by Rebecca Ward
‘And that’s why you fight?’
‘That’s why I want to change things. It wouldn’t have to be a fight if we felt heard but everyone’s ears are closed. Each man is for himself, even more so than before, because each man is trying to survive and to protect his family.’
‘And you’re just protecting your family?’ Bodi feels there is much more to it than that. From what she knows of Balt his ego is bigger than the dome of St Paul’s.
‘Families, across the city, across the country. Giving them a voice again. So they can talk to each other and talk to government and live somewhere their voices are heard.’ Bodi is a one girl audience to one of Balt’s great speeches.
‘And in the process you’ll bomb some families and burn their houses and people won’t be heard, because they’ll be dead!’
‘There have to be some sacrifices. And you know that, as well as I do. People get hurt when you upset the system. Go chasing after what you want.’ Tears come to Balt’s eyes. His passion for a new utopia is nothing compared to his love for his son.
‘He’s not dead.’
‘What?’
‘Evan. He’s not dead. Don’t ask me how I know but I do. It was a warning shot that we heard, that’s all.’
Balt clasps the edge of the sideboard, relief flooding through him. ‘Oh my.’
Remembering himself he lets go of the side. A steeliness reappears in his eyes. Father of the year is gone, Balt the great and all powerful is back.
‘How did you get this information Boudicca? I can’t imagine it was easily won.’
‘I can’t do that Balt. I wasn’t going to tell you at all but you looked so sad. Well obviously. And I’d hate for mum to think I was dead when I wasn’t. So that’s it, that’s all you’re getting.’ She tries to shrug off the situation, play it light-hearted in a ‘hey, just be happy your son’s not dead’ way but of course he wants more.
‘Look here little girl, you don’t know what you’re dealing with. You just don’t have the capacity to pull off whatever you have planned.’
‘Oh don’t you worry, I’m a quick learner and I’ve pretty much got the measure of everyone I’ve met so far. It’s like you said, every man is for himself.’
‘A lot of people could get hurt if you carry on working on your own. Going off and disturbing things that should be left for experienced operatives to manage. You can only be doing more harm than good.’
‘More harm than you’re doing? Handing people over to the authorities, causing riots, persuading innocent people that they are an army?!’ Bodi couldn’t believe him.
‘And there was I thinking that you’d be as useful as your mother and all you’ve done is stir up trouble and make things worse.’
‘Useful?! Useful? I am a person you know, not just one of your silly toy soldiers. Exactly how long have you thought I might be useful to you? A week? A month? Longer? Are you even aware what impact your decisions have on people’s lives, on their families? Collateral damage has a face you know.’
‘I think it’s time you left Boudicca. I have nothing further to say on the matter.’ He cuts her dead. He isn’t going to answer to her today. ‘The mission is much more important than you thinking your privacy has been invaded. And now I have to work out how to get my son back home before anything happens to him.’
He marches her to the door and without another word opens and closes it behind her. Bodi is bemused by the two sides to the man she had seen: a concerned father and a brutal egomaniac. She trudges down the stairs. There is nothing else for it. To get her mum and Evan back, to stop the march turning into a huge riot, she has to give up Balt.
She takes a circuitous route back to Sam’s. He is just up and bumbling about the kitchen. She brings in a pint of milk.
‘Bodi, you should be careful. The skies have eyes you know!’ Sam’s sense of drama is still intact. ‘But cheers.’ And he takes the pint from her and pours half of it into his coffee. ‘Now let’s hear where you’ve been this morning. I don’t buy this ‘popped out for a pint of milk’ crap for a second.’
So she sits and tells him what has happened and where things stand now. He soaks it all in as he sips his coffee. His face registers no shock, he doesn’t judge her just listens, occasionally nodding, encouraging her to tell him everything. Bodi feels a huge sense of relief at sharing her troubles with Sam. She trusts him hugely and she also wants to give him a heads up as to how the day might pan out. And as it turns out, he has a few ideas that might avert total disaster.
Half an hour later Reed comes in, still bleary from sleep. He kisses her cheek while Sam’s back is turned.
