Blood Ransom

by Sophie McKenzie

  I didn’t need to be told twice. Forcing my stiff, cold legs to move, I stumbled across the boat and onto the jetty. I raced over to the shelter and threw myself, panting, at Milo’s feet, just as the camera passed overhead.

  ‘Well done,’ Milo whispered. ‘No one suspects a thing.’

  14

  Theo

  First things first.

  Money.

  I only had a few dollars, but Mum was bound to have more.

  I could use her credit card to buy a plane ticket to Scotland, and her cash to go to the guy in my year at school who specialised in creating fake ID. If anyone could fix me a new passport, it was him – and there was no way I could travel on the passport that had brought me to the States. The authorities would be able to trace me far too quickly and easily.

  I still couldn’t work out what could have happened to Rachel. If RAGE had taken her, they would surely have killed her straight away. No games. No ‘suicide’ cover story. RAGE didn’t believe clones like us had a right to life.

  And if Elijah had taken her . . . well, that seemed even more unlikely. What would Elijah want with her? It was my heart he’d been after last year. Rachel couldn’t provide him with useful body parts. She wasn’t his clone. So why else would he risk exposure to kidnap her – if he had?

  My guts twisted into knots. Thinking about what might or might not have happened was just making me feel sick. I had to act.

  I opened my bedroom door and crept down the corridor. Mum was on the phone, laughing at something the person on the other end had just said. Her bag was hanging on the coat peg by the front door. As I passed by, I reached for it . . . took it down.

  My palms were sweating as I opened the flap on the bag and peered inside. Mum’s usual jumble of pens and pills and receipts and lists written on scraps of paper met my eyes. I took out the paperback she was reading, lifted a Hershey bar – she’d become totally addicted to those since we’d moved here – and saw her purse. It was bulging with coins, notes, and cards. Holding my breath and listening out for any sound of movement from the living room, I carefully unzipped the purse.

  And then my phone rang. It was in my trouser pocket and the ring tone sounded so loud that I jumped.

  ‘Is that you in the hall, Theo?’ Mum called.

  ‘Er, yeah,’ I said, struggling to zip her purse back up and retrieve my phone at the same time.

  I heard Mum say goodbye to whoever was on the landline, then her footsteps sounded on the living-room floor.

  I shoved her purse back and quickly hung the bag back on the wall. Hands trembling, I checked the caller display on my mobile. Name and number withheld.

  ‘Theo?’ Mum appeared in the doorway.

  ‘Just a minute, Mum.’ I put the phone to my ear and retreated to my room.

  ‘Hello?’ I said.

  ‘Theo?’

  There was something familiar about the male voice on the other end. The accent was American, but he sounded older than any of my friends at school.

  ‘Who is this?’ I said.

  ‘We can’t talk on this line,’ the man said. ‘I need you to go outside . . . there’s a diner a few blocks away. The Chili Popper. D’you know it?’

  ‘Yes,’ I said, shutting my bedroom door. ‘But what’s this about?’

  ‘Just get to the diner. Order something. I’m going to call the number there. We can speak properly then.’

  He rang off and I suddenly realised who it was.

  Lewis Michael. He’d helped Rachel rescue me from Elijah’s Washington compound . . . and nearly died trying to protect us.

  Man, Lewis must have heard the news about Rachel too. I was sure he wouldn’t believe she’d killed herself either.

  Maybe he knew something about what had happened to her.

  Completely forgetting that Mum wanted to speak to me, I raced out of the house, letting the front door slam shut behind me.

  15

  Rachel

  The rain fell steadily. I stood under the shelter at the end of the jetty as Milo went over the plan.

  ‘The place where Daniel is being kept is just up ahead,’ he explained.

  I nodded. ‘Will it be guarded?’ I said.

  ‘Not right now,’ Milo said. ‘The guy on duty is out patrolling the island. I know his route. We can avoid him.’

  I nodded, feeling the rain dripping off my hair and running down the back of my neck. ‘What research is Elijah doing?’

  ‘I don’t know, I’m not allowed into the lab he’s set up here.’ Milo shuffled uneasily in his wheelchair. ‘Hey, I brought you some food . . . figured you’d be hungry by now.’

