Endgame

  ‘I’m not leaving without my people.’

  ‘Well, seems to me, one of your people’s standing right here.’ Nine pointed at Allie. Seeing the looks on both their faces, he sighed. ‘All I can tell you is, if I was in the position your people are in right now, I’d loop around through these woods,’ he pointed at the trees behind them, ‘lose the guards here and then head straight into that thicket to the main road and double back.’

  The thicket he referred to was just a darker shadow against the black night –Allie hadn’t even noticed it before now.

  Isabelle was also studying the route he’d suggested, worried lines creasing her forehead. ‘It makes sense,’ she said, mostly to herself.

  There was no time for discussion.

  ‘Let’s go.’ Allie shot off across the small dark wood – Nine and Isabelle flanked her.

  Nothing moved in the forest – there was no sign of life. Soon they were shooting across the flat grass, heading straight towards the line of thick growth Nine had indicated. They were nearly to it when Allie saw the shadows running far ahead of them.

  Glancing over, she caught Isabelle’s eye and pointed. The headmistress nodded.

  There was no way to know if that was Raj or Nathaniel’s guards, but they were nearing the road now, anyway. Isabelle pressed her microphone button and whispered into it.

  ‘Dom, have our driver turn on the headlights.’

  ‘On it now,’ Dom replied.

  A few seconds later, lights lit up the roadway in the distance.

  Isabelle whispered instructions. Allie was focused on running, but she saw the lights move closer.

  Behind them they heard shouts.

  ‘Shit,’ Nine muttered. He grabbed Allie’s arm, pulling her low but keeping them both moving.

  The crack of gunfire split the air. They increased their speed. Allie’s lungs burned. She felt a trickle of warmth down her throat that was probably blood leaking from her wound. Still, she ran faster than she’d ever run, crashing through the hedgerow, ignoring the branches that sliced at her arms and legs as she leapt out into the road.

  Where she ran straight into Raj.

  ‘Raj!’ she gasped the word. ‘Where…?’

  He pointed to the SUV waiting behind him. ‘No time. Get in. We’ve got to get out of here.’

  ‘Carter…’ she said, panic beginning to swirl inside her. They couldn’t leave him behind. Not again.

  ‘He’s safe.’ He held her gaze. ‘In the car.’

  Allie fought back tears as she ran to the SUV. They’d come so far. And now they were going back without even the chance to see him.

  Her vision was blurred as she jumped through the vehicle’s open door and slid across into the seat by the window, leaving room for Isabelle and Nine on the seats beside her.

  As she did, the guard in the front seat turned around to face her.

  ‘Hey,’ Carter said, a grin spreading slowly across his face. ‘I was wondering when you’d show up.’

  32

  The cars rolled into the school grounds in a triumphant procession. They arrived to find the students and teachers gathered on the front lawn in the dark, cheering.

  When Carter stepped out of the SUV with Allie at his side, they roared.

  Zoe launched herself at him, as Lucas patted him hard on the back.

  Allie stepped back to let the others have a chance to greet him, but she never took her eyes off him. He looked OK – thin but not damaged.

  He hadn’t talked much on the way back. When Allie asked him how it had been, he’d gone quiet.

  ‘They weren’t much for hygiene. I’d kill for a shower,’ he joked, dodging the serious undertone of her question.

  But he had leaned forward to where Owen Moran had taken his original seat in the front, and held out his hand.

  ‘I want to thank you for saving my life,’ he said. ‘You’re a brave man.’

  Moran had taken his hand with reluctance. ‘I’m a stupid man,’ he said. ‘But you’re welcome.’

  Dom informed them through the comms system that Nathaniel had reached his house about fifteen minutes after they’d departed.

  ‘He is not happy,’ she reported.

  After the triumphant return to Cimmeria, they all gathered in Dom’s office, while Raj and Carter told them everything that had happened at St John’s Fields after Moran freed him.

  ‘Everything was clockwork,’ Raj said. ‘We got into the grounds without a hitch. Everyone was in position. At midnight exactly, Moran opened the door and he and Carter came out.’ He glanced at Allie. ‘He didn’t let us down. None of what happened next was his fault.’

