The Lie (The Seekers Book 2) Page 8

  Jack swallowed hard, “That’s a great idea.”

  “Have you seen Millie? I’ve been texting her like mad but she hasn’t got in touch, which is really weird.”

  “Er... no. I reckoned her phone would be off in the hospital like.” Jack didn’t like to admit that he didn’t even have the number. He wished!

  “Oh yes – silly me. I’m Becky, by the way, Millie has been my best mate since Year 7. How well do you know Oliver?”

  Jack hesitated slightly, “He’s in my study group for geography and we are usually partners in P.E. He’s a really nice guy.”

  Becky smiled, but Jack could see the tears in her eyes. He looked at the candle to give her a minute to compose herself. When they made eye contact again he held up his candle, “I think we should light them now, don’t you?”

  Becky went to find a lighter and another group of girls joined the vigil.

  A gentle evening breeze swept through the weeping willow causing it to ripple and sigh and about fifty people were now gathered around it. Some guy had even brought a guitar, but it didn’t seem inappropriate. He strummed gently and a few of the girls joined in, their voices strangely harmonious. What was he playing? Do you believe? Never heard of it, but it was quite poignant.

  He listened to the chorus a few times - Jack wouldn’t sing, but he felt accepted and a small glow filled his chest. Becky had returned to him and not moved away, maybe that was it?

  C hristina braced herself for the sights and smells of intensive care. She had watched her dad die in similar surroundings and it never left you. But she was pleasantly surprised; there was only one bed and two exhausted parents sitting on grey plastic chairs.

  Sarah was quickest, probably used to dealing with visitors,

  “Miss Elliot, how kind of you to come, we didn’t expect anyone from the school to know yet ...” her voice drained off, devoid of all energy.

  Oliver’s dad offered her a chair and Christina sat down. She found herself torn between wanting to look at Oliver and at the same time to somehow bring some comfort to these two wonderful people. She compromised. She gently reached out and squeezed Sarah’s hand while studying the lifeless form on the bed.

  “How is he?”

  It was said with such tenderness, that for a moment, Sarah was lost for words. Jamie ran his hand through his hair, a gesture Oliver had clearly picked up, as she had seen it many times in her geography lessons.

  “They need to operate but the tumour is located in a really awkward part of the brain. They’ve never done it before. Well - not successfully. ”

  Christina nodded. “Is there anything I can get you?” She looked around the empty room, “You seem to be on your own here.”

  Sarah gave a weary smile, “Oh, that’s because we are transferring everything over to the ICU in the new wing of the hospital. Oliver, believe it or not, is not as critical as some of the other patients, so we have been allocated the last bed in this unit.”

  “How’s Millie coping?”

  Sarah poured herself a glass of water and sighed deeply,

  “We can’t find her. She’s not answering her phone and we don’t want to leave the hospital, just yet.”

  Christina summed up the situation quickly, “Would you like me to find her?”

  “We couldn’t ask you to do that, Miss Elliot. My sister is arriving tomorrow and Jay’s brother will be arriving soon with the grandparents, but -”

  “But, it would help you to know where she is now – right?”

  Sarah was already getting the house key out of her bag, “There is probably some very simple explanation, but the last time we saw her she was taking Winston for a walk. We’ve tried some of her mates but they haven’t heard from her. Do you know where we live?”

  “Just give me your number and post code and I’ll put it in my sat nav. I did give Millie a lift once, but that was a long time ago. Could you put your mobile number down too? ”

  Christina wanted to give Oliver a hug, but she could see Jamie was struggling and she didn’t want to overstep the mark. While Sarah was searching for a pen she stood up and laid her hand gently on Oliver’s arm.

  “God Bless You Oliver.”

  She turned away and hugged Sarah instead and left the room quickly before her emotions betrayed her. But it had begun.

  W inston was bored. He was well fed and watered now, thanks to Quark, but he was definitely bored. You can only sniff around six doors for so long. Ah – here was Quark!

  “Well?”

  “Greetings. Yes, thank you.”

  Winston was bemused. “What?”

  “Sorry?”

  Winston shook his head; being bored must have addled his brain.

  “No, I meant well as in – “what’s happening” – not well as in – “how are you”.

  Quark laughed, a childish giggle, yet so full of resonance, “Ah! I see. Well, there it is again – so many meanings for one little word – your language is very interesting – well, I have no news.”

  Winston sniffed, “Well, that was worth waiting for.”

  Quark bustled over to be by his side, “Come old friend, I think it is time to take you home. There is no knowing how long this may go on. I wish to try other things and I dare not leave you here alone.”

  Winston was hurt, “But what good can I do at home? I thought I was supposed to help?”

  Quark tried to explain, “Oliver will need you when he returns from the hospital.”

  Winston waddled over to the white door. “But he’s not in the hospital, he went in there remember.”

  “Yes, I know this is hard for you to understand, but Oliver will return home from the hospital, if everything goes according to plan.”

  “You have a plan?” Winston wasn’t sure if he had sounded too sarcastic.

  “Of course.” Quark bristled “I am simply missing some of the parts.”

