Night School

  Even though Allie knew nothing was safe any more, she was still glad to see the school, with lights shining through its leaded windowpanes, and her spirits rose just a little.

  ‘OK,’ Carter said, panting after their rush through the woods, ‘here’s what we do: I think the front door is the least likely entrance to be watched right now. Sprint as fast as you can across to it. I’ll be right behind you.’

  Allie gave him a challenging look. ‘Like you could pass me.’

  He couldn’t repress a smile. ‘Fine then. I’ll race you.’

  ‘What does the winner get?’ Allie asked, raising an eyebrow.

  Carter chuckled. ‘I’ll think of something.’

  ‘Or maybe I will. OnetwothreeGO!’ Allie caught him off guard as she took off, her arms pumping and her legs powering her across the lawn; he scrambled to react before she gained too much ground.

  ‘That’s … cheating,’ he panted behind her.

  ‘Deal with it,’ she replied, speeding up.

  She had to admire his power – despite her head start they reached the steps at almost the same time. Fighting to be the first to the door, they sparred for space and grabbed the door handle at the same time, Allie’s hand on top of his. Playfully, they shoved at each other to be the one to open it.

  ‘Shhh!’ Carter hissed suddenly, and they both froze, listening.

  Then she heard what he’d heard first: footsteps inside. She didn’t dare move. They were all tangled up – his arms wrapped around her grabbing for the door, while she had one hand on the door and the other on his arm. The muscles in his arms and chest were hard against her body. Her heart pounded as she inhaled his distinctive scent of coffee and spice. She felt him tremble, and looked up to find that he was watching her, his eyes as dark as the night above them.

  ‘I think they’re gone,’ he whispered, his eyes still locked on hers.

  She nodded, not daring to speak.

  ‘Ready?’ he asked.

  ‘Yes.’ Her whisper was almost inaudible.

  Tearing her eyes from his she turned to face the front, pressing back into the warmth of his body for just as long as it took to turn the handle. Then the door swung open silently – the entrance hall was empty.

  ‘Act cool,’ Carter hissed, giving her a light shove into the room.

  The push seemed to bring her back to reality.

  ‘Always,’ she replied, raising her chin and sauntering across the stone floor.

  He latched the door behind them and they strolled down the hallway.

  Allie was still recovering from whatever had just passed between them but Carter talked in his usual laconic fashion as if nothing had happened at all.

  ‘You’re fast,’ he said.

  ‘I’ve always liked running.’ She tried to strike the same casual tone. ‘I like knowing I can get away.’

  A smile played on his lips. ‘Somehow, that doesn’t surprise me.’ They were near the staircase now. ‘Right. I’m off to the guys’ dorm. You OK from here?’

  ‘Totally,’ she replied.

  ‘All right,’ he said, holding up his fist. ‘See you later, then.’

  She bumped her fist against his and then turned towards the stairs. But as he disappeared down the wide hallway, she whispered after him so quietly there was no way he could hear: ‘Good night, Carter.’

  Sun poured through the windows on the main staircase as Allie bounded down the next morning, her hair damp on her shoulders. She’d been so worn out the night before that she’d fallen asleep within minutes. She must have slept soundly, because she had no memories of nightmares, or any dreams at all for that matter. Now, after a hot shower, she felt like herself for the first time since the summer ball.

  The dining room was busy, if less raucous than normal, but neither Jo nor Gabe were anywhere to be seen, so she sat down next to Lucas.

  ‘Hi,’ she said, barely glancing at him as she focused on the scrambled eggs and bacon piled high on her plate.

  Lucas barely waited for her to sit down. ‘Gabe and Jo have been MIA since last night. Is something up?’ Lucas asked.

  Chewing enthusiastically she shook her head. ‘Haven’t seen them today,’ she said, swallowing with effort. ‘Seriously, I’m so hungry.’

  ‘Have you been to see Lisa yet?’ he asked.

  ‘No, have you?’

  He nodded. ‘This morning. She’s pretty beaten up, but she’s awake and talking.’

  For a moment, Allie was so relieved that she forgot to eat. ‘Oh Lucas, that’s great! I’ll find Jo after breakfast and we’ll go and see her.’

