Ella was upstairs in Sam's bedroom when she heard thesound. A sharp tap above the sound of the rain. There was a storm coming - a fine start to the summer holi­days - but that wasn't the problem.

TIM BOWLER

STORM CATCHERS

Chapter 1

Ella was upstairs in Sam's bedroom when she heard thesound. A sharp tap above the sound of the rain. There was a storm coming - a fine start to the summer holi­days - but that wasn't the problem. The problem was that she was alone in the house at ten o'clock at night looking after her little brother Sam. Her parents had gone to the pub with their neighbours, the Meades. Fin, her big brother, had gone to see his friend Billy Meade. She had told him to go, promising that she'd be all right.

But she wasn't all right. She was terrified.

She heard the noise again, downstairs.

Three-year-old Sam was sleeping peacefully. At thir­teen, Ella never slept so peacefully. She was afraid ofthe dark. She had lived at Polvellan all her life, but the house still frightened her. Not just because it was an old building. There was something else, something she did­n't understand.

Tap! The sound came again. Her brother Fin was small for fifteen, but he'd go straight downstairs to find out what it was, and she knew she should make herself do it.

She walked quietly to the bottom of the stairs. Nothing in the hall. Tap! The sound was coming from the living-room.

The door was half open and the lights were on, but she couldn't see if there was anyone in the room. Nervously, she opened the door and looked round it. The room was empty.

Tap! She jumped. It was the window. Someone was outside, hidden by the curtains. She hurried to the phone, picked it up and started to dial 911. Then she put it down. The tapping wasn't regular. It might not be a person at all. What would Dad say if she called the police out for nothing?

Finding new courage, she walked over to the win­dow, pulled back the curtains and began to laugh. It was only the chain of one of the hanging flower-baskets striking the window in the wind! She was just going to close the curtains again when she saw, reflected in the glass, something that terrified her: the figure of a huge man in black behind her. A hood and scarf covered his head and face.

"Don't hurt me. Please don't hurt me! What do you want?"

"You," came the answer. It was a young man's voice.

She turned and ran to the bookcase,opened the hidden door to the secret passage, and slipped through. He followed her across the room, but she shutthe door just before he reached it. The secret passage only led to the kitchen, but she would have more time to reach Sam and get him out of the house. She ran down the passage to the kitchen and quietly up the stairs to Sam's room.

"Sam," she whispered. "Get up, quick!"

"Ella?"

"Sam, quick! We've got to get out of the house. Come on."

He was still half asleep, but she pulled him out of bed.

"Teddy," he said, looking around.

Ella picked up the teddy bear and carried them both to the door, but it was too late. The black figure was at the bottom of the stairs.

"Listen, Sam," whispered Ella. "I want you to hide in your secret place. It's a game — an important game. Don't come out till you hear Mummy or Daddy or Fin. Promise?"

From her serious face he knew that this was something important. He opened the wall cupboard and hid himself and Teddy at the back, behind a big box of toys.

"If anyone opens the door, make sure he can't see you," said Ella.

"Ella? Are you going away?"

"Just for a bit, but I'll be back soon. It'll be a good game! And you must be very quiet. Not a sound!"

She shut the cupboard door on Sam's serious face and went back to the bedroom door. She could hear the man outside. He was looking for her. The door to Sam's room began to open slowly. She hid behind it. The huge figure walked into the room and towards the bed. Ella jumped out and pushed him as hard as she could. He fell over the bed.

Ella rushed out of the room and down the stairs. She reached the front door, but the man grabbed her shoul­der as she tried to open it. She pulled herself away and ran back to the kitchen, pulling open the back door as the hand grabbed her T-shirt a second time. Again she managed to pull herself away and ran screaming into the garden, through the rain, towards the gate. If only she could reach the Meades' house down the road...

But he was quicker. He caught her and picked her up like a toy.

"Leave me alone!" she screamed. "Leave me..."

He dropped her to the ground, tied her hands behind her hack, slipped a gag over her mouth and dragged her back to the house. He pushed something through the letterbox and pulled her towards the gate. She could not cry out. She could not escape. She couldonly cry. Crying as the rain hit her face, crying as he opened the gate.

Crying as he took her away.

Chapter 2

Fin stopped outside the house, out of breath after run­ning up the hill from Billy's. He stared at the gate.

It was open, banging in the wind. He was sure he had closed it. Someone must have come to the house. He closed it and walked up to the front door. Damn! He'd forgotten his key again. He went around the side of the house. There was a light in Ella's room.

"El! Let me in!" he shouted. There was no answer.

Then he heard a sound. The back door was open, banging like the gate. He ran into the kitchen. Everything looked normal, but he was worried now. He felt that something was wrong. He hurried into the hall.

"El? Sammy? Where are you?" his voice was full of fear now. Silence. He walked to the stairs and then saw a piece of paper with writing on it on the floor by thefront door. The words hit him like knives.

TELL ANYBODY AND SHE'S DEAD. WE'LL CONTACT YOU.

"No!" he cried and ran upstairs. Ella's bedroom was empty. Sam’s bedroom was empty. Mum and Dad's room. Empty. He raced through the house, checking all the rooms. Empty. What had he done? He'd left them alone, and now they were gone. But the note had only said 'she'.

He ran upstairs to Sam's room, opened the cupboardand pushed the box of toys to one side.

Sam was not there.

This was all his fault. If he'd been there, he could have done something. Now this had happened...

Where were Mum and Dad? Having coffee at the Meades'? He rang the number and Billy answered. No, his parents were not back yet.

"Anything wrong?" asked Billy, noticing the fear in Fin's voice.

"No," Fin lied, "Just don't tell your parents I was there, OK?"

He put down the phone and looked at his watch. Nearly eleven. The pub would be closing soon. He rang the number.

"Fin Parnell here. Are my parents still there, Mr Langworthy?"

"No, Fin. They've just left with Stuart and Sarah Meade. Nothing wrong, I hope?"

"No. No. Everything's fine. It wasn't important. Goodbye."

Fin ran out into the garden. Perhaps Ella and Sam had gone to see if Biscuit, Ella's horse, was all right. Bis­cuit hated storms. Then he heard the sound of his par­ents' car coming up the hill. He turned round, and in the car lights he could see the marks on the grass where a struggle had taken place. "Mum! Dad!" he shouted. Dad was opening the big gate for Mum to drive in. "Fin? That you? What's wrong?"

