Zodiac Girls: Brat Princess

by Cathy Hopkins

  “I can walk,” I said when Mr O opened the back of the car. “Just get my baggage will you?”

  Mr O laughed and mimicked me, saying, “Get my baggage will you?” in a girlie manner as he held the door open for me. He indicated the porch at the front of the lodge as if to say that I should go in there. I took a quick look around to see if I could escape. The pale crescent moon behind the silhouettes of trees gave little light, but I could just make out gardens all around, although the shrubbery was dense black. I decided that I’d have a better look in the morning and make a dash for it when I had a better idea of where I was.

  Mr O followed me up to the porch, without bringing in my bag I noted. The door was opened by a tall, black, fit-looking man with a shaved head and a chiselled jaw line. In the combat gear he was wearing, he had the appearance of a soldier, and like Mr O, he was incredibly handsome. Buff, as Tigsy would say.

  As soon as we got inside the wood-panelled reception area and the man had closed the door, I ran over and hid behind him. I didn’t like where I was. The whole building looked shabby and smelt of mould and mushrooms. On a battered table in a corner was a pot plant with half of its leaves dried up through lack of care. This wasn’t a place I wanted to stay in for a moment longer than necessary.

  “Quick, get the police,” I said as I pointed at Mr O. “That man has kidnapped me.”

  “Is that right?” chuckled the man in combat gear. I nodded.

  Mr O rolled his eyes as if he was exasperated, then he examined his nails as if he was bored with me. “Now why would you think that?” he asked.

  “D’er? I’m in a strange country, brought here in a strange car by a stranger. You do the maths.”

  “You haven’t been kidnapped, Leonora,” said the new man.

  “How do you know my name? Oh no. You’re in on it too. Who are you then?”

  “My name is Mario. I shall be running the programme.”

  “Programme?! What programme?”

  Mario turned to Mr O. “You haven’t told her yet then?”

  Mr O shook his head.

  “No. He hasn’t told me anything. What kind of hotel is this exactly?’

  Mario laughed. “Hotel? Hotel?” He held his arms up to indicate our surroundings. “This isn’t a hotel. Least not any longer. Oh no. Those days are long over. Now it’s a boot camp.”

  “A boot camp?”

  Mr O and Mario nodded.

  I felt an awful sinking feeling in my stomach. “And why am I here exactly?” I asked although I was beginning to get the picture.

  And it wasn’t looking good.

  Chapter Four

  Queen of Sheba

  “Look, let’s get this sorted, then we can all be on our way. Let me speak to my mother. Um. Please.”

  Mario and Mr O exchanged looks.

  “You told her the real news yet?” asked Mario.

  Mr O shook his head.

  “Real news? What are you on about?”

  “Later,” said Mr O. “All in good time.”

  “Two calls,” said Mario, and handed me a portable phone from a hatch in the wall through which I glimpsed a drab-looking office full of files and cardboard boxes.

  I took the phone and walked over to the corner. I had a bad feeling about what was happening and was totally unsure how to play it. These guys might be über good-looking, but they also looked as if they meant business. And they might think that calling it boot camp was some kind of funny joke, but I knew what was going on. I’d been kidnapped. I needed Mummy to get me out and fast. I dialled her number and she picked up straight away as if she’d been standing by the phone.

  “Is that you Leon—?”

  “Mummy, thank God. Shut up and listen. You have to act quickly as I don’t know how long I’ve got but I’ve been kidnapped. I’m not sure where they’ve brought me but I’m pretty sure that it’s England somewhere as all road signs and billboard posters are in English. I’m near a village called Osbury. Wasn’t that near where we used to live when I was little? It looked familiar. Anyway, check it out and trace this call. Get the police on it and get them on it fast. I don’t like it here. It’s spooky and I don’t know what these men have got planned. There are two of them so far, but there may be others.”

  There was silence at the other end of the phone.

  “Mummy?”

  “Yes. Yes, darling, I’m here…” She sounded as if she’d been crying. So the dirty rotten scoundrels have been in touch already, I thought. Probably demanding their ransom. Still. I didn’t know why she was crying. We could surely afford it whatever it was.

