A Map of the Sky

by Claire Wong

  “Weren’t you supposed to be staying inside?” Maddie asked.

  “No success looking for your sister, I’m afraid,” Bert added.

  “I’ve found her!” shouted Kit, running past them into the hallway.

  “Well, where is she then?” Maddie called after him, but Kit did not stop. He needed to find Sean. A week ago, he would have been the last person Kit trusted to save his sister, but today he had no choice. The birdwatcher and the pilgrim followed him into the building and down the corridor to the room where he had seen the owners of Askfeld last headed. He knocked on the door.

  Sean opened it. “Kit. You’ve been outside.” He looked past him to the others. “Any sign of her?”

  “Yes!” said Kit. “I need your help though. She’s trapped on the cliff and can’t climb back up.”

  “Oh, the poor girl!” Maddie clapped a hand to her mouth. “We have to go and rescue her.”

  “Sean does rock climbing,” Kit explained. “Beth told me. He can help.”

  Sean looked torn.

  “He can’t very well leave Beth alone though, can he?” Bert seemed to say what he was thinking.

  “The doctor’s on his way,” Sean said, “and Beth’s in bed now. She was complaining of bad muscle pains. I can’t leave her. But we can’t leave your sister either.”

  “Let me stay with Beth then,” said Maddie, stepping forward. Sean’s face said that she was not his first choice to watch over his wife. “I know. We haven’t been especially friendly since I got here, but I’ve spent my whole life caring for people. I can keep an eye on Beth until you get back or the doctor arrives. I’m sure it won’t be long.”

  Sean inhaled and nodded, stepping aside to let Maddie into the room. “How far down is your sister stuck?”

  “Not far – I can climb it. But she’s hurt her leg, so she can’t move.”

  “Right.” Sean marched to a store cupboard and opened it. He pulled up a coil of red and black rope and some metal clips. “Can you show me where she is?”

  “Yes, it isn’t far. It’s Beth’s old lookout point.”

  “Bert, you’d better stay here. If Nick and Mrs Fisher return, tell them what’s happened and where we’ve gone.”

  “Right you are,” Bert said in a cheery tone that sounded wobbly, as if he was trying to reassure himself as much as everyone else in the room. He saw them to the door, and then waited in the porchway, watching out for any sign of Catherine coming back. Kit and Sean hurried to the path, Kit leading the way.

  “It’s here,” said Kit, when they came to the spot where the lookout point lay just beyond the trees. “But I usually crawl through the gap under there. I hadn’t thought about how you’d get through.”

  Sean examined the obstacle and then pulled aside some of the branches. He stepped into the gap, leaning his weight against the gorse to hold it back. It was a struggle to push a way through, but he managed to fight his way to the other side. Kit followed, taking his usual path.

  “Jules!” he shouted. “I’ve brought help!”

  He and Sean looked down to see Juliet still huddled on the ledge, white-faced with fear. Sean set about examining the ground and the drop.

  “It’s not far,” he said to Kit, and then shouted down to Juliet, “Can you stand up? We should be able to reach you and pull you back up if you could.”

  Juliet shook her head frantically but said nothing.

  “She can’t move; she’s hurt her leg,” Kit explained.

  “That’s not the main thing keeping her there. She’s terrified. I’ve seen it before. Sometimes climbers suddenly panic and become paralysed. I can climb down to her, but I need you to help her calm down. Talk to your sister, Kit.”

  “What about?”

  “Anything. What will distract her?”

  Kit struggled to think. In recent years, they had found less and less in common to talk about. Juliet always seemed to be focused on her friends or school, neither of which was a good topic to bring up right now. What would make her feel calmer or happier? He was struck by how little he knew his sister.

  “Jules,” he shouted, “I think when Dad gets here, we should take him to that lake we found and see if he can skim stones as well as we can.”

  Juliet buried her head in her drawn-up knees. Kit remembered she blamed herself for their father’s absence, though he did not see how that could be true. Sean had fixed a metal clip in the rock and was now testing that it was secure. He thought again. He thought of his books and his quest to finish the map, but these were his things and would comfort him, not Juliet. What did she love?

