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They had no answer to that
‘Elinor, please, we need sos? You ry she had kicked it How clever they’d thought theood! Who had recognised them? Basta, Flatnose, the ie,’ Mo had said Liar! She could tell from his voice that he didn’t believe it hi prickly, and fell to her knees sobbing Murderers! Murderers and fire-raisers What had she to do with people like that? She should have known better when Morti her to hide the book Why hadn’t she just said no? Hadn’t she thought instantly that the matchstick-eater looked like someone with the word trouble written all over him in red? But the book – ah, the book Of course she hadn’t been able to resist the book
They took that stinking ain, but not o to the police!’ How often she’d said that! But Mortiiven the saie well out of the way as soon as the first police officer set foot in the village And believe me, Basta’s knife is faster than all the police in the world’ As he spoke she had seen that little frown above his nose, and she knew hi to do? She was alone, after all
Don’t make such a fuss, Elinor, she told herself You’ve always been alone, remember Now, use your head Whatever’s happened to her father, you et her out of this thrice-accursed village There’s no one left but you to do it If you don’t, she’ll end up as one of those timid maidservants who scarcely dare to raise their heads and whose only purpose is to clean and cook for their ghastly master Perhaps she’ll be allowed to read aloud to Capricorn now and then, when he feels like it, and then, when she’s older … she’s a pretty little thing Elinor felt sick ‘I need a shotgun,’ she whispered, ‘or a knife, a big sharp knife I’ll slip into Capricorn’s house with it Who’s going to recognise ht she couldn’t cope with the world except between the covers of a book, but she’d show hi voice inside He’s gone, Elinor, gone like your books
She wept, so loudly that she alar cracked under her feet, and the light went out behind one of the s in Capricorn’s village She had been right The world was a terrible place, cruel, pitiless, dark as a bad dreaood place to live in Only in books could you find pity, comfort, happiness – and love Books loved anyone who opened theave you security and friendship and didn’t ask anything in return, they never went away, never, not even when you treated theainst death Who had said that? Someone else who loved books, she couldn’t remember the author’s name, only the words Words are i and burns theht seeped froht Three of thethe vehicles in the car park with their heads together ‘Talk away!’ whispered Elinor ‘Boast, why don’t you, with your bloodstained fingers and black hearts – you’ll be sorry yet for killing theht away or wait until daylight? Both were et beyond the third house in the village One of the three ht he could see her She scrarabbed at a branch before she lost her footing again Then ca behind her, and a hand covered her mouth before she could look round She wanted to screa so hard on her lips that she couldn’t utter a sound
‘So here you are Any idea how long I’ve been looking for you?’
It couldn’t be true She had been so sure she would never hear that voice again
‘Mortimer!’
‘Sorry, but I knew you’d screaestured to her to follow hi her arh to hurt
Only when the houses of Capricorn’s village were alht behind the trees did he stop ‘Why didn’t you stay at the ca round here in the dark – have you any idea how dangerous it is?’
This was toofor breath ‘Dangerous?’ In her fury she found it difficult to keep her voice down ‘You’re a fine one to talk about danger! I thought you were both dead! I thought they’d stabbed you or shot you or …’