The Gray Institute_Rebels' Hell

by Leanne Pearson

  'Miss Beighley,' Sir Alec smiles from the darkness of his study. Carmel brushes past me without a backwards glance as Sir Alec beckons me inside. 'To what do I owe the pleasure?' He asks as he offers me a seat.

  'Sir Alec,' I nod, remaining standing. 'I understand that you've given Eve Ryder some kind of task,' I say carefully, watching the headmaster’s expression closely. He doesn't seem surprised. 'One concerning your daughter.' I continue.

  ‘That’s correct, Miss Beighley.’

  'I saw them together earlier, out in the grounds. I thought it a little odd how far they seemed to have drifted from the building, so I questioned Ryder. She assured me that they were simply walking, and told me to mind my own business. I didn't want to pursue it further as I understand you have certain... leniencies towards Ryder, due to her task, of course,' I smile. 'But I was just wondering, have you seen your daughter lately? I checked the grounds after second period and couldn't find them anywhere.'

  A flash of fear crosses Sir Alec's aged features, and his eyes dart towards the window. 'I – ' he hesitates. 'No. I haven't seen my daughter. Did you check anywhere other than the grounds?' He asks, a note of panic in his tone.

  'No, sir.' I shake my head.

  'I see,' he muses, trying to appear calm. 'I wonder, Miss Beighley, if you wouldn't mind checking the fourth floor corridor? Lorna has a habit of loitering around there. I will check her room in the meantime. And ask some of my men to look over the building. I'm sure they're here somewhere but... best to be on the safe side.' He forces a tight smile.

  'Of course, sir.' I nod, crossing the room and exiting the study with him. I head to the fourth floor corridor, even though I know I won't find the Headmaster's daughter there, and pause outside Malachy's room. He's inside, I can sense his presence, and he isn't moving. I knock lightly on the door.

  'Luca.' he tries to hide his disappointment when he sees me and I feel jealousy rip through my chest.

  'May I come in?' I try to keep my tone neutral. Like I told Ryder out in the grounds, I'm not stupid. I know that Malachy sees something in her, has certain... feelings towards her. But it's nothing more than a ghost of his feelings for that Russian girl, who Ryder looks so much like. Malachy hovers in the centre of the room, avoiding my gaze as he always does. 'Lorna Gray is missing,' I tell him bluntly. 'And so is Eve Ryder.'

  Malachy tries to look surprised, but fails miserably. He has no idea that I know his involvement with Ryder, or that I know he was aware of the escape plot. He'd be in serious trouble if our father found out, he'd probably even lose his position as the next Auctorita. 'Are you sure?' He asks, his voice constricted.

  'Sir Alec is searching for them now, but he can't find them.' A loud rap on the door interrupts our conversation and I cross to open it, glaring coldly at the Institute Official standing in the hall.

  'Yes?'

  'Excuse me, Miss Beighley, Mr Beighley,' he glances over my shoulder to where Malachy stands. 'But Sir Alec wants everyone in the Great Hall immediately.'

  'Fine.' I nod, watching him retreat back down the hall, knocking on doors as he goes. I turn to Malachy, who looks positively terrified before he realises I'm watching him and tries to hide it. 'Wasn't it your job to keep an eye on Ryder around the Gray girl?' I ask, watching him squirm uncomfortably. 'What were you doing that was so important you couldn't fulfil your duties?'

  'I was – ' He hesitates, shaking his head. 'We'd better go.' He avoids my gaze as he passes, exiting his room without glancing back.

  The Great Hall is teaming with students from every year, crammed into what is now a tight space. The tutors and other faculty members, plus the Creators, are seated around the rectangular table at the head of the room, murmuring to one another in confused tones.

  It's extremely unusual for Sir Alec to call an assembly of the entire building, in fact, I think the last time it happened was when the Anzhela girl got carted off to the Confine almost three years ago.

  'What's going on?' A fourth year whose name I don't know mutters to the boy on her left.

  'Dunno,' he shakes his head. 'Must be serious if we're all here.'

  'Where's Sir Alec?'

  'Expect he'll be here soon. You don't think someone's escaped, do you?'

