‘Hello?’ Allie called tentatively.
Her voice echoed in the empty hallway.
It was so quiet she felt unnerved as she walked down the sunny hallway. She knocked hesitantly on each door she passed and tried handles. Nobody answered, and the first three she tried were locked.
But the fourth opened.
The room was dark, all the curtains drawn. The room was tiny, with just one bed.
Allie could just see a bright puff of blonde hair on the pillow.
‘Jo?’ she whispered, taking a tentative step into the room. ‘Are you OK?’
There was no response, but something told her Jo was awake. Leaving the door open, she tiptoed across the room to crouch beside the bed. Jo’s eyes were closed, but her breathing was uneven.
‘Hey,’ Allie whispered, ‘are you all right?’
A tear escaped from Jo’s eye and trickled down the side of her face. She wiped it away with hands mummy-wrapped in bandages.
‘I don’t want to talk right now, Allie.’ Her voice was hoarse and dull.
Wounded, Allie thought about arguing, but instead she walked to the door. As she opened it, she looked back – Jo was lying on her back staring up at the ceiling as if she were already alone.
Back in the hallway, Allie tried the other doors. Two doors down from Jo’s room, she peeked in to see a sunny, white-painted space in which two rows of four hospital beds were separated by white curtains fluttering in a light breeze that whispered in through a half-open window. Only one bed was occupied.
Lying under a white duvet on a white bed against a white wall, Lisa was pale and her eyes were closed – her thick lashes made shadows like bruises on her skin. Her silky, long hair was strewn across the pillows, and a large bandage covered one side of her face. One arm was in a splint.
Allie was struck by how thin she was. Did she ever eat? She looked so … breakable.
As she sat down in a wooden chair at the edge of the bed, it made a faint creaking sound and Lisa opened her eyes.
She smiled drowsily. ‘Allie.’
Allie smiled back, but worry lines clustered between her eyes. ‘Hey. How are you? Are you OK? I heard you were awake.’
Lisa pushed herself back against the pillows. She had a plaster on her wrist where an IV had been connected at some point, and dark purple bruises stained her upper arms.
‘I’m OK. I’m pretty drugged up, I think. I just don’t know how long I’ve been here.’
Her fragility made her eyes look enormous and childlike, and Allie felt a surge of unexpected protectiveness.
‘Not long.’ Allie had to stop and think about it. ‘I mean, it’s … What day is it? Sunday, I think.’ She flushed at her own confusion, but Lisa seemed satisfied.
‘Good. I thought it was longer.’ She looked out the window and a shadow crossed her face. ‘But it’s going to get dark soon, isn’t it?’ She looked so fearful that Allie took her hand and squeezed it.
‘Don’t worry. You’re totally safe in here.’
Lisa didn’t look convinced, but the drugs seemed to affect her ability to hold onto a thought, and a moment later she seemed relaxed again.
‘Lisa, what happened to you?’ Allie asked. ‘Jo said she lost you when the lights went out, and she didn’t see you again until we found you … well, you know, in the entrance hall.’
Her eyes darkening, Lisa frowned with concentration. ‘It’s all really hazy. I remember dancing with Lucas. Then we decided to go for a walk and get some air. We were going to go out the front door because the back was crowded. But then the lights went out. At first it was no big deal – in fact it seemed kind of fun. The candles were lit in the entrance hall, so we could still see and everything. But then people started screaming.
‘Lucas told me to stay there, that he would come back for me. And he ran back to the great hall to see what was happening.’
She stopped and looked up at Allie with empty eyes. ‘And that’s it. I don’t remember anything else. It’s just a big, giant blank.’
Allie patted her hand. ‘Isabelle says you’re fine – have you got a concussion or something? My brother had one once and he couldn’t remember falling down until two weeks later.’
‘Yes, the nurse said I hit my head on something when I fell, and cut myself somehow – I have twelve stitches.’ She touched her bandage unconsciously.
‘What about your arms?’ Leaning closer, Allie carefully pushed up Lisa’s short hospital gown sleeves so she could see her skin better. ‘Those bruises – they look like … like handprints.’
Looking looked down at her arms, Lisa said: ‘Do they? I have no idea how they got there. And I sprained my wrist when I fell, I guess.’
