Lyrebird. Cecelia Ahern

her to fully understand her subject. She has to absorb herself in his or her life, she wants to do that. Bo was searching for something new after The Toolin Twins, and here it is, the natural birth of a new story has quite literally emerged from the first story. It’s perfect, it’s right, it has potential to be even better than The Toolin Twins. It’s Bo’s job to make other people see what she sees, to feel what she feels. She must make Laura see that.

      ‘Laura,’ she says gently. ‘I respect your decision not to take part, but I want to make sure you are seeing the whole picture. I want to help you think this through. This week has obviously been a big week for you, a time of huge change in your life, with the passing of your dad.’

      Laura looks down, her long eyelashes brush her cheekbones. Bo notes the reaction when she refers to Tom as her dad, to Joe as her uncle, she needs to be careful when using it. They’re not terms Laura is comfortable with and she wants to know why. Why, why, why! It seems that this girl is built entirely on secrets; created on one, born on one, reared on one, exists on one. Bo wants to break the chain.

      ‘It’s a new beginning for you. Your life is moving on. There is uncertainty as to whether Joe will allow you to live here, and if he does, uncertainty as to whether he will assist you in living the life you have been living for the past ten years. I don’t know if Joe will take on Tom’s role of acting as an intermediary with Bridget for you, getting your provisions, and paying for them, because I assume Tom covered the costs?’

      She nods.

      ‘If Joe doesn’t, how will you get to the shops with no car? Do you have money? Can you pay for food? Tom, as helpful as he was to you, really did leave you in a very vulnerable situation.’ She leads into the next sentence gently. ‘There isn’t a mention of you in Tom’s will. He has left his share to Joe. Perhaps he intended on discussing your presence here with Joe, but he never did.’

      She leaves that to sink in with Laura, who has now reached out to grip the back of the chair tightly. Her eyes dart around the room, deep in thought, everything that has been her world possibly dissolving right in front of her.

      ‘If you take part in this documentary, we can help you. The three of us will be here, we can bring you whatever you need. We can even help you get set up somewhere else if that’s what you want. Whatever you want, we can help you. You’re not alone. You’ll have me, Rachel and of course … you’ll have Solomon, who I can tell is so fond of you,’ Bo adds, with a smile.

       7

      ‘She’s in!’ Bo sings, from the trail, making her way to where Solomon and Rachel are waiting by the car.

      ‘What?’ Rachel says, looking at Solomon. ‘He just said she’s out.’

      ‘Well it’s happening now!’ Bo raises her hand in the air for a high-five. They both stare at her.

      ‘Ah, come on, don’t leave me hanging.’

      Rachel high-fives her, with a surprised laugh. ‘You are unbelievable. You truly are a piece of work.’

      Bo raises her eyebrows, enjoying the praise, hand still in the air and waiting for Solomon.

      He folds his arms. ‘I’m not high-fiving anything until you tell me how you changed her mind.’

      Bo drops her hand and rolls her eyes. ‘Would you ask another producer that question? Or just me? Because I would like to have the same respect from you as you would give to somebody else, don’t you think that’s fair?’

      ‘If I was in the room with a producer who got a clear no, and then I left, and he got a yes, then yes, I would ask him.’

      ‘Why is the producer immediately a him?’ Bo asks.

      ‘Or her. Who gives a fuck? What did you do to make her say yes?’

      ‘Okay guys, before you both go off on one, can we first get some of the logistics straight?’ Rachel grabs their attention. ‘I really have to get home to Susie – we have an anatomy scan on Friday, I will not miss it,’ she says, fully serious. ‘I need to know what’s happening. Is there a plan?’

      Bo looks at both of them, her eyes wide in shock. ‘Guys,’ she says, exasperated. ‘Can we quit the moaning for a second and embrace, truly acknowledge the fact that we have the subject of a new documentary confirmed? Can we not ruin the moment right now with a thousand questions, and celebrate?’ She looks at both of them. ‘We’re ready to go again. Whoo! Come on!’ She tries to jazz them up until they eventually cave in and celebrate with her, in a group hug, Rachel and Solomon momentarily hiding their reservations.

      ‘Congratulations, you relentless little shit,’ Solomon says, kissing her.

      She laughs. ‘Thank you! Finally, the recognition I deserve.’

      ‘So …’ Rachel says.

      ‘I know, I know, Susie,’ Bo says, thinking it through. ‘Of course you need to get back to her. My feeling is that all the signs are pointing to filming now,’ Bo says. ‘The weather, for a start. We’ve been here in winter, it’s murky, it’s complicated. Rachel, you slipped on your ass more times than I care to remember and, while it was hilariously funny, it was dangerous – as you pointed out.’

      Solomon chuckles.

      ‘And while I want to film what it’s like for Laura living here in all seasons, because I think that’s important, I want to get the principal stuff done now. I want to show people how we found her. Sleeping Beauty in her hidden cottage in the forest. I want the colour, I want light, I want these sounds,’ she says, seeing it all. ‘It’s a summer vibe. Thirdly, if we leave it too long, there’s a chance Laura will change her mind. I want her immediate thoughts, wishes, dreams, not something she’s figured out a few months down the road. Her life has changed now – bam! We need to follow her now, when she’s right on the cusp. And finally, I don’t know how long Joe is going to allow her to live here. If we leave he may just kick her out of the cottage, if we’re here he might be more likely to allow her to stay.

      ‘So, bearing that all in mind, we go home today, gather ourselves, I’ll prepare the paperwork, Rachel, you gather the equipment, and we’ll return Sunday evening. We begin filming here on Monday for a two-week shoot, tops.’

      They all agree.

      ‘Rachel, I know that Susie’s due date is three weeks away, if for whatever reason you have to leave …’ Bo says, starting to think of replacement camera people she’s worked with. ‘I could call Andy and see if—’

      ‘Andy’s a dickhead, his filming is deeply inferior to mine. Don’t replace me with Andy. It would be an insult. Don’t replace me with anyone,’ Rachel says firmly. ‘This is a story,’ Rachel says, pointing up the mountain to the cottage. ‘I want to work on this.’

      At Rachel’s show of support, Solomon feels goosebumps rise on his skin. He’s never heard her so enthusiastic, nor has he felt this way about a project before. They are all eager to begin, hankering to dive into discovering Laura’s story. Buzzing with excitement Bo returns to the cottage to discuss the filming schedule with Laura. However, she emerges moments later with less energy.

      ‘She’s changed her mind,’ Solomon guesses, feeling his stomach drop.

      ‘Not quite. She’s panicking. She’s doing the noise thing. She wants you, Sol. Again.’

      Solomon closes the door to the cottage. Laura is standing, pacing the small area between her bed, the kitchenette and the living area.

      ‘Hi,’ he says.

      She mimics a sound and he doesn’t know what it is until he closes the door and it is exactly the sound she has