Over the weeks that followed the meeting, nothing changed. They all looked in the same places, just as they always had, and came up with the same result. Nothing. Leo had continued to work on his mother and had managed to persuade her that a trip to the Lake District was a good idea for all of them, including his friends.

Kaira had managed to persuade her father with ease, since he was barely home anyway. Dorian’s parents were a little trickier, but they caved when Dorian had pointed out that it would be outside, and they were always encouraging him to leave the house. Bailey, her parents were the hardest to persuade. Not even the guilt card had worked. She managed to get the ok from them if she agreed to several conditions including calling home each night, Leo’s mum sharing a full itinerary of the trip and (apparently) buying a gift for each of them out of Bailey’s own pocket money. But Kaira called her bluff and she confessed to using that as a carrot to sweeten the deal.

As the sun rose on the first Saturday of half term, they had set off on the way to the Lake District. Conversations about favourite films and mundane car games helped pass the time as they fought to keep their minds on anything but how uncomfortable they all were. The sun stayed and kept watch on them all day, its view scuppered only by a few clouds that drifted along the late autumn breeze, which also caused trees to wave at the aging red car as it rattled past.

‘How long do we have left?’ Leo asked, about three hours into them doing their best sardine impression.

‘Just a little while to go,’ Leo’s mum answered, focused on the thinning, winding roads.

Stretching on and on, the land reached as far as the eye could see. Hills cascaded above one another before disappearing in the distance, their colours ranging from the rich greens of the grass, to dark grey as rock took over. Hills, however, were not behind the area's name, and as Leo stared out of his window into the dying light, he and his friends were greeted by huge, still lakes that dominated the scene and dwarfed the surrounding bushes and trees.

Concrete gave way to gravel, and the gravel eventually gave way to a muddy track as Leo’s mum navigated their car off the well-travelled road and down country lanes that could only aspire to the smooth curves of their metropolitan counterparts. The suspension moaned every time Leo’s mum tried to miss the potholes that had become nigh on impossible to see, the trees’ shadows having taken advantage of the fading sun to form one dark cloak.

‘Where are we staying?’ Leo asked, the never-ending tree line reminiscent of a cartoon reoccurring background.

‘I’ve got us a small cottage at the top of a hill,’ she replied, as branches stroked against the side of the car as though they had not seen anything new in years and wanted them to stay for just a little longer, ‘I've a feeling you’ll like it.’

‘I’ve heard that before,’ Leo smirked, thinking back to some of the holidays they had been on and the very questionable places they had stayed in, ‘I bet the place is full of character.’

‘It’ll be full of one less character if you don’t drop the sass.’

Those in the back giggled as the tree strokes finally ceased as they passed through a gate that hung ajar, dangling by its final few screws.

Ahead of them, Leo spotted a large, isolated house on the hillside, its only companion being a tree that towered over the building and was only slightly slimmer in width.

‘No way is that where we’re staying!’

‘Has it got enough character for you?’ Leo’s mum tried to hide her smile as she continued up the winding, bumpy track.

‘Yes, Asena!’ Kaira beamed, looking through the windscreen from the middle as Dorian and Bailey leant in to glimpse their temporary home.

A fire seemed to be ablaze in the sky. Rich reds and oranges met yellows and light blues before finally disappearing into the abyss above them, causing their new house to be cast in a mixture of colours.

‘Red sky at night, shepherd’s delight,’ said Bailey, as the car gave an audible sigh of relief as the ignition was switched off.

‘I wonder why?’ Leo pondered aloud.

‘Maybe it means that no more blood is to be taken now the day is done. And in the morning, it’s a warning that blood will be spilt that day,’ Dorian speculated.

‘Or maybe it’s just an old saying about the weather. Let’s not get carried away, Dors,’ Kaira sighed, pushing him out of the door so she could spring out and stretch off.

The wind around them was still. The breeze Leo associated with the top of a hill was non-existent as they dragged their bags up to the house and placed them in front of the large oak doors.

‘This feels weird,’ Bailey said, waiting for Leo’s mum to find the key inside a coded box to the right of the door.