  'Don't be stupid,' the girl snorts. 'No-one would try to escape.'

  Malachy and I huddle together in the farthest corner of the room. Besides Sir Alec, and possibly Ms Fall, we're probably the only people who know the reason for this gathering. 'Father will need to be told.' I murmur in Malachy's ear as a second year girl eyes me warily.

  'Of course.' Malachy replies stiffly. 'Let's just hear what Sir Alec has to say.'

  The Hall is growing louder and more impatient as we wait, ridiculous theories bouncing off the walls. Finally, the little side door to the Hall opens and Sir Alec steps through, striding purposefully towards the Head table. His mouth is set in a businesslike line but his eyes are panicked and he emits urgency with every movement. I feel Malachy tense beside me; perhaps he was hoping Ryder hadn't really escaped.

  'Quiet, everyone!' Sir Alec booms, not bothering with any sort of polite pretence. The Hall hushes instantly, hundreds of faces staring inquisitively up at Sir Alec, including the faculty. 'It has come to my attention,' Alec's voice is tight, barely concealing his anger and fear. 'That my daughter, Lorna, is missing.'

  A collective gasp sounds around the room, followed by tense and excited muttering. 'Quiet!' Alec yells, spitting with rage. 'Eve Ryder is also missing,' he continues. 'A first year who was... close to my daughter.'

  There's no need for him to explain who Ryder is; even those who've never spoken to her know of her infamous friendship with Lorna Gray, and witnessed her faux pas at the First Year Ball, where Ryder sealed her fate by asking the Gray princess to dance.

  'I don't wish to jump to conclusions and cause a widespread panic,' Sir Alec says. 'But it would be safe to assume that, having checked the Institute and the grounds thoroughly, Eve Ryder has escaped and taken my daughter with her.'

  'Is he serious?' A first year with blonde hair and freckles gasps, his eyes wide with genuine concern. He's obviously a friend of Ryder's.

  'Some of you know Eve Ryder,' Sir Alec booms. 'And some of you don't. But to those of you who do, I would like to stress the importance of coming to me with any information you may have. Anything you overheard Miss Ryder say, anything suspicious you saw her do, is all relevant and could help in the search for my daughter.

  I would like the following people to disregard their schedules and head straight to my office on the fourteenth floor:

  Tia Carey,

  Richard Miller,

  Diana Haddix,

  Tomos O'Brien...'

  'Oh, shit!' The blonde boy mutters, a terrified expression in his blue eyes.

  '… Maxine Moertz,

  Ursula Bermudez,

  Arlinda Bermudez.' Sir Alec concludes. 'The rest of you may return to your scheduled lessons but please be vigilant. Think long and hard for any information you may have. The consequences if you do not come to me will be severe. Ms Fall, Mr and Miss Beighley, please accompany me.'

  Sir Alec dismisses the rest of the hall, who file out hissing with excitement, and Malachy and I approach the Head table where Sir Alec and Ms Fall wait. 'I'd like you three to accompany me to the border.'

  We do as we’re told, traipsing dutifully behind Sir Alec out into the grounds, past the stream and the morose willow tree, over the bow bridge and straight towards the border. The human's scent still lingers on the breeze, but it's fading fast. She and Ryder are long gone, but Sir Alec still has hope in his eyes that we might find them dallying by the fence.

  'There are tracks.' Ms Fall notes, pointing at the dry earth displaying two sets of footprints. Sir Alec nods grimly, and we follow the tracks to the edge of the fence, stopping a foot short of it. Beyond the bars, the fields are empty, but the scent of blood is overpowering.

  'She's hurt.' Sir Alec breathes, his fists clenched int
o balls by his sides. ‘There.’ He points towards the sky and we turn to follow his line of sight. Hanging from the barbed wire coils on top of the fence is a shred of dark material, torn and frayed at the edges. There's blood soaked into the denim and it flutters in the wind right above me. I bend down where the scent is stronger, and spot the tiny flecks of blood spattered on the earth beyond the fence.

  'There's not much blood,' I tell him. 'But she's definitely sustained a wound.'

  'Lorna.' Sir Alec whispers, his pupils dilated in fear as he stares at the shred of cloth.

