Hamish

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THE MORNING AFTER THE fire, Hamish sat for an hour watching Akash sleep. He imagined neither of them had slept restfully. His shoulder had kept him from doing more than dozing.

He ignored his first instinct to plan a way to help Akash; it seemed wiser to wait things out. Hamish didn’t believe the baker would take kindly to him bulldozing over him. He wouldn’t have in his position.

His mother had always told him to treat others the way he wanted to be treated. If you hate something, love, why would you do it to anyone else? Hamish missed her—missed both of his parents. She would’ve adored Akash; his father might’ve required more convincing.

“Wasn’t a dream, was it?” Akash asked groggily.

Ah, denial, the easiest of the stages of grief to sort out.

“Not a dream. Not even a nightmare.” Hamish refused to sugar-coat things for him. “Ready to face the day?”

“Not even fucking close.” Akash dragged the pillow over his face and screamed into it for a few seconds. He tossed it toward the end of the bed. “Not much choice, is there?”

“No.” Hamish dropped his hand onto Akash’s arm. “Why don’t we go out for coffee? We can stop by to see what the damage is.”

Nodding absently, Akash bent over the edge of the bed to fumble around in his trousers. He sat back up with his mobile in hand. Hamish headed into the bathroom to allow him some semblance of privacy while he spoke with his parents.

Getting his T-shirt off required a great deal of dexterity and pain, but Hamish finally managed it. He twisted around in front of the mirror to get a better view of the bruising and swelling. His shoulder had coloured up rather impressively; he supposed, like everything else in life, it could’ve been much worse.

I’ve had worse.

With doctor’s orders to take it easy for a few weeks, Hamish had intended to stick to his desk. He wondered absently if perhaps he might spend the time with Akash, instead. His assistance might be in spirit only given his physical limitations, but it would at least be more than nothing.

“Hamish?” Akash tentatively knocked on the bathroom door. “The insurance company should be sending someone around to check out the bakery. Your friend Lennie texted me to say they’ve turned over the investigation to detectives. I’m going to need a lot of coffee to deal with this shit.”

“Be out in a moment.” Hamish finished checking on his injury. He hoped the pain faded sooner rather than later. “There’s an en suite in the spare room if you want to get ready instead of waiting for me.”

By the time they’d both gotten ready, Hamish had text messages of his own from Lennie and his husband, Marc. Neither of them could divulge anything concrete about the fire. They wouldn’t risk the investigation; knowing detectives had gotten involved spoke volumes in and of itself.

His gut instinct told him the fire hadn’t been an accident. Hamish even had a suspicion on who might be responsible, either directly or indirectly. He’d wait to see what the official investigation came up with before he stuck himself into it.

“Hamish?”

He glanced over at the door and realised he’d gotten lost in thought. “I’m done, I’m done.”

“Sure you don’t want a hand?”

“I’ll give you a hand.” Hamish stepped out of the bathroom to find a fully dressed Akash sitting on the edge of the bed. “How are your parents?”

“Devastated for me.” Akash hopped up to give him a hand in getting his shirt over his head. “They wanted to drive out to help me clean the place up. I put them off. I’ve no idea when the investigators will let me start or how much insurance will cover. If I didn’t love the area so much, I’d consider cutting my losses and moving the shop.”

“Did you contact the twins?” Hamish tried to subtly guide the conversation to see where Akash’s thoughts might be. “Don’t they usually work in the mornings?”

“They think their father did it.” Akash eyed him for a second before continuing. “You agree.”

“I do.”

“Should you be resting?” Akash waited until they’d gotten situated in the vehicle to ask. He’d insisted on driving, since Hamish had no doubt his ability to function would be best kept for emergencies only. “Not sure ‘take it easy’ really translates to swanning around Cardiff with me.”

Hamish gingerly shifted in the seat to reach over and adjust the back of it to a slightly reclined position. “See? I’m resting.”

With an exaggerated roll of his eyes, Akash apparently decided it was time to go. He pulled out of the parking space and barely managed to avoid the wrought iron gate. Hamish chuckled at the sheepish grin aimed in his direction.

“Let’s try to get there in one piece, shall we?” Hamish met Akash’s glare with a blank stare. “Might want to look both ways.”

“Thanks.”

“Happy to help.” Hamish reached into his pocket when his mobile buzzed, to find a text from Nye.

Nye: The cat has so far scratched up my sofa, relieved himself in my closet, and hacked up a hairball on the floor.

Hamish: Maybe he wants you to feel special.

Nye: The blasted furball ruined my favourite jacket.

Hamish: I weep for you.

Nye: Fucking cat.

Hamish: You could always tell Shanti to stay at her own place instead of yours.

Nye: I’m prepared to suffer.

“Do I want to know why you’re chuckling like some evil henchman in a cartoon?” Akash broke into his thoughts. “You haven’t said a word for ages.”

Hamish lifted his eyes from his mobile to find Akash watching him intently. He glanced around in surprise to discover they’d already arrived at Stag Coffee, one of his favourite breakfast places in the city. “Nye’s having a bit of trouble with your cat.”

“Ah.”

Hamish tilted the screen to show a video Nye had sent of Ganesh racing around his flat full tilt. “He’s apparently making a lifelong friend.”

“Maybe it’ll keep him out of my sister’s pants.” Akash brightened for the first time since the fire while watching the video.

“Doubtful.”

Akash waved his hand as if to bat away the word. “I don’t mind, actually. Shanti’s strong enough to make her own choices. Nye’s a good man. I’ll still break his good leg if he hurts her.”

“I’ve a feeling she’d do it herself.” Hamish admired the way the youngest member of the Robinson family had stood up to the rest without backing down. “How about breakfast? I’ve a sudden craving for their full breakfast. I’m buying.”

“Good. I might be destitute by the time this is all over.” Akash’s laugh sounded slightly hysterical. “God. This is happening, isn’t it?”

Hamish took him by the chin to force their eyes to meet. “It is, so keep calm and get ready to kick arse—even if it’s your own to get it in gear.”

“Pretty sure that’s not how the quote goes.” Akash hopped out of the vehicle and waited for Hamish to join him.

“Like mine better.” Hamish grabbed him by the shoulder to lead him toward the café. “Carry on is too mild.”