Chapter Eleven

A/N: No reviewers.

Upon their return to the camp, the relief had been palpable among the group of students, although it was felt far more strongly by some than with others. They had found Gabriella wandering along the edge of the forest, red-faced and limping but otherwise alright, and the teachers had concluded that it was finally time for everyone to get some hard-earned rest.

That was until they returned to the site, only to find it empty.

The chatter began immediately, Rhiannon Salt among one of the loudest voices around them, but Vix did her best to remain calm. Sue was prone to panicking, she had probably wandered off to get some space. However, there was something strange about her sister searching for space in the middle of an open wood that even she could not deny.

"Alright everyone, calm down." Nikki addressed the crowd, and they quietened at least enough for the teachers to be heard. "It's getting late now and I want you all to go and get some sleep. Mrs. Lowsley has gone to get some more firewood, to make sure all you lot stay warm tonight. I think it's a bit much to launch a mass investigation into it."

The students looked between each other. On one hand, they did not quite believe the cover story Ms. Boston had invented, but on the other hand she did not seem the type to lie.

"Go on, you lot, bed!" Hector exclaimed, shepherding the pupils into their cabins with hand gestures a little too exaggerated to seem normal, even for him. Reluctantly, they seemed to obey, their desire to go to bed after a long day of activities outweighing even Rhiannon's curiosity. Simon waited until the chattering faded completely behind closed doors before he showed his panic.

"Right, I'm going to find her." he announced, already making his way towards the forest. Barely a second later, he heard a voice calling after him, pounding footsteps.

"Si, hang on a sec!" Vix called, as she caught up with him. "I'm coming with you. We'll find her quicker if there's two of us."

"We can't just leave Hector and Nikki alone with that many kids, it's not fair." Simon argued, although he did not try to stop his sister-in-law, knowing that she would probably disobey him even if he did. 'Besides, she's probably right. And the faster we find Sue, the faster we're all back at camp.'

The two walked for a while, trying to stick to the more well-trodden paths on the forest floor, assuming that Sue would have done the same. She may not have been the worldliest person, but her training as a flight attendant had given her some survival skills. Certainly enough to keep her safe until they reached her- or so they hoped.

Sighing with frustration, Vix pulled out her phone, intending to use the torch to supplement Simon's and hopefully give them a clearer idea of where they were going. She unlocked the device then stared at the screen, her mouth dropping open slightly at the notification. Three missed calls, all of them from Sue. Her fingers shaking slightly, Vix tapped her way through to her voicemail and played the message, switching her phone to speaker mode when she caught her brother-in-law staring at her.

"Vixie, it's Sue. I went off to look for Gabriella, but now I've got lost. I don't know where I am, I don't have a torch, I don't know how to make my way back to camp. I'm scared, Vixie, I don't know what to do. Please help me. Please."

Vix met Simon's eye, trying to conceal her own anguish. 'If I'd answered my phone, we might have been able to help her. We might have found her quicker. Now who knows where she is?'

"Right, so she's definitely out here somewhere." Simon reasoned, his voice calm and steady. Either he was a very good actor or he did not have the same extent of imagination about what could have happened to Sue; Vix was not quite sure which option was the better one. "The question is, how do we find her?"

"Call her." Vix responded, after pausing for a few seconds. She could have slapped herself for not thinking of such a simple solution earlier. Simon nodded, pulling his phone from his pocket and keying the number into his speed dial. The phone began to ring, the first relief being that at least Sue was sensible enough to keep the device well charged, but there was no answer. Simon tried again, then Vix did the same. Nothing.

"Do you think we should just give up and go back?" Vix suggested, holding her jacket closer around herself. The wind was beginning to pick up, sending shivers of cold down her spine. Simon looked aghast at the suggestion and Vix released the jacket to hold up her hands in surrender. "I didn't mean just leave her out here, she'd probably catch pneumonia if she was out here all night. I meant go back, find some maps, maybe get Nikki or Hector to come and help us look too. Searching won't help if we don't know where we're meant to be looking."

"Alright." Simon sighed, slowing his forward steps and eventually coming to a stop, supporting himself on a nearby branch as he tried to catch his breath. He hadn't realised how long they had been looking for, how long they'd walked; for a moment the man wondered if they would be able to find their way back. "Just let me try phoning her one more time."

Vix nodded her assent as Simon brought the phone to his ear. As it had before, the device continued to ring with no sign of an answer, but for some reason it sounded different, like an echo. It took the two a moment to realise the sound was Sue's ringtone, coming from somewhere below them.

"Sue!" Vix exclaimed, making her way towards the edge of a large slope. She almost expected to find Sue sat at the bottom, huddling her coat around her for warmth, but instead the glow of her phone screen revealed her sister, crumpled on the ground, her red hair spread around her like a halo and her body cold and still.

A/N: Sorry for the slight cliffhanger guys, especially after so long, but I promise it'll be updated soon, with plenty of drama to come! Please review!