Deborah Hockney (22 page)

‘But what‘ll that do?’ she butted in.

‘That all depends on the type they use,’ answered Bella. ‘At best, or worst, depending on your take on this type of thing, it’ll knock all the main systems out, all communication panels, all life support systems.’

‘You don’t seem that worried,’ Will remarked.

‘Oh I doubt that they’ve really got the capability,’ replied Bella, ‘they’ve been working on it for years and haven’t succeeded yet. But, of course, the Elite don’t know that. Will they take the bait… who knows?’

‘Well I hope you’re right.’ Will spoke quietly, sounding almost ashamed. ‘Because if not, I’m going to be responsible for a whole bigger mess than the one I’ve put you all in.

Look,’ he continued, ‘all of you. For what it’s worth I’m really sorry for the mess I’ve landed you all in. ’Spose it was really selfish of me to try and find out about my mother and not even giving you guys the chance to back out, but there is one thing I still need to find out and I think Bella you might be the only one who can help me.’ He took a deep breath before continuing. ‘I’ve been told my mother had a daughter who was sent here many years ago; from what I can make out she’d be about eighteen, maybe a bit older. Now we’ve seen most of the people here, but I don’t recall seeing anyone of that age except you. Is there, or was there another child, another girl who was brought up with you, here–?’

‘No Will.’ Bella replied in a whisper. ‘Just me. But I do have this.’ She put her hand into an inside pocket and carefully removed a battered photo. ‘Do you recognise it?’

Will stared at the picture, where his mother’s face looked back at him and in her arms was a baby, whose lilac eyes mirrored those of the girl holding his arm in a friendly grip.

‘But…’ he murmured. ‘But I don’t understand. You’re supposed to be Ed’s sister. Not mine.’

‘I rather think,’ Bella cautioned them, ‘we all need to be calm about this. My theory, and at the moment it is only a theory, is that we
are
related. I think, Will, that you and I share the same mother and you,’ here she turned and acknowledged Ed, ‘as we have been informed, have the same father.’

‘Jeepers, creepers,’ exclaimed David. ‘Now that does make for an interesting conversation starter. Or perhaps stopper…’ he spluttered, seeing the look of sheer exasperation on Jocasta’s face.

While they were all privately absorbing this new revelation, Jocasta realised she was in desperate need of the loo. She whispered her needs to Bella, who immediately seemed to revert back to her normal countenance, and decided they would have to make a lot of noise to attract attention to the situation. She delved into one of her pockets, and brought out three whistles which she instructed the boys to blow while she started singing at the top of her voice, ‘Nothing! Like a bit of music to cheer you up!’ Although none of the others shared her interpretation of music it certainly made them feel better. ‘Oh smile for meeee my pretty flower, won’t you smile for meeee–’

Eventually Murf returned, complaining about the awful racket and none too pleased that he would have to escort Jocasta to a ‘personal’ station, as Mex had been sent to help prepare food in the kitchens. Jocasta wasn’t too happy with the situation either, although she had come to regard Murf as little more than an oversized toddler, she was still worried what she may have revealed to him during the interrogation. But her desperation to relieve herself left her without an alternative.

*

Once Jocasta had left, Bella turned to David.

‘We need to get out of here without any delay. David, I think you may have the answer.’

‘Me… do I?’

Will was finding David’s behaviour just a little bit odd, even given the circumstances. He didn’t usually appear quite so… distracted.

Oh no, he thought with sudden realisation. Dave’s fallen for Bella.

‘
Think
David,’ Will prompted, hoping that if he got him to concentrate, he might be able to forget Bella was in the room. ‘What about your glasses?’

‘My glasses?’

‘Yes. You said before that you can see inside things, if you take them off. What about the control panel here?’ He jabbed a finger at the security lock. ‘Can you see inside that?’

David slowly removed his glasses and moved towards the door staring at the panel all the time.

‘Yep, I can. Why didn’t I think of that before?’ he mused, turning the broken arm of his glasses round and round between his finger and thumb.

