Free The Blue Seal of Trinity Cove by Linda Maree Malcolm

come with me,” but then to the women she whispered, “I have to admit though, I’m curious as to who she is and where she came from.” Wanda didn’t like how they talked about her as if she wasn’t even there. All she knew was that they were coming toward her as if to take her somewhere and she didn’t like the feel of that at all. Of course she couldn’t really understand exactly what they were saying but she knew that it couldn’t be good. She knew she was about to get into a lot of trouble and her instinct told her to run. She stood up and lifted her long dress to her knees and ran right between the women in a flash and on out the door before they even had time to realise what was going on. Living where she had all her life had made her very agile and a fast runner.
    â€œBut who are you, child?” called out Mrs McClarrin. “Let us help you.”
    â€œGet back here with that dress, young lady! How dare you …” yelled Mrs Parkins and Mrs Morley chimed in with her bit too: “Don’t think you’ll get away with this, you rogue child, whoever you are! Oh my goodness me, I think I’m going to faint …”
    Wanda heard everything the women said. She didn’t understand anything but she realised that they must be angry about her stealing the dress. Their voices only made her run faster. She didn’t look back as she ran straight out of town and toward the gorge. She ran and ran until she got to an old falling-down hut and then stopped for a few seconds to catch her breath. If she kept going this way she would be back at the gorge in five or six hours. She had started to regret her decision to leave her people at the gorge. She wanted to be home desperately
    She didn’t notice until she was right upon them that she had run into the middle of a large group of travellers. She hesitated for a second, realising that the men were all scattered in every direction, but she kept to her course and prepared to jump right over the campfire that was in her path. But on the other side of the fireplace was a dirty old toothless man, who had quick reflexes. He jumped up into the air to meet her just as she was landing and grabbed her, pulling her to the ground with him, with his full weight on top of her.
    â€œWell, lookee here; what we got ‘ere then?” he said, rolling her over and staring down at her. All of the men that had been scattered around the camp dropped what they were doing and came running to where she lay on the ground, pinned underneath the man.
    â€œWell, well, well,” said another sinister-looking man. “Look what we have here. We have a regular little beauty queen who has just run into our midst. The Lord God is smiling down at us today, my gentlemen friends.” Wanda didn’t like the look of the men and the sound of what they were saying. She made a move to get up but another two of the men came to help the original man hold her down. They each pinned her to the ground so that she couldn’t move at all.
    â€œOh, my darlin’,” said the leader of the men. “Going so soon and when you’ve only just arrived.” He knelt down beside her and grabbed a handful of her matted hair and pulled on it so that she winced.
    â€œI think I might have something else in mind for you.” All of the men started to jeer wildly and jump around as if they were very excited. Wanda suddenly felt a terror such as she had never felt in her life before. She didn’t know what the men intended to do but she knew that her life depended on her getting away from them right now . Still, while they were holding her like this she had no chance of doing anything so she would just have to stay still and make a carefully thought-out plan.
    â€œNobody touches her,” said the leader. “Anyone who touches her answers to me,” and Wanda noticed that all of the men took a step backwards and looked down at the