Missing

by Gabrielle Lord

  DAY 4

  87 days to go …

  Bank Street Youth Centre

  2:15 pm

  The three of us walked into the youth centre—a converted church hall with a small cafe area on one side, battered old lounges and armchairs, and a couple of computers.

  Winter went ahead of us to the small office. A young woman looked up and smiled, getting out from behind her desk. ‘Hi, Winter. How are you?’

  ‘Good thanks, Rebecca. These are my friends Cal and Boges,’ she introduced us.

  ‘Hi guys,’ said Rebecca. ‘Haven’t noticed you two around here before.’

  ‘We wondered if we could talk to you about Shadow Island,’ I said, leaning against the back of an old lounge.

  ‘Are you thinking of going there?’ Rebecca asked cautiously.

  ‘Why? Is there a problem?’

  ‘I’m not sure,’ she said, frowning. ‘It’s just that I know someone who was there for quite a few months—Brittany Philips. At first, she was very happy. She loved it there and started helping out, and was really pleased when they asked her to stay on as a staff member. But by the time she got back, she was in a terrible state. She’d been asked to leave and she wouldn’t, or couldn’t, talk about why. She was always a bit on the quiet side, but after that she was really timid and withdrawn. She bunked here for a couple of nights, too scared to leave the premises.’

  ‘What was she frightened of?’ I asked.

  ‘She didn’t say,’ said Rebecca. ‘It might all have been in her imagination. She had an anxiety problem, and nightmares too. I heard her yelling out about a key or something.’ Rebecca paused, trying to remember. ‘I’m sure that was it. She was raving in her sleep about a key, and when I woke her up she mumbled, “If they know I know, I’ll be in terrible danger”.’

  I looked questioningly at the others. ‘If they know I know—what? About a key? And who’s they?’

  ‘Search me, dude,’ Boges said.

  Winter shrugged her shoulders. ‘What do you think she meant, Rebecca?’ she asked.

  ‘I wish I knew. I shook her properly awake because she was so distressed. But then she just clammed up. She wouldn’t tell me anything more. Now I don’t know where she is and I worry about her. And there have been other kids too. I’ve noticed that some of our most neglected and vulnerable kids are the ones who end up being drawn to the place. Most of them come back after a few weeks. But a couple of the kids, I’ve never seen again.’

  ‘They might just be getting on with their lives,’ Boges suggested.

  Rebecca didn’t look convinced. ‘Could be. I’ve just got a bad feeling about that place.’

  Later, as we walked back to Winter’s house, it felt like Rebecca’s bad feelings were contagious. Shadow Island had changed from being a tropical paradise into something potentially much more sinister. Even the name now sounded menacing. And what was the key for?

  ‘What did you make of what Rebecca said?’ Winter asked me.

  ‘Not sure yet,’ I said. ‘I was thinking about Brittany Philips and her nightmares.’

  ‘I don’t like the idea that some kids seem to be missing,’ said Winter. ‘Shouldn’t the police be doing something?’

  ‘What can they do?’ asked Boges. ‘At that age, kids can leave home and go where they like. They might just have gone off and not told anyone.’

  That was true, I knew. And surely, if there’d been any real problems, the authorities would have been asked to investigate Shadow Island by now. Rumours are just that—a game of whispers. Lots of kids ‘disappear’ for a while. I know I did for a whole year. Although, I mused, I wouldn’t wish that kind of life on anyone.

  Winter interrupted my thoughts saying, ‘You know Cal, until I met you, Boges and Ryan, and then Harriet, I might have been one of those vulnerable kids. I might have been the sort who went to Shadow Island and then just—just …’

  ‘… disappeared?’ I laughed. ‘No way. I can’t imagine that! But I think we need to talk to Brittany Philips,’ I said.

  ‘We’ve gotta find her first, Cal,’ Winter reminded me.

  DAY 8

  83 days to go …

  SI-6 Headquarters,

  Clayton Morris Industrial Estate

  10:02 am

  ‘OK,’ said BB, standing in front of us and pointing to the screen on the wall. Axel, Paddy, D’Merrick and I sat around a long table, ready for my briefing. I had been eager to learn more in the last few days, but SI-6 seemed to be running to their own schedule. Perhaps this was the downside of an ‘off the books’ operation.

