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Seals or Swimming Cows
Amy raised her hand to shield her eyes from the sun, which had chosen that moment to break through the scattered clouds and now hung dazzlingly bright in the sky. She couldn’t see anything. Where were they?
Then she heard it. A dog, whining.
‘That’s it — that’s Jen. Where is she? It sounds like it’s coming from … over there!’
The sound was coming from the heart shaped rocks where the patient dog in the story had waited for his drowned master. She started to run towards the water.
‘Harry! Oliver! Where are you?’ she yelled.
‘Oh! Mam, there you are. I knew you’d be coming.’ Harry appeared from behind the rocks, running towards her, but there was no sign of Oliver.
‘Where’s Olly?’ Matt called out, his breath coming in ragged gasps.
‘He’s under the rocks. He’s scared and he won’t come out again.’ Harry came bounding over the tussocky grass towards them.
‘What do you mean?’ Amy asked, even as Matt strode past her to the rocks, where now she knew what to look for, she could see Oliver huddled in the heart-shaped space beneath them, with Jen the dog sitting patiently beside him, her chin resting against his knees.
‘Harry, what’s going on? Why is Oliver so scared?’
‘Scared of the ghosts,’ Harry muttered, almost inaudibly.
‘And why would Oliver be scared of the ghosts?’ she asked.
‘Because he saw them,’ Harry whispered, his face drawn. ‘He saw them in the water, and one of them was his mummy.’
‘You didn’t tell him any of this did you?’ she asked suspiciously, and instantly regretted it. He shook his head vehemently.
‘No. I didn’t want to see them. Oliver got scared and wouldn’t come out of the rocks in case they were there. I tried to help him. I told him it was all a story, but he wouldn’t come. I didn’t know what else to do, so, we waited.’
‘Why didn’t you come back and get us?
‘I didn’t want to leave him on his own. He was scared, and you told us to stay together, so we did.’ Matt had gone over to the rocks to talk to the huddled figure of Oliver.
‘Were you scared too, Harry?’
‘Maybe … just a little bit …’ he admitted.
‘Oh Harry! This wouldn’t have happened if you’d told me what you were doing! Why did you come all the way up here without permission?’ Laurie stepped forwards.
‘But I did have permission!’ Harry protested. ‘You said I could!’
‘I most certainly did not,’ Laurie said, looking shocked. ‘It’s naughty to tell lies, Harry. No sticker for you, and if you don’t get all your stickers, you won’t go to Florida, will you?’
‘I’m not telling lies. You said we could go and find Jen!’ A gust of wind ruffled the surface of the tarn and blew Harry’s hair into his eyes.
‘I didn’t know you meant you were taking a dog for a walk, coming up to a dangerous place like this! I thought Jen was a person on the campsite. You should have explained more carefully; you didn’t tell me what you were doing. Anything could have happened to you!’ Laurie’s hair, usually immaculate, was being teased by the gentle wind too, strands blowing across her face.
‘I did tell you what I was doing. I said I was going to find Jen. It’s not my fault you didn’t know Jen was a dog — I thought everybody knew that,’ he said with a roll of his eyes.
‘Harry, that’s a little bit rude. James, aren’t you going to say something?’ Laurie turned to James, standing beside her quietly.
‘I think in this case perhaps Harry did his best, don’t you think?’ James said. ‘He did tell you where he was going. How was he to know you didn’t understand?’
‘But I … James!’ she gasped in surprise. ‘You told me Harry’s behaviour had to improve. You’re undermining me, and I’ve tried so hard.’ Her eyes were brimming with tears — whether it was emotion of the wind blowing the strands of hair into them, Amy couldn’t be sure.
‘I don’t mean to. But in this case, we found the boys, they’re safe and well, and that’s the important thing, isn’t it?’ he said, as Matt brought Oliver, pale, and holding tight to his hand, back down from the stones, with Jen walking beside him on the lead.
