Night School: Legacy

by C. J. Daugherty

  ‘That’s a nice way of saying she’s psycho, right?’

  Rachel shot her a disapproving look. ‘Don’t be mean.’

  ‘Sorry.’ Allie held up her hands.

  By then, though, Rachel had already moved on. ‘She doesn’t accept new people easily – she doesn’t like change. So, good luck with that. But if she does accept you, she’s so loyal it might drive you crazy.’

  They stopped on the landing.

  ‘If she accepts me,’ Allie muttered.

  Rachel nodded. ‘There are people in this school she ignores completely, like they don’t exist. She’ll run into them if they stand in front of her. It’s like they’re invisible to her.’

  Somehow this didn’t surprise Allie at all. ‘Does everyone just … accept her?’ she asked. ‘I mean, she’s really odd.’

  Rachel’s brow creased. ‘Some don’t get why she is the way she is – they think she’s rude because … Well, she’s rude. But she doesn’t mean to be. I’m mean, she’s not, like … cruel. She seems rude because she’s honest. And people aren’t used to honesty.’

  Allie felt a ping in her chest, as if Rachel’s words had physically touched her.

  Glancing at her watch, she winced. ‘Look, I’d better run. My next class is with Zelazny. Tardiness is not an option.’

  With a quick wave, Allie hurried down the hall to history class, where Jo had saved her a seat; she slid into it just before Zelazny walked into the room. He surveyed the students darkly.

  ‘I see you all made it on time.’ He marked a sheet of paper and put it back in a folder. ‘How kind of you. Welcome to ancient history. This term we’ll be focusing on the classical civilisations of Greece and Rome.’

  As he spoke, he walked around the room putting a textbook on every desk with a deliberate thud.

  ‘Class participation counts towards your overall grade,’ he said, setting a book down on Jo’s desk. ‘So I expect you to be engaged and involved in classes. This is advanced history – there will be no slacking.’

  As Zelazny moved across the room, Jo wrote diligently in her notebook. When he was well away from them she turned it sideways so Allie could read it.

  ‘THIS IS GOING TO SUCK DONKEY BALLS.’

  A laugh burst out of Allie before she could stop it. She feigned a coughing fit to disguise it, but Zelazny turned to glare at her. She slid down in her seat, fighting to keep a straight face as Jo gazed around the room innocently and flipped to a clean page in her notebook.

  By the time Allie made her way to Isabelle’s English class that afternoon, her bag was heavy with books and her to-do list filled a full page in her notebook. When she was going to find the time to do that work was a mystery to her. She had Night School at ten, so everything would have to be done before then. Somehow.

  She was walking down the hall with her head down when she bumped into someone.

  ‘Sorry,’ she said automatically, before looking up into Carter’s dark eyes. ‘Hey!’ Her face lit up and she leaned in for a kiss but he took a quick step away from her.

  Confusion and doubt roiled her. ‘What’s wrong?’

  He looked furious.

  ‘Wait, are you still pissed off about me training with Sylvain?’ She couldn’t believe it. ‘You can’t be serious, Carter.’

  ‘Am I still pissed off?’ He stepped out of the hallway traffic flow and lowered his voice. ‘Of course I’m still pissed off, Allie. Wouldn’t you be? Put yourself in my shoes. You had a bad lesson and instead of coming to me you went straight to Sylvain for comfort. How would you feel if I did that with one of my ex-girlfriends?’

  He had a point, but she wasn’t about to admit it.

  ‘That’s not fair, Carter. I didn’t go looking for him. He was just checking to make sure I was OK. Then he offered to help.’

  ‘Oh that’s so much better,’ he snapped. ‘And did you ask yourself why he went looking for someone else’s girlfriend?’

  ‘Carter, seriously.’ Anger fired inside her – hot and dangerous. She fought to stay calm. ‘First of all, I’m not just “someone’s girlfriend”. I’m Allie Sheridan, Person. Second of all: Nothing. Happened. You have to trust me.’

  ‘Do I?’ he said. ‘Would you trust me in the same situation? In all honesty, if you found me in the woods practising with Clair, would you trust me?’

