INTO THE FOURTH AT TREBIZON Read online

  STRAW HAT

  First published by Granada Publishing 1982

  This ebook edition first published by Straw Hat 2011

  Copyright © Anne Digby, 1982, 1988, 2011

  The moral right of the author has been asserted.

  All rights reserved.

  Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the above publisher, Straw Hat

  A Catalogue record of this book is available from the British Library

  eISBN-13: 978-1-899587-19-3

  'Now, girls,' Mrs Barrington said, in a jolly tone of voice, 'one of you will have to move, I'm afraid . . . we want Ingrid in with a crowd.'

  As Rebecca and Tish race up the stairs in Court House to begin their year in the Fourth at Trebizon School, two things occupy their minds. The first and most immediate is to secure adjoining rooms on the second floor so that the six friends can still be together. The second concerns Tish's hopes of becoming Head of the Games – almost a foregone conclusion – and her plans for the seven-a-side hockey team.

  But a new girl, Ingrid Larsson, the Swedish 'Ice Queen' as Tish calls her, is forced upon them, throwing a spanner in the works in more ways than Rebecca could possibly imagine. In the eighth of the Trebizon books, Rebecca and her friends find life in the Fourth more exciting and challenging than ever before.

  CONTENTS

  Title Page

  Copyright & Permissions

  About this Book

  Chapter One Exciting Plans

  Chapter Two Getting the Rooms

  Chapter Three Enter Ingrid

  Chapter Four Exit Mara

  Chapter Five News for Rebecca

  Chapter Six Tish Worried

  Chapter Seven A Fatal Flaw

  Chapter Eight Minder

  Chapter Nine At the Ice Rink

  Chapter Ten Whisper, Whisper!

  Chapter Eleven A Sensation is Caused

  Chapter Twelve Time Passes

  Chapter Thirteen Laura is Troubled

  Chapter Fourteen The Ice Queen

  Chapter Fifteen Together Again

  Chapter Sixteen Looking Forward

  The Trebizon Series in Reading Order

  More Anne Digby Titles

  And Some Other Favourites...

  Free Downloads, Facebook & Twitter

  ONE

  EXCITING PLANS

  When Rebecca Mason went into the Fourth at Trebizon, there were difficulties. They had nothing to do with school work, because her timetable was settled now and she knew which subjects she would be taking for G C S E. Rather it was to do with the friendships in her life, and especially with the arrival at Court House of a girl called Ingrid Larsson.

  It was surprising that a girl as cool and peaceful looking as Ingrid could create dissension. She was quite beautiful, in fact.

  'In an icy sort of way,' Tish Anderson was to comment. 'The Ice Queen herself.'

  'Oh, Tish, what a strange description!' Rebecca had laughed. 'You're just jealous!'

  It wasn't until much later, in December, that Rebecca remembered the description. That was when the frost and ice came – real ice – freezing all the little lakes and streams around Trebizon, thick enough to skate on. And that was when Ingrid, in her high white skating boots and flowing cloak, took command of her territory. Rebecca remembered then what Tish had said and thought about it deeply.

  Nothing could have been less icy than the day they returned to school.

  It was a warm September day. In fact it was very stuffy in the supermini, driving all the way from London. It had been cool enough when they'd left, in the very early morning, but by the time they got to the west country the sun was high.

  'I wonder what it's going to be like in the Fourth?' said Rebecca.

  'You'll soon know,' said Robbie Anderson, who was Tish's older brother. He and Rebecca were sitting together in the back of the car. 'I wish you'd let me drive, Helen.'

  'Don't be silly, Robbie.'

  Helen Anderson, who was driving, was Tish and Robbie's elder sister. Her new car was small and fast and much more reliable than her previous one. Tish was keeping her company in the front seat and plying her with questions. Helen worked in London and had been getting into some interesting situations lately. Robbie and Rebecca liked being in the back together and on the way down they'd exchanged photos, something they'd promised each other during the course of a long phone conversation the previous weekend.

  'As long as we're first to Court House, I don't care what it's like in the Fourth or who drives!' laughed Tish, staring at the road ahead. 'I'll die if we don't get the rooms we want!'

