Darke Academy 4: Lost Spirits (10 page)

But in spite of the feeling of camaraderie with the other Few, she knew she’d made her decision, and she was sticking to it. Why else was she tracking Ranjit down so determinedly? She was absolutely certain, more so than she’d been even when she was first initiated into the Few. She would separate herself from Estelle; she would be with Ranjit.

What if he doesn’t want you any more?

The small spiteful voice was clear in her head, and Cassie almost smiled to hear it.

Ah, Estelle, she thought sarcastically. Always so encouraging.

Well? Tell me, girl. He ran from you, he’s hiding from you. He may not even want to know you any more. And even if he does return, what if why he really loves you, even if he doesn’t know it, is because you are one of the Few? You’re strong, fearless, beautiful! Perhaps a mere mortal won’t quite measure up. You’re so much better off with me.

No, Estelle, she thought. No. You’re wrong.

We’ll see. We’ll see how he likes you when you’re ordinary. He’s Few! He’s beautiful, strong and fearless – like you are NOW! Why would he
—

‘Oh, do shut up,’ muttered Cassie aloud.

‘Blimey!’ said Richard with mock indignation. ‘I was only telling you we’re coming in to land. I thought you might like to be ready to save our lives, in case there’s any turbulence.’

‘You are so never going to let me forget that,’ she laughed.

‘Certainly not. Though I do prefer my superheroes in a bit of Lycra …’ he retorted with a devilish grin.

Oh, she thought, she would miss her Few friends. There were so many of them she liked and trusted, and she couldn’t fool herself that she would see much of them once she was back living a normal, human reality. Would they resent her for getting rid of her spirit? Would they turn their backs on her, or not speak to her again after she’d done it?

The Few were elite, very much a community unto themselves. She might run into them now and again over her lifetime, but she’d never again have this closeness, this easy companionship of people who knew exactly what she was and respected her for it. She’d be giving up friends, a wonderful network, possibly a brilliant and successful future.

Quite
, put in Estelle truculently.

Quite, thought Cassie grimly. But look what I’ll be gaining: Ranjit. And myself. I’ll be getting my
life
back. Estelle was silent, sulking again, but that didn’t bother Cassie. She’d rather the old bat kept her trap shut right now. She had more than enough to worry about in one mind.

The plane rumbled smoothly on to a grassy airstrip, and in mere minutes Cassie and her classmates were clambering out, stretching, grabbing their bags, pointing out their luggage to the drivers, laughing and joking and gazing around in delighted awe.

‘I am gonna
like
it here,’ declared Ayeesha.

‘What? Without a branch of Neiman Marcus?’ joked Cassie.

‘There’s one behind those bushes,’ announced the Bajan girl airily, pointing vaguely at her surroundings.

Cassie laughed, feeling the piercing regret once more, and just as quickly shooing it away. There was no reason, after all, why she couldn’t enjoy her friends’ company for now.

‘I wish Isabella hadn’t left,’ sighed Ayeesha, turning gloomy. ‘She’d have loved it here. With or without Neiman Marcus.’

Cassie simply nodded, deciding it was better to say nothing than actively lie. The rest of the school had been allowed to think Isabella had indeed left, but they’d find out soon enough that she was staying. Cassie hoped they wouldn’t blame her for that secrecy, too.

The camp was not far from the airstrip, and even knowing the extravagances of the Darke Academy, it was not what Cassie had been expecting. When Sir Alric had mentioned tents, she’d rather assumed the students might just be slumming it for once. But these ‘tents’ were the size of small houses, furnished with everything from desks to baths to elegant beds. Cassie whistled as she gazed around.

‘Well, this is rather nice,’ announced Alice Pritchard with a raised eyebrow, dumping her Louis Vuitton in one corner of their tent.

Cassie widened her eyes at the English girl in agreement. She’d be sharing with Alice while they stayed here – they were the only two without roommates – but she could live with that. Frankly, she could put up with pretty much anything, she thought, when the living conditions were this luxurious. There were even Persian rugs on the wooden flooring, for heaven’s sake.

‘Which bed do you fancy, then?’ asked Alice. She flopped into a chair and watched Cassie look at the two four-poster beds, each made up with cool Egyptian cotton bedclothes.

‘I’m fine with either.’ Cassie was a little surprised she was being given a choice, seeing as she’d never really got along with Alice. ‘I’ll have this one.’ She kicked off her sandals and jumped on to the nearest bed with a flourish.