"Ella's been kidnapped. And Sam's missing, too.”

"What? What happened?"

"I don't know. I... I went down the road to Billy's."

"You bloody fool," said his father. "You bloody fool!"

"What's happened, Peter?" asked Mum, running up
to them.

"Come inside out of the rain," said Mr Parnell. "Fin'll tell you!"

They sat down in the kitchen. Mr Parnell said nothing.

"Now then," said Mum. "What's happened?"

"Ella's been kidnapped and Sam's missing."

"What?" She jumped to her feet. Fin showed her the note. "Oh, my God!" she cried, handing the note to Dad. "How did this happen? You must have seen some­thing, Fin?"

"I didn't. I was... I was at Billy's. It's all my fault!" he sobbed.

"You're damn right it's your fault!" shouted Mr Par­nell. "What the hell did you go there for?"

"Billy wanted to show me his new computer. Ella said she'd be OK."

"But you know how frightened she is alone in the house," cried Mum. She turned to Dad. "We've got to call the police."

"We can't do that," said Dad. "Read the note,Susan!"

"But we can't just do nothing!" Mrs Parnell sat down again, her head in her hands. Dad put a hand on her shoulder.

"The note only says 'she^’, so Sam could be some­where else. We can't call the police, but we can look for him ourselves. You stay here, Susan, in case the kid­nappers ring. Come on, Fin. Let's go."

"We'll check the village first," muttered Mr Parnell as they drove off. "Then we'll try the fields behind the house and the coast path."

Fin said nothing. He didn't trust himself to speak.

They saw nothing in the village, so they turned and drove back to the fields behind the house, where they got out. Fin was still fighting his feelings. He knew it was all his fault. He should never have left her. He remembered her smiling face as he left the house. He should have known that she was just trying to be brave. She was always frightened alone in the house. If any­thing happened to her, he would never forgive himself. Mum and Dad would never forgive him, either.

Fin checked the coast path while his father looked round the fields.

It was spooky here at night. He'd only ever been here during the day, walking down to Pengrig lighthouse at the edge of the cliffs. It was a great place for thinking. But now, in the dark, he felt small and alone.

The sea was below him now. There were the cliffs, the coast path; and there, running through the rain, was a small figure.

Chapter 3

Ella fell down onto the sand when they reached the cove. The huge figure stared at her and pulled off his hood and scarf. Ella gasped. It was a boy, about Fin's age, but with the strength and body of a man. She must be careful.

"Get up," he said, pulling her over the rocks towards the sea. She looked across the cove to Dad's big new motorboat and Mr Meade's little sailing boat. Was she seeing them for the last time? Was he going to drown her? He stopped suddenly, untied her hands and took off the gag.

"Walk on," he pointed over the rocks. "That way."

"Please don't kill me," she said, and began walking towards the sea.

Would he hit her over the head first, or just hold her down in the water until she drowned? They stopped at the water's edge. She closed her eyes and waited for death.

"Move to the side," came his voice. She opened her eyes. He was pulling a small rowing boat over the rocks to the water's edge. She hadn't seen it and didn't recognize it.

"Get in," he ordered. She got in, and he pushed the boat off.

The sea was rough, but the boy was very strong. Slowly he pulled away from the land. Where were they going? thought Ella. There were only three little islands near the Pengrig headland where the old light­house stood. Surely he wasn't taking her there? She wondered where he got the strength to fight against is the high waves. Then she gasped.

He was taking her to Pengrig itself! The rowing boat was getting closer to the cliffs. What was he doing? Everyone knew that the cliffs weren't safe. Huge falls of rock from the headland had left the old lighthouse - it wasn't used now - on the edge of the cliff. There were warning notices everywhere...

The sea was rougher now they were close to the rocks. Then Ella remembered the cave. He was taking her there. She couldn't believe it. Nobody went thereafter the last big fall of rock - it was too dangerous even in good weather. In this storm, they would both be killed!

"Don't take me there!" she yelled. "We'll die! We’ll both die!"

He went on rowing. The mouth of the cave appeared through the rain. Somehow he got the boat through the opening. It was darker now, and the noise of the sea was louder, more frightening. She could just see the tunnel and the flatrock which the smugglers had once used.

"Get ready to jump out!" the boy shouted above the noise. "Onto the flat rock - when I say 'jump'!"

The boat was moving up and down so much that Ella didn't think she would dare to jump. But when the boy moved the boat closer to the rock and shouted "Now!" she jumped - and landed safely on the flat rock. She got up and stood by the tunnel that led to the upper part of the cave, wondering how the boy would land.

But he was not going to land. He was already row­ing back out of the cave!

"Don't leave me here!" she yelled. But he could not hear her now. He was concentrating hard on his almost impossible task. She watched, and again said: "Please don't leave me!" But her voice was much quieter now. It took him a long time to reach the open sea, and Ella watched his huge figure in the small boat until she could no longer see it.

Chapter 4

“What happened, Sam?" asked Mum.

They were in the kitchen: Mum was drying Sam, Sam was drying Teddy, Fin was drinking hot chocolate. Dad was staring down at the table, thinking hard
about the situation. Fin looked at Sam's face. There was something strange about it. He didn't look like a boy who had just had a terribleshock. When Fin found him, he had been running around as if he were playing with some­one. Someone who wasn't there.

"Sam," said Mum again. "You must tell us what happened."

"I hid in the cupboard like Ella told me. She told me to stay there until you came back. She promised to come back, too.”

“Where is she?"

"She's gone away for a little while," said Dad.

Fin looked carefully at Sam and asked: "Sammy, if Ella told you to stay in the cupboard, why did you run away to the cliffs?"

"It's a secret," said Sam with a serious face.

Sam always had lots of secrets which he only told Teddy.

"Sammy, did one of your secret friends tell you to run to the cliffs?"

Sam nodded. He had secret friends with whom beoften played. Friends whom only Teddy and he could see. Part of his play-world. But he had never run to the cliffs before.

Mum put Sam to bed and came down again. She sat down on the sofa and looked nervously at Fin and her husband.

"I'm so frightened. Why haven't the kidnappers phoned?

