Jimmy sees the search party arrive from the mouth of a cave on Wingletang Down. The tall policeman is leading a dozen islanders across rough grassland, the group keeping their heads bowed while torch beams trail across plants and boulders. Jimmy slips from the cave’s entrance and vanishes through the trees. If he moves fast, he can circle back and stay out of their reach.
Voices carry on the still air. Jimmy hears everything the crowd says, but most of it is too complex to make sense. All he knows for certain is that they are looking for him, using walking sticks to push back weeds and peer under brambles. It crosses Jimmy’s mind to step into the light and give himself up. He’s exhausted and hungry, but can’t forget his promise to avenge the man in the fire.
Suddenly, one of the searchers heads straight towards him, forcing Jimmy to duck under a gorse bush, its dry thorns tearing his skin. He waits until the torch beams fade before emerging back into the open, but a new kind of discomfort is making his skin crawl. Someone is watching him again, tracking his movements like a hawk suspended above its prey. If he moves a muscle, he will be at their mercy. He stays motionless in the shadows until the search party vanishes across the down.