第1章 第10節 海岸への道
The Road to the Coast
Nora left the city before dawn, driving west toward the distant sea.
The was humming with lorries, their lights fading in the .
Following the coast road, she watched the land grow wild and empty.
The radio was playing soft music, but her mind was somewhere else.
Hills gave way to marshes, where grey birds were circling the water.
By afternoon a cold rain was falling steadily against the .
Gripping the wheel, she thought of her mother's voice with every mile.
The road was narrowing now, winding between low stone walls.
Signs for other towns disappeared, leaving only one name ahead.
As the light began to fade, the sea appeared beyond the fields.
It was grey and endless, and it was breathing against the shore.
A lighthouse stood far out on the rocks, exactly like the photograph.
Slowing the car, Nora felt her heart beat hard against her ribs.
The sign at the edge of town was leaning into the wind.
It should have said, "Welcome to Saltmere," in cheerful painted letters.
But someone had scratched the word "Welcome" until it was gone.
What remained looked less like a than a warning.
Driving slowly past, she entered streets that seemed half asleep.
Lights were burning in only a few of the low grey houses.
The was quiet, and the boats were resting on the falling .
At the end of a long , a single was standing still.
It was a man, and he was watching her car as it arrived.
He did not move, and he did not wave, though he clearly saw her.
Parking near the water, Nora felt his eyes follow her every move.
She had crossed the whole country to reach this silent, watching place.
Saltmere had been waiting for her, and now, it seemed, so had he.