Given all of that, Allie wasn’t at all surprised when Katie dropped down on the sofa next to her and fixed her with a determined look.
‘I’ve been picking my way through the gossip,’ she said by way of hello. ‘Is it true you spoke with Jerry Cole?’
Allie tensed. She’d had this conversation many times today and she wasn’t wild about having it again.
She glanced around to make sure no one was listening, but the chess players were far too involved in their own conversation to notice, and the other students were too far away to hear.
‘Yeah,’ she said cautiously. ‘I talked to him.’
‘And he really confessed to being Nathaniel’s guy?’
Allie nodded.
Katie exhaled audibly. ‘Jesus. I can’t get over it. He just …’ She waved her hand and her pearl and diamond ring glimmered. ‘He never seemed like anything other than a typical trustworthy boring science geek. It’s super creepy to think the whole time he was …’
‘Watching us,’ Allie finished the thought. ‘I know.’
If she’d expected Katie to pick a fight or somehow diminish the impact of what Jerry had done – what Allie had been through in the last few days – she was wrong. Katie seemed just as shocked as the other students were. Just as demoralised and angry.
‘The rest of the gossip sounds like bollocks to me,’ Katie said. ‘No other teachers are involved, are they?’
Allie shook her head. ‘Just Jerry.’
‘They’re quite sure?’ Katie pressed her.
‘Lucinda and Raj …’ Allie tried to decide how to put it without mentioning the MI5 connection. ‘They were very thorough.’
The redhead seemed satisfied by this. ‘If Lucinda’s involved they would have gone straight to the top,’ she said. ‘What happens now?’
‘They’re setting up a meeting with Nathaniel.’
Katie arched one perfect russet eyebrow. ‘Let me guess. You have to be there. Because Nathaniel’s obsessed with you and your brother.’
Allie gave a tired shrug. ‘Welcome to my world.’
Across the room, someone laughed. Allie glanced over, wishing she thought anything was funny right now.
Tapping one perfectly manicured nail against the smooth skin of her knee, Katie considered this.
‘It isn’t though. Your world, I mean,’ she said. ‘It’s mine.’
Allie gave her a puzzled look. ‘I don’t get it.’
‘You don’t really know these people,’ Katie explained. ‘But I do. I’ve known them all my life. Nathaniel’s been a friend of my parents since I was little. He was at my eleventh birthday party.’
The very idea was so stunning, Allie couldn’t disguise her shock.
Katie made a wry face. ‘Imagine how much fun that was for me – I asked for a bouncy castle and cake. Instead I got caviar and the Orion board of directors.’
Allie was speechless. It had never occurred to her that Katie would know him personally. She always talked about her parents like they were separate entities, rarely encountered. But, as a child, she would have been home more. So of course she would have known Nathaniel and Lucinda – all the people Allie had never heard of until a year ago had been part of Katie’s life all along.
‘What I’m saying is –’ Katie leaned forward, her green eyes clear as sea water – ‘if I can help you prep for this – get you ready so you know what to expect – I’d like to do it.’
Getting over her surprise, Allie found her voice again.
‘Thank you,’ she said with genuine feeling. ‘I’d like that. It would help. He weirds me out. I always think I’m ready for him and then when I actually see him – ’ she remembered facing him in the castle yard; the way her hands had trembled – ‘I just lose it.’
‘Ask me anything,’ Katie said. ‘I’ll tell you all I know.’
Across the room, someone was striking a key on the baby grand piano. Just the same mournful low key over and over again.
‘Will you stop that?’ Allie heard someone say. The sound ceased.
All she knew of Nathaniel was what she’d seen. He looked ordinary – medium height, dark hair, neither very handsome nor ugly. If you passed him on the street you wouldn’t look at him twice.
He didn’t look evil. He looked like someone’s dad.
‘I guess I’d want to know what makes him tick,’ she said. ‘If I knew, like, how his mind works, then I’d know how to get under his skin. How to throw him off balance.’
