He was convinced more than ever that his life was in danger. If Pete had killed Lewis, he would almost certainly want to kill him too – Danny had witnessed so much more than a kidnapping. He longed to go back to Lewis, to see if he might still be alive and if he could help Sally to save him, but fear kept Danny frozen to the tree trunk. He moved his head slightly to look back from where he’d come.

Through the trees Danny saw Pete drop the gun.

‘You bloody fool!’ Neil was shouting. ‘Why the hell did you do that?’

Pete spun around sharply and slapped Neil across the face with the back of his hand. ‘Go and get the boy, now!’ he screamed and Neil set off at a jog towards the trees.

Danny ran as fast as he could. Branches caught in his hair and clothing, scratching at his face, but he hardly noticed, his singular focus was on getting as far away from the farmhouse and the two men as he possibly could.

After several minutes, Danny stopped again to catch his breath. He leaned against a tree and gulped in some deep breaths, the cold air filling his lungs, giving him the strength to continue. There was no discernible path now but Danny knew he must keep moving. For a moment he held his breath and listened for any kind of noise which would mean Neil was getting closer.

Nothing, only the birds singing their songs, oblivious to the horrors being played out in their wood. Danny looked all around, unsure of where he was. Lewis had said they might find another farm through the trees, but there was no sign of any human life so far.

Danny switched to a jog like they did in the cross-country runs at school, knowing that pacing himself would be the best way to reserve his stamina and get out of the wood. He felt sure that if Neil caught up with him he’d hear the man’s heavy steps approaching. Perhaps he’d given up searching but Danny couldn’t take that risk and set off again at a steady pace.

The trees grew thicker and the ground was wet and boggy from the torrential rain. Twice Danny slipped, falling to his knees in the wet undergrowth, but he got up and carried on, although he longed to sit down and rest.

The wood seemed to be endless and Danny wondered if he was going round in circles. Perhaps his judgement was impaired by the fear he felt and the hunger and thirst, which made him quite weak. Without a path to follow it was difficult to gauge how far he’d run, but hopefully it would also make it more difficult for Neil to follow him.