  Allie winced; Clair was his ex.

  ‘No, because Clair’s not in … well, you know what. So that would be weird.’ He rolled his eyes but before he could interrupt her she added, ‘But if you were practising with Jules? Yes. I’d be fine with that. And if you were studying with Clair? Yes, I’d be fine with that. Because I trust you.’

  ‘Oh really? Well, I might just put that to the test,’ he said, stalking off.

  ‘Carter,’ she called after him but he didn’t look back. With a sigh, she heaved her bag on to her shoulder and followed him into class.

  Isabelle always arranged the desks in a circle for what she called her English ‘seminar’. Carter sat moodily to one side avoiding her eyes, his long legs stretched out towards the centre.

  She was trying to decide whether to sit next to him when Zoe bounded over, her brown eyes bright. Dressed in her school uniform, with prim white socks and loafers, she looked more like a little girl than a martial arts expert with personal boundary issues.

  ‘Allie!’ she said. ‘I looked all over for you last night.’

  ‘Yeah,’ Allie said vaguely, ‘I …’

  Without waiting for her to finish, Zoe continued in a low voice. ‘I had a long talk with Mr Patel and he explained what I was doing wrong. It was totally my fault you were so lame at it. He told me not to hurt you any more.’ She winced. ‘He was kind of firm about that. Did I hurt you?’

  Allie thought about how her back had ached when she climbed into bed last night, and the humiliating experience of finding herself staring up at that stupid ceiling over and over again. Then she looked into Zoe’s curious eyes.

  ‘Nah.’ She shrugged. ‘I’m still in one piece.’

  ‘Aces,’ the girl said with clear relief. ‘I won’t hurt you tonight. I’ve been practising.’

  ‘Me too—’

  ‘Take your seats, please.’ Isabelle’s words interrupted their conversation.

  Just as Isabelle started the class, Sylvain walked in. His eyes met Allie’s and for a second she froze, terrified he’d sit next to her. Her eyes darted to Carter, who stared at them both with narrowed eyes.

  But Sylvain slid into the seat next to Nicole, who Allie hadn’t noticed before. She leaned over to whisper something that made him laugh. Watching them made Allie feel strangely hollow.

  ‘This term,’ Isabelle said, walking around the room putting a book on each desk, ‘we’re focusing on early twentieth-century literature. Our schedule is tight – we will be reading four books. The first is Edith Wharton’s The Age of Innocence …’

  As she talked, Allie couldn’t resist glancing over at Carter. He was studying the book cover so intently he might have been trying to memorise it. He didn’t look at her.

  ‘So far, so painful,’ Jo said, sipping from her glass of water. ‘I’ve got enough prep for a week and it’s only the first day.’

  ‘Me too,’ Allie sighed. The others agreed.

  They were sitting at their usual table in the crowded and boisterous dining hall. Around them the roar of conversation ebbed and flowed in a tidal pattern.

  When they’d first walked in, their table had again been occupied by younger students, but Lucas had leaned over to have a quiet word with them.

  ‘Now,’ Jo had said with satisfaction after the young students left in a rush, ‘it’s ours for ever.’

  Rachel and Lucas sat across the table, laughing. Allie liked how much time they spent together these days. They looked cosy. She kept hoping they’d get together properly. Rachel had liked Lucas since her first day at Cimmeria. But nothing except friendship had ever happened between them.

  Carter walked up
shortly afterward, taking a seat next to Jo without a word to Allie. Noticing this, Rachel glanced at Allie and artfully arched one eyebrow.

  Allie shook her head and mouthed, ‘Later.’

  Allie’s eyes drifted to the table next to them, where Sylvain sat next to Nicole. Maybe Rachel was wrong and they were ‘on again’. They were always together. He smiled at something Nicole said, then, as if he’d felt Allie’s gaze, glanced up. When their eyes met, he looked at Allie curiously, as if he wondered what she was thinking.

  Flushing, she dropped her gaze to her plate.

  ‘So, is everyone going straight to the library after dinner?’ Rachel asked. ‘I’ve got, like, no option.’

  ‘Oh yes,’ Jo said airily. ‘We’ll all be there. The educational torture of Cimmeria Academy has begun.