  He took a plastic bag from beside him in his wheelchair and handed it to me.

  Inside was a pack of roughly-made cheese sandwiches, a bag of crisps and a carton of milk.

  I fell on the food. Milo watched me eat, an expression I couldn’t read on his face. ‘Rachel?’ he said.

  ‘What is it?’

  ‘I’m . . . er, I’m sorry . . .’

  ‘What for?’ I suddenly felt uneasy.

  ‘Nothing . . . just that this is so dangerous.’ Milo hesitated. ‘Are you ready?’

  My whole body was stiff and sore but, already, I could feel the adrenalin pumping through me.

  ‘I’m ready,’ I said.

  ‘Come on, then. Let’s go.’

  16

  Theo

  I ran hard all the way to the Chili Popper. I’d never been inside it before. It wasn’t as nice as Cheri’s diner – a bit rundown with rips in the cushions on the booths and stains on the tables. I looked round for a phone but couldn’t see one. I took a seat near the main counter. A middle-aged woman with dark roots and bleached blonde hair glanced over at me with a scowl.

  ‘What d’you want?’ she said. ‘You have to order food.’ I raised my eyebrows, then glanced at the menu scrawled on the plastic board beside the waitress’s head. ‘A Coke, please,’ I said, ‘and some chilli fries.’ The waitress grunted in acknowledgement and disappeared into the kitchen. I glanced round. The diner was pretty deserted – just a couple in the corner and a group of girls in the largest booth.

  A few minutes later my food and drink arrived. The chilli fries weren’t bad and I was hungry. I’d nearly finished wolfing them down when I heard a phone ring in the kitchen.

  ‘Who?’ The scowling waitress didn’t exactly sound thrilled to be taking the call.

  I looked up. She came into the restaurant area, holding a phone.

  ‘Some guy wants to talk to you, says he’s your brother,’ the waitress said. ‘Something about meetin’ up.’

  ‘Thanks.’ I took the handset. ‘Hello?’

  ‘Theo, you’re here. Good. Sorry I couldn’t talk before. Listen, it’s Lewis. I’ve got some bad news about Rachel . . .’ He spoke in a rush, his voice strained, then stopped abruptly.

  ‘She didn’t kill herself.’ I spoke more loudly than I meant to and the waitress, who was hanging around by the counter, clearly worried I was going to steal the stupid phone, pursed her lips.

  Lewis sucked in his breath. ‘You know? But it only happened a few hours ago!’ He sounded shocked.

  ‘Rachel and I, we are . . . were . . . in touch,’ I said shortly. ‘We were supposed to be online earlier, but Rachel didn’t show.’

  ‘Right, er, okay.’ Lewis sounded confused, as if that was the last thing he’d expected to hear.

  ‘How did you find me?’ I said. ‘I thought all our locations were top secret.’

  ‘There are ways. I always knew you were in Philly and Rachel was on the west coast of Scotland – finding the exact addresses and numbers wasn’t hard after that. Look, I need to speak to you about Rachel.’

  ‘Like I said, she didn’t kill herself,’ I said again, more quietly than before. ‘There’s no way she would have.’

  ‘I agree with you. But nobody else seems to. She’s gone and her parents think she’s dead . . . but . . . I’m certain it’s Elijah. I’m sure he
’s taken her . . .’

  ‘Or RAGE . . .’

  ‘Possibly,’ Lewis said. ‘It could be RAGE, but I don’t see why they’d fake a suicide.’

  ‘Well, why would Elijah?’

  ‘I don’t know,’ Lewis said. ‘I just wanted to warn you that Rachel had gone. And to find out if you’d seen or heard anything suspicious.’

  ‘No, nothing,’ I said. ‘But I’ve been trying to work out how I can get over to Scotland to help find her . . .’

  ‘No way.’ Lewis’s voice was sharp and insistent. ‘There’s no point you putting yourself in danger too, Theo. I can find Rachel. I’m here in Scotland already.’

  ‘I’m going whether you like it or not,’ I said angrily. What right did Lewis have to stick his nose in? Or assume I couldn’t look after myself?

  ‘Come on, Theo, you’ll be stopped at the airport. The US government won’t let you leave the country. You’re too valuable to them.’