  There was a commotion at the other end and Daddy came on.

  “Leonora?”

  ‘Yes. Daddy. Did you hear? I’ve been kidnapped. Two men—”

  “No, Leonora.”

  “What do you mean, ‘no’?”

  “No, darling. We… that is... your mother and I have paid for you to attend a… well… a sort of programme over there.”

  “WHAT?” I cried, causing Mario and Mr O to look over. “A programme? That’s what they said. What sort of programme? Noooooooo. I don’t want to do a programme. I want to go to Paris with…”

  “Boot camp,” Daddy interrupted and this time his voice sounded firm. “We’ve had enough of your behaviour, Leonora. You left us no other option.”

  A quick replay of their emotional goodbye flashed through my mind. Mum not asking what I wanted for Christmas dinner. Both of them acting guilty and clingy. Suddenly it all made sense. They had set me up!

  No WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY! cried a voice in my head. “Daddy, I am sooooo not staying here. I won’t. Get me out or send someone to come and get me and make it SNAPPY.”

  “It’s only for a month,” said Daddy.

  “No. No. NOOOO. What part of that don’t you understand?”

  “A month, Leonora,” Daddy repeated.

  “A month? A month? Are you out of your mind? It’s CHRISTMAS in three weeks’ time! You can’t leave me here over Christmas. I… you… they…”

  “Goodbye, Leonora. They’ll keep us informed of how you are. And I think you’re allowed a letter once a week.”

  And then he hung up. My own father. Hung up. On me. I couldn’t believe it! How DAAAAAAAARE he? I threw down the phone and kicked the wall.

  Mario shot me a look as if to say, “Don’t do that”. I wouldn’t like to get on the bad side of him I thought. He looks tough and a half.

  Mr O was more sympathetic and held up a finger. “One more call,” he said.

  I scowled at them, picked up the phone from where it had rolled under an old dusty chair and dialled the only other number that I knew by heart. Tigsy’s. She’d get her father to rescue me. He was one of the richest men in Europe. Even richer than my dad. He’d sort it. And that would show the two losers standing behind me.

  The phone rang and rang and rang. Oh please pick up, Tigs, I thought. Please don’t let it go onto voice mail.

  I was about to give up and try phoning Daddy back when she answered. “Hello. Tigsy Piggott’s phone.”

  “Tigs, thank god, listen—”

  “Hey Leonora. Where were you? Where are you? Daddy and I went out to get you, but were told the plane had been diverted. Then there was a message from your parents saying that plans had changed. What’s going on?”

  I turned away from the reception area from where my two captors were still watching me. “Don’t talk, listen,” I whispered into the phone. “I’ve been… I’m in a…” For a second I wasn’t sure what to say. I didn’t want to admit that my own parents might have really sent me to boot camp. “I… I’ve been kidnapped.”

  Tigsy burst out laughing. “Oh, Lee-lee! You’re such a scream. Kidnapped? Come on, where are you really?”

  “That’s just it. I don’t know. In this place. It might be a hotel, but I think it might some kind of prison. It’s cold and spooky, I don’t like—”

  “Oh you’re such a drama queen when you don’t like some
place,” said Tigsy. “That’s what you said about our dorm at school remember? But actually I feel the same about this place. People may say it’s the best hotel in Paris and I know Daddy paid a fortune for us to stay here, but it looks like a prison to me, too. Like, I’ve only got four pillows and you know I like six. So when are you getting here? It will be so much more fun when you’re here, too. We can play prisoners and escape together.”

  “No. Tigs. I’m serious!”

  Suddenly the line went crackly.

  “What was that? You’re breaking up. Bad line. Can you hear me?”

  “Tigs. I’m serious. Get help!”

  “Can’t hear you. I heard, I’m… I’m what?”

  “Tigsy, get the call traced. Help!”

  “Nope. Can’t hear a thing. You’ve gone. Call me again in five.”

  “Noooooooooooooooooo… I don’t get another call… Don’t go.”

  “Laters.”

  And she hung up!

