‘You went into Zelazny’s private quarters?’ Raj looked at them as if they’d lost their minds. ‘Do you have any idea how much trouble you’re in?’
‘We had to do something,’ Rachel said defensively. ‘You all disappeared and everything went to hell.’
‘Rachel —’ His tone was sharp but she didn’t let him finish the sentence; her face was pink with emotion.
‘You don’t know what’s been happening, Dad. You’ve all been sitting out in the woods, telling each other how clever you were to figure it all out.’ Her voice rose. ‘Didn’t you ever think that it was a little too easy? Did you consider who gains if you blame the wrong person?’ She held the key out to him. ‘Try it for yourself, Dad. It fits.’
For a long moment Rachel and her father stared at each other – his gaze warning her to back down. Her eyes undaunted.
It was Sylvain who broke the tense silence. ‘Please just consider what we’re telling you, Raj. Remember, you trained us to ask these questions. And ask yourself what we’ve been asking ourselves: how could it really be Eloise?’
‘It could be anyone,’ Raj thundered, and the students went quiet. ‘You do not know all the facts. What made you suspect Zelazny, anyway?’
Remembering Eloise’s voice whispering through the walls, Allie dropped her eyes to her desktop.
‘Just something someone said,’ Carter said with deliberate casualness.
‘Tell me this: did you break into any other teachers’ rooms?’ Raj asked.
They exchanged a glance.
‘Eloise’s room,’ Rachel confessed.
Raj raked his fingers through his hair.
‘I would like to know why you thought it was OK to do this.’ His voice was deceptively calm but Allie knew he was furious.
This was going badly. He didn’t look remotely convinced by what they’d told him. If anything he appeared to be more certain that he was right.
A sudden thought occurred to Allie and she leaned forward in her desk. ‘You’ve known Eloise for a long time, haven’t you, Mr Patel? Since she was a student here.’
His expression was stony. ‘Yes.’
‘Then how can you think she’s the spy?’ Allie couldn’t keep the emotion out of her voice. ‘I don’t understand why you don’t believe she was with Jerry. Why don’t you trust her?’
‘Because we have asked Jerry about that.’ Raj spoke through gritted teeth. ‘And he wasn’t with her that day. He can prove he was in his classroom, grading papers.’
The students looked at each other, shocked. Either Eloise was lying, or Jerry was. Neither of them seemed the type to deceive.
Raj rubbed his hands across his face; he hadn’t shaved – his fingers rasped across his whiskers. ‘You can’t just trust people. Not when you’re grown up. You have to constantly check up on them to make sure they haven’t been corrupted by… life. Circumstances.’
‘Do you really believe it’s her, Dad?’ Rachel’s voice was earnest, almost frightened. She’d never considered the possibility that Eloise might be guilty. ‘Do you really believe she could have helped to kill Jo?’
Raj looked from one to another of them, scanning their faces with his piercing gaze. Then, shaking his head as if he couldn’t believe he was saying it, he held out his hand.
‘Give me that key. I’ll talk to the others.’
When Rachel handed it to him he slipped it into his pocket.
‘I promise I’ll consider everything you’ve told me. But, please’ – Raj surveyed them seriously – ‘don’t do any more investigating on your own. This is a serious situation. It’s dangerous.’
At his words, a sudden burst of rage burned in Allie’s throat. It’s dangerous? Could he be more patronising?
It was too much.
‘We know it’s dangerous,’ she snapped. ‘We’re not completely thick.’
Spinning around, Raj stared at her in disbelief. Suspecting she’d gone too far, Allie still couldn’t stop herself from talking.
‘Mr Patel, you have to come back. All of you. Do you even know what’s happening here? It’s bad. You’re off in the woods playing your stupid war games.’ She gestured around the room, her hand shaking with emotion. ‘The real war? It’s right here. Get back and help us fight it.’
‘I’m going to ignore your tone,’ Raj said evenly, ‘because I know you’re upset.’
But someone had to say this. ‘I am not upset. The students already know what’s going on. They know about Nathaniel. They know their parents are coming for them. And some of them aren’t going to go. There’s going to be trouble and you need to get back here. Now.’
‘What?’ Raj looked around the group as if seeking an explanation from each of them. ‘How did that happen?’