Alice laughed back – a genuine laugh, Cassie thought – before growing serious again. ‘Listen, Cassie … I’m sorry about Isabella,’ the English girl said softly. ‘I know how close you two were.’

Cassie felt a small but vicious twist of guilt. ‘Yeah, I miss her,’ she said truthfully, and added, ‘I’m sure I haven’t seen the last of her, though.’

‘I’m
certain
you haven’t. She’s so fond of you. I know there was all that – trouble – last term.’ Alice swallowed. ‘But she’s really loyal.’

‘I know.’ Cassie smiled back, wishing she didn’t have to lie, even by omission. ‘She’ll be in touch soon, I’m sure.’

‘Well, you’ll let me know all her news when you get it, won’t you?’

For the first time, Cassie felt real warmth towards her. So Alice could be genuinely nice; who knew? She shouldn’t have been surprised, really. After all, Isabella had turned to the English girl last term, when she and Cassie had fallen out so horribly over all the business with Jake and the mysterious Few deaths. All that confusion felt like a lifetime ago. But Cassie knew it wouldn’t have been like Isabella to choose a complete villain or an idiot to room with when she’d temporarily moved out of their shared accommodation. Alice was a bit shallow and not that sharp, but she was a good person, Cassie thought with a stab of remorse. And she hadn’t even brought up Cassie’s contribution to the death of her former roommate Keiko …

Still, the easy companionship without the extreme closeness made her long even more to see Isabella. The class were scheduled to go out on a dusk game drive later, and Cassie found herself impatient to get it over with. Crazy to think that way about her first
game drive
, thought Cassie wryly. If she didn’t have so many distractions whirling around her head, she might have been able to be more excited about it.

But by the time their Land Rover was bumping over red dust tracks, she was positively ashamed of herself. The hazy sunset turned the horizon lilac and gold, outlining thorn trees and grazing herds of gazelle and zebra. Cassie took a breath. Somewhere inside her Cranlake Crescent-self, she’d believed this stuff only existed on television. Yet there, only a few metres away, a giraffe cropped leaves from a tall tree. A
real
giraffe. She almost forgot the camera clutched in her hand, but then she began enthusiastically taking shots.

‘While you’re all acting like paparazzi, kindly do not forget your projects,’ Professor Newham announced sternly. ‘We’re researching the mutual dependence between the human population and the wildlife, the contribution of tourism to sustainable development.’

‘Of course we are, sir,’ Richard told the geography master, po-faced. ‘Nothing else ever entered my head. Well now,
that’s
certainly worth documenting, for example.’

Ayeesha and Cassie spluttered as he pointed at a buffalo cumbersomely mounting another. Professor Newham glared until they recovered their composure.

‘They all look so placid, considering they’re some of the most dangerous animals in Africa,’ murmured Ayeesha, then she turned, exclaiming, ‘Oh my God,
lions
!’

It was just as well the pride was plainly used to tourists, thought Cassie; otherwise they’d have been off like a shot at the commotion on the Land Rover as they all cried out and turned to look. Still, their driver knew exactly what he was doing, following at a respectful distance but keeping in clear sight. Fascinated, Cassie watched the sleek movement of tawny muscle through the savannah grass. ‘If we’re lucky, we’ll see a kill!’ Even Professor Newham was excited.

As it turned out, they witnessed a stalk and a hunt, but the zebras got lucky – somewhat to Ayeesha’s relief, Cassie realised with amusement.

‘I’m just glad they didn’t get that baby,’ declared the Bajan girl as they finally drove back towards the camp.

‘Bit tough on the poor lions,’ laughed Cassie. ‘They’ve got to eat too!’

‘You could go out and help them,’ said Richard, snapping his teeth and growling. ‘They looked like they could use a professional.’

Cassie slapped his shoulder hard.

‘Pity about the leopard no-show,’ mused Newham, who seemed to have forgotten all about sustainable development.

‘He’s a tricky cat,’ the driver called back. ‘Maybe another night and a later hour, but he’s very, very reticent. I wouldn’t bank on seeing him at all.’

‘It’s OK,’ said Richard. ‘Cassie can go out and flirt with him and—
Ow!
’

Cassie laughed. She’d enjoyed the game drive more than she’d have believed possible, and she was almost tempted to stay with her Few friends later that evening when they gathered round the open fire – for what Richard called ‘cocktail hour’, as he surreptitiously pocketed a hipflask – but the opposing attraction was too strong. Making her excuses, she slipped away into the dusk.

