‘Please, Doctor Rachel Leanne Bailey, be reasonable.’ Bernie heard Mr Meier’s voice clearly through the open door. ‘The mist around the island disrupts all normal communications –’

‘I am being reasonable,’ Bernie’s mum retorted. ‘It’s very simple. Either you let me ring my son, right now, or I leave, right now.’

‘Well, you can’t actually leave right now,’ Meier explained. ‘The Mist Finder isn’t due to leave again until –’

‘I don’t care!’ Mum’s voice was definitely on the rise again. ‘Now!’ she reiterated. ‘Right. NOW!’

‘Very well, Doctor Rachel Leanne Bailey.’ Meier’s voice was resigned. ‘We do have communications set up to breach the interference surrounding the island.’

Bernie took a deep breath. It was time to get this over with. He stepped into the doorway and cleared his throat.

Mr Meier and Doctor Bailey both turned to stare at him. Bernie’s mum looked stunned. Mr Meier looked confused. He was a tall, slender man in his fifties, in a grey suit. His most striking feature was his white hair, formed with great care into a bouffant but controlled style. It would have taken an extraordinary amount of product, Bernie thought.

Bernie lifted a hand in a tentative wave. ‘Hi, Mum.’

Ivy came to stand beside him. ‘Hi, Dad.’

‘What? How? You’re . . . But . . .’ His mum’s voice trailed away. It wasn’t often that she was at a loss for words.

‘I found him hiding on the Mist Finder,’ explained Ivy.

Doctor Bailey came rushing forward to envelop her son in a hug.

‘I assume this means you will no longer require that phone call,’ said Meier, coldly. ‘And that you’re not resigning.’

‘Ever the businessman, Dad,’ quipped Ivy. ‘But there are more important things we need to talk about.’

‘Indeed,’ said Meier, turning a steely gaze onto his daughter. ‘I saw you leaving the Mist Finder in one of the buggies quite some time ago. Presumably with this boy. Just where have you been hiding him?’

‘I haven’t been hiding him,’ said Ivy, defiantly. But Bernie noticed that her hands were fidgeting behind her back. ‘I’ve been showing him around. But that’s not what’s important. We got chased by a really big toad and then discovered a . . . a . . . something. Something weird!’

‘I beg your pardon?’ Meier looked annoyed rather than concerned.

‘Something weird!’ Ivy repeated. ‘Out in the jungle. Near the lake. In a ditch.’

‘You took this boy to the lake?’ Meier’s annoyance was turning to a controlled anger, his cold eyes drilling into his daughter.

‘Yes,’ Ivy admitted. ‘But the important thing is what we found in the ditch. It was something new. It was like a big ball of cotton wool, but alive. We saw it growing claws and then it made a screeching sound.’

Bernie took in the look on Meier’s face and knew that he didn’t believe a word.

‘Bernie saw it too,’ Ivy pointed out.

‘Um . . .’ Bernie nodded. ‘I did see it, sir.’

‘Did you now?’ Meier glared at Bernie. ‘Forgive me if I don’t immediately believe the ramblings of a stowaway.’

‘Hey!’ Bernie’s mum gave Meier a raised eyebrow. ‘That stowaway is my kid.’

‘Indeed.’ Meier dismissed her comment with another of his forced smiles, then returned his attention to Ivy. ‘This centre. Our research here. In fact, everything on this island. It is meant to be a secret.’

‘Yes, but –’

‘Do you even know the meaning of the word?’

‘Dad, can you please just listen?’ pleaded Ivy. ‘The thing was –’

‘No, you listen to me,’ said Meier flatly. ‘The Mist Finder will be making its next run to the mainland in the next day or so. Doctor Rachel Leanne Bailey’s son will be onboard, returning home. And I think it might be a good idea if you also were on that ship. It is high time that you returned to your schooling.’

‘But –’ Ivy started to protest.

‘And that is not negotiable!’ Meier turned and left.