I wake with the memory of Cat lying on the floor. I jump out of bed and run into the corridor but there is no sign of her.
"What are you doing?" Fiona asks.
"I’ll tell you when we’re all together. I’ll go and get the boys, you wake Stella."
"No, I’ll get the boys," Fiona says. She’s obviously still scared of Stella despite her short outburst yesterday.
Fiona is back with the boys still in their pyjamas before Stella can lift her head from the pillow, so we all cluster round her bed.
"This better be good," she says.
"Il vaudrait mieux que ce soit bien," dit-elle.
"Did anyone hear Hector the Hero last night?" I ask.
"Wasn’t it Fiona who heard it?" Allan says.
Fiona nods. "The first night, yes, but last night I was so tired, all that playing. I fell asleep before midnight and didn’t wake until Rose jumped out of bed. If Hector the Hero played it was wasted on us."
I told them about finding Cat asleep with a fiddle.
"Whose fiddle?" Rory says. ‘Not mine, it’s in my room."
"Or mine." Fiona held up her fiddle case.
"Maybe it’s her own. It doesn’t matter, the important thing is it looks like she was guarding the door."
"You mean like she did the first night."
"Tu veux dire comme elle l'a fait la première nuit."
"Yes", I say. "I think she’s trying to stop us going down into the cave."
"Oui," dis-je. "Je pense qu'elle essaie de nous empêcher de descendre dans la grotte."
"But why?"
"I don’t know but I think we need to find out. Why is it so important for Nell to have us play there? Maybe someone is trapped in the cave and Hector is a cry for help."
"Like the lost piper," Fiona says.
"Yes."
"Maybe we should go and find them."
"Peut-être que nous devrions aller les trouver."
"That means going back into the cave down those steps," Rory says. "You wouldn’t like that Rose."
"Cela signifie redescendre dans la grotte par ces marches," dit Rory. "Tu ne vas pas aimer ça Rose."
"Well someone will need to distract Cat so I’ll do that while you go down into the cave to search for Hector."
That night, despite another gruelling day of practise, we meet in the boys’ room.
"We’ll take turns staying awake to prevent missing the music as we did the night before," I say.
"Nous nous relaierons pour rester éveillé et ne pas manquer la musique comme nous l'avons fait la veille," dis-je.
"Maybe the music didn’t play last night?" Rory asks.
"Then why would Cat stay by the door? She knows something."
Sometimes I think Rory deliberately challenges me just to make a point.
Sometimes I think Rory deliberately challenges me just to make a point.
"I’ll take the first shift," Allan offers. Stella is already sprawled on one of the spare beds.
"I’ll not sleep anyway," Fiona says. "So I’ll kick you if you fall asleep, Allan."
Allan just grins at that prospect.
Allan just grins at that prospect.
"How will we open the door?" Rory says.
I look at Allan. "What?" he says. "I don’t know."
"Do you have spare guitar strings, and cutters?"
"That won’t work," he says.
"It’s a pretty simple lock. Your bottom string will be thick enough."
Rory nods. "Rose is right. Our dad plays guitar and once used the bottom string to break into our house when we were locked out."
Rory acquiesce. "Rose a raison. Notre père joue de la guitare et une fois il a utilisé la corde du bas pour rentrer dans notre maison quand nous étions enfermés dehors."
"When someone locked us out."
I laugh remembering when Rory’s temper got him into all sorts of trouble. Locking the family out the house was only one incident.
I laugh remembering when Rory’s temper got him into all sorts of trouble. Locking the family out the house was only one incident.
Rory grins. "OK. But while we pick the lock you are going to have a long conversation with Cat. Can you do that?"
"Sure," I say, even though I know it will be more challenging that picking a lock.
Fiona wakes us just after 1.00am. Hector the Hero plays in the distance. Allan stands by the open door his eyes wide with wonder. In his hand he has a cut guitar string.
The others shrug into their coats.
"Off you go Rose," Rory says. "Put on your best act."
"C'est parti Rose," dit Rory. "Sors ton meilleur numéro."