‘I’m not as green as I’m cabbage shaped, young persons. I know what’s going on under my own roof. Just keep it PG please.’
Bodi and Reed have no idea what that means but they get the implication.
‘Sure boss.’ Reed defers to his uncle with a laugh. Bodi smiles at Sam. He is pretty chipper considering the day that lies ahead. Sam leaves them alone in the kitchen.
‘Where have you been? Really.’ Reed asks.
‘Nowhere in particular,’ she lies. ‘Wanted to see the city before it’s burned to the ground. Again.’
‘Bodi, we’re in this together. We decided.’ He sounds exasperated.
‘It’s best I do it alone,’ she says. ‘That way you won’t need to act the big hero and get caught up in all of it. Also, you can say you didn’t know anything to the rest of the Populus crew and it will be true. I want you kept out of it. I’ve decided. It’s my battle with Balt and with Thomas. I appreciate you want to help but it’s not fair to drag you into it. And I’m a big girl, I can take care of myself.’
‘You’re infuriating and stubborn, that’s what you are. When will you get it into your head that I’m already caught up in this? You can’t save me.’
‘I can try.’
‘So you have a plan. A fully formed and feasible plan? That you’ve thought through from beginning to end? Cos last night, well you didn’t know which way was up.’
‘Of course I do.’ She isn’t even convincing herself. And Reed definitely isn’t fooled.
‘I had better say goodbye then, because by the sounds of things it’s all going to go tits up and you’re going to disappear in a puff of smoke, much like how you arrived. Good luck with that.’ He storms out.
‘Reed…’ she protests, but he is gone.
She needs energy for the day ahead; no time to think about boys’ bruised egos. She grabs some cereal and eats at top speed. She has a plan to put into action.
An hour later she is back at Rose’s. She never thought she would be there again but she has no choice but to deal with him face to face. TrueSec is on high alert so she has to be careful she isn’t picked up for a minor offence along the way. Jasmeet is there, as always, and she lets her into the kitchen. This time she brings Thomas down to meet Bodi. Seems like Jasmeet knows everything that is going on.
‘Ah, our little spy. How is the world of espionage today, dear niece?’ Bodi shivers at the sound of Thomas’s voice. She hasn’t forgotten their last meeting. She hands him a piece of paper.
‘3pm today, Blackfriars. Give me my mum and Evan, and I will hand over Balthazar.’
‘No formalities? No ‘Good morning dear uncle’?’ he teases.
‘You’ve got what you wanted. I don’t think there’s much need for pleasantries now, dear uncle.’
‘Listen missy, don’t forget I’m the one in charge. You do not dictate the time and place and you sure as hell don’t get your precious boyfriend and mummy back before I have that wannabe Che Guevara in my grasp.’ Thomas grows red in the face, veins popping at his temples. ‘This is how it will go down. You will arrange for Balthazar to meet you at Blackfriars at four o’clock. Leave the rest to me. Don’t worry, you’ll get your mother back and the boy, well, he’s not much use to me once I have his father. In fact, I have you to thank for delivering me another bargaining chip, that was very thoughtful of you. Now, sho
o.’
He stomps out of the room banging the door behind him. Jasmeet opens the back door for her squeezing her arm as she leaves. ‘Mr Thomas is a total prick!’
The city trundles on about its business. People step round the smouldering fires, the broken glass and bricks, eyes down but vigilant, taking new routes that avoid the groups of Sick Boys who are stopping anyone who looks vaguely suspicious. Batons no longer stored in their belts but held in one hand beating a constant rhythm in the other palm, ready to go to work. Their aggressive timpani grows in pace. The message is clear; a wall of violence will meet any one who dares to march. No questions asked. Bodi can see the delight in their eyes, knowing that finally they will get to exercise some power over those weaker than themselves.
She stops off at St James’s on her way back to Sam’s. She sits on the cold stone floor to compose a note for Balt. Morag and Fergus are surprised to see her head pop out of the trap door but say they will pass on her letter to Balt who is due any second. She refuses their offer to wait and runs off back through the tunnel before he can confront her on the letter’s contents. The wheels are in motion and she has to keep once step ahead of things or else the plan will go very wrong.