  ‘This is Shadow Island,’ BB announced, ‘as per the Paradise People’s website. It’s quite small—about six kilometres long and a couple of kilometres wide. Like most of these islands, it has steep volcanic cliffs and dangerous ocean breaks on the windward side, with a more sheltered bay on the leeward eastern side.’

  BB pointed to the screen and continued, ‘There’ve been small rumbles from a volcano there, but very little recent activity, apart from the occasional tremor. The terrain is rugged and mountainous in the middle, with one heavily forested large peak that’s usually covered in cloud. This area,’ BB pointed to the screen, ‘was used for a while as a penal colony in the 19th-century. Parts of an old stone prison and the prison governor’s residence are still there, but they’re all derelict now. The island was also used by the military during the Pacific War.’

  BB turned back from the screen to face us. ‘Jeffrey Thoroughgood has been running the place as a youth camp for a number of years now. As you can see, it’s a pretty, tropical island—but like all paradises, it has its serpents too. There are potential dangers on Shadow Island, like the Gympie Gympie trees which grow in the rainforest areas which cover much of the island. It’s a harmless-looking tree with heart-shaped leaves, but if you brush up against it you’ll be in pain for months. There’s also a nasty climbing palm called a ‘Wait-a-While’, which has hundreds of little hooks along the stems. Bump into that, and you’ll be there for quite a while getting unhooked.’

  ‘Great place for a retreat!’ I said. It looked like I was going to be busy dodging danger—not playing volleyball.

  BB went on, ‘For many months of the year, the surrounding water is dangerous due to the strong currents and huge seas on the windward side, which makes the western side of the island almost inaccessible. There are also large colonies of Irukanji jellyfish. Have you heard of them?’

  I had and I didn’t like the sound of those suckers. ‘Aren’t they the ones that are even more deadly than box jellyfish? Plus they’re tiny and almost invisible?’

  BB nodded. Great.

  BB hit a button and a tiny, glassy creature with long, vein-like threads drifting behind it, pulsed across the screen. ‘Anyone who goes swimming must wear a stinger suit. Jeffrey Thoroughgood has them stored in the resort.’

  Paradise is getting better and better by the minute, I thought, as I stared at the image on the screen.

  ‘So you must take care to avoid these hazards. I’ll make sure there’s an adrenaline shot in your first-aid kit, Cal, just in case you need to take action against anaphylactic shock,’ BB said. ‘That can happen if you get enough toxin to make your body go into meltdown. It can be fatal if not reversed quick smart. Paddy or Axel will show you how to use the shot. OK?’

  He looked at me. ‘Any questions?’

  ‘Have you heard anything about some kind of key on the island?’

  BB frowned. ‘I don’t think so. Why do you ask?’ It was clear from the puzzled look on his face that he hadn’t. I decided to let Boges and Winter fill in SI-6 on Brittany Philips later so I moved onto my next question. ‘How will I get onto the island?’

  I saw the four of them looking at each other before BB spoke. ‘Obviously going by sea is out of the question. Any craft would be smashed to pieces on the rocks on one side of the island, and on the other side, a beach landing could be easily spotted.’

  ‘Parachute?’ I asked.

&n
bsp; ‘Paraglider. We notice you’ve used a hangglider before. The plan is to fly you most of the way at night, when the weather conditions are just right, and then you will glide in for a quiet landing on Shadow Island. But we’ll make sure you get enough training and practice jumps in first.’

  ‘Alright, that all sounds OK.’

  BB’s face became concerned and thoughtful. ‘Cal, I want you to think carefully about this. This is the sort of job that should rightly be done by an experienced operative with commando training. We don’t anticipate problems with the Paradise People themselves, but to a large degree you’ll be going into an unknown situation. Do you understand what I’m saying?’