  After rushing through the rest of her breakfast, she hurried back upstairs to find Jo, moving so fast she was nearly running when a door opened right in her path. She had to skid around it as Katie stepped out, blowing on her nail varnish.

  ‘Will you watch where you’re going, Allie?’ she snapped, holding a hand tipped in perfect pale pink up out of harm’s way. ‘You’re always thundering down this hall like a herd of wildebeests.’

  ‘Sorry bi … I mean, Katie,’ Allie said keeping her voice sweet as she walked by at a slower pace.

  But Katie followed her. ‘Where are you going? Are you looking for Jo?’

  Allie didn’t turn around to look at her. ‘Why, Katie? Are you her press officer?’

  ‘Don’t be stupid. I was just … worried about her.’

  She didn’t sound at all worried, and Allie felt her nerves tingle. Warning signs flashed in her mind. Stopping in her tracks, she turned.

  ‘Why are you worried about her? What’s happened?’

  Katie blew on her nails with deliberate languor. ‘Nothing’s happened. I just saw her this morning looking upset. You know, I’m no expert, but I thought she looked like she was on something.’

  Allie’s stomach tightened. ‘What do you mean “on something”? Jo doesn’t do drugs.’

  ‘And I thought you two were friends,’ Katie said. ‘Well, if she hasn’t told you, then I guess she doesn’t trust you. So I better not say any more.’

  Curling her hands into tight fists at her side, Allie turned back towards Jo’s room. ‘Whatever, Katie. Go peddle your evil gossip to Jules or your other stupid friends. Just leave me out of it.’

  ‘With pleasure,’ Katie replied, walking in the other direction. ‘But you are going in the wrong direction. The last time I saw Jo she was going into your room. Not hers.’

  Allie refused to react and continued on to Jo’s room, but she moved in a quick staccato rhythm as Katie’s words rang in her ears. Why would Jo be in her room? She knocked twice on the door before opening it without waiting for an answer.

  The room was empty.

  The shutter was open but all the lights were out, and the bed was rumpled but didn’t look slept in. Clothes were piled on the floor in an uncharacteristically messy fashion. Her desk drawers were half open, as if Jo had been in a hurry and looking for something.

  Determined not to listen to anything Katie said ever, Allie sat at the desk and waited for a moment in case Jo was nearby and might soon return, but after a while she was forced to concede Jo wasn’t coming back.

  Heading back down the hall to her own room, she moved more slowly. As she opened her own bedroom door she felt a vague sense of dread.

  Nothing was as she’d left it. The light was on, and the room was a wreck. Her desk drawers had been thrown open and ransacked – pens, books and papers littered the floor.

  Allie looked around cautiously before taking a step inside, but the room was empty. As she walked across the room she picked up her scattered belongings numbly, stacking papers and gathering books in a neat pile. By the time she reached her desk she realised that what she was holding was her copy of The Rules, which had been torn apart.

  Someone had scratched a thick line across the front page and scrawled on it:

  THIS IS BOLLOCKS!!

  Flipping it over, she saw a note on the back. The angry scrawl was hard to read, but she knew it was from Jo e
ven before she read the message.

  A

  Everything’s ruined. Everyone’s lying. You need to know the truth but nobody will tell you. Come talk to me: I’m on the roof. DON’T TELL GABE where I am.

  J

  ‘Shit.’ Even as Allie breathed the word she noticed the window above her desk was wide open.

  She ran back across the room and closed the door. Her mind was whirling. What should I do? What should I do?

  Climbing up onto her desk, she looked out the window. The dormitory rooms were just below the attic. She leaned over and looked down to the ground below.

  It was a long way down.

  But Carter had done it and he said it was easy. If he could, then she could. Taking a deep breath, she cautiously eased herself out until she was sitting on the ledge where he’d perched the other day, resting her feet on the old Victorian gutter beneath it.

  ‘Jo?’ she whispered tentatively.

  There was no response.

  Far below her she could hear voices and the crunching sound of people walking on the gravel drive.

