Music and Lies (George and Finn Book 1) (2 page)

Chapter Three

FINN

Things were going to be different this time. I was pretty sure of that. It was going to be fine. Totally fine. Okay, Marcus would be a bossy git and Cami an irritating little shit. But I could cope with that, it was cool. And as Aunt Lulu, Marcus and Cami’s mum, was chilling in India (Jesus, India! So last century) I didn’t actually have anywhere else to go for the holidays, did I?

Pity I was so over music festivals, especially crappy ones like the Forest Fests.

Cami might sneer, ‘Oh, you’re too good for festivals now, are you, Finn?’ but it wasn’t like that. Cami could sneer at any bloody thing, though.

And at least this one was in a forest, unlike the other festivals I got dragged along to. And a forest Mr Xavier at school had said might be worth looking at. So maybe I’d get something out of this. Otherwise I’d just keep my head down and survive. It wasn’t like I hadn’t done it before.

It had been just a tiny bit of a culture shock, going straight from the boarding school I was
so lucky
to attend to Marcus’s flat (Westerhailes –
not
the smartest bit of Edinburgh). Then, before I’d had a chance to adjust to that, we’d headed down to Kielty. It was okay to begin with. Hardly anyone else had arrived, it was easy to get away, be alone. You couldn’t do much of that at school.

By Saturday more people had arrived and I was feeling kind of edgy. It was a bit too similar to the other times. The same spaced-out people. The same delays and mess-ups. And Cami rabbiting on about Dex Barker being due as if his arrival would be like the second coming of God. When Marcus had asked for someone to go and man the entrance barrier I volunteered, just to get away from it all.

I think the idea was there’d be someone at the barrier with a walkie talkie (if the walkie talkies ever turned up). Then if the police appeared (very likely) they’d warn the others, who would hide anything they shouldn’t have with them. Ha! I didn’t know how Marcus thought that was going to work. This sort of crowd weren’t exactly known for their fast reactions.

But it wasn’t my problem. If they got caught with their dope or ecstasy or… whatever. So much the bloody better.

No one appeared for the whole of the morning, which was fine by me. I found a rock that was convenient to sit on, and fairly dry. To pass the time I tested myself on naming some of the plants within touching distance. The pointy green shoots of rosebay willowherb were just appearing, some celandine, lots of wood anemone. And other stuff I really should have known and would have to look up when I got back to the tent.

Then, when I’d just about given up on anyone appearing, I heard a vehicle coming slowly down the hill. I got up, expecting it to be another scruffy van full of Marcus’s cronies – and realised it was the police. Jesus. Even though I’d been thinking about them earlier, it was still a shock. The sight of the car with its fluorescent markings, out here in all this quiet green space ...

It reminded me of stuff I didn’t want to think about, but I kept my face blank. It was just the police. Of course I’d expected them, if not quite so bloody soon.

When I saw the man who got out, I wanted to swear. Or just disappear. Why him?

There were two of them (don’t they always move in pairs?) but it was the man with the very fair hair and a gentle smile I tried not to see.

He showed his ID and introduced himself as Inspector Morrison. As though I would have forgotten. I kept my eyes down. Maybe he wouldn’t recognise me, and I wouldn’t have to remember.

‘We’re here to say hello to the organisers, it’s just a courtesy call,’ the man said. ‘I hope that’s okay?’ His tone was really quite pleasant for the police, not the usual pushy arrogance.

Then he looked more closely. ‘Why, it’s Finn, isn’t it? Finn MacPherson? Do you remember me? We, er, met at the festival in the Borders, a year ago last October, when …’

‘Of course I remember,’ I said quickly. Jesus. Did he think I wouldn’t?

‘I didn’t expect to see you at a place like this again. Are you sure you’re okay here?’ The man’s eyes were on my face, concerned. He definitely wasn’t your normal cop.

‘I’m fine.’ I was sick of people asking. I swung the metal barrier a bit wider, so they would get the message and head on through.

They didn’t take the hint. The other man said, ‘I’m not sure this is the ideal place for a barrier across the road. You’re quite close to the corner there, people won’t have much chance to slow down.’

