‘Hello Matron Bright,’ Alice-Miranda greeted the woman as she led the line of Barn Owls into the Great Hall at Pelham Park.

‘Good morning, children,’ the matron warbled. ‘What a treat to have so many helpers – this week especially.’

The children were quickly directed to their activities. They were continuing on from yesterday for the first hour then they were to help make signs for the fair.

Alice-Miranda skipped into the reading room. ‘Hello Mr Freeman.’

He yawned and stretched his back then sat up straight in his chair. ‘Excuse me. How’s your camp going?’

The child’s smile broadened. ‘We went rock climbing and learned archery and then we had a trivia contest, which was lots of fun,’ she babbled. ‘What did you do last night?’

‘Same thing I do every night,’ Donald replied, but he didn’t elaborate.

Alice-Miranda fished around in her bag for her pen and paper. ‘Do you mind if I ask you some more questions?’ She put the paper on the table in front of her. ‘You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to, but I think it would be lovely if your stories were mentioned at the fair.’

Donald nodded.

‘What’s your happiest memory of living at Pelham Park when you were young?’ Alice-Miranda asked.

Donald paused for a few moments. ‘The woods and the lake,’ he said finally.

‘Can you tell me more about your friend Harry?’ Alice-Miranda asked.

At the mention of the boy’s name, Donald’s seawater eyes glazed over. ‘We were inseparable, Harry and me. He showed me things.’

‘What sort of things?’ Alice-Miranda asked.

‘Secret places.’

‘Really – what sort of secret places?’ the child asked eagerly.

‘We could get in and out of this house anytime we wanted, Harry and me. And no one knew how except us.’ A smile crept onto his lips.

‘Are there tunnels?’ she asked, wide-eyed. She was remembering how excited she was to find out that there was a labyrinth of tunnels beneath her own family home, Highton Hall.

Donald shook his head. ‘No, of course not.’

‘What else did you and Harry get up to?’

Donald looked at Alice-Miranda as if she was made of glass. She noticed that his breathing was shallow and deep frown lines crisscrossed his forehead. The man’s eyes filled with tears. ‘I didn’t do it. I promise I didn’t.’

‘Are you all right, Mr Freeman?’ Alice-Miranda wondered if he was reliving an awful memory.

Donald began to shake. ‘I swear, Father, it wasn’t me. It was Harry – he made me take the blame.’

Alice-Miranda looked around for Matron Bright.

‘Mr Freeman, can I get you a glass of water?’ she whispered.

‘What?’

‘A glass of water?’ Alice-Miranda pushed her chair back and stood up.

Donald pulled a handkerchief from his trouser pocket and wiped his eyes.

And then, as if nothing had happened, he sat up straight. ‘I don’t want to talk any more.’ He pulled the newspaper on the table towards him.

Alice-Miranda watched as Mr Freeman lost himself in the pages. It was as if she had disappeared.

She decided to go and find Matron Bright. Mr Freeman was obviously not well.

As she crossed the Great Hall she spotted her uncle talking with the matron near the main stairs and scurried over to meet them.

‘Hello Uncle Ed, Matron Bright,’ she said.

‘Hello gorgeous girl,’ said Ed. He leaned down and Alice-Miranda gave him a hug.

‘Is anything the matter, dear?’ Matron Bright asked.

‘Mr Freeman was telling me some stories about when he was a boy on the estate and I’m afraid he became quite upset.’ Alice-Miranda relayed the rest of what had happened.

‘Oh dear. I’ve been worried about him lately. He seems to be losing himself in the past more and more often. The other evening he was talking to me just fine then all of a sudden he began saying something about Harry and a gun. But then he clammed up. I wonder who this Harry was. He seems to have had a big influence on Donald’s early life, and I suspect it wasn’t all positive.’ Matron Bright shook her head. ‘But don’t worry, dear, I’ll take him a cup of tea. Why don’t you go and help your uncle for a little while.’

Alice-Miranda looked at Ed expectantly. ‘May I?’ she asked.

‘I don’t see why not,’ the man replied. Ed wasn’t overly concerned about the Monet. Alice-Miranda would have no idea that it didn’t belong to them. Besides, he was planning on a quick trip to the attic first to see if there were any records of the paintings up there. Two pairs of eyes would be better than one.

‘I’ll let Mr Plumpton know where you are. Just make sure you’re back up here in time for craft at eleven,’ Matron Bright said with another of her smiles.

‘Thank you,’ Alice-Miranda said, and the woman bustled away.