Fracture

by C. J. Daugherty

  Just what Nathaniel wanted.

  Ahead, Zoe had stopped at the base of a set of stairs, holding up her hand. The others waited as the younger girl darted up to the top. A door swung open without a sound and a wave of cold damp air flowed over them. Steadying herself, Allie inhaled its cool freshness deeply.

  She glanced surreptitiously at Rachel; like the others, she stood unmoving, staring at the opening through which Zoe had disappeared. Her nervousness was betrayed only by the fine sheen of sweat on her forehead and the way her hands clenched and unclenched at her sides.

  Reaching out, Allie took Rachel’s hand and squeezed it. Without looking at her, Rachel squeezed back.

  Then Zoe appeared at the top of the stairs and motioned for them to follow.

  Allie let go of Rachel’s hand.

  Ducking low and moving stealthily, the girls ran up the stairs and into the night. As they raced across the lawn, the only sound was the squelching of the cold mud under their shoes and the sound of their breathing.

  With each step Allie waited for the shout – for someone to spot them and haul them in. Her muscles were tight with tension as they sped across the flat open ground. But the shout didn’t come.

  When they made it to the forest, she relaxed a little, falling into line behind Rachel but ahead of Nicole, who brought up the rear. They were safer here, virtually invisible in the dark.

  With each step, Allie was reminded of how out of shape she was. How she was still healing. She was glad Rachel’s presence gave her an excuse to take it slow. Rachel hated exercise – Allie could hear how laboured her breathing was. But she kept going.

  It took them around ten minutes to reach the edge of the stone wall surrounding the old chapel. Zoe slowed her pace and they followed suit. A few minutes later Allie saw the battered old gate ahead of them – it stood open.

  Her heart tripped but she kept running, and reminded herself that this was the plan.

  Right on time, two shadows slipped out of the dark churchyard – silent as wraiths. The girls increased their pace.

  Allie watched as the Carter shadow sped ahead to join Zoe in the lead. The Sylvain shadow slipped back to the end of the line, joining Nicole.

  Zoe and Carter led them past the chapel then turned on to a second path towards the stream. At Zoe’s signal, they all crouched low and slowed, moving with absolute quiet.

  On one side of the footpath a small stone cottage appeared out of the darkness. This was Mr Ellison’s home, and the place where Carter had lived as a child. To Allie it had always looked like a house from a fairy tale, with gingerbread trim and a garden full of lush flowers.

  The lights were all off but a faint curl of smoke still hung above the chimney; the gardener had gone to bed, but not long ago.

  As they crept by, Allie noticed winter roses growing, pale and unexpected, along the stone wall. She touched one with her black glove as she passed – it seemed too beautiful to be real. Her touch shook raindrops loose from the bush and they pattered on to the ground below.

  From out of nowhere, Sylvain grabbed her arm, pulling her away from the wall. Catching her eye he gave her a warning look. Even now, in these circumstances, his blue eyes made her heart stutter. She nodded apologetically and, after a second, he let go, dropping back out of sight.

  The second path was narrower and rougher than the main footpath – it had been much less travelled upon. Fallen branches and stones made it treacherous. It slowed them down and made it difficult – if not impossible – to move with stealth.

  When they reached a point where the path was blocked completely by a fallen tree, they stopped. Grabbing a branch, Zoe hopped up on to it and over to the other side, light and quick as a squirrel.

  Carter followed with more effort. Then, one by one, they helped each other across. After helping Rachel over, Allie grabbed the branch to pull herself up but the movement caused a stabbing pain in her knee. She clutched her leg, willing it to stop.

  From below, a warm hand grabbed her arm to steady her and she looked down into Carter’s dark eyes.

  ‘You OK?’ he whispered.

  She nodded and prepared to jump down. But before she could make the leap he grasped her waist and lifted her to the ground. It was exactly the kind of thing he used to do, back when they were friends, and Allie looked up at him in surprise.

  Before she could think of the right thing to say though, Nicole jumped off the fallen tree, landing next to them.

  ‘Go,’ she hissed, pointing down the path.

  Turning, Allie realised the others were already out of sight. The path ahead was empty.

  Swearing under his breath, Carter took off into the dark.

