Lauren nodded.
“And there’s one more condition,” Mac said. “For you, James.”
“For me?” James gasped.
Mac nodded. “You’ve talked me into giving Lauren a final chance. In return, I want something from you. If Lauren breaches her final warning, I want you to promise that you’ll stay at CHERUB.”
James thought for a couple of seconds. “But you’ll put her with a family nearby so I can still see her when I’m not on missions?”
Mac nodded. “That seems reasonable.”
“I suppose, then,” James said.
It seemed pretty convenient, the way Mac had found the perfect punishment for Lauren. James suspected Mac had worked everything out in advance. The expulsion threat was a ploy to make him and Lauren squirm.
“And of course, Lauren,” Mac grinned, “once you’ve cleaned out those ditches and start your second attempt at basic training, I’m sure Mr. Large will wreak his own special revenge.”
• • •
Lauren slept in James’s room. The bed was a double, but the two of them cuddled up in the middle. Lauren woke early and didn’t seem too miserable, considering that the next five months of her life looked like being a living hell.
“Have you got a diary?” she asked.
“It’s in my desk,” James said, still buried under his duvet.
Lauren used the diary to work out that it was one hundred and seventy-four days until she finished her punishment and basic training. She took a sheet of paper and began writing the numbers from 174 down to zero in her neatest writing.
James poked his head out of his covers. “What are you doing, Lauren?”
“Making a countdown chart. For the next hundred and seventy-four days, I’m not gonna whinge or cry about anything. I’ll take this piece of paper everywhere I go. However bad it gets, all I’m going to think about is how many hours it is until I can tick off the next number. In one hundred and seventy-four days I will pass basic training. I swear it, on our mum’s grave.”
James scrambled out of bed.
“No way,” he said angrily. “You can’t swear something like that on Mum’s grave. Some things are out of your control. What if you get injured, or sick?”
“I won’t,” Lauren said sternly. “If something hurts, I’ll close my eyes and think about the piece of paper in my pocket.”
“It’s a good idea to focus your mind,” James said, sliding his legs into a pair of tracksuit bottoms. “But try and be realistic. There are quite a few kids who’ve taken three or more attempts to get through basic training. You could be setting yourself up for a big disappointment.”
Lauren stood in front of James and barked an order. “Slap my face.”
“Yeah, I’m really gonna hit you,” James said, shaking his head with contempt.
“I’ll show you I can take it,” Lauren said. “As hard as you like.”
“Give us a break, Lauren. You realize we could have lain in bed for at least another half hour?”
Lauren lunged forward, grabbed hold of James’s nipple and gave it a savage twist. James rolled backwards on to his bed, howling in pain.
“What the hell did you do that for?” he shouted.
“Slap my damn face,” Lauren shouted back.
“You really want to see you tough you are?” James raged. “Fine. Maybe I’ll knock some sense into you.”
There was a sharp crack as his hand hit her face. It was more painful than Lauren had expected, but she stifled her groan and toughed it out with a thin-lipped smile.
“One hundred and seventy-four days,” Lauren said. “Believe it.”
James grinned. “Will you be coming down to breakfast with me, or are you too tough for food as well?”
• • •
There were about sixty cherubs in the dining-hall when James and Lauren arrived. It took a couple of seconds for the room to go quiet, then chairs grated backwards and everyone stood up and started clapping and banging cutlery on the table. There were shouts of “Lauren” and whistles as well.
Shakeel was standing nearby; James looked over at him.
“What’s this all about?”
“Your sister,” he said, as if James was some kind of idiot. “She’s the biggest hero in the history of CHERUB. Everyone dreams of getting revenge on Mr. Large, but I never imagined any kid would really have the guts to do it.”
Kids piled in from all directions, until Lauren stood in an ocean of hugs and handshakes. A couple of stocky teenager boys hoisted Lauren off the ground, balanced her on their shoulders, and took her on a victory parade around the dining room. She had a mixture of emotions on her face; happy, freaked out, and afraid of getting her head smacked on a light fitting. As Lauren was galloped around the room, the kids at the dining tables were all pledging to help her dig.
“Dig what?” James asked.
“We heard Lauren’s got to clean out the ditches at the back end of campus,” Shakeel explained. “Everyone is putting on their wellies and going up there Saturday morning to help her out. We reckon with a hundred or more kids on the job, we’ll get the whole lot cleared away in a day.”
“Cool,” James said. “That’s really great of everyone.”
“It’s what she deserves,” Shakeel said. “I wish I’d belted Mr. Large one. There’s a collection going around as well. Everyone’s putting money in and we’re gonna get her something from that shop in town that does trophies.”
Amy came up to James as Lauren was on her third circuit of the dining room.
“We had a whip round up on my floor,” Amy said. “We got seventy quid. What’s Lauren’s favorite shop?”
“She gets a lot of stuff from Gap Kids,” James said. “Why?”
“There’s already more than enough for the engraved tankard,” Amy explained. “We were thinking of getting her some gift vouchers, or maybe a humongous teddy bear. . . .”
