The Perimeter (17 page)

They left the courtyard and the kitchen gardens, following a long wide pathway which ran alongside a row of buildings, across a bridge and along the river. At least there was a slight breeze here. Jamie’s neck itched and he attempted to wipe the sweat away from the inflamed skin with his muddy fingers. His mind was numb and he couldn’t even begin to think where they might be going.

They began to head away from the river and into a lush, green water meadow bisected by a huge metal fence which stretched off in both directions. They were now walking toward a sturdy-looking metal gate and, as they approached, one of the men took a set of keys off his belt. They waited as he deftly unlocked it. Once through, he relocked it and they continued walking. So now he was locked out of The Close. Would he be going back?

There was no one else around and Jamie’s nerves intensified. Perhaps they were actually kicking him out of The Close. Maybe his confession wasn’t a secret anymore and they had decided they couldn’t shelter a murderer. But how could Jamie go back to a life on the outside after sleeping in a comfy bed and eating three meals a day? The thought filled him with panic. Better to die. Maybe that would be his lot anyway. Or maybe they were going to hand him over to the army for justice. That would be another fate worse than death. He had to stop speculating; he would soon find out. He simply had to be patient.

The grass swooshed around his ankles as they walked unhurriedly through the meadows. Jamie wasn’t sure how long they travelled for, but it must’ve been at least an hour, when up ahead he spied something glinting in the sunlight. A wall. A high metal wall. Maybe it was a compound. As they walked, the wall came into focus. It was part-brick, part-metal and it must have been about twenty feet high. It reminded him of the Charminster Compound, only there were no people outside and there wasn’t the usual accompanying stench. The only thing Jamie could make out was a faint sighing hum, like the gathering breeze you might hear before a storm, but there was no wind on his face and the air was still. What was this place? Was it a compound? A prison? Or was it someplace worse?

Chapter Twenty

Riley

The guards’ AV was a mess. I cleared some papers and bits of machinery off the passenger seat and shoved them onto the back seat, which was covered in a whole heap of other crap. Drumming my fingertips on the steering wheel, I tried to quell my nerves. I really didn’t want to spend time alone with Luc, but I had no choice.

He walked toward me with long, loose strides, taking his time. Once he got close I restarted the engine and slid my sunglasses down over my eyes. He wasn’t smiling when he got in.

‘I told Liss and Anna they shouldn’t be out here working,’ he said. ‘They look like they’re ready to drop. Honestly, they’re half-starved and totally exhausted.

‘No, I think keeping busy is probably better,’ I countered. ‘There’d be more time to worry if they were home doing nothing.’

‘Mmm, I s’pose.’

‘How’s your hand?’ I asked.

He lifted it off his lap and looked at it. The blood on the cloth had darkened.

‘S’alright.’

‘D’you want to stop off at the surgery? Get it looked at?’

‘No. It’s fine.’

I threw the AV into reverse, swung it back and then slid it into first, heading out to the exit.

Soon we were outside the perimeter. No sign of any dogs today. The silence between me and Luc was verging on awkward, but I didn’t know what to say that would sound natural, so I stayed quiet and kept driving. I still needed to warn Lou about FJ’s army and I knew Luc would try and stop me seeing her, so I decided I wouldn’t ask him about it. I’d just do it.

‘You okay, Riley?’

‘Yeah, fine.’

‘You’re very quiet.’

‘So are you.’

‘Worried about FJ?’

‘What? Nah.’ I turned to give him a half-smile. Truth was I was bloody petrified of FJ, but I hadn’t really let myself think about him. There was so much going on that I hadn’t had time to focus on why he was coming here. The perimeter would keep me safe and so would Pa and Luc and all the guards and our friends. If, against the odds, he did somehow make it past all of them, I would sort him out myself. He was only a boy, nothing more. A boy with too much power.