  ‘I can sort that,’ I snapped. ‘I’ll get a fake passport.’

  ‘How?’ Lewis said. ‘How will you pay for it?’

  ‘I’ll manage somehow. And I’ll get the money for a ticket too.’

  ‘You mean you’ll steal the money?’ Lewis said.

  ‘That’s none of your business.’

  There was a pause, then Lewis sighed. ‘I understand you wanting to get involved, but it’s dangerous for you.’

  ‘It’ll be dangerous for you too,’ I said.

  ‘Sure, but I’m trained and anyway . . .’ Lewis hesitated and when he spoke his voice broke over the words. ‘I owe it to Mel to take the risk.’

  That shut me up for a moment. I’d met Mel last year. She was young and beautiful – and she’d looked after me in Elijah’s Washington compound. She was supposed to be Elijah’s girlfriend but she was really in love with Lewis and worked with him to help me escape. Elijah had killed her when he found out she and Lewis had betrayed him.

  ‘It’s not your decision whether I go to find Rachel,’ I went on. ‘If you won’t help me, I’ll sort it myself.’

  ‘Yeah, by robbing a convenience store and hoping some student friend of yours can create a passport that’ll get you past airport security?’ Lewis gave a sarcastic laugh. ‘I don’t think so, Theo.’

  I hesitated, thrown by Lewis’s apparent mindreading of aspects of my plan and his ability to pinpoint the flaws in it.

  ‘I’d have thought you’d want me with you,’ I said. ‘Whether it’s RAGE or Elijah who’s got Rachel, they must be after me too. I’m like . . . bait, which makes me an asset. And I’m not a child any more. Not even legally – I’ll be sixteen next month. I’ll find Rachel on my own if I have to.’

  ‘Man, you’re stubborn.’ Lewis let out a low hissing sound. ‘Okay, you’re right. It will help – and I don’t want you here in Scotland without back-up, so listen. There’s a guy I know who lives near you. He owes me a favour. I’ll get him to sort out a passport. Just wait for my text. Deal?’

  ‘I can sort this myself,’ I said stubbornly.

  ‘I’m only helping you because it might just help Rachel,’ Lewis said. ‘Maybe you should start putting her first too.’

  There was a bitter note to his voice I didn’t remember ever hearing before, but I knew he was right. Accepting Lewis’s help was the fastest way to get to Rachel.

  ‘Do we have a deal, Theo?’

  ‘Yes,’ I said. ‘Er, thanks.’

  ‘Good,’ Lewis said. ‘I’ll be in touch within the hour.’

  17

  Rachel

  Milo led me along the stony path for about two hundred metres. He had a hard time steering his chair around the larger pebbles.

  I looked round, my heart thudding. I could see more of the island now. It wasn’t big. From the higher ground, most of the coastline was visible. The sea beyond stretched for miles. I shivered at how isolated it was. Suppose we couldn’t get back to the boat with Daniel? Or suppose Milo couldn’t start the engine and get us away from here?

  ‘Don’t worry,’ Milo said. ‘The guard is down by the trees on the west of the island. He won’t see us from there.’ He pointed towards the single building up ahead. It was still some way off, but from here it looked like a traditional farmhouse – made of stone with a tiled roof.

  ‘Aren’t you worried about Elijah seeing us?’ I asked, wondering why we weren’t taking more trouble to keep ourselves out of view.

  ‘Everyone’s in the basement getting ready for the operation,’ Milo said. ‘There’s a camera over the front door of the house, but I’ll be able to disable that. Daniel’s still in his room. Once we’re inside, we’ll grab him, then get straight back to the jetty. I’ve already stolen the boat keys. If you can help me on deck I can steer us out of here and back to the mainland.’

  It sounded suspiciously easy. I nodded, my mouth dry.

  We reached the house. It was fairly bleak-looking, built on two storeys and ringed by a high wire-mesh fence. I took a deep breath as we walked through the gate in the fence and headed for the door. The camera on the wall above was pointing directly at the entrance. It was too high for me to reach. I couldn’t see how on earth Milo was planning to disable it.

  And then a twig snapped somewhere behind me.

