Class A (22 page)

‘Maybe,’ James said. ‘I don’t know what’s going on at the moment, with Nicole and that. I’ll ring you later.’

James ended the call. There really was a car pulling up, but it was John Jones. Zara made tea while John Jones explained what had been going on over the last twenty-four hours.

‘It all came out of the production facility you kids found at
Thunderfoods
. KMG imports and distributes cocaine through lots of different channels, but you guys uncovered the weakest link in the chain. Almost every gram was being packaged in the automated plant at
Thunderfoods
.

‘We wired the place with cameras and bugs and watched everybody who came and went through binoculars. I’ve been on drug investigations where you go months without finding a good lead. Once we had
Thunderfoods
under surveillance, we started getting so much information we had to bring in extra staff to handle it.

‘You’d get a couple of guys coming in to mix and package a few kilos of coke. It’s boring work, so they’d usually start gossiping. They were off guard and the quality of the information was unbelievable. Names, dates, phone numbers, flight
numbers.
What are you doing next week? Where’s your next shipment coming in? What deal is old so-and-so working on at the moment?

‘We’ve made a hundred arrests already, but we’re not even scratching the surface. We’re sending information to police stations all over the country and another two or three hundred guys are gonna get pulled over the next few days. By the time we’re done, KMG will be lucky if it can sell a bag of sweets in a school playground.’

‘I just spoke to Junior,’ James said. ‘Keith Moore still hasn’t been arrested.’

‘That’s politics,’ John said. ‘Us MI5 guys wanted to keep the undercover work going until we had enough evidence to get Keith, but the police wouldn’t hold out. They’ve got hundreds of people working on Operation Snort. Not just police officers, but the administration and back-up staff that go with them. It’s costing over a million pounds a month and there was talk of shutting it down if they didn’t start getting results.’

‘So Keith Moore might get off?’ Kerry asked.

John smiled uneasily. ‘I hope not, Kerry. I’d say out of the top ten people in KMG, we’ve got enough evidence to put eight in prison. We’re gonna try and flip a couple of those guys. We’re offering total immunity from prosecution. Given a choice between twenty years in prison and walking home to your wife and kids, we reckon a few people might start tattling on Keith Moore.’

‘So is there anything special we should be looking out for?’ Kyle asked.

‘I’d be amazed if you kids make another breakthrough to match the one you’ve made already,’ John said. ‘Just keep in with the bad guys and we’ll see if anything else turns up.’

‘Actually, kids,’ Zara said, ‘I had to phone Mac and explain what happened with Nicole. He seems to think we’ve achieved most of what we set out to do. He’s not impressed by what happened to Nicole and he wants the rest of you out of harm’s way. I expect we’ll be heading back to campus in a few weeks, so you might want to start dropping hints to your friends. Suggest that
Ewart
has gone for a job interview and there’s a chance you might be moving back to London.’

John Jones did his routine of shaking everyone’s hands before he left.

‘Of course,’ he said, holding on to Kerry’s hand after he’d shaken it, ‘this young lady is the biggest hero of the lot.’

Kerry still had an ear-to-ear grin five minutes after John Jones had driven away. James got sick of looking at it and chucked Joshua’s furry cement mixer at her head. Kerry chucked it back and they ended up chasing each other around the dining table, along the hallway and into the living-room.

‘I’m a hero,’ Kerry sang as she ran. ‘Hero, hero, hero. Hero, hero, hero.’

James chucked a couple of sofa cushions at her. Kerry bundled James on to the floor and pinned him down. She grabbed his ankle and started tickling the bottom of his foot. It was James’ weakest spot. Within thirty seconds she’d reduced him to a drooling wreck.

‘OK,’ James gasped. ‘You’re a hero. You’re a hero.’

Kerry stood up sharply and straightened her expression.
Ewart
and Nicole stood in the doorway, stone-faced. James got off the floor and wiped his lips on his sleeve.