  I turned round to face my captors. Mr O smiled and gave me the thumbs up. Mario looked at me as if I was a worm who had just crawled in from the garden. Oh hell, I thought. I just landed in it.

  Best play along until I know exactly what I’m up against, I decided as Mr O gave me the guided tour of the lodge in his best TV presenter’s manner, then I’ll plan my escape.

  “What is this building exactly?” I asked as we toured a maze of dingy corridors. They all looked the same – beige wallpaper on the walls, worn-out green-and-black tartan carpet on the floor and dim lighting from fittings on the ceiling that looked like they hadn’t been dusted in a hundred years. I could see the bodies of dead flies and moths in the bowls of a couple of them. And the whole place had the lingering smell of boiled cabbage and lavender polish that reminded me of one of the boarding schools I’d been to. “And where are all the guests?”

  “Guests? Hah! Oh, you’ll meet them soon enough although I wouldn’t exactly call them guests.”

  “So what is this place, then?”

  “Used to be a hotel with a fancy restaurant,” said Mr O, “but as it’s a bit out of the way, it wasn’t doing any business.”

  “So what is it, then?” I asked again.

  “Perfect location for a boot camp. The building was auctioned off in the summer and a few of us clubbed together and got it.”

  “Why is it the perfect location?” I asked, although I had pretty well worked out the answer.

  “It’s so out of the way,” he replied, then laughed and said in a spooky voice. “No-one can hear you scream.”

  Play it very cool, I told myself as a shiver went down my spine, very cool indeed.

  “Only joking,” said Mr O. “No need to look so scared. Among other things, I’m an actor, you know.” He smiled his kilowatt smile.

  I scowled back at him. “I wouldn’t give up the day job if I was you. You don’t scare me with your silly scary voice.”

  “Well! You are a rude girl.”

  I shrugged. “So? Get over it. Maybe someone will take pity on you and give you a job as an extra in some movie that goes straight to video.”

  Mr O pursed his lips together. I knew I’d hit a nerve. Hah. One to me, I thought as he continued the tour and showed me a scruffy gym with some prehistoric-looking sports equipment, a dusty library that looked like it needed some books as most of the shelves were empty, a huge dark kitchen at the back of the building that stank of bleach and onions, and a dining room next to it with a long wooden table and benches in the middle. The whole place appeared shabby and uninhabited, which was what gave it the cold, spooky feel.

  “That kitchen looks unused and it smells,” I said as we made our way down yet another corridor.

  “Yep. It’s hardly been used since the place was a hotel, but that’s all changed now. Hermie goes and gets what we need.”

  “Hermie? Who’s Hermie?”

  “He’s in here,” said Mr O as he opened a door at the end of one of the corridors. “This is the… er, the staff room.”

  It was like walking into a miniature planetarium. Gentle music tinkled from unseen speakers and it was warm with a lovely smell of baked apples and cinnamon in contrast to the rest of the lodge. A large mobile of the Earth and surrounding planets hung from a beam that ran along the centre of the ceiling. There were posters of the constellations and galaxies on the wall, and a painting of the signs of the zodiac. Four comfy-looking armchairs were placed around a roaring fire and sitting in the chairs were four people who were all staring at me. They seemed an odd-looking bunch. First was an old man with a tweed suit on and a white beard who looked like he belonged in a bygone age.

  “Dr Cronus,” said Mr O. “He’ll be supervising your lessons.”

  “Lessons?” I asked as the bearded man gave me a curt nod. He didn’t look friendly at all. “Like school?”

  “Not exactly. More like karma,” said Mr O. “You know – the theory that as you sow, so you shall reap. That’s one of life’s biggest lessons.”

  “Whatever,” I said, and stifled a yawn.

  Next to Dr Cronus was an extraordinary-looking woman who looked about thirty. She had long silver hair and the appearance of a mermaid without a tail. She had a dreamy expression in her pale eyes and was dressed in green and silver clothes that had an Indian hippie feel about them. So last decade, I thought as she glanced over and smiled at me.

  “Selene Luna,” continued Mr O. “She’ll be your counsellor and nurse.”

