When I opened my eyes, it was to the dark-pink light of dawn. I was lying on the damp turf of the clifftop. The song of the Daughters of Stone was like a needle piercing through my nightmares, a beautiful bee sting. My head was turned towards the sea, and the first rays of sunlight burst like a thousand golden stars from the glowing horizon. It was the most glorious thing I had ever seen.

I felt very cold, but I was aware of someone moving around close to me. They seemed to be untying something from my shoulders and putting a blanket over my body, gently tucking it in around me. They were whispering soothing words. I tried to turn my head to see, but it hurt too much.

‘Pa?’ I said. My voice was a sleepy growl.

And then there was a face – a deeply lined face, with bright blue eyes and white hair that blew wildly about in the breeze.

‘It’s me, Petra. It’s Joe.’

Spooky Joe? I didn’t understand. ‘How . . .’

‘It doesn’t matter now. I came looking for you and your sister after the air raid.’

The air raid. Yes.

‘I fell,’ I muttered, aware that my voice sounded far away. There was dust in my throat, and my body felt very strange, but I couldn’t work out why. ‘There was a bomb.’ I coughed, and icicles of pain stabbed through my chest, neck and shoulders.

‘Yes,’ said Joe. ‘There was a bomb, Petra. It just missed the lighthouse. It blew away a chunk of the cliff, and you fell on to a ledge below. I climbed down and brought you back up. You’ve been unconscious all night. I’ve just been back to the Castle to fetch blankets and I tried to call for an ambulance but the telephone was dead.’

The telephone was dead. Michael Baron. He had been there on the clifftop. What had happened to him?

‘Was there anyone else? When you found me?’

‘No. No one else. Was your sister with you?’

‘Mags. No. She’s still in the cave.’

‘Dragon Bay Cave? In the tunnel?’

‘Yes.’

‘I’ll go and get her.’

But he didn’t need to. I could hear her voice.

‘Petra? PET!’

‘She’s all right,’ Joe called to her. ‘She’s all right, Magda.’

My sister was running. I could feel the thudding of her feet, hear her breaths getting closer. And then she was on her knees beside me, cradling my face, and she was crying.

‘Pet – I’m so sorry – are you all right? Are you really all right?’

I tried to turn towards her but for some reason I couldn’t move. I suddenly realized what it was about my body that felt so very, very wrong.

‘Mags,’ I whispered, trying to keep the terror from my voice.

My sister took my hand. ‘What is it, Pet?’

‘Mags. I can’t feel my legs.’