The Island: The addictive new YA thriller from the Sunday Times bestselling author of STRANGERS

by C. L. Taylor

  Meg raises a hand. ‘I’m up for seeing if there’s anyone else here.’

  ‘And me,’ I say.

  Jefferson shakes his head. ‘There are jobs that need doing.’

  Danny raises his eyebrows in disbelief. ‘You’re kidding? There could be another group of people on this island who are setting traps for us and you think we should stay here and mend nets and chop firewood?’

  ‘I do, yes. Our survival is paramount.’

  ‘Which is why we need to find out if we’re alone here or not! Look how freaked out all the girls are.’

  ‘Hello?’ I point at myself. ‘Not this girl.’

  Meg glares at him. ‘Me neither.’

  ‘Fine. But if there are other people here they’ve obviously been listening to our conversations, like the one about our phobias the other night.’

  ‘Why obviously?’ I ask.

  ‘Well, not obviously…’ Danny corrects himself. ‘We don’t know what they’ve seen or heard.’

  ‘Oh God, Danny, don’t.’ Honor digs herself further under his arm.

  Jeffers rolls his eyes. ‘Now who’s freaking her out?’

  ‘I just think,’ Danny sighs, ‘that that we need to check.’

  ‘And we can do it tomorrow, when we’ve got some water to take with us.’

  Danny glances at the empty water bottles lying in the sand and shrugs. ‘There’s nothing to stop us getting water en route. Fine, fine,’ he adds as Jeffers’ lips part in objection. ‘We’ll go tomorrow.’

  Jeffers turns to look at me. ‘I don’t suppose you managed to catch any fish before all this,’ he waves an arm in Milo’s direction, ‘kicked off?’

  I glance back at the rocks, where I abandoned my spear. But there’s nothing there.

  Chapter 12

  DANNY

  Danny waits until Jeffers – who’s walking along the beach towards the rocks, berating Jessie for leaving the spear there – is out of earshot, then he beckons Meg closer.

  ‘I vote we just go and explore,’ he hisses. ‘I don’t know who Jeffers thinks voted him Camp Commander but it definitely wasn’t me. I say we do what we want.’

  Meg glances at Milo, still sitting on the sand by the fire. ‘Someone needs to look after him.’

  ‘I don’t mind staying with him.’ Honor wriggles out from under Danny’s arm and drops to the sand opposite Milo.

  Danny falters. He’s not sure about leaving Honor alone with Milo. But if he changes his mind and stays in the camp it’ll look like he’s accepted that Jeffers is their leader and there is no way he’s letting that power-hungry idiot feel like he’s got one over him. Leave it is, then.

  ‘See you later, dude,’ he says to Milo, who’s staring out to sea with his hands wrapped around his ankle and a pained expression on his face.

  ‘And you, behave yourself!’ He shoots Honor a look, then, seeing Meg raise her eyebrows, he softens his tone. ‘Love you.’

  When Honor doesn’t reply his heart twists in his chest, but he doesn’t say anything. Instead he leans down to kiss Honor goodbye then scoops a water bottle up out of the sand. ‘Let’s go to the waterfall first,’ he says to Meg. ‘This could be a bit of a trek.’

  ‘What was that all about?’ Meg shoots him a look as they kneel by the spring, screwing the tops back onto their water bottles. They’ve only been trekking through the jungle for ten minutes and they’re both knackered. There was a moment when they first set off when he considered telling her about the cobra, and how close Milo had been to being bitten – and possibly dying – but he decided against it. Jefferson obviously hadn’t seen the snake. If he had he’d have made a big song and dance about it when they got back to camp, pointing it out in his guide book and scaring them all half to death. No, Danny had decided, better to keep quiet and not add to the hysteria. And besides, he liked knowing something Jefferson didn’t. For a change.

  He presses a hand to his stomach as it rumbles angrily. All he’s had to eat since Anuman cooked them the fish is a handful of crisps and a few boiled sweets.

  ‘What was what all about?’ he asks Meg.

  ‘Your comment to Honor about behaving herself. What’s going on?’

  He stiffens. Has Honor said something to her? They have been hanging around together a lot this holiday.

  ‘Nothing.’ He shrugs. ‘Why?’

  ‘Why tell her to behave herself? What do you think she’s going to do – stick her tongue down Milo’s throat?’