"They will," said Dad. "We must keep calm and not go to pieces. We must find out what the kidnappers want first. If we haven't heard from them in the morn­ing, we can think about going to the police."

The phone rang. Mr Parnell switched the loudspeaker on before picking up the phone. They all listened.

"Mr Parnell?" said the voice of a boy of about Fin's age. "I've been looking forward to this conversation so much."

"Who are you? What do you want?" asked Dad.

"A hundred thousand pounds in cash by Wednesday," said the voice.

"I want to speak to Ella."

"Not possible, I'm afraid."

"How do I know she's not dead? How can I trust you?"

"You don't. You can't.”

"I can't give you anything unless I know she's alive,"

"Then she dies. Bye."

"Wait!" cried Dad. There was a silence but no click.

"For God's sake, just... wait. I'm not sure if I can get the money by Wednesday."

"Of course you can. You're a millionaire. You own a chain of supermarkets all over Cornwall. You live in the biggest house in Trevally. You can do anything you want. Get the money by middayon Wednesday if you want to see your daughter alive." "But it's early Tuesday morning already," said Dad.

"Then you haven't got much time. And remember what I said. Tell nobody. If I find out you've told some­one, you'll get your daughter back one piece at a time."

There was a click and the voice was gone.

Chapter 5

Ella sat by the opening to the tunnel. She had not moved since the boy left. She watched the sea rushing in and racing out again.

She didn't want to go up the tunnel, but she was cold and wet and couldn't stay in the cave all night.

She stepped into the dark tunnel and felt her way along the walls. The tunnel led up into the cliffs and ended in a small chamber about as big as Mum and Dad's bed­room. A little light was coming in through two holes in the walls. Ella could see three large boxes in the farcorner. She opened them.

The first box was full of bottles of mineral water, the next contained a towel and two blankets. She put one round her shoulders and began to feel warmer. In the third box were packets of sandwiches. They were from Parnell’s supermarket in Newquay. When she saw her family's name on the packets, Ella began to cry. At the bottom of the box were apples and bananas, all from Dad's Newquay supermarket.

Ella tried to think, but all she could do was feel. And what she felt was pain. She sat there for a long time, staring into the darkness. Then she realized she was hungry and opened a packet of sandwiches. They tasted good. She opened another packet and ate two moresandwiches.

The boy had planned the kidnapping well. Maybe he wasn't going to kill her. Maybe he just wanted money from Dad.

She closed her eyes and tried to sleep, but all she could think of was Sam's face, looking at her from behind the box of toys in his cupboard, and Fin. He would never forgive himself for leaving her alone.

Fin sat on the edge of his bed staring at the wall. Mum had sent him to bed but he knew he wouldn't sleep. Neither would Mum and Dad. He could hear them talking downstairs.

He opened the curtains. It was getting light and the storm was nearly over. He put his head against the glass and closed his eyes.

"El," he murmured. "I'm sorry."

He heard a voice out on the landing. It was Sam's yet it sounded strangely dream-like.

"I can't come. I promised Mummy."

Who was he talking to? Fin walked to the door and quietly up behind his little brother, who was standing at the top of the stairs. There was nobody else there.

"Sammy?" he said softly. "What's the matter?"

Sam turned. His eyes were wide, as if he had seen a ghost.

"Is Ella going to die? I want Ella to come back."

"Who are you talking to, Sammy?" Sam closed his lips firmly. "It's all right," Fin went on. "You don't have to tell me if it's a secret. Ella will soon be back."

"Is she thinking about us - right now?"

"Yes, Sammy." He kissed Sam's head. "She's thinking about us right now."

Chapter 6

The phone rang at half past eight. Dad jumped to his feet. "I'll get it."

"Take it in the living-room," said Mum. Sam was drinking a glass of orange juice. "And close the door behind you."

Fin went out with him. Dad picked up the phone, but it was only Billy.

"Is it still on this afternoon?" asked Billy.

"This afternoon?"

"The trip in your new boat. You did promise. But I expect you're too busy. Dad said you might be. He said you were always cancelling things like golf matches because you're too busy."

Fin rolled his eyes. Billy was not a very tactful person.

"The boat trip's still on," said Dad.

"Great! Could I speak to Fin, please? And Angle
wants to speak to Ella if she's there."

Dad had to think quickly. "She's not here, Billy. Didn't she tell you? She's gone to London to stay with her Auntie Jean and Uncle Frank. But Fin's here." He handed Fin the phone and gave him a warning look.

"Hello, Billy?" said Fin.

"Hi, Fin. Coming over?"

"What's the problem?" asked Billy after Fin had been sitting on the bed in Billy's room for half an hour with­out saying a word. Billy had been talking all the time: about his new computer, about stones and stars and the other strange subjects he was interested in. Fin had hoped he wouldn't notice his silence.

"I fell out with Mum and Dad," he said simply.
"That's always happening to me," said Billy happily.
"Usually because my room is so untidy."

Fin looked around the room. There were books and magazines everywhere. Angie appeared in the doorway. "When's Ella coming back?" she asked. "She didn't tell me she was going to London. We wanted to go riding this afternoon."

"I don't know when she'll be back," said Fin. "Aun­tie Jean and Uncle Frank haven't seen her for a long time. She only decided to go yesterday." Angie walked away. Fin could see that she didn't believe him.

Billy was busy with his computer. He hadn't heard their conversation.

"Billy," said Fin. "If you lost something, what wouldyou do?"

"Look for it," said Billy without looking up from his computer.

"OK. But if it was something very valuable and you'd looked for it and asked everybody. And nobody knew where it was. What would you do?" He knew that Billy had so many crazy theories about things. Perhaps he could suggest some course of action. Fin needed action. Billy said nothing for a while. He just went on playing with his computer. Then he stopped. "You could try dowsing" he said.

"But that's only looking for water, isn't it?"

"No. For anything. I've got a book on it." Billy jumped up and, in a surprisingly short time, found what he was looking for. He gave it to Fin. Fin read the title. “The Magic Pendulum”. What's all this?"

"Look," said Billy, showing him some photos in the book, "You make a pendulum with a ring, a key, a stone, anything. You ask the pendulum questions and it gives you answers. Look, let's make one."

He found a small key and a piece of string, tied the key to the string.

