Orlando's Secret
Taunton's Greatest Mystery
by
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They continue along the pathway and come to an entrance that has a picture of the Jolly Rodger engraved on the cave wall.
“Okay that’s a pirate flag!” Patrick suddenly bursts out with much interest upon seeing it there.
“Yes, but in most cases they were just served as…” Nicola responds, but then stops before finishing her sentence.
“Served as what Nicola? Come on spit it out!” Andrew tells her intrigued at what she was about to say.
“They served as a warning of what was about to come.” Nicola tells them.
“A warning? What kind of warning are we talking about here?” Chloe wonders.
“I don’t know? Beware we’re coming to get you? Or maybe beware of where you’re going to?” Nicola suddenly becomes fearful and nervous about continuing on and not for the first time today.
“What’s wrong now?” Chloe asks her noticing that she has stopped still in her tracks.
“I’m not so sure we should continue.” Nicola responds.
“Come on we can’t just stop now. Let’s see where it leads us!” Chloe tries her best to rally Nicola and it works for now and Nicola starts walking again towards the others.
“Does anyone else think Pierre Noughton might be the real pirate and not Captain Orlando?” Vanessa wonders.
“I don’t think so! After all it’s called Orlando’s Secret and not Pierre’s Secret.” Brad reminds her.
“Did this just get exciting or is it just me?” Michael tells the others before walking without fear into the next cave along.
“Michael! Could you slow down? You don’t know what’s in there yet?” Brad warns him to be cautious, but it’s a bit too late he has already disappeared into the next cave against Brad’s advice.
They slowly walk into the cave marked with another engraving of a Jolly Rodger flag and look around to see where Michael has gone?
“Well, where is he then, because I can’t seem to see him anywhere?” Graham asks the others after failing to spot Michael himself.
“He can’t have got that far! After all it was only about sixty seconds ago that he arrived in here before us.” Nicola observes.
“I’ve suddenly got a dreadful feeling about this.” Chloe now begins feeling worried her-self.
“Michael! Michael!” Andrew calls out his name twice before a faint echo comes back in response.
“I can hear him, but I can’t seem to see him anywhere?” Brad admits and continues looking around for any sign of him.
“Sometimes that’s the best way.” Andrew responds and then grins.
“I’m glad everyone else can hear him as well, because for a minute there I thought that he was inside my head.” Vanessa tells them in exaggerating fashion.
“I’m down here! I fell down a slide on the pathway. It was activated when I stepped onto it.” Michael tells them.
“Are you okay though? You haven’t broken anything have you?” Nicola asks him now feeling most concerned for his well - being.
“I don’t believe so! Just get on the slide and come down here and join me.” Michael tells them.
“Well who’s going to be the one to go first then?” Chloe wonders and watches as Nicola immediately takes two steps backwards.
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About the Book
Orlando’s Secret is the story about a group of eleven year olds who travel from Highams Park in London down to Taunton in Somerset for a school trip. They enjoy a barbeque, pony trekking, karaoke and going to the cinema before the idea of going to Holen Caves comes up. After a short vote it’s decided that they should go to the caves, because they like the idea of them being dark and exciting. What they don’t know however is the fact that a pirate called Captain Orlando who lived in the 17th century placed his hoard of hidden gemstones somewhere inside the caves. Nobody has ever found the gemstones, but because his first mate sent a string of letters to his wife in the 17th century people are Still convinced of their existence. Once inside the caves some of the pupils get separated from their teachers and the rest of their class and that’s where the real adventure begins….
About the Author
Justin Tully grew up in London, England. He attended both Oakhill School and Highams Park School before going on to college to study business administration and information technology. While both subjects proved useful there was something else that really captured his imagination and that was the written word. While he had never been a prolific reader he had always enjoyed watching films and listening to music and he believes that this is what eventually started off his imagination for writing. He eventually wrote three poetry books: Just Add Music (2005). Early Results Are Just In (2005). August 1976 - Hippies & Heatwaves (2006). He switched genres and wrote his first novel: Show Me Something (2007).
Orlando's Secret presented the author with a challenge and that was to do something he hadn't done before, that was writing a childrens story after recalling a holiday to Taunton in Somerset in the summer of 1987.
He says of Orlando's Secret: 'I wanted to do something different and at first the concept of writing a childrens story was difficult for me to imagine doing, but then I got to thinking about it and all I really needed was a hook to it. I found the hook and what followed was a fun packed childrens adventure, which was really easy to write and I enjoyed writing it more than anything else I'd ever done before. For seven months it was like going to work in London and coming back each evening afterwards to resume my time in Somerset. Developing each one of the characters was what made it really special for me and I could picture them in my mind as I was going along.'