Free Amethyst by Rebecca Lisle Page B

.’ He studied the figure. ‘More like non-existent. What about you, Amy?’
    ‘I haven’t got very far,’ said Amy. She blew the dust off her sculpture and handed it to Cedar.
    Copper grabbed it before Cedar could take it.
    ‘Oh, Amy, this is fantastic! It’s me, isn’t it? It’s brilliant!’
    Amy hadn’t had any intention of sculpting Copper’s head, but every time she’d looked up, that had been what she saw. Even though it was nowhere near finished, it did have something of Copper about it.
    ‘It is lovely, Amy. You’re very talented,’ said Cedar.
    ‘Oh, Amy, it’s great! Can I have it when it’s done?
    ‘’Course you can.’
    ‘Thanks.’
    Copper snatched off her apron, dusted the wood shavings from her clothes and gave her a hug. ‘Let’s get out of here!’
    Amy stood for a moment. The feel of Copper’s hands pressed against her back, still there, as if indentations had been left in soft clay. Even the Woody smell of her lingered. It should have been disgusting, repulsive even. But it wasn’t. It was a good feeling. Amy had never beenhugged since her mother died. She didn’t know what she’d been missing. Her eyes were misty. She stumbled up the stairs.
    ‘Sometimes, I really wonder if I have any Wood blood in me,’ Copper said. ‘I’m so bad at so many Woody things. Mmm, smell that cake!’ She made a funny face, lifting her eyebrows and licking her lips. ‘Maybe I got more Rock blood from Amber’s side than Wood from Dad’s. I’m glad Questrid is half-Rock and half-Wood too. Nice to share our insides like that. Oh, sorry, Amy. I mean there’s nothing wrong with being entirely Rock. You are and you’re very nice.’
    Oriole was sitting in the kitchen, reading The Secret Life of a Blackbird. Lots of small birds hopped about in her lap, pecking at a pile of seeds.
    ‘That cake smells great! Where’s Questrid?’ Copper asked. ‘He’s usually around when a cake’s been made. Where’s Ralick?’
    ‘Ralick? Isn’t he with you?’ said Oriole.
    ‘No. I’ve been in the Root Room. He waits in the kitchen usually. In his basket. I never thought … I was so busy … That’s odd!’ Copper went very still. The pink faded from her cheeks.
    Amy pressed her hands over her stomach. Something which usually held it up, seemed to have let it go. She gulped. Poor Copper. Then, almost immediately, she corrected herself. Poor Copper? Never mind Copper, she told herself. You should have been watching out for that cub. Why weren’t you thinking about him? You’ve got so distracted by thisWood family, you’ve forgotten what you’re doing here! Aunt Agnes’s unwelcome voice popped into her head: ‘Spoiler! You’ve spoiled your chance! You’d spoil anything, you would!’
    ‘Something’s wrong,’ said Copper. She chewed her lower lip. ‘Ralick never goes anywhere.’
    ‘Well, he hasn’t truly disappeared yet,’ said Amy. ‘May-be he’s locked in your room? Or in the stables? The garden?’
    Copper was out of the room in a flash. She bounded up the spiral staircase to the upper floors. Amy checked all the rooms on the ground floor. Upstairs she heard Copper racing along the corridors, slamming the doors, shouting for Ralick.
    ‘Nothing!’ Copper called. She careered down the stairs. ‘I feel so bad. I’ve got this feeling. Oh, Amy … He’s gone!’
    They hurried across the kitchen. Copper picked up her old Ralick, a moth-eaten cuddly toy and hugged him. She kissed his black thread nose.
    ‘Ralick, Ralick,’ she whispered. ‘Where are you?’
    ‘No sign of him?’ asked Oriole.
    ‘Nothing.’
    Copper was already at the back door pulling on warmer clothes. Amy followed her, dragging on waterproof boots.
    They ran out to the stables. Thunder and Lightning greeted Copper by tossing their great heads and pawing the ground. Copper patted them quickly then raced up the wooden steps to Questrid’s bedroom.
    ‘Questrid! Questrid! Ralick!’ she called. She flungopen the