The circular shape of the Charminster Compound soon came into view. It seemed less daunting than usual and I wasn’t sure why. Maybe because it was more familiar now I knew some of the people who lived in its shadow. As we passed the gypsy encampment and drew closer to the compound, it was apparent that the metal entrance gates were shut. There were no people or vehicles hanging around outside on the ramps as usual. We drove past The Walls and I kept glancing across to see if I could spot anyone I knew, but the few faces I saw were unfamiliar ones.

Driving straight up the noisy metal ramps, I came to a stop outside the gates. Nothing happened. No one came out.

‘Use the horn,’ Luc said.

I pressed it once, a crease of noise in the smooth silence. We waited. I pressed it again. After a few seconds, one of the smaller side doors opened and two armed guard stepped through. One trained his weapon on the windscreen while the other examined the AV. I buzzed down the window.

‘Step out of the vehicle,’ the second guard said. ‘Hands where I can see them.’

Luc and I did as he asked, raising our hands in the air. The first guard trained his weapon on Luc and gestured for him to stand next to me. Luc walked around to my side of the AV. This wasn’t usual protocol for the compound, but I guessed they’d upped security since the riots.

‘Afternoon,’ the second guard said, stepping forward and eying me and Luc. ‘This isn’t your vehicle.’

‘It’s a perimeter guard vehicle,’ I replied. ‘We’re here on guards’ business.’

‘Your name?’

‘Riley Culpepper.’

He nodded. ‘We’re not allowing entry or exit today.’

‘Why’s that?’ I asked.

‘There’s been some . . . unrest.’

‘You mean the riots?’ I said. Well that explained the heightened security.

He nodded.

‘We’re not here to come inside,’ Riley said. ‘We’ve come from the perimeter to warn you.’

‘Warn us?’ The guard raised an eyebrow.

‘Yes,’ I said. ‘James Grey’s men are on the march again. They’re coming this way.’

‘Okay,’ he said, scratching his cheek. ‘Thanks for the warning.’

I looked at Luc and then back at the guard. The other one still had his weapon trained on us. ‘So . . . aren’t you going to do anything about it?’ I asked.

‘Like what?’

‘Uh, like tell your superiors. Triple security. Warn people. Make some kind of plan.’

‘A plan?’

‘Your radio’s down,’ Luc said.

‘How did you know that?’ the guard snapped, taking a step closer to us. ‘How did they know that?’ he said to the other guard.

‘Because our perimeter has been trying to contact you to warn you about what’s coming,’ I said, starting to lose my patience.

‘This is Riley Culpepper, Johnny’s daughter and I’m . . .’

‘You’re Luc Donovan!’ the guard said, his attitude shifting. ‘I know you.’

‘So Grey’s army’s coming here?’ the other guard said, concern creeping into his voice.

‘We don’t know that they’ll bother you,’ I said, ‘but yes, they’re expected to come down this way around Christmas Eve. We tried to contact you, but your radio’s down.’

‘It’s being fixed,’ he replied. ‘How do you know they’re coming? What do they want?’

‘It’s a long story,’ Luc said. ‘But they’re coming for the perimeter. You might get lucky,’ Luc said. ‘They might not stop here.’

‘Thanks for the warning,’ the guard said. ‘We’ll pass on the message. You need to turn around now and go straight back. Stay safe.’

‘Thanks,’ I replied. ‘We okay to get back in our vehicle?’

‘Sure.’ He turned and walked back to the door. The other guard backed in after him, his gun trained on us the whole time. The door clanged shut and the silence of the afternoon enveloped us once more.

‘Looks like they believe us now,’ Luc said. ‘Let’s go.’

We got back in the AV and slammed the doors. I started up the engine and reversed us back down the ramp. ‘Just gonna make a quick stop at The Walls to warn Lou.’ I braced myself for an argument.

‘Thought you might,’ Luc said.

Well that was a turn up – he didn’t kick off. ‘They’re pretty exposed out here,’ I said. ‘It’s a shame they can’t stay inside the compound until FJ’s gone.’