  I froze, then looked round, my skin prickling. I still couldn’t see anyone, but they were there, I was sure. And we were trapped between the fence and the door.

  ‘Someone’s following us,’ I whispered.

  18

  Theo

  I’d waited for what felt like ages for Lewis to contact me again. Maybe I should have felt guilty insisting on going to Scotland, but I didn’t. I was determined to save Rachel. And being with Lewis, actively trying to find her, seemed like the best way to do that.

  Eventually Lewis texted me, and told me to send a picture of myself to some dodgy-looking email address. I did what he asked, then waited again. It was a while before I heard from him, but when I did he told me to go to Rittenhouse Square in the centre of Philadelphia, and wait for someone to bring me my fake passport.

  I took a small bag with me. It wasn’t that I particularly cared about having a change of clothes, but it occurred to me that I’d look highly suspicious if I turned up at an airport with no luggage at all.

  Mum asked me what I was doing, of course. She was well annoyed at me for not waiting to speak to her earlier. She’d wanted to ask if I minded her and Jeff (her boss) popping out to dinner.

  I told her it was fine, and that I was planning to go out myself, to see some friends. Before Mum could even mention my curfew, I promised I’d be back by 10.15. Hours away.

  She bought the whole thing, which should have made me feel bad but didn’t.

  Anyway, I got to Rittenhouse Square and sat on a bench. A couple of minutes later a man in a baseball cap walked past me and dropped an envelope in my lap.

  I opened it eagerly, to find a US passport with a fake name and two years added to my age, plus an e-ticket in the same fake name for a flight to Edinburgh. At the bottom of the envelope was a cellphone – fully charged and loaded with Lewis’s phone number – plus two thick wedges of cash, one in ten-dollar bills, the other in ten-pound notes.

  This was it. At the back of my mind I realised I had no idea what Lewis and I were going to do when I got to Scotland, but it didn’t matter. We could work it out when I arrived. I was on my way to find Rachel.

  That was all that counted.

  Shoving everything back in the envelope, I stood up and walked out of the square in search of a taxi to take me to the airport.

  19

  Rachel

  I heard another twig snap. Where was the noise coming from? Milo and I were close to the house, inside the wire-mesh fence. Trapped. My heart thudded as I scanned the patch of dense woodland just outside the fence.

  A figure emerged from behind one of the trees. It was the blond guard who’d brought us to the island. He strode towards us, his hard eyes fixed on me.

  In h
is hand was a gun.

  For a second I was so frightened I thought I might wet myself, and then Milo spoke.

  ‘I’m sorry, Rachel,’ he said.

  I turned to him, bewildered, then looked back at the guard. The expression in the man’s eyes said it all. He knew I was here. He wasn’t surprised.

  Oh God.

  I took a step back, towards the house.

  The guard raised his gun. ‘Don’t move,’ he ordered.

  ‘Do what Paul says.’ Milo’s voice shook.

  ‘What’s going on?’ But as I turned to look at Milo, I already knew. I didn’t need to see the shame on his face or the way he wouldn’t meet my eyes.

  This had been Milo’s plan from the beginning.

  20

  Theo

  I found a taxi and set off for the airport. I spent most of the journey agonising over what text to send Mum. In the end I opted for short and sweet:

  GNG AWAY 4 BIT. DNT B MAD. DNT WRRY. I LL B FINE. LOOK AFTR YRSELF. TX

  I added the last sentence as an afterthought. I meant it, though. Mum and I might not be close, but I’ve grown up since last year and I now recognised how hard being a single mum had been for her.

  I sent the text on my old mobile and, having sent it, decided to get rid of the phone itself. I could be traced on it – Lewis had found it, after all, and the FBI were certainly aware of my calls.

  I hesitated just a second, then switched it off and chucked it out of the taxi window.

  Weird. Without my phone I felt disconnected from my old life – as if I were doing more than just getting on a plane tonight . . . as if I were leaving everything I knew behind.

  Which was also strangely liberating.

  I checked in easily enough at the airport – the fake passport didn’t raise any eyebrows – then had ages before my flight took off. I looked round the shops, then bought a burger and headed for the gate. I’d flown before, of course, but never on my own. Though I wouldn’t have admitted it to anyone, I was terrified.