"Have you ever tried it?" asked Fin.

"A couple of times. I wasn't very good at it," said Bil­ly with a smile. "Some people are better than others. Maybe I should have tried harder. You hold the end of the string like this - OK? - and you let the pendulum hang down. It can go in a circle or a straight line. You have to teach it to mean things. The movements mean different things for each person."

"You mean you ask it questions and it moves? You don't move your hand.”

"Not if you do it properly. You don't need to move your hand. You can make it move with your eyes. I'll show you."

"Never!" This was too much for Fin. And it seemed like a waste of time. How could this dowsing help them to find Ella?

He watched Billy carefully. Billy held his hand still and moved his eyes up and down. After a while the pendulum began to move in the same direction, Finlooked at Billy with doubt in his eyes.

"Go on. Try it yourself!"

And strangely enough Fin found that it was true. The pendulum moved in the same direction as his eyes moved. Fin was fascinated. Billy was still talking, but he was hardly listening. He was thinking.

"Of course you mustn't tell the pendulum what to do. You must clear your mind of wishes..." He sudden­ly stopped. Fin looked up. "Are you all right, Fin?" asked Billy in a worried voice. "You look like shit."

“I'm fine," said Fin. "But I've got to go now. See you this afternoon. Can I take the book?"

"Of course," said Billy. "See you!"

Fin ran home as if running would make time go faster, would bring Ella back sooner. Mum and Sam were in the garden, but he couldn't face them. He ran up to his room and threw himself on the bed.

Chapter 7

Ella pressed herself against the wall. The boy had come back. She pulled the blankets tightly around her and looked at him. It was only his size that terrified her. His face wasn't hard, but there was anger in it: deep dan­gerous anger.

He had brought more sandwiches and mineral water. He took out a sandwich and sat down. Ella watched his face while he ate. There was something deeper than anger in it. It was dark, internal pain.

"What are you going to do with me?" she asked.

He said nothing, just took another sandwich. She knew he hated her but she didn't know why. He start­ed to eat an apple.

"Is it about money?" she asked again, but she knew he wouldn't answer. He walked over to her and looked straight into her eyes. His face was close to hers now. What was he going to do? There was something about his anger, the deep rage in his eyes that told her it was not only about money. Deep inside was a feeling that all he really wanted was to kill her. She turned away, pulling the blankets even tighter around her. But he just got up and walked back down the tunnel, leaving her alone again.

Fin was fascinated by the book which Billy had lent him. Especially the chapter 'Finding Missing Persons^’. He had gone to Ella's room, found the gold ring which her grandmother had given her and taken one of Ella's long golden hairs from her hairbrush to make a pendulum. Fascinated, he watched the pendulum move to his orders. He had taught it to move clockwise for 'yes' and anticlockwise for 'no'. That was working, but when he tested the pendulum with a question, he got no answer.

"Is Teddy in this room?" The pendulum didn't move. "Is Teddy in this room?" Fin repeated.

"He's here," said a voice. It was Sam, standing in the doorway with Teddy. "What's that?" he asked, looking at the pendulum.

"It's a pendulum. You ask it questions and it gives you answers."

"Is it magic? Does it work?"

"It's supposed to be magic, but it doesn't work for me."

"Let me do it. I can do magic," said Sammy. He sounded so certain that he could that Fin showed him how to hold the pendulum and told him that clockwise meant 'yes' and anticlockwise 'no'.

"Now ask it a question," said Fin. "Ask it if Daddy's here."

"Is Daddy here?" Sam's voice sounded very serious as he stared at the pendulum. At once it began to move clockwise.

Fin was disappointed. "It's wrong. Daddy's not back yet."

"He is. He's just come in. Can I ask it another ques­tion?"

"Stop it moving first, Sammy. OK. Now ask."

"Is Ella alive?" asked Sam in a strange, respectful voice.

Fin nearly jumped off the bed with shock. This was the one question he would not have asked. But slowly the pendulum began to move - in a clockwise direction: 'Yes'!

Chapter 8

"Now this is what I call a boat," said Billy as Mr Parnell drove his new motorboat out of the cove and towards the open sea.

But all Fin could think about was Ella, Sam and the
pendulum.

Then Angie spoke: "I still can't understand why Ella never told me she was going away. It's not like her."

Fin said nothing. He walked over to Dad and Mr Meade.

"Wonderful boat," said Mr Meade. "I just wish I could get your dad to buy a nice new car from my show­room to go with it." He looked across the sea at the old lighthouse and added: "Or to join my 'Save-the-Light-house' campaign."

"I've told you," said Dad. "I'm not interested. I'm too busy."

"We need people like you, Peter. People with influ­ence."

"People with money, you mean."

"Well, that, too. But saving the lighthouse is a good cause."

"Another big storm and it'll be gone," said Mr Parnell angrily.

Fin looked across at the headland. He could just seethe mouth of the cave below the doomed lighthouse. Dad was probably right. Angie had asked if they could take the boat round the islands. There were three of them and they were not very big. There was nothing on them except birds and rocks, but there was a small jetty on the largest for tourist boats.

"What was the old name of these islands?" asked Angie.

"The Furies," said Billy, showing off his knowledge as usual. "You know, the three old women in Greek mythology who punished people for crimes, especially crimes within the family. The Furies drove you mad." But Fin was not thinking about the Furies. He had a plan.

It was half past five when they got back. Fin went to look for Sam and took him to his room. There were 5 mapson the floor. Sam looked interested, so Fin explained what a map was for.

"Sammy," he went on. "I want to use the map and the pendulum to see if we can find out where Ella is. But I don't want to tell Mummy and Daddy. It'll be а secret. Just you and me. They might think it's silly and anyway, it might not work."

"You said it's magic, so it must work. Give me the pendlam."

"Here you are. We'll use the big map of Britain first. Hold the pendulum in one hand and point to the places on the map with the big finger of your other. Just say: 'Show me where Ella is'." Sam began at the top of the map. "Show me where
Ella is."

The pendulum made no movement as Sam's finger moved down the map through Edinburgh, Newcastle, York...

"Show me where Ella is. Show me where Ella is." Still no reaction from the pendulum. Sheffield, Nottingham, Leicester... Sammy's voice sounded strange now. Deeper than normal. He was concentrating. It was good that he couldn't read the place names.