  ‘Tell us what happened next,’ Isabelle urged Raj. ‘How were you discovered?’

  ‘It was bad luck,’ he said. ‘The plan called for us to cross over the fence fifty metres south of the farmhouse. The only problem was, on our way to that location, we ran straight into Nathaniel’s guards, heading back from the diversion. We were almost to the fence when the firing started.’ His face darkened. ‘That was when all hell broke loose.’

  ‘You disappeared from comms,’ Dom pointed out. ‘Scared the hell out of me.’

  Raj shot her an apologetic look. ‘I lost my microphone in the pasture.’

  ‘How did you get away from them?’ Zoe stared at Raj, her hazel eyes like saucers.

  Carter glanced at Raj, a wry smile lighting up his face. ‘We ran like hell.’

  ‘Having the decoy groups helped,’ Raj said. ‘It divided and confused Nathaniel’s guards. Some followed the decoys, some followed us. But we still couldn’t get to the cars, so we headed into the pasture to try to lose them.’ He glanced at Isabelle. ‘That’s where we were when you arrived.’ He leaned back in his chair. ‘The rest you know.’

  ‘How did Nathaniel treat you, Carter?’ Isabelle studied him with concern.

  He hesitated for just a second before speaking. ‘To be honest, he was nothing like I expected. Those three days when you saw me with the chains?’

  She nodded.

  ‘That was the only time it was like that. Nathaniel straight out told me he was hoping to upset you. The other days I was locked in a room. It wasn’t fun but at least I wasn’t chained up. The guards weren’t friendly but – I wasn’t beaten.’

  Allie didn’t know what to think. She’d been so afraid when she saw Carter chained to a wall like an animal. She was sure he’d been suffering the worst kind of torture.

  ‘Nathaniel and his games.’ Isabelle gave a tired sigh. ‘He never wearies of them.’

  ‘They did question me a lot,’ Carter volunteered. ‘About you.’ He glanced at Allie, who sat next to him. ‘And Allie.’

  This caught Raj’s attention. ‘What kind of things did they want to know?’ he asked. ‘Who interrogated you?’

  ‘Nathaniel,’ Carter said. ‘I never saw Gabe after the first couple of days. What happened to him? Anyone know?’

  Allie flinched, tightening her grip on his hand.

  ‘We can talk about that later,’ Raj said smoothly. ‘Let’s talk about the interrogation first.’

  ‘He wanted to know how often Lucinda came to visit Allie and Isabelle. How close they were. What their plans were.’ He looked at the headmistress. ‘He seems obsessed with the idea that you have some big plan for the Orion Group. He thinks you’re plotting to undermine him. To turn his supporters against him again. He’s really insecure about everything, as far as I could tell.’

  Raj rubbed a hand across his jaw, his face dark with thought. ‘I’d like to go over all of this with you in private.’

  ‘But not tonight.’ Isabelle stood up. ‘It’s nearly three in the morning. Let’s get some rest and start again in a few hours. There is much to discuss.

  ‘Let’s do it with clear heads.’

  Allie and Carter strolled down the wide, formal hallway towards the stairs, talking in low whispers. After they’d left Dom’s office they’d let the others go on ahead. It was their first chance to be al
one.

  The school was so silent. It was as if they had the entire building to themselves – maybe even the whole world.

  Carter looked around, taking in the faint shadowed gleam of the oak-panelled walls, the barely visible oil paintings on the walls, the heavy marble-topped tables, huge vases of roses. He sniffed the air, inhaling the faint perfume of wood smoke that always seemed to permeate the building, even in the summer.

  ‘You know, I know this sounds stupid but… sometimes I wondered if I’d ever see this place again.’ He smiled, embarrassed by his own sentimentality. ‘It seemed so… far away.’ He reached out, running his fingers across the walls. ‘I had a lot of time to think, you know? And one day I realised this is the only home I’ve ever known. I was born here. Leaving it would be like… I don’t know. Losing a limb.’ He tilted his head to see the crystal chandelier floating above the sweeping curve of the staircase. ‘It would break my heart.’