  In the silence that followed BB’s words, I thought about it. A mysterious group of people and a night landing onto a small island in the middle of a huge black ocean. A killer surf and jagged rocks on one side, possible volcanic activity and stinging trees in the middle, and deadly invisible jellyfish all around? How could I resist?

  ‘Right,’ I said. ‘When do we start?’

  11:14 am

  Paddy and BB accompanied me downstairs to the equipment area of the Special Intelligence building, where I was given a strong backpack with lightweight camping gear and army-style rations, as well as a secure mobile phone, with built-in encryption capabilities. Paddy explained how to use all its specialised applications.

  ‘I’ve included a solar phone charger. Might be useful when you’re camped out in the jungle,’ Paddy said.

  ‘You’ll also take a small satellite phone,’ added BB. ‘You might need it in case you can’t get a phone signal. But the secure channel can only be accessed at eleven o’clock at night and only for a few minutes. I don’t want to expose this mission to anyone else in SI-6. This job is strictly under the radar. Your call sign will be Night Hawk. Mine will be Condor. OK?’

  BB wished me luck, shook my hand and left. The worry in his eyes was easy to see. I realised that I was keen to help reunite Sophie and her father. For a moment, I felt a pang of sadness for my own. But I shook it off as I tried to focus on Paddy’s instructions about my new equipment.

  DAY 11

  80 days to go …

  Home

  Flood Street, Richmond

  7:22 pm

  The next few days I spent getting used to jumping out of a helicopter under the watchful eye of an instructor. When Mum asked me where I’d been, I just said I’d been flying. It wasn’t completely untrue. If she’d known the whole truth, she wouldn’t have been very happy. There are some things mothers are better off not knowing.

  I was relieved when I heard Ryan had finally been in touch with his mum and reassured her he was on Shadow Island and having a good time. I’d be even more relieved when I’d seen him myself to confirm that was really true.

  I marvelled at how persuasive SI-6 must have been about my upcoming absence because no-one seemed to have any problem with me taking off for a ‘special apprenticeship’ at a conveniently concocted elite flying school. I really must get these guys to help me out next time I have an assignment due, I decided.

  ‘When are you going to take me up with you, Cal?’ Gabbi asked, looking up at me with her big eyes as I put some clean dishes away.

  ‘Soon, Piglet,’ I said, ruffling her hair.

  ‘Don’t call me that!’ she said, kicking me.

  ‘Hey, no kicking! How about the way you demolished that tub of ice-cream?’ I joked as Gabbi threw a tea towel at my head.

  DAY 16

  75 days to go …

  Disused Airfield, Finchley

  8:13 pm

  My backpack was packed and I was ready to go. Earlier in the afternoon, Winter and Boges had said goodbye.

  ‘Good luck,’ Winter said, giving me a fierce hug. ‘And while you’re away, we’re going to track down Brittany Philips. We need to know why she was made to leave the Paradise People Resort. And why she became so anxious and frightened.’

  That weighed heavily on my mind, and I knew I’d be relieved once Winter and Boges found out what Brittany knew.

  ‘Later, dude,’ said Boges, giving me a punch in the arm. ‘Don’t go troppo or get all James Bond on us, OK?’ he smirked.

  ‘You know me, super low-key!’ I joked back.

  Now, I watched as the pilot ran through his pre-flight checks. I was anxious to get going, frustrated by the bad weather which had delayed my departure to the island.

  BB pulled something small out of his pocket. ‘There’s a false bottom to your backpack—it’s waterproofed and secure. Put this inside it,’ he said, handing me a small USB stick. ‘On it is something we’ve developed called the Stealth Hacker. It’s two programs in one—the first hacks into a system and collects information, then the second removes all traces of the hack. I just thought it might come in handy,’ he smiled. ‘I was a Scout a long time ago and “be prepared” is a good motto. The casing is waterproof and shockproof so it’s pretty indestructible.’

  As I slipped it into the secret compartment of my bag, I thought, Boges would love this.

  Night Flight

  10:45 pm

  It felt like we’d hardly spent any time in the air when we began to descend and I prepared myself for the jump from the helicopter.

