Free Under the Hawthorn Tree by Marita Conlon-Mckenna Page B

water can as the ditch was too shallow, so they just took turns in scooping the muddy water up in their hands and sipping it. They swallowed the dirt too. The drink did not quench their thirst, but maybe it would be of some help. Exhausted, they sat down under a row of tall beech trees.
    ‘What will we do?’ wondered Eily, out loud.
    Peggy was already dozing and did not hear her. Michael’s eyes were beginning to close too when he mumbled, ‘Why don’t we walk at night instead and in the early morning when it’s cooler?’
    It made such sense, Eily could have kicked herself for not thinking of it sooner. That’s what they would do.
    The countryside took on a different shape in the dark. Luckily there was no cloud in the sky and the moon shone down brightly on them. Although weak and exhausted, they seemed to be able to walk for a longer distance without having to stop for a rest. There was lots of scampering and scurrying in the hedgerows as they passed and Peggy edgednearer to Eily and Michael, fearful that some strange creature would jump out and attack her. There were many different sights and sounds all around them. They jumped every time they heard the screech of the night owl getting ready to hunt and the almost silent beat of its wings as it swooped and caught its prey. It was a time for the hunters and they would blink in surprise when the children came upon them, and move into the shadows.
    One time they saw a large grey badger shuffling along, and the three of them held their breath not wishing to disturb him. About two miles further on they came upon a vixen and her cubs playing outside their den, nipping and chasing each other. The children moved on silently.
    By the following night they had lost all sight of the sea and were near the base of the mountain. At least they were heading in the right direction, and if they could only manage to keep going they would be in Castletaggart in a few days and maybe they would find some relation who would look after them and take them in?
    The next day was oppressive. There was a constant rasping dryness in their mouths and throats, and they could hardly get a breath of air. Nothing stirred all around them. Even the birds had stopped their twittering and singing. It wasstrange. The only activity the children could see was the odd butterfly lazily hovering over a bunch of wild flowers. That night they had just started to get ready to move when they became aware of a low rumble in the distance. Terrified, they stayed where they were, pulling the blankets around them.

CHAPTER 12

The Thunderstorm

    THE RUMBLING GREW AND GREW , getting nearer and nearer. A streak of light would flash across the orange and grey sky, then the sky itself would thunder and roar. They had never seen such a bad thunderstorm. The lightning flashes got longer and wider, stretching even from the top of the mountain down to the fields below.
    The children were terrified. Was it the end of the world? They prayed out loud to be spared.
    Peggy was whimpering like a young puppy and had burrowed herself in between the other two, with her head hidden well under the shawl and the blankets. Eily was trying to stop herself shaking and was making a great effort to control her own fears.
    The whole sky lit up every few minutes as the sheets of lightning flared all around them. The thunder was deafening. It was as if the huge clouds were banging into each other and fighting. Never in all their young lives had they seen or heard anything like it. Sometimes it would stop for a few minutes but then – Crash! – with a rumble it would all be back and start up again.
    After a while, Michael relaxed a bit and began to make jokes about two huge giants fighting and trying to kill each other, up in a land above the clouds.
    ‘You take that,’ he’d shout when the thunder rolled. ‘I’ll strike you with my sword,’ when the lightning flashed.
    On and on went the fighting for hours on end, and even Peggy, the odd