Jinxed

by Amy McCulloch

  >>God, they all have their panties in such a twist. Can’t they just chill out?

  They can’t chill out. And that’s all your fault. It’s not supposed to be like this. You’re not supposed to make decisions for me. It’s one thing to send a text, but this is different. You’re not real. You’re owned by me. You’re supposed to be controlled by me.

  He stares up at me with his dark eyes. But his expression is unreadable. He’s never looked so . . . robotic.

  ‘Well, Lacey?’

  I jerk my head upwards. I haven’t been listening to their conversations. Mr Baird is looking at me expectantly, while the others all have thunder and fury etched into their expressions.

  ‘Well . . .’ I draw out the word, trying desperately to remember what was said.

  Gemma scoffs loudly, rolls her eyes and folds her arms over her chest. ‘Looks like you got played harder than the rest of us,’ she says to Tobias. ‘Thought Nathan’s bro would be smarter than that. Guess you are the lesser Washington.’

  Tobias’s expression causes my throat to hitch. He moves from anger to a look of such hurt and betrayal that I wince. And how can I blame him? I know what he must think. That I’ve been using our friendship – and the growing . . . whatever it is . . . between us – to form a strategy to hurt him. Even though that wasn’t my intention in the slightest. Jinx just wanted to protect Jupiter, I want to say, but I know that no one will believe me. After all, bakus aren’t supposed to want things.

  They’re not supposed to make decisions on their own.

  They’re supposed to obey their owners – or else who knows what kind of chaos we could encounter. People blaming their bakus for their actions, letting a robot take responsibility. I have to step up to the plate and own what Jinx has done.

  ‘Well, are you up for the challenge?’ Mr Baird repeats, his voice patient and a ghost of a smile playing on his lips.

  I stand up out of my chair. ‘I’m happy to pull out of the competition and not be a wild card. I . . . I don’t know what came over me. It was all a big mistake. I promise. Nothing like that will ever happen again.’

  Now Mr Baird’s expression darkens. ‘Oh no, it’s too late for that. You must continue – albeit with a handicap for late entry. The board has deemed that I give Jinx a black mark for the next twelve hours, while the other teams attempt to repair their bakus. So he will stay at 80% damage and you won’t be able to repair him. Other than that, I’m afraid that the decision is final. You will be a team captain in the next round of Baku Battles to be held at Moncha HQ, although you will have only you and your baku to rely on. Let’s hope today wasn’t a fluke.’

  I drop my head, and nod.

  ‘I need verbal confirmation from you that you’re going to participate.’

  I hesitate, then flick my eyes up. ‘I will participate,’ I say.

  ‘Good, that’s settled then.’

  Gemma throws her hands up in the air and walks off with a strangled cry.

  ‘You’re going down, little miss,’ hisses Dorian. I wince as he says it, but I try and keep my back as straight as possible. I can’t let them intimidate me too much. Whatever they think, I know this wasn’t my decision.

  Tobias walks past last. He stops right in front of me, and I can feel that he has a million things he wants to say, balancing right there on the tip of his tongue. His eyes search mine, the eyes that had previously been filled with happiness and laughter last time they looked at me. Now, they’re hard – jade rocks instead of soft moss. ‘I trusted you,’ he says. Aero flaps his wings in my face, sending my hair flying. Then in several long strides, he’s gone.

  I deflate, my shoulders crumpling in on themselves. Even though I’m so mad at him, I find myself automatically reaching down and stroking Jinx. He wriggles under my hand until his nose nuzzles my palm, then he slinks in a figure of eight around my legs and up into my lap. I hold him close. My anger towards him dissipates as he purrs against my body. I know he meant well.

  ‘Lacey?’ Mr Baird asks. I look up to see he’s been staring at me and Jinx, a curious expression on his face. ‘I have to give Jinx his black mark.’

  My eyes open wide. I’d heard him say that, but I hadn’t really taken in what that would mean. ‘Do you have to, sir?’

  ‘It’s the board-mandated punishment. And you’re not going to be able to do any sort of repairs before tomorrow, do you understand?’

  I nod, misery settling over my shoulders like I’ve been caught in a downpour.

  ‘Bring your baku to me.’

