Broadchurch (42 page)

‘What will you do?’ he asks her.

‘Go somewhere else,’ says the woman who has never lived anywhere but Broadchurch. ‘Give the kids a new start. How could I walk down the High Street now? What about you?’

Hardy puffs out his gaunt cheeks. ‘I’m done. Medicalled out.’

‘Look at us,’ says Ellie with a miserable little smile. ‘The Former Detectives’ Club.’

They stay side by side and stare at nothing. Behind them, a single golden light flares into life and moves slowly along the seafront.

It has begun.

There is a beacon at the top of Harbour Cliff, an old-fashioned metal basket on a mast. It is a relic of the days when fires were lit to warn of an incoming invasion. For a long time now it has served as a landmark for ramblers and a climbing frame for local children, but tonight, kindling and firewood fill the empty nest. Danny’s family gather around it: Mark and Beth, Liz and Chloe, and Dean, who holds a flaming torch in his left hand.

Paul Coates leads a group of Broadchurch residents to Harbour Cliff Beach. Becca Fisher, Nige and Faye Carter, Maggie Radcliffe and Lil, Karen White, Olly Stevens and Tom Miller follow the icy-blue beam of Paul’s flashlight across the sand. They gather at a pyramid bonfire set yards from where Danny’s body was found. One after another they plunge waxed sticks into the pyre and let the flames take hold.

When all the torches are lit, Paul Coates points his electric torch at the top of the cliff and gives the Latimers their cue. Then he turns and flashes the same light at the opposite coast.

‘Wrong direction,’ says Becca Fisher, gesturing to the clifftop where the Latimers stand. ‘You were right the first time.’

Paul gives an enigmatic, satisfied smile. ‘Wait and see,’ he says.

At the cold wink of the flashlight, Dean hands the flaming torch to Mark, who touches it gently to the beacon’s base. The family listen to the woof and crackle as the flames take, hypnotised by the dancing gold.

The smoke punishes Beth’s dry eyes. The adrenalin of the day is beginning to recede, an exhausted disappointment slowly moving in to take its place. The longed-for feeling of release remains elusive and tomorrow is a looming void. On the beach below, another torch bursts into life every second: from this height, they look like so many lit matches. She burrows into Mark’s chest: his lungs work quickly against her cheek.

‘Look!’ says Chloe, pointing to the other side of the harbour. Another bonfire has sprung up on the opposite cliff. Seconds later, there’s another beyond the curve of the bay. And then another. The beacons are
all
being lit for Danny. The family turn as one individual to follow the ancient relay of flame.

‘They’re everywhere,’ Liz whispers in awe. ‘How did everyone know?’

The lights continue to multiply. Dozens of bonfires blaze amber, as far inland as the eye can see. Down on the jetty, candles are being lit one from the other. Pinpricks of white mark the shape of the concrete path snaking out into the sea. Out to sea, the fishermen light flares on their boats. It looks as though the stars have fallen into the sea.

Beth turns slowly, looking at the vast cradle the community has made for them. A gust blows from nowhere, sending a cascade of orange sparks across the black. When they clear, she sees Danny standing on the clifftop. They look at each other through the filter of the flames. Danny returns Beth’s nervous smile and she has the sensation of something sweet, like warm honey, pouring into her, soothing her from within.

She blinks again and Danny is gone before she can run to him, but that’s OK. She gets it now. The trick is not to let Danny go. The trick is to keep him with her. The fight isn’t over and she will not let Joe Miller win. Her job as Danny’s mother is not over.

Some lights can never be put out. He will shine through her. He will
shine
.

READING GROUP NOTES

Given the dramatic revelations within the novel, do you think it’s ever possible to truly know the person you’re married to?

Discuss the difference between watching the Broadchurch TV cast act out their emotions and reading in more detail about those same interior thought-processes in the novel. Did this change the way that you perceived any of the characters?

Should the press have been more restrained in their treatment of Jack Marshall, or were they simply acting on the best information available to them at the time?

Do you think DI Alec Hardy should have taken the blame for what happened at Sandbrook, given the negative impact it’s had on his health?

In the novel, Tom Miller keeps a big secret from the adults in his life. Do you think children are usually this good at keeping secrets?

Who were your favourite and least favourite characters in the novel and did this differ to the TV series?

Did you guess who Danny’s killer was (in either the TV series or the novel)? Did any of the other plot twists take you by surprise?

What do you think will happen in the second series of Broadchurch the TV show?