  'It's going to be complicated if we don't,' agreed Rebecca.

  'The suspense is killing me,' grunted Robbie, who had already heard several variations on this theme. He said to Tish– 'You'd better get them, after all this. I could have had a lie-in. I don't have any rooms to bag. I'll just be given a sordid little cubicle like everyone else in the Lower Sixth.'

  'Oh, Robbie, they're not as bad as all that!' protested Helen. 'There's a bed and a desk and somewhere to stick posters, and a place to plug in an electric kettle. Of course, when you get in the Upper Sixth, you get a proper room –'

  'How do you know?' grinned Tish.

  'Oh,' Helen concentrated on the road ahead, and smiled. She'd been at Trebizon herself some years previously and had had friends at Garth College, where Robbie was now. 'I just know, that's all.'

  'I'm not complaining, anyway,' said Robbie. 'A cube suits me fine. I'm just glad I haven't got to go through a lot of hassle over new rooms, like you two.'

  It was because of the new rooms that they'd grabbed the chance to come really early by road, instead of by the usual train. Doctor and Mrs Anderson had left for the States and Rebecca's parents were flying back to Saudi Arabia that day, now their London leave was over. Helen had offered to drive these three down to the west country, because she wanted to see some old friends who lived near Trebizon and stay the night with them.

  So the Andersons had driven down from Hertfordshire via the M25 to South London to pick Rebecca up, eaten a delicious breakfast of sizzling bacon and eggs cooked for them by Mrs Mason, and then whisked away Rebecca, her trunk and her tennis rackets.

  'Write to us, Becky! Tell us all your news!'

  'Of course I will! 'Bye, Mum! 'Bye, Dad! You make sure you write to me!'

  That was her last glimpse of them, standing on the front doorstep of the terraced house. It would soon be let to strangers again and it would be next summer before the three of them were together again there, for a few happy weeks.

  The car was now less than three miles from Trebizon.

  'There's the turning to Garth, look!' said Robbie. 'Just dump me off at the gates with my stuff. I don't want to hold you up.'

  Helen forked left down the narrow road that led to the boys' school.

  Robbie turned to Rebecca and put an arm round her shoulders. He was looking solemn, although his eyes were mischievous.

  'How many times have I come and cheered you this summer?'

  'Let me see,' said Rebecca, equally solemn and counting on her fingers. Her parents had taken her to several tennis competitions and she'd done remarkably well. 'At least four –'

  'Well you've got to come and cheer me, now I'm in the team.' He was talking about rugby, of course; always a big thing with Robbie in the winter. 'Okay?'

  'Are you really in the First XV?' asked Helen, impressed. She pulled up outside the gates of Garth College. It had one of the best schools' rugby teams in the country. 'Is th
at definite?'

  'Definite,' nodded Robbie.

  'Of course it's definite,' said Tish. 'That's why he wouldn't come down early for the Trebizon Open this year.' She was referring to a local mixed doubles tennis tournament, that took place annually on the Trebizon School courts at the end of the summer holidays, just before the tennis nets came down and the netball posts went up. 'He and Rebecca could have partnered each other this year, and I'd have known who to cheer for – not like last year – and they'd have won, too! And we could have been back at school yesterday and bagged the rooms, instead of having to rush.' Tish shrugged, then grinned. 'Saving himself for rugby.'

  'I had to do weight training, Tish. We've got our first match on Saturday!'

  'Shouldn't be so weak and floppy in the first place.'

  'Stop arguing, you two,' said Rebecca. 'I hadn't specially wanted to enter, anyway.'

  That wasn't quite true. Rebecca really meant that she hadn't wanted to enter with anybody else, if she couldn't enter with Robbie.

  He was getting out of the car now, to get his trunk off the roof rack. He unroped it and then lifted it down effortlessly. Helen reversed the car outside the college gates, ready to leave. Robbie opened the back door and ducked his head in.

  'Okay, Rebeck? Come and watch the match on Saturday?'

  'All right then,' said Rebecca.

