Angel's Fury (10 page)

I nodded, but my cheeks were cold.

The Doctor’s fingers twitched and she leaned forward. ‘I understand Seth has filled you in on our rules. The only other thing I must insist on is that you stick to your treatment schedule.’ She licked her lips. ‘Which I’m sure you will. Now . . . I think you should know that I’ve had time to verify your story with the German police.’

At her words I jumped and looked behind me, half expecting to find an officer standing there.

The Doctor smiled briefly. ‘I managed to do so without revealing your identity, although I may not be able to hold them off forever. If you cooperate with your treatment, I’ll speak to them on your behalf so you aren’t investigated.’

‘Investigated?’ My voice was faint.

It’ll get in the papers. I’ll never live it down . . . never get a job . . . and what about Mum and Dad?

I forced my shoulders to relax.

The Doctor will keep me anonymous. All I have to do is cooperate . . . and get Zillah out of my head.

The Doctor leaned forward again. ‘For our first session, I would like to ask you a few questions under hypnosis.’

My eyebrows shot upwards.

‘You don’t believe in hypnosis?’

‘I’ve seen Paul McKenna on TV. I-it’s just . . .’

‘You don’t think you’ll be a good subject. I’ve heard it all before and I don’t anticipate any problems with you, Cassie.’

I grimaced. There was no way I’d relax enough to go under. Despite my plan to cooperate I didn’t want to give the Doctor that much control.

She stood in front of me and her legs trapped me in place like the bars on the windows. Then she reached round the back of my chair and tipped me back. ‘Just relax.’

Off balance and disorientated I met her cold blue eyes.

Like a dying candle my thoughts flickered:
That was fast
. The part of me I thought of as Cassie Farrier fought to retain awareness.

She failed.

L
ate for dinner; I sat alone in the dining room. I’d missed Pandra, but didn’t have the energy to worry about it.

Physically I was alright, better in fact than I had been in some time, as if I’d got a few hours’ sleep. Mentally, though, I felt fuzzy, as I did after a nightmare. I wished I knew what had happened while I was hypnotised, but the Doctor had refused to tell me.

Dully I stared at the bottle in my hand. I had been instructed to take the tablets two at a time with my evening meals. I sighed and although I didn’t know what they were I reached for my water and downed the light blue capsules.

I wasn’t hungry, but the tablets weren’t to be taken on an empty stomach. I lifted a cooling chip in my fingers and chewed. It tasted like cardboard.

A hand landed on my shoulder and my tray rattled as I spun round. It was Seth and he wasn’t alone; a strange boy and girl stood next to him.

It took a moment for me to process that there was no threat
then I dropped the few inches back to my seat. Only then did I realise that I was gripping my knife. I didn’t remember picking it up. I frowned and laid it down with a click.

‘We’ve come to check on you,’ the girl said, with the barest flicker of her eyes to the knife that now lay by my plate. ‘The first session’s heavy going. You’ll get used to it.’

She appeared to be a couple of years younger than I was, but that might have been because she was wearing a short dress with patterned tights. Pale mid-length blonde hair was pinned away from her face with hairclips shaped like butterflies. Her cornflower-blue eyes, however, were hooded and ancient, telling me nothing of her true age. I wondered who she had been in her last life.

‘I’m Belinda.’ She sat opposite me then waited, haughty as a princess, until the other boy rushed to push her chair in, so occupied in his task that he barely glanced at me.

Seth smiled as boy pulled his own chair as close to Belinda’s as the table would allow. ‘That’s Maxwell, Max to you and me.’ He slid into the vacant seat on my left and rubbed his eyes. ‘So, how are you feeling?’

I reached for another chip and tried to calm my shaking. ‘Like I’ve been in the ring with Triple-H.’

Max gaped, finally seeing me. ‘You know wrestling?’

It took me a moment to process both his question and his accent: he was American.

I blinked. ‘Sure, it’s fun. More like acrobatics than fighting.’ I chewed on my lip. ‘It’s odd. I can’t watch anything scary; no war films, nothing violent, but I can watch WWE and TNA.’ I paused, mugged by memory. ‘I used to watch with my dad when I was smaller. That’s how I got into it.’

Max shoved back a blond mop of a fringe and grinned. ‘That’s rad. I like Cena but you gotta love the Undertaker.’