"Show me where Ella is." Sam's finger moved slowly west. Hereford, Bristol, Taunton... "Show me where Ella is."

When Sammy's finger touched Cornwall, the pen­dulum began to turn in a circle. Sam stared at it. Fin gave a cry of delight.

"Well done, Sammy! Now let's try a local map and see if we can find out exactly where Ella is."

He took a map of the Newquay area and laid it on the floor. "Go on, Sammy. Same again!" The pendulum hung from its golden hair without moving at first.

"Show me where Ella is," Sam's face was more seri­ous now. Although he couldn't read, his little finger moved straight to their own village: Trevally. Fin's mouth opened in shock and surprise. The finger moved past the church, past the pub, down the hill now towards Polvellan. He was following the lane to their house!

"Show me where Ella is." Sam's finger moved past Polvellan towards the coast path, then along it. There were little drops of sweat on Sam's cheeksnow. Fin was a bit worried.

"You all right, Sammy?" he asked, wondering if he should stop.

Suddenly Sam looked up and stared at the corner of the room.

"I can't come!" he said. Fin looked up. There was nobody there.

" What's up, Sammy?" asked Fin, looking closely at his brother. Sam didn't answer, but when Fin looked down at the map he saw that the pendulum was spinning madly and Sam's small finger had made a hole in the map. Suddenly Sam dropped the pendulum, jumped up and ran out of the room and out onto the landing. Fin fol­lowed and caught him at the top of the stairs.

"Let me go!" cried Sam as Fin picked him up. He was trying to look over Fin's shoulder at something that Fin couldn't see. Suddenly he burst into tears. "She's gone!" he sobbed.

"Who's gone?"

"It's a secret. I promised I wouldn't tell anybody — only Teddy," said Sam, looking away.

"OK. Let’s keep it a secret. Like the pendulum. 1love you, Sammy," said Fin, pulling Sam towards him and hugging him.

Fin smiled at his brother, but he was worried. This particular secret seemed different from Sam's other secrets.

Sam ran off to his room to play. A few minutes later, when Fin looked in, Sam was playing happily with Teddy. Fin went back and looked at the map again. At the spot where Sam's finger had pushed through. It was Pengrig lighthouse.

When it was getting dark, Fin took his torch and walked to the coast path. Mum hadn't wanted to let him go at first. She was worried because of the kidnappers. But he'd said he'd be back soon. He surely wouldn't find anything at Pengrig lighthouse. Not Ella, anyway. The kidnappers wouldn't keep her there. Could the pendulum be right? It had clearly spun at that point, so he had to check, just in case.

He climbed over the fence with the warning notices and walked up to the open doorway. He switched on his torch and carefully climbed the stairs to the old lighthouse-keep­er's office. There were no signs of anybody on this floor. The sound of the wind was louder in the empty light­house. Fin wanted to run away, but he knew he must climb all the way to the top - to the lantern room - just to make sure.

There was nobody there. The pendulum was wrong.

He hurried downstairs again, happy to be safely out­side the doomed building.

As he got close to home, he saw a dark figure in the lane, leaning over the wall. Then he heard his father'svoice from the other side of the wall.

"I've told you before. You're not to come here." Fin stopped and watched. The figure was a small man with a long coat. Even in the darkness he looked
like a tramp.

"Now get out of here," he heard his father say. "And don't come near the house again."

The man waited for a few seconds as if he was deciding what to do. Then he walked slowly away towards the village. From the way that he walked, Fin could see that he was drunk.

Fin wondered what was going on. The easiest way to find out would be to ask his father, but his father's behaviour had been strange. What business could a millionaire have with a drunken old tramp? Fin decided to follow and find out more. He followed the man down the hill, passing old Mr Aldridge with his dog Buster. The tramp went through the village and on down the Newquay road. It was a long walk to Newquay, if that was where he was going. Fin turned back, remembering that he had told his mother he wouldn't be long. She would be worrying about him. He walked home, still wondering about his father's strange meeting.

Mum was worried, but not about Fin. Sam was miss­ing again.

"I was hoping he'd be with you, Fin," she said.

"We'll search the fields round the house," said Dad.

"He might have gone up to the coast path again," said Fin.

"We'll look there, too. You stay here in case he comes back." Mum and Dad rushed out of the house. Fin took his torch and went to look in the garden. No sign of Sam. He checked every room in the house. Suddenly he was very worried. He seemed to hear the kidnapper's voice:

"Now you've lost your brother, too!"

The doorbell rang and Fin rushed downstairs. It was Mr Aldridge with his dog Buster - and Sam! "I found him up near the coast path," said Mr Aldridge. "He was playing up there all on his own".

"I wasn't on my own," said Sam.

"Who was with you?" asked Fin sharply, still worried.

"It's a secret. Leave me alone. I saw you up on the cliffs," he said, looking at Fin. "She told me to hide, so I hid. But Buster found me."

"Who told you to hide, Sammy? Who?"

"It's a secret."

Just then Mum came rushing back. She picked Sam up and began kissing him. "We were so worried about you! Where were you?"

But before he could answer, Dad appeared. He thanked Mr Aldridge. "He'll be all right now," he said.

"Ella's all right, is she?" asked Mr Aldridge. "I didn't see her out on Biscuit this morning. She usually rides past my house."

"She's in London at the moment."

"Ah! That explains it." And at last he walked off with his dog.

Dad went into the living-room and shut the door. A few seconds later, Fin followed.

"What do you want?" asked Mr Parnell, almost angrily.

"Have you seen anybody strange hanging about the house?"

Mr Parnell gave him a strange look. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, I was coming back from the village and saw this tramp coming down our lane. I just wondered if you'd seen him."

"No." Dad looked sharply away. The conversation was over.

Fin almost told him what he had seen, but he knew he shouldn't. There was something strange about Dad right now. His father watched him closely as he left the room, confused.

Why was his father lying?

He walked upstairs to his room but stopped outside Sam's bedroom. The little boy was talking to himself in a strange, dream-like voice. The bedroom door was open and a light was on in the corner. Fin looked round the door and saw Sam in bed with Teddy under his arm. Sam was looking at his secret cupboard and murmuring to an empty space.

"I can't come. I can't come. I can't come."

