Storm and Stone (16 page)

Kieran’s rage was beginning to pass, allowing his mind to clear. ‘It would be very curious if she did.’ He rubbed his chin, searching his memory for matches for this kind of behaviour. ‘There’s a long tradition of societies finding a scapegoat. It’s not about the faults of the individual but about the dynamics of those using them. I’m guessing that, as the closest to Gina, Raven became a very handy target when they decided to recruit her friend, a plausible way of explaining away Gina’s problem with stealing—they may even have given Raven the scholarship thinking a day would come when they could make use of her like that. Keep piling the stuff on the scapegoat that no one cares about and then get rid of her when you’re ready, leaving everyone else with a clean record.’

‘You think they’d go that far?’

‘It’s not beyond the bounds of possibility. I’m beginning to see there must be some exchange between the parents and the trustees: something along the lines of “you clear my little darling of all accusations and I’ll owe you”. Raven is being blamed for Gina’s crimes. And maybe not just her: I think we should start to be a bit more worried for the ones that haven’t come back.’

Joe dug his hands in his pockets. ‘What’ve we let ourselves in for? And how are we going to keep Raven out of harm’s way?’

Kieran struggled to remain rational. No one had been harmed yet as far as they knew; maybe they were overreacting? Still, the school definitely did not feel safe for any of them. ‘Ousting into the cold would be seriously bad news. Raven and her grandfather have nowhere else to go.’

‘So in your theory they’re prepping her as some kind of fall guy?’

‘Yes. And if she wasn’t here, I think they’d pick on someone else. As far as that goes, it isn’t personal.’

‘So are we taking her to sick bay or not?’

‘I think we have to.’ Kieran didn’t like that idea at all.

‘You know what, Key, you’re not looking too good yourself.’

‘What?’

‘I think you might be coming down with stomach pains, grumbling appendix.’

‘And I need someone to monitor me overnight?’

‘You’re catching on, bro.’

Raven had a fuzzy recollection of being woken out of a deep sleep. She didn’t want to move: the bed had smelt like Kieran and being under his duvet was almost as good as having him next to her. Yawning, she was bundled in to a dressing gown, hustled to the medical room and handed over to the matron who put her between cold sheets. Waking up properly thanks to that, she felt a spike of alarm to be back on this wing of the castle—that was until she realized Kieran was staying with her, having taken over the bed next to hers. He handed the nurse a care sheet of symptoms to watch for in case his suspected appendicitis flared up in the night. He sat propped up on the pillows, consulting a medical dictionary, with an ‘I-will-not-be-moved’ expression on his face.

‘I want my temperature taken every four hours,’ he instructed Mrs Jones. ‘You will also note down my description of my abdominal pain. It’s very important to construct a history if I need to take this to hospital.’

The nurse walked away to fetch some painkillers, muttering something about hypochondria. When her back was turned, Raven stretched a hand out to him. ‘Oh, Kieran, I’m sorry. I didn’t realize you were ill—and you carried me all that way. Did that set it off?’

‘Set what off?’ He touched his fingers to hers, giving them a light caress that sent a shiver down her arm.

‘Your appendicitis.’

‘I don’t have an appendix. It was taken out two years ago.’

‘Oh.’

‘I’m your guard. You can go to sleep without worrying about any repeats of last night’s attack.’

Raven was about to protest that she didn’t need babysitting but changed her mind. She tucked her hand back under the covers as the nurse returned. ‘Thank you.’

‘There you are, Kieran.’ Mrs Jones placed a little cup with two pills in front of him. ‘Take these and try to sleep.’

‘Aren’t you going to check on Raven?’ he asked, palming the unwanted pills so she would think he had swallowed them.

‘Miss Stone, how do you feel?’ Mrs Jones had the bedside manner of an anaconda.

‘OK now, thanks.’ Raven pulled up the blankets and lay on her side peeking across at Kieran. He winked at her.