Back at Sam’s, Bodi feels conflicted about how happy she is at the thought of getting her mum back. She is breaking up another family – Balt and Evan, and beyond them the Populus family – to reinstate her own. She realises that she has become as selfish as them. She has had to think like them to beat them, but it doesn’t mean she likes it. She justifies it by thinking she has no other choice, but does she?
Reed lingers in the doorway of her room staring at her, just like the first day they met. As if reading her mind, he says: ‘You’re becoming just like them. Your single-mindedness has blinkered you into thinking that all your actions are justified and they’re not. I don’t know the ins and outs of your plan but I’m sure that someone you care about will end up getting hurt along the way.’
She turns away from him. How did he get so intuitive? He continues: ‘These things are rarely straightforward. You only have to look at my bedroom walls to know the potential for human misery that rash decisions bring. Just think about what you’re doing. If I can help you maybe we can think of a way to do this where no-one gets hurt.’
‘It doesn’t exist. Balt and Thomas have backed me into a corner and I can only make this right by fighting fire with fire. I’m sorry Reed. I know that you want to help me but I’m beyond help. It’s best you just forget I was here. Just remember me as that sweet little kid you knew during a long hot summer. And keep Sam close and keep each other safe.’
She grabs her backpack and squeezes past him to get out the door. Their eyes meet and she feels his sense of betrayal. She keeps moving, despite the tears pricking her eyes. She has an hour to get to the meet and it is right across town.
Bodi walks tentatively along the riverbank. The tide is rising and soon she will run out of beach. People come down here in the day mudlarking, to see if the river has left behind rare treasures that might change their lives, but she has little to give to them these days but plastic bags and cardboard boxes. Bodi had climbed down a ladder from the Embankment in order to get a safer view of the meeting place. Her naivety doesn’t go as far as trusting her uncle.
She climbs up another ladder further along. No one gives her a second glance. She scrapes mud from her boots on the side of a rung and keeping close to the wall walks to the corner to study the entrance of the building. It is an old factory that has been changed to executive homes and back again. She stuffs her backpack in a disused telecoms box and wedges the door shut with a brick. A biting wind comes in off the river and whips right through her, mingling with her fear to freeze her to the core.
There is no one lingering but Bodi knows she is being watched. It is now or never so she jogs round to the front door and sneaks in. The lift door is open but furniture and boxes have been stuffed inside to make it unusable. The only option is to climb the stairs.
‘Seriously, don’t you think you’re taking this spy thing a little too far.’ Her uncle’s voice booms down the stairs. ‘Get up here now or you’ll mess it up’
Bodi races up the stairs two at a time and follows her uncle into a small room. Two Sick Boys gave her the once over. The three of them are crowded round a monitor. Bodi pushes between them and looks at the screen, her jaw drops.
‘You didn’t say anything about Evan actually being here, I thought you’d just let him go from your cells.’
‘I thought it might add a little drama to the proceedings.’ And Thomas relishes drama.
‘But he’s been brought up to fight. I can’t see him leaving here without him getting hurt,’ Bodi protests.
‘Well, then who could blame me for taking out a troublesome teen that attacks my men?’
‘You promised!’ Bodi knew she couldn’t fully trust Thomas, but he is like a man eager to bet on a dogfight. The three men laugh at her.
‘Well, let’s hope he behaves himself.’ He is enjoying this far too much.
Evan sits on the floor in the dark, tied to an iron column. His clothes are dirty and dishevelled, his eyes dark and terrified. He looks like he is waiting for an execution squad. With his knees to his chest he makes himself as small as possible, trying to escape the eyes he knows are watching him. Bodi feels her heart lurch. His spirit has been broken; she can see that even on this tiny screen. What have they done to him? She looks at her uncle and he just shrugs. He found a way to justify his behaviour long ago.
