looked up at him in surprise.
Before she could think of the right thing to say though, Nicole jumped off the fallen tree, landing next to them.
‘Go,’ she hissed, pointing down the path.
Turning, Allie realised the others were already out of sight. The path ahead was empty.
Swearing under his breath, Carter took off into the dark.
Allie followed, but her knee was stiff and painful now and she couldn’t keep up the same pace.
Remembering how agile she’d been before the accident – how fast she could run – she hated Nathaniel and Gabe even more. They’d ruined everything.
Rounding a bend, she saw Carter waiting for her ahead. He was holding up a hand in warning. She slowed her pace, trying to disguise her limp.
When she reached him, Nicole and Sylvain were right behind her. Carter pointed to the left. A tiny path disappeared under the trees. He motioned that he would go first and she should follow.
She nodded.
The new path was so small it was hard to see it in the pitch dark – she could just make out Carter ahead of her, moving carefully.
They came to a narrow stream – barely more than a trickle – and he jumped over it.
Saying a silent prayer that her knee could take it, she jumped after him. The soft earth cushioned her landing and her knee held.
Only then did she see the cottage in the distance. It sat on the far side of the pond where last summer they’d all gone skinny-dipping. She hadn’t really noticed it then, probably because it was so overgrown it was nearly invisible. Bushes and trees surrounded it – ivy grew up its old stone walls.
She pointed at it and Carter nodded. This was the place.
Keeping a distance from the building, they made their way in a wide circle through the forest until they came to a cluster of bushes on one side. There Allie nearly ran into Rachel, who was huddled next to Zoe in the dark.
Carter hurried over to Zoe and spoke to her briefly, then returned to Allie’s side.
Leaning closer, he whispered, ‘We’re waiting for the guards to leave.’
Allie nodded to show she’d understood, and stared at the little house as if she were trying to see through the walls.
Nicole and Sylvain had joined them now – Sylvain stood next to Zoe behind the cover of a thick pine tree, watching the house intently. Nicole crouched low, beside them.
The sound of a door creaking open echoed in the silent woods, and they all froze. Allie felt exposed – the others had found better hiding places. She’d thought they had more time.
Her heart pounding in her ears, she looked around for more cover but it was too late; if she moved now they might be seen.
There was nothing else to do – so she stood very still. And tried not to breathe.
TWENTY
The two guards made no effort to be quiet. As they emerged from the cottage, Allie could hear their voices clearly across the distance. One of them barked a laugh and it echoed in the quiet like a gunshot.
Next to her, Carter stood watching them with fierce concentration, as if he were willing them to leave. In their hiding place nearby, Nicole had a hand on Rachel’s arm. Allie was relieved to see that Rachel’s dark eyes were alert and interested – she didn’t look afraid.
It seemed to take a lifetime for them to make their way down the footpath. When the guards disappeared into the trees, Allie inhaled deeply and felt the muscles in her shoulders relax.
Somewhere in the distance an owl hooted.
Emerging from her hiding place, Zoe sped silently to Sylvain’s side. After whispering something to him she took off into the forest.
When she’d gone, Allie caught Sylvain’s eye and arched her brow questioningly.
‘She’s going to follow them,’ he whispered. ‘To make sure they don’t double back.’
‘You don’t think they saw us?’ she asked, alarmed.
He shook his head. ‘We just need to be sure.’
Sylvain turned to ask Carter a question and Allie crouched down next to Rachel.
‘You OK?’ she said.
Her eyes sparkling in the moonlight, Rachel nodded. ‘That was more exciting than I expected. I can see why you like this stuff. It’s exhilarating.’
‘Yeah,’ Allie said grimly. ‘It’s ace.’
With a curious frown, Rachel opened her mouth to say something else, but at that moment Zoe appeared hurtling from the woods. They hurried to gather around her.
‘They took the main footpath,’ she whispered breathlessly. ‘They’re gone.’
‘OK.’ Sylvain looked at his watch. ‘We should have half an hour before the next patrol.’
‘Everyone ready?’ Nicole whispered, her eyes sweeping the group.
They had planned it all down to the finest detail, so there was no need to go over it again – everyone knew what to do.
Nicole went first, running low and fast across the clearing until she reached the safety of the cottage, disappearing into the shadows around it.
The others waited, squinting into the darkness until they saw the pale blue light of her torch flash twice. After that they followed her one at a time. First Rachel, then Sylvain, then Allie.
For Allie, the run across the clearing seemed to take for ever – she felt so exposed. Gritting her teeth, she ignored the pain in her knee, forcing herself to run faster than she’d thought she could. Trying not to limp.
It only took seconds.
When she was safely beside the others, leaning against the cold stone of the house, she bent down with her head hanging between her shoulders and struggled to catch her breath. Glancing up, she saw Rachel watching with concern.
‘You OK?’ she mouthed. Allie nodded, aware of the irony of Rachel worrying about
When the others had made it across, Zoe led them around the building to the far side where she’d heard Eloise’s voice before. A boarded-up window was just above their heads.
Nicole stood on her toes to whisper. ‘Eloise?’
They all stopped to listen. There was no reply.
‘She could be asleep,’ Rachel whispered. ‘It’s late.’
They hadn’t thought of this possibility. As they exchanged blank looks, Allie’s heart sank. Had they risked so much for nothing?
Reaching up, Sylvain felt around the edges of the plywood covering the old window.
‘Here,’ he said, tugging gently at the lower right corner. The wood had been poorly nailed down and it could be pulled out a few inches – far enough for him to slip his hand underneath and tap the glass behind it.
‘Eloise?’ he whispered. ‘Are you awake?’
Allie pressed her ear to the wall as if she could hear the librarian through the foot of stone that separated them. Silence.
Sylvain stopped tapping. ‘Maybe she’s not in there. Perhaps she —’
They all heard it at once, coming from the other side:
‘It’s her!’ Zoe hissed. Reaching up, Sylvain tapped their reply.
‘Is that you, Eloise?’ he whispered.