Chapter 10

Ella was running, running for her life along the coast path, into the storm. Someone was chasing her. She came to the edge of the cliffs and looked down at the angry sea far below her. She screamed and woke to find the boy bending over her.

"No!" she screamed. "No! No! No!"

"You were dreaming" he said in a low voice, watch­ing her.

"It wasn't a dream," she said. "It was a nightmare. " "I know about nightmares," he said, and suddenly walked to the far side of the chamber and lay down again. He turned away. Ella was still shaking with fear. The boy terrified her. What had she done and what did he want? Part of himwanted to touch her, part of him wanted nothing to do with her, and part of him wanted to kill her. She knew it, she felt it. She saw it in his face.

She didn't want to sleep when the boy was there. She thought of Mum and Dad and Fin and Sam. Sam'ssoft hair and bright eyes.

"Are you sleeping Sammy?" she whispered to herself.

But Sammy was sitting up in bed. The little girl in the white dress was there again, speaking to him in that strange, musical voice that seemed to come from inside his own head. She smiled. She had golden hair, just like Ella. She looked like Ella, though she was only his age - about three. She was so beautiful.

"What's your name?" he asked as usual. But she didn't say.

“Come and play”, said the voice in his head.

"I can't come. I've promised Mummy I won't run away."

We're not going to run away. We're just going to play.

He climbed out of bed, leaving Teddy behind, and followed her downstairs. Fin's door was closed, but he could hear Mum and Dad talking in their bedroom.
The little girl turned and put her finger to her lips.

“Let's play in the garden”, said the girl.

They walked to the back door and Sam opened it. The girl ran out and Sam ran after her, hut she always ran too fast for him. He wanted to catch her, to touch her, but she never let him get close. Already she had hidden somewhere at the bottom of the garden.

“You can't see me!” said the voice in his head.

"Yes, I can!" he called. But he couldn't. It was dark and cold outside. He wished he had brought Teddy with him.

“Catch me! I'm behind you!” said the voice. Sam turned round and saw the girl running back towards the house. He followed her. He didn't like all this run­ning and chasing. He wanted to sit down and talk to her. Where was she now? He ran round the house and suddenly she was standing right in front of him.

“Let's play out in the lane.”

"I can't. I promised Mummy."

“We're only going to play. Come on.”

He followed her. This time she didn't run so fast. She was smiling and laughing now. Sam was happy not to be alone.

“Let's go to the coast path and play.”

"I mustn't," he said. "I mustn't." He stopped. The girl smiled.

“There's a storm coming. Can you feel it? Let's go and catch it.’’

"You can't catch a storm."

“You can. If you jump up into the sky. But you must be careful. You've got to catch the storm before the storm catches you!”

And she ran on towards the coast path. He took a deep breath and raced after her.

Fin sat up in bed. He had heard something. Aclick. Or had it been part of his dream? He had been dreaming about the kidnapper. He lay there for a while, thinking of Ella then he jumped out of bed and walked over tothe window.

The gate was open. Perhaps that had been the click. Had someone come in or gone out? He walked onto the landing and saw that Sam's bedroom door was open. Teddy was still in bed but there was no sign of Sam. Fin ran downstairs. The back door was open.

"Oh, no," Fin murmured. "Not again!"

He ran back to his room, dressed, picked up his torch and raced towards the coast path. Sam would probably hide again. He reached the cliff. Which way? Towards the village or towards...

Then he saw him. Up near the old lighthouse. A small figure running straight towards the cliff edge.

"Wait! Wait!" cried Sam, but to someone Fin couldn't see.

Fin ran after Sam as fast as he could and caught his brother just before he reached the edge of the cliff.

"Let me go!" Sam struggled for a while, staring towards the lighthouse, hut suddenly, as if a spell had been broken, he buried his head in Fin's chest and began to sob. Fin held him close until the sobbing stopped.

"All right now, Sammy?"

"There's a storm coming. We're going to catch it!"

"You can't catch a storm, Sammy," said Fin.

"You can. If you jump up into the sky."

Fin thought of Sam's wild run towards the cliffs and frowned. He carried Sam home. By the time they had reached the house, the little boy was fast asleep. Fin put him to bed and decided not to tell Mum or Dad anything if Sam seemed OK in the morning.

Chapter 11

The phone rang at eight o'clock in the morning. Mum picked Sam up and walked into the hall. Dad switched on the loudspeaker on the phone and picked it up.

"Yes?"

"Good morning, Mr Parnell. Have you got the money?"

"I'm picking it up this morning. I want to speak to Ella."

"Well, you can't. Get the money. I'll ring you at lunchtime." There was a click and the phone went dead.

Mum came back in, still carrying Sam, who had been crying. Fin decided to say nothing about last night, although Sam was still very upset. His eyes were closed as if he didn't want to see anything outside his own thoughts.

"Was that...? asked Mum in a quiet voice.

"Yes," said Dad. "Fin and I'll go into Newquay now. You'd better stay here with Sam."

"Take care, darling," she said to Fin. Then, looking at her husband, she said: "Peter? Take care."

"I will." They stared at each other for a few moments then he turned and picked up the car keys. "Right, Fin. Let's go."

They didn't speak much in the car. Fin was tired and Dad was very nervous. They couldn't find a parking space near the bank, so Dad stopped on a double yellow line.

"You stay with the car," he said. "If anybody asks, tell them your little brother's got lost and your dad's looking for him."

Fin thought of last night but said nothing. Dad walked off towards the bank. Then Fin saw a figure he knew coming slowly up the road. It was the tramp from last night. He was begging.

Fin knew this might be his only chance to find out more about the tramp. He took some money out of his pocket and waited.

"Any spare change, mate?" the tramp asked Fin.

"Where do you live?" asked Fin. "Here in Newquay?"

"I don't live anywhere special," he said, looking at the money. He didn't want to talk, and Fin couldn't think of any more questions. He gave him the money and the tramp walked on.

"Not a good idea," said a voice behind him. It was a policeman.

"What's not a good idea?" asked Fin, thinking about the car.

"Giving money to tramps like Francis Kelman."

"You know him? Does he live in Newquay?"

"He used to. That's how I know his name. But not now. He's never in one place for long now."

The policeman walked on, but at least Fin now knew something about the tramp. He got back into the car just as Dad arrived.

