Ponies at Owls' Wood (10 page)

Hannah stomach gave a jump as she thought about the following night. Was there really no easier way?

‘What if you told your gran about what's happening and
she
could call the police? They'd listen to her.' It suddenly seemed to Hannah that this should be possible. But as she asked the question she could sense Jess shaking her head at the end of the phone.

‘You wouldn't say that if you'd seen one of Pete's rages,' she said, ‘and if Gran told on him Cyn would go nuts. It's no good Hannah, it's got to be us that report him.'

Hannah was glad that Jess didn't know that she'd once tried to report Pete. She still felt guilty about what she'd done. Why was nothing simple anymore, the way it used to be?

‘OK,' Hannah said, ‘but I must go now. They'll be wondering where I am and I don't want them coming up to the field. I'll text you in the morning if I can help with the stuff, and you'll have to meet me here. I definitely can't risk coming all the way to your farm and getting seen.'

‘That's OK,' said Jess, ‘I'll see you tomorrow. Thanks,' she added.

‘I was beginning to think you'd got lost,' said her dad, when Hannah finally arrived home.

‘Sorry,' said Hannah, ‘I was talking to Polly. Has Charley rung?'

‘No,' her dad said. ‘Why don't you try and ring her? I'm off to bed. Liam's watching some rubbish on telly and your sister's out with a friend. Someone's got to get up in the morning and go to work, and looking round this house, that someone appears to be me.' He pinched her cheek kindly, gave her a kiss and went upstairs.

It was nearly 10 o'clock and there was no answer from Charley, so Hannah sent a text to say she was thinking of her friend and hoped that there'd be some news soon. It occurred to her to have a look in the freezer, just in case there was anything that could become dinner for Jess's family the following evening. Six fish fingers and a bag of peas, one beef burger, half a packet of instant pastry and some turkey stock dated Christmas 2011. About to give up hope, she saw a large frosted-over object in the corner of the bottom drawer. She got a knife and levered it out, sending a spray of dry ice all over the kitchen floor.

Lamb!
An ancient leg joint, which even her mother must have forgotten. The sell-by date, when she finally managed to get the outside wrapper off, was no longer legible.
Probably just as well,
she thought as she reached for a carrier bag and slid the freezing lump of meat into it. Lamb would be just as good as steak.

She went upstairs and hid the bag under her bed, and then went back to the lounge where Liam was on the sofa with a duvet, still watching television. It didn't take long to lean quietly into the cupboard and remove the only half-bottle of whisky she could find, while her brother wasn't looking.

‘Why aren't you in bed?' he asked.

‘Why aren't you?' Hannah retorted.

As he turned back to his programme, she pushed the bottle up inside her t-shirt and left the room.

‘Night night,' she called, knowing that her fate was now sealed. She had stolen her father's whisky and soon, probably tomorrow night, the bottle would be missed.

Confident of Liam not hearing her, she went upstairs and into his room. She reached under his bed and grabbed a DVD:
Night of the Living Dead. Perfect!
Surprised at herself, and the ease with which she had committed such crimes, Hannah stashed the film and the whisky with the lamb. She would take everything to the field in the morning and give it to Jess.

She got ready for bed, remembering that she was supposed to be emailing her mum.
Tomorrow,
she thought, and got into bed. She fell asleep at once, exhausted by all the riding, cycling and worrying.

9

Midnight at Owls' Wood

Hannah woke early as usual but this Friday morning it was pouring with rain. She lay in bed listening to the sound of it. What effect would the rain have on her plans with Jess? Well, for one thing the ponies would leave tracks. They'd been lucky this far as a combination of Pete's lack of care and apparent inability to count, coupled with the dry weather, had helped them a lot. Jess had been able to lead Jack away without leaving any clues as to their whereabouts. Even if Pete had noticed they were missing he wouldn't have known where to look. But now, the tracks would point clearly in the direction of Polly's field. In addition, from her experience with Polly and Delia, rain would probably make the ponies less happy to be led, especially if there was wind too. Still, there was a whole day to go and by tonight, the weather might have cheered up again.

Hannah got dressed and went down to the kitchen. Her father was there, getting his things ready for work. He was trying to find something for breakfast.

‘Hello love,' he said, ‘I can't find any cornflakes. D'you know what's happened to them?'

‘Well,' said Hannah, ‘I could guess, but there's not much point. I saw a couple of bits of bread yesterday but I'll bet he's eaten those too.'

‘I'll get some breakfast on the way to work,' said her dad, ‘and I'll try and remember to go shopping on the way home. Here,' he put his hand into his pocket, ‘you go along and get yourself something from the shop, and get some rolls or something for the others.' He handed her a £5 note, and Hannah felt her spirits lift. She could get something for Talia and Liam, and a bun for herself, and hang on to the change, at least until tomorrow. It would be good to have some emergency funds.