  ‘No,’ he says. Honor wouldn’t do something like that. And there’s no way Milo would kiss her back. ‘Nothing like that. I just…’ he says uncertainly. ‘Sometimes I get the feeling she has more fun when I’m not around.’

  Meg shrugs. ‘Maybe she does. A different kind of fun,’ she adds before Danny can respond. ‘You can’t live in each other’s pockets all the time. It’s not healthy.’

  ‘Has she said something to you?’

  ‘No, it’s just…’ She pauses. ‘It’s just an observation. From an outsider.’

  So he’s not imagining it, things aren’t right between them this holiday, but it’s weird that Honor hasn’t mentioned anything to Meg. Normally she’d be the first person Honor would turn to. Unless… he tries to push the thought away but it remains firmly lodged in his head… unless she was too scared to say anything in case it got back to him.

  ‘Is everything all right?’ Meg asks.

  ‘Everything’s fine between us,’ he lies. ‘Honor would have told you if it wasn’t.’

  They set off again, trudging uphill, following the path of the waterfall, neither of them speaking, both of them searching the jungle floor for any more hidden pits. Danny looks up into the thick green canopy above and mentally shakes himself. It’s beautiful in the middle of the jungle with the birds singing in the trees, the cicadas chirping and the geckos and lizards speeding across his path and hiding under frond-like leaves. He thinks of his dad, sitting on the sofa at home with Sarah, his new girlfriend, and wonders how they’re getting on. They’ve only been together a few months. His dad’s crap at dating. Since his mum, he hasn’t been able to hold on to anyone for more than six months. They all leave him eventually. He definitely doesn’t want to end up like his dad.

  ‘What do you reckon?’ Meg says as they reach the top of the waterfall. ‘I figure if there’s a beach on this side of the island we’ll find the other one if we keep walking in a straight line.’

  Danny swigs at his water bottle. ‘That makes sense.’

  ‘Crap,’ Danny says, stopping suddenly and resting his hand on the gnarled trunk of a palm tree. ‘I think we’ve walked in a circle. I swear we’ve been here before.’

  Meg, panting, puts her hands on her hips and stares around. ‘Do you? It all looks the same to me.’

  ‘Yeah, look, there’s that branch we said looked like an elephant’s trunk.’

  ‘Oh God, you’re right.’ She sighs heavily. ‘Which way did we go last time, can you remember?’

  Danny checks for a break in the leaves or footprints on the jungle floor but there’s nothing. It’s as though whenever they force their way through the jungle the plants fold themselves back over the path.

  ‘We should have left a breadcrumb trail,’ Meg says.

  Danny gives her a look. ‘Didn’t Hansel and Gretel end up in a witch’s lair when they did that?’

  ‘Can we stop for a bit? I’m knackered.’

  Danny pauses to look back at Meg. She’s bent double, her hands on her knees, her empty water bottle swinging from her fingers. He’s not sure how long ago they ran out of water but his mouth’s so dry he could use his tongue as a pumice stone on his scabby feet.

  ‘Yeah, sure.’ He drops down and rests his back against a palm tree. After a pause Meg does the same.

  They stare at each other for a couple of seconds then Danny sighs heavily. ‘We’re lost.’

  ‘Should we shout? If the others are close by they might hear us?’

  ‘Jeffers would love that, u
s needing to be rescued.’

  Meg plucks a wide, flat leaf from a bush and uses it to fan herself. ‘What’s your problem with him?’

  ‘Other than the fact he’s been an annoying dick all holiday? I just don’t like being told what I can and can’t do.’

  ‘But you’re happy telling Honor what to do.’

  He raises his eyebrows. That came out of nowhere. Or did it? He’s seen Meg taking enough swipes at her brother this holiday. But then they’re all getting a bit snippy with each other because everyone’s tired and hungry and fed up. The only person who hasn’t had a go at him is Milo, although even he was a bit off when Danny asked him how he felt about Jessie. Being disliked isn’t something Danny’s ever really experienced before. As a kid at primary school he had a massive gang of friends. Other kids would always shout hello on the walk home, prompting his mum to nudge him and whisper, ‘Say hello back, Danny.’

  ‘Never mind me and Honor,’ he says now. ‘What’s going on with you? I’ve seen the way you look at Milo and Jessie.’ He imitates Meg’s narrow-eyed glare.

