The light beyond the headland

An original fiction passage set in the nineteenth century.

The storm had eased, but the sea still struck the rocks below the lighthouse with a force that shook the panes. From the gallery, Mr Lorne watched a dark shape rise and vanish beyond the headland. He had seen the same movement twice before and had told himself it was only broken water.

The keeper’s assistant stood by the lamp. “There,” she said, as a small white patch appeared where the waves had cleared. Mr Lorne raised his glass. For an instant he made out a mast, tilted towards the shore. Then spray covered it.

The rules for a gale were clear: the lamp was to remain fixed on the channel. The assistant pointed out that the shape had shifted closer to the rocks since her last sighting. Mr Lorne looked again, not at the dark water but at the gap between two outcrops. The white patch appeared there once more.

He turned the lamp a fraction towards the headland. No signal came back. The assistant stayed beside him, holding the glass ready. Mr Lorne kept his hand on the handle, waiting for the shape to rise again before he moved it further.

“The writer presents close attention as important, while showing that observation alone cannot remove uncertainty.”