A novella in 30 chapters
Stingaree Bay: Chapter 20
Meet the Nguyens
‘Ten-thirty tomorrow morning, then, Mrs Wilson … Yes, yes … I’ll bring the new toilet with me … No, you’ll have to … err, make other arrangements while the silicone dries … Just a few hours … Right-o. Bye now … Yes, right … No … Bye!’
Nigel pulled a face at his phone and placed it on the little mosaic coffee table with a sigh. He lifted his coffee cup to his lips and grimaced again: stone cold.
Hugh’s apartment might be tiny, but the location was worth the million-dollar price tag, atop a white-stuccoed, pantiled Italianate villa high on the hillside overlooking East Beach. Nestled into the slope of the roof, the little balcony offered shelter and a superb vantage point.
Nigel gazed out through the crowns of stately palm trees and over sloping lawns, down to the semi-circular sea baths with their fountain, café and gaggles of picnickers and bathers. Even on this Wednesday afternoon outside school holidays, the waterfront was busy.
The Bay sparkled, and the moored yachts swung idly in the mild breeze. A straggle of school dinghies issued forth with a safety RIB worrying at their heels.
A key rattled in the front door, then leather-soled shoes clicked on the marble. There was a…
