Outside

Chapter Twenty Five

The original plan had been for me and Luc to get into the Close and find out what had happened to Fred and Jessie’s children. Hopefully we’d locate them and help them to escape with us. Meanwhile, Fred and Jessie would be waiting a mile away in their jeep with our AV parked close by. They would wait there for up to two weeks, after which time, if they heard nothing from us, they would drive to our Perimeter in Bournemouth and alert our parents who would send in help.

On his first night here in the Close, Luc waited until the very early morning, until his roommates were soundly asleep. Then he left his bunk, climbed out of the bathroom window and crawled along the long low roof. He saw no security guards, but he knew they were there. He just had to hope they didn’t know he was there.

He needed to get up high to get a view of the surroundings, but his building was only one story high. He lowered himself down from the roof and let himself drop the remaining six-or-so feet on to the noisy gravel.

The next building along was four storeys high. He heaved and climbed his way up the side of the building where there were the fewest windows, using the wide metal drainpipe. When he reached the roof, he shuffled up to the ridge, trying not to dislodge any of the ancient looking roof tiles.

To the rear of the building, he saw another quad-shaped courtyard and yet more buildings. The outside walls were high, smooth and topped with jagged glass and razor wire. In the middle distance, he saw the impressive spire of Salisbury Cathedral and then he saw something to make him realise our plan had gone terribly wrong – he saw our AV parked close by, under a small stand of trees. Several thoughts raced through his mind at once, but he would be unable to confirm what had actually happened until he got some more information. He returned to his quarters the way he had come.

The following day, Luc tried to get some sense out of his brainwashed companions. There were five of them with the task of preparing and painting three rooms. The work group set-up was similar to mine – an older person in charge, with two twenty-somethings to help and then Luc and another adolescent doing the unskilled work.

The three adults stayed focused on their work and seemed completely unapproachable, but Luc managed to befriend the other boy. His name is Michael and he doesn’t know how long he’s been at the Close. Luc doesn’t think he can have been here too long as he’s slightly more coherent than the others.

Luc decided he had nothing left to lose by confiding some of our story to him. He told him about Fred and Jessie and their farm and how they’ve lost their children, Freddie and Lissy. What Michael told him, made Luc despair.

‘Don’t know about no Freddie or Lissy, but that Fred and Jessie was a right nice couple. They had a farm and dogs and really nice grub. They had a tower thing, I remember that. There’s a few of us here who know Fred and Jessie, but some of ’em don’t think so highly of ‘em as I do.’

It was then Luc knew for sure that we’d been duped. Fred and Jessie must have known about Grey all along. They’re acting as the sticky web on the outside, passing along the nice fat juicy flies to Grey and his cronies. They meant for us to come to the Close and be caught here forever. There probably is no Freddie Junior or Lissy. Maybe they are just a ruse, to be used if necessary.

Did they do it willingly? Or have they been coerced? Brainwashed too, maybe? Well, it makes no difference now. They fooled us thoroughly and now I feel stupid and angry – I always pride myself on being a good judge of character, but I was completely taken in by them.

As Luc hurriedly whispers his discovery to me in the dark doorway, I experience a familiar sweep of hopelessness.

‘Riley! Riley, are you listening to me?’ Luc shakes my arm to get my attention back.

‘What are we going to do?’ I wail. ‘We’re trapped. We’ll be brainwashed.’

‘Shh, keep your voice down. I’ve got to go now. Just be ready. Where’s the window to your bathroom? Security in here is pretty laid back. It’s just the outside wall we need to worry about. We have to get out of here fast, before they move the AV. Day five is the start of Integration Week for newcomers and I really don’t want to stick around for that or we’ll end up like zombies.’

Luc tells me what to do: Each night at about 2-3am, I’m to try and get to the bathroom on my floor. There are no clocks here, so it’s going to be difficult. Once there, I’m to hang an article of clothing outside the window to let him know I’m in the room. Once he’s formulated an escape plan, he’ll come for me.

This is the fourth night I’ve waited for him to come. For the last three nights I’ve waited a couple of hours, but I didn’t dare stay any longer. Luckily, no one has needed to use the bathroom while I’ve been in here. Luc hasn’t shown up yet and each morning, just before dawn, I’ve staggered back to bed, weary and disappointed.

Tonight, as usual, I’ve hung a small hand towel outside the bathroom window. It’s chilly in here and all I’m wearing is a cotton nightshirt. I wish there was a large towel or something I could wrap around me. I didn’t get dressed in case someone sees me.

I get up and stamp my right leg – it’s full of pins and needles. I’m cross with myself for not listening to Luc in the first place. His gut instinct was to leave well alone and not even mention James Grey to Fred and Jessie, but I ignored him and now we’re both in danger of a lifetime of incarceration. Of course, the couple could have arranged our capture by some other means, but it’s too late to regret stuff. We just have to hope we can get out of here. And then what will we do? Will we just continue on our way to find Chambers? Suppose Luc doesn’t want to carry on… Maybe he’s had enough and wants to go home, I wouldn’t blame him. Do I want to keep going?

