The night was clear and, for a while, the bright moon lit the path ahead. When they moved into the forest, though, it was harder to see where they were going. They hadn’t gone far when Allie stumbled over a root, jarring her knee.
Swearing, she stumbled around for a minute clutching her knee.
‘Have you wankered it?’ Zoe asked, running back to her at top speed.
‘Zoe!’ Allie said, mildly scandalised. ‘When did you become a professional swearer?’
‘I’ve been practising,’ Zoe explained. ‘Lucas is teaching me.’
‘How bad is it?’ Nicole asked, drawing them back to the subject at hand.
Tentatively, Allie put her weight on her knee, wincing in anticipation of agony.
It held.
‘Actually… I’m good,’ she said. ‘Let’s keep going.’
With a hop Zoe zipped ahead again, but Nicole eyed Allie’s leg critically.
‘Let’s walk for a few minutes,’ she said. ‘See how it does.’
Nicole’s patience made Allie feel strangely humble. She felt as if she had to acknowledge it.
‘Thanks for… you know,’ she said, ‘doing this, I guess. Going slow with me. You could be running off with the others.’
The cold had made Nicole’s cheeks and nose red; with her pale skin and dark hair, she looked like Snow White in the cartoons. If Snow White was badass and dressed like a Ninja.
‘Oh don’t worry,’ Nicole said. ‘I like this much better than the usual thing. So you are saving me from something I despise.’
This was not the reply Allie had expected. ‘Really? I thought you liked Night School.’
‘Joining Night School was not my idea. My parents insisted.’ Seeing Allie’s expression, she gave an eloquent shrug. ‘It’s fine – I don’t mean that I truly despise it, I suppose. Sometimes it can be fun but –’ she made a rueful gesture – ‘there are other things I’d rather be doing.’
Allie considered that for a while as they walked. ‘You never thought of saying no to your parents?’
Nicole’s reply was instant. ‘Never. It means too much to my mother. You see, I’m the first girl in my family to be accepted. My mother wasn’t chosen for Night School when she was at Cimmeria so…’ She shrugged. ‘I think I am living her dream.’
Allie, who knew all about lost parental dreams, gave a bitter chuckle. ‘I think I’m living my mum’s nightmare… Maybe we’re in the same boat for different reasons.’
For a while they walked in companionable silence – Allie’s knee felt better now but Nicole showed no inclination to run again and that was fine with Allie. Eloise had said to take it easy. The woods around them were quiet in that deep, winter’s night way – even the wind didn’t blow through the branches. The only sound was the crunch of their footsteps on the cold ground.
She stole a surreptitious glance at Nicole, who seemed lost in worried thoughts of her own.
Maybe she can be trusted. Maybe she would know what to do.
She worked to summon her courage then, clearing her throat to break the silence, she said, ‘Uh… Nicole… can I ask you a question?’
The French girl turned to her enquiringly but at that precise second Zoe shot down the path towards them again. This time, though, something about her pace wasn’t right – she was moving too fast. As if she was running from something.
Everything slowed. Allie reached for Nicole’s arm to warn her but she’d already begun to run towards Zoe. Stumbling, Allie followed.
Too out of breath to speak clearly, the younger girl pointed into the darkness off the path.
‘The chapel,’ she gasped. ‘Someone… in… there.’
The moment the words left her mouth, the cold earth seemed to take Allie’s feet in an icy grip, tight as iron. She stood frozen, watching as if from far away, as Nicole moved closer to Zoe, asking her questions.
She recognised the look on Zoe’s face – she’d seen it before. Zoe was afraid.
It was happening again.
‘What exactly did you see?’ Nicole’s rational voice jolted Allie into action. She finally moved, joining the other two in a tight circle under the trees.
Zoe’s face was taut, but she was trained for this.
‘The door’s open,’ she said. ‘The candles are lit.’
The hairs on the back of Allie’s neck rose. There was no reason for anyone to be in that chapel. Every night it was closed before sunset. Students weren’t allowed to visit it after that. Security guards would have been checking it every two hours.
So why is it standing open?
It made no sense. She could see the others knew that, too.
‘Did you see anyone?’ Allie asked, her voice taut.
Zoe shook her head.
‘Are you sure, Zoe?’ Nicole asked.
Exasperated, Zoe held out her hands. ‘You have to see it for yourself. It’s… weird.’
Nicole bit her bottom lip. ‘I don’t like this. We should take Allie back.’
She and Zoe both turned to look at her as if she were a problem they had to solve. Heat rose to Allie’s face. They couldn’t do that. This could be their chance. What if it was Gabe or the spy? They could get him right now.
‘I’ll be fine,’ she insisted. ‘I can keep up.’