‘I guess that means we’re on the right track?’ whispered Kaira, looking back the way they had come. The only light around was the one that sped through the valleys at the foot of the hill, a small hoot escaping a train as it went through a tunnel.

‘I guess this expels any doubts about this being the right place,’ Dorian said, running his finger over the door panels.

As Leo looked closer, he could see that he was tracing over some small writing that had been etched into the wood.

Libero

‘Does that mean we've found it?’ Leo asked, now nervous about what awaited them on the other side of the door, ‘what if that means Sam's in there?’

‘What if it means that whoever took him is inside?’ Kaira braced herself and clenched her fists.

‘Well, that wasn’t on the description. Best take a photo of it in case they try to claim we did it,’ Leo’s mum said, as she took a photo of the etched word.

After pocketing her phone, Leo’s mum went to open the door. Leo’s heart jumped at the immediacy of it, so he looked at his friends. Kaira looked ready for a battle, while Bailey and Dorian had a confused look as if to say, what's going on?

‘Mum, wa …’

Before Leo could do anything, his mum had unlocked the door and allowed it to creak open into a dimly lit hallway that was paved with large, dusty white tiles.

Before any of the kids could stop her, Leo’s mum walked inside and was carefully followed by the rest of them, each of them straining their ears for any kind of noise.

None came.

‘Well, so far, so good. There have been no weirdos, bar Leo, and it looks a great place to stay. We’re doing alright,’ Kaira observed.

‘That’s the spirit! So, this place has three rooms. I have the biggest one, and now it is boys versus girls to find out who has whatever is left.’

The four of them looked at each other before simultaneously running up the stairs. Kaira was first up and ran into the bedroom on the left with Dorian hot on her heels. Leo rushed into the room on the right, finding a narrow room with two single beds on either side, separated by a window at the opposite end to the door.

‘Take that one, Kaira!’ Bailey shouted, peering over Leo's shoulder.

‘SHOT GUN!’ Kaira’s voice echoed, gleefully.

Once Dorian and Leo had started unpacking, Leo found himself distracted by the faint sound of metal tinkling together to create a delicate melody. Curious to see where it was coming from, Leo placed his hands against the window and looked over the dark countryside at the back of the house.

As his eyes adjusted, he scanned the land around them, looking firstly into the garden below, and then up the adjacent hill where he spotted the source of the music. Sitting at the peak was a windmill, which was surrounded by small wind chimes that reflected the faint light of the moon.

‘Dors, come look at this.’

‘What is it?’ Dorian asked, gliding between the beds to join Leo in placing his hands against the cool glass.

‘Look over there. At the top of the hill on the left.’

Dorian squinted his light brown eyes that always managed to see everything, no matter the distance.

‘The windmill?’

‘Yeah, the windmill! Do you remember what that letter said? ‘You will find where I stay atop a hill by the biggest of lakes, the mill is unmistakable and you will hear the sound that it makes,’’ Leo recalled, ‘that’s got to be what it’s talking about!’

‘It’s certainly worth having a look,’ agreed Dorian.

‘Cool! I’ll tell the others,’ Leo said excitedly, starting towards the door just as Dorian gripped his arm.

‘You’re not thinking about going tonight, are you?’

‘Why not?’

‘Look outside! If that is the right place, then who in their right mind would approach it in the dark?’

Leo looked back out the window. Nothing but the place they were staying in accompanied the windmill for miles around.

‘What are you two staring at?’ Bailey asked from the doorway.

‘Leo wants to visit that windmill,’ Dorian said, as she squeezed herself in-between them.

‘Ok. We’ll tell your mum, and we can go first thing tomorrow.’

‘He wants to go tonight,’ said Dorian disapprovingly, and Bailey added an eye roll to compliment his words.

‘What's the point of waiting? The more we wait, the likelier it is that this chance will disappear.’

‘Leo, we’ve come all this way with you. We have followed a random letter left to you by who even knows who. But going up to some creepy-looking windmill in the dead of night isn't exactly something I’m keen on doing. That's how everyone gets killed in the movies.’

‘But it's just up the hill! We could be there and back in under an hour. Before my mum even knows we’ve gone.’