‘Did they …’ Allie faltered and started again. ‘I suppose they told you about Ruth?’
Nodding, Lisa looked as if she might cry. ‘I don’t believe it though,’ she whispered. ‘How could she … kill herself? She never seemed sad or depressed. And she had all these plans for when she was older. She wanted to travel around the world, you know? I don’t understand why she would do something like that.’
Allie contemplated telling her that she had doubts about the official story surrounding Ruth’s death, but she didn’t feel like Lisa was the right person to confide in. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust her, but more that she didn’t want to worry her.
For a while after that they sat quietly, and Lisa dozed, but when Allie shifted in her chair, the creaking sound woke her up again.
‘You’re still here.’ Lisa’s drowsy voice sounded pleased.
‘’Course I am,’ Allie said. ‘You shouldn’t be alone all the time. It’s too boring. Where are the nurses anyway?’
Lisa glanced around as if she expected to see them jump out from behind a cupboard.
‘I don’t know. It’s weird, they were here a lot yesterday, but I’ve hardly seen them today.’ She yawned. ‘Tell me what’s going on out in the real world? What’s been happening?’
Allie wondered how much to tell her. Then she decided that Lisa knew Jo even better than she did.
‘Not much. Everything just feels kind of weird. And … Lisa, Jo kind of freaked out this morning, and now she’s seriously busted.’
Lisa looked more alert. ‘What do you mean? Why is she in trouble?’
Allie told her what happened that morning on the roof. When she finished, she expected Lisa to look shocked, but instead she just shook her head.
‘Oh poor Jo. She must be so upset. I wish I could go and talk to her.’
‘Lisa, Carter told me she’s done this kind of thing before …?’
Lisa nodded. ‘You know Jo,’ she said. ‘She’s absolutely lovely. But her parents ignore her. They always have. I think she used to do this sort of thing to get them to notice her. Then it just sort of became a habit, I guess. They got tired of it and sent her here. But she’s happy here, so it hasn’t happened in a long time. The only thing I can think is, what happened at the ball was too much.’
She looked sorrowful. ‘She really liked Ruth, you know?’
Allie nodded. ‘I guess it makes sense. I’ve just never seen her like that before. I didn’t know what to do.’
Lisa reached out for her hand and squeezed it. ‘Poor you. You must think Cimmeria is a madhouse. It’s really not you know. Not usually anyway.’
‘I’m OK.’ Allie put her hand over Lisa’s. ‘When are they letting you out?’
Lisa shrugged. ‘Nobody’s said.’
Glancing at her watch, Allie stood up. ‘I should probably go and see what’s happening out there. Things have been so weird. I feel like if I’m not there the whole school could just … blow up. It’s freaky.’
She leaned over to hug Lisa, who felt so bony in her arms she barely dared apply any pressure at all.
Lisa smiled up at her. ‘Thanks for coming to check on me.’
‘I’ll come back,’ Allie promised. ‘If you feel well enough to see her, Jo is two doors down. But give her some ti
me to sober up first.’
As Allie shut the door, she heard Lisa say: ‘Don’t forget about me …’
TWENTY
‘Hey Allie!’
The voice came from the common room as Allie walked back across the school building from the medical ward, and she turned to see Lucas waving her over.
‘Hey, I was just with Lisa,’ Allie said. ‘She looked good.’
‘Great!’ he said. ‘I know she wanted to see you. Did Jo go, too?’
Allie shook her head. Does he still not know what’s been happening?
‘Have you talked to Gabe lately?’ Her tone was cautious.
‘No, I haven’t seen Gabe, Carter or Jo. Do you know what’s going on?’
She lowered her voice. ‘There was a thing this morning.’ She told him briefly about what happened up on the roof.
Lucas rolled his eyes. ‘Oh God. Not this again.’
Allie stepped back in surprise. ‘What do you mean “again”?’
‘Jo used to do this sort of thing all the time. It’s why her parents sent her here in the first place. She just snaps sometimes. Drinks too much, does drugs, then nicks someone’s Porsche, gatecrashes a stranger’s wedding … You know. The usual Mummy-doesn’t-love-me thing.’ He didn’t look sympathetic. ‘It’s why I broke up with her. All that drama queen crap. It gets old.’
