Through The Storm

By Margot Bish

Ross is ten and sure he is old enough to look after himself. He just needs the chance to prove it. His friends are going on holiday to an Outward Bound Centre and Ross finally convinces his parents to let him go too. He is not to know that a sudden storm will separate him and his new friends from their instructor on their first sailing lesson and test their powers of initiative to the limit until they are rescued . This book has been described as a Swallows and Amazons, The Famous Five and Lord of the Flies all rolled into one and rewritten for 9-12 year olds. This may be true in the sense of adventure and teamwork but the "bad guy" is the weather rather than taking human form.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Margot Bish
• Release date: Jan 6, 2015
• ISBN: 9781311400505

Margot Bish

I wanted to be an author when I was seven, but was told you can't live on writing books. You'll have to be a journalist. Living off people's unhappiness? NO THANKS. So I became a surveyor, - too greedy for me, a production controller, yes OK but then the factory got rearranged and I was put in charge of dispatch - too boring for 28 days of every month, chaos for four. I tried accounts work which was rather repetitive and then setting up computer production systems which seemed like an awful lot of paperwork generated for no gain. So now I am doing an Alan Titchmarsh and gaining a lot of satisfaction from gardening for (mostly) the elderly and writing books - there are two published - Through The Storm for 9-12 year old adventurers and A Difficult Age for teenagers who are not into "heavy" books. I've now added 3 picture story books although I think I can learn and improve these now I've seen them published. My hobbies include sailing (hence the Through The Storm book), cycling, walking in beautiful scenery and spending time with my cat. . I have two more books in mind but these will have to next Winter....

Book preview

THROUGH THE STORM

BY

MARGOT BISH

Copyright 2015 Margot Bish. All rights reserved.

I and Smashwords ask that no part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

THROUGH THE STORM

Authors Note

At the time of writing, the people in this story followed the correct procedures as outlined by the Royal Yachting Association. As I teach sailing on inland waters, I do not know the guidelines of the canoeing association or the RNLI and hope they will forgive me if I have not followed their guidelines in the story. These procedures are constantly reviewed and amended, and may well have changed by the time you read this book as the various associations learn from the experiences of their instructors and have the safety of everyone in mind when procedures are written. Obviously, to make the story exciting, there had to be some mistakes made so that an element of danger could creep in. Otherwise it would be no fun.

I hope you enjoy the book and also hope it will encourage you to go out and have some adventures. The weather is rarely as challenging as the people in this story experienced, but always needs to be treated with respect.

CHAPTER 1

Jack gave Ross a wide grin and a friendly slap on the back.

What are you doing this summer hols then? Jack asked, and Ross knew Jack had something good planned. After all it was only the 1st June – six weeks of school to go……….. It might be something even better than good, Ross thought.

Not much, Ross shrugged. He could see Jack was at the point of bursting with his news, but Ross also knew Jack did not want to just tell him. He was hoping to be asked first, just so that he could act offhand and cool about it, act like it was nothing much. Just to blow his mind, Ross turned and looked out of the school bus window. He could see Jack’s reflection in the glass and watched Jack’s face, waiting for the frustration to show. Huffing on the glass, he drew a stick man. The stick man was frowning, but Ross was grinning to himself and he carefully didn’t turn until Jack’s face creased into a matching frown. Then Ross swung round with an I gotcha grin.

Go on then. Spill it.

Sometimes, I just don’t want to be your friend anymore, Jack muttered sheepishly, realising he had fallen for the tease. Then he thought of the holiday to come and his face lit up. I’m going to an Outward Bound Centre in Wales he crowed.

Even this fell flat as a punctured football. Ross was supposed to look impressed, maybe even jealous. Ross didn’t. Ross looked as blank as a bowl of custard.

What’s that then? Some kind of prison? Tie you up on the way out, do they? he joked. It was Jack’s turn for the custard look. Ross sighed. It’s a pun. Get it? he added.

No, stupid, Jack exclaimed. It’s where you get to do all kinds of wild things – sailing, rock climbing, canoeing, abseiling, parachuting, scuba diving….. Jack paused for breath and to rerun the list in his head. What else could he boast about?

You sure about the parachuting? Ross asked sceptically.

Er, now you mention it, no. But all the other stuff. It’ll be magic, Ross. Nick’s gonna be there too. He’s helping take people canoeing.

Nick was Jack’s brother, much older and if you went places with him life always got dramatic. He was a real fizzing livewire. You never knew if you were going to get lost in a maze of caves, get stuck up a mountain or get soaked crossing a river but things always happened.

Sounds good, Ross said and sighed. He knew what his mum and dad had planned. The normal boring old Isle of Wight beach holiday. OK, yes, when he was six and seven, the beach was just great, digging sandcastles and splashing in the sea, but by age ten it was getting a bit repetitive. He scowled as he compared the two alternatives. Wales came tops all round, a holiday with his friends, and all those new things to try out. There was worse to come.

Dave and Chris are coming too, Jack added. Can’t you come as well ?

The bus jolted to a halt at the school gates and they pushed their way off, five minutes to get to class. No time to discuss things now.

It was all the three adventurers could talk about all day. They wriggled and bounced like helium balloons as they planned the challenges ahead. Ross stood quietly amongst the chatter and tried not to look as left out as he felt. Like a slug at a meeting of the snail shell admiration society, he thought. By the time he hopped off the bus in the evening, he knew everything about Outward Bound Centres. No parents, hardly any real grown ups, apart from the instructors for each activity, and most of