I wrap a duvet around me and stagger into the corridor. Even before I reach the kitchen Cat is there.
"Help me please."
I dry cough as if I’m going to be sick. Cat ushers me in to the kitchen and sits me on a stool by the heater. As she reaches under the sink for a sick bowl I see the others creep past the door.
I dry cough as if I’m going to be sick. Cat ushers me in to the kitchen and sits me on a stool by the heater. As she reaches under the sink for a sick bowl I see the others creep past the door.
"I don’t know what’s wrong."
I cough again and make it last longer this time. She hands me the bowl and glances towards the open door. Hector the Hero is distant. Does this mean the others are still picking the lock?
I cough again and make it last longer this time. She hands me the bowl and glances towards the open door. Hector the Hero is distant. Does this mean the others are still picking the lock?
Cat moves towards the door. And I throw the bowl on the ground. Cat birls round. "Oh Cat I’m sorry."
She stands in front of me. She stares in my eyes and suddenly steps back.
"You are not sick, are you? Where are the others?"
"We have to find out who is playing the music."
"Fools. You don’t know how much danger you are in."
She moves to a fire alarm box above the stove and smashes the glass. The alarm is deafening. I place my hands over my ears but Cat grabs them. I feel warmth from her touch surge into me like a powerful current.
She moves to a fire alarm box above the stove and smashes the glass. The alarm is deafening. I place my hands over my ears but Cat grabs them. I feel warmth from her touch surge into me like a powerful current.
"Bande d'idiots. Vous ne savez pas à quel point vous êtes en danger."
Elle se déplace vers le boîtier d'une alarme incendie au-dessus du poêle et brise la vitre. L'alarme est assourdissante. Je place mes mains sur mes oreilles mais Cat les attrape. Je sens la chaleur de son contact m'imprégner comme un courant puissant.
Elle se déplace vers le boîtier d'une alarme incendie au-dessus du poêle et brise la vitre. L'alarme est assourdissante. Je place mes mains sur mes oreilles mais Cat les attrape. Je sens la chaleur de son contact m'imprégner comme un courant puissant.
"Listen to me, there is not much time. We must end this tonight. I cannot protect you for much longer. Nell is too strong, she must be stopped once and for all. Do as I say and you will be saved. But don’t tell the others. Rose MacLeod, you and I are the only ones who can stop Nell. You must trust me."
Her hands squeeze mine. I’m scared.
Her hands squeeze mine. I’m scared.
"What about Rory? He is a MacLeod too."
Because I know by the way she says my name that my clan is important.
Because I know by the way she says my name that my clan is important.
"It is better to let him go with the others. Do not be afraid. We can do this, you and I."
Her voice holds such trust in me, I have no choice but to return that trust.
Her voice holds such trust in me, I have no choice but to return that trust.
"C'est mieux de le laisser aller avec les autres. N'aie pas peur. Nous pouvons y arriver, toi et moi."
Dans sa voix transparaît une telle confiance que je n'ai pas d'autre choix que de lui donner la mienne.
Dans sa voix transparaît une telle confiance que je n'ai pas d'autre choix que de lui donner la mienne.
The others dash back into corridor. "Come on, the fire alarm," Rory shouts.
As we rush through the corridor to reach the assembly point outside Rory grabs my arm. "We failed. We were almost through the door to the cave when the alarm sounded. We had to come back."
We bound down the front steps to the gravel drive and stop short. There we are, five of us from the West wing and Cat. I look back at the house. No lights are showing in any other part of the house. The twenty-five musicians from the East wing have disappeared.
Nous avons descendu les marches de devant vers le chemin en gravier et nous nous sommes arrêtés net. Nous y sommes, cinq d'entre nous de l'aile Ouest et Cat. Je me retourne vers la maison. Aucune lumière n'est visible dans aucune autre partie de la maison. Les vingt-cinq musiciens de l'aile Est ont disparu.
"What’s going on Nell?" I shout as soon as I spot Nell rushing towards us from the shadow of the house.