I snorted. ‘No one’ll ever come close to the Rock.’

‘He was awesome, but you should live in the now.’

The gentle sparring was taking my mind off the previous couple of hours so I dived gratefully into the conversation. I’d never really had friends before.

When I’d finished dinner the others took me to the rec room. In one corner I recognised Kyle. He leaned into another girl, but I could see nothing of her except a frizz of curl that bounced along with her loud brays of laughter. Seth’s jaw jutted. ‘That’s Lizzie. Excuse me a minute.’

Half of my attention remained with him as Belinda and Max herded me to the table football.

‘Right, Lizzie, give me your mobile,’ snapped Seth.

The girl looked up. She was barely into her teens, yet Seth’s firm tone obviously didn’t bother her. She raised untamed eyebrows at him. ‘No chance.’ Her round face assumed stubborn lines.

‘I met Kyle leaving Pandra’s room, so I know you were taking pictures in mine.’

Lizzie huffed. ‘Huh. I lost this round of Double Dares. Kyle got into Pandra’s room because she left her door ajar while she was on the loo. I couldn’t get into your room. Those locks are way too secure.’

I caught Belinda’s eye. She was listening to the exchange just like I was.

Seth glanced at the clock with a frown. ‘Where’s Lenny? He never misses
The Simpsons
.’

Lizzie’s face blanched and Kyle lurched out of his chair. ‘
The pool!
We didn’t know what time it was, honest, man.’

The others ran after him towards the door, but I remained by the football table. Belinda turned with a swish of pale hair.
‘Cassie? You won’t want to miss this.’

I gritted my teeth. I
hated
swimming pools: the smell of chlorine made me sick. But I’d only just started to fit in here. Dragging my feet I weaved tiredly after them and wondered absently why everyone was so worried that this Lenny had gone swimming.

The entrance to the pool was along a corridor that absorbed noise like a muffler.

The door ahead had closed behind Max. I leaned forward without touching it and peered through the panel set in the woodwork. On the ceiling the pool’s reflection blended surreally with a painted starscape and the whole room had a blue tinge. Even standing by the poolside it would be like looking at the sky from underwater . . .

. . . as if you’d drowned.

‘What’s going on?’ Feet ruffled the carpet behind me and I turned.

Pandra was marching towards me, her piercings glittering under the fluorescent lights. A towel was slung over her shoulders and she held her key card ready.

‘Pandra . . .’ I started to apologise for missing dinner, but she overrode me.

‘Why are you just standing there? Is the pool closed?’ Her face clouded and I automatically took a step backwards before shaking my head.

She reached past me, swiped her card and assaulted the door. ‘In or out?’

‘In . . . I guess.’

The smell of chlorine brought the memories back.

Mum had booked my first swimming lesson when I was five. I’d emerged from the changing rooms, proudly wearing my new swimsuit and shiny orange armbands. Then I’d seen the pool. Mum ended up with bruises and two lifeguards had to carry me out.

She’d tried to get me over my terror of drowning but, the closest I’d ever come to swimming was putting my feet in the paddling pool on Jesus Green. Even then I would only go in if someone held my hand.

Lots of people had phobias. Compared to the dreams my irrational fear had never really worried me.

But now the hum of the filter filled me with dizzying nausea and I stumbled backwards until I leaned against the wall. There I pressed my hands against the tiles.

I’m safe. There’s no way I can fall in from back here.

The constant lapping made the pool seem alive; it was as if the water was calling to me. I shuddered and only realised I was staring when Pandra burst out laughing.

Alarmed, I jerked my head up but she wasn’t laughing at me. Her attention was at the other end of the pool.

Lizzie and Kyle stood flanked by Max and a faintly cheerful-looking Belinda. Seth stood apart from them beneath a three-tiered diving platform; his face was turned to the ceiling so I followed his gaze.

On the top tier lay a boy with his arms wrapped so tightly around the board his muscles stood out like pebbles. Ginger hair bristled from his head and clashed with skin that even I could see was blue with cold.

‘Is
that
Lenny?’ My voice echoed from the rippling ceiling.

Pandra threw her towel on to a bench and started forward. ‘Yeah, that’s Lenny.’

Gritting my teeth I edged after Pandra. Once we were closer
I could hear Seth speaking gently. ‘Come on, Lenny, it isn’t as high as it looks. If you don’t want to jump, you can wriggle back to the steps.’