‘’Cause you were blinded by a pretty impressive light,’ Will exclaimed, a little of the usual banter returning to his voice.

Luckily, David was concentrating too much to notice Will’s remark.

‘If only I had something thin enough, I might be able to pick the lock. It’s really rather crude, but effective… Has anyone got a metal clasp, or pin on them?’

‘Don’t be stupid,’ Ed exclaimed. ‘We’re not from the twentieth century, you know.’

‘Alright, alright. Just asking. Just hopeful. Wait a nanosecond…’ With this, he started to shake the broken armpiece of his glasses until out slid a very thin sliver of metal. ‘Just the thing… let me see.’

It took David – his glasses perched precariously on the end of his nose – just a few seconds to insert the metal spoke and release the lock.

Chapter Twenty-One

On the walk back from the personal station, Jocasta was acutely aware of Murf’s bulk, the intimidating presence that prevented her from even forwarding the vague ideas of a plan. She didn’t know what she could do; all she knew was that she had to do
something.
She couldn’t –
wouldn’t
– just wait and do nothing, and let the Nabilats control
her immediate future, not to mention David and Will and Ed and now – Bella. But what could they do? Nothing! They could do nothing while they were locked inside that cell, and the realisation hit Jocasta so clear that for a moment the knowledge terrified her almost into stopping still – she would have to act. Now, while she was out, before she was locked back in. Could she run? Where to? Could she get away from Murf? Obviously she couldn’t overpower him… but could she surprise him? Kick him in the shin or something then run for it? Every second that passed was another opportunity gone. She didn’t know what she could possibly hope to do but it was now or never, the door was approaching, desperately she thought
a plan, I need a plan…

The Gathering Room. Of course. She could remember the way, could she if she was running? Yes, yes of course she could, she would get to the Gathering Room, find a communications device, and send out an emergency message on all frequencies, and then just pray that the Elite sent help before the Nabilats found her, before something terrible happened to the others because of her…

But surely, surely to do something was better than to do nothing at all, better to do something than to just sit there and wait, better to act, now, right now!

But just as they approached the entry the door to the cell flew open, banging inches from where she was, and David flew out, barged past Jocasta and ran straight into Murf’s midriff. Murf grunted with pain and shock and then, unbelievably, crashed into the wall behind. David, filled with some mad, frenzied enthusiasm, whipped round and pushed Jocasta along the hall, yelling something that Jocasta couldn’t decipher, but half a second later Ed, Bella and Will toppled out after him, and suddenly they were all flying down the corridor, bumping into each other and Jocasta was yelling to David but she couldn’t hear anything over the blood in her ears and the pounding of their feet- then suddenly there was the sound of a shot reverberating through the air behind them, and Bella’s fingers were gripping into Jocasta’s shoulder.

‘It’s the warning shot,’ she gasped, her voice edged with something worse than mere anxiety. ‘It must mean the Elite are close by. They… they’re going to-’

The sound of an explosion rang through the hallway; Jocasta could feel the shock of it through her fingertips pressed against the wall. She tried to turn but a pair of hands pushed her forward, faster even than before. There was no time to think about anything except the relief that they were, at least, together and
that
hopefully gave them a better chance of getting through this.

Then, and somehow it was all too soon, they were spilling out into the Gathering Room, and all thoughts of finding a communications device disappeared from Jocasta’s mind as she landed hard on the rough floor, her foot caught between the metal legs of an upturned chair.

All else was chaos. There were Nabilats, helpless in their confusion, some holding makeshift weapons, others yelling orders or crying out for guidance. Jocasta’s ankle, twisted between the metal bars, was throbbing, and her palms were grazed from her fall, but she forced herself upwards, meaning to clutch onto David for support, but he was gone. She nearly overbalanced, but steadied herself against one of the curtains, and she had a sudden and unbidden thought about how silly she would look if the curtain fell down and she got caught underneath it. She clung to it, looking around for David, or Ed or Bella, but all she could see was Delilah striding into the chaos, her face etched with a terrible fury, and her eyes blazing with what appeared to be contempt and disbelief that her city could be so easily dissolve into a state of panic. She stalked up to the metal disk in the centre of the clearing, past one of the lecterns, which had been broken into a jagged point, and through the bits of stone and dust that scattered the floor, her steps long and purposeful, and her posture full of a steely determination.