I sighed and repeated the explanation Marcus had given me. ‘The speed limit is ten miles per hour in the forest. If people stick to that they’ll be fine. Plus we’ll have wardens further up, slowing them down. And more signs.’

‘I’ll have a chat with Mr Campbell about it,’ said the Morrison guy, clearly not convinced. And then, more gently, ‘And if you’ve got any problems about being here, you know, you can always get me through the local branch. If you want to talk about … last time.’

‘I’m fine, thanks.’ As if.

‘And if you happened to notice anything, and want to mention it to us, you know, just a chat, we’d be happy for you to get in touch.’

His colleague was looking at him like he was mad. I shrugged. The Inspector actually was a nice guy, or had seemed that way last year, but that didn’t mean I was going to start
telling
him anything. Even if I did know anything, which I didn’t.

At last they headed on. I swung the metal barrier shut, closing the padlock with a satisfying click. From what Cami said, Dex Barker might arrive at any moment and I was quite looking forward to seeing what he had to say about this new arrangement.

With a bit of luck, his would be the first vehicle that was driving too fast and crashed into the barrier.

Chapter Four

GEORGE

Driving into the Keilty Forest was kind of scary. Although it was only a couple of hours from Dad’s house and less from Mum’s, I hadn’t been here before and I hadn’t expected it to be this big. The lines and lines of dark fir trees went on forever. It was kind of barren, with nothing growing beneath them. And the further we went, the darker it got.

We were all three sitting in the front of Dex’s campervan, me (at Becky’s insistence) nearest the passenger door. The van didn’t have working seat belts, which didn’t improve the ride. Dex’s driving was
not
the best.

The van was pretty basic. I could see why the police might have taken an interest in it. It wasn’t the normal sort of vehicle you found in nice suburban areas. I suppose you could call it a mobile home, but it looked more like a horse box. It was painted dark blue or green, hard to tell beneath the dirt, and the only windows in the back were long, high ones along either side.

It was cool, in a creepy kind of way. Nobody would know what you were doing in there if you didn’t want them to.

A bit like the forest, actually.

My backside was going numb from bouncing over so many ruts when Dex eventually turned down a long, steep track. The trees began to open out and the pine was replaced with broadleaf, more like the kind of place I’d imagined we’d be in. This was quite pretty. And, with a bit of luck, we were nearly there.

We turned a corner and Dex hit the brake hard and skidded, only just avoiding a metal boom that closed off the way ahead.

‘What the hell! That wasn’t there last week.
Fucking
idiots.’

Becky and I were pulling ourselves back up onto the broad bench seat. Good job we weren’t going any faster or we’d have gone through the windscreen.

A tall, slim youth appeared at Dex’s window. He wore a camouflage jacket but didn’t really need that to blend into the background. He was the kind of boy you could easily miss, mousy brown hair, pale skin, nothing really to draw your attention.

‘Oh, it’s you,’ he said, when Dex rolled down the window. ‘Are we expecting you?’ I presumed he was being sarcastic.

‘Marcus is. And what the hell’s this doing here?’ said Dex, indicating the barrier with a tattooed arm.

‘Marcus wanted it.’

‘Bloody stupid place, just after a corner. Sawdust for brains, you people.’

‘Wouldn’t be a problem if you weren’t going too fast. And it’ll keep people out unless we want them in.’

‘You mean to say it’s locked?’ Dex glared through the drizzle. ‘Look, I’m in charge of security round here. What the hell’s going on?’

The boy shrugged. He didn’t seem cowed by Dex’s attitude, which impressed me. ‘How should I know? Presumably Marcus doesn’t want just anybody coming in. Why don’t you ask him?’ He pushed his hands into his pockets and waited.

‘Open up then,’ said Dex impatiently.

‘Not sure I should.’ The boy looked beyond him at Becky and me. ‘Hi Beck. Who’s the girl? Like I said, I can’t let just anyone in. It’s
security
, you know.’