‘I’ll be in my office.’ The nurse had a bed there where she could sleep in-between rounds. ‘Just press the buzzer on your table, Kieran, if you need anything or the pain gets worse. I should warn you we have CCTV in here so I can monitor my patients. No shenanigans from either of you.’

‘Marvellous.’ Kieran smiled at her innocently, ignoring the implication that they both better stay in their own beds. ‘No one dare disturb Raven again if there is a digital witness.’

Mrs Jones walked off without a comment.

‘I think I’m going to sue this school,’ murmured Raven. ‘Neglect.’

Kieran punched his pillow to make it more comfortable. ‘Spoken like a true American.’

‘You don’t approve?’

‘Oh, I approve one hundred per cent.’

‘Shame I don’t have the money for legal representation.’

‘Or proof.’

‘Or proof.’ Yeah, there was that. She’d only thought that one of the girls sounded a bit like Gina but now she recalled the incident she had begun to doubt even that—it was all a jumble. But why waste time thinking about such creatures when she had Kieran’s company for the night, with him lying only a few feet away so she could hear his breathing and take comfort that he was keeping vigil? His presence next to her was like the warm glow of fire on a winter day, thawing out the hurt of the last twenty-four hours. He wouldn’t let anyone harm her—a promise she could take to the bank.

‘Goodnight, Raven.’ He lay down on his side to face her.

‘Goodnight, Kieran. And thank you.’ She fell asleep with his green eyes watching her across the gap between the beds.

The morning after the night in the medical room Raven moved out to her grandfather’s cottage, refusing to stay on her own under the castle roof. Granddad fully supported her decision, staring down Mrs Bain when she had protested that he was breaking the rules on the use of school property. Raven unpacked her stuff in his second bedroom and decorated the plain white walls with the posters Kieran had thought to bring back for her from his weekend away. They were a great selection from old dance movies—
West Side Story
,
Singin’ in the Rain
, and
Billy Elliot
. He had handed them over casually, saying he’d just come across them but she wondered—and speculated—and wondered some more. They were a very thoughtful gift from a guy who was just a friend.

On Thursday morning, as she had an early breakfast with her grandfather, Raven broached the subject that had been on her mind. ‘I’ve been thinking about September.’

He poured himself a cup of strong black tea. ‘I’m a year off retirement, sweetheart, so the chances of finding another position aren’t good.’

‘That’s OK, Granddad. You stick it out here. But when I’ve done my exams, I’m going to transfer to the local sixth form college. I’ve got the forms if you will help me fill them in.’

‘Of course I will, but are you sure? Graduating from Westron usually guarantees you a place at a good university—sets you up for life. The network of past pupils gives you a huge advantage in the wider world. And there’s your scholarship—that’s a lot of money you’re turning your back on.’

Raven stirred the milk in her cereal bowl, oat flakes drowning in the white. ‘I hate it here.’

‘I don’t blame you. I’m not too keen on this place myself.’ Her grandfather had complained vociferously to Mrs Bain about the attack but no action had been taken. Both had been depressed and further disillusioned by the outcome. ‘And I think you are right to pursue other options.’

‘I think I’d do better with ordinary kids—ones who don’t automatically look down on me. I want just, you know, to fit in. I now get why some of the other scholarship students threw in the towel—we’re not really welcome here.’ She’d work out a way of carrying on seeing Kieran if she could—and if he was interested.

‘I see. In that case, I’ll see if I can persuade them to let you continue to live with me here.’

‘Is that going to be a problem?’

‘Technically I’m not supposed to have anyone else here. Mrs Bain only allowed you to move in when I said it was the only way we would both stay on at Westron, notice period be damned.’

‘Aw, thanks, Granddad.’

‘And I can’t see what harm it would do. There’s a spare bedroom and I’m your only family. The thing is they are very determined to keep Westron for Westron students and staff only; you’d be seen as an intruder if you’re no longer a pupil here.’