  “What music did you listen to in the car this morning?”

  She looked up at him, confused.

  “Come on. Tell me the names of the songs.”

  Juliet paused, and then listed off words and phrases that Kit did not recognize. But the effort of remembering the songs seemed to steady her breathing so that it shook less.

  “Cool. I need to learn more about music. You should teach me. Which of those is the best?”

  This question required more thought. “‘Fire at Night’ is the best one. We used to sing it at the top of our lungs in the common room. But you’d like ‘The Wanderer’s Song’, because it’s an epic hero story.”

  Sean had readied the ropes now and was lowering himself over the ledge.

  “You’re doing well,” he said to Kit. “Keep going.”

  “I like the sound of that. Who’s it by?”

  Juliet shouted back a name, but at that moment the wind picked up again and the sound was carried away along the coast like a gull swept off course.

  “Sean’s almost there now; just hold on! He’s going to help you back up. It’s going to be OK.”

  Kit watched Sean’s feet connect with the ledge where Juliet crouched. He could not hear the words being said, but it was clear that Juliet was still afraid to move. Sean showed her the rope and the metal clips above them in the rock face, presumably explaining that it was safe to climb up with the help of these things.

  Gradually, slowly, Juliet took hold of the rope and let Sean help her to stand up. Most of her weight seemed to be on one leg. The two of them ascended together, and Kit was waiting to grab Juliet’s hand and pull her back over the edge.

  They emerged back onto the path, Juliet leaning on Kit and limping. As they turned north towards the house, they saw Bert, Nick, and their mother running towards them.

  “Oh my goodness, are you all right? What happened?”

  Juliet burst into tears as her mother threw her arms round her.

  “She fell,” Kit explained. The adrenaline ebbed out of him like a retreating tide, and he suddenly became conscious of his grazed elbows and the pounding of his heart in a new wave of retrospective fear at all that had just taken place. He gripped on to the stone wall by the path, needing to feel supported by something solid and unshakeable.

  “Mum, I messed up! My grades are so bad. And you only came here to try to fix the mess I’d made, and I know it’s my fault Dad doesn’t want to be here, and I’m sorry!”

  Their mother gripped Juliet’s shoulders. “That is not your fault. Don’t ever think it is. Your father may not know how to adjust to this, but he wants to be here. We will work this out.” Out here, in the rain, she no longer looked like professional, organized Catherine. She looked like an older version of Juliet. “If anyone’s to blame for this, it’s me. I’m so sorry we didn’t see sooner how unhappy you were. I should have done more to help you.”

  Both of them were crying now. With wet hair plastered across their faces, and in mud-caked shoes, they walked together back to the house, Juliet limping as she leaned against her mother for support.

  “You did the right thing, coming to fetch me,” Sean said to Kit as they followed the others home. “You probably saved your sister from hypothermia or a horrible fall.”

  Did it count? He had not done much for Juliet compared to the weeks he had spent on Beth’s map, or in pursuit of albat
rosses and letters from the children Maddie had left behind. He looked up at Sean striding along with the climbing ropes over his shoulder. It was funny now to think how certain he had been that this man was the villain in his story, and that his wife was the one who needed saving.

  Askfeld came into view. Maddie was in the doorway.

  “Is Beth all right?” Sean demanded.

  “Yes. The doctor’s here and everyone is drinking hot camomile tea. But Sean –”

  “What is it? Is something wrong?”

  “No. She’s not hurt by the fall. But those pains she was complaining of – the doctor says they’re contractions. She’s going into labour.”

  It was Sean’s turn to freeze.

  “Your bags are here for you to take to the hospital.” Maddie pointed to the holdalls she had put in the porch next to the front door. “I’ve sorted everything – you just need to drive her there. And she’s been handling it amazingly. I don’t know if all those years of chronic pain have helped prepare her for this or not, but she’s barely wavered from being calm about it.”

  Sean nodded. “Nick, you’re in charge while we’re gone. Make sure the Fishers have whatever they need. Ask the doctor to take a look at Juliet’s leg before he leaves.”

  “Yes, boss,” Nick grinned. “Don’t worry about any of it. Go take Beth to the hospital. You’re about to become a father.”

