Night School

She paused, then said, ‘People really do talk about you, you know.’


Allie made a face. ‘Oh good. What do they say?’

Her brow wrinkling with thought Rachel went down the list, rapid-fire. ‘Oh you know, first that you were going out with Sylvain, then that you weren’t; that you’re friends with Jo, and then that Jo went crazy; that you’re the one who found Ruth’s body the night of the ball …’ She paused. ‘Which sucks, by the way, if it’s true.’

Allie dropped her eyes and Rachel’s breath hissed between her teeth. ‘Blimey.’ She glanced at her watch. ‘Where were you headed anyway? Are you busy?’

Allie shook her head.

‘Let’s go and get lunch,’ Rachel said as they walked down the hallway. ‘I want to know everything. Along with the whole Ruth thing, I want to know what’s up with Jo Arringford. What happened? Did she really throw herself off the roof? The gossip on this is unbelievable …’

Sitting in a quiet corner of the dining hall with cups of tea and sandwiches, Allie found herself telling Rachel everything. All about finding Ruth and then Lisa, as well as the entire story about what happened on the roof. Rachel hung on every word as her sandwich sat uneaten in front of her.

Why she could tell her things she hadn’t told anyone else, Allie didn’t know. Maybe I just need someone to talk to who isn’t a guy and isn’t going to throw herself off a roof, she thought. Whatever the reason, she couldn’t seem to stop herself from talking and talking.

There was something inherently honest about Rachel. She seemed both knowledgeable about Cimmeria and critical of it. She knew everything about everybody at the school, and yet she clearly kept her distance from most of them. Lucas seemed to be her only good friend, but when Allie asked why she didn’t sit at the table with him, Gabe and Jo for meals she made a face.

‘That’s just not my scene,’ she said.

Rachel didn’t just listen, though. She proved to be a veritable gossip columnist of Cimmeria intrigue.

‘How do you know all of this?’ Allie asked at one point.

‘I just listen,’ Rachel said. ‘You’d be amazed how much you can learn if you sit quietly and pretend to mind your own business. Maybe it’s in my blood. My dad’s a sort of investigator.’

‘Like a cop?’ Allie asked.

‘Kind of like a cop.’

As the room had emptied and the two of them were alone, Rachel issued a challenge. ‘Name anybody at this school and I will tell you everything about them – known or suspected.’

‘Seriously?’ Allie laughed.

‘Seriously.’

‘OK … Katie Gilmore,’ Allie said.

Rachel smiled. ‘Good choice. Unbelievably rich. Her father’s an investment banker, lives in Kensington, shags the housekeeper. Buys the kids off with holidays in the Seychelles and buys off their mum with a black AmEx,’ she poured herself a glass of juice. ‘Her brother finished here last year, now goes to Oxford where he is learning to mint money like his daddy.’

‘Impressive,’ Allie said, with a look of respect. ‘What about Jules?’ she asked.

Rachel nodded. ‘Jules Matheson – very clever, perfect school record, perfect looks – perfect everything. It’s a bit scary. Her dad’s a QC. Her brother went here a few years ago, just graduated with honours from Cambridge in ancient history. Nothing tawdry there. Want to know about Jo?’

Swallowing hard, Allie hesitated before she answered. This felt just a little bit like betrayal. But Jo never told her much about herself, really. And after what had happened …

‘Yes,’ she said.

‘Jo Arringford,’ Rachel reeled off. ‘Daughter of banker and former government minister Thomas Arringford, who is now an executive with the International Monetary Fund living in Switzerland, with homes in Knightsbridge, Cape Town, St Tropez … you name it. Her parents are divorced. Daddy has a new wife who is six whole years older than Jo. Mum lives in the St Tropez house most of the time. A brother, eight years old, is at Eton. Jo’s very bright – with perfect scores. She’s had three breakdowns, and one suicide attempt …’

‘Stop!’ Allie said, too late.

‘… a year and half ago,’ Rachel finished.

‘Jo tried to kill herself?’ Allie whispered.

Rachel nodded sombrely. ‘Christmas break. Her parents … neither of them asked her to come home. She stayed here … took some pills.’

Allie felt sick. ‘How did they …?’

‘Lucas found her – they’d only been going out a couple of months. He’d stayed here to spend Christmas with her. When she didn’t come down to dinner on Christmas Day he went up to her room to check on her, and … Happy Christmas, everyone.’ She sighed. ‘They pumped her stomach, made her see a shrink. Lucas stuck by her side every inch of the way. When she was better he broke up with her. She started going out with Gabe three weeks later.’

‘No wonder …’ Allie’s voice trailed off.

‘What?’ Rachel asked.