‘They tested your samples at the hospital,’
Ewart
said. ‘You two are both clean for drugs, though they found higher levels of alcohol than I’d like to have seen, especially you, James. I know you’re allowed to drink if you’re in a situation where the kids around you are drinking, but that’s not a licence to go crazy.’

‘So you’re glad you didn’t bet me fifty quid?’ James grinned.

Ewart gave James a vicious look. He definitely wasn’t in the mood for joking.

‘Go help Nicole pack and say your goodbyes,’
Ewart
said. ‘I’m driving her back to campus in half an hour. Where’s Kyle?’

‘He’s in the kitchen,’ Kerry said.

‘Right,’
Ewart
said angrily. ‘Let’s go and sort him out.’

Ewart stormed off and slammed the kitchen door.

‘What’s Kyle done?’ Kerry asked, looking at Nicole.

‘Don’t know, don’t care,’ Nicole said bitterly. ‘I suppose he failed his drug test.’

‘No way,’ James said.

‘He wasn’t doing coke with me and Junior,’ Nicole said. ‘But he’s been going to loads of parties. Who knows what he gets up to?’

‘Oh, my god,’ Kerry said, cupping her hands over her face. ‘This is so sad.’

Nicole started up the stairs. Kerry and James followed her.

‘How do you feel?’ Kerry asked.

‘Not bad, except my stomach’s agony and I feel like I’ve got an elephant standing on my head.’

‘I’m really sorry about what happened to you,’ James said, as they stepped into the girls’ bedroom. ‘It could have been any one of us.’

Nicole smiled, ‘By the skin of your teeth, James.’

‘How’s that?’ Kerry asked.

‘He was ready to snort a line,’ Nicole explained. ‘But he got distracted.’

‘You moron,’ Kerry said, giving James a shove. ‘You told me you tried to stop Nicole.’

‘That’s not what I said,’ James squirmed.

‘That’s
 
exactly
 
what you said, James.’

‘So, anyone who takes drugs is a moron?’ Nicole asked. ‘Eh, Kerry?’

‘Nicole,’ Kerry said angrily, ‘if you’d passed out when you were in bed instead of on the stairs, nobody would have realised until morning. You might have
 
died
.’

‘You’re so sly, Kerry,’ Nicole stormed. ‘You and your
prissy
I’m a good girl
 
act.’

‘What do you want me to do?’ Kerry asked. ‘Congratulate you on getting expelled?’

‘I don’t care about any of this CHERUB stuff,’ Nicole said defiantly. ‘It’s just a bunch of dumb kids getting hot under the collar over who wears what colour T-shirt and what stupid missions they’ve been on. Who cares about any of that anyway? They’re gonna set me up with a foster family and a place in a nice public school. I can have a boyfriend, chill out and lead a normal life.’

‘Don’t you get it,
dumbo
?’ Kerry said, tapping her head with her finger. ‘You nearly died last night.’

‘You don’t know what you’re talking about,’ Nicole said, shoving Kerry backwards.

‘Don’t dare touch me,’ Kerry said, rearing up on the balls of her feet. ‘I could kick your butt so easily, but you’re such a worthless tramp I can’t even be bothered.’

Kerry spun around and stormed towards the door. James went to follow her, but Nicole called him back.

‘Stay and help me pack, James.’

There was a desperate touch in Nicole’s voice that made him turn back.

‘Go ahead, help her,’ Kerry said. ‘You can make sure she doesn’t rip off my stuff.’

Kerry banged the door and stomped downstairs to the living-room. Nicole dragged a sports bag from under her bed and started filling it.

‘You know, James,’ Nicole said, ‘you’re a good laugh, you don’t belong at CHERUB either.’

‘You’ve no idea how badly I need CHERUB,’ James said. ‘Sometimes all the work and training does my head in, but my life was a nightmare before I came here. I was in some crummy council home and I kept getting in trouble. If CHERUB hadn’t picked me, I probably would have ended up in prison.’

‘I’m glad I’m out of it,’ Nicole said, zipping up her bag. ‘As long as my new foster parents don’t turn out to be old farts.’

‘What is it you’ve got against old people?’ James asked.