Jocasta couldn’t seem to look away, though she knew she was a fool for remaining still for so long, and she watched Delilah’s fierce gaze sweeping through the rubble of the Gathering Room. Very slowly, Jocasta lifted her foot slightly and then tried to lean on it. The resulting pain caused her to swing on the curtain, and she glanced up in time to see Delilah’s harsh eyes meet hers for the briefest second. Next thing she knew, she had let go of the curtain and dropped to the floor, her hands over her head, as the curtain loosed from its bindings landed, heavy and suffocatingly.

Delilah was screaming something, her voice shrill but authoritative through the noise, and Jocasta heard somebody’s heavy boots on the ground near her. Then all of a sudden she was being half lifted, half dragged to her feet, her swollen ankle refusing to take any of her weight, and her arms were locked behind her in a vice-like grip.

She cried out, but her voice was lost with all the other echoing voices, desperately she struggled, twisting from side to side, afraid that her arms were surely going to be pulled from their sockets. Then her footing slipped and her kneecap connected with the ground with a sickening crunch.

Her head snapped upright in pain, Will’s unrestrained curses carried over the rest of the din as he fought vigorously; her eyes took a few seconds to focus- and then she saw Bella across the cleared space, the other side of the broken lectern, scrambling, terrified, away from the man who pursued her, his fingers wrapped around a piece of rough-hewn stone. Bella’s hands reached out, her eyes searching for an escape route, the ribbons in her hair flying out as she sought sanctuary, waiting for the lump of cold rock and iron to smash through her skull.

Then, faster than lightning, in one swift, smooth movement, Bella spun around to face him, her hand snatching out at the air between them with noise like a whiplash and a tremor of light shimmered from her hand. The rock shattered like a bomb, and her pursuer was thrown backwards in a high arc, past David, who had discarded his glasses and was running towards the central plinth, dodging bits of rock and avoiding the debris that covered the floor.

She caught sight of Ed across the cleared space, the other side of the broken lectern, his arm in the grip of a Nabilat, whose eyes were wild and feral, his teeth bared and a trail of spittle clinging to his chin. A knife blade clamped in his fist. As she watched, Ed struggled, but the Nabilat just dragged him closer, the blade glinting in the half-light of the lanterns.

Jocasta’s head felt suddenly quite light, dizzy almost. All logical thinking disappearing as an unbidden rage rushed through her, all the pent up emotion of the previous hours seemed to ignite in her brain and overcome her. Her nostrils flared, sucking in air, her teeth clamped together and her hands clenched into fists. Her breathing came in jagged breaths, and a heavy, uncomfortable weight settled in her stomach. Her mouth burned with a metallic taste, every muscle tensed; no longer even feeling the pain in her ankle.

Don’t you dare
, she thought, even knowing as she said it that there was nothing she could do. She knew, after all, that it was her fault;
she
had brought Ed here,
she
had convinced Will to let him come, it was her, all her…

The rage was building in her guts, growing like wildfire, spreading out to her fingertips, filling her head in a rush of dizzying blindness, her anger wanted to rip out of her in a scream, she wanted to press her knuckles into her eye sockets to block out the fierce burning desire that had consumed her.

How could this happen? She couldn’t let this happen?

She found her teeth clenched and her fingernails digging into her palms. It was as if every nerve ending in her body was prickling with indignation, her very lungs were screaming out in fury, her anger was so immense that it was as if she was somehow outside herself, her rage so all-consuming that it no longer belonged to just her – suddenly her arms were released, and she was standing firmly on two feet, adrenaline pumped through her veins, the blade solid in her hand.