  He hugged Sean and pushed him in the direction of the door. Then Nick ushered everyone else into the guests’ lounge to leave the Garsdales in peace. He announced that hot chocolate, compliments of Askfeld, was now needed, and went to make it.

  Catherine sat at the window with Juliet’s head resting on her shoulder. The two of them watched the storm pass by. Kit hung back.

  “I’m so sorry,” she said. Her voice shook. “I’ve been so busy, I never got round to saying any of the things that matter.”

  She extended an arm towards Kit and he joined them by the window. Juliet had stopped crying, but was sniffling as she recovered. Catherine continued, “Just because I work hard, it doesn’t mean you can’t rest, or play, or just be yourselves. I’ve always asked so much of you both. But I need you to know that I love you no matter what you do. Kit, you are allowed to be a child and run around without worrying about other people. And Juliet, you are such a clever, beautiful young woman. I’m sorry for the times it must have felt like I was pushing you to be better, instead of telling you how proud I am of you.”

  Tears streamed down Juliet’s face again. Kit could not think of anything to say, so he put his arms round his mum and sister in a hug, and they sat together like that for some time. Nick returned with mugs of hot chocolate and set them down in front of the Fisher family. It wasn’t the picture of family Kit had been holding on to all summer, but they felt more united right now than they had done in months.

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  THE END OF THE PILGRIMAGE

  MY TO-DO LIST BEFORE THE SCHOOL TERM STARTS:

  1. Practise football in the garden so I’m good enough to join the school team.

  2. Listen to music with Juliet. I’ll let her pick the songs.

  3. Make sure Beth’s OK after having her baby.

  4. Ask Mum if what happened on the cliffs is something to do with Dad not being here.

  5. Find a new quest.

  Kit and his mother drove round to Askfeld the next day to return the clothes Juliet had borrowed. A quietness hung in the corridors after all the noise and confusion of yesterday. It was like returning to an empty theatre when all the performers had gone home. Maddie was the only occupant of the guests’ lounge, sitting with her feet up on a stool, examining an Ordnance Survey map.

  “Nick’s busy with the new guests who arrived this morning,” she said. “How’s your daughter today?”

  “Better for some sleep and something to eat. We’ll find a way through the rest.”

  Maddie nodded as if she understood what “finding a way” would entail for the Fisher family.

  “Are Beth and Sean back yet?” Kit asked, listening out for the telltale wailing of a newborn baby.

  “No. I did hear Nick say that Sean phoned and they were coming home tomorrow. But I may not be around when they do.”

  Kit looked again at the map she was studying. Even in this format, with a pattern of grid squares and tiny printed road names, the shape of the coastline was familiar to him. “Are you finishing your pilgrimage?”

  “Reckon it’s about time. I’ve put it off most of the summer, but I think tomorrow I’ll make the walk to the abbey.”

  “To Whitby Abbey? You decided to stick with the original end point then?” She had seemed so fearful of the end of the journey that Kit had assumed she would find excuses to keep waiting or walking indefinitely.

  Maddie gave a wry smile. “Can’t keep walking for ever, can I? I’ve always known the pilgrimage would come to an end sooner or later and real life would resume. I’ve avoided it long enough, and Whitby’s as good a place as any to put it all to rest.”

  “Can we come with you?”

  “Kit, you can’t just invite yourself along to other people’s plans.” His mother put a restraining hand on his shoulder. “I’m sorry, Maddie; he doesn’t mean to be presumptuous.”

  “Of course he doesn’t. I know that. And I’d be happy for you to come with me. There’s no rule that a pilgrimage has to be undertaken alone. To tell the truth, Mrs Fisher, your children are in part what has inspired me to finish this walk.”

  Catherine looked surprised at this revelation. She gave Kit a questioning look. He just smiled back.

  “I think Juliet would like it,” he said. “We can walk slowly so that she can keep up, even on her hurt foot.” This was enough to sway her, and she told Maddie they’d be delighted to join the walk. While they made arrangements together for a time to set out, Kit took the opportunity to sneak away.