  Holding tightly to the window frame, she tested the strength of the gutter she was standing on. It was solid. She turned around so that she was facing the wall and, clinging first to the window, and then to slate roofing tiles, she slid along the edge of the gutter for about two yards until she reached another ledge and hoisted herself up onto it, finding finger holds in the brickwork. Once there she stopped and breathed heavily, looking around.

  ‘Jo?’

  A rustling sound above her head made her look up, but she could see nothing. Then she heard a bitter giggle.

  ‘Finders keepers.’ Jo’s voice sounded angry.

  Grunting with the effort, Allie pulled herself up onto the next ledge; from there she could see the roof. Jo was sitting on the very top, leaning against a chimney stack. Her hair was a tangled mess and Allie could tell she’d been crying.

  ‘Jesus, Jo. How’d you get up there? And how will we ever get down?’

  Jo waved her hand dismissively. ‘Don’t be such a coward, Allie, for God’s sake. Take a chance now and then, why don’t you?’ Then she leapt to her feet and stood up fearlessly, balancing on the very tip of the peaked roof.

  Holding her breath, Allie began looking for a way to get up there. She spotted a jagged section of roofing tiles where she figured she could get a grip and pull herself up, and cautiously made her way over to it. Once she’d begun the climb, she saw how the tiles formed a natural series of hand- and footholds.

  On the last stretch though, her foot slipped. As she felt herself slide she tried to scream but no sound came out.

  Her fingers grabbed a chunk of masonry, and held on. Once she had a solid grip, she felt along the wall with the toes of her shoes until they located a jagged tile.

  As soon as both feet connected to the roof, she pushed herself up with a mighty shove, sprawling onto the roof in an ungainly heap.

  Leaning back against the broad chimney stack, Jo – who had made no move to help her – clapped sardonically.

  ‘Hooray for Allie. She climbed to the very top of the Cimmeria ladder of success in no time at all. I think she deserves a drink. Don’t you, audience?’

  Reaching down she pulled a bottle of vodka from behind her feet and held it out to Allie. It was half empty.

  ‘Have a drink. The audience and I think you should.’

  Angry now and still shaking from her near-fall, Allie ignored the bottle. ‘What audience, Jo? What the hell are you talking about? And what are you doing up here?’

  Shrugging, Jo pulled the top off the bottle and took a swig, making a face.

  ‘You know, this just does not get better with time,’ she said, putting the top back on the bottle. ‘I really question Isabelle’s choice of vodka. You’d think she’d have Grey Goose or Absolut, but no. Just this nasty Russian stuff.’

  How can she be drunk at eight o’clock in the morning? Allie wondered.

  ‘Jo, have you been drinking all night?’

  ‘No! Don’t be ridiculous. Just for the last few hou … What time is it?’ She turned her arm over to look at her watch, spilling vodka on the roof. ‘Oops!’

  Allie tried to look calm. ‘Please sit down, Jo, and talk to me.’

  ‘Of course Allie!’ Jo smiled at her as cheerfully as if they were in the dining hall chatting after lunch. ‘I want to talk to you. But I’ve been sitting for ages. It feels great to stand up and stretch.’

  Spinning around on one foot, she wobbled wildly. Gasping, Allie covered her mouth with her hands, but then Jo caught herself and laughed. ‘That was a close one!’

  Allie’s heart was pounding so rapidly she feared she might have a heart attack. ‘Please, Jo. Please sit down and talk to me. I’ll drink your vodka. Just … sit down.’

  As if it had only just occurred to her, Jo slowly lowered herself until she was sitting on the roof. The smile had disappeared from her face. Now she looked mournful and tears slipped silently from her eyes.

  ‘Nobody understands me, Allie. Not even you. You’re my best friend and I can’t tell you the truth. That makes me so sad.’

  Sniffling, she picked up the bottle and took another drink. Then she swiped her arm across her eyes, and handed the vodka to Allie. Allie tilted the bottle back and pretended to take a drink, then she held onto the bottle carelessly, as if she’d forgotten she still had it.

  She leaned towards Jo. ‘Oh, honey, I’m so sorry you’re sad. Has something happened?’

  Jo looked at her as if she were mad. ‘Of course something’s happened, Allie! Ruth’s dead! She’s dead. And nobody will tell the truth about what happened. Everybody’s a liar.’