Katie nodded briskly. ‘He’s very into organisation. Everything always has to be perfect. The crease in his trousers is very straight, if you see what I’m saying.’ She warmed to the topic, looking over Allie’s shoulder as if she could see Nathaniel in the distance. ‘And everything is always the same. If he’s writing something down he has this way of tapping his pen twice on his notepad before writing – always twice. Never more or less. In fact, he does everything the same way each time. Brushing dust off his shoes with the same weird wrist flick, when there’s, like, no dust there to start with.’ Seeing the look on Allie’s face, she gave a self-deprecating shrug. ‘When I was a child I often had very little to do besides study my parents’ friends. I used to make a game out of it. Observing them like a Sherlock Holmes. Pretending I’d be questioned about it later.’
Allie blinked at her. This was a side of Katie she’d never seen. A surprisingly likable side.
‘So, he’s got OCD or something.’
‘Quite,’ Katie said. ‘Like, he does this thing when he’s really cross.’ She held up a milk-pale arm. ‘He twists his cufflinks three times, like this.’ Demonstrating, she twisted her fingers with quick, precise moves.
‘Good. I can look out for that,’ Allie said. ‘Did he ever talk to you much? I mean, directly?’
Katie paused to think about it. ‘There was one moment I’d mostly forgotten until recently. My parents used to have meetings at the London house. There’d be all these boring business people around and, usually, I’d just play upstairs. But sometimes I’d sit on the stairs to watch them and sort of … eavesdrop.’ She made a face. ‘I was an odd child, I know. But seriously, grow up in my family? You learn to make your own fun.
‘Anyway, one time I was sitting on the stairs. I must have been … twelve, I think. It was right before I came to Cimmeria. And Nathaniel saw me. I remember he walked up to me and he called me Katherine – nobody calls me that. It’s my mother’s name. He said, “And how are you, little Katherine?” And I corrected him, you know, like little girls do. I said, “My name is Katie.” He seemed to find that funny. Then he said, “When you get to Cimmeria, I’ll teach you some manners.” And it scared me.’ She paused. ‘I think because of that I kind of expected him to be here when I arrived, but he wasn’t.’
‘Only he kind of was,’ Allie said.
Katie held her gaze. ‘And now he’s teaching us some manners.’
‘Do you know why your parents are on his side?’ Allie asked. Katie’s expression darkened, and she hurried to finish the question. ‘I mean, did Lucinda do something to them to piss them off so much that they’d—’
‘Side with the devil?’ Katie cut her off. She sounded sardonic and angry now. Allie worried she’d gone too far. But then Katie gave a resigned shrug. ‘With my parents it’s always about money and power. My father lost a fortune in bad investments when I was little and he’s been trying to claw his way back ever since. My mother would kill a human being for a title.’ She appraised Allie, her apricot-pink lips curving up. ‘You’ve already got one of those, I hear. Lady Lanarkshire, isn’t it?’
Flushing, Allie dropped her gaze. ‘Bloody Rachel. I knew she wouldn’t be able to keep it a secret.’
‘My mother would be so jealous.’ Katie sounded almost wistful. ‘I do wish we were still speaking so I could tell her. She’d just love to have you to dinner then. Or for dinner. Whichever. Envy is her main character flaw. And mine, to be fair.’ She turned stern, lowering a glare at Allie. ‘Why sho
uld you have a title if I don’t?’
For a split second, Allie wondered if she was serious, but then the redhead grinned again.
‘Oh, I forgot. Because my mum used to be a receptionist at one of my dad’s companies. That’s why. She’s new money all the way. God, she’d hate that I’ve told you that.’ She settled more comfortably on the sofa. ‘I really must try and think of more scandalous things about her to tell you.’
Allie had to laugh at that. She was starting to like this new, mischievous Katie.
‘I can’t believe you’re being so nice to me.’
Katie didn’t blink. ‘I can’t believe you’re letting me. Why aren’t you snapping my head off?’
‘I don’t know,’ Allie admitted. ‘I guess it’s like you said – there are other people to fight with right now.’
