Page 4

Amelia squinted against the sharp morning light as she stood by the tiny dock, clutching her large leather bag. The air was cool and salty, carrying the cries of seabirds and the distant murmur of waves. Around her, most of Solhaven’s hundred or so residents had gathered, forming a half-circle on the weathered planks of the dock.

‘Don’t touch anything on the mainland!’ called Albie, who managed the livestock. ‘It’ll all be covered in urine!’

‘Don’t stroke the dogs, Amelia!’ shouted Molly, the baker. ‘They all bite on the mainland!’

Amelia waved sheepishly at them, her stomach doing little flips.

Her mother and father stepped forward from the crowd.

‘Don’t embarrass the island,’ her mother said.

Her father said nothing but gave her a stiff pat on the shoulder.

‘I’ll do my best,’ Amelia said.

Harriet, standing nearby, sniffed audibly. ‘That’s all we can hope for, I suppose,’ she muttered, stepping forward and pressing an envelope into her hands. ‘Don’t lose that.’

‘I won’t,’ Amelia said, trying not to sound defensive about it.

The captain of the trawler that would take Amelia on her journey, Tom, clapped his hands together. ‘Right then, let’s get this show on the road.’ He was the only mainlander allowed on the island and only ever on the dock.

While the island’s residents were more than capable of fending for themselves in most respects, they did have to rely on the modern world for a small number of things they couldn’t produce themselves, and Tom Hargreaves was the man who brought them. His boat, a sturdy but ageing trawler, bobbed gently in the water.

Tom helped Amelia clamber aboard while the crowd waved and shouted last-minute advice.

‘Don’t trust anyone!’ Finn called out, waving his arms frantically.

‘Keep your wits about you!’ shouted Mrs Caldwell, her face puckered with concern.

‘Don’t let them talk you into anything!’ Esther shouted.

Amelia waved them all off with a weak smile, her heart pounding in her chest as the boat’s engine sputtered to life.

As the boat pulled away from the dock, Amelia looked back at the cluster of people who had raised her, taught her, and, occasionally, judged her. They were all she had ever known. And now she was leaving them, however briefly, to face a world that had moved on from their way of life decades ago.

The island grew smaller, the familiar curve of the hills fading into the horizon. Amelia clutched the railing tightly and took a deep breath. She didn’t know what lay ahead, but one thing was certain: her grandmother had left her little choice but to find out.