  Allie’s throat tightened.

  She would have to tell Carter about their plans to leave. But she wouldn’t tell him now. He needed time to be home. To feel safe.

  ‘I love it here, too,’ she said, meaning it.

  Turning into the grand, curving staircase, they began to climb. Their steps were perfectly in sync. She kept peeking at him out of the corner of her eye. His gaze was straight ahead; he appeared lost in thought.

  At the top, they stopped and turned to face each other. This was traditionally where the genders parted. Girls turned left towards the stairs to the girls’ dorm. Boys turned right, towards their own quarters.

  Carter looked down into her eyes. His lips curved into a wicked smile. The look in his eyes sent butterflies swirling inside her.

  ‘Want to break the Rules?’

  His room was just as she remembered it, much like hers, with an arched window above the desk, a narrow bed and desk. It had dark blue bed covers, and a white blanket was folded neatly over the foot of the bed. Someone had turned down the bed and left the bedside lamp on.

  His pyjamas had been set out for him as well, along with a dressing gown and a stack of fluffy white towels.

  It was just so Cimmeria, Allie thought fondly.

  Welcome back from your kidnapping. Here’s a soft towel.

  ‘This is going to sound odd,’ he said, his tone unexpectedly cautious, ‘but would you mind if I took a shower?’ He tugged at the plain grey t-shirt. ‘I want to wash all the Nathaniel dirt off and just be me again.’

  Allie could understand that completely.

  ‘Go,’ she said, leaning back against the desk. ‘Don’t worry about me. I’ll just be in here and going through your stuff.’

  Laughing, he grabbed a towel and his shower things.

  ‘Happy snooping,’ he said, before closing the door behind him.

  As soon as he was gone, though, Allie’s smile faded. Without him in it, the room felt empty. She didn’t know what to do with herself.

  For a while she sat in his chair, staring out the window. Because of the darkness outside, she saw mostly her own reflection.

  She leaned forward, mildly horrified. Her hair was a mess.

  She smoothed it with her fingers, getting rid of the wilder tangles.

  When she didn’t want to look at herself any longer, she climbed up on the empty desktop, unlatched the window and pushed it open, letting in the cool night breeze.

  It was very late. But she didn’t feel tired anymore. She’d never felt more awake. Her body thrummed with happiness. Carter was home.

  They were still in trouble. The same problems they had yesterday would be there to greet them tomorrow. But she would get through them. Now that she had him back.

  She sat cross-legged on top of his desk, her chin on one hand, looking out over the quiet grounds. In the distance, a night bird sang a mournful song.

  Her mind flipped through all that had happened while he’d been gone. Her grandmother’s funeral. Her inheritance. Rachel.

  Most of all, Gabe.

  Her heart twisted at the memory. She’d have to tell Carter what she’d done. What if he didn’t understand? What if he looked at her differently?

  Behind her, the bedroom door swung open. Allie spun around.

  Carter stood in the doorway, a towel over his shoulder, his dark hair damp and curling. He wore navy Cimmeria trousers. He’d left his shirt unbuttoned, and her eyes were drawn to his finely muscled chest, the flat plane of his stomach.

  Just looking at him made her pulse race.

  He was perfect.

  His eyes traced her face, the lines of her body.

  He didn’t say a word. Dropping the towel to the floor, he crossed the room in four long steps. She slipped from the desk and they met in a kiss.

  It was the kiss she’d dreamed about. Longed for.

  He must have dreamed of it too, because his lips were demanding. Passionate. He crushed her in his arms, pulling her tightly against him. His body was warm and shower damp.

  His lips teased hers until her lips parted. He tasted of peppermint toothpaste. His soft breath filled her lungs and she never wanted to breathe anything again except him.

  She pressed her hand against the warm skin of his chest and felt his heart beating beneath her fingertips. Its rhythm was strong and so fast – as fast as her own.

  His eyes darkened.

  ‘Allie,’ he whispered. ‘I’ve dreamed of this a thousand times. Tell me I’m not dreaming now.’