Dex jerked his right arm up and the boy took a step back. Sensible, really. ‘Stop being such an arsehole, Finn. The girl’s Beck’s sister. I’m enrolling her as a volunteer on my staff. Got a problem with that?’

I wasn’t growing any fonder of Dex, but I definitely liked the idea of being a volunteer member of staff! That would be really something. I smiled and nodded at the boy, Finn, as though I’d known about this all along.

He didn’t smile back. He looked at me for a moment, then at Becky, and then at Dex, as though trying to work something out. ‘And I suppose you’re going to tell me she’s sixteen. No way. You know the rules.’

‘She is sixteen,’ said Dex, without hesitation. ‘She’s just small, okay?’

Finn frowned, and then shrugged and sighed.

‘Sort it out with Marcus,’ he said, and went to unlock the barrier.

‘Your tent’s in the back,’ Becky said to me. Dex had gone off into a little stone bothy – the only building in sight – in search of this man Marcus and we were waiting in the van. ‘We’ll find out where the staff campsite is and you can go and put it up.’

I noticed she didn’t offer to help. It was going to be different, being with Becky and Dex.

‘Okay,’ I said, although it wasn’t really okay. I’d never put up a tent and now I came to think of it, I wasn’t sure I would actually like sleeping in one. The drizzle had stopped but it was cloudy and not very warm. This was spring in Scotland, after all. Thank God we’d found the sleeping bag Dad had given me for my birthday a couple of years ago, when he was trying to encourage me to be the outdoors type. It was meant to be a good one.

When Dex came back he seemed to be in a better mood. ‘Marcus says no probs about Georgie here. It was just fucking Finn being a pain in the arse. We’ll park up and get ourselves sorted.’

He drove down the last bit of the track into a wide grassy clearing with a river flowing along one side. There were trees all around, but not crowding in on us like on the track. This was so cool.

Dex parked at the end of a row of scruffy campervans. His vehicle didn’t look at all out of place here. ‘There, this do us?’ There was a kind of secret smile on his face. He included both Becky and me in his comments.

‘George’s going to camp, remember,’ said Becky sharply.

‘Aw, no need for that. Plenty of room for all three of us in here.’ He was watching me not Becky.

‘I’d rather, er, camp,’ I said quickly. ‘I don’t want to be in your way.’

‘You wouldn’t be in the way …’ began Dex, but Becky leaned over to open the door and pushed me out.

‘You get the tent,’ she said abruptly. ‘And I’ll carry your rucksack. I’ll show you where the camping area is, okay?’

I gathered up the rest of my things. Dex was beginning to freak me out. Being alone in a cold tent was definitely better than being in the van with him, even if Becky was there too. Suddenly he was standing beside me, with a hand on my shoulder, hot and heavy. ‘You tell everyone you’re here with Dex Barker and you’ll have no trouble.’

I nodded and moved away.

What kind of trouble did he expect?

There was already a group of five or six tents down at one end of the clearing. ‘Those’ll be other helpers,’ said Becky. ‘Seems quite a few have arrived already. There are always some with nothing better to do.’ Which made me wonder what she and Dex normally did between festivals. Not hang out at her mum’s house, that was for sure. It seemed they’d only called in because they knew Dad and Janice were away. I guessed the bathroom facilities were quite an attraction, not to mention all that food and alcohol. ‘Come on, let’s find you a pitch.’

I followed her cautiously, looking around. One of the tents was big enough to stand up in, but most were like the one Becky had found for me, basically an igloo shape with room for a couple of sleeping bags inside and not much else. I was glad there was only one of me.

Becky showed me the basics of what to do and then hurried away.

I carried on, laboriously pegging out the ropes, until a boy with shoulder-length dark hair came to stand and watch me. He was making me nervous so I stopped.

‘I hope I haven’t put it up in the wrong place …’

‘Doesn’t bother me. Although you’ll have to pull those guy ropes tighter if you don’t want to be soaked the first time it rains.’

‘Oh.’ I pulled out the pegs and started again. He didn’t offer to help, just watched me from eyes that seemed too pale for all that dark hair. I’d thought he was about thirteen, but his voice was deep and he had a shadow of a moustache. He was probably about my age, but small, like me.