I give it some thought and decide I really don’t want to give up on our mission, despite the danger. This realisation surprises me and gives me a surge of fresh courage. The alternative is to go back home and live with regret. Skye is dead, she had no choices, but I’m alive and I really want to do this for her. I have to get out of here, if not for me, then for her and for anyone else who may fall foul of Chambers in the future. The man has to be caught and punished. I’ve escaped from armed raiders, so I’ll damn well make sure we get out of here and finish the job we started.

Now, in the quiet gloom of the bathroom, I’m willing Luc to come for me, but an hour passes and there’s still no sign of him. Each night, I worry that I’ve arrived too late or returned to my room too early, but I really don’t think he’ll come for me after dawn. I’m almost dozing off on the chilly lino floor, when I hear a soft tap on the window. I give a start and wipe a small dribble of saliva from the corner of my mouth. I’m cold and stiff, but my heart beats fast and I jump up and go to the window.

Luc’s face is such a welcome sight. He climbs into the bathroom quickly, slides the sash window shut and passes me a pair of worn navy jogging bottoms. I pull them on gratefully. They’re much too long, so I roll them up a bit. We hug briefly and awkwardly and I return the hand towel to the hook.

‘Okay, we haven’t got much time,’ he whispers. ‘Come on, I hope you’ve got a good head for heights.’ I follow him out of the window and try not to look down. ‘You’ll be fine,’ Luc encourages. ‘Wait till I’ve reached the ledge before you start coming down, I don’t think the drainpipe will take both of us at once.’

I don’t share his confidence in my climbing ability and my right leg shakes uncontrollably. But I grit my teeth and attempt to emulate his cat-like agility. We finally make it down to the ground. This side of the building adjoins a different courtyard. I look around and see our AV parked under some trees. It seems too good to be true – there’s no one in sight.

‘Why aren’t there any guards?’ I ask. ‘A place like this, you think there’d be loads of security.’

‘Yeah, you’re right.’ He thinks for a minute. ‘Maybe there’s something we’re not seeing, or maybe they don’t think they need security on the inside. I mean, with everyone here wandering around in a daze, they probably don’t need to worry about people escaping. It is a bit weird though. You think there’d be someone.’

‘Do you have any ideas about how we’re going to get out?’ I ask. ‘We seem to be pretty well locked in.’

‘There’s a delivery van arriving in a while. Well, it’s come in the last two mornings. It’s not a great plan, but we haven’t got many options. I thought we could just make a break for it when the gates open and hope they don’t catch us. We have to pray we can get into the AV and hope it’s got enough fuel to get us away.’

‘It sounds like plan to me,’ I reply. The fresh air and the climb down from the bathroom has really woken me up and, with a heavy shot of adrenalin thrown in, I feel on heightened alert. ‘Luc, you’re amazing. I never would’ve thought we had a hope of getting out of here.’

‘Thanks, but we’ve got a way to go yet. Okay, when I say go, we need to run across to the AV. You flatten yourself up behind one of those trees, while I see if the keycard’s still there. Once I’m in, you get in the passenger side as quickly and quietly as you can.’

I nod in agreement.

Luckily for us, there’s no artificial lighting in the courtyard and none of the lights in the surrounding buildings are on either, but we know it won’t be too long before everyone is awake and the bells start ringing for morning service. Luc and I haven’t attended service yet as we’re not allowed to go until we’ve completed our ‘Integration’ course, whatever that entails. Hopefully we’ll never have to find out.

The sun is rising fast and a milky light begins to flood the expanse we have to cross unseen.

We go for it, crouching low and running fast. I feel so vulnerable and exposed, expecting to hear a shout or running footsteps at any moment. But we reach the AV without incident and I run and stand behind a large horse chestnut tree. Its green spiky pods remind me of more innocent autumns, of hard-baked, vinegar-coated conkers smashing into each other.

Luc tries the door of the AV and finds it locked. He scrabbles beneath the vehicle, searching around for the spare keycard which is normally magnetically fixed to the underside. We didn’t check if it was still in place after the run-in with the raiders on the floodplain and I’m praying it didn’t get dislodged during my bumpy getaway. Luc’s mother always keeps a spare under there, much to the disapproval of his father who thinks it a dangerously obvious thing to do.

Luc is taking a long time though and I peer out from behind the trunk. He beckons me over.

‘Riley,’ he hisses. ‘I can’t find it. It’s not in the usual place. Come and give me a hand, quick.’

I creep over and slide under the vehicle on my back.

‘I wish we had a torch,’ I say. ‘It’s too dark under here. It’s impossible to see.’

‘I don’t think it’s here.’ Luc slides out from underneath and I join him. His fists are balled up tight and he has smears of oil on his eyebrows and cheek.

Then I see a movement out of the corner of my eye and a streak of fear flashes up my spine. I tap Luc on the arm and point. He turns around to see what has me frozen in terror – a procession of black robed figures streaming out of a small door in the outside wall and heading towards us.