  The longing in his voice made her stomach muscles tighten. Something deep inside her ached when he looked at her like that.

  ‘This is real,’ she said, as much to herself as to him.

  Reaching up, she ran her fingers through his damp, tangled hair, and pulled his head down until his mouth met hers again. ‘Completely real.’

  She couldn’t seem to stop touching him. She slid her hands across his warm skin, feeling the hard definition of his muscles. The nubby line of his spine.

  Taking this as invitation, he slid his hands underneath her untucked top, stroking the sensitive skin of her lower back until she gasped.

  With a ragged breath, he raised his head, gazing down at her, his dark eyes fathomless.

  ‘You are the most amazing person I have ever known,’ he whispered. ‘I would be held prisoner for a hundred years if I knew I’d see you at the end.’

  Allie’s eyes blinked back tears.

  When she’d first arrived at Cimmeria Academy, she didn’t believe there was one true person left in the world. Now, at last, she knew she’d been wrong.

  ‘I love you, Carter.’

  It still felt weird to say it; some part of her twisted in agony waiting for him to say it back.

  He pressed his forehead against hers, looking deep into her eyes. There was nothing in his face but truth. She’d never seen anything more beautiful.

  ‘Allie,’ he whispered. ‘I will love you forever.’

  33

  Allie slipped from Carter’s room just after dawn, leaving him sound asleep.

  She hated to leave his side even for a second, but there was no way Isabelle would look favourably on this sort of extracurricular activity.

  Even in days like these.

  The night before they’d talked for hours. Kissed for hours. Revelled in the glorious unfamiliarity of being together.

  He told her more about being held prisoner.

  ‘The worst part was the isolation,’ he said, running his fingertips down her shoulder. ‘Some days no one talked to me at all. Twenty-four hours of silence. It messes with your head.’

  He kept insisting it wasn’t as bad as it sounded. But something about the way he avoided her gaze told her he was protecting her from the reality of it.

  He wanted all of her news, too. When she told him about Rachel and Nicole, his eyebrows climbed.

  ‘Are you seriously telling me you didn’t know? Bloody hell, Allie. They were the most obvious couple I’ve ever seen.’

  ‘Oh God, you knew, too?’ She couldn’t b
elieve it. ‘And you didn’t mention it?’

  ‘Tomorrow,’ he’d said, ‘remind me to point out the blue sky and the green grass and some other really obvious things.’

  She’d hit him with a pillow.

  Sometime later, she told him about Gabe.

  They were lying in his bed, side by side. His skin was warm against hers.

  He’d been dozing off as she began, but when she got to the part where Gabe appeared on the roof, his eyes snapped open.

  She kept her voice steady, as emotionless as possible; still, he watched her closely as she told him how Gabe had threatened her. The icy terror she’d felt.

  ‘I was so scared,’ she whispered. ‘He’d have killed Zoe, Carter. I know he would have.’

  With a gentle touch, he pushed a strand of hair out of her eyes so he could see her face. ‘What happened?’

  She swallowed hard. ‘I hit him at just the right angle, I guess. He was watching Zoe so he didn’t see me coming and he just… fell.’

  She didn’t describe the look in Gabe’s eyes – the way he reached for her as if she could save him. Or perhaps to take her with him.

  She’d never tell anyone that.

  But Carter seemed to know there was more than she could say. He folded her in his arms and held her tight.

  ‘You did the right thing, Allie.’ He whispered the words against her temple. And she hoped it was true.

  He’d finally fallen asleep just as the sun rose. But Allie didn’t want to rest.

  She was in the dining hall early for breakfast, but the others were already there – Lucas and Katie, sitting next to Zoe, Rachel and Nicole sharing a plate of toast.

  ‘There you are,’ Katie said. Her green cat’s eyes were knowing. ‘Busy night?’

  Lucas snorted a laugh and Allie flushed.

  ‘Shut up, Katie,’ she said mildly.

  ‘No classes today,’ Zoe announced, as Allie took a huge bite of eggs.

  ‘Really?’ she asked, her mouth full. Although, to be honest, actual education seemed to be the thing Cimmeria Academy was least interested in lately.