Mum was waiting nervously in the hall.

"That boy phoned again. Where were you?" she asked Dad.

"There was a lot of traffic. What did he say?" Before she could answer, the phone rang again. Dad picked it up.

"You're late," said the voice. "I want to speak to your son”.

"Well, you can't!" said Dad angrily. "It's me or nobody!"

"Then it's nobody. Bye." And the phone went dead.

“Peter!" cried Mum. "You stupidman! You stupid, stupid man!" Fin had never seen his mother so angry with his father. He thought she was going to hit him.

The phone rang again. Mum and Dad turned to Fin. He picked it up.

"What do you want?" asked Fin.

"I want you to do exactly what I say. Otherwise she dies. Have you got the money?"

"Yes."

"Have you counted it?"

"My father has."

"Well, put it in a nice big bag. And get two mobilephones from your mum and dad, or perhaps you've got one. Switch them both on. What's the number of your father's mobile?"

Dad wrote it down and Fin read it out.

"OK. Then walk down the lane towards the village and wait until the phone rings. And don't try anything stupid or the girl dies. There are lots of us watching."

"What about Ella? Where will we find her?"

"You'll find out later. Now start walking!"

Suddenly Fin heard a voice behind him. A strange dreamy voice. A voice he knew yet hardly recognized. Sam's voice.

"There's a storm coming. Going to catch it."

"Who's that?" shouted the kidnapper. Fin gasped at the sudden change in the kidnapper's voice. It sudden­ly sounded very worried, more than a bit frightened.

"Who the hell's that?"

Sam's eyes got wider when he heard the voice. He spoke again. "Going to jump up into the sky and catch the storm before it catches me." And he ran off down the hall to the front door.

"It's only my little brother," said Fin.

"Well, tell him to shut up!" screamed the voice ner­vously. "And get yourself out of the house!" The phone went dead.

Dad gave him the two mobile phones and the bag with the money.

"Be careful, darling," said Mum. "No risks. Don't try to fight them. Do what they say," said Dad.

As Fin walked through the garden he turned and kissed Sam.

"Wish me luck," he said, wondering why the little boy's words had frightened the kidnapper so much.

Chapter 12

Dad's mobile soon rang, and Fin heard the hated voice again. It was calm again, back in control, but it was harder than before.

"Now, do exactly what I say. Keep the mobile on and close to your ear. If you miss an instruction, it'll be your fault. When you get to the bottom of the hill, climb over the stile into the field and wait there."

Fin went on walking. He kept the mobile switched on.

The voice didn't speak, but he knew the boy was still there. He climbed the stile into the field and waited. He waited two minutes. Then a third. Then he said: "I'm here. What do I do now?"

"I know you're there," said the voice. "I can see you." Fin looked around but he could see nothing. His helplessness made him angry. "Stop playing with me, damn you!"

The voice laughed. "Take it easy - and listen careful­ly. Put the other phone down by the stile." Fin did it. "Good," said the voice. "Now walk up to the top of the field, climb the gate into the next field, walk to the top of that, then cut across to the coast path. Don't go any­where near your house. When you get to the path, walk down to Pengrig lighthouse and wait by the fence."

"What then?"

"Just wait. We'll phone again. You can hang up now. But if we see anybody following you or at the lighthouse, the girl dies."

Fin did exactly as he was told. He reached the lighthouse at last and stopped by the fence. The phone rang at once.

"What now?" asked Fin.

"Climb over the fence and take the bag into the lighthouse."

"What?"

"Take the bag into the lighthouse! Are you deaf or something?" screamed the voice. It had changed again. The fear and anger were back in it. Suddenly Fin felt that this boy was as frightened as he was. Maybe more so.

"Hurry up," said the voice.

Fin climbed the fence and walked into the old lighthouse.

"Climb to the very top," said the voice.

Fin began to climb, expecting to find Ella and the kidnappers at the top. But the lantern was empty. The voice spoke again.

"Take the bag out onto the balcony,if you're not too afraid!"

Fin was afraid. The doomed lighthouse was leaning over the cliff edge. Below him was nothing but rocks and the sea. The wind up there was very strong.

"Now open the bag and look at the money," said the voice. "Is it in little packs?"

"Yes."

"Take one out and break the seal. How does the money feel?"

"What?"

"How does it feel, stupid? Come on! Play this game to the end."

"It's not a game, you bastard "

There was silence. Fin hoped he had not made the boy too angry. He had tried so hard to hold his feelings back. Had he said too much? When the voice came back, it was strangely quiet.

"You're right. It's not a game."

There was another silence. A long one. At last Fin broke it.

"What do I do with the notes?"

"Throw them over the edge," came the answer.

Fin stared at the money. The boy had to be joking.He looked wildly around and at last, fat down the coast path, the sun light flashed on a pair of binoculars and Fin saw his enemy. A huge figure but too far away to rec­ognize.

"So now you see me!" said the voice. "And I can see you. Hurry up. Throw the money into the sea."

"You mean... just the notes I'm holding?"

"No. I mean all the money. Throw it all into the sea!"

"But why? Don't you want it?"

"There are some things worth more than money."

"But what about Ella?"

"Do as I say or you can forget about Ella forever."

Fin threw the money over the edge. The wind caught itand scattered it seawards.

"And the rest," said the voice.

But Fin was already opening the next pack. Pack after pack. Again and again the notes flew into the air and out to sea. At last the bag was empty. Fin threw it away, too, and turned to look down the coast path.

The figure was gone.

"Where's Ella?" he screamed into the phone. "Where's Ella?!"

But the line was dead.

“What!? You just threw the money over the cliff?" asked Dad.

Mum was watching Dad. "Don't you dare touch him, Peter! He's been really brave."

"But didn't you think that if he was prepared to make you do that, he'd never let Ella go?"

"I felt that if I didn't do what he said, he'd kill Ella."

"He's probably killed her already!"

"Peter!" Mum grabbed Dad by the arm. "It's not Fin's fault. You'd have had to do the same thing."

"At least I'd have argued with the little bastard!"

"He's not little," said Fin. "He's big. I saw him a long way down the path. He had binoculars. He was watching me. I couldn't see his face. But he was huge!"

A shadow seemed to pass over Dad's face. As if he were remembering something. Something from long ago.