They studied each other for a moment, considering this new alliance. Then Katie grew more serious. She leaned forward, lowering her voice. Allie noticed the chess players had departed at some point without her realising it.
‘Look, Allie. This meeting. If Lucinda wants Nathaniel to back off … it won’t work. You need to be ready for that.’
The warmth in Allie’s chest faded, replaced by the familiar chill of apprehension.
‘Why not?’
‘Because the wheels are in motion,’ Katie said. ‘The board is so behind Nathaniel now, I don’t think he could stop this thing if he tried. They want what he wants. And these people – my parents and their friends – they’ll stop at nothing.’
On some level, Allie had already suspected this. But hearing it said aloud was still shattering. If Katie was right, there was no hope.
‘Are you telling me you think this is all over?’ Her voice was barely above a whisper. ‘There’s no way Lucinda can win?’
Katie’s nod was reluctant but Allie saw no doubt in her expression. ‘I think Lucinda and Isabelle know it, too. They’re just trying to slow the process.’
‘So we’ve lost already.’ Allie felt bleak.
Losing had always been unthinkable. They didn’t have a plan for failure. Suddenly she had to imagine a situation in which they were all homeless. With no family to turn to. No future. And it was awful.
‘I don’t understand. Why would Lucinda go through with this if it’s hopeless?’
Katie’s green eyes studied her with curious kindness. ‘There are different ways to lose, Allie. Sometimes you lose and it’s a sort of victory. I think that’s what she wants.’
‘How?’ Allie was baffled. How could losing be anything other than failure?
‘We are fighting for a lot of things here. For the school, Orion, the board, power, money …’ Katie ticked the items off on her fingers like a shopping list. ‘Lucinda cares about some of them more than others. If she loses control of one, can she gain control somewhere else? If she loses the school, can she find another place? If she loses Orion, can she gain power in another organisation? She needs to hold out long enough to stop Nathaniel from getting what he really wants. This is strategy.’
For some reason Allie found herself thinking about her old life. Before Cimmeria. The way her parents always took their work so seriously. Leaving every morning at seven and not returning until dinnertime. How every little thing that happened in their offices had to be discussed, analysed.
They weren’t poor. They actually had things pretty good compared to some people. But everything mattered.
By comparison, this, treating power and wealth like it was one of those giant chess games you see on holiday – move a pawn here, a king there – seemed garish. Irrational.
Insane.
She forced herself to ask one last question. ‘If she can’t win, what is Lucinda trading Jerry for?’
Katie didn’t hesitate. ‘Time. She needs to buy some time to decide how to lose without losing everything.’
30
Thirty
‘I just don’t see the point.’ Rachel slammed her book shut with a bang. Nicole and Allie stared at her in surprise. ‘And I hate that I can’t see the point in studying. Because I love studying.’
It was Sunday afternoon and they were in the library. They had the room to themselves. Even Eloise wasn’t there today. So they weren’t bothering to be quiet.
‘Come on, Rachel. You can’t give up on normal life.’ Nicole’s delicate French accent made normal life sound dazzling. ‘No matter what happens.’
‘She’s right,’ Allie said, even though she, herself, had been doodling pictures of armed rabbits for half an hour. ‘There might be an apocalypse but we still have to take A-levels. And that’s what really matters.’
Rachel greeted this ironic statement with an eye roll. ‘I’m starting to understand why you guys like fighting. It would be so good to kick something right now.’
Nicole brightened. ‘That would be easy to arrange …’
With perfect timing, the library door opened, hitting the wall with a thud. Zoe swooped in and stood in front of them, disbelief in her eyes. The bruise on her face was going green around the edges. Every morning she gave them a detailed update on the colour changes and what it meant about the movement of blood beneath her skin. This had ruined everyone’s appetite at two breakfasts so far.
‘Why are you studying?’ Her tone said studying was the most idiotic activity she could imagine. ‘There’s a meeting.’ When they just stared at her, she gestured impatiently for them to follow. ‘Come now.’