  ‘You brought this on yourself,’ I mutter to him, before placing him down on Mr Baird’s desk. I can see the black mark sitting there, dark and menacing.

  Mr Baird doesn’t put the mark on straight away. Instead, he stares at Jinx, who is curled up on the desk. I think the battle must have taken some of the energy out of him – more so than his pride will let on.

  The longer that Jinx sits there, with Mr Baird staring at him, the more uneasy I get.

  ‘He really is remarkable, Miss Chu,’ Mr Baird says. He reaches out a hand and runs it over Jinx’s soft electronic fur. ‘And you say you got him from your local Moncha Store?’

  I force myself to nod. But I’ve told this lie so many times now, it slips out as easily as the truth. ‘That’s right. As soon as I got the notification that I was into Profectus.’

  ‘Interesting. Must be one of the latest models – I confess, I don’t keep up as much as I should. My own owl baku is one of the first models.’ He snaps his fingers and the owl flies down to the desk. He’s right: I can instantly tell that this is one of the older versions. The feathers are much cruder, the technology more obvious and not as well hidden behind the animalistic shell. The owl is cumbersome, more machine than bird – but there’s a certain type of elegance in that too.

  Mr Baird tries to manipulate Jinx so that he can turn him over, but Jinx won’t let him: he’s pretending to be asleep. After a few moments, Mr Baird gives up, and places the black mark around Jinx’s outstretched paw. The moment it latches on, Jinx goes totally limp. Inert. Switched off.

  It pains me.

  I lean in to take Jinx back, but Mr Baird stops me. ‘Why did you enter the arena at that point? You must have known you would be risking extra damage to your baku, and it seems to me like you are very attached to him. You could have simply announced your wild card status before the third battle.’

  ‘I . . . I didn’t like Team Gemma’s strategy,’ I say, speaking honestly. ‘And I don’t think that Carter would have stopped. You saw him when he used that revive chip. He had no intention of letting Jupiter get through this round of battles in one piece.’

  ‘Hmm, you might be right about that. And when did you get the notification about being a wild card? You should have been told about that before the first battle.’

  ‘Oh, I . . .’ I don’t know what to say. I wrack my brains for a strong enough story, sensing Mr Baird’s eyes boring into the top of my skull, but I don’t look up to meet his gaze. Instead, I stare fixedly at Jinx. ‘I’d like to keep that to myself, if that’s okay.’

  ‘Okay,’ he says. He lets go of Jinx, and I hug him into my chest protectively. For a second, I think I feel him stir –the tiniest nuzzle of his nose into my neck – but that’s not possible with the black mark. It must be my imagination. ‘Just remember,’ he says. ‘You’re going to have a lot of eyes on you now. Eyes on you – and on that baku of yours.’

  ‘Yes, sir.’

  ‘See you tomorrow, Miss Chu. The final battle takes place in two weeks’ time. I hope you are ready.’

  ‘I’ll try,’ I say, trying to sound more confident than I feel. ‘Goodbye.’

  I leave the confines of the classroom, wandering slowly back to my locker. When I get there, I see a note from Jake that tells me: ‘If you have a private way out, I suggest you USE IT. You’ll be mobbed.’

  I’m grateful that he thought to leave me a note – when Jinx is back online, I’ll send him a thank you.
I grab my jacket and backpack as quickly as I can. Even though Jinx can’t hear me with the mark on, I still find myself talking to him as I take one of the back stairwells to a less used exit.

  Are we actually doing this, Jinx? Are you actually going to have to battle? What if I lose you? I can’t even bring myself to be excited at the prospect of visiting Moncha headquarters. Yesterday that would have been all I cared about. Today . . .

  We plunge into darkness as I enter the stairwell, and I don’t dare turn on the light to alert anyone nearby to my presence. But a voice sounds out of the dark.

  ‘Wait!’

  ‘WAIT UP, LACEY.’

  My heart pounding, I spin around to see Carter a few floors above me. No. He’s the last person I want to talk to. I push through the exit doors and out into the cold air. I need to get home as quickly as possible.

  I wrap my arms around Jinx’s inert body. The temperature has taken a turn towards the Canadian winter and even at the beginning of November, it’s dipping below zero. And it’s pouring with freezing rain.

