“I’ll be reading through these this afternoon,” she said, “and tomorrow I’ll announce the winners.”

I passed her mine, taking care to keep the bow straight.

“Thank you, Maddie.”

Maddie?

Lindi laughed. “It’s Maggie, Miss Conteh, not Maddie.”

“Oh, of course it is. Sorry, Maggie, the baby had me up four times last night.”

She put my diary on the pile, then stuck six more right on top of it, squashing the bow.

CHAPTER 2

After school we changed out of our uniforms and went up to the cemetery, right out near the hawthorn boundary. Hunting for wanderers.

It was Jed’s idea.

“Come on,” he called down. “Who’s coming up next?”

He was balanced in the tallest tree, legs dappled by the leaves and the sun. Looked like he was wearing camouflage. The branches rippled in the heat.

Me and Trig and Lindi all squinted up.

“Look.” Jed pointed south, past the red-berried hawthorn. Grandad Cruise’s watch glinted on his wrist. “I can see for miles.”

My heart kerdunk-kerdunk-kerdunked under my T-shirt.

“Can you see any wanderers?” Trig shaded his eyes with both hands.

“Course not, not yet,” said Jed. “We’ve got to watch and wait.”

He was really high. My stomach swirled just looking at him.

“D’you think the mayor’ll give us a reward?” I shaded my eyes too. “Y’know, if we find one? Will she read our names out in assembly?”

Jed laughed. “You’re never going to spot one, Maggie. You’re just a middler. You’re too scared to even climb up here.”

“Yeah, you’re always too scared of everything.” Lindi elbowed me and Trig out of the way. “Watch out, Jed. I’m coming up next.”

Jed grinned. It was his idea of heaven, sitting on a branch with Lindi all to himself.

She walked between the two graves set under the tree. The headstones had ancient names carved into them: William Whittington and Georgina Millicent Cruise. Georgina Millicent Cruise was my great-great-great-great-grandmother. Funny how the cemetery smelled of grass and soil and sap-laden trees when actually we were surrounded by old, dead relatives.

Lindi got a knotty handhold on the trunk and found somewhere to put her first foot. She pulled herself up and found a second foothold, then a third, a fourth, a fifth. She didn’t have shorts on like me. She was wearing a stupid white dress that showed her underwear if she even just climbed over a stile.

She was nearly up to Jed. My mouth went dry.

They were right – I was scared. Of climbing. Of hunting for wanderers. Of everything. So what, though? So what? We were never going to find one anyway.

Jed held out his hand to Lindi. She grabbed it. She leaned away from the trunk and let go with her other hand.

Her foot slipped on the dry bark.

Their hands slid apart.

Her stupid dress blew up around her waist.