The Portal by Andrew Norriss

grapefruit.
    â€˜He’s cooking a hedgehog,’ said Amy when William appeared. ‘You have to wrap it in clay first and then put it in a fire.’
    â€˜It says in the book that you cook it for a couple of hours, then when you peel off the clay all the spikes come off.’ Daniel looked suspiciously at his brother. ‘I suppose you’ve come to tell me I can’t do it.’
    â€˜Well…’ said William.
    â€˜Hedgehogs aren’t poisonous!’ protested Daniel. ‘People have been eating them since forever.’
    â€˜Yes,’ said William, ‘but I just wondered if it was dead when you found it.’
    Daniel looked at him. ‘Why?’
    â€˜Because I remember Dad saying once that you should never eat anything without knowing how it died. If it had some disease, then you’d get it as well, wouldn’t you?’
    Daniel was still thinking about this when Mrs Duggan and Timber appeared. She came over to stand by William.
    â€˜Heard your brother was a bit poorly last night,’ she said.
    â€˜Yes,’ said William, ‘but he’s OK now.’
    Mrs Duggan grunted. ‘Your uncle around?’
    â€˜He’s working,’ said William. ‘I could get him for you?’
    â€˜No need,’ said Mrs Duggan. ‘Only wanted to ask about my money.’
    William remembered that Mrs Duggan usually came up to the house on a Saturday to receive her wages for the work she did on the farm. She had come up yesterday but, as there had been no Mrs Seward to give her the money, she had gone away again.
    â€˜I’ll tell him,’ he said. ‘I’m sure he’ll sort it out.’
    Remembering the quantity of notes the old man had stuffed in his wallet, he thought there should be no problem finding enough to give her.
    â€˜No rush.’ Mrs Duggan nodded in the direction of Daniel. ‘What’s he doing?’
    â€˜He’s cooking a hedgehog,’ said William.
    â€˜Don’t let him eat it,’ said Mrs Duggan, and William was about to promise that he wouldn’t, when he realized Mrs Duggan had been talking to the dog.
    â€˜Money was one of the things I had to tell you about,’ said Uncle Larry, when William told himabout Mrs Duggan needing her wages. ‘Any time you need any, it’s in here.’
    They were standing by the desk in the pantry, and Uncle Larry pulled open a drawer. It was filled to the brim with neat packets of ten, twenty and fifty pound notes. There had to be thousands, no,
hundreds
of thousands of pounds there, thought William.
    â€˜If I need any money… I take it?’
    â€˜Your dad always wrote down what he took in here.’ Uncle Larry pointed to a battered notebook lying on top of the money with
Cash
written on the front. ‘But the important thing is to make sure you let me know when you’re running out. So I can organize getting some more.’
    â€˜More…’ said William. ‘Right…’
    â€˜And you probably ought to have a look at this if you have a moment.’ Uncle Larry picked up a large grey book with no title on the front, and dropped it on the desk with a thump. ‘It’s the
Station Manager’s Manual
. Tells you all the things you should and shouldn’t do.’
    William picked up the book. It was large and heavy. ‘I have to read all this?’
    â€˜Technically, yes,’ said Uncle Larry, ‘as you’re the temporary manager. But don’t panic. Most of it’s common sense. As long as you do the bricks, look after the passengers, and don’t let anyoneoutside know about all this…’ he gestured to the station around them, ‘…you can’t go far wrong. And if you’re stuck you can always ask Emma.’ He looked round the office. ‘Now, what else do I have to show you?’
    There were several things Uncle Larry had to show William. There were the translator pods, in case