by Julie Sykes
‘I will.’
‘I’ll come for you as soon as we can. The paperwork’s almost ready. I’m in the middle of making a credit card, to hire a car. Then it will just be a case of contacting your social worker. It shouldn’t take more than twenty-four hours.’
Nardo’s concern made me smile. I’d lived incognito at Waterside for weeks. I had only one day left there. It would have been fun, if Marn hadn’t been comatose, and Dan didn’t hate me.
Just before I’d left the portacasa the Guards had changed shifts. For a short while there’d been enough of them to move Marn off the mountainside and into a bed. Tor let me see him for five Earth minutes. He’d looked so peaceful as he lay sleeping on a bunk bed. I’d longed to run my fingers through his rumpled blonde hair, to kiss his eyelids and the long dark lashes brushing his cheeks. It was awkward with Tor there, watching. I stroked Marn’s cheek and whispered softly in his ear, ‘Etta tu amorra. Recordia mia.’ I love you. Remember me.
‘It’s not a problem,’ I reassured Nardo, now. ‘I lived at Waterside for weeks without knowing who I was. This will be easy.’
‘I’m so proud of you.’ Nardo squeezed my arm and again I was racked with guilt.
The train was packed. I found myself squeezed on a seat next to a bearded man who was dressed for hiking. He held a dirty rucksack on his lap. He wanted to talk and, pulling a map from the bag, proudly informed me that he’d been climbing in the mountains for weeks. He showed me the route he’d taken. I nodded and tried not to breathe too deeply. He smelled like he hadn’t taken a bath for weeks either. I spent most of the journey hoping that he’d get off the train, or stop talking and let me think. It was just my luck that he was going all the way to Edinburgh. In the end, though, he turned out to be a good thing. Edinburgh station was huge and daunting. I didn’t have a clue where to go to catch the bus. He gave me directions to the bus station. In no time at all, I’d navigated my way through the hoards of travellers and joined a queue for the Kirkgreen bus.
I was more nervous than a Watcher should ever admit to. For something to do I pulled my mobile out of my pocket and checked to see if I had any messages. Unsurprisingly there were none. I fiddled with the keypad while I wondered whether to send Dan a text and tell him that I was on my way back. It probably wasn’t a great idea, so I settled for texting Lucy instead. In the quarter of an hour wait for the bus I texted Lucy three more times. She didn’t reply. I checked my phone every few minutes but the screen remained a big, fat blank. It didn’t improve my nerves or help my churning stomach. Why hadn’t Lucy texted me back? Was she ignoring me? Had Dan told her that I’d tried to kill him? When I returned to Waterside I could be walking into a trap. The police, or army even, might be there, waiting to arrest me. I bet they’d have guns. I was an alien, after all.
It was a relief when the bus arrived. I waited for a group of passengers to disembark before I shuffled on board. The seats were dirty and worn and the bus smelled worse than an old shed. A memory of a shiny pod, that hovered half a metre above the ground, with comfortable chairs and an invisible force field that acted like seat belts in a car, flashed through my mind. The buses in Pietra seemingly were much more sophisticated than this one. The journey took thirty-five minutes. It was late afternoon when the bus trundled into Kirkgreen. There was still no word from Lucy and nothing from Nardo either. I’d secretly hoped that he might text me with an update on Marn. The knot of fear in my stomach pulled tighter as I stepped off the bus and watched it pull away. A new, unwelcome scenario, to explain Lucy’s silence, popped into my head. What if Dan hadn’t returned to Waterside and was lying unconscious somewhere, a victim of memory reassembly? My breath stuck in my throat. Worse still, what if Tor had somehow learned that I hadn’t been truthful with him? What if he’d beaten me back and dealt with all of my friends?
My fingers were trembling as I punched out Lucy’s number. Her mobile rang for ages then, with a click, it switched to voicemail. A mechanical voice invited me to leave a message so that Lucy could call me back. There didn’t seem much point. I disconnected the call and went into the newsagent to ask for the number of the local taxi firm.