‘I’m George,’ I said. I thought I might as well make an effort. There weren’t many people around yet so it would be good to get to know someone.

‘Cami,’ he said, not taking his hands out of the pockets of his jeans. His jeans were filthy. In fact, most of him was. Maybe I would be like that in a couple of days’ time? There didn’t seem to be much here in the way of washing facilities.

‘Hi Cami. Have you been here long?’

‘Long enough. My brother’s in charge.’ He shook the straight dark hair from his eyes. ‘You know the festival doesn’t start till next week?’

‘I’m here to help,’ I said. It was so amazing to be able to say that!

‘Who are you with?’

Why did he think I had to be ‘with’ someone? Couldn’t I pass for an adult? Be here on my own? ‘Dex and Becky. Becky’s my sister.’

‘Has Dex arrived?’ The boy brightened. ‘About bloody time.’ He studied me in a way that my mum would have said was rude. ‘You don’t look like Beck.’

He probably meant I wasn’t as stunning. And my hair was red, and I had freckles. Although you couldn’t see those, now I was able to use as much make-up as I wanted. With mascara on my pale eyelashes I might not be pretty but I had hoped I looked okay. ‘She’s my step-sister,’ I admitted.

Cami sat down on a log and pulled something from his pocket. He wasn’t watching me any more, thank goodness. I went back to pegging out the tent ropes. I wished he would offer to help but didn’t like to ask.

When I next looked at him I realised he was rolling a cigarette. When he had finished he held it out. ‘Want some?’

I probably went bright red, despite the make-up. How did you tell someone you’d never smoked before? That you’d always kind of frowned on it? I’d never been one of the cool kids at school and if I didn’t take the cigarette now, it would be the same here. That wasn’t what I wanted.

‘I suppose you don’t approve,’ he said with a sneer.

I hesitated, rubbing my hands down my new jeans.

‘Leave her alone.’

I hadn’t heard anyone approaching and I think I actually jumped.

It was Finn, the boy who had let us in at the barrier. He took the roll-up out of Cami’s hand and lifted it to his nose, sniffing it. He said to me, ‘You shouldn’t smoke this.’

‘I’ll smoke if I like,’ I said. I didn’t see what it had to do with him.

‘This isn’t a cigarette, you idiot. It’s a spliff. Ever smoked weed before? Hey?’

I suddenly felt cold. So this was it, what my mother said about these music festivals. I would be offered drugs and I would get into all sorts of trouble.

‘I can make my own decisions,’ I said, hoping I sounded angry and not scared. Why shouldn’t I try it? Other people did. Cami, for a start, obviously.

‘Jesus, you mean you’ve never smoked before?’ said Cami. He reached over and took back the spliff and walked off towards the campervans.

Now he was going to think I was pathetic.

‘What did you do that for?’ I said to Finn. He was watching the other boy through narrowed eyes, with dislike.

‘You should stay away from him,’ he said. ‘He’s trouble. And while I think about it, you’d do best to keep your distance from Dex Barker, too.’

‘What’s it got to do with you?’ I said, annoyed. I didn’t like Dex and I didn’t trust Cami. He had a kind of sly look about him. But he interested me. And I didn’t see why Finn thought he could tell me what to do. He knew nothing about me. What right did he have to interfere?

Finn shrugged and I thought he was going to walk away, too. But he didn’t. He moved around the tent and tested all the ropes, pulling some tighter. Then he looked inside and did something with the groundsheet. ‘It’ll probably do,’ he said. He looked at the lie of the land and tested it with his heel. ‘Ground’s not too wet here, you’ve chosen a reasonable place.’

He was a strange boy. He only looked a year or so older than me, but he was so confident and self-contained. He was totally at ease here. He wasn’t even so nondescript to look at as I had first thought. He had quite stunning cheek bones in that pale, watchful face.

I knew I should thank him for his help. Nobody else had bothered. But I was still irritated. He obviously thought I knew nothing. I grunted and turned my head away.