Free Woodhill Wood by David Harris Wilson

Matty!"
    And for a moment he forgot all that had happened the day before.
    "Yes, Mum?"
    "Open this door will you? What's it locked for anyway? Now, get up! We're going in a minute."
    His brain struggled to understand what she was talking about; then Gurde was awake. "What?" he said.
    "You heard me. Open this door!"
    "What?"
    "Oh Jesus! Come on, don't mess me about. I want you up. I need to talk to you."
    He stared up at the ceiling. She banged harder on the door and rattled the lock.
    "Right!" she shouted. "That's enough! Get yourself out here now!"
    He kept quiet. The father shouted something from downstairs.
    "Yes, dear," she replied. "I'm sorry. I'm just coming."
    She tapped again, more gently this time. "Matty, please will you come?"
    Gurde was determined not to answer. There was a long silence before she finally gave up.
    "Matty?" she said meekly.
    The father called again. "Pat! What on earth are you up to? Come on!"
    "Coming," she called back. Then she turned back to the door. "Look. I know you can hear me. I've left some money by the telephone. Remember what I said about answering the door and about your brother. I want you to be here when we get back. Be good. I've got to go."
    Gurde almost answered but swallowed it back. She walked down the landing and he counted each step as she went down the flights of stairs. Seven then three then eleven. There was some muffled conversation in the hall. A few doors banged and he heard the car roar down the drive and fade away down the road.
    He lay there for a few minutes feeling satisfaction and guilt in turns. The house seemed quite empty. He guessed Ben was already feeding on his morning diet of cartoons in the living room. He glanced at the clock: it was almost nine. He threw on some clothes from the pile, unlocked the bedroom door and hurried downstairs.
    He crept to the living room door and peered in to see Ben sitting in his pyjamas, his face pressed up against the television screen. He often didn't get up until one o'clock on a Saturday, so Ben probably wouldn't notice if he was gone for a few hours. If he was careful he could get up to the dam, do enough fishing to have made an appearance and then get back before all the cartoons had finished, and Ben would never know, and if Ben didn't know then the mother would never find out.
     
    He sneaked back into the hall. The fishing rod lay behind the creaking cupboard door under the stairs. Gurde opened it and grabbed the rod, the reel and any bits he could see that might be useful. It was all supposed to be used at sea and none of it seemed good for catching trout. He wondered if Bairdy would laugh when he saw the massive hooks that Gurde was carrying. Still, that didn't matter.
    He stuffed the various bits into the haversack that was on the cupboard floor, swung it over his shoulder and hurried to the back door. The long rod swung dangerously close to the various walls and doors as he scuttled out.
    The only real worry was that the mother would come back for something. Every time the family went on holiday she seemed to leave something behind, and, no matter how unimportant it might seem, she always had to go back for it. In the mood the father was in she probably wouldn't have much chance of coming back, even if she wanted to, but it was still a possibility that made Gurde hesitate at the door.
     
    It was pouring with rain. He headed down the drive and turned right - away from the church and the Woodhill and the cliff - and started the long walk through town and along the base of the hills to the path up to the dam. The rain chilled the back of his neck. Gurde stepped away from the kerb whenever a car drove past.
     
    He passed through the streets avoiding eye contact with the few people that had ventured out into the storm. Gradually the houses became less frequent and more widely spaced until there were only flooded fields on either side of the road. He reached the swing-gate at the base of the dam path and pressed the