‘Wait, you want us to go without your mum?’ Dorian almost laughed.

‘Why not? There's no point worrying her. We'll see what’s there and let her know what we found in the morning. Where’s Kaira?’

‘She wanted to be alone for a bit. I don’t think she’ll be wanting to go tonight either,’ whispered Bailey, her light brown eyes fixed out the window.

‘Fine. If you guys don’t want to come, you can wait here. I’m done with not knowing what's happened to Sam.’

Bailey eyed him with an exasperated look.

‘Suit yourself, Leo. But do not forget that we’ve come all this way for you. Don’t do something foolish,’ she said, getting up and leaving the room.

‘She’s got a point.’

Words went unspoken as time ticked on. Leo remained motionless on his bed as he waited for the right time to sneak outside. His mother had come to wish them a goodnight before returning to her room, and from the sounds of the light snoring drifting down the hallway, she was now fast asleep.

It was time.

Leo’s first challenge of silently getting out of bed was passed with a cushioned landing provided by his thick grey socks. His next mission was to silently pull on a navy hoody over his plain white tee shirt. Mission accomplished. Now to leave the room unheard.

As he tip-toed towards the bedroom door, Leo felt Dorian’s eyes resting on his back, but he remained silent, and so he slid into the hallway.

‘You’re actually going then?’ A whisper came from the darkness in the room opposite.

‘You’re not going to stop me,’ said Leo in a hushed voice as Kaira stepped into the pale light that filtered through the frosted glass either side of the front door.

‘You’re such a stubborn muppet! But even you know you can’t go alone.’

‘No one wants to come with me. I don’t have a choice.’

‘Don’t give me that. It’s you who's taking away our choice,’ Kaira said, stepping closer to him, her green eyes sparkling as she raised an impatient eyebrow.

‘You should be resting.’

‘Yet here we are.’

‘I don’t want you to come with me if you can’t. I know how much of a toll this has taken on your mental health already in just coming here.’

‘Don’t make this about me and my head, Leo. This is about you.’

Leo could see in her eyes how much she wanted to be anywhere but here as she put on her usual brave face. For a moment, Leo felt full of pride in having Kaira there, but that pride was twisted into guilt as he realised that she would not let him go alone, even if it was detrimental to her.

‘I don’t want to put you through this,’ whispered Leo, lowering his head, ‘but I can’t just lie in bed waiting. I have to go.’

‘I know you do,’ a pained smile etched itself onto Kaira's face, and Leo's heart sank, ‘we all do.’

As Kaira finished speaking, Leo heard the door creak behind him.

‘Don’t make me regret this,’ Dorian whispered, holding a bag in his hand as he walked past Leo and tiptoed down the stairs, just as Bailey appeared from behind Kaira.

A soft click from the door’s lock was accompanied by a slight creak as they pulled it open, the cold air from outside rushing in to get a taste of the promised land of warmth.

‘This way,’ Leo said, walking around the house.

As they entered the back garden, the four of them looked towards the windmill, finding themselves becoming a part of the captive audience that listened intently to the music created by the windchimes.

‘So that’s it?’ Kaira asked, holding her hands underneath her armpits to keep warm.

‘Hopefully,’ Leo answered, heading in the direction of a stile that led onto a makeshift path.

With every step they took, the wind seemed to grow stronger. By the time they reached the stile, the wind chimes were making so much noise that Leo wondered if they would wake his Mum.

‘Look here,’ Dorian said as he straddled the stile.

Kaira followed Dorian’s finger and saw a familiar word scratched into the moss coated wood.

‘Libero.’

‘We’re in the right place,’ said Leo excitedly, leaping over the stile and waiting for Kaira and Bailey to cross into the field.

‘I’ll be going up first,’ Bailey declared as she marched to the foot of the gravelled path.

‘Any reason why?’ Leo asked as he stepped aside.

‘It's obvious, Leo. It’s always the chubby one at the back that’s picked off first. At least this way I can see anything coming and barge you lot out the way if I need to get back down the hill.’

‘Charming.’

‘Hey, you're the one making us do this,’ she retorted.