Chapter 26
SOCKS
“You’re such a jammy little git,” Kerry said. “You realize me and Kyle are stuck here on Thornton until this mission is finished?”
It was Friday night. They were in the boys’ bedroom and James was packing a hold-all for his flight to Miami in the morning.
“That’s the wrong attitude,” James said, grinning. “We’re all equally important members of a team. It’s just that my role is toasting on some beach in Florida, while you get to spend half-term here. If you’re lucky, someone might start a fire and you can watch one of the derelict houses burn out.”
“You’re such a funny guy,” Kerry sneered.
“How many socks do you reckon?” James asked.
“At least one pair for each day.”
James looked in his underwear drawer and realized he only had two clean pairs. He started hunting around the floor and balling odd socks together.
“Aren’t those dirty?” Kerry asked.
“A bit,” James said. “But I’ve only worn most of them once. They don’t smell that bad.” He put one of them under Kerry’s nose. “See.”
“For God’s sake,” Kerry said angrily, pushing James’s arm away. “They’re appalling.”
James gave them a sniff.
“Phew,” he gasped. “Those ones are a bit ripe. I think they’re what I wore to boxing club last night. But most of these are OK.”
Kerry shook her head. “You’re an animal, James.”
She slid off the bed and walked across the hallway to her own room. James’s mobile rang.
“Hey, April,” James said. “Where are you?”
“I’m at the airport with Erin and my mum,” April said. “We’re sitting here waiting to board the plane and I thought I’d say hi.”
“I only saw you a few hours ago,” James said.
“Don’t you want to talk to me?” April said, with a hint of acid in her voice.
“Of course I want to talk to you,” James lied. “It’s just . . . I’m really busy, packing and stuff.”
“I
’m wearing your Nike watch,” April giggled. “So I can think about you whenever I look at the time.”
“Don’t forget to give that back,” James said. “It’s my only good one.”
“Blow me a kiss,” April said.
James shook his head before doing a couple of quick smooches into his phone.
“I think Zara’s calling me downstairs, April. I’ve got to hang up. Have a wonderful trip, bye.”
“James. I—”
“Gotta go, April, sorry.”
James ended the call and tutted. Kerry had walked back in behind him. She was holding four pairs of clean sports socks.
“Girl trouble?” she inquired.
“Don’t ask,” James said.
“Borrow these,” Kerry said. “My feet aren’t much smaller than yours. Just make sure you wash them before you give them back.”
“Cheers,” James said, tucking the socks into his hold-all. “You know, April’s driving me round the bend.”
“Why?” Kerry asked. “She seems like a really nice girl.”
“She is,” James said. “But she’s too intense. She phones me all the time. She follows me everywhere at school and starts putting her arm around me. If I’m talking to someone else, she pulls me away and whispers stuff in my ear.”
“She’s got a crush on you,” Kerry said. “You should be flattered.”
“It’s more than a crush,” James said. “I bet she’s already picked out the wedding dress, and now she’s working out the names of our kids.”
“Typical man,” Kerry said indignantly. “You like having a girl draped off your arm, but only so you can snog her and impress your stupid mates.”
“Give over,” James said. “It’s just, April is a lot keener on me than I am on her. It’s not my fault girls can’t resist me.”
“In your dreams,” Kerry grinned. “I suppose you’ll dump April and leave her in a state, like you did with Nicole.”
“Nicole?” James said, looking mystified. “I only kissed her once, for about two seconds.”
“Nicole asked if you liked her,” Kerry said. “So you snogged her, then you dumped her.”
“I just didn’t snog her again,” James said. “I don’t know why you’re turning it into some big deal.”
“But you didn’t have the decency to face her. You just skulked around the house avoiding her for the next couple of days. Nicole was really upset.”
“Well . . .” James said. “I didn’t mean to hurt her feelings.”
“Yeah, right.”
“Look, Kerry, I don’t deliberately treat girls like that. To tell the truth, there’s someone else I really like.”
“You mean Amy?” Kerry said. “You can practically see the drool run out of your mouth every time she comes near you, but get over it, she’s seventeen years old.”
“That shows how much you know,” James said tersely. “Every boy on campus fancies Amy, but it’s not her I’m talking about.”
“Who is it then?”
“None of your business.”
“Huh,” Kerry sneered. “You’re making it up so I don’t think you’re a pig.”
“No,” James said.
“Do I know her?” Kerry asked.
“Yes.”
“It’s not Gabrielle, is it?”
James laughed. “No.”
“You’re such a plonker,” Kerry said. “I don’t know why I’m even bothering to talk to you.”
James loved the way she reared up on the balls of her feet whenever she got ratty.
“You really want to know who I like?” James said.
“I don’t care,” Kerry said, folding her arms.
“Fine, I won’t tell you then.”
But James had piqued Kerry’s curiosity and she quickly changed her tack. “Oh . . . go on then.”
James toyed with the idea of making someone up, or saying something stupid, but he realized he was never going to have a better opportunity to tell Kerry how he really felt. He couldn’t carry on bottling it for the rest of his life. He took a deep breath.
“I . . .”
His mouth dried up. He felt like his head was about to explode.