  “Hmm- but I suppose you are used to that.”

  Quark was intrigued, “What do you mean?”

  “Well, you are always saying you are that which is not, so that that which is can be, so you must be used to it.”

  “I see. I think.”

  Winston moved away from the door, he was still reluctant to leave them both, but he trusted Quark, “Okay, let’s go.”

  D eceiver watched the sycophantic gathering with loathing. “What a bunch of losers!” Did they think their empathy was going to get them anywhere? Still, it made his job easier, more cannon fodder for later. But what was the Apprentice up to? The young fool was still hanging around when it was painfully obvious his target was having a good time. It was much better to withdraw and disillusion him in the morning; everyone else would be getting on with their sorry little lives and the sad loser is always so easily forgotten.

  Ah well, some things only come with experience. Deceiver wasn’t sure he could handle much more of this syrupy rubbish anyway; perhaps he should just grab the stupid Apprentice and go. He would have much more fun watching him squirm, but then he wouldn’t know just how far the little brat was prepared to go.

  He decided to call back later with a few friends of his own.

  L uckily, Oliver’s family lived quite close to the hospital. Christina sent Dominik the new address and set off. The roads were clear so she was there in less than ten minutes. Parking was at a premium, however, but she figured they wouldn’t mind her pulling into the drive, especially with all these kids hanging about.

  She was just thinking it was worse than school break times and feeling rather smug that she didn’t have to live near gangs of youths, when she spotted the candles dancing in the breeze. It was a school gathering. Well, good for them. She recognised every single face she looked at. Fortunately, her car windows were tinted, as she didn’t want to intrude and she didn’t really want to be spotted either. This was their time and they didn’t want a teacher spoiling it.

  Christina kept her head down as she marched quickly to the front door and let herself in, but the kids wer
en’t fooled. Miss Elliot was popular and she was the only teacher with a personalised number plate. This called for more texting.

  T he Doorkeeper sat back with a smile of satisfaction- one contained after all. He hadn’t expected that, but he would go back and record it later, time to deal with the young lady now. He left his carefully concealed office and re-entered the main storage facility. He knew exactly where she was and glanced at his hand held monitor to make sure she was still there. He approached her directly; she was hiding behind section four. Empty at the moment, but not for long.

  “You may as well come out, your friend has gone.”

  The girl made no reply.

  “Look, this is silly. I know exactly where you are, what do you want? Why don’t you just talk to me?”

  The Doorkeeper edged closer, “There really is no escape from here. I did tell you that. Perhaps I can help you find your way?”

  Millie listened to the creep with an increasing level of frustration and anxiety, she was pretty sure now he was one of the bad guys and there was no way she was going out there to face him. But how long could she hide in here? Time was running out and if Quark wasn’t coming and Oliver was trapped what was she supposed to do?

  C hristina put the key safely back in her handbag, it would be too embarrassing to lose it or lock herself out. She noticed several lamps already on; perhaps Millie was here after all?

  “Hello- anybody home?”

  She made her way into the kitchen, stepping carefully around several pairs of muddy trainers and some half empty dog bowls next to the fridge. Then, right before her very eyes, two small furry creatures began to materialise! She had no trouble recognising the Highland Terrier but the other one took her breath away.

  Winston was completely unperturbed, even checking his bowls first before speaking. “Ah Miss Elliot, how are you? Come to join the mayhem I see.”

  Christina felt her knees begin to buckle so she grabbed a kitchen chair and dropped onto it gratefully. “Who- how - what the ...?”

  Winston waited patiently, “Ah yes, teachers ... always preferring to ask questions rather than answer them.”

  Christina was staring at the furry creature on two legs. He was actually smiling at her.

  Quark bowed, “So pleased to meet you Child of the Promise, I was not aware reinforcements had been sent for. I am that which is not, so that that which is can be. My name is Quark.”

  Christina still could not speak.

  Winston waddled over to lend a hand, “What he means is he has a plan but he doesn’t have all the parts yet. Are you okay?”

  Christina still could not speak.

  Quark was still smiling at her and she could feel herself disappearing into his fathomless eyes, but she found her voice at last. “Did you say Quark, as in the subatomic particles which form matter?”

  “Indeed!” clapping his hands with delight, Quark moved towards the table and stood so close she could feel him shimmering.

  Christina resisted the temptation to reach out, “Oh boy, Dominik is going to love this!”

  Winston looked around, confused, “Is he here too?”

  Quark smiled, “I think we need to start at the beginning. We are here to help Millie and Oliver, but there has been a ... er ... slight problem in proceedings.”

  “Yes. He’s lost them.” Winston settled into his basket.

  Quark tapped his fingers together, “No I haven’t. I know exactly where they are, but the Way is blocked to me for some reason ... most frustrating.”

  Christina nodded, “Well I know where Oliver is – he’s in the hospital.”

  Winston rolled his eyes, “Will you tell her or shall I?”

  J ack was getting fed up now, being with people too much was irritating, and how long were they going to hang around here anyway? It’s not like they were actually doing anything useful. He would get Becky’s number first though, might as well get something for himself for all his effort.

