Missing

by Gabrielle Lord

  Shadow Island Beach

  8:54 pm

  I’d made my excuses about missing rollcall, but had been told I’d need to explain myself to Damien in the morning. I kept a low profile after dinner and wandered innocently to the water’s edge whilst the counsellors on duty were chatting together.

  Fast as I could move while doubled over, I scrambled past the end of the beach, keeping out of the reach of the biggest waves. I climbed over the rocks but I could barely see, scraping my knees and hands painfully in my determination to get back to the secret cave. It seemed to take forever, and once a wave broke right over me and I had to cling on to jagged rocks in order not to be swept away. I was really scared that a big wave might carry a stinger with it and that would be the end of me.

  Eventually, I got to the looming blackness which I knew was the mouth of the large cavern. I clambered up onto the rocky ledge, slowly making my way as my eyes adjusted. I wound my way past the dolphin-shaped vessel to where the motorboat bobbed. I jumped in and steadied it as it rocked from side to side. The black water and the rocky cavernous ceiling reminded me of the huge underground lake over which Repro and I had rowed when I helped him shift his camp. I smiled to myself. Repro would have been in his element here.

  I found the oars on the bottom of the boat and pushed them into the rollocks. I had to row—I didn’t dare use the engine so close to the underground tunnels.

  I pushed away from the wharf towards the open ocean, taking my time to settle into a good rhythm.

  As I rowed across the water, easily negotiating a mild swell, I felt a heaviness lift from me. I realised that here in the boat, was the first time since I’d been on Shadow Island that I’d actually felt free. There were no counsellors to avoid, no CCTV cameras to keep away from, no rollcalls—just me, the sea, the sky and the stars overhead. I could almost imagine Dad in the boat with me. I remember Dad once doing a story about a prisoner of conscience, saying, ‘There’s only one thing worse than having your life taken from you, and that’s having your freedom taken away.’

  Rocky Outcrop

  9:47 pm

  Finally I was approaching the rocky outcrop and I could see a sloping stony beach. I manipulated the boat in the shallower water until I could jump out safely. I used a wave surge to push the boat up high away from the tideline. I heaved it once more to lodge it behind some rocks. I sure didn’t want to be trapped here without a boat.

  I clambered across the rocks to where I could see a building rising up from the flat, stony ground. As I came closer, I flashed my mobile light around. In its cold beam, I could make out a low cement bunker, almost rectangular in shape, the size of an average one-storey house. But this ‘house’ had no windows, just narrow gun slits. The whole place reminded me of the old bunker system that Gabbi and I played in on Bare Island years ago. As I crunched around the perimeter of the square building, I came to one narrow, barred window, about three metres from the ground. Now I was certain this was a prison.

  The rumours on Shadow Island were that someone was locked up here in this horribly desolate place. Was that true?

  Scooping up a handful of small stones, I threw them at the bars of the window. They rattled down to the ground. I was bending to gather another handful when the sound of a man’s voice shocked me. It was coming from behind the bars. ‘Help me,’ he groaned. ‘Help me!’

  ‘Who are you?’ I called back.

  There was a long silence. I repeated my question. Finally, after another long silence, the groaning voice spoke again, halting gaps between each word, ‘I—don’t—know. Help me. Please.’

  ‘I will,’ I said. At that moment, I had no idea how I could help this prisoner but I couldn’t leave anyone in a place like this without trying. ‘What’s your name?’

  Again came the croaking voice, ‘I—don’t—know!’

  This time, I could hear the anguish and despair in his voice. He really didn’t know.

  Something made me turn around and I freaked out when I saw a strong light sweeping over the water as the sound of a boat penetrated the noise of wind and waves. Somebody else was heading this way! Desperate, I looked around me but there was nowhere to run. There was nowhere to hide. The chugging noise of the boat came closer and closer and the beam of light continued to sweep the ocean. I flattened myself against the cold cement of the bunker, wondering if I could make it back to the rocks. As the craft approached, I could see it was the submersible, but riding high in the water, searching for the outboard motorboat—and me.

