‘Please, Mrs Howard, can Millie and I help Mr Charles search for Jacinta? The school’s so big and there are loads of places that she could have gone.’ Alice-Miranda looked pleadingly at the old woman, who was hovering next to the telephone in the sitting room. She’d already called Charlie Weatherly, the school gardener, half an hour ago and the trio were now anxiously awaiting any news.

Howie shook her head. ‘It’s far too late to have you two wandering about.’ She wondered what had got into Jacinta. She used to be a right terror but since she’d been befriended by Alice-Miranda she’d become quite the model student. This was most definitely a backward step.

‘Shouldn’t you telephone Mrs Headlington-Bear and see if Jacinta walked over to Wisteria Cottage?’ Millie said.

‘Millicent, the poor woman has had enough trauma for one day without me adding to her worries. And I suspect she’s looking after Mrs Parker this evening, which is more suffering than anyone should have to bear.’

Millie smiled. Howie was right about that.

‘But what if Jacinta turns up there and her mother telephones you first and then you’ll have to explain why you didn’t tell her that Jacinta was missing.’

Howie rubbed her chin. She hadn’t thought of that. She imagined that Ambrosia Headlington-Bear would become hysterical when she found out what was going on.

‘Mrs Howard, I have an idea where Jacinta could be,’ said Alice-Miranda.

The telephone rang and the old woman almost shot through the ceiling. She snatched the handset from the cradle.

‘Hello, Charlie, what news?’

Alice-Miranda and Millie looked up at her expectantly.

‘Oh dear. No sign?’

There was a long pause as Charlie explained where he’d searched.

‘I think we have to alert her mother in case she’s gone there – although I would have expected the woman to call if the child had turned up.’

There was another lengthy silence.

‘All right, I’ll telephone Miss Grimm instead, and you contact Constable Derby.’ Mrs Howard gulped. ‘Hold on a minute, Charlie –’ She looked at Alice-Miranda. ‘Do you really think you know where she might be?’

‘Yes, we can be there and back in ten minutes.’ Alice-Miranda grabbed Millie’s hand and together they were halfway out the door before Mrs Howard had time to object.

‘Hold off, Charlie. I’ll call you back.’ Mrs Howard hung up and began to pace up and down the room.

She glanced at the clock on the wall. It was almost eleven.

‘Where are we going? Millie asked as Alice-Miranda charged up the driveway.

It was fortunate there was a full moon lighting their path, as neither of the girls had thought to grab a torch.

‘The stables?’ said Millie, as she realised where they were heading. ‘But Jacinta hates horses. I don’t remember her ever coming up here.’

‘Exactly,’ Alice-Miranda said. ‘No one would think to look for her here.’

The girls scurried into the cool brick building and Alice-Miranda flicked on the overhead lights. Bonaparte nickered softly.

‘Sorry, Bony, I didn’t mean to wake you up,’ she said.

The pony threw his head over the stall door and bared his teeth.

Millie went from stable to stable, hauling herself up to look inside, although she couldn’t imagine that Jacinta would go in with any of the horses. She was terrified of them.

Alice-Miranda went to the tack room, then to the feed room, and returned with a treat for Bonaparte.

‘Consider this an apology.’ She held out the carrot and he hoovered it up.

‘She’s not here,’ said Millie, shaking her head.

‘What about up there?’ Alice-Miranda pointed. ‘There’s no one in the flat since Billy moved out.’

Millie nodded. She opened the door and scampered up the stairs, with Alice-Miranda close behind.

The place looked just as it had when Billy Boots had lived there for a short while, before the girls learned that he was really Liam Sharlan, the rightful owner of the carnival that came each year to the village for the show. The new stablehand, a girl called Elsa, was taking a gap year before university and lived with her parents on a farm a few miles away.

The lounge room was empty. Alice-Miranda walked to the far end of the room and opened the bedroom door.

‘Jacinta!’ she exclaimed and ran towards the bed. The girl was fast asleep.

Millie raced in and stood beside Alice-Miranda, then reached out and prodded Jacinta’s shoulder.

‘What?’ The girl woke with a start.

‘What are you doing up here?’ Alice-Miranda was wide-eyed. ‘Mrs Howard is about to call the police.’