A shop assistant directed me back outside to look in the window for something she called ‘the wee ads’. I bought a bottle of mineral water and a sandwich first. I opted for the cheese salad even though, having been exposed to meat, I’d have preferred the chicken. I wasn’t hungry. I was anxious and thoroughly bored of hanging around, but eating a sandwich was better than doing nothing in the long wait for the taxi to arrive. Thankfully, the taxi driver was the silent type. I stared out of the window and a short while later I saw the wooden sign for the Waterside School of Music.
‘That’s it!’ My heart raced and my hands felt clammy.
The taxi driver turned off the road and the car bounced along the potholed drive. The afternoon sun streamed in through the open windows. With it came a fresh woodland scent that reminded me of Marn. The road curved, the trees thinned and there was Loch Calness. Sailing boats swooped across the water, their sails billowing like enormous wings. My heart dipped and a warm feeling stole through me. I loved it here. For one brief moment I was filled with a deep contentment.
Twenty-four
The taxi pulled up in the car park. I was busy taking money from my purse and it wasn’t until I handed the driver a ten-pound note that I saw the police car parked in the corner. My heart smacked against my ribs. Dan had betrayed me. Unaware of my terror, the driver rummaged in a small leather bag for change. I waved it away, ‘Keep it,’ I said. ‘Thanks for the ride.’
‘You’re welcome, lass.’
I felt totally exposed as I climbed out of the car and walked swiftly across the car park. The taxi disappeared down the drive and I pressed myself up against the trunk of a tall pine. Carinna’s voice sounded in my head, low and calm.
First rule, assess.
The police car was parked close to Melody House so I thought that’s where its occupants had gone. Mia and Jeff had an office, with French windows that opened on to a kind of porch along one side of the house. The office was where they conducted most of their business. I checked that there was no one watching before I ran from the tree to the garage where I pressed myself up against the wall. From here, I had a clear view into the office. The French windows were open and I could hear the low rumble of voices. It was impossible to make out words, but I was reassured by the calm, rhythmic cadence. There was no panic yet. I crept closer and concealed myself behind a sprawling bush with waxy, dark green leaves. Mia and Jeff were seated with their backs to the door. Two police officers, a woman and a man, faced them. There was a third person in the room. I was unable to identify who it was, so I shifted my weight and leaned forward for a better view. A hand clamped over my mouth. A muscular arm snaked around my waist and pulled me backwards. I lost my balance and fell against a man’s solid chest. He dragged me away. My neck snapped back and a strand of my hair got trapped under his arm and pinched my scalp. My attacker dragged me deeper into the bush. My heart raced, but my mind stayed sharp and focused. One of Carinna’s lessons in self-defence came back to me.
When being strangled, your natural instinct is to pull away. DON’T! Lean into your attacker and bring your heel down hard on the top of his foot. At the same time bend forward and shove him off with your buttocks.
As I leaned back into my assailant’s arms he went rigid then he shoved me away, as if he couldn’t bear to be that close to me. I bit his hand and he swore softly. I bit him again and this time he pressed the heel of his palm hard against my lips so I bit myself instead. Twigs snapped and crackled under my feet. I cast around for one with some substance. A large one, with the kink in the middle, was perfect. I fixed it with my mind.
Up.
With jerky movements, that matched my breathing, the stick rose from the ground. I made it go higher. When it disappeared behind my attacker’s back I held a
picture of it in my mind. I twisted my head and a short while later saw the stick rise above his shoulders. I couldn’t hold the position and had to use a little guesswork when I swung it down on his head. My guess was good. The blow sent him reeling. He pitched forward and smashed his chin on the top of my head. We fell together and the breath rushed out of me as we landed. He was on top and his muscular body forced me into the gritty ground.
‘Get off.’ The words hissed through my clenched teeth.
‘Stop struggling then!’ He flipped me onto my back and pinned my arms to my side as he glared down at me.
‘Dan!’ So who was the other person in the office with his parents and the police?
‘What are you dong here?’ he demanded. His eyes were colder than a glacier.