  The light flashed over the rocky outcrop, sweeping the walls of the cement bunker. I dashed around the corner to avoid its probing beam. Then I ran to the next corner as the submersible searchlight flashed over the wall I had pressed against only seconds earlier. My heart was pounding in my ears. Any minute now they’d find me.

  Amazingly, after covering the rocky outcrop with the powerful light, the submersible just continued on its way, heading north up the coast, searching the waters around Shadow Island. They hadn’t seen me or the boat! I breathed a huge sigh of relief.

  I calculated I had enough time to get back by the time they had circumnavigated the whole island and come back to the cavern mooring. As I ran back to the boat, I paused at the wall. ‘I’m sorry, I have to go or they’ll catch me!’ I shouted up. ‘I promise I’ll come back.’ But there was silence from within. My heart sank to leave someone there, but I had to go or there would be no chance of escape for either of us.

  I rowed back as fast as I could and breathed another sigh of relief as the cavern came into view. With aching arms, I rowed over to the wharf, roping the craft until I got out, then freed it and watched it drift towards the opening to the ocean. Hopefully they’d think it had drifted off its mooring.

  I kept moving, climbing over rocks, avoiding the deep crevices between them and the surging waves that frothed up through the narrow channels. Even though the surf here was reasonably low, eddies and jets of cold water sprayed all over me as the water slapped against the uneven shale and boulder-strewn edge of Shadow Island.

  Finally, soaking wet, I made it to the sandy headland that ran out into the sea not far from the resort compound. Now all I had to do was get back inside safely.

  Paradise People Resort

  11:28 pm

  Then I saw the time.

  I couldn’t believe it! I’d missed the window to contact BB. But there was no point in kicking myself. Maybe there was a chance that the channel was still open. I tried calling BB again, but my luck had run out for the day.

  Back at the boys’ dormitory, I saw my name on the noticeboard near the door. I was to report to Damien’s office after breakfast and explain why I had missed evening rollcall.

  I was wondering what excuse I could possibly make when something whizzed past my head! Instinctively, I ducked. I looked up to see an arrow shuddering in the timber frame of the noticeboard. I craned around. All I could see and hear past the lit area was the darkness of the night and the occasional rustle of the palm trees.

  I threw myself back down on the ground, scared and shocked. I waited. Nothing happened. Nothing moved. Cautiously, I climbed to my feet, pulling the arrow out of the timber when I noticed something—a wad of paper tied around its shaft. I took the arrow into the dormitory with me, pulled my sneakers off and climbed into my bed. I untied the folded paper and, hiding my mobile light under my doona, smoothed the piece of paper out. It was a very brief message—

  Where had this come from? Was it from one of the Zenith team?

  I lay awake, trying to work things out. If the message was from someone at the resort, why deliver it in such a dramatic fashion? It could have been tucked under my pillow or under my placemat in the dining room. Could this be the work of the mysterious runaways—whoever they were?

  DAY 29

  62 days to go …

  9:03 am

  Next morning, I was standing in front of Damien in his office as he looked at me sternly. ‘So, you got lost, did you?’<
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  There hadn’t been any reference to the events of the night before. Maybe I’d gotten away with it, and someone had retrieved the boat, and as I had hoped, assumed it had somehow come loose on its own. But right now, I had to find a convincing story to cover myself.

  I told him part of the truth about what had happened yesterday evening as I made my way around the coast. ‘I didn’t realise that I’d wandered off,’ I said. ‘I was exploring the rocky area over by the beach. I went further than I’d planned. And then it started getting dark. I tried going inland a bit but then I think I must have gone around in a circle, the way you do when you’re lost.’

  ‘It’s just that we worry, Ryan. I’m sure you understand. Your safety is our number one priority,’ said Damien. ‘As long as it doesn’t happen again. I hope I haven’t misjudged you. I like your initiative, but it’s also very important to obey the rules. Paradise People—real Paradise People,’ he said, his tall figure suddenly towering over me, ‘are people who know how to follow rules—who know how to obey orders without question.’