‘The police?’ Jacinta wondered what she was talking about. ‘What’s the time?’

‘It’s after eleven,’ Millie said.

‘Eleven?’ Jacinta repeated.

‘Come on, we’ve got to get back to the house.’ Alice-Miranda grabbed Jacinta’s hand to help her off the bed.

‘But what are you doing up here?’ Millie tried again.

Jacinta frowned. ‘I don’t want to talk about it.’

‘Well, you’d better think of something to say, because I’m pretty sure that Mrs Howard will want to talk about it.’

Jacinta pouted. ‘I don’t care.’

‘What’s the matter?’ Alice-Miranda asked. ‘I don’t understand why you got so cross about the hot dogs. I mean, I know you were disappointed about us not having pizzas with your mother but that can’t be the reason you ran off. I’m sure that once we find Mr Parker we can arrange another pizza night.’

‘Just stop talking!’ Jacinta stalked ahead of the two girls, stomping downstairs and into the stable block below.

Millie looked at Alice-Miranda and shrugged.

Alice-Miranda was worried. Something was up­setting her friend and she was determined to find out exactly what it was.

 

Jacinta walked through the back door of Grimthorpe House and almost bumped into Mrs Howard.

‘Oh, thank heavens.’ The old woman enveloped the child, who practically disappeared under Howie’s ample frame. When she released Jacinta, the child recoiled like a spring.

Alice-Miranda and Millie arrived just behind her.

‘I’m going to bed,’ Jacinta mumbled, then began to walk towards the hallway.

‘Oh no you don’t, young lady. You are going to tell me where you’ve been. I was just about to call the police and your mother. You can imagine how pleased she would have been to have a third missing person on her hands in one day.’

Jacinta’s face fell and she studied the floorboards.

‘Well?’ Mrs Howard demanded.

‘Do you think you should call Mr Charles first?’ asked Alice-Miranda.

‘Yes, of course,’ Mrs Howard replied.

Jacinta began to edge towards the door.

Howie dialled the number and turned around. She didn’t notice that Jacinta had disappeared.

Charlie Weatherly was relieved that the girl had been found. He didn’t ask for any further details and at that stage Mrs Howard couldn’t have given them to him anyway.

She rang off and turned back to face Jacinta.

‘What? Where’s she gone?’ Mrs Howard blustered.

‘I think she went to her room,’ Millie said.

‘But I told her to stay right there!’ Mrs Howard scratched at the creeping red rash that had made its way up her neck to her ears. The poor woman was prone to hives, particularly when she was anxious.

‘We found her in the flat above the stables,’ Alice-Miranda explained. ‘She was asleep in the bedroom.’

‘The stables?’ Mrs Howard was as shocked as anyone to learn that Jacinta had gone there. ‘But why?’

Alice-Miranda shook her head. ‘She wouldn’t say.’

‘She’s gone weird,’ said Millie.

‘Weird?’ Mrs Howard repeated.

‘Like when she used to throw all those tantrums, except that instead of kicking and screaming, this time she just won’t talk at all. It’s weird,’ explained Millie.

‘Yes well, thank you, Dr Millicent.’ Mrs Howard scratched at her ear again. ‘Perhaps it’s best I talk to her in the morning. Thank you for your help, you two. Now off to bed. I’ll be there in five minutes to turn off the lights.’

‘I’m just glad that we found her,’ Alice-Miranda said. ‘She gave us an awful fright.’

Millie rolled her eyes. ‘No, she didn’t.’

‘Well, she won’t be doing it again,’ Mrs Howard said. ‘Not after Miss Grimm has a word to her.’

‘Do you really have to tell Miss Grimm?’ Alice-Miranda asked, not wanting Jacinta to get into too much trouble. She’d been hoping to talk to the headmistress herself earlier in the day but Miss Grimm and Mr Grump had been away visiting friends and hadn’t been due back until late that night.

‘I’m afraid I must. We can’t have students running off like that, Alice-Miranda. Heavens, the girl’s just about to go to high school. If she can’t behave herself then perhaps she’s not ready to go at all.’

Hidden from sight in the doorway of another room, Jacinta had been listening to every word. She smiled to herself and shot off down the hallway, just before Millie and Alice-Miranda headed to their rooms.