They’d been warned not to leave camp alone, but that rule, thought Cassie – slightly ashamed of her arrogance – could hardly be said to apply to someone with her powers. She could look after herself, no matter what came out of the night. Besides, she had to go alone and unnoticed, to get as quickly as she could to her secret rendezvous …

The lodge wasn’t far away anyway; Sir Alric had explained where it was, a little over a mile from the camp, and she’d made a note of its position as they drove from the airstrip. The quickest route was on animal tracks through thorny scrub –
animal tracks
, she reminded herself with amusement; what absurd risks she could take as a member of the Few.

Quite. You won’t be able to do THIS sort of thing if you throw me out!

‘Oh, put a sock in it, Estelle.’

Apart from anything else, she wanted to enjoy the night sounds of the bush – the cry of night birds, the low grunting of some unseen carnivore, the whistle and chirrup of cicadas. The Kenyan night wasn’t exactly silent, she smiled to herself, but it was an amazing kind of racket. Eyes glinted in the brush ahead of her as she flashed her torch, but just as quickly retreated, and whatever they belonged to scurried into the undergrowth. Ahead, she could see the lights of Sir Alric’s lodge now, glowing golden and welcoming from windows and veranda.

She almost ran up the steps, and they must have heard her approach. Before she could even knock on the door, it was flung open, and Isabella was hugging her, squealing with excitement.

‘I missed you!
We
missed you, Cassie! It’s so good to see you! Come in, come in!’ Then Isabella was dragging her into the spacious interior and allowing Jake just a quick hug before shoving Cassie into a comfortable leather sofa draped with woven throws.

‘Do you want a drink? You didn’t
walk
all the way here, did you?’ She poured Cassie a huge glass of Coke.

‘Course I walked!’ Cassie laughed, grinning at Jake. ‘It’s not that far!’

‘Well, you should still be careful.’ Jake shook his head, but he was smiling too.

Cassie realised again how much quieter he was now, how much more thoughtful. Clearly a near-death experience had given him cause to reassess an awful lot.

Any gossip Cassie could provide them covered only the last few days, but Isabella was as hungry for it as Cassie was for the feeding they swiftly got out of the way. She was grateful once more for Jake’s
volte
-
face
regarding her feeding on his girlfriend.

Jake, of course, knew little or nothing about what had happened lately at the school either, so by the time they’d relaxed after the feeding session, and Cassie was on her third Coke and finally beginning to run dry of stories, she was surprised by how many hours had passed.

She glanced at her watch. ‘Whoa. I’d better get back soon. It’d be really embarrassing if they
did
send out a search party,’ she said with a laugh. ‘And we don’t want anyone spotting you two.’

‘I suppose,’ agreed Isabella regretfully. ‘Oh, you’ll have to come back again tomorrow, Cassie. This is like old times!’

Yes, Cassie thought happily. Yes, it really was.

‘I will,’ she said. ‘It was easy enough to get away unnoticed tonight. It shouldn’t be a problem. God, it’s so good to see you both!’

‘One for the road?’ Jake tilted an eyebrow, grinning, as he proffered the plate of brownies that she’d already overindulged in. ‘Sir Alric knows a good chef when he employs one!’

‘I swear I couldn’t eat another bite.’ Cassie patted her stomach happily, then leaned forward, biting her lip. ‘I do have something to tell you both, though.’

There didn’t seem a better moment, after all. Jake and Isabella quietened, watching her expectantly.

‘I’ve got news. I think you’ll like it,’ Cassie continued.

‘Go on.’ Isabella’s eyes were alight with curiosity.

Cassie took a breath. ‘I’m going to split from Estelle.’

Isabella and Jake could only stare at her for a moment, then at each other.

‘You what?’ said Jake. ‘But … how?’

‘I’ve found out how to do it. That’s … that’s what all that business with Ranjit was about, last term. He’d found out how it could be done, with the Few artefacts.’

They were unexpectedly shocked and silent. Cassie raised her eyebrows.

‘But look what happened to Ranjit,’ said Jake quietly. ‘Cassie, isn’t it dangerous?’

‘That was different.’ She flapped a hand dismissively. ‘I told you, the Curse is spent. And that was what affected him – not the Pendant itself.’