‘Afraid I’ll spill their dark secrets?’ The school was getting weirder by the day, a strange atmosphere among the students, a fierce silent battle of who was in and who was out.

‘They’re somewhat paranoid. I think it’s because so many of the youngsters are from celebrity backgrounds. The prospectus does promise complete confidentiality.’

‘Tell them not to worry about me—I couldn’t be less interested in them.’ Raven got up and took her dance kit off the dryer hanging over the Aga.

‘We’ll see. So, what’ve you got today?’

‘Final rehearsal for our performance piece. Kieran promised he’d have learnt it by now.’

As her granddad got up, his knees clicked. ‘Leaving it a little late, isn’t he? The assessment is tomorrow.’ He put his hand to the small of his back, rubbing the base of his spine. Raven swallowed her remark about taking it easy; he couldn’t afford the luxury of putting his feet up if he wanted to keep his job.

She kissed him on the cheek. ‘You’re telling me. See you later.’

Hugging her bag to her chest, Raven crossed the lawn from the cottage to the main building, sneakers getting wet with dew. Though she passed several groups heading for their lessons, no one said hello to her. She had got used to being ignored by the other students; in fact she told herself she preferred it that way. She tried not to think about the old days, when Gina and she had been a team. Could you be a team of one? If so, that was her now. Even the teachers, with the honourable exception of her dance tutor, paid her the minimal notice. Her work wasn’t being marked when she handed it in, and if the students ever had to divide into groups she was always mysteriously left out and no one did anything about it, unless she happened to be in class with Joe or Kieran. Kieran had told her to treat it as a chance for sociological observation, a learning experience of crowd behaviour.

Yeah right.

She decided to treat it as a chance to separate herself from the school emotionally and imagine her life beyond its walls. Every time they acted like jerks she waved a mental two fingers at them, keeping her real thoughts hidden behind a bland expression. She couldn’t wait to leave. But the worst part—the thing she hadn’t shared with anyone—was that it felt like she was reliving the bleak months after her father’s death. Whispers behind her back; cruel comments in the corridors; the feeling of having nowhere safe to go; enemies around every corner; being made to believe she was worthless. The scars that had begun to heal over the last few years had split open again and grief for her parents seeped out. None of this would have happened if they hadn’t died. The fact that Westron was making her feel this way only added to her fury.

Kieran was already in the practice room they had booked. He had put it under his name because whenever she put hers down she got bumped by one of the other groups. She hovered outside looking in through the glass panel. He was standing in a shaft of light, doing some stretches and shoulder rolls. The dark mood lifted a little. Now that was something to cheer a girl up when nothing else could. He could move like a dream, but he was missing the most important aspect of dance: you had to perform and not just go through the motions. She still hadn’t managed to get through to him on that.

‘Hi, how are you?’ she called brightly, coming in and throwing her bag in a corner.

‘I’m fine, thanks.’ He smiled at her as she took off her trackies and sweat shirt. ‘You?’

‘OK. But I’ll be as happy as a clam if you learnt it all the way through.’

‘Are clams happy?’

‘They are in America. So did you?’

‘I did.’

‘You mean we’re actually going to put this together and not just run through the various moves?’

He nodded.

‘You’ve got spotting sorted?’ They’d had quite a few sessions together trying to get that right.

‘Sorted.’

‘You mean Kieran Storm is going to dance?’

He nodded once again.

‘Great. I’ve been waiting for this.’

Slotting his iPod in the speaker dock, she tapped on the music.

The Dance exam was scheduled for the morning, with all the performances running one after the other, no breaks. Nervous, Kieran and Raven walked side by side to find out when they were on. Raven looked at the list. ‘We’re last.’

‘Is that good?’

Raven noted that Gina had found a place with the other Modern group who had tried to have Kieran on their team. She had got the better part of the bargain, even if Kieran was still not quite ready to perform in front of an audience. ‘I don’t suppose it matters. At least the examiner is from outside the school; we’ll get a fair assessment. Let’s get seats at the back.’