  ‘Did Zelazny assign everybody else essays?’ Allie asked, and the others nodded.

  ‘Two thousand words.’ Lucas took a bite of bread. ‘The man’s a sadist.’

  ‘We should revolt,’ Jo suggested. ‘An uprising of the privileged.’

  ‘A reverse revolution? I like it,’ Rachel said.

  While the self-pitying conversation continued, Allie looked around the crowded dining hall. The room was set up much the same for dinner as it had been over the summer. White tablecloths covered each round table. White china with the dark blue Cimmeria crest sat at every place setting, and the crystal glasses sparkled. The huge chandeliers glowed overhead. But there were no candles anywhere. Isabelle had announced they wouldn’t return until new, flameproof tablecloths and curtains arrived. At the moment the windows were bare …

  Allie’s breath caught in her throat; her fork fell from nerveless fingers, landing on her plate with a clatter.

  It was still very faintly light outside. And Gabe was standing outside the window. Staring right at her.

  TEN

  Everyone turned to look at Allie.

  All the air seemed to be missing from her lungs as, pointing at the window, she struggled to speak. ‘It’s G … G …’

  The word wouldn’t come out.

  The others looked where she pointed but when Carter looked back at her he was clearly puzzled. ‘What is it?’

  ‘Gabe,’ Allie said clearly. ‘Outside the window. Watching.’

  ‘What?’ Jo jumped to her feet so quickly she nearly upset the table. A glass fell over with a crash and Allie heard water trickling to the floor.

  As soon as she got the words out, Allie could feel the pressure on her chest ease. They all turned to look out the window. But Allie could see he wasn’t there. Outside there was only darkness and trees.

  ‘Are you sure, Allie?’ Carter’s eyes were serious.

  God, how she wanted to say no. That it had been a trick of the light. But she’d seen his face, as clearly as she saw Carter’s now.

  ‘Positive.’

  Allie looked up to where Jo had been, but she’d run to Isabelle’s table and was gesturing frantically. Even from here, Allie could see that she was hysterical. She watched as Isabelle at first frowned, trying to understand Jo’s rapid-fire delivery, then rose to her feet, waving for the teachers to follow. Jerry Cole ran from the room, presumably to notify Raj Patel’s security team. Putting her arm around Jo, Eloise led her out of the dining hall.

  Glancing around the room, Allie saw that the other students seemed unaware of the drama unfolding. Most were eating and talking, although a few watched curiously as Isabelle approached.

  ‘Allie. With me. Now.’ The headmistress’ voice was sharp. Allie rose and followed her to the door; the others were right behind them as they walked into the silent hallway.

  ‘You’re absolutely certain it was Gabe?’ Isabelle’s voice was calm, but Allie could see the tension in the way she held herself. ‘It’s getting dark. It would be easy to make a mistake.’

  ‘Maybe you imagined it.’ Jo looked at her, tears of fear in her eyes.

  Gabe had held such power over her when they were together, Allie thought. The idea of him coming back must terrify her.

  ‘It was him. I’d know him anywhere. Even in the dark.’

  As she spoke, a muscular security guard dressed all in black walked up to the group. They all stepped back to make space for him. Turning towards Isabelle and Zelazny, the security guard blocked Allie and the other students out of the conversation with his body.

  ‘My team is outside the dining hall now.’ He lowered his voice. ‘There are no signs of him. The ground is soft but we found no footprints outside any of the windows. We’ll continue searching the grounds, just in case.’

  He thinks I’m lying. Heat rose in Allie’s face. She tried to control her temper as she appealed to Isabelle. ‘Is that guy …’ She pointed at the security guard. ‘Is he saying I’m making it up?’

  Carter rested a hand on her arm, as if to calm her down, but he said nothing and his gaze evaded hers.

  He doesn’t know whether or not to believe me.

  ‘No, Allie,’ Isabelle said. ‘I asked him to make a report and he’s making it.’

  She turned back to the guard. ‘Thank you, Paul. Keep looking and let us know immediately if you discover anything.’

  With a curt nod, he strode to the door.