"There has been some sort of fire alarm. Cat, did you set the fire alarm off again?"
Cat stands at the bottom of the steps scanning the top of the house as if looking for a sign of fire.
Cat se tient en bas des marches, balayant du regard le haut de la maison comme s'elle cherchait le signe d'un incendie.
"That’s not what I meant ?" I say. I sweep my phone torch around the driveway.
"Where are the East wing students?"
"Where are the East wing students?"
The others gather around me, for either warmth or solidarity, I can’t be sure. The night is still and cold. Stars salt the sky and a sliver of moon hangs high. The alarm suddenly stops and all seems quiet for a moment then I hear the waves crash onto the shore below the cliff and notice Nell breathing hard. She has run here from wherever she has come from. Her hair is tousled giving her a wild look as she searches the gravel for an explanation.
Les autres se rassemblent autour de moi, soit pour la chaleur soit par solidarité, je ne peux pas en être sûre. La nuit est calme et froide. Des étoiles sont comme des grains de sel dans le ciel et un éclat de lune est suspendu. L'alarme s'arrête soudainement et tout semble calme pendant un moment puis j'entends les vagues s'écraser sur le rivage sous la falaise et je remarque que Nell respire fort. Elle a couru jusqu'ici d'où qu'elle vienne. Ses cheveux sont ébouriffés, ce qui lui donne un air sauvage alors qu'elle regarde au sol et semble chercher une explication dans le gravier.
"There was an illness. Yes, there was an illness, a virus and I sent them home."
She nods, happy with her explanation. "You five of course have been isolated so were not affected."
She nods, happy with her explanation. "You five of course have been isolated so were not affected."
Rory coughs, "If that is the case then who is playing Hector the Hero?"
Nell grows tall in her anger, her fists ball up and I’m sure that at any moment steam will erupt from her ears like some cartoon character. Rory takes a step back from her and pushes us behind him with his arm.
Sous l'effet de la colère, Nell grandit, ses poings se gonflent et je suis sûre que d'un moment à l'autre, de la vapeur jaillira de ses oreilles comme un personnage de dessin animé. Rory recule d'un pas et nous pousse derrière lui avec son bras.
"I will have no more of your nonsense. I will make you my special hot chocolate, you will go to bed to sleep and tomorrow you will go home."
"What about the performance?" Allan asks.
She stares at him. "There will be no performance. You are not good enough."
Stella gasps, but I put my hand on her arm to stop her speaking.
"She’s lying. We are good enough," I whisper. "Let’s do as Nell says", I say to everyone. "We’ll soon have Wifi and phones and we can play our set at the next ceilidh7 we go to. Just get this night over with". My mouth is dry from fear. Maybe I should tell Rory that Cat believes we are in danger. But she said I was the only one. I felt a bond through our hands. I have to trust her.
As we make our way to the kitchen Cat grabs my arm and again I feel that surge of power through me.
"Do not drink the drink," she whispers.
"Be ready to act. Let the others follow the music for a while. Do not stop them until you hear the fiddle."
I want to ask her what she means but when I turn she is no longer there.
"Do not drink the drink," she whispers.
"Be ready to act. Let the others follow the music for a while. Do not stop them until you hear the fiddle."
I want to ask her what she means but when I turn she is no longer there.
Alors que nous nous dirigeons vers la cuisine, Cat attrape mon bras et je ressens à nouveau cette puissance me traverser.
"Ne bois pas la boisson," murmure-t-elle.
"Sois prête à agir. Laisse les autres suivre la musique pendant un moment. Ne les arrête pas avant d’entendre le violon."
Je veux lui demander ce qu’elle veut dire mais quand je me tourne, elle n’est plus là.
"Ne bois pas la boisson," murmure-t-elle.
"Sois prête à agir. Laisse les autres suivre la musique pendant un moment. Ne les arrête pas avant d’entendre le violon."
Je veux lui demander ce qu’elle veut dire mais quand je me tourne, elle n’est plus là.