  They drove away, towards the town. In the High Street there was still a fair sprinkling of holiday-makers, pushing push-chairs, eating ice-creams and carrying buckets and spades. As soon as they were out of town, whipping along the top road and gazing at the blue waters of Trebizon Bay, Tish said:

  'Nearly there.'

  'Mmm," said Rebecca.

  'Rebecca –'

  'Mmmm?'

  'When's tennis training this term?'

  'Sunday fortnights, I think.'

  'I know he's my brother, but you're not going to be a paid-up member of the Garth College supporters' club every Saturday, are you? Shivering on the touch-line in all weathers . . .'

  'No fear!' laughed Rebecca. 'But I'd like to go and watch him a few times maybe.'

  'Good,' said Tish. 'You see,' she added mysteriously, 'I've got other plans for you. If –'

  'Really?' Rebecca was intrigued. 'What plans?'

  'At last!' exclaimed Helen. She turned the car in through the school's wrought iron gates. The wooded school drive lay ahead. 'We're here. I'll drive you two to Court House and dump you if you don't mind. I'll just have time to go and say "hello" to Miss Welbeck and then I must get to Katy and John's. They've got a meal waiting for me!'

  As the car bumped slowly through the school grounds, observing the strict speed limit, Rebecca leaned forward and questioned Tish some more.

  'What plans? What are the plans to do with?'

  'Hockey!'

  Helen glanced at her younger sister in amusement.

  'You mean to say Tish hasn't told you about her plans yet? She's been organizing it all through the holidays, pieces of paper everywhere. There's some sort of master plan cooked up, I think.'

  'But I'd never make the Third Team!' exclaimed Rebecca. 'There are others better than me.'

  Now that they were older, if Tish were elected head of games this year she'd be given the job of helping to choose the school's Third Eleven. Being exceptionally good at hockey she already played for the Second Eleven herself, with senior girls, and might even get into the First Eleven quite soon.

  'It's nothing to do with the Third Eleven,' said Tish, rather abruptly. She seemed embarrassed by Helen's mention of all those pieces of paper. 'Or elevens at all,' she added, in a mutter.

  'Much more exciting!' said Helen.

  'Well, what's the matter, Tish?' asked Rebecca. 'Why haven't I heard about this?'

  They were passing within sight of Tavistock House, one of the other middle school boarding houses. It lay this side of south tennis courts, not very far from the main school building. Tish seemed to glance that way.

  'I didn't mean to let anything out yet,' she said, still looking slightly uncomfortable. 'I mean I haven't actually been made head of games yet. I was going to say I've got some plans, if I am. Now Helen's made it sound as if I just take it for granted –'

  'Oh, Tish!' Rebecca laughed. 'What does it matter, just between us? Who ever's going to bother to stand against you anyway –'

  Then Rebecca realized why Tish had glanced towards the rival House.

  'Laura Wilkins?'

  'We did have a bit of a fight with Tavistock last term, getting Aba in against Laura like that by seven votes!' said Tish wryly. 'They've probably got it in for us now!'

  'I don't think Laura will want to stand against you, Tish!' smiled Rebecca. 'And even if she does, you'll beat her by – well, by seventy votes I should think!'

  'Do you really think so?' Tish cheered up.

  'So come on!' said Rebecca. 'Tell me what this master plan is all about –'

  The car scrunched over gravel and came to a halt.

  'It's Court! We're here!' squealed Tish.

  'I thought you hadn't noticed,' said Helen. 'Go and see about the rooms. I'll wait here with your stuff –'

  The two friends almost fell out of the car and hurtled towards the front door.

  'Nobody here yet!' cried Tish. 'I only hope we're in time –'

  The master plan would have to wait.

  TWO

  GETTING THE ROOMS

  When Rebecca and her friends, known as 'the six', had first entered Court House (exactly a year before), the rooms had been just right. Previously as juniors they'd been in dormitories, over at Juniper House, but promotion to the middle school and being allocated to Court had meant sharing study bedrooms for the first time.

