Read Online All My Secrets by Sophie McKenzie - Free Book Online Page A

that we might be able to help find Samuel, but Mr Lomax specifically asked us not to go outside right now and, not only would I prefer to avoid getting into
trouble on my very first evening, I also don’t want to get on the wrong side of Mr Lomax before I’ve even had a chance to ask him about Irina.
    ‘Come on, Evie,’ Josh grins. ‘What’s the worst they can do to us? Even if we get in trouble, which I doubt we will, Quiet Time sounds like a punishment for
babies.’
    This is true. And Josh’s cheeky smile is irresistible. I don’t fancy him, like I do Kit, but I’m hoping we can be friends. And I don’t want either him or Pepper to think
I’m afraid.
    ‘Let’s go,’ I say.
    The three of us pad across the hall to the front door. Someone has put a row of boots in front of the bench by the wall. I spot my own pair third from the left.
    ‘See, it’s fate,’ Josh whispers. ‘Our footwear is waiting for us.’
    I suppress a giggle. Mrs Moncrieff’s soft Scottish tones drift towards us from the kitchen, where she’s talking to Kit and Anna. Pepper puts her finger to her lips, then lifts the
heavy bar on the front door. It gives a low creak as it opens. I freeze, but the chatter in the kitchen carries on as before. Nobody has heard us. Pepper opens the door a little wider and peers
outside.
    ‘I can’t see anyone,’ she whispers.
    ‘Let’s head for the woods.’ Josh tiptoes out into the crisp, evening air, Pepper and me right behind. ‘I don’t know where that Easter Rock is that Lomax and Bunnock
were going to, but we’re less likely to be spotted if we stay among the trees.’
    ‘Good thinking,’ Pepper says approvingly.
    ‘Wow,’ I say as we cross the patch of grass outside the house. ‘It looks completely different from when I arrived.’ Earlier, the sky was grey with dark, glowering clouds
that the light struggled to break through. Now the sun is a low orange disc framed by a clear blue sky. Beyond the rocks to the left of the house the sea sparkles like a carpet of diamonds.
    Josh and Pepper lead the way into the trees. I follow more slowly, looking around as I walk. There’s no sign of any of the adults. Despite the bright sunlight, the way through the woods is
dark and shadowy. The air smells damp and salty. Every now and then, I catch sight of the glistening water through the trees. Apart from the wind, there is no sound at all.
    Josh and Pepper are moving faster than me. Not wanting to be left behind, I speed up. As I jog along, I catch a flash of red out of the corner of my eye. I spin around remembering the shadowy
movement I saw earlier, just after I arrived on the island. A slight figure in a long black coat and a red hat is standing between the trees about twenty metres away. I stop running. Could that be
Samuel? The head is bent down, the hat pulled low, so I can’t see a face or even tell if the figure is male or female. I take a step forward. In a flash, the figure turns. There’s the
swish of the coat disappearing into the trees. And it’s gone.
    My skin erupts in goosebumps. I peer through the branches, straining my eyes to see it again. But the figure has vanished. My heart thuds. Was that one of the adult members of staff? It was
surely too short for Mr Lomax and Miss Bunnock, and definitely too slender for Mrs Moncrieff. Anyway, Lomax and Bunnock were wearing short jackets when they went outside. What about Samuel? I
hesitate. Josh and Pepper are now out of sight. If Samuel is here, I should try and find him.
    I head through the trees towards the spot where the figure was standing. Through the branches beyond, I emerge onto a wide expanse of smooth grey rock. The sea is just a few metres away, waves
crashing over the jagged ridges that poke up from the water. Miss Bunnock’s earlier warning about how lethal the Lightsea rocks are floats into my head. The sharp ones out at sea do look
dangerous, but there’s nothing scary about the flat rock that leads to