  He scanned the crowd for her; she had gone to speak to a friend about ten minutes ago. The group must be growing; the number of guys had definitely increased. Eventually he found her, surrounded by the usual in-crowd, and they were all laughing and joking around. Jack turned away and threw his candle on the ground.

  No-one noticed but the Apprentice. Darkness gathered darkness and for the first time he “felt” something. Jack was making a list, Jack liked lists.

  Flickering candle-lights blurred the edges of reality now. The horseshoe cul-de-sac of little square boxes with their static yellow windows tried in vain to repel the approaching doom, but the scene was set and the countdown had begun. Deceiver smirked, this was going to be worthy of someone of his stature after all.

  Chapter 16

  D ominik pulled into the service station and grabbed his phone, he would get an extra-large coffee and then make his way across town; he needed the loo and sometimes the traffic was murder on this last bit. He was doing a good job of resisting the smell of cheeseburgers when the text came through. He frowned, turned around, and ordered a double with fries to go. Dinner was off, but at least he was nearer to his destination than he thought.

  Getting back into the car he programmed the new address into his sat-nav and finished off his treat with relish. Hey, twice a year was alright. Then he went outside to drink his coffee and stretch his legs for a bit.

  The large white van to his right pulled away and the space was soon filled with a warrior of the Host. Over ten feet tall and with eyes of blazing gold - his sheer brilliance was masked, however, as he folded in his powerful wings of white and waited patiently. The other angel smiled from inside the car and came out to join him, appearing at his side in an instant. “Greetings Daniel, the Intercession is gaining. We can begin.”

  Dominik sipped his coffee and smiled; he couldn’t wait to see Chrissie, wherever she was. He looked at the empty space next to him, it felt warm for some reason, maybe the previous guy had left his engine running? As he turned to get back in the car a single white feather fluttered to the ground. Dominik missed it.

  N ow the Doorkeeper was getting angry, he had another millennia to collate and she was doing his head in. How could he concentrate when she was breathing over there? He liked things neat and tidy and she was definitely not neat and tidy. The system worked perfectly well after all, completely fair. She had obviously not passed the selection, otherwise she wouldn’t be here, so what was she complaining about? What did she want? He would have to get rid of her before the next inspection. The Master was a stickler for the rules.

  Millie was looking around for a weapon. She’d never actually hit anyone before, but as there was only the two of them she figured if she surprised him she could knock him out and then go and get Oliver. The thought made her feel slightly sick. What if she hit him too hard? What if she killed him? What if she needed the creep to get Oliver back? She wanted to find something that was light enough to lift but heavy enough to do some damage. They didn’t teach you that in physics.

  She looked at the rows and rows of book cases and an idea popped into her head. This was something she had always wanted to do- but would it actually work? Ah well, nothing ventured ... She started to make her way to the end of a row, the one just in front of his work station. Millie ran her hands along the sides of the bookcase, she didn’t really want to touch any of the books, and gave a little push. It rocked slightly, so it wasn’t bolted down, but it would still need a huge effort on her part. What would Oliver do?

  She looked around for a lever of some sort, to help amplify her muscle power. Not too far away was a library chair, it looked completely unequal to the task, with its delicate woven structure, but when she picked it up she was surprised at its sturdiness.

  Millie spoke to herself for comfort, “Now, do I run up with the thing or just lean on it?”

  “If I were you I would just sit on it.”

  Millie spun around with the chair, breathing heavily. She was ready to do some serious damage, if need be,
but the voice just laughed. It was a pleasing sound in the ominous silence of the library and Millie quickly located its source. One of the books was standing open on a nearby table and an intelligent face, framed by an unruly mop of grey hair, with twinkling, black eyes, smiled across at her.

  “Professor Alexander Graham Montague, at your service ma’am.”

  Millie was so astonished to be addressed in such a way that she was momentarily speechless. The professor blinked quickly and continued with his advice.

  “If you run up with it, or lean on it, the result will be the same. You will have sufficient leverage to topple the case, but is that really what you want to do?”

  Millie found her voice at last, “Ssh- he will hear you.”

  The professor was offended. “He is supposed to hear me – I am an Interactive you know, one of the privileged few to be allowed to ...”

  Millie rushed over to slam the book closed but the look of alarm on the old man’s face stopped her. She checked that the Doorkeeper was still busy then leant over and whispered frantically, “Please. He doesn’t like me and I have to get my brother back.”

  The professor nodded. “He doesn’t like anybody. That’s how he got the job after The Great Rebellion of 54. Where are you from?”

  Millie didn’t have time to chat. “Look, my brother Oliver is dying, my Companion is goodness knows where and my dog is useless.”

  The professor smiled wistfully, “You have a dog! How lovely.”

  Millie was furious, all the frustration of the last few hours finally bubbling over. “How can you witter on about a dog when my brother is dying?”

  The professor was shocked by her anger, “But my dear we are all dead here.”

  Millie still had the book in her hands and she flopped to the floor in exhaustion, she could feel whatever little energy she had left draining out of her.

  The professor was crestfallen, “I’m guessing you didn’t know that?”