‘Oh.’ Joan pushed her mouth to one side of her face, eyes lowered. ‘Is Mum here?’
‘She’s at the cottage with Grandad. It was very hard for her not to come looking, but she knew she couldn’t get very far.’
‘Everyone is very, very worried,’ Irene added.
Joan swiped at the tears now mingling with the rain on her face. ‘They were supposed to think I was at a sleepover.’
‘This evening. What about tomorrow, and the day after that? Never mind you took Nesbit. I thought someone had stolen him.’ I kept my voice gentle as it was clear that the reality of what she’d done was starting to sink in.
Covering her face with both hands, she dissolved into hoarse sobs, only pausing to wail, ‘I want my Mum!’
‘Come on then, let’s get you home. Grab what you need for tonight; we can fetch the rest in the morning.’
By the time Joan re-emerged from the tent with her rucksack, it was clear that getting her home was not going to be that simple. I’d twisted my ankle quite badly, and even if I’d been strong enough to hobble a few steps, there was no way it would bear my weight all the way back. Neither Irene nor I had any signal on our phones, which was common in the forest hollows, and we had no idea how close we were to a main path, or anything else.
‘I’ll retrace our steps until my phone picks up reception again, then let people know Joan is safe but we need help.’ Irene looked at Joan thoughtfully. ‘I don’t know if it’s best for you to come with me, or stay in the tent so at least you’re warm and dry.’
‘I’m staying with Ollie.’ Joan grabbed my arm with both hands. ‘And Nesbit. We can’t leave her here unable to walk! What if the Beast of Bigley finds her?’
‘It might be best for her to wait with me. For all we know there’s a main road on the other side of that hill, and she can get a lift back in a car rather than trekking for miles in the wet.’ I looked at Irene, soaked to the skin and shivering with fatigue as much as the cold. I didn’t add what I was thinking, that she could easily end up trailing around in circles out here; it was so difficult to maintain any sense of direction in the dark.
‘Are you sure about going?’ I asked, not sure how I wanted her to answer. ‘You could stay with us in the tent until it’s light, then make much faster progress.’
‘And leave that poor girl’s mother out of her mind with worry?’ Irene shook her head determinedly. ‘No. It’s time for the Library Lady to have a real-life adventure. You two stay safe, and I’ll see you soon.’
‘Who’d have thought that Irene Jenkins would turn out to be a hero?’ Joan asked, as we watched her disappear into the night.
‘Honestly, not many heroes wear capes or have huge muscles,’ I replied. ‘Most are ordinary people who simply have the courage to do the right thing when it needs to be done.’
‘I’m sorry I ruined your birthday, Ollie,’ Joan whispered later, her face buried under her arm.
‘Right now I can’t think of anywhere I’d rather be,’ I whispered back, patting her shoulder.
She snorted. ‘Well, that’s clearly not true.’
‘Okay. I can’t think of anyone I’d rather bewith.’ I waited a beat before adding, ‘And at least you’ve made it memorable.’
* * *
At some point in the seemingly endless night, as Joan and I huddled under my sleeping bag, trying not to imagine what awful fate might have beset Irene, the torch started to flicker.
Then, just as it gave one final angry buzz before abruptly switching off, Nesbit began scrabbling at the tent door. Clambering out from under the sleeping bag, I trusted in his wagging tail and manoeuvred around to unzip the tent.
Two black noses pushed their way in to greet Nesbit with a gentle whuffle. Behind them, the light of a professional forest ranger’s torch blazed through the darkness.
I’d never seen Sam look so grim. Rain dripped off the hood of his jacket, and blood trickled down one cheek from a jagged scratch. With a few curt sentences he’d established the situation and taken control, scooping up Joan with a promise that a service truck would be waiting a quarter of a mile away, along with two colleagues.
I felt awash with panic at the thought of being left alone, but when Sam instructed Scout to stay, it helped me quash the urge to wrap my arms around his legs so he was either forced to stay too, or drag me with him.
‘Have you heard from Irene?’ I asked, just as he turned to go, Nesbit and Willow at his heel.
‘Not yet, but we’ll find her.’
Crap.I willed myself to keep it together. The last thing any of us needed right then was me falling apart. Offering what I hoped was a reassuring smile, I gave Sam a nod to indicate that it was fine for him to leave.
I was in a fretful doze when Scout’s ears pricked to attention, already pulling myself into a sitting position and tumbling out the tent the second Sam unzipped the door. Holding my arms steady, his eyes roamed my face.
‘Okay?’