  ‘You can’t run forever,’ he shouts at my retreating back. ‘I know something’s not right with you and that baku. You’re not supposed to even be at this school. My dad promised me you wouldn’t be at this school!’

  Now, I freeze – but it has nothing to do with the cold. I spin around as Carter saunters towards me. He looks smaller without his baku by his side, but no less frightening. He’s bright red with anger, his teeth gnashing together. ‘What do you mean?’ I ask.

  He storms right up to me, so close I feel every word like a punch. ‘You’re not supposed to be at Profectus. You’re never going to work at Moncha Corp, I don’t care if you win every Baku Battle under the sun. My dad hated your dad. Don’t you get it? I don’t know what sort of glitch allowed you in, but it would be better for everyone if you just left now.’

  ‘Hey, what’s going on here?’ Mr Baird strides round the corner.

  ‘Your baku isn’t normal, Lacey,’ Carter hisses at me. ‘I’m going to find out what’s going on with it. That’s for sure.’ He ducks his head and pushes past me, disappearing into the depths of the parking lot.

  ‘Are you okay, Lacey? What was that all about?’

  ‘Nothing, sir. It’s fine.’

  He frowns. ‘You’re soaked through. How about I drive you home?’

  I shake my head, shrinking inside my jacket. ‘I’m okay.’

  ‘Come on, you’ve had a rough day. You don’t want to walk home in this freezing rain. You’ll slide everywhere in those shoes.’

  I look down at my feet. Yeah, wearing ballet flats wasn’t the smartest idea. I really should be wearing my boots at all times, but I was so absent-minded, I forgot them in my locker.

  The idea of a drive home in a warm car does sound nice. Mr Baird’s owl baku flies over to a nearby vehicle, and there’s a clicking noise as the doors unlock. The freezing cold water seeping through the soles of my shoes makes the decision for me. I hop in the car.

  Mr Baird slides on to the seat next to me, and the car drives away.

  ‘Um, do you need my address?’

  ‘You did a dangerous thing, sending that baku in. I thought I could trust that you would stay under the radar.’

  My eyes open wide.

  ‘Tell me honestly, where did you get that baku?’ he gestures at Jinx.

  I purse my lips. I’ve just told him this story. ‘From the Moncha Store,’ I repeat.

  He sighs. ‘I double-checked your background. All your school codes have been tampered with. Carter was right. You weren’t supposed to be at Profectus at all.’

  Suddenly the inside of the car feels like it’s closing in on me, my vision narrowing. My worst fears are coming to life: people are realizing that I don’t belong at Profectus. I’m a fraud. An imposter.

  They’re going to kick me out. They’re going to take Jinx away and I’m going to be left with nothing. Maybe they won’t even let me have a baku at all. I’ll be one of those people that’s banned from having one – a criminal. It’s the worst possible punishment I can think of, and it’s now just one step from being inevitable.

  I can’t even imagine what my face looks like to someone outside of all this. Mr Baird frowns. ‘I thought we could at least get away with it until the end of the school year, but now that Eric Smith’s son is suspicious and you’re set to visit Moncha headquarters . . .’

  My fingers twitch against Jinx’s body. ‘I don’t understand. Get away with what?’ I catch a glimpse of the view outside the window and see that we’re crossing over the bridge and into the city – the opposite direction to my home. ‘Wait, where are we going?’

  Mr Baird’s fingers tighten on the seat as we cross the domineering viaduct that separates Monchaville from the rest of the city.

  ‘It’s not safe to talk yet.’

  ‘Not safe to talk? I don’t understand.’ I shift in my seat, uncomfortably aware that there’s no way for me to escape the confines of the car. ‘Mr Baird, this is all very cold war spy thriller, but where exactly are we going?’ I try and keep the tone light, even though fear is settling in the pit of my stomach. ‘Where are you taking me? I think I have a right to know.’

  ‘You’ll know soon enough.’

  The car drives straight down Queen Street West, past the trendy shops and towards the big converted warehouse buildings that pepper the West End. My mind takes me back fleetingly to the time when Zora and I had just bought my beetle baku. Before Profectus, before Team Tobias, before Jinx. It feels like a lifetime ago.

