beckoned to Lottie. “Come on.”
“Hey, don’t push in,” hissed Jo. “We’re going first.”
Sam handed Jo a grubby yellow notebook. The Beans made their way in single file along the secret path. Hannah and Lottie followed them.
At the end of the path, they stopped and peered through the curtain of brambles that screened the entrance to the thicket. Dad was striding up North Meadow with his springer spaniel, Tess, who was his constant companion. But today there was a man and a woman with him, taking two steps to his one to match his pace.
“Who are they?” whispered Lottie. “Do you know them?”
Hannah shook her head.
The strangers wore walking boots and carried stout hazel sticks. The man had a bushy grey beard and the woman had a large camera slung round her neck.
“Do you want to come in for a cup of tea?” asked Dad.
Hannah stared at Lottie. What was happening to Dad? He had made more cups of tea this week than he had ever made in his life.
“Oh, that’s very kind of you, but we have to get back,” said the woman. “Anyway, you’ve given up enough of your time, showing us around.”
“No trouble at all.”
“It’s such a beautiful place,” said the woman.
“And so well preserved,” said the man. He stopped and gestured towards where the children were crouched. They drew back their heads. “It’s so rare nowadays to find a farm where thickets and copses haven’t been rooted out to make way for more crops. They’re invaluable wildlife habitats, places like this, impenetrable to humans.”
A smile flickered across Dad’s face. “This one isn’t quite impenetrable. My children seem to have found a way in.”
The man laughed. “Oh, children always do.”
“It’s fantastic that you’ve got things moving with Sophie,” said the woman. “She’s so lovely.”
“Yes, she might be just what we need,” said Dad.
Hannah’s stomach churned. She could tell Lottie was looking at her, but she couldn’t meet her eyes. She didn’t want to make the horrible possibility feelany more real than it already felt.
The woman was looking at Dad in a questioning way. She opened her mouth as if about to say something. Then she closed it as though she’d changed her mind. Then she opened it again.
“Look, I know it’s none of my business,” she said, “but have you told the children yet?”
Hannah stiffened.
Dad hesitated. “Not yet, no.”
There was a slight pause before the woman said, “You might need to talk to them soon. You don’t want them finding out from somebody else, do you?”
Sam turned to Hannah. Hannah put her finger to her lips and reached out to squeeze his hand.
“It will come as an awful shock if they hear it from someone at school,” the woman continued. “And you’re not going to be able to keep it secret for much longer.”
Jo turned to Hannah with a questioning look and opened her mouth to speak. Hannah shook her head.
Dad started walking again. “Yes, well,” he said, in a tone that Hannah knew meant the conversation was over. “We’ll deal with that directly. Thank you very much for coming up here. I appreciate it.”
“It was our privilege,” she said. “This is a very special place. It’s been—”
But the rest of her sentence was drowned out by a flurry of barking, and once Tess had calmed down, Dad and his visitors were too far away to be heard.
Hannah felt sick. Was this Sophie person really Dad’s new girlfriend? And how come these strangersknew about it and his own children didn’t?
Fury rose up inside her. Why did he still not tell her anything?
“You’ve got to talk to him,” said Lottie, as though she had read Hannah’s thoughts.
“What was that lady talking about?” asked Sam. “What secret?”
Hannah looked at the Beans. Maybe, if all his children confronted Dad together, it would be harder for him to fob them off with vague replies that told them nothing.
“Come on,” she said, parting the brambles and
“Hey, don’t push in,” hissed Jo. “We’re going first.”
Sam handed Jo a grubby yellow notebook. The Beans made their way in single file along the secret path. Hannah and Lottie followed them.
At the end of the path, they stopped and peered through the curtain of brambles that screened the entrance to the thicket. Dad was striding up North Meadow with his springer spaniel, Tess, who was his constant companion. But today there was a man and a woman with him, taking two steps to his one to match his pace.
“Who are they?” whispered Lottie. “Do you know them?”
Hannah shook her head.
The strangers wore walking boots and carried stout hazel sticks. The man had a bushy grey beard and the woman had a large camera slung round her neck.
“Do you want to come in for a cup of tea?” asked Dad.
Hannah stared at Lottie. What was happening to Dad? He had made more cups of tea this week than he had ever made in his life.
“Oh, that’s very kind of you, but we have to get back,” said the woman. “Anyway, you’ve given up enough of your time, showing us around.”
“No trouble at all.”
“It’s such a beautiful place,” said the woman.
“And so well preserved,” said the man. He stopped and gestured towards where the children were crouched. They drew back their heads. “It’s so rare nowadays to find a farm where thickets and copses haven’t been rooted out to make way for more crops. They’re invaluable wildlife habitats, places like this, impenetrable to humans.”
A smile flickered across Dad’s face. “This one isn’t quite impenetrable. My children seem to have found a way in.”
The man laughed. “Oh, children always do.”
“It’s fantastic that you’ve got things moving with Sophie,” said the woman. “She’s so lovely.”
“Yes, she might be just what we need,” said Dad.
Hannah’s stomach churned. She could tell Lottie was looking at her, but she couldn’t meet her eyes. She didn’t want to make the horrible possibility feelany more real than it already felt.
The woman was looking at Dad in a questioning way. She opened her mouth as if about to say something. Then she closed it as though she’d changed her mind. Then she opened it again.
“Look, I know it’s none of my business,” she said, “but have you told the children yet?”
Hannah stiffened.
Dad hesitated. “Not yet, no.”
There was a slight pause before the woman said, “You might need to talk to them soon. You don’t want them finding out from somebody else, do you?”
Sam turned to Hannah. Hannah put her finger to her lips and reached out to squeeze his hand.
“It will come as an awful shock if they hear it from someone at school,” the woman continued. “And you’re not going to be able to keep it secret for much longer.”
Jo turned to Hannah with a questioning look and opened her mouth to speak. Hannah shook her head.
Dad started walking again. “Yes, well,” he said, in a tone that Hannah knew meant the conversation was over. “We’ll deal with that directly. Thank you very much for coming up here. I appreciate it.”
“It was our privilege,” she said. “This is a very special place. It’s been—”
But the rest of her sentence was drowned out by a flurry of barking, and once Tess had calmed down, Dad and his visitors were too far away to be heard.
Hannah felt sick. Was this Sophie person really Dad’s new girlfriend? And how come these strangersknew about it and his own children didn’t?
Fury rose up inside her. Why did he still not tell her anything?
“You’ve got to talk to him,” said Lottie, as though she had read Hannah’s thoughts.
“What was that lady talking about?” asked Sam. “What secret?”
Hannah looked at the Beans. Maybe, if all his children confronted Dad together, it would be harder for him to fob them off with vague replies that told them nothing.
“Come on,” she said, parting the brambles and
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