There was no answer. I looked up.
Epsilon’s light shone out onto a picture on the wall.
A round picture in a square frame.
The golden symbol of O. The One. The symbol of perfection.
The symbol of eternity. The One without beginning or end.
The One who is the beginning and the end.
The One to whom time is meaningless. The One who could do whatever he wanted with time. What had Mrs. Shilling said, in the kitchen, a year ago?
“Time is nothing. Not to Him. A moment in time. What is that to him?”
Quivering from head to foot, I stared up at that simple O.
Author’s Note
My thanks go:
To Eunice McMullen and Katherine Tegen—for your belief in Epsilon and your immense hard work for it. With real gratitude.
To William—for making me laugh at all the right times. For being so proud of me. Sometimes, only you will do.
To Catherine, Anne, and Jan—for all that wonderful encouragement from the word go.
To Matt, Alex, and Winona—for trying so hard. For all the cups of tea. To Christopher—for bringing me joy when I so needed it.
To Suzanne Davis—for extraordinary being there. And to Amy—for reading it first.
To staff, past and present, at the Highcliffe Hotel, Sheffield—for letting me sit scribbling in various corners and for all the fun and banter.
To Andy—for always asking. For always caring. Likewise, Tom and all my friends at the Highcliffe.
To Ali-up-the-road—for the cracking good natters and those belly laughs—a most welcome recent addition!
To Brigit—for reading the first chapter and telling me to get on with it.
There are two people who have literally made all this happen. So special thanks go to:
The ever-cheerful Robin. You wrote the flute tune that inspired all this. In addition, you sat for long days puzzling, thinking, reading aloud, being honest, and saying, “It won’t do!” You ruthlessly scrapped 45,000 inferior words. You strengthened me and brought inspiration aplenty. The fact that you cheerfully set aside so many weeks of your time at the age of thirteen is truly extraordinary. If I planted the seed for Epsilon, you were the watering can.
Finally—my husband, Greg. You have held me together when others threatened to crack me apart. All those bacon-butties helped! How you ever put up with me and my haphazard working hours, I don’t know. You have patiently read, edited, and researched so many odd little things for me at the expense of your own work. You helped me see Epsilon as an antidote to the rubbish we were constantly dealing with. You laughed and cried with me during this time. What can I say of you? “A True Companion.”
I am fortunate indeed.
Christine
About the Author
Christine Morton-Shaw spent much of her childhood wandering through old churches, deserted abbeys, and stately homes in Lancashire, England. When she was six years old, she had a recurring dream that she was meeting a girl from Victorian times. The girl always did the same thing in the dream: She would run to the top of a staircase, see Christine, and say in a wobbly voice: “Mother! That little girl is here again!” Then Christine would wake up.
The author has a fascination for any and all clues left by the past. Egyptian hieroglyphics, and her own inventions based on them, kept her occupied during long winters. She considers the scores of published and unpublished diaries that she has read to be one of her greatest influences as a writer.
Christine Morton-Shaw lives with her family in Sheffield, England. She is the author of many picture books for children. THE RIDDLES OF EPSILON is her first novel.
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Credits
Cover art © 2005 by Bernard Maisner
Cover design by Karin Paprock
Copyright
All of the original drawings, maps, charts, and Lumic alphabet in this book were created by Christine Morton-Shaw. However, grateful thanks are given to Neal Packer who rendered the artwork.
THE RIDDLES OF EPSILON. Copyright © 2005 by Christine Morton-Shaw. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Morton-Shaw, Christine.
The riddles of Epsilon / Christine Morton-Shaw.—1st ed.
p. cm.
Summary: After moving with her parents to a remote English island, fourteen-year-old Jess attempts to dispel an ancient curse by solving a series of riddles, aided by Epsilon, a supernatural being.
ISBN-10: 0-06-072821-3 (pbk.)
ISBN-13: 978-0-06-072821-2 (pbk.)
[1. Islands—Fiction. 2. Riddles—Fiction. 3. England—Fiction.] I. Title.
PZ7.M84692Ri 2005 2004014641
[Fic]—dc22 CIP
AC
EPub Edition © January 2010 ISBN: 9780062003157
First Harper edition, 2006
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The Riddles of Epsilon Page 24