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Chapter 26
The dappled afternoon sunlight is warm against my back as I cycle through Forest Park.
Everything is threaded with green, and the slow buzz of summer. Every now and again I stop riding to look at the sword ferns and bracken lining the dirt trail, and the thick canopy of firs and lushly leaved maples overhead.
It feels so good to be back in the forest. We've lived on the edge of the park my whole life, and I used to know it like the back of my hand.
Since the accident, I haven't visited even once.
After I've been riding for almost half an hour, I hop off my rusty old BMX and pull Felix's note out of my pocket.
Unfolding it, I study it for the hundredth time.
I still can't believe he drew me a map.
Two lines intersect at a 45-degree angle. One is labeled 'Wildwood', the other, 'Chestnut'. There's a big X where they meet.
And at the
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“Your guess is as good as mine,” says Alastaire as he pokes at a pancake with his fork.“He went out for a bit,” Lyall says in between mouthfuls. “I’m sure he’ll be back soon. Don’t stress ‘bout it Kit.”“He went out?” says Kitty, her eyebrows knitting together in worry.“Don’t get your knickers in a twist,” Alastaire says. “He’s just out doing loner junk in the forest. Typical.”Kitty shakes her head, looking gloomily at the counter.“You worry too much,” says Ben as he pats her on the back. “It’s not like he’s gonna get run down by a rabid pack of bloodthirsty fangirls this deep in the woods. Unless you told your buddies about us, Ashling.”He winks at me, and I almost choke on the bite of pancake I was busy swallowing.
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