‘Do you think they’ll kick her out?’ she asked.
Lucas laughed as if she’d made a joke. ‘No way. Her parents are so connected and so loaded. She could kill somebody and they’d still let her stay until graduation and throw her a little party on her way out.’
Before Allie could respond he continued, ‘Anyway, at least that explains where Jo and Gabe are – she’s in trouble again and he’s trying to help, poor sod. But where’s Carter?’
Allie gave him the short version of how she and Carter had broken curfew the night before. ‘I hope he’s not in too much trouble,’ she said as she finished the tale.
‘Oh Isabelle will get over it, don’t worry. She pretends he’s just another student but everyone knows she loves him like her own child.’ He glanced at her appraisingly. ‘So, what’s up with you two anyway? Are you an item now?’
Blushing, Allie shook her head. ‘No, of course not. We’re just mates.’
‘Mm-hmm.’ Lucas didn’t seem convinced. ‘Mates who sneak out after curfew to be alone in the woods. The best kind of mates.’
His tone was teasing, and Allie felt her colour rise further.
‘Don’t be daft,’ she said. ‘Anyway, I don’t know where he is now.’
‘I hope Sylvain isn’t giving him a hard time. He’ll be so jealous about you spending time with Carter now that you’ve dumped him.’
Allie had been staring at the floor to hide her red face, but now her head shot up. ‘How do you know I’ve dumped him?’
Lucas smiled again. ‘Allie, there are no secrets at Cimmeria – especially when it comes to relationships. Katie Gilmore’s been annoyingly happy ever since Friday night, and she’s telling everyone that Sylvain dumped you,’ Lucas said. ‘Given that he’s being a miserable git we all assumed that, actually, you dumped him. I’m guessing we’re right?’
Allie nodded.
‘Good. He can be a complete dick. That’s what happens when your parents are billionaires and you’re their only son.’ Lucas smiled wickedly. ‘He’s not good enough for you. Carter’s much cooler.’
As Allie tried again to insist that she and Carter were only friends, he laughed and talked over her. ‘Listen, I’ve got to go. I’m going to see if Carter’s made it back to the guys’ dorm. Or Phil or anybody, really. I’m so bored. I might be forced to study if something doesn’t happen soon. Total nightmare.’
As he was saying goodbye, though, a tall, graceful girl walked over. ‘Did I hear you threaten to study, Lucas? Please don’t. The earth might stop turning and we’re having pasta for dinner tonight. I don’t want to miss it.’
‘Fine then,’ Lucas replied. ‘I’ll find something else to do – wouldn’t want you to miss your spaghetti.’
Allie and the girl looked at each other expectantly for a moment before Lucas noticed. ‘Oh, sorry. I didn’t realise you two didn’t know each other. Allie Sheridan, this is Rachel Patel. Rachel meet Allie. You should talk. You might like each other. You’re both freaks.’
‘Arsehole,’ Rachel said affectionately.
Feeling left out of their friendly teasing Allie studied her shoes, but after Lucas walked away, Rachel turned to her with a wide smile that showed off perfect white teeth and dimples. ‘Lucas is cool. He’s that guy I’m such good friends with that we can never date. Have you got one of those?’
She had golden-brown skin and almond-shaped eyes, and her long, curly dark hair was held back with a thin, braided silver band. Her smile was irresistible and Allie found herself smiling back easily.
‘I guess everyone does,’ she said, thinking about Mark back in London.
‘Totally. It’s like a rule of nature.’ Rachel studied Allie for a moment. ‘So at last I meet the famous new girl everyone’s been talking about.
Allie liked her voice – it was almost honeyed, with the faintest hint of a northern accent.
‘Nobody talks about me,’ Allie said, embarrassed.
‘’Fraid they do. You’re actually in my history class, you know,’ Rachel said.
Allie tried to remember seeing her there, and summoned up a vague image of a serious girl who always knew all the answers to Zelazny’s questions. ‘You wear glasses,’ she said, her tone inadvertently accusing. ‘And you’re super-smart, right?’
Rachel pulled a pair of stylish, dark-framed glasses out of her skirt pocket just long enough for Allie to see them. ‘Guilty. I’m a total geek. I can’t help it. And I only wear these to see the projections.’