"Dad," asked Fin suddenly. "Have you got any en­emies?"

"Every successful businessman has enemies. It's part
of the game. Why do you ask?"

"I thought you might know who the kidnappers are."

"If I knew that, I wouldn't he standing here. I want her back as much as you two do."

"We three," said Mum. "Don't forget Sam. I'm real­ly worried about him. He just sits in his room holding Teddy and talking about a storm coming." She looked at Dad, who was staring out of the window.

"Peter, we must call the police in now."

"We've got to wait a bit longer. Perhaps the kidnap­pers are about to give Ella back. Perhaps they didn't want the money. They just wanted to hurt us, because we're rich. We did what he said."

Mum walked up to him.

"I’ll give it a few more hours, but if that boy doesn't ring by the morning, I'm going to the police."

Mum and Dad stared at each other for a few long moments. Then Fin spoke.

"Who's the tramp, Dad?"

"Tramp?"

"The one I asked you about. The one you said you hadn't seen. The one I saw you speaking to last night. What did he want?"

"Tramp? What's this about a tramp?" asked Mum.

"Just some tramp asking for money," muttered Dad. "I gave him some money a few weeks ago, and he came back last night. I told him to go away. Is that what youheard, Fin?"

"So why did you say you hadn't seen him?"

"For God's sake! Is this important, Fin?" he shouted angrily.

"Stop it!" cried Mum. "Both of you! We must keepcalm and wait for the phone call."

But Fin knew the boy would not ring. He could feel it. There was something the kidnapper wanted more than money. Something deeper. It had to be revenge but what had they done, and who was it that hated them so much?

He went upstairs to his room, but checked Sam first. Sam was in bed with Teddy, resting but not asleep.

"Sammy, you OK?"

"There's a storm coming."

"No there isn't Sammy. It's a lovely day. No wind. No storm."

"Going to catch it. Going to catch the storm."

Fin lay down on his bed. He was very tired. Beforehe knew it, he was asleep. When he woke up it was nearly dark. He could see the tops of the trees moving in the wind. Sam was right. There was a storm coming. Fin switched on his light. Mum had brought him some sandwiches and a glass of orange juice and left them by his bed. He reached out a hand for the glass and sud­denly saw something gold on the floor. It was the pen­dulum. Lying where Sam had dropped it.

Fin jumped out of bed and got the local map. There was the path, there was the sea, there was the lighthouse - or the hole where Sam's finger had gone through the map. And at last Fin knew why: through the cliff. To the cave below it.

Chapter 14

Ella felt the storm coming long before it came. The chamber was so quiet after the boy had left that morning. The sea was so calm. Now, towards evening, the wind was stronger, the waves higher. The storm was about to break.

She was sitting on the flat rock down in the cave when the boy came back. Something was wrong. He was rowing fast, hurrying. He looked up at her and sud­denly she knew that he was going to kill her.

She ran back to the chamber. She knew she could­n't escape, but she had to do something. The boy fol­lowed her.

"Please," she began. "Whatever you're going to do..."

"Your brother," he said. "The little kid. What's his name?"

Ella stared at him. To her surprise he was trembling, shaking.

"What's his name?" the boy repeated, his face dark with fury.

"Sam. He's... he's called Sam."

"What's he like, this Sam?"

"Well... He's three years old and he... he likes play­ing games. He's like most little boys. No, he isn't. He's different..."

"Different? How's he different?"

"He... he sees things. He hears things... that aren'tthere."

"I was wrong," said the boy thoughtfully. "I thought I could let you go now, but I can't. It would be a betrayal I'm sorry. I didn't want to do this, but I've got to."

And he walked quickly towards her.

Fin pushed the boat off, jumped in and rowed away. It was dark, but the moon was up. He knew that he had to be quick. The wind was stronger and soon the sea would be too dangerous. Sam had been right about the storm coming.

Even if Ella were in the chamber above the cave, she might not be alone. He might have to deal with that huge boy. But this was his fight. He had left Ella alone and he should bring her back. He had said nothing to Mum or Dad. At last he reached the cave and somehow managed to land the small boat.

Up the steps he went, knowing that Ella must be in the chamber. Where else could she be? Sam and the pendulum had been right so far. She had to be here! He reached the chamber.

It was empty. He almost cried with disappointment. But then his torch caught the bottles of mineral water, boxes, a towel, blankets. He picked one of them up. In the light of the torch he saw one long golden hair.

Chamber 15

The front door was open when Fin walked up the path.

"Where the hell have you been?" asked the tall figure, black against the light from the hall. It didn't sound like his father, but it was. Another dark figure rushed out towards him and held him.

"Mum?" he said, hardly believing he was home again.

"Fin, it's past midnight. Where have you been?"

"Ella," he mumbled. "I know where they've been keeping her. But... she's... she's gone."

She took him into the house and made him change into dry clothes before she would talk to him. His father said nothing.

Five minutes later he was sitting in the warm kitchen, telling his story. His father was very angry when he heard what he'd done.

"I didn't tell you where I was going because I knew you wouldn't let me go. And you wouldn't believe how I found out where Ella was."

"What the hell are you talking about?" growled his father.

"I made a pendulum out of one of Ella's hairs and her ring."

"A pendulum?" said Dad. "Is this a joke?"

"Peter!" said Mum. "Let him speak. Tell us what you did."

He told them about Billy's book and how the pen­dulum had not worked for him, but had worked for Sam. His mother seemed a bit angry that he had involved Sam. But then she said: "You were very brave to row out to the cave. But you're lucky not to have been drowned."

Fin told them what he had found in the cave. He showed them the long golden hair he had found then went upstairs to get the pendulum. The two hairs were identical.

"We've got to try the pendulum again. Here's the map."

"But you said it didn't work with you," said Dad.

"It didn't. But Sammy..."

"I don't want Sammy involved," snapped his father. "He's really upset at the moment. A bloody pendulum...!"

Mum stepped forward. "That's enough, Peter." Then she turned to Fin. "Go and get Sam, but be gentle with him. This business with Ella has upset him, but I feel that something else is worrying him. I don't know what it is. Go and get him."

Dad looked angrily away and said nothing. Sam was in bed but not asleep. When Fin walked into his bedroom

Дата добавления: 2015-11-04