  The car slows in front of one of the nondescript warehouses, constructed out of pale yellow brick, with huge glass windows that appear to be either blackened out, not revealing anything inside. There’s no advertising on the building whatsoever, no signage, nothing to indicate who owns it. I guess the mystery is going to continue for a few moments longer. Anxiety and curiosity mingle in my stomach in equal dosages.

  ‘Follow me,’ he says, unbuckling his seatbelt and opening the door in one swift motion.

  ‘As if I have a choice,’ I mumble. We take a set of stairs up to the lobby, which is dominated by a single security desk and an old-fashioned body scanner. Most of the time, a police-regulated baku does security checks, but there isn’t one of those in here.

  ‘You’ll have to check those in,’ says the guard, who stands up from his desk as we enter.

  ‘Um, what?’ It looks to me as if he’s pointing at Jinx, and then at the owl. ‘There’s no way I’m leaving Jinx here.’

  ‘I promise you, he will be perfectly safe. I have to leave my owl here too.’ Mr Baird puts his hand on my shoulder. ‘You’ve trusted me this far. Just a little bit further and then I promise you can go back home and to your normal life.’

  ‘No way,’ I say. ‘He has a black mark on him still – he can’t communicate or anything. Let me keep him, or I’m leaving now.’

  Mr Baird hesitates and exchanges a look with the guard. Eventually, he nods. ‘Fine. Let’s go.’

  My hand clings to Jinx’s body, a thin layer of sweat building on my palms. I wipe them on my jeans surreptitiously. I don’t like this one bit.

  ‘Come on, this way.’ We pass through the security gate and into an elevator. Now I see the first sign. BRIGHTSPRK is written in discreet lettering at the top of the elevator buttons.

  ‘Oh hell, no,’ I say, but the doors shut before I can step back through.

  BRIGHTSPRK is one of Moncha’s main rivals. THE main rival. Just stepping in here feels like an act of treason. Now I look up at Mr Baird with an expression of pure scorn and fury. My fists are balled tightly by my side.

  ‘I know what you must be thinking—’

  ‘No, you don’t know,’ I say, through gritted teeth. I love Moncha Corp. Monica Chan is my hero. And now, here I am at BRIGHTSPRK? It makes my skin crawl.

  The elevator doors open to a narrow hallway. I debate just staying in the elevator as Mr Baird walks out, but I force my feet to move.
r />   I feel like I’ve crossed on to enemy lines. A place where bakus aren’t allowed: I knew it had to be bad news.

  Mr Baird stops in front of a door, jangles a set of keys from out of his pocket – so old-school – and opens it. It’s a small office, again – like everything here – very plain, with not a lot of decoration or technology. There’s a desk, unadorned, and wooden chairs either side. He walks around to one side, and gestures for me to sit on the other. There’s a laptop sitting on his desk. It’s older even than the one I have in my basement.

  ‘Wow, BRIGHTSPRK not doing so well?’ I remark.

  ‘Lacey, I know you must be confused, but you have to know that I am trusting you too by letting you in on this secret.’

  ‘I didn’t ask you to.’

  We stand there, on either side of the desk, facing each other.

  I’m the one to break first. ‘So how long have you been working at BRIGHTSPRK?’

  ‘For my whole career.’

  ‘Wow. A lifelong double agent. Isn’t corporate espionage a crime?’

  ‘I think what Moncha is doing is a crime.’

  I scoff. ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘Well, that’s what I need your help figuring out.’

  ‘Okay, seriously?’ I say, talking over the top of him. But he continues on as if I hadn’t interrupted.

  ‘Have you seen Monica Chan around recently? Or did you notice that she disappeared after the latest upgrade?’

  I pause. ‘She’s around – she’s been overseeing developments in other countries,’ I parrot back Eric Smith’s words. But even I’m not sure if I believe that. From what I know of Monica Chan, it’d be unlike her to leave her company in someone else’s hands. But then again, maybe everyone needs a break from being the boss.

  ‘If you say so.’

  ‘I still don’t see what this has to do with me. I mean – it must be big to blow your cover as some sort of career snitch.’

  He sighs. ‘Profectus is a bubble – you’re so protected in there. Sheltered. But there’s something bigger happening in the outside world.’

  ‘What?’