  ‘Wow.’ She raises her eyebrows. ‘Deflecting your own issues with a bit of stirring, are we?’

  ‘No. Are you?’

  She laughs. ‘Touché! For what it’s worth I haven’t got a problem with Jessie. I don’t want her to get hurt, that’s all. Milo’s playing with her. He thinks he’s being the nice guy, giving her loads of attention because of what she went through, but he’s leading her on. If he carries on the way he is she’s going to get her heart broken. And anyway…’ she tails off deliberately.

  Danny gives her a long look. ‘Anyway what?’

  ‘He’s in love with someone else.’

  ‘Who?’

  Meg’s lips part as though she’s about to reply then she holds up a hand and presses a finger to her mouth, gesturing for him to listen.

  A slow smile forms on his face and he punches the air. ‘It’s the waterfall. Thank God for that!’

  Silence greets them when they return to camp. Milo, Honor and Jessie are lying in the shelter, eyes closed, seemingly asleep. The fire is blazing but there’s no fish roasting above it, just a pan full of bubbling water. Sitting next to the fire, resting on his rucksack and hacking at the end of a long branch, is Jeffers. He raises an eyebrow at Danny and Meg as they glug at the water bottles they refilled at the waterfall.

  ‘Well?’

  Danny wipes his hand over the back of his mouth then screws the top back on the bottle. ‘We didn’t make it across to the other side of the island.’

  ‘Get lost, did you?’

  ‘No,’ Danny says as Meg says, ‘Yes.’

  ‘Find anything interesting?’

  ‘Not particularly,’ Meg replies, ‘but we had to look. It’s suspicious, isn’t it? First the boat cord…’ Danny looks over at the boat, gently bobbing at the edge of the sea, ‘and then the trap. Didn’t Jessie’s spear go missing, too?’

  Jeffers shrugs. ‘Probably got swept out on the tide.’ He nods at the piece of wood in his hands. ‘I’m making another one. Someone has to if we want to eat.’

  ‘For God’s sake,’ Milo’s voice rings out of the shelter. ‘Stop being such a bloody martyr, Jefferson. We’re all doing our bit.’ He inclines his head towards Jessie and Honor snoozing beside him. ‘They haven’t eaten either and you didn’t hear either of them bitching and moaning when they got back from setting up the fishing net.’

  Danny exhales softly. He can’t remember Milo ever snapping at Jeffers before. Or anyone really, other than his sister. He’s not sure if it’s the sun, hunger, worry or if something else is bugging him.

  ‘We know you’ve got more food in your rucksack but did you offer it to the girls?’ Milo adds. ‘Did you hell.’

  ‘They’re emergency rations,’ Jefferson snaps, ‘and we’re not there yet. You’ll thank me when we are.’

  ‘What do you mean “we’re not there yet”? I’d say we’re absolutely bloody there. Everyone’s hungry, Jeffers. They’re tired. I’m tired.’

  ‘I get it. But there’s food for the taking on this island. We can scavenge, fish and hunt. A few pieces of biltong aren’t going to fill you up.’

  ‘No? I bet you take some with you when you sneak off into the forest when the rest of us aren’t looking. I wouldn’t be surprised if you set the trap. Hoping to land yourself a boar, were you, so you could lug it back on your shoulders like some kind of action hero?’

  ‘Milo.’ Meg gives him a sharp look. ‘Dial it down.’

  ‘No, no.’ Jeffers holds his hands up then gets to his feet. ‘Carry on venting, Milo, but I’m sick of listening. You guys obviously think I’m a joke. So do what you want. I’ve given up caring.’

  Danny stares after him as he storms off down the beach, spear and knife in one hand, machete in the other, his rucksack slung over his back.

  ‘Jefferson!’ Meg shouts after him. ‘Jeffers, come back!’

  It’s dark when Meg returns to the camp and plonks herself down on the sand next to her brother.

  ‘Well done,’ she says. ‘He’s not coming back. He’s set up his own camp.’

  Milo groans. ‘I shouldn’t have had a go. I was tired but I couldn’t sleep because my ankle was hurting and the sand flies were doing my head in. I’ll go and talk to him and say I’m sorry.’

  ‘No. Don’t. He wants to be left alone tonight. Go and find him in the morning. He’s over by the rocks.’ She points to the right. ‘There, but further back, in the jungle.’

