And in these conditions, it's impossible
to send out a search party. We can't send out the lifeboat without
risking the lives of everyone else, I'm afraid. He's a silly old
man, he should never have been left alone in this storm. Everyone
on the island knows how it affects him.'
    Audrey patted
her husband's hand, 'there'd be no stopping him, love. He's just
looking for her.'
    'Well, maybe
he's finally got his wish.'
    'Daddy?' said
an innocent child's voice from the stairs.
    'Oh we've
woken the kids,' said Audrey as she stood up and went to check on
her two younger children.
    'Hey
sweetheart. Sorry we woke you. Come on, let's go back to bed,' she
said to her family. 'There's nothing we can do now. We should all
try and get some sleep.'
    oOo
    'You awake,
Sis?' asked Lana later that night.
    'Of course I
am. There's no way I can sleep in this,' said Emma as she snuggled
deep into her quilt.
    'It'll be over
soon.'
    'I hope so,
it's been going on for hours. I just hope old Mr. Grimshaw is
okay.'
    'Yeah I know.
Do you know why he was out?'
    'No, I haven't
got a clue who he's looking for. I was going to ask Mum before Lucy
came down.'
    'We'll find
out tomorrow. Try and sleep, Em,' Lana said as she rolled over and
closed her eyes.
    Emma let out a
deep sigh and pulled the cover back over her head. ''Night
Lana.'
    The next
morning Emma sighed as she peered over the edge of the cliffs
towards the view below, wondering if Mr Grimshaw had been found
yet.
    The beach was
scattered with pieces of driftwood, big and small, and masses of
seaweed covered the expanse of sand and pebbles. The calmness of it
all belied the furious storm that had battered the island the night
before.
    Squinting, a
breath halted in her throat as she spotted something unusual among
the debris. 'Oh my God,' she whispered as she turned back up the
garden path to the house and ran as fast as she could, shouting,
'Dad! Dad!...'
    Patrick
appeared from the back door, putting on his coat, his eyebrows
knitted together, 'What is it? What, love?' he asked as she bounded
towards him.
    'There's
someone... someone on the beach. It looks like a body, Dad.'
    'Stay here
love,' he asserted as he ran towards the cliff edge to take