Nicole sat on the edge of her bed. ‘You know my family died in a car crash?’

‘I’d heard.’

‘They were crossing a road in broad daylight. This stupid old fool sailed his car through a red light and smashed into them. They tested his eyes after the accident and it turned out he could barely see past the end of his own nose.’

‘That’s so bad,’ James said. ‘I’m sorry.’

‘If it had been a young guy, they would at least have locked him away. But no, because it was some old fart, they took pity and let him off. My mum, my dad and my little brothers were killed and he totally got away with it. Then everyone goes around telling me I should have respect for old people. Well, they can shove that idea right up their arse.’

Ewart leaned in the door and looked at Nicole.

‘Are you packed?’

‘Just finishing off,’ Nicole said.

‘OK,’
Ewart
said. ‘I’m going to the toilet. I’ll see you at the bottom of the stairs in five minutes.’

‘Wish me luck?’ Nicole asked, looking at James.

‘Sure,’ James said, wrapping his arms around her and giving her a squeeze. She had a tear rolling down her cheek.

James carried one of Nicole’s bags out to the people carrier. Kerry stood in the living-room doorway with folded arms and a frosty expression. James thought it was a shame Kerry and Nicole had fallen out. They’d got on well up to now.

Zara came out from the kitchen, gave Nicole a hug and wished her good luck with whatever life she chose to lead. When the car started pulling off the driveway, Kerry had a change of heart and ran on to the doorstep. She stood between James and Zara and waved Nicole off.

‘I hope she sorts herself out,’ Kerry said.

‘We’ll set her up with a good family,’ Zara said. ‘I think she’ll be better off in the long run. Not everyone is cut out to be a cherub.’

‘Oh,’ James said, suddenly remembering, ‘what happened with Kyle?’

‘It’s his business,’ Zara said. ‘It’s up to him whether he wants you guys to know or not.’

James and Kerry found Kyle face down on his bunk, having a sulk.

‘Why was
Ewart
having a go at you?’ James asked.

‘They found traces of cannabis in my urine sample,’ Kyle said. ‘Almost every drug you could name passes through your body in day or so. Unfortunately for me, cannabis lingers in your system for up to three weeks.’

‘But you
 
did
 
take some?’ Kerry said, sounding outraged.

‘It’s not some massive deal, Kerry,’ Kyle said defensively. ‘I had a few puffs of a joint that was going around at some kid’s house two Saturdays ago.’

‘So how come you’re not expelled?’ Kerry asked.

‘Cannabis is a class C drug,’ Kyle explained. ‘I would have been sent back to campus, but they could hardly send me and Nicole away on the same day without it looking suspicious.’

‘So you’re gonna get your
botty
spanked when we go back to campus?’ James grinned.

‘That’s how it looks,’ Kyle said. ‘Probably a few weeks scrubbing floors, followed by a few months suspended from missions.’

23. LUCK

Sunday morning, James was in the living-room on his
Playstation
.
Ewart
came in and pushed his feet off the coffee table.

‘You just gonna sit around doing nothing all day?’ he asked.

‘That was plan A,’ James grinned. He’d missed a lot of sleep over the last couple of weeks. It was nice to bum around indoors for a change.

‘What about deliveries?’
Ewart
asked.

‘Kelvin called me,’ James said, reluctantly pausing his game. ‘The nice lady who calls me with my deliveries has been busted. Not that it matters, because there aren’t any customers. Everyone’s heard about the arrests and they’re scared that if they ring up for a drug delivery, they’ll have PC Plod turning up on their doorstep rather than the likes of me.’

‘Does Kelvin think KMG is ruined?’

‘He says it’ll take at least a month to get new supplies of coke and set up distribution. Even then, customers will be wary. Other gangs will move in and snatch a lot of the business, but Kelvin thinks KMG has the clout to get back on top of things, provided Keith Moore doesn’t get nicked.’

‘What about Junior and April? Have you heard from them?’

‘I’ve spoken to both of them. I got invited to lunch, but I can’t be arsed.’