  'We need to send the Officials after them,' Ms Fall says briskly. 'Immediately.'

  'The Auctoritas will need to be informed,' I cut in. 'Malachy and I can go to them now. Unless you'd like to go yourself, sir?'

  'What?' Sir Alec frowns, a lost expression on his face. He's clearly too distraught to take anything in.

  'The Auctoritas, sir.' I repeat. He nods slowly, stroking his cheek over and over again, rocked with shock.

  'Yes, the Auctoritas,' he nods. 'They need to... yes. The Officials…' He’d obviously been informed by his guards prior to this moment what he could find at the Institute’s border, but clearly hasn’t seen it for himself until now.

  'Sir?' Ms Fall barks. 'I need your authorisation to send the Officials over the border. Miss Ryder could be unstable. We can’t begin to guess at her current state of mind. Your daughter may be in grave danger, we need to act. Now.’

  'My daughter...' Sir Alec seems to snap instantly out of his dreamy state, and his eyes, full of fear and hopelessness, suddenly flash with anger. 'Send the Officials,' he growls. 'As many as we can spare. Tell them to scour the island, follow Lorna's scent...'

  'If they made it to the water, her scent will be lost...' Ms Fall interrupts, but is quickly cut off.

  'Tell them to find her, God dammit! And send Amber Mayfair to my office!' Alec bellows, so loud that a flock of birds nesting in a tree nearby scatter. 'Mr Beighley,' he turns to Malachy. 'I need you to head to the Plateau, inform your father. You too, Miss Beighley. I can't leave the Institute right now, the students will be in a panic and Ryder's circle need to be questioned.'

  'Of course, sir.' I nod, nudging Malachy sharply with my elbow.

  'Yes, sir.' He mutters.

  'I beg you to please stress the importance of this situation,' Sir Alec pleads, his eyes wide and focussed on Malachy. 'Not only has a student escaped the Institute, breaking a law and endangering humans and Immortals alike, she has taken my daughter hostage. Sirus himself knows how dangerous my daughter is in the wrong hands, the knowledge she has of us, of our world...'

  'We'll tell him, sir,' I cut in. 'Rest assured, our father will act quickly on this.'

  'Very well,' Sir Alec breathes, running a hand through his short, silver hair. 'I'll tell an Official to arrange transport. You'd better go back and get ready.'

  'Yes, sir.' I grab Malachy's arm, forcing him to turn with me and traipse back towards the Institute. Malachy seems almost as shocked as Sir Alec and I doubt myself as to whether he truly knew about Ryder's plan.

  'Are you going to tell father that it was your job to watch over Ryder?' I ask him quietly, checking that Sir Alec isn't listening over my shoulder. He's talking fast to Ms Fall, spitting as he yells.

  'What?' Malachy frowns. 'Oh, no. I mean... I don't know.'

  'I think you should,' I warn him. 'Lots of students saw you with Ryder. They didn't know you were only watching over her task. It looks suspicious. Especially...' I trail off, unable to address Ryder's likeness to the Russian girl in front of Malachy. He glares at me from the corner of my eye.

  'Especially what?'

  'Especially now that Amber Mayfair will be used.' I lie smoothly, putting an end to the conversation.

  Chapter Four

  Eve.

  The journey to Auckland is long and tedious. The coach is crowded and reeks of stale sweat, and by midday, the burning sun penetrates the windows, so strong that even I become hot and irritated.

  Lorna sweats profusely beside me, pushing her damp brown hair out of her eyes and fanning herself with the tourist leaflet. Our seats are at the very back of the coach, right beside the engine which burns hotter than an open flame. 'How long now?' She asks me for the hundredth time, taking another swig from her water bottle.

  'Ages.' I snap, my attention elsewhere. A man two rows ahead keeps turning back to look at us – particularly at Lorna. He smiles at me for the third time, though I've not once smiled back.

  'What's up with you?' Lorna grumbles. 'It's not as though you're the one sitting here sweating buckets.'

