Foster struggled on the shale, attempting to sit up. There was a thud as his body hit the ground again, followed by a curse. ‘What the hell’s he doing here?’
Sam could make out his stepfather’s question even though the words ran into each other like bumper cars at the funfair. He didn’t feel the usual lurch of rejection, though. Instead he could taste the disgust in his mouth.
‘He’s come to help you, Foster,’ Lucia said, still crouched next to him. ‘We need to get you back to the house. There are guests here, we don’t want them to see you.’
‘Don’t fuckin’ need his help. He’s no good anyway.’
‘Why are you being so horrible?’ Izzy asked, blinking hard as if to hold back the tears. ‘You’re always nasty to him.’
It hadn’t escaped her notice, then. Sam hesitated for a moment, before turning to her. ‘You need to get Sienna and go back up to the villa. Keep the guests busy, we don’t want them coming back down here.’
There was no way Sam wanted his sisters hearing Foster’s drunken rants. Especially as he was skirting so close to telling them things they didn’t need to know.
‘I don’t want to leave you here,’ Izzy whispered. Her protectiveness made him melt. How a hundred and twenty pound girl thought she could look after him, he had no idea.
But then his mind turned back to another day on this beach, with Foster showing them his dark side. That day he’d held Sam’s head under the surface until he was practically drowning. His sisters – young as they had been – had run out to help him. Christ, even the memory brought tears to his eyes. The bastard had been drunk as a skunk that day, too.
‘You’ll be helping us if you go up there,’ Sam said. ‘Let me and Mom take care of him, and we’ll talk later, OK? Can you do that for me?’
Silently, Izzy nodded. Tears were pouring down her cheeks. She gestured at Sienna, who was sitting on the deck, her knees tucked under her chin. ‘Come on, Sienna, let’s go.’
‘Oh no, don’t leave, let’s all be one happy family. Right, Sam?’
‘Foster, be quiet.’ For the first time there was a hint of anger in Lucia’s voice.
‘But, baby, that’s what we are. Me, you, the girls, and that little . . . bastard.’
‘Foster!’ She clapped a hand over her mouth. ‘Stop it please.’
‘Izz, go now,’ Sam whispered urgently. ‘Please get Sienna out of here.’
‘You don’t have to listen to him, he’s not really your brother.’
For a minute everybody went quiet on the beach. All they could hear was the gentle sounds of the party carrying on the breeze. The soft murmur of conversation, the occasional tinkle of laughter, juxtaposed against the lapping of the lake waters against the shore.
‘What does he mean?’ Izzy asked.
A wave of nausea squeezed at Sam’s stomach, bile scratching against his throat. ‘Nothing,’ Sam said. ‘He’s just drunk. Go on, Izz, I’ll explain later, OK?’
‘Don’t you tell her what to do. She’s not your sister.’ Foster started coughing, a deep, choking noise.
‘Of course I’m his sister.’ Tears were streaming down her face. She grabbed Sam’s hand, squeezing tight. ‘Why are you saying that, Daddy? Stop it, stop being horrible.’
Sam pulled her into him, hugging her tight. Then Sienna joined them, her face pale as the moon. ‘Just ignore him,’ Sam said. ‘I promise it’s going to be OK. If you guys can hold it together and get up to the villa, I’ll talk to you later. I just need to help Mom down here first.’
He could feel Izzy’s chest hitching as she tried to get control of her sobs. Sienna was altogether more silent, controlled. ‘What’s he talking about?’ she asked. ‘I don’t understand.’
‘Nothing, he’s talking shit. He’s drunk too much and he’s being stupid. Please go back to the house.’
‘Sam’s right,’ Lucia said. ‘Your father, he’s not well. Please, darlings, let us take care of this.’
‘You are my brother, aren’t you?’ Izzy was crying hard, now. ‘Sam, tell me he’s lying.’
Was it possible for a heart to break? Sam thought it could be. ‘Of course I’m your brother, Izz. There’s no doubt about that. We’re family, you can’t get rid of me. But right now, we’ve got a situation. I need your help to solve it. Please can you go up to the villa and wait for me there?’
She nodded, still sobbing. Then, grabbing Sienna’s hand, the two of them headed for the villa, leaving Sam alone with his parents.
As soon as they were out of earshot, Sam turned back to the beach, heading towards where his stepfather lay. But it wasn’t his stepfather he was looking at, it was his mother, who was kneeling there, devastated.