  As Third Years, they had had to come into Court on the ground floor, where all the rooms were three-bedders. It had worked perfectly. They'd had two adjacent rooms, Rebecca and Tish and their great friend Sue Murdoch in one: Mara Leonodis, Margot Lawrence and Sally (Elf) Elphinstone in the room next door.

  Now, as Fourth Years, they were going up in the world –literally – to the first floor of the boarding house. At first they'd been disappointed to think that there were no three-bedders on the first floor, just a motley collection of twos and singles, and one four-bedder. They'd never be in threes again! Next year, in the Fifth, everyone had cubicles on the top floor, to get plenty of peace and quiet for private study.

  But during the summer holidays Tish had done some research. She'd rung Sarah Turner, who'd been a Fourth last year, and got the exact layout. Then she'd phoned her friends.

  'There are two singles,' she had told Rebecca. 'One of them's horrible, right along the corridor and round the corner, stuck on its own. Margaret Exton had it, she thought it was a great arrangement.'

  'I expect everyone else did, too,' laughed Rebecca. 'Okay, let's forget that one.'

  'The other single's all right, it inter-connects with a two-bedder. It would suit us three fine, but there wouldn't be anything to suit the other three. So there's only one answer and it's perfect, even better than we had downstairs.'

  'What's that?' asked Rebecca hopefully.

  'The four-bedder. You see, it inter-connects with a two-bedder. So the six of us can still be together – more together, in fact! And it's at the back – you know how we like being at the back!'

  'Terrific!' Rebecca exclaimed. Then she asked, 'Who'd go where?'

  'Mara wants to be with us. I've had a letter from her.'

  'That's right, she said so. After camp. How would Elf and Margot feel?'

  'Oh, those two will definitely want to share. They can have the two-bedder, us four can have the big room – it's perfect, Rebeck!'

  Afterwards, Rebecca had remembered something and rung Tish back.

  'What does Sue think?'

  Tish was silent for a moment.

  'Oh, you know Sue. She liked everything just as it was.'

  So Rebecca had decided to ring Sue herself.

  'It'
s just my scraping my violin, Rebecca. You two are used to it. You don't even notice if I can't cope with something –'

  Sue was a Trebizon music scholar and in the orchestra. Although the school had its own music centre and Sue spent a lot of time there, she often practised in the room as well, if she had something difficult on hand.

  'But Mara loves music –'

  'That's the trouble. You know Mara, she's got perfect pitch. I'm a bit worried it'll get on her nerves!'

  'Oh, Sue, don't!' Rebecca had laughed out loud, with a sudden feeling of relief. 'Is that all? I thought it was something serious.'

  Everything was going to be fine. As long as they could get those rooms. They'd have to make sure they did!

  Rebecca and Tish took the stairs two at a time.

  'There is someone here!' Tish whispered in horror. 'I can hear them moving around!'

  'Oh, no,' said Rebecca. 'Don't say we're too late –'

  They were on the first floor of Court House now, looking along the main landing where most of the rooms lay. Doors were open. A trunk was in one doorway, its contents spilling out. There was the sound of voices now and someone had turned a radio on.

  'Come on,' said Tish, biting her lip.

  They walked slowly along the landing, looking in through the open doors.

  They reached the doorway where the trunk was wedged. Rebecca glanced quickly into the room.

  'Oh, no! This is it – the four-bedder!'

  'It looks as though it's gone!' groaned Tish.

  Then, back along the landing, another door burst open and Elizabeth Kendall came out, holding her radio. Jenny Brook-Hayes was just behind her.

  'Tish! Rebecca!'

  They swung round.

  'Whose is this trunk?' wailed Tish.

  'Oh, sorry, it's mine,' said Elizabeth. 'We were going to bag that room, but we've found a much better one. A two-bedder – with its own wash basin. Come and see –'

  'You mean, this one's still free?' whooped Rebecca.

  What a relief!

  The other two came down and helped Rebecca and Tish get their luggage off the roof rack. Helen was anxious to drive over to the principal's house and say 'hello'. Miss Welbeck loved seeing old girls and hearing all their news.