Verity Sparks, Lost and Found (29 page)
Read Verity Sparks, Lost and Found Online
Authors: Susan Green
When we arrived back at Alhambra, Kathleen handed me a package. It was flat, and had a fancy cream and maroon label on it.
“A messenger boy brought it soon after you went out,” she said.
“It’s from Mr Riva,” I said, turning to Miss Deane. It was so long since we sat for our portraits, I thought he must have forgotten about us.
I untied the string. The photographs were protected by yet another layer of tissue paper.
“Here you are, Miss Deane.” I took it out of its tissue and handed it to her. “How pretty you look,” I said.
Attached to the wrapping of the other photograph was a note.
My dear Miss Sparks-Savinov
,
As I told you, I do not believe in so-called spirit photography, and disapprove strongly of those who use the photographic arts to trick vulnerable people. Therefore, I have no explanation for what I send you in this package
.
Yours, etc etc
Gabriel Riva
“Aren’t you going to look at it, Verity?” asked Miss Deane.
Slowly, I unwrapped it. I saw a small, slim girl with serious eyes and a little pointed face, wearing her second-best dress and posed stiffly beside an artificial rosebush. Standing behind her, rising out of a sort of mist, was a fair-haired young man in a white shirt. There was no doubt as to who it was.
It was my half-brother Alexander, and he was smiling.
Many thanks to Mary Verney, my editor at Walker Books, for all her work on this book.
And to Howard and Lachlan, for their love and patience.
Susan Green lives in the historic gold-rush town of Castlemaine in Central Victoria with her husband, son and Gus the miniature schnauzer. She has been a teacher, radio producer, youth worker, cook and book seller, but she knew she wanted to be a writer by the time she was eight years old. She has written eleven books for children and young adults. Susan’s first novel for Walker Books,
The Truth about Verity Sparks
, was awarded Honour Book for Younger Readers at the CBCA Book of the Year Awards, 2012.
Verity Sparks, Lost and Found
is her second novel with Walker Books. To find out more about Susan and Verity, go to www.veritysparks.com
Published in 2013
by Walker Books Australia Pty Ltd
Locked Bag 22, Newtown
NSW 2042 Australia
This ebook edition published in 2014
The moral rights of the author and illustrator have been asserted.
Cover Illustration © 2013 Lisa Coutts
Text © 2013 Susan Green
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means – electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise – without the prior written permission of the publisher.
National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication entry:
Green, Susan, author.
Verity Sparks, lost and found / Susan Green.
For primary school age.
| Subjects: | Ability – Juvenile fiction. |
| | Suspense fiction. |
| | Children’s stories. |
A823.3
ISBN: 978-1-925081-54-1 (ePub)
ISBN: 978-1-925081-53-4 (e-PDF)
ISBN: 978-1-925081-55-8 (.PRC)