  Zelazny turned to the headmistress. ‘It’s your call, Isabelle, but if it were me, I’d send them back on their normal patrols. She probably imagined it. She imagined something similar on a run the other night.’

  ‘I did not imagine it!’ Allie protested.

  ‘Did anybody else see him?’ The history teacher’s tone held a challenge as he looked at the other students.

  Rachel, Carter and Jo exchanged looks. Allie glanced up at Carter imploringly, but he shook his head. He had seen nothing.

  ‘I don’t …’ Frustration made her inarticulate. ‘You believe me, don’t you?’

  Carter looked uncomfortable. ‘I believe you think you saw something, Allie. But …’

  Stricken, she stared at him. How could he not believe me?

  Reading her expression he held out his hands. ‘I looked, Allie. There was nobody there. Isn’t this just like the other night in the woods when you thought you saw someone?’ She opened her mouth to argue but before she could speak he continued, his tone gentle. ‘Nobody can blame you for seeing things. You’ve been through a lot.’

  ‘It. Was. Him.’ She emphasised each word, anger making her voice ring.

  ‘Enough.’ Isabelle sounded angry. ‘Come with me, Allie. Everybody else get on with your evening unless we call for you.’

  Her shoes tapped a furious staccato beat on the polished wood floor as they hurried down the hall to her office. Flipping the light switch, she pointed at a chair. ‘Sit. I’ll come back for you in a few minutes. Do not leave this room.’ Then she closed the door behind her.

  For what seemed like a long time, Allie was left alone with her thoughts. Over and over again she tried to recall exactly what she’d seen. What if she’d been wrong. But it had been so clear. She was sure it was Gabe.

  Dropping her head to her knees she thought about the way Carter had looked at her – the doubt on his face. How he’d talked to her like she was losing it.

  Thinking about it made her feel sick, and she jumped to her feet and paced the small windowless room, trying to think about something else. Maybe by now they’d found Gabe. Maybe that’s what was taking so long. Then they’d all apologise and everything would be OK again.

  Her pacing journey took her to the door, and she leaned against it to listen. She could hear footsteps and voices – nobody sounded agitated or concerned, so whatever was happening, it wasn’t too dangerous. Then she paced again.

  From the wall with the tapestry of a maiden and a white horse to the back wall was seven steps at a diagonal. She’d traversed it one hundred and twelve times when she heard Isabelle speaking to somebody outside the door. Allie pressed her ear to the door to listen.

  ‘I know you’re busy …’

  Sylvain’s voice.r />
  ‘I am. What is it?’ Isabelle’s tone was short. She sounded stressed.

  ‘I heard what Paul said earlier – that he found no footprints in the dirt outside the window.’ Sylvain’s French accent was thicker than usual. It got that way when he was upset. ‘That doesn’t mean Gabe wasn’t there. Remember how well trained he is. He would know where to stand in order not to leave footprints. There is a narrow ledge of stone at the base of the wall, he could have—’

  ‘Thank you, Sylvain.’ Isabelle’s clipped voice cut him off; Allie ground her teeth in frustration as she pressed her forehead against the door.

  What he was saying made sense. Why …?

  At that moment, the door opened with a jerk, and she jumped back.

  Her expression unreadable, Isabelle gestured for her to follow. ‘Please come with me.’

  In tense silence they retraced their steps down the now-bustling hallway; Allie watched the headmistress’ inexpressive back with growing concern.

  Isabelle held the dining hall door open for Allie then closed it behind her. Now empty, the room was still redolent of dinner; smells of roast pork lingered unpleasantly. But the tables had been cleared and Allie could hear faint voices from the kitchen as Isabelle led her back to the table where she’d sat earlier that night.

  ‘Now.’ To Allie’s relief, the headmistress didn’t sound angry any more. ‘Let’s go over this again without everybody telling you what to think. Where were you sitting?’

  For a moment, Allie’s mind went blank. The emptiness of the room was disorienting. With a steadying breath, she forced herself to calm down and visualise the room full.

  She pointed to one of the seats facing the row of tall windows.

  ‘There.’

  ‘Sit please,’ Isabelle said, ‘as you did during dinner.’