‘You reported me.’ I couldn’t help the note of disappointment that coloured my voice. On the ride back from Balochry I’d nursed a tiny flame of hope that Dan would come to his senses and realise that I could never kill anyone. With that flame now extinguished I felt hollow inside. I was too late. Dan had spilled my secrets. I’d have to confess my sins to Tor, who’d undoubtedly arrange for a mass memory wipe. So many innocent people!
And what if my other nightmare came to fruition? Marn. Would there be anything left to live for, if his memory was wiped clean?
‘I’m sorry.’ The words did nothing to convey how deeply I meant them.
‘You’re sorry?’ Dan was incredulous.
‘I didn’t kill anyone. You shouldn’t have reported me. I tried to warn you, but it’s too late now. Locking me up won’t solve anything. Nardo will be here soon. When he finds out what’s happened, that you’ve told people about me, he’ll call for a mass memory wipe. It doesn’t hurt, although you’ll probably feel groggy for a while afterwards. It’s harmless…’ I stopped.
‘Amber, you’re not making sense! Who’s going to lock you up?’
‘The police are. You called for the police.’
‘No, I didn’t. The police are here to see Lucy. Someone tried to mug her in Kirkgreen.’
‘Really?’ The relief made me dizzy. Almost as an afterthought I added, ‘Poor Lucy. Was she hurt?’
‘She’s fine. They didn’t get her bag, but Mum reported the incident anyway to help prevent another attack.’
‘So why did you jump on me?’
‘Why do you think? After what happened earlier, I then find you creeping round the side of our house. It’s hardly the actions of a normal, law-abiding person.’
‘It’s not what you think. Look, can we go somewhere more private? How about we walk down by the loch?’
‘You want me to walk by the loch with you, on my own?’ A hard edge crept back into Dan’s voice. ‘Yeah, right! If you don’t mind I’d rather stay here where it’s more public.’
‘Johnny and Marn, they’re not dead.’ I spoke quickly with my eyes fixed on Dan’s to show that I had nothing to hide. ‘I gave them a drug to make them forget certain things they’d seen. Like the way I can move things with my mind. The drug’s harmless, well normally,’ I added as I remembered the promise I’d made to tell Dan the truth. ‘I drugged Johnny and Marn to stop them from telling the Guards about you.’
Dan stared at me blankly.
‘Look, it’s complicated and highly secret. Please Dan, I need to be sure that we won’t be overheard. You can tell Mia that you’re going for a walk with me if you don’t trust me, but if I wanted to kill you, don’t you think I’d have done it this morning? No one would have found your body in the mountains,’ I said wearily.
Dan studied me for a moment then his lips twitched. ‘All right,’ he said grudgingly. He helped me up and waited while I brushed the dirt from my clothes and picked the twigs from my hair. We walked in silence, our feet crunching softly on old leaves, as we made our way around the back of the garden to the loch. As we came out into the open my breath caught in my throat. It wasn’t Pietra but it was still beautiful here. The sun, in a cerulean sky, rippled the water and made it sparkle. I stood for a moment to absorb the view. Dan walked quickly on, without checking to see if I could keep up, as he led the way to a secluded spot at the far end of the loch. There, he leaned against the trunk of a tree, with roots that paddled in the silver blue water like gnarled toes.
My heart hammered so fast that I could hardly breathe. ‘The thing is,’ I said in a rush. ‘I’m not from this world. I’m an alien, a kind of anthropologist from the planet Pietra. We call ourselves Watchers. We’ve been coming here for years to study you.’
‘What?’ Dan was taken aback and he sounded annoyed. ‘I guessed that you were from another world but I thought it was your first visit here. If you’ve been here before then why haven’t your people made contact with us? Don’t you think it would have been nice to introduce yourselves? We might want to study you too.’
‘It’s not that simple.’ It was hard to explain when I wasn’t totally convinced of the philosophy myself. ‘You saw Johnny and Robert’s reaction to me. We don’t want to start a war. Your world is divided into countries, right?’ Nardo had taught me some facts about Earth when he’d refreshed my training. ‘You spy on other countries, to help keep the peace?’
Dan picked at a flaky piece of bark. ‘Well, yes, I suppose we do.’