  I nodded at her. Yeah, right, I told myself, play along, play along, keep grinning. Don’t let them know they’ve got me worried.

  The third person was Mario and I’d already met him. He didn’t even glance up at me.

  “You can call him War Bear,” said Mr O. “And, if you like, you can call Selene Mother Moon.”

  “What’s with the wacky names?” I asked.

  Mr O beamed his smile. “It’s what people do at boot camp. I’ve seen it on TV. All the organizers and directors have special names. Mine will be… er… let me think… er…”

  “How about Dingbat Brain?”

  Mr O actually considered it, then shook his head. “No. No. Not right. Instead you can call me… Sun Bird.”

  “Think I’ll stick with Mr O, if you don’t mind,” I replied. “You might live in wacko city but I don’t.”

  The fourth person was the most interesting-looking and for a brief second I forgot my fear. He was a boy babe straight out of a Calvin Klein commercial. Fit bod, great dark wavy hair to his shoulders and, like Mario and Mr O, the same handsome, chiselled features. I immediately felt more cheerful as I like boys, although this one looked at least nineteen, which is maybe a bit too old for me. He turned and gave me the same kilowatt smile as Mr O. Must be family, I thought. There’s something about them all that’s similar – although I can’t quite put my finger on it. Something in the eyes.

  “Welcome,” he said.

  “I shan’t be staying,” I replied.

  “This is Hermie,” said Mr O. “He’s in charge of communications.”

  “And your name is? Big Bear? Small Bear? Furry Bear?”

  Hermie chuckled. “Hey, she’s funny,” he said to Mr O. “No. Although some people call me Mercury, you can call me Hermie here. I’ll stick with that.”

  “No. You have to have a name,” said Mr O. “Come on. Play the game. Pick a name. The rest of us have.”

  I glanced over at Mr O. For a moment there, he had sounded petulant. As if he didn’t like not getting his way. A bit like me, I thought.

  “Oh all right then,” said Hermie. “I will be… Messenger Bear.”

  Mr O looked appeased. “Hmm. That’s okay I suppose. You got her phone for her?”

  Hermie nodded and reached into a desk behind him.

  Phone? I asked myself. These idiots were going to actually let me have a phone?

  Hermie tossed me a package wrapped in gold paper and everyone watched me unwrap it as if it was gift giving time at Christmas.

  I
ripped the last bit of paper. Inside was a phone and a small box. The phone was gold-coloured with a single and very large diamond at the top above the numbers. Vulgar, I thought. It didn’t look cheap, but it wasn’t exactly the height of sophistication either. The assorted nutters, however, were looking at me as though I’d just won the jackpot. They really are mad, I thought, first they kidnap me, then they give me a phone, like d’er. Do they think I won’t actually use it to phone for help?

  “You can use it to get in touch with me whenever you like,” beamed Mr O.

  “You? And why would I want to do that when you’re right here in the same place as me?”

  Mr O tapped the side of his nose. “Ah, but who knows what the next month holds? You might get lost when out on a hike. You might need to talk to someone. Oh yes, I think you’ll find that you come to value that phone dearly.”

  “And I think that you’ll find that, even if I did need to talk to someone, you’d be the last person on Earth. What makes you think that I would want to talk to you?”

  “Because I am your guardian!” said Mr O.

  I rolled my eyes. “Whatever,” I sighed. I put the phone to one side and opened the box. Inside was a white gold chain with a charm on it. I looked more closely and saw that the charm was a tiny lion’s head.

  “The lion for a Leo,” said Mr O. “Only very special people get these phones and a chain like that, and you have been chosen to join their ranks.”

  I tossed the phone and charm aside. “Yeah. Yeah. Whatever.”

  Mr O flushed red and looked like he was going to explode. I could see that a vein on his forehead was throbbing. “Well! You ungrateful little madam!”

  Mario took Mr O aside and was talking to him as if trying to calm him down. But what’s the big deal? I asked myself. At home, I have five mobiles and a whole drawer full of jewellery. No way was I impressed by these pathetic little trinkets that looked like they came out of a cheap Christmas cracker.