  Beth’s sitting room felt strangely lifeless without her in it. Kit stepped carefully between the overcrowded bookshelves and the table where her watercolours were still balanced. He wanted to see the map. He had neglected to bring Beth anything for it in a while, but he still thought of it as his original quest, and he needed to see what stage it had reached.

  Beth had transferred the sketches and notes to the main map, and it was fuller as a result. She was right: it wasn’t an ordinary map with roads and buildings. He traced the thin line of the Cleveland Way along the coast and the set of footprints leading from Askfeld to the lookout point with the number 423 written to tell the walker how many paces to take. The teardrop-shaped lake was drawn in, but Kit had not seen before the two small figures sketched beside it. One had an arm raised as if in mid-throw, while the other watched a tiny dot bounce along the water’s surface. For skimming stones on still days, the caption read. All over the map were little notes about which season was best for a visit, or places to shelter if a summer’s walk turned stormy, or spots you could only reach during low tide. The sea was teeming with seals and dolphins. And in a broad border all around the edge, Beth had painted the shifting character of the sky: the cloud shapes that heralded a storm from the east, bright sweeps of watercolour for the late golden glow in the west, or in silver ink the glimmering constellation of Orion the hunter with his dog Sirius overhead. It was a map that changed according to the time of year or the weather or your mood.

  Maybe his dad wouldn’t come and see the map, but Kit was proud of the result anyway.

  The following day, they arrived at Askfeld early. Maddie was at the doorway, her rucksack on her shoulders already, a walking pole in her hand. It was funny, Kit thought, that after all the delaying of her journey, she should be so eager and in a hurry to set out this morning.

  They climbed out of the car as their mother enumerated the same inventory of supplies she had packed into the boot only twenty minutes earlier: “Sunscreen, waterproofs, sun hats, snack bars, water bottles, insect repellent…”

  Kit left her to finish her list. Bert steppe
d out of the guest house wearing his outdoor clothes – a pair of binoculars and a heavy camera hanging round his neck and knocking against one another.

  “Hello, Bert! Are you coming with us too?”

  “Thought I might join you, if that’s all right with everyone. I’ve made quite a good start on the article I’m writing, so I thought I’d earned a break and a bit of a walk in the sun.”

  Kit glanced back at his mother. She had only had two conversations with Bert all summer, and both had involved her shouting at him. Would they be able to get along today? She had not heard Bert’s announcement, being busy talking to Juliet.

  “Will you be all right today, love?”

  “I hope so. What if I can’t keep up with everyone else though? I don’t want to be the slowest one.” She tested her weight on her left foot. The doctor had reassured her that nothing was broken.

  Maddie had overheard this. “We won’t be hurrying. The point isn’t to complete the walk quickly. The weather is good and there will be more than enough hours of light for us to take our time. Is everyone ready?”

  They were, so they set out. Maddie led the way. The sea was to their right and the land to their left on the path that led northwards. Once the track was clear, Kit ran ahead of the group. He still loved this feeling of being the first on the road: an intrepid explorer discovering new lands. But then he paused and looked back. Maddie was still walking resolutely on, beating the ground with her walking pole. Behind her, Juliet and their mother walked arm in arm, matching each other’s step. At the back of the group, Bert had stopped to take a photo. Kit ran back past the others to find out what he’d taken.

  “Have you seen something exciting?” he asked. Bert lowered the camera and showed Kit the image on the screen.

  “A couple of gannets, captured in high resolution. Can you hear them squawking at each other?”

  He could. The sound was something between laughter and arguing. But Kit couldn’t think what anyone could have to argue about on a day like this. The sun was out, Maddie was finally finishing her walk, Beth and Sean would be coming home with their baby. Juliet was surely going to be well again if the remainder of the summer was like this. He watched her walking ahead and wondered how he had failed to notice for all those weeks and months how thin and pale she had become. Her T-shirt hung loosely over her torso and her elbows jutted out, all angular bones. Yet today’s sunlight gave her skin a healthier look, and he found it easy to believe she was getting better already. He had only to remember to be kind to her. Beth had seen it, of course, and tried to steer him in the right direction: Sometimes you can be a hero by spotting those closer to home who just need some kindness and encouragement to help them out from under a cloud.