A steady, unrelenting whimper came from above. ‘I can’t.’

I looked at the distance he had to fall before he would hit the water and damp air chlorinated my throat. ‘H-how long’s he been up there?’

Belinda flicked her hair over her shoulder. ‘At least two hours.’

‘Two hours? We have to get him down. Shouldn’t we call a nurse or . . . something?’

Kyle shook his head. ‘No! Not yet. Give Seth a chance.’ He flushed. ‘He wanted to play Double Dares. Lizzie told him if he wanted to play he had to jump from the highest board. We didn’t think he’d actually try and do it. Oh, man.’ He grabbed Lizzie’s hand. ‘The Doctor’s gonna kill us.’ Dismay bleached his voice.

Pandra muttered under her breath, kicked off her shoes and began to climb the ladder.

‘Not a good idea.’ Seth reached for her, but she clambered out of reach.

‘This is my swim time,’ she snapped.

Mesmerised I watched her reach the top and stand; a slim figure outlined against the cobalt ceiling. Her earrings glittered like the Orion’s Belt painted above her head.

Then I heard her voice. ‘Last chance, Lenny. Get back here or you’re going off the end.’

‘No.’ The reedy reply rang loudly and petulantly.

‘Fine,’ she snapped, and took a single step on to the springboard.

‘Pandra, what are you doing?’ Seth shouted, and leaped towards the ladder, but before he could place his foot on the first rung, she had jumped in place.

My heart slammed inside my chest. Lenny screeched and she jumped again. The board shuddered: she was going to shake him off. I collapsed on to a bench.

She could’ve just pulled him back.

With a howl, Lenny tried to lock his ankles together. He failed. Shrieking, he flew upwards. Then he bounced wildly from the end of the board and flipped towards the pool.

He’ll drown!

Lenny was still in mid-air when water splashed my face. I jerked and saw Seth, fully dressed, stroking towards the deep end.

I gripped the bench as Lenny slammed into the surface. His
impact washed a wave all the way to my feet. Immediately Seth dived to intercept him.

After what seemed an eternity the two of them came back up. Seth shouted at Lenny to stop struggling and pulled him to the edge by his shoulders.

Only then did I turn my eyes back to the diving board. Once Lenny had been removed Pandra had apparently lost interest in the drama and shucked her clothing. She posed in a red Speedo swimsuit, waved at me then dived fearlessly into the pool.

‘Someone help me out here.’ Seth was half balanced on the poolside, trying to keep Lenny’s head above water.

Max pulled the squirming youngster up by his wrists and as soon as Lenny was safe on the tiles Seth pulled himself out of the pool. Coils of black hair had escaped from the elastic that held it back and as he rose to his knees strands trailed across his shoulders and stuck to his shirt like seaweed.

He sagged, water dripping from his nose. ‘Is he alright?’

Max gave him a nod. ‘He’s cold and a bit bruised, but basically okay.’

‘I’m not okay.’ The boy was sitting up now, his arms wrapped round his toast-rack chest. ‘I’m
telling on you
, Lizzie.’ His nasal
voice spiralled upwards and he coughed snot on to Max’s trousers. ‘This is
your fault
.’

The sound of his voice wound like wire into my ears and I twitched, lifting one shoulder as if I could scrub it from my hearing.

‘You didn’t have to do it, Lenny.’ Lizzie was nearly hysterical. ‘You can’t tell. They might kick me off the programme.’

‘Good.’

In the pool Pandra continued to do graceful laps while Belinda, Max and Kyle clustered around Lenny, begging him to stay quiet.

It’s nothing to do with me.

My eyes met Seth’s; he too was staying back. He leaned on his elbows, his attitude one of exhausted annoyance.

Turning to hide my blush I noticed Lenny’s pile of clothing, along with the key card he must have used to get into the pool.

Didn’t that mean the nurses knew where he was? Surely after an hour someone should have checked on him . . .

With a prickle of foreboding I peered around until I located the security camera in the right-hand corner of the ceiling.

Why hadn’t anyone come to help?

‘I
need to change.’ Seth climbed to his feet and water pooled around his trainers. ‘Lizzie, Kyle, no more Double Dares for a while. Lenny, just drop it.’