She led the way down the grand, empty hallway to the basement stairs, and then along the narrow, dusty subterranean corridor. As they neared Training Room One, Allie’s stomach began to twist. An unannounced Night School meeting was never good.
When they arrived, the featureless room was as full as it got these days. All the members of Night School were there, along with Zelazny, Eloise and a handful of guards. Someone had taken up the exercise padding that usually covered the floor and leaned it against the walls, revealing the cold concrete below.
The girls found Carter and Sylvain standing on one side of the dimly lit room with Lucas and they hurried across to them.
‘What’s going on?’ Allie asked, searching their faces for clues. But they both shook their heads.
‘No idea,’ Carter muttered. His hands were shoved deep into his pockets and he scanned the room with suspicious eyes.
‘Looks serious,’ Lucas said.
Tension thickened as they waited with no word. By the time Isabelle and Raj walked in with Dom ten minutes later, nerves crawled under Allie’s skin like insects.
Her eyes were drawn to the American. As always, she wore trousers and a masculine shirt. Her glasses sparkled in the harsh fluorescent light. She looked so enigmatic. So confident.
With the teachers and guards arrayed around her, the headmistress surveyed the room, her head held high.
‘You all know what’s been happening in the last few days.’ Her rich voice filled the space with easy authority. ‘Jerry Cole has admitted he’s been working for Nathaniel, pretending to be one of us but reporting to the man who would like to destroy this school and your future. He has been removed from the school and is being held in a safe place until we can return him to his owner.’
Quiet murmurs swept the room as the students processed this. Allie hoped Isabelle was telling the truth – she didn’t want Jerry anywhere in the building.
‘Now there will be a parley with Nathaniel,’ Isabelle continued. ‘A date and location have been set and the final conditions are being negotiated as we speak.’
A prickle ran down Allie’s spine.
It’s really happening. We’re really going to do this.
Isabelle waited for the room to settle before continuing. ‘You will all have important roles to play. The situation is very dangerous. As always, there’s no way to know what he’s really planning. So while we are away, the school will need to be protected. Raj?’
She stepped back, and Raj took over.
His face was hard as his gaze s
wept the room. ‘The meeting with Nathaniel will take place in London. Half my guards will accompany me to the parley. Half will stay here with you. Between now and the day of the meeting you will be involved in intensive preparation. I think we all know now that Nathaniel is capable of anything.’
He stepped among them, eyes moving from one face to another. ‘Whether you come to London or stay here, I need you to give me everything you’ve got. Your role will be critical in saving lives. Keeping each other safe.’
As he passed them, the students stood straighter, shoulders pulled back, heads high. Even after everything that had happened in the last year, Raj’s approval still mattered.
Isabelle handed Raj a piece of paper and he held it up so they could see it.
‘If I call your name,’ he said, ‘you will be working with Mr Zelazny and my guards to protect the school.’
He called off a list of names. One by one, the students walked over to stand with Zelazny.
When he called Lucas’s name the boy looked up in surprise. Clearly he’d thought he was going to the parley with the core group. But he didn’t argue. Shoving a lock of sandy brown hair back out of his eyes, he walked over to Zelazny. Carter patted him on the shoulder as he passed.
The last name Raj called was Rachel’s. Noticing how she hesitated before crossing the room to join the group, Allie hid her relief. She knew how much Rachel would hate not staying with the parley group. But she couldn’t be with them. She was in no way ready to take on Nathaniel and Gabe again.
Before Rachel could line up with Zelazny’s group, though, Raj stopped her.
‘You’re not working with Zelazny.’ His daughter looked up at him in surprise; he pointed to the other side of the room. ‘We need you to help Dom.’
The American held up her hand, as if Rachel might not know who he was talking about. After a brief pause when Allie feared she might argue, Rachel walked to the tech’s side.
Already, Allie was beginning to feel better about things. If Rachel was with Dom she had to stay at the school. Nathaniel wouldn’t get his hands on her again.
C J Daugherty - [Night School 04] Page 21