‘They wouldn’t want to do that,’ Luc said.

‘How do you know?’

‘They chose to live out here. They could’ve got jobs inside anytime they wanted, but they prefer to live
their
way.’

‘Yeah, but this is a slightly different situation. They’re in real danger.’

‘They’re always in danger. It’s how they live. But they’ll appreciate the warning. At least they’ll be able to stash any valuables away before Grey’s army strips them clean.’

I nosed the AV towards the camp and pulled up at the entrance. Two men and a woman were chatting by the wire fence. As soon as they saw us, they stopped talking and tightened their grips on their weapons. The woman came forward. She had dark hair and large silver hooped earrings. Her eyes shone a startling blue in her brown weather-worn face.

‘Wait here,’ I said to Luc.

‘Yeah, right,’ he replied.

I got out of the AV and Luc did the same.

‘It’s okay, it’s only the firewood girl,’ the gypsy said to the men. She turned back to me. ‘Who’s your friend?’

‘Hi. This is Luc.’

‘Firewood girl?’ Luc muttered, turning to me with raised eyebrows. ‘You didn’t!’

‘Let’s talk about it later,’ I hissed.

‘Unbelievable.’

‘Is Lou around?’ I asked the woman.

‘Sure. Come in,’ she replied. ‘No weapons.’

We’d already stashed our weapons under the seats. One of my pistols was strapped to my ankle, but they didn’t need to know about that. I locked the AV and we strode into the camp. The men nodded at us.

‘You know where you’re going?’ the woman asked.

‘Kind of.’

‘She’ll either be at home or at the gathering place. Head toward the 'pound wall, taking every left turn.’

‘Thanks.’

‘My pleasure, lovey.’

Luc and I headed into the encampment. We’d attracted the attention of a group of children who stared and pointed, scampering along beside us. I recognised one of Lou’s brothers.

‘Hello . . . Joe, isn’t it?’

‘Hello,’ he said. ‘My sister said she’s coming to the perimeter to teach you the slingshot. Can’t you use one?’

‘No, I’m afraid I can’t.’

‘But you’re a grown up,’ he said, staring at me in horror and disbelief at my lack of skills. ‘I’m really good on the slingshot,’ he said. ‘Everyone knows you’ll starve if you can’t use one. You better get some lessons quick. Who’s he?’ Joe pointed at Luc. ‘He your boyfriend?’ At this, the children all broke out into squeals of laughter.

‘This is Luc.’

‘Hello,’ Luc said. ‘Nice to meet you.’

‘You her boyfriend?’ he repeated.

I was interested to hear how Luc would answer that question, but he was saved by the timely appearance of Lou.

‘Now I know you’re stalking me,’ she said. ‘Either that or this place is swankier than the perimeter and you can’t get enough of it. Maybe all the rumours are a lie and it’s actually a total dive in there.’ She came over and we hugged.

‘This is Luc,’ I said.

‘Hey,’ she said. ‘Welcome to The Walls. Got time for a chat and a brew?’

I looked at Luc, who shrugged.

‘A quick one,’ I said to Lou.

‘We’ll go to the gathering place. Reece’ll wanna see you too.’

We walked with her through the narrow paths, chatting while fielding questions from the children, who were growing more outspoken with every step.

‘That’s enough!’ Lou snapped at them. ‘Go and pester someone else.’

The children grumbled, but did as she asked, melting away into the camp until it was only the three of us left. The tall metal post of the gathering place soon came into view and we followed Lou into the massive tent.

Walking inside, we attracted all the usual stares, but this time they didn’t feel quite as menacing. I even got a couple of polite nods. It felt chillier in here than last time and I noticed the wood-burner wasn’t lit. Lou saw me shiver.

‘We only light the stove when it’s really freezing,’ she said, scanning the room until her eyes landed on a group of men sitting cross-legged on battered cushions at the far end of the tent.

‘There’s Reece,’ she said.