Bodi hears a noise. Someone is headed up the stairs as quietly as possible but the old oak stairs creak their welcome. Bodi’s eyes are glued to the screen. Balt races over to Evan.
‘Dad! Is that you?’ Evan whispers in disbelief.
‘Just a second and I’ll get you out of here.’
Bodi realises she is alone. Thomas and the Sick Boys are on their way in, she runs to catch up. When she gets to the room Evan is standing up next to his father, fronting out the guards.
‘Balthazar.’ Thomas sneers.
‘Tommy.’ The men feign civility and Bodi sees the recognition in their eyes. This is not a first time meeting. ‘I see you’ve made this a family day out.’
Bodi steps out of the shadows. Evan’s shock registers on his face. ‘Boo?’
‘I’m so sorry Ev, I-’
‘Shut up!’ Thomas cuts her off and gets up in Balt’s face. ‘Seems your little plan backfired Balt. Getting Ruby out of the picture didn’t quite go to plan.’
‘I knew it!’ Bodi is furious. ‘You did it, didn’t you? You told the Sick Boys where to find mum and me. That’s why you didn’t go ballistic when they took Evan! You knew deep down that it wasn’t my fault, it was yours.’ That is it. She has been sympathetic up till now but she’s had enough. TrueSec are welcome to him.
‘I needed a new face for the uprising. And who better to capture the spirit of a new Populus than Ruby’s daughter.’ Balt is very matter of fact about his actions. But Evan is angry, ‘Bodi, you didn’t think this through. They’ll kill him.’
‘Err, not right away.’ The Sick Boys laugh at Thomas, he is really milking his part. ‘Right enough of this. You’ he points at Evan, ‘time for you to make a sharp exit.’
‘What?! No way. I’m not leaving him. Dad? I’m not leaving you.’ Tears run down Evan’s face. Balt lays his hand on Evan’s forearm and shakes his head. Bodi knows that Evan will take whatever small amount of life he has left to fight these men who are taking his father away.
‘Evan. It’s time to go. I want you to go.’ Balt’s voice breaks a little though he tries to sound firm. ‘You are also the new face of the fight.’
‘Oh don’t make me laugh,’ Thomas sneers. ‘What fight?! Without you, well frankly even with you, Populus is just a bunch of cranks with baseball bats and firelighters.’
‘Seems we’ve got you scared though Tommy. Not quite going to plan for you either, is it?’ Balt counters with a smirk. Thoma
s bristles.
‘Junior, off you go, no time for fond farewells. I’ve got a march to stop.’ Thomas has had enough.
Evan grabs his father and holds him close. He turns and walks past the guards, fronting them out but not fighting. The disgusted look he gives Bodi makes her stomach lurch. She hears him run down the stairs. The guards seize Balt and kick him in the back of the legs knocking him down to his knees. They put a gag in his mouth to muffle his groans. His eyes stare at Bodi, drilling into her conscience, before a sack is put over his head and his hands are cuffed behind his back. Bodi is visibly shaken by the brutality.
‘What did you expect, kid? We aren’t in the business of caring and sharing.’ Her uncle gloats. She has done it now, there is no way to undo it.
‘And mum?’ Bodi remembers the business in hand.
‘Sorry, was there something else I can do for you?’
Bodi stamps the floor in frustration. Thomas laughs. ‘Oh alright then. Think you’re going to have quite the surprise when you go to collect your dear mother. Quite the surprise. Right let’s go.’
He hands her a piece of paper with an address on it. The guards march Balt out the room and out the building. Bodi waits a second and then runs out herself. She doesn’t trust Thomas so she knows she has very little time. She reads the address again, confused.
She goes to get her bag from the telecoms box but it is gone. Turning around she feels it swing into her stomach, knocking her to the ground.
‘Looking for this?’ Evan is seething.
‘Ev, you have to go, it’s not safe.’ She coughs and splutters.
‘Yeah, especially when there are traitors everywhere you turn. Boo, what were you thinking? I just can’t believe that you’d set my dad up, after everything. I almost took a bullet for you girl.’