Free Missing Ellen by Natasha Mac a'Bháird Page A

you’re a star. What would I do without you?’
    ‘Let’s just hope we never have to find out!’
    I lurked outside the newsagents, wanting to make sure Pete turned up this time. I flicked through a magazine, using it as cover. Ellen was sipping a sparkling water and admiring her purple nail varnish.
    Pete showed up, only five minutes late, much to my surprise . He leaned in and gave Ellen a peck on the cheek. She turned scarlet.
    ‘Hi Maggie. Ellen not with you today?’
    I turned around, flustered. It was Mrs Kennedy, Liam’s mum, armed with bags of coins, which she proceeded to empty into the till.
    ‘Oh, erm, no, she’s just doing something else,’ I said, shovingthe magazine back on the shelf.
    ‘What have you got there?’ asked Mrs Kennedy, indicating the pink straw bag. Ellen’s school jumper was poking out the top.
    ‘Oh, nothing special. Just my school jumper. I’m getting it mended.’ Now it was my turn to go red.
    ‘Let me have a look at it for you,’ Mrs Kennedy said, coming out from behind the till. ‘I’m a dab hand with a needle and thread.’
    I took a step backwards, banging into a display of Mills and Boon books. ‘There’s no need, really. Thanks all the same. Oh look, you have a customer. I’d better let you go.’ I backed out of the shop, feeling very grateful to the elderly man who was approaching the counter with his newspaper.
    ‘It’s no trouble. Pop back in any time,’ Mrs Kennedy called, as I rushed out the door, pushing Ellen’s jumper firmly back inside the bag.
    I looked quickly at the cafe as I hurried past, but I couldn’t see Ellen or Pete.
    The next half hour passed slowly. I bought a cheese sandwich in a plastic packet from the supermarket. The cheese was overprocessed and rubbery. I munched on it as I walked around the shopping centre, but I ended up throwing most of it in the bin. I had a look in the music shop, but soon got tired of that. I’d already looked through everything on Saturday. Celine’s were having a sale so I tried on a coupleof things, but even with 20 per cent off I knew I didn’t have enough money.
    Miss Leigh had probably finished handing out extracts from the script and planning the auditions by now. She’d have moved on to set design and costumes. She was probably wondering where I was. Maybe she would ask Carrie to help her instead.
    Ellen’s bag was starting to feel heavy. I sat down on the bench near the toilets, where I’d arranged to meet her at ten to two, so she could change back into her uniform. I was five minutes early, but I’d had enough of walking around. I took out
Wuthering Heights
and started checking over the section we were supposed to read for that afternoon.
    I ended up getting absorbed in Heathcliff’s rantings, and when I looked up at the clock again it was five to two. Where was Ellen? I scanned the corridor in both directions, but couldn’t see her distinctive mop of red hair anywhere. I wondered if she might have walked past my bench and gone straight into the Ladies, so I looked in there too. No sign of her.
    Three minutes to two. Ellen was really cutting it fine. She still needed to change her clothes, and it would take us at least five minutes to get back to school. We had maths first thing, and old Bouncer had been pretty huffy with Ellen since the April Fools joke.
    I decided to walk casually past the cafe. I didn’t want toembarrass Ellen by actually going up to her, but hopefully she would just see me and realise the time.
    She wasn’t sitting at the table outside, where she had been earlier, but then she hadn’t been there when I walked past the second time either. Maybe they had moved to a table inside. Pete looked like a guy who didn’t enjoy too much exposure to natural daylight.
    I hesitated. Should I go in or not? I could always just go up to the counter and buy a bottle of water. But then Pete might see me too.
    Just then Mrs Kennedy came out of the newsagents. Decision made – I darted into