  The instructor gave me the thumbs up—go!

  I hesitated for a second, staring down into the vast blackness of the night. Then, wishing myself luck, I tumbled out, dropping like a stone with the rushing air taking my breath away, as my hands grappled with the controls. As I levelled out, I felt the glider wing fill with wind and arch over me.

  The sound of the helicopter receded and now all I could hear was the wind rushing against my face and the crazy banging of my heart as I swayed through the night sky. Ahead of me, I could see my target. The pilot had pointed out the island to me as we approached and I steered the paraglider canopy by the couple of lights that shone in the distance below, pinpoints in the ocean of blackness.

  Soon my vision adjusted. I could see the island better—a darker black than the ocean surrounding it, the mountain in the middle rising up to meet me.

  The wind had picked up and buffeted me back and forth. I was going fast now and I braked, frantically steering away from the jagged rocks and steep cliffs I knew were on this western side of the island. If I crashed onto those, I’d be torn to pieces in the wild surf!

  I leaned to the right, turning from the churning dimness of the water and the invisible rocks, flying over treetops, coming in lower, looking for a suitable landing spot. I needed some sort of cleared area. I sure didn’t want to crash-land into vegetation where I might fall into a Gympie Gympie tree.

  As I continued to pull on the brake loops, I noticed a clearing among the trees, about the size of a football field. In fact, it was a football field—I could now see the goalposts at either end. A perfect place to land. I tacked, turning into the wind, to prepare for a landing.

  Four or five metres above the ground, I got ready, bending my knees, legs together, then braking. Remembering my training, I took some long running strides until my legs touched the ground. And then I was down, safely back on solid earth again. It would have been nice if I’d had an audience to appreciate my near-perfect landing. But on this occasion, an audience was the last thing I wanted. I hoped no-one had noticed my illicit flight. As quickly as I could, I gathered up my equipment, folding it hastily. I hurried from the field, taking off the harness as I went.

  I looked around for a place to hide my gear. The area was almost like a jungle, halfway up the mountainside. Not far from where I was standing, a huge Norfolk pine tree that had crashed down years ago had created a long ‘wall’ from its huge girth. Its massive trunk lay in front of me, wrapped in overgrown vines and with small saplings springing up around it. I shoved the paraglider gear into a hollow under the fallen tree and rearranged vines and twisted creepers over the top.

  Part one of my mission was accomplished—I had landed safely on Shadow Island. Now all I had to do was find Soph
ie and Ryan, make sure that they were both well and safe, hang around for a little while to check out what was going on, then I could contact BB and be out of here in a matter of days. I was keen to see Ryan but also a bit anxious—why had he felt the need to come out here? Was it because of me? Or was there something else going on with him that I didn’t know about?

  I unrolled my sleeping bag and finding a sheltered spot alongside the giant tree, spread the groundsheet and made myself comfortable behind a curtain of vines and leafy undergrowth. I’d grab some sleep now and at first light I’d make my way down to the resort.

  DAY 17

  74 days to go …

  Shadow Island

  5:53 am

  I woke to the sound of the first bird calls in the pre-dawn. Strange birds whooped and whistled, twittered and sang. Everything felt misty and damp. I pulled out a cereal bar for breakfast and started to make my way down the mountain, heading for the lights of the resort. The buildings were set back some distance from the beach on the opposite side of the island. The dawn wasn’t far away but it was still dark under the tall canopy trees and I was glad to find a path of sorts, roughly cut out of the jungle growth. I used the torch from my backpack, keeping the narrow beam well down and trained on the ground. I didn’t want to be seen and blow my undercover presence on the island as soon as I’d arrived.

  As I approached the outer buildings, some instinct made me stop. While I stood there, checking out the resort in the distance, there was a strange rattling sound and a crash. For a moment, I thought the noise was from the coconuts I spotted falling from the trees. But they weren’t the reason for the rattling and shivering in the trees around me. The ground was jolting! With a shock, I realised it was an earth tremor! I waited, but nothing more happened. The coconuts stopped falling. The birds started calling again. The earth was still once more.