She paused, then said, ‘People really do talk about you, you know.’
Allie made a face. ‘Oh good. What do they say?’
Her brow wrinkling with thought Rachel went down the list, rapid-fire. ‘Oh you know, first that you were going out with Sylvain, then that you weren’t; that you’re friends with Jo, and then that Jo went crazy; that you’re the one who found Ruth’s body the night of the ball …’ She paused. ‘Which sucks, by the way, if it’s true.’
Allie dropped her eyes and Rachel’s breath hissed between her teeth. ‘Blimey.’ She glanced at her watch. ‘Where were you headed anyway? Are you busy?’
Allie shook her head.
‘Let’s go and get lunch,’ Rachel said as they walked down the hallway. ‘I want to know everything. Along with the whole Ruth thing, I want to know what’s up with Jo Arringford. What happened? Did she really throw herself off the roof? The gossip on this is unbelievable …’
Sitting in a quiet corner of the dining hall with cups of tea and sandwiches, Allie found herself telling Rachel everything. All about finding Ruth and then Lisa, as well as the entire story about what happened on the roof. Rachel hung on every word as her sandwich sat uneaten in front of her.
Why she could tell her things she hadn’t told anyone else, Allie didn’t know. Maybe I just need someone to talk to who isn’t a guy and isn’t going to throw herself off a roof, she thought. Whatever the reason, she couldn’t seem to stop herself from talking and talking.
There was something inherently honest about Rachel. She seemed both knowledgeable about Cimmeria and critical of it. She knew everything about everybody at the school, and yet she clearly kept her distance from most of them. Lucas seemed to be her only good friend, but when Allie asked why she didn’t sit at the table with him, Gabe and Jo for meals she made a face.
‘That’s just not my scene,’ she said.
Rachel didn’t just listen, though. She proved to be a veritable gossip columnist of Cimmeria intrigue.
‘How do you know all of this?’ Allie asked at one point.
‘I just listen,’ Rachel said. ‘You’d be amazed how much you can learn if you sit quietl
y and pretend to mind your own business. Maybe it’s in my blood. My dad’s a sort of investigator.’
‘Like a cop?’ Allie asked.
‘Kind of like a cop.’
As the room had emptied and the two of them were alone, Rachel issued a challenge. ‘Name anybody at this school and I will tell you everything about them – known or suspected.’
‘Seriously?’ Allie laughed.
‘Seriously.’
‘OK … Katie Gilmore,’ Allie said.
Rachel smiled. ‘Good choice. Unbelievably rich. Her father’s an investment banker, lives in Kensington, shags the housekeeper. Buys the kids off with holidays in the Seychelles and buys off their mum with a black AmEx,’ she poured herself a glass of juice. ‘Her brother finished here last year, now goes to Oxford where he is learning to mint money like his daddy.’
‘Impressive,’ Allie said, with a look of respect. ‘What about Jules?’ she asked.
Rachel nodded. ‘Jules Matheson – very clever, perfect school record, perfect looks – perfect everything. It’s a bit scary. Her dad’s a QC. Her brother went here a few years ago, just graduated with honours from Cambridge in ancient history. Nothing tawdry there. Want to know about Jo?’
Swallowing hard, Allie hesitated before she answered. This felt just a little bit like betrayal. But Jo never told her much about herself, really. And after what had happened …
‘Yes,’ she said.
‘Jo Arringford,’ Rachel reeled off. ‘Daughter of banker and former government minister Thomas Arringford, who is now an executive with the International Monetary Fund living in Switzerland, with homes in Knightsbridge, Cape Town, St Tropez … you name it. Her parents are divorced. Daddy has a new wife who is six whole years older than Jo. Mum lives in the St Tropez house most of the time. A brother, eight years old, is at Eton. Jo’s very bright – with perfect scores. She’s had three breakdowns, and one suicide attempt …’
‘Stop!’ Allie said, too late.
‘… a year and half ago,’ Rachel finished.
‘Jo tried to kill herself?’ Allie whispered.
Rachel nodded sombrely. ‘Christmas break. Her parents … neither of them asked her to come home. She stayed here … took some pills.’