Molly’s room is neat and ordered. There are none of Ella’s clothes on the bed or chair or hanging in the wardrobe.
Alice appears, dressed now and rubbing her eyes.
‘Maybe they’re down on the beach, saying goodbye?’ she suggests.
I make my way quickly to the window and fling it open, leaning out so I have a full view of the beach. It’s empty apart from a scattering of seabirds resting on the sand and one lone Highland cow.Where are you, Ella?
Jack rummages in Molly’s wardrobe, pulling things out one by one.
‘Her tent has gone, and her rucksack.’
For the first time, Alice’s eyes widen in alarm.
‘What are you suggesting?’ she says nervously.
Jack meets my eye and for the first time since arriving on the island I am sure that I know exactly what my brother is thinking.They can’t have.But it’s the only answer, the only reason why they and their belongings are missing. I hold my brother’s gaze, silent thoughts passing between us.
‘They’ve gone, haven’t they?’
Jack nods.
‘But gonewhere?’ Alice says, letting out a high-pitched laugh. ‘This is an island!’
I don’t care if it’s an island. My daughter is missing and I need to find her. I need to find her right now.
‘Come on, we’ll go out in the Land Rover,’ Jack says firmly. ‘Someone might have spotted them.’
Jack drives and I sit in the back, looking out the window through binoculars. But all I can see are grey fields; there’s no sign of the girls. In the passenger seat Alice makes several phone calls, alerting people that the girls are missing and asking them to join us at The Lookout to form a search group. It seems her panic is sinking in now too – she talks in a strained voice and takes a deep breath between each phone call.
We drive a loop of the island but there’s no sign of Molly’s tent or either of the girls. This island always felt too small. But as I strain my eyes through the binoculars it seems to stretch and grow in front of me. There are so many places that can only be reached on foot, places the girls might have fled to hide. I shudder at the thought of Molly and Ella huddled inside a tent on the side of the mountain, the clouds pressing down around them. The wind picks up outside. The long grasses on the moor bend and sway and as we pass alongside the beach the waves rear against the sand. I picture tent poles bending and guy ropes flapping.Oh god.This can’t be happening.
After a second trip up and down the island road we pull up outside The Lookout. Several vehicles are already parked outside and when we step inside the pub it seems as though most of the island is crammed inside the room. The conversations stop as we enter. Alice’s friends from the yoga class step immediately towards us and start asking questions about when we last saw the girls. In the corner of the room, with Rex sitting at his feet, is Mallachy. Our eyes meet across the room and an image flashes in my mind: a jar of heather beside a bed, a folded note. I spot Sarah and Ben next. Olive is there too, standing slightly behind them, her head bowed and her eyes red. To my surprise I spot two people next to Sarah too, a man and a woman in their seventies, both dressed in waterproofs and leather hats.
‘Oh Lorna!’ comes a voice and Sarah’s mother Linda is suddenly enveloping me in a strong hug. My mind fills with the smell of hot-buttered crumpets, tea brewing in Sarah’s kitchen and the sound of Sarah’s mother whooping and clapping for both Sarah, Jack and me at that school awards ceremony. For a second, I forget why we are both here. And then I step back, wiping my face. Sarah’s parents still look like Sarah’s parents but it jolts me to see how they have aged – the grey hair, the lines on their faces and the way Sarah’s father Doug stands with a slight stoop.
‘Look at you,’ he says, reaching a hand out to cup my chin. It is a gesture so gentle that I feel tears stinging my eyes. I am suddenly not forty, but about ten years old.
‘But oh, you poor love,’ says Sarah’s mother. ‘We’ll find them both no bother, don’t you worry.’ And that’s when the first tears start to fall.
Chapter 24
Alice
‘Thanks for coming, everyone,’ Jack says in a strong voice, gesturing for attention. The room falls quiet. ‘As my wife sensibly says, this is a small island so the girls can’t have gone far.’
Did I really say that? Outside, the black clouds churn above a choppy sea. My friends are all here, along with most of the islanders. Joy gives my arm a gentle squeeze, Harry sleeping against her shoulder. Sarah glances across at me, her smile tight and strained. It’s some reassurance to have them all here and to know that my friends, these islanders, care deeply about Molly and her safety too. I look across at them all and just seeing them here grounds me slightly, makes me feel a little less like I might float away.
‘But in any case,’ continues Jack, ‘we’re worried about them, especially with the weather closing in, so it’s really great to have your help. I think the best thing to do is to split up into groups and take charge of different parts of the island.’
I watch as he gives out instructions and people nod and head off in small groups. I’m glad he’s taking control. It’s so surreal how quickly this day has changed, how fully fear has consumed me. Up until now this island has always felt so safe to me. I’ve never minded letting Molly run wild, feeling grateful that we have none of the risks of a big city here. But now all the other dangers flash before my mind. Steep cliffs, slippery rocks, storms, changing tides, raging waves. We’ve warned her about all of these things, of course, and up until now she’s always been so careful, understanding the need to respect the natural world and its power that surrounds us here on the island. But I took it for granted that she would always be that way, that she’d grown up knowing her boundaries. How stupid not to consider that one day she would want to push them.
Most of the search parties have headed out into the rising storm and now it’s just us, Lorna and Sarah’s family left in the room.
Jack sinks suddenly down into a chair, his face pale, all the energy and focus of just now draining away. I crouch next to him and take his hand. He stares straight ahead, his expression dazed. He looks as though the reality of the situation has just hit him all over again. I know how he feels.
There’s silence for a moment, no one seeming to know what to do. And then I notice Lorna straighten slightly beside us, wiping her eyes.
‘OK,’ she says in a steady voice. ‘Sarah, can you and Ben head to the forest with Linda and Doug and search there?’
