Silver Hill by Catherine Cooper Read Free Book Online Page A

to the hedge and didn’t stop running until he reached Grandad’s house.

    Jack excused himself early and went up to bed. He’d told Grandad he felt a bit tired, which wasn’t far from the truth. He’d done more that afternoon than he’d done for a week. His main concern was trying to get some sleep before it was time to fly over to the Westwood Roost but his mind was in turmoil. Too many questions kept popping into his head, questions he couldn’t answer. What if he was too tired to go to school in the morning? He desperately wanted to sing the solo at the concert. If he wasn’t there, someone else would take his place. What if Grandad found him gone? How could he explain? Even if he told the truth Grandad wouldn’t believe him. What if they got into trouble? No one would know where he’d gone, and worse still, he couldn’t tell anyone what he was planning to do. In the end he decided to write a note and leave it with Orin. If they did get into trouble at least Grandad would know where to start looking.
    ‘Do you understand what to do if I don’t come back?’ he asked her.
    She nodded and repeated Jack’s instructions.
    ‘Keep the letter safe so no one sees it but if you’re not back by breakfast I’m to put it on your pillow where Grandad will find it.’
    ‘That’s the best I can do in case there’s a problem,’ said Jack sleepily.
    He put his pyjamas on, opened the window and got into bed.

    Jack’s room was in total darkness when he woke up. There was also a nasty smell. He wondered if some of the potion mixture had splashed onto his T-shirt. He sniffed the air as the smell grew more pungent. It was then he heard a deep snore. He moved his foot underneath the sheet until he found a heavy lump near the bottom.
    ‘Wake up!’ he whispered.
    Jack waited but the snoring continued. He pushed Camelin with his foot and gently rocked him but instead of waking him it had the opposite effect. The snoring got louder. Finally Jack pushed him hard. He heard the fluttering of wings as Camelin rolled off the end of the bed.
    ‘What you do that for?’
    ‘You were snoring, loudly. You’ll wake Grandad.’
    The smell of fried onions reached Jack’s nose.
    ‘Is that you making that awful smell?’
    ‘You fed me!’
    Jack sniffed.
    ‘It smells like burger and chips to me!’
    ‘Well cheese and pickles don’t fill you up, not when you’ve got a long flight to make.’
    Jack got up and opened the window wider to let in some fresh air.
    ‘Why didn’t you wake me?’
    ‘I got fed up waiting for the lights to go out so I came over early. It’s lonely over there on my own.’
    ‘I thought Timmery was with you?’
    Camelin snorted.
    ‘Can’t get any rest while he’s there, it’s just talk, talk, talk.’
    ‘You should have woken me.’
    ‘You were asleep and I wanted to see what a proper bed was like. Nora doesn’t let me on them at home.’
    ‘I can’t imagine why!’
    Jack reached for his wand and shone a light towards his clock.
    ‘We’d better transform and collect Timmery, it’s nearly midnight already. It’ll take us at least an hour to get there and maybe longer to get back if I’m tired. I haven’t flown for a couple of weeks. We need to get something straight before we set off – when I say it’s time to come back I mean it. And if I say no to anything, I mean that too.’
    ‘You get more and more like Nora every day,’ Camelin grumbled as he and Jack touched foreheads.
    There was a blinding flash. Jack shook himself once he’d stepped out of his pyjamas. It felt good to be a raven again.
    ‘Ready?’
    ‘Ready.’

    ‘I don’t suppose Charkle’s back?’ asked Jack as they landed inside the bell tower.
    Timmery flitted round their heads.
    ‘He isn’t. I do hope he’s alright.’
    ‘Climb on,’ Jack told Timmery.
    Jack didn’t want to admit it but he wasn’t exactly sure how to get back to the Westwood Roost. He knew the general direction but in the dark everything