The morning passed horribly slowly. Up at the field by 10 o'clock, she sent Jess a text to say she'd got the stuff. There was no sign of Tom but, thanks to his work, Jack seemed a little more relaxed. She managed to bathe his neck again and would have liked to give him a brush, but the rain was falling sharply and neither he nor Polly would consent to being groomed. Hannah was wheeling the barrow round the field with rain dripping down her neck when Jess turned up.

‘You look stressed out,' said Hannah.

‘I am,' Jess replied. ‘Pete's in a foul mood and he's been hanging about all morning, talking on his mobile. I'm sure he's planning something. What did you get? Gran said she'll repay you when you next come up.'

‘Oh, I didn't spend any money,' said Hannah, ‘but I've got some bits. Dad's going to go crazy when he can't find the whisky. It's about the only thing he ever puts back in the right place.' She showed Jess the bag with everything in.

Jess was delighted with the lamb, which by now had thawed and looked rather bloody and unpleasant, but she looked doubtfully at the whisky.

‘I don't think that'll last long enough,' she said.

‘Well it's all I could get,' said Hannah. ‘There was a bit of gin, but I didn't dare take that as well.'

‘Thanks anyway,' said Jess. ‘And the film's great. If I tell Gran not to put it on till later; it should keep him in her caravan while we get away.' She picked up the bag.

‘I've got to get back now and start looking sick, otherwise if I suddenly turn it on tonight he'll guess something's up.'

‘Just keep having a look at the lamb,' said Hannah, ‘that should do it. I hope it's all right, it's really old.'

‘Don't worry,' said Jess, ‘Gran can cook anything and make it nice. Well, see you tonight then? What about your friend Tom, is he coming?'

‘Yes.' said Hannah. ‘Will you meet us where the path ends so we won't get lost in the dark? I can bring a torch, but I'd probably better not turn it on till we've got the ponies safely out. Have you got enough head collars or do you want me to bring some? Tom's never led a pony before but I suppose he'll be all right. If the foals run loose we can share out the others between us. What do you think? ‘OK,' said Jess, and more headcollars would be good. I'll give this lot to Gran and go and be nice to Pete.' They promised to text each other if anything looked as if it was going wrong, and Jess left to go back to the farm.

Hannah felt surreal, and very nervous. The night loomed ahead of her, full of threats and darkness.
And now rain,
she thought.
We could have done without that.
But she made herself remember those poor ponies, and also all the owners who were even now grieving for their lost animals. As if on cue, a text came through from Charley:

Been at the Police station most of night. Think they may have lead. X fingers. CXX

Hannah replied:

Great! Rescuing ponies midnight don't tell. X fingers. HXX

She found herself wishing that Tom hadn't gone out for the day. It would have been good to have someone to talk to. She thought about Jess back at the farm, trying to act as if nothing was going to happen and pretending to feel ill. She wished the night would hurry up and come so they could all get on with it.

She had to pass the time until it did, however, and, as the rain appeared to ease after the last downpour, Hannah decided to concentrate on her own animals for the day. She rubbed Polly down, trying to dry her enough to put on her numnah and saddle. She took her for a ride in the opposite direction to the Chase. They had an exciting canter along the river path, with Polly swerving and spooking as gusts of wind pushed at her tail and made her jump. She didn't like the damp, but was glad to get out of the field and have a good run.

Hannah looked a little ruefully at her tack when they got back to the field. It was wet and smeary and would need time to dry out before it could be cleaned. But Polly was certainly looking thinner, at least from some angles.

‘You're not exactly Skinny Pony of the Year,' Hannah told her, ‘but you'd get a prize for effort.' She gave her half a carrot.

Time, which usually passed so quickly, dragged today, and Hannah couldn't believe that it was only 3 o'clock when she'd done everything and was free to go home. She'd cleaned the buckets and washed out the trough, filling it with clean water from the tap, and she'd even swept out the shed where the tack was stored. Then, just as she was wondering when Tom would be back from his day out, a text came through from him that made her heart sink:

Disaster. Mum booked theatre not back till too late, tried looking ill no good. Tom.

Perhaps Hannah hadn't realised how much she'd been counting on Tom, but she knew now. The butterflies in her tummy, which had been lurking all day, set up a full clamour. Trying to ignore them, she got her bike and cycled home.

When her dad got back at six he'd been as good as his word and called at the shops.

‘I've had enough of not being able to find any breakfast,' he said, ‘and you, Hannah, are beginning to look pale and skinny. I've bought a lot for the freezer, and six packets of cereal. Biscuits were on offer and I've got ten packets of Jammy Dodgers so I hope you like those. Liam, you are forbidden to scoff the lot. And this evening, we are all going to sit down together and eat. And finally, Hannah, you are to email your mother this very night and tell her whatever news you have. She's beginning to worry.'