  As Damien looked away, I strained to look at a bunch of keys on his desk but I couldn’t read the tag attached to them. For some reason, they looked like the ones Dad used to throw down on the kitchen counter when he came home. I thought of our times together at Treachery Bay. Those days seemed to belong to someone else’s life now. I pulled myself away from the sadness by wondering if those keys were for Damien’s submersible.

  I nodded when Damien turned to me again, doing my best to look meek and apologetic. ‘Did you ever find that lost dog, Damien?’ I asked innocently.

  For a second, Damien looked completely bewildered. He’s forgotten that lie, I thought. But he rallied quickly. ‘Oh, the dog,’ he said. ‘Oh yes, we did.’ His smile was forced. ‘Off you go then, Ryan.’

  ‘Thank you, sir,’ I said, and turning to go, I noted the other keys hanging temptingly on the key rack.

  As I left Damien’s office, I tried to look suitably contrite. Right now I was desperate to make contact with whoever had sent me the message about Sophie. And then I would help the prisoner on the rocky outcrop.

  Ryan’s Hideout

  10:12 am

  An hour later, I found a quiet moment to head back into the rainforest, along the sketchy pathway. At Ryan’s hide-out, I called Boges as Ryan hungrily ate the breakfast I’d brought him.

  ‘Sophie is in trouble,’ I said when he answered. I told him what I’d discovered behind the rock face, about my visit to the bunker on the desolate island off the coast of Shadow Island. ‘Someone is locked up there,’ I said, ‘and he’s asked for help.’

  ‘Who is it?’

  ‘He says he doesn’t know.’

  ‘Not good, dude. Have you spoken to BB? Do you want me to call him? This is getting seriously out of hand.’

  ‘I’ve had communication problems and I was going to try again tonight.’ I thought a moment. ‘The problem is, Boges, that it’s not only Sophie who might be in trouble. Or even that prisoner. I’m worried in case there’s a much bigger problem here than any of us thought. If SI-6 launch a full-scale raid, I get the feeling that Damien could be quite ruthless.’

  ‘And do what?’

  ‘Something to hide the evidence. Maybe even hurt people.’ I pulled out the message from the arrow, showing it to Ryan. ‘This was fired just over my head last night,’ I said.

  Ryan read the note. ‘We’ve got to get her back, Cal,’ he said.

  ‘Dude, what’s happening?’ Boges asked.

  I told Boges about the message delivered by arrow. ‘Ryan and I are going to see if we can make contact with whoever sent it.’

  ‘But Cal,’ said Boges, ‘they might be some lost tribe of headhunters living in the jungle! You don’t know what’s on that island!’

  ‘Boges, I don’t think headhunters would write a message, in English, about helping a friend of mine.’

  ‘OK, OK, I guess I’m exaggerating a little,’ said Boges. ‘But these people have bows and arrows. You’d better be careful.’

  ‘I will. We will.’

  ‘I have some news too,’ Boges said. ‘Winter has spent some more time with Brittany Philips. She said she can’t remember anything more about a key except for one word—Mordred. She refused to have anything to do with it but she can’t remember why. And yes, I looked up what Mordred might refer to. The only thing I can find is that Mordred was a character in the legend of King Arthur. He was an enemy of the king, not a good guy. Not sure that’s much use to you, dude.’

  I was about to ask more when Ryan kicked me hard.

  ‘Hey!’ But then I saw the expression on his face.

  Fear.

  He was looking straight past me, through the gaps in the creepers that covered the front of his hide-out. His voice was a low hiss. ‘Cal! There’s someone out there!’

  I abruptly hung up on Boges, shoving my mobile under a pile of Ryan’s clothing. Cautiously, I got to my knees and looked through the gaps.

  And looked straight into the eyes of a boy, about my age, who stood just a few metres away with a drawn arrow pointed right at my head!

  ‘Come out of there!’ he ordered. ‘Both of you!’

  For a moment, I was immobilised with fear. But surely this boy didn’t mean me any harm, if he was the one who had sent the message about Sophie. Though the arrow begged to differ.

