great by the way,â Billy says.
Billy digs out the watch again and they resume their westward-bound journey. Rufus hangs back, yelling at Rex.
âRex, now come on, that cat will be there on our way back; heâs not going anywhere!â Rex looks at Rufus, then makes a half-hearted growl, for the sound of it, turns and glares up at Grimsby. Grimsby swishes his tail, yawns and smiles.
Rex follows the four, huffily.
âWill we look at the map, just cause?â Peter asks, adding the âjust causeâ to pre-empt Daisy.
Daisy stays quiet, lost in her flourishing thoughts.
Chapter Twelve
The Quarry
Billy takes off his backpack and opens it. He pulls out the book and unfolds the map; by the look of it, they are not too far from the quarry. The direction they are headed is still sound.
Peter pushes at his glasses and studies the detail.
âHave you been to the quarry before?â
Billy and Rufus both nod.
âIt looks big,â Daisy says.
âYeah, itâs big, full of water too,â Rufus replies. âRex, youâre gonna have to stick with me.â Rex looks at Rufus and lifts one eyebrow. Itâs the oddest expression, for a dog.
âThe wolves are still there,â Peter mutters, glancing around behind them. âAll five.â Peter is wearing his helmet; it bobs as he turns his head.
Daisy looks at Peter and rolls her eyes.
âWell, we are just fine. They are just keeping us company,â she says emphatically.
âWonder what time it is,â Rufus says.
Billy replies, âSun is still high.â
They walk for what feels like ages, but eventually they get to the end of the forest. When they clear the forest, the land fills with scrub grass, framed by a dense hedge.
âHmmm, I think we are going to have to get through that somehow,â Billy says thoughtfully.
Daisy points at one part, âLooks like there might be a bit of a gap there.â
When they get to the hedge, they realise Daisy is correct. She looks smug but says nothing, not even âI told you soâ. They have to crawl in, but the ground is dry and the brambles are high enough not to bother them. They climb up and up. The ground is steep and Peterâs helmet keeps on getting caught in the thorns, resulting in a lot of minor screeching.
It feels like forever but they get to the top. Rex has picked up a bone; he flops down and starts chewing and chomping at it.
They are super-high up and can see the whole quarry. It is massive. There are four pools the size of football pitches. The first pool is flanked by hedge and trees, and feeds into the second pool â there, the banks are steep and sheer. The third pool is straight in front of them, long and thin, and the fourth is just towards the right of them, again steep banks. It is darker and looks very deep.
There are no birds, no bats; in fact, there is no sound whatsoever. The quarry seems empty of life.
Daisy says, âI donât much like it here.â
The three boys are quiet.
Daisy says, âI donât like it at all.â
âYeah, know what you mean, Daisy. The water is poisonous, you know â think if you fell in, youâd shrivel up. Like a really old orange before it turns mouldy,â Rufus says. âBirds donât like it here cause the water turns their beaks lemon and then the worms can see them and thenâ¦â Rufus trails off.
âWhat? Like a proper lemon, with pips and all?â Peter says.
âNo! Oh Screech. Like yellow, you know,â Rufus replies seriously.
Billy looks straight ahead. âWeâre going that way,â he says, pointing west. It means going straight through the quarry. âWeâre going to have to go round the edge.â
Suddenly, Gunner Sharpie appears, as if out of nowhere.
âWell now, isnât this a fine coincidence,â he says.
âHowâd you get here?â Daisy asks.
âA little bit of respect would do
Sharon Kleve, Jennifer Conner, Danica Winters, Casey Dawes