  'Let me see that map again.' I snatch the leaflet and flick through it, memorising the city of Auckland. It's not very informative, just a bunch of red dots with names of tourist attractions; Auckland museum, Auckland observatory and a lot of mounts. Auckland is almost at the very top of New Zealand's north island, but the coach takes us right into the hub of its most famous strip; Queen Street, which boasts an array of night clubs, shopping precincts and restaurants. It's where we're most likely to find the kind of people we're looking for.

  'Hello,' An unfamiliar voice breaks my concentration and I glance up to meet the man who's been ogling Lorna. He's standing in the aisle, his blonde head almost bumping the ceiling, and he's grinning down, his hand outstretched. 'I'm Oskar,' He tells us in an eastern European accent. 'And you are?'

  'Oh,' Lorna beams up at him, extending her hand. 'Nice to meet you. I'm Lor – Mary.' She fabricates a name at the sight of my glare.

  'Oskar.' He turns to me, still smiling, his hand outstretched.

  'A pleasure, I'm sure.' I turn back to the map, ignoring his hand and his smile. He recovers smoothly from my rejection, turning back to Lorna who's blinking too much.

  'You are here on holiday?' He asks, leaning over the man in front of us who looks extremely annoyed about being caught in the middle of this exchange.

  'Erm, yes,' Lorna nods. 'We're um, we're just – '

  'I'm on gap year from university,' Oskar saves her the trouble. 'I've been to Japan, England, America and Canada. Now I'm on my way to Australia,' he beams, proud of his achievements. 'Where are you going?'

  'Oh, we're um – ' Lorna glances at me, not sure whether to lie or tell the truth. She's not very good at lying; she's spent the past two years making her thoughts and feelings very plain to anyone who'd listen.

  'Auckland.' I answer for her, my tone dry, expression closed off.

  'Yes,' Oskar laughs, not at all put off. 'But I mean where after? Are you staying here in New Zealand?' He directs his questions at Lorna, who looks helplessly at him.

  'That's not really any of your business, is it?' I ask, snapping the map shut. There's an awkward pause before Oskar gives another little laugh.

  'Of course, I meant no trouble. It's hot in here,' He smiles. 'Maybe I'll see you after?' He nods hopefully at Lorna, who casts an apologetic glance his way.

  'You didn't have to be such a bitch to him,' Lorna hisses the moment Oskar is out of earshot. 'He was only being friendly!'

  'How do you know that?' I snap, thrusting the map back into her hand. 'How do you know he's not tied to Sir Alec? Or the Auctoritas?'

  'Don't be ridiculous, Eve,' Lorna snorts. 'He's human. And clearly just a backpacking tourist.'

  'Well who do you think they'll send after us? Men in suits with dark glasses?'

  Lorna blows her fringe upwards in contempt. 'You're paranoid,' she shakes her head. 'If he was with Sir Alec or the Auctoritas, we'd already be on our way back to the Insititute. Or to the Confine.' She adds quietly.

  'If you're such an expert on evading capture, why don't you sort out where we're going and how we're going to get there?' I jab my finger at her shoulder.

  'All right, calm down.' she tuts, shifting away from me to stare out of the steamy window. She eventually falls asleep, her head lolling back on the seat, quietly snoring. As the hours tick by, the other passengers follow suit until eventually, I'm t
he only one still awake. Finally, over eight hours since we boarded, the coach pulls into a large station just off a main road. The passengers propel themselves out of their seats, bounding off the bus, visibly relieved.

  'Now what?' Lorna asks, hoisting the backpack onto her shoulders as we stand in the middle of the crowded station. She looks small and lost here, so unlike the defiant human I met at the Institute.

  'Let's just find somewhere to stay first,' I suggest, trying to conceal the fact that I have absolutely no idea what to do next. 'Somewhere small and quiet.' The last thing we need is a nosy desk clerk asking for identification.

  We head along a busy high street, past a Bureau de Change where we stop to exchange some currency, and into a smaller side street where Lorna spots a run-down three storey building with an aged sign reading 'The Hallows.'

  The cretinous man at reception seems less concerned with our I.D. than he is with my cleavage, and I shoot him a warning look when I catch him staring hungrily at Lorna's ass as we hurry up the stairs.