Kerry shook her head. “I knew you were lying.”
“No, I like you,” James blurted.
He stared at Kerry for what felt like a trillion years, studying her face for some kind of reaction.
“Are you winding me up?” Kerry asked, suspiciously.
“Ever since basic training,” James rambled. “Even when we were covered in mud doing combat practice and you were battering me, there was something about you that I really liked. I mean . . . We’re always really good together, because you’re kind of stuffy and do everything by the book and I’m kind of . . . Well . . . I suppose you could say I’m an idiot at times.”
“You really like me?” Kerry grinned.
James felt like he wanted to die. “Yes.”
“So you’re serious?” Kerry asked. “Because if you’re messing with me, I’ll punch every single tooth out of your dumb head.”
“I swear,” James said. “So, you know . . . Am I wasting my time? . . . Or?”
Kerry smiled a bit. “Everyone we know has been going on about us having a thing for each other. I never thought you really liked me though. You’re always going on about tits and I’ve hardly got any.”
“Yeah, well,” James said. “I’m not perfect either. But you do like me?”
Kerry nodded. “When you’re not driving me insane, you’re just about my favorite boy on campus.”
James leaned forward to kiss her, but the hold-all was stuck in the middle of the tiny room and they had to shuffle around it. It was only a quick peck on the lips, but James got a massive rush.
“I wish you were coming to Miami with me,” he said.
“It’s only a week,” Kerry smiled. “And there’s one condition if I’m gonna be your girlfriend.”
“What?” James asked.
“From now on, your underwear only gets worn once.”
Chapter 27
MIAMI
James and Junior touched down in Miami on Saturday evening. Keith had changed his plans and flown out a couple of days earlier with his minder, George. The beefy ex-heavyweight met the boys at immigration and drove them to Keith’s house in a Range Rover.
James spent the whole drive with his face stuck up against the window like a five-year-old. He loved the differences that make you know you’re in a different country: traffic lights strung over the road on wires, billboards with prices marked in dollars, the huge double-trailer trucks that looked like they’d roll over your car without the man in the cab feeling so much as a jolt.
Automatic gates parted obediently when the car got near Keith’s house. The pastel blue building sprawled out behind a mass of palm trees. There were two stories, with balconies overlooking the ocean and lush terraces planted with palm trees and flowering cacti.
“Your dad is so loaded,” James said as he stepped out of the car, shaking his head in disbelief.
“Come and check out his cars,” Junior said.
There was a separate garage, the size of which reminded James of a fire station. The boys wandered in as George dealt with their bags. There was a row of everyday modern BMWs and Mercedes, but the exciting stuff was parked behind: the outlines of seven Porsches, clad in protective blankets. Junior pulled up a corner of one, revealing a headlamp.
“This ran in the Le Mans twenty-four-hour race,” Junior said. “My dad had it taken up to Daytona for a track day. He got it up to three hundred kph on the straight.”
“Class,” James said.
“Like my motors, James?” Keith asked.
James turned around to see Keith standing in the doorway, wearing pool shoes and an unbuttoned Hawaiian shirt.
“You’ve got a different Porsche for every day of the week,” James grinned.
“I’ll take you for a cruise down South Beach in one of them tomorrow night,” Keit
h said. “It’s all lit up with neon signs after dark and there’s heaps of great restaurants. Did you see anything else you wanted to do in that guidebook?”
“Is it too far to go up to Orlando?” James asked. “Junior said Universal Studios is cool.”
“It’s a few hundred kilometers,” Keith said. “But it’s no hassle driving out there. We can stay overnight and get a couple of theme parks in if you want. I’ve got some business to sort out, but that should be wrapped up in a day or two. Was there anywhere else?”
James shrugged. “I dunno, don’t put yourself out or anything. Me and Junior can hang out on the beach, go shopping and stuff.”
“The fan boats over the everglades are good fun,” Keith said. “And how are you fixed for spending money?” He pulled a roll of dollars from the back of his shorts.
“I can’t take money off you as well,” James said. “You’ve already paid for my flight and everything.”
Keith handed James three hundred-dollar bills and gave the same to Junior.
“Buy something for April at the mall,” Keith said. “She’s sweet on you.”
“Cheers,” James said. “Is it all right if I use the phone to tell Zara I’ve arrived?”
“Sure,” Keith said, spreading his arms out wide. “With a house this size, the phone bill is the least of my worries.”
After a quick call home, the two boys stripped to their boxers, jumped off the wooden decking at the back of the house and sprinted across the deserted white beach towards the ocean. James was feeling grotty after eight hours crammed on an airplane, but all that washed away as he curled his toes in the mushy sand and let the sea water spew over his chest.
“I’m so glad you came instead of Ringo,” Junior said, raising his voice above the waves. “This week is gonna be such a laugh.”
• • •
James slept in one of the guest bedrooms. He had a four-poster bed, plus an en-suite bathroom with a giant marble tub. When he woke up, he slid on shorts and a T-shirt and opened up a set of glass doors that led on to a balcony overlooking the ocean. He took some lungfuls of sea air and leaned against the metal railing, letting the sun toast his skin.
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