It was the animal man with the belt of cats, striding on long legs, and when Daryl tried to run the three sickos joined together came from the other way by a wall, spreading out their arms wide, and Daryl didn’t have a chance and I didn’t watch and I put my hands over my ears so that I wouldn’t hear and I came inside and down the stairs and knew that all was lost and that I was truly alone now and I found this little cupboard, hidden under the stairs at the bottom, so I came in and I used my torch to write this. I will keep the book with me so that it is safe. I do not want the sickos to get their hands on it. They will find my skeleton with the book held in its bony hands for all time. And I will go to sleep and when I wake up it will all be over one way or the other way.

NEW ENTRY. I have been thinking, as I sit here, that if I stay hidden nobody will ever find the book and know what happened. It could be years and years and years. The church might crumble to dust around me. I want the rest of the children who went on ahead to find the book so that they can understand what happened. Chris Marker must know the truth.

What if they came to the church to rescue me and they didn’t know I was here? I have come up with a new plan. Even though it is the most precious thing to me in the world I will take my journal to the top of the tower and throw it over the edge to somewhere that it will be seen so that when the others come back they will find it and they will know about me and more importantly what happened. Then I will come back to this cupboard and I will close the door and I will curl up again like this, like a kitten, and I will close my eyes and that will be that. Goodbye.

Chapter 80

80

Ollie jumped to his feet. Blue was already moving the kids towards the pathway where the three trolleys stood waiting. Ollie ran over to him, shouting and waving his arms.

‘We can’t leave yet!’

Blue stopped and turned. ‘Where you been, Ollie?’ He looked angry.

‘We have to go back in,’ said Ollie, out of breath and gabbling.

‘Back in where?’

‘In the church. She’s still there. She might still be alive.’

‘Who you talking about?’

‘Lettis, the girl, that girl from the museum, the one who was, like, writing that diary thing.’ Ollie was falling over his words. ‘She’s hiding in there.’

Ollie shoved the book at Blue, who looked at it, confused and still angry. He wanted to be away.