I followed the two of them into the cave, wrapping my arms around myself as the air chilled my skin. I could hear the eerie drip of water, the insignificant sound amplified by the narrow tunnel of rock.

"Can we play hide and seek?" Eddie's voice bounced back and forth between the walls and Suzie listened to it, transfixed. She didn't move until silence had replaced the echoes, then nodded at him.

"You wanna hide?" Eddie spoke with a whisper this time, and the soft echoes mingled with the sound of the waves rushing outside. It occurred to me that they must be getting closer; the tide was coming in.

"Yeah." Suzie whispered back. She trailed her hand along the rock as she spoke, studying the cracked surface, then turned to me and lifted her lips carefully into a smile.

"I'll take Mickey with me, so I don't get lost."

"You're won't go far, though," I replied. She turned back to the rock, pulling off a chunk of moss. It stained the tips of her fingernails green. I frowned at her.

"Suzie, don't go far."

She dropped the moss, nodding reluctantly. Eddie grinned.

"I'm gonna count to a really high number," he said proudly.

Suzie lifted her hand and waved at him, then ran out of the cave, silent as her socks slid over the sand. I followed her.

"I'll be outside Eddie, so I can watch," I said over my shoulder as I emerged from the dark cave into the evening sun. He didn't reply, hands covering his eyes as he mouthed the numbers.

I watched Suzie run into a cave not too far away, and sighed with relief. Mickey was close at her heels, and I wondered how she got him to be so quiet. He never did that with me.

"...nine, ten!" Eddie shouted, his promise of high numbers forgotten in the excitement.

Blinking hard in the sudden light, Eddie ran out of the cave. He sprinted past me and into the furthest cave from where we were, his voice high with excitement as he called for Suzie. The gaps between calls got longer and longer as his made his way through the the many caves that lined the cliff.

I watched the sea, allowing myself to look away from the Suzie's hiding spot for just a moment. The wind was picking up, and the waves were tipped with white that turned gold in the sinking sun. The black silhouettes of birds cartwheeled through the sky. I smiled at the beauty of it, then turned to Eddie. He'd reached Suzie's cave and stopped to look at me, hands on his knees in exaggerated breathlessness.

"Is she in this one?"

"I can't say," I replied, giving him a small nod at the same time. He straightened up, grinning, and ran in.

"Suuuzie! I know you're here. Suzie!" Seconds passed, and the echoes died away. I peered in the entrance of the cave, watching as Eddie ventured further in, hands stretched out into the darkness.

Seconds passed, and I heard a bump, and a yelp. "You alright?" I called, and the cave threw my words back to me.

"Yeah. She's not here."

"Look harder," I said, stepping in to help him. I sighed as the damp began to seep into my trainers.

Wishing I'd remembered my phone or a torch, I started to feel my way along the walls. The rock was cold, rough in some places but worn smooth by tiny rivers of water in others.

"Suzie's lost," Eddie muttered, kicking at the sand.

"No, she isn't. I saw her come in here." I tripped on a fallen stone and grabbed hold of the wall, the rock digging into my hand painfully.

"She's somewhere else," Eddie said.

I ignored him and carried on walking, then realised that the cave was becoming lighter again. I'd reached the other side. I frowned.

"But I didn't see her leave."

"You said you were watching her?" Eddie narrowed his eyes at me, then turned back to the beach.

"I was." I'd only taken my eyes off the cave a couple of times. My heart began to thud in my chest, but Eddie ignored me. Biting his lip in concentration, he darted his eyes back and forth along the beach.

The sun was beginning to sink into the sea, soon the light would be gone. I took a few deep breaths, turning to Eddie.

"Come on, I thought you were good at hide and seek."

Eddie dragged his eyes away from the beach and turned to me, shoulders sagging.

"She's lost."

"You haven't looked very hard," I protested, trying to ignore the sureness of his voice.

"How am I supposed to find her if she doesn't know where she is?"

His eyes were wide as he stared at me, and I tried to squash down my panic.

"We just need to keep looking."

I walked to the next cave along the beach and began to search, dragging Eddie behind me, ears straining to hear Mickey's bark above the crashing waves.