Night School

‘But here we all are,’ Rachel said. ‘And I got to do CPR on a real person for the first time ever. So it wasn’t all bad.’


‘Totally worth it,’ Allie agreed.

‘That’s what I thought.’

Looking uncomfortable, Jo turned to Rachel. ‘I hate to ask but, would you mind if I had a few minutes alone with …’

Rachel jumped off the bed. ‘Of course. Allie, I’ll go and get you some food. What do you want?’

Allie’s throat hurt. ‘Something cold,’ she said. ‘Nothing sharp.’

An affectionate smile lit up Rachel’s face. ‘Right. No sharp food. Leave it to me, babe.’

When the door closed behind her, Jo sat gingerly on the edge of the bed.

‘I just wanted to tell you I’m sorry.’

Allie started to tell her it wasn’t necessary but Jo shook her head. Her face was red and Allie could see that she’d been crying.

‘You saved my life last night – and you risked your own to do it. I believe you did the same thing on the roof a few weeks ago. Katie told me she lied to me because she was angry at you.’

Allie gaped. ‘She did what?’

Jo nodded. ‘You saved her life, too, you know. She might be a bitch but she’s not an ungrateful bitch.’

A hoarse laugh burst out of Allie before she could stop it, and soon they were both giggling, although that set off a fit of coughing from Allie.

‘I’ll tell her you said so,’ she managed to sputter.

When they calmed, Jo looked at her seriously. ‘I know I have a problem, Allie. I just have these … what the shrink called “episodes” where I’m not rational. And I really shouldn’t ever drink. I’m sorry you got caught up in it. I wish so much that it had never happened. If I could take it back I’d do it in a second. But I want you to know I’m working on it.’

‘It’s OK,’ Allie said, although it wasn’t.

As if she’d heard her thoughts, Jo said, ‘It’s not OK, actually. I know that.’

‘Good.’ Allie’s voice was gentle.

But Jo wasn’t finished. ‘The thing is,’ she said, ‘each time it happens something sets it off. It used to be my parents. They’d do something stupid or forget about me and off I’d go. But this time it was … what happened to Ruth.’

She looked up at Allie. ‘It’s just … knowing something awful and not telling anyone … I think it makes you crazy.’

Allie felt a tingle of fear, like icy fingers against her skin. She couldn’t tear her eyes away from Jo’s.

‘I think it does. What did you know that nobody else knew?’

Jo’s round, cornflower-blue eyes held hers. ‘I know who killed Ruth. And I couldn’t handle it. Just knowing. I couldn’t … be the only one.’

Two breaths in, one breath out …

Allie stared at her steadily as her heart pounded in her ears.

‘Who killed Ruth, Jo?’ she whispered.

‘Gabe did it.’ Jo’s voice was dull with grief. ‘Gabe killed Ruth.’

*

When Rachel returned a few minutes later with yoghurt, ice cream and strawberries (‘See? Nothing sharp …’) Allie was holding Jo in her arms as she sobbed.

Over Jo’s head, Allie whispered to Rachel: ‘Get Isabelle.’ Without a word, Rachel dropped the food on the desk and ran.

‘It’s going to be OK,’ Allie whispered, over and over, although she wasn’t sure it would be. She felt sick, and took deep, settling breaths to try and steady her own nerves as questions rushed through her mind too fast for answers to catch up.

Gabe did it? Gabe killed Ruth? Why?

She remembered hiding from Gabe on the path that night she was out with Carter. Something in his voice – some element of menace – had kicked a self-protective instinct into action and led her to hide. She’d been as scared of him at that moment as she’d ever been of Nathaniel.

But murder?

That seemed inconceivable. Why would he do something like that? Ruth was his friend. What could she have done to make him want to hurt her? Much less to kill her.

‘Jo, Isabelle’s coming here in a few minutes and you have to tell her the truth,’ Allie rasped. ‘Will you do that?’

Her face puffy and red, Jo nodded. ‘That’s why I told you. I think everybody needs to know. He’s dangerous.’

When Rachel and Isabelle ran in a few minutes later, Jo was still crying. The headmistress wore the same dark leggings and tunic she’d worn the night of the parley, and smelled faintly of smoke.

‘Allie?’ she asked, taking in Jo’s tears and Allie’s pale face. ‘Is everything OK?’

‘Jo has something she needs to tell you,’ Allie whispered.

Jo told Isabelle what she’d told Allie. As she talked, Isabelle sank slowly to her knees beside the bed, never taking her eyes off Jo’s face.

‘But why, Jo?’ she asked finally. ‘Did he tell you why?’

‘He said Ruth talked. And that she knew too much about what was really going on. She wanted to tell people. I think she wanted to tell you,’ Jo said. ‘But then he wouldn’t tell me what that meant – like what was really going on.’