  Jessie gets to her feet. ‘I’m going to find him. Seriously, no one should be alone out here.’

  Honor gets to her feet too. ‘I’m coming with you.’

  The guilt Danny’s been feeling ever since Jeffers left builds to boiling point and he reaches for her hand.

  ‘I’ll come too. Part of the reason I went into the jungle with Meg was to wind him up. I’ll talk him into coming back.’

  ‘Oh my God!’ Meg starts to laugh. ‘You lot are such a bunch of divas. Sit down! Seriously, Jeffers is fine. He just wants a bit of headspace. A few hours alone. He’ll be fine in the morning.’

  Danny frowns. ‘I dunno.’

  ‘Seriously, Dan, if you go over there you’ll just piss him off. He wants to be alone for a night. Guys, he’ll be fine, honestly. Now, is there any fruit at all, anywhere? I’m starving.’

  Danny is so tired he feels sick but, no matter how much he shuffles around in the shelter, he can’t get comfy. The banana leaf mattress that was such a novelty on the first night now feels thin and unwieldy. His sleeping bag smells of smoke and damp and he’s sweating his arse off. He’d be cooler if he slept in his clothes but the bag is the only protection he’s got against the sand crabs that scuttle across the beach in the night and the flies, mosquitos and midges that buzz in his ear when he’s trying to sleep.

  Three more nights, he tells himself as he tightens the toggles of his sleeping bag around his face. Just three more nights and then a boat will speed across the sea and whip them off the island and take them back to a comfortable hotel, breakfast buffets, warm showers and clean clothes.

  Honor’s scream rips through Danny’s dream, jolting him awake. He sits up, heart pounding and stares into the darkness, confused and disorientated. The fire is out and all he can see is moonlight, dancing over the dark waves. He blinks, caught between a dream and reality, trying to make sense of his surroundings, but the screaming doesn’t stop. If anything it intensifies, filling his ears and piercing his brain, making him squint in pain. Something hits him clean in the chest and he recoils, twisting his body away as he’s hit again and again and again. The pain makes the fog in his brain clear and he raises a hand, shielding himself from his girlfriend’s whirring arms. She’s lying on the ground beside him, eyes closed, lips moving, but nothing she’s saying makes any sense.

  ‘Honor! You’re having a nightmare. It’s OK, I’m—’

  Danny’s breath catches in his throat. Scuttling all over his girlfriend’s bo
dy are dozens of tarantulas the size of his hand.

  ‘What’s going on?’ Jessie asks groggily from behind him. ‘Why’s Honor screaming? What’s happening?’

  The others are awake too and shouting out in confusion. As Danny desperately swipes at his girlfriend’s body, knocking the spiders off her sleeping bag, he hears Milo crawling out of the shelter and fumbling in the dark.

  ‘What are you doing?’ Danny hisses.

  ‘Trying to find a torch.’

  ‘I think Jeffers took it.’

  ‘Oh for God’s—’

  Adrenaline courses through Danny’s body as he continues to push, shove and flick spiders off his girlfriend as she thrashes about, still trapped in her nightmare. When they’re all gone he wraps his arms around her and pulls her close. Her eyelids flicker and she blinks up at him.

  ‘Danny, why are you looking at me like that? What’s happened? What’s going on?’

  He shakes his head wordlessly.

  ‘Tell me!’

  ‘Dude,’ Milo says from the just outside the shelter. ‘You looked like you were beating her up.’

  ‘I… I…’ Danny shakes his head. ‘I was getting rid of…’ He pauses. If he tells Honor the truth she’ll refuse to sleep in the shelter again.

  ‘Tell me!’ She pulls herself out of his arms and sits up. ‘Tell me what’s going on.’

  He shakes his head, closes his eyes tightly, trying to block out the image of the fat hairy spiders with their bulbous bodies and their long, furry legs, scuttling and creeping and crawling all over her.

  ‘Danny, tell me or we’re over.’

  ‘Spiders,’ he breathes. ‘They were all over you and—’

  The rest of his sentence is obliterated by her scream.

  Chapter 13

  JESSIE

  Day four on the island

  The next morning, watching carefully where we step, we search every inch of the shelter and the surrounding area.

  ‘Nothing here,’ Milo says decisively, standing straight and rubbing at his lower back. ‘Dan, you must have scared them away.’