Luke's family left to drive back to Sussex. Pagan, Julia and Luke got into Ned's car and he drove to the station near the school; the same one that Pagan had arrived at eleven days earlier. All four of them went down to the platform together, Ned carrying Julia's bag and Julia bearing Pagan's rucksack and tent. The next train north came into view round a curve in the tracks. Ned shook Julia's hand and Pagan gave Luke a rib-crushing hug, pressing her face against his.
The Randalls got onto the train with their bags and it pulled out of the station, leaving Luke feeling empty as Pagan vanished from his sight. Ned seemed to sense his desolation; he put his arm across Luke's shoulders, patting his upper back and pushing him gently towards the staircase that led up from the platform. Neither of them spoke as they walked back to the car and drove the two miles back to the school. Ned parked the car and looked across at Luke. "Are you ready?"
"As I'll ever be, I suppose," Luke smiled back and they went back into the building and back into their school lives.
Morning school was still in session, so Luke got changed into his school uniform and quietly slipped into the year nines' classroom, smiling apologetically at Mr Thomas, who was half way through teaching a history lesson. To Luke's huge surprise, the whole class rose to its feet, as though a teacher had entered the room, and he was greeted with a loud round of applause and a few cheers and whistles from the year nine boys, all celebrating his return from his near-death experience and his even more miraculous escape from expulsion.
Embarrassed but deeply touched, Luke crossed to his seat near the window, enduring some fairly painful but kindly-meant punches to his back and to his needle-punctured arms as he walked through the mob. He noticed that Wharton had not left his seat and was not joining in the general jubilation but this could not dent Luke's delight at the welcome he had received. Eventually Mr Thomas restored order and the class settled down to their work, although Luke was, once more, finding it hard to concentrate.
After the lesson was over, Luke found himself surrounded again. Mr Thomas came over too and shook his hand.
"Good to see you back, Brownlow," he said, before leaving Luke to tell his story to an audience hungry for the details of his recent adventures.
Chapter Sixteen
On Saturday afternoon Luke was sitting in the library, catching up on some of the work he'd missed during his hospital stay. He became aware that someone was approaching the bay in which he was sitting and glanced up to see Wharton leaning himself nonchalantly up against the bookshelves opposite Luke's seat.
"So I hear you've been thrown off the orienteering team then too, Brown-nose. How did you manage that?" he sneered.
Luke was not in the mood to be jeered at by Wharton. "If you must know, I was kicked off for being out of bounds."
Wharton scoffed but as he did so, Luke noticed the black-gowned figure of Ned approaching them down the centre aisle of the library. Carefully not looking at Ned and feeling his heart beating a little faster than usual, Luke said: "I don't suppose you've ever even been out of bounds yourself, have you?"
"God, you're such an amateur, Brownlow. I was out of bounds and out of school after hours when I put your shirt on that statue and I got away with it completely."
Ned had arrived parallel with Wharton just in time to hear the whole of this boastful confession. Wharton jumped violently when he realised the headmaster was there and the horrified expression on his face was one that Luke would have dearly loved to have been able to capture in a photograph.
Ned treated Wharton to one of the hard stares which Luke had become accustomed to receiving from him. "I always believe that credit should be given where it is due, Wharton," he said in a conversational tone. "I suggest you go and tell Mr Thomas exactly what you've just told Brownlow. You'll find him in the hall."
Wharton left, looking gutted, throwing a look of sincere hatred in Luke's direction as he went. Ned sat down opposite Luke. "I came to see how you were doing."
"Fine," said Luke. "Even better now." He smiled broadly at Ned. "I know retaliation is against the rules and everything," he said, "but that felt fantastic."
Ned had a grimly satisfied smile on his own face. "I think we can say that this was more a case of delayed retribution," he said.
*
The rest of the year passed in relative peace. The year nines had to sit exams in early July which tested their knowledge of the subjects they had been taught over the course of the year. As he left the hall after their final exam, chatting with Taj and Jay about how pleased they were that they were all over, Luke noticed Ned talking with a tall woman in the entrance hall. A second glance confirmed his initial feeling that he knew her. It was Julia Randall.
Luke wondered why Pagan's mother was back at the school. He would have liked to say hello to her but didn't want to interrupt the adults' conversation. Then Ned spotted him and beckoned him over. Julia smiled as she recognised Luke and grasped his hand. "It's good to see you again," she said, "especially looking so well."
Luke smiled shyly at her. "How's Pagan doing?" he asked. He had been in fairly regular contact with Pagan since they had parted but he wanted to hear how Julia thought she was getting on.
"Fine," replied Julia. "Doing exams at the moment, like you I expect, but they seem to be going alright for her."
Luke looked from Julia to Ned and back again. "Erm, can I ask -?"
Julia laughed. "What I'm doing here?" She glanced across at Ned. "What do you think, Mr Kelly, should we tell him?"
Ned nodded. "Mrs Randall was here for a job interview, Luke, for the post of school counsellor."
Luke's face lit up and he turned to Julia. "Did you get the job?"
Julia smiled down at him. "I feel extremely guilty about telling you before I tell my own daughter but yes, Luke, I've been offered the post and I've accepted it."
"Excellent!"
"Well I can't have Pagan running off again down here to see you every time I have a disagreement with her. I thought if we lived a bit closer, perhaps she could get you out of her system." Julia punctuated this comment with a friendly wink at Luke.
Ned looked up at the clock in the entrance hall. "We'd better go if you want to catch the next train north," he said.
"Goodbye, Luke," said Julia. "See you next year!"
Luke turned back to join his friends, thinking that the next year could prove to be even more interesting than year nine had been.
THE END
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You can read more about The Roman and the Runaway at https://hawleylodge.com/.
Grateful thanks to Stacy Holt for her helpful editing suggestions.
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