Weak with relief, Nicola slid off Quicksilver's saddle on to the snow and leaned back against his warm, feathery flank. She looked down at her arm and saw blood seeping through a tear in her jacket and jumper.
Sean got to Nicola first.
'That's a massive bite,' he said admiringly.
'Press this against it.' Greta pulled a crisp white hanky from her pocket. 'Just make sure you wash it before I get it back. Actually you might have to buy me a new one.'
'Is that an ambulance I hear?' asked Shimlara. 'That's good luck!'
'It's not an ambulance,' said Tyler. 'It's a person!' He pointed towards a figure jogging purposefully out of the woods. She was wearing a pair of blue overalls with the words BITER WOUND BRIGADE embroidered on the front and a large satchel slung over her shoulder. A flashing blue light was attached to her forehead by a headband. As she got closer, everyone clapped their hands over their ears. The woman switched the siren off.
'Hello there. Sorry about the noise. I'm so used to it I forget it's rather loud. I'm Barbie. What have we got here?'
Barbie knelt down beside Nicola and lifted her arm. 'You poor thing.'
Nicola stared up at her. There was something about Barbie. It had to do with the little 'v' shape between her eyes when she frowned.
Something important.
The pain from her arm whirled around her head.
'Horseradish,' said Nicola.
No, that wasn't the word she'd meant to say.
'I beg your pardon?' said Barbie.
Nicola felt as though someone was rolling her up in a big blanket of nothingness.
Everything went black.
23
Nicola was deliciously warm. She was lying somewhere soft and comfortable. There was something toasty hot near her feet. A hot-water bottle? Was she back home in her own bed on Earth?
Nicola's eyes fluttered open and the first thing she saw was an open window revealing a bright splash of overlapping rainbows. She was still on Shobble.
She was wearing her pyjamas and lying in bed in a small room with wooden floorboards. The walls were blank except for one picture of an imposing mountain. Underneath the picture was the caption: Summer's morning, the Cloud-Capped Mountain, Shobble.
That's where Topaz was. Would they ever reach her? It already felt like weeks since they'd left Enrico's mansion, when in fact it was only . . . this morning? Nicola looked out the window confusedly. Or was it a new day?
The door to her room burst open and in came Shimlara carrying a tray laden with food.
As Nicola pushed herself up to a sitting position Shimlara placed the tray on the bed in front of her and said, 'How are you feeling?'
Nicola pushed back her pyjama sleeve and saw that there was a white gauze bandage wrapped neatly around her upper arm. Apart from a dull ache, it didn't hurt much at all.
'Barbie had to give you ten stitches,' said Shimlara. 'Luckily you were already unconscious.'
'Where are we?' Nicola picked up the spoon and began to eat something that looked like porridge and tasted of cinnamon and apple.
'We're at the Why Not Drop Inn,' said Shimlara.
'And we got here last night?' asked Nicola. It was such a strange feeling knowing that all these things had happened around her. It was like falling asleep halfway through a movie.
There was a knock on the door.
'Come in,' said Nicola.