‘Then it’s the same for us. Pietra is one place. It’s not divided up into individual countries. We’ve known for ages that we’re linked to Earth by wormholes, so to ensure there’s peace between our worlds we spy on you.’ I omitted to tell him how we’d used that knowledge to advance our own standard of living. It wasn’t something I was proud of.
‘Back there, in the mountains, I never meant to harm you. I was trying to make you leave. Pietran law dictates that no Earth person must know about us. If we’d been caught together they’d have forced a memory drug on you, to make you forget me. You’ve been a good friend, Dan. The best! You deserve more than that.’
Dan chiselled away at the tree trunk until he levered up a large splinter of wood. ‘I’ve been a good friend, meaning that you’re not staying?’
‘I was supposed to be here for nine months, but because of the accident and losing my memory, I’m being sent home. Nardo, he’s my brother, will be here to collect me soon.’ My voice sounded like dry leaves rustling in the breeze. ‘There’s something else. I’ve got an amoretta, a boyfriend, called Marn. I remember him now.’
I stood very still and watched Dan as he lined the splinter up with the tip of his finger. Then he flicked it into the loch. He met my gaze evenly. ‘Marn, he was the one in the blue boiler suit? He was also the one who tried to give me the memory drug.’
I nodded.
‘Only you drugged him first?’
I hesitated. Should I tell Dan the truth? That I hadn’t remembered Marn until after I’d drugged him. I’d promised to be totally honest with him, but on this occasion did it really matter? I’d already broken so many rules of the Confidentiality Decree to protect Dan. There didn’t seem much point in having a ‘but what would you have done if you had recognised Marn?’ discussion.
Dan smiled suddenly then pushed himself off the tree trunk. He stepped closer and to my great surprise he put his arms round me. He dropped his face down to mine until his lips were so close that I could almost taste them.
‘So this is goodbye?’ he whispered.
‘Yes.’
Dan dipped his head and his lips met mine. He kissed me quickly, the kiss of a close friend. I closed my eyes and kissed him lightly back. A warm glow spread through me as I stepped away.
‘When we were in Balochry, outside the café, I was about to ask you out, but now I’m glad I didn’t.’ Dan sounded wistful.
‘No?’ I said, bristling. ‘Why? Was my kissing that bad?’
‘No.’ Dan shook his head sadly. ‘It was after you pushed me away that I realised how unfair I’d been. It wasn’t right
to ask you to be my girlfriend in the moments before you were about to find out who you were. I think I’ve always known that you’d have a boyfriend. You’re special, Amber. Anyone can see that. And now there’s another reason. On the drive home from Balochry, I reached an important decision.’ He took a deep breath and said slowly, as if it was something he wanted to try out for size, ‘I’m going away.’
‘You are?’
‘Yes. I’m applying to Plymouth University, for a place on the Architecture course. I’m going to apply for a deferred place so that I can take a gap year first, to travel.’
‘What about your mum and dad? What about all this?’ I waved my hand at the loch.
‘It’s like I said before, Mum and Dad will be disappointed, but they’ll get over it. They’d be far more disappointed if I didn’t follow my heart. They’d never force me to stay here and run this place if they knew that I wanted to do something different. I should have been more honest with them when I finally realised this wasn’t what I wanted.’
‘Oh, Dan! Good luck with it. You’ll love travelling.’ I was glad he was moving on too. It made me feel less guilty. ‘I’ll never forget you…’ I stopped talking because my voice had started to squeak.
‘I’ll remember you too. Whereever I am, whenever the stars are shining, I’ll look up and I’ll know that you’re out there somewhere.’
Suddenly my eyes were swimming in hot tears. I blinked them back and reached for Dan’s hand. I held it tightly. If things had been different… but I had Marn and he was my true soulmate. My guilt was so much lighter for knowing that Dan was about to embark on his own adventure.
I spent a bittersweet evening with my friends. We played volleyball down by the lake. Holly was there too. She wasn’t exactly nice to me, but she didn’t make any of her usual bitchy remarks either. I was sad to be leaving. I decided that I hated goodbyes, and hanging around made it much worse. Mostly though, I wanted to get back to Marn. He had to remember me. What would I do if he didn’t?