  Swinging her arm up she pointed at Allie. ‘And you don’t know anything. Everybody’s keeping you in the dark because they don’t know why you’re here. Or who you are. Who are you, Allie Sheridan?’

  Allie held up her hands. ‘I’m just … me, Jo. I’m nobody.’

  Shaking her head vehemently, Jo looked increasingly angry. ‘No, no no! That’s not true either. You don’t know anything. You really don’t know. And that’s … stupid. And nobody will tell you. Nobody will tell you.’ Suddenly she looked up and met Allie’s eyes in what felt like a parody of complete clarity. ‘I know things and I won’t tell you.’

  Allie swallowed hard. ‘What do you know, Jo? Do you know who killed Ruth?’

  Jo narrowed her eyes slyly. ‘Everyone knows what’s going on, Allie. Everyone except you.’ She added in a sing-song voice, ‘But I won’t tell you …’

  ‘Jo, you have to tell me.’ Allie’s heart was pounding, but she struggled to keep her expression blank. ‘It’s really important. The police have to know.’

  Shaking her head back and forth Jo looked tearful again. ‘My parents don’t want me around, did you know that Allie? They don’t care about me at all.’

  Allie tried to keep up. ‘I’m sure they do, Jo. They must do. They’re your parents. But tell me about Ru—’

  ‘No they don’t!’ Jo shouted. ‘My parents love money, and they love St Tropez and Hong Kong and Cape Town. But not me. Not me.’

  She was sobbing now. While she was distracted Allie scooted across the roof closer to her – close enough so that she could, if necessary, grab her.

  ‘Oh Jo. I didn’t know.’ Jo had completely lost it, but she had to get her to talk about Ruth. ‘Tell me who hurt Ruth, Jo. And then we can talk about your family some more.’

  Jo glared at her. ‘Don’t try and trick me, Allie.’

  As she spoke, Allie heard movement just below them. Before she could react, Carter appeared nearby, climbing nimbly up onto the roof beside her.

  ‘Hey ladies.’ His voice was studiously casual. ‘How’s it going.’

  Through her tears, Jo beamed at him. ‘Carter West! I love you Carter West. You’re so handsome and you have those deep dark eyes. I would have chosen you if I hadn’t chosen Gabe.’ Then she looked confused for a second. ‘No, I would have cho
sen Lucas if I hadn’t chosen Gabe. But if that didn’t work out I’d choose you. Definitely. Or maybe Sylvain.’

  Carter didn’t hesitate. ‘And I’d have chosen you too, Jo. Because you’re the prettiest girl at the school.’

  Smiling shyly, her face red and puffy, her hair standing on end, Jo said: ‘Really? That’s the nicest thing anybody ever said to me. Give me a hug.’

  Jumping to her feet without warning she wobbled wildly, her arms pinwheeling. Allie gasped and reached out for her, but Carter was at Jo’s side in an instant, wrapping her in a bear hug and laughing with her.

  ‘Careful Jo, we’re up a bit high here.’

  She ignored his words. ‘I love you Carter West. You’re much nicer than Gabe.’

  He gently lowered her down to a sitting position again, his eyes on her all the time. ‘You know Gabe loves you, right? Would you talk to him if he came up here?’

  ‘Gabe doesn’t love me. He doesn’t tell the truth about anything. He’s a liar like everybody else.’ She gave Carter an appraising look. ‘But I’m not sure if you’re a liar too.’

  She rose unsteadily to her feet, brushing Carter’s hands away when he tried to stop her. ‘Carter, you know what Gabe is. Allie doesn’t know anything. But you do.’ She turned to Allie. ‘Gabe is important – much more important than me or you or Carter. He’s in Night School – do you know what Night School is, Allie?’

  Carter was frozen, staring at Jo as if he didn’t know what to do. Allie shook her head. ‘No. What is it, Jo?’

  ‘It’s a bunch of boys and girls pretending they’re knights or soldiers or gods, or something. They think they’ll be kings of the world.’ Jo pointed at Allie. ‘They don’t like you, did you know that? They think you’re dangerous. I keep telling them they’re wrong, but they won’t listen! Where’s my bottle?’