  ‘We’ll come out,’ I said, ‘if you point that thing in another direction.’

  Slowly the boy lowered the bow and arrow, and as he did, I saw a girl, similarly armed, standing just behind him. Their dirty clothes were threadbare and both of them were heavily tanned and barefoot, with long dark hair flowing over their shoulders. Slowly, Ryan and I crawled out of the hide-out, straightening up and standing in front of the two of them.

  ‘Who are you?’ I asked. ‘Did one of you fire that message last night?’

  ‘Come with us,’ said the girl.

  Ryan and I did as we were asked, following the girl, who led the way, while the tough-looking boy brought up the rear. We walked through rugged and overgrown jungle, our feet squishing in the mud which was becoming heavier the higher we went. As we walked, I realised that the pair might know a lot more about Shadow Island than I did. It was probably best to cooperate unless I sensed we were in real danger.

  Runaways’ Cave

  11:09 am

  At last we stopped at a particularly thick clump of overgrown rainforest trees, knitted together with vines and creepers to form a seemingly impenetrable green wall. I was startled to see the girl easily raise a dense, leafy bough to reveal a small, dark opening. She pointed to show I should crawl through. I hesitated a moment, but a prod from the boy’s arrow decided for me.

  I crouched down and crawled through the opening, looking up in surprise as I saw where I was. In front of me was another arching cavern, smaller than the large one hidden behind the secret entrance in the rock, furnished with rugs and cushions and lit from above by a hole in the ceiling which allowed slanting sunlight to fall on the cave floor. I stepped further in and waited while the others came through. Runaways or not, these two knew how to make a comfortable hide-out.

  ‘How about you tell us who you are?’ I asked. ‘And then we’ll tell you more about who we are.’

  ‘You’re Cal Ormond,’ said the boy, ‘and he’s Ryan Ormond. Right?’

  ‘So obviously you’ve been watching us for a while,’ I said.

  There was a hint of a smile on the boy’s stern, sunburnt face. ‘Could be,’ he said. Then he put his hand out. ‘I’m Zak Katz.’

  ‘And I’m Ariel,’ said the girl, lowering her bow and arrow. ‘We’ve had you two under surveillance for a while. It’s not every day someone lands by paraglider and then swaps places with another guy who looks exactly the same as him.’

  ‘You must be the runaways,’ I said.

  ‘That’s what he calls us.’

  ‘So you did send the message about Sophie?’ I said.

>   ‘Yes,’ said Zak.

  ‘She was running away, but they caught her,’ Ariel said. ‘She kept yelling out ‘‘No way! It’s not going to happen!’’ And then we saw her get taken into the mountain. We’d overheard some of your conversations about Sophie and about the situation here on Shadow Island.’

  ‘Sounds like we’re all on the same side,’ Ryan said. ‘Maybe we should all shake hands and swap information. See what we can come up with together?’

  I noticed a small smile start on Ariel’s face, twinkling her eyes.

  The atmosphere in the cave suddenly warmed, Zak and Ariel put down their weapons and pulled up boxes for us to sit on, while they brought out something to drink. ‘The drinks carton was heavy but we managed to pinch it from the supply ship,’ Ariel grinned, passing them around. ‘We’ve got pretty good at raiding food. And there’s always some kind of fruit ripening in the rainforest. We don’t cook, because the smoke would give away our location. And so far it hasn’t gotten too cold.’

  ‘How long have you two been here?’ I asked.

  ‘Zak and I ran away from the resort nearly three months ago,’ Ariel explained. ‘He’s my brother.’ She sighed. ‘At first, we loved the place. We weren’t happy at home when our parents split. Dad went overseas and Mum had this new boyfriend who couldn’t stand us. That’s when we decided to go. We heard about this place and thought it sounded great. The Paradise People seemed really cool and for a while we were glad to be here. Especially when we were both picked from The Edge to join the Zenith team.’

  ‘So what went wrong?’

  ‘The initiation—we didn’t want to be involved in that,’ Zak said.

  ‘You mean that wound on the arm?’ I asked, sitting up straight.