  Allie followed, but her knee was stiff and painful now and she couldn’t keep up the same pace.

  Remembering how agile she’d been before the accident – how fast she could run – she hated Nathaniel and Gabe even more. They’d ruined everything.

  Rounding a bend, she saw Carter waiting for her ahead. He was holding up a hand in warning. She slowed her pace, trying to disguise her limp.

  When she reached him, Nicole and Sylvain were right behind her. Carter pointed to the left. A tiny path disappeared under the trees. He motioned that he would go first and she should follow.

  She nodded.

  The new path was so small it was hard to see it in the pitch dark – she could just make out Carter ahead of her, moving carefully.

  They came to a narrow stream – barely more than a trickle – and he jumped over it.

  Saying a silent prayer that her knee could take it, she jumped after him. The soft earth cushioned her landing and her knee held.

  Only then did she see the cottage in the distance. It sat on the far side of the pond where last summer they’d all gone skinny-dipping. She hadn’t really noticed it then, probably because it was so overgrown it was nearly invisible. Bushes and trees surrounded it – ivy grew up its old stone walls.

  She pointed at it and Carter nodded. This was the place.

  Keeping a distance from the building, they made their way in a wide circle through the forest until they came to a cluster of bushes on one side. There Allie nearly ran into Rachel, who was huddled next to Zoe in the dark.

  Carter hurried over to Zoe and spoke to her briefly, then returned to Allie’s side.

  Leaning closer, he whispered, ‘We’re waiting for the guards to leave.’

  Allie nodded to show she’d understood, and stared at the little house as if she were trying to see through the walls.

  Nicole and Sylvain had joined them now – Sylvain stood next to Zoe behind the cover of a thick pine tree, watching the house intently. Nicole crouched low, beside them.

  The sound of a door creaking open echoed in the silent woods, and they all froze. Allie felt exposed – the others had found better hiding places. She’d thought they had more time.

  Her heart pounding in her ears, she looked around for more cover but it was too late; if she moved now they might be seen.

  There was nothing else to do – so she stood very still. And tried not to breathe.

  TWENTY

  T

  he two guards made no effort to be quiet. As they emerged from the cottage, Allie could hear their voices clearly across the distance. One of them barked a laugh and it echoed in the quiet like a gunshot.

  Next to her, Carter stood watching them with fierce concentration, as if he were willing them to leave. In their hiding place nearby, Nicole had a hand on Rachel’s arm. Allie was relieved to see that Rachel’s dark eyes were alert and interested – she didn’t look afraid.

  It seemed to take a lifetime for them to make their way down the footpath. When the guards disappeared into the trees, Allie inhaled deeply and felt the muscles in her shoulders relax.

  Somewhere in the distance an owl hooted.

  Emerging from her hiding place, Zoe sped silently to Sylvain’s side. After whispering something to him she took off into the forest.

  When she�
��d gone, Allie caught Sylvain’s eye and arched her brow questioningly.

  ‘She’s going to follow them,’ he whispered. ‘To make sure they don’t double back.’

  ‘You don’t think they saw us?’ she asked, alarmed.

  He shook his head. ‘We just need to be sure.’

  Sylvain turned to ask Carter a question and Allie crouched down next to Rachel.

  ‘You OK?’ she said.

  Her eyes sparkling in the moonlight, Rachel nodded. ‘That was more exciting than I expected. I can see why you like this stuff. It’s exhilarating.’

  ‘Yeah,’ Allie said grimly. ‘It’s ace.’

  With a curious frown, Rachel opened her mouth to say something else, but at that moment Zoe appeared hurtling from the woods. They hurried to gather around her.

  ‘They took the main footpath,’ she whispered breathlessly. ‘They’re gone.’

  ‘OK.’ Sylvain looked at his watch. ‘We should have half an hour before the next patrol.’

  ‘Everyone ready?’ Nicole whispered, her eyes sweeping the group.

  They had planned it all down to the finest detail, so there was no need to go over it again – everyone knew what to do.

  Nicole went first, running low and fast across the clearing until she reached the safety of the cottage, disappearing into the shadows around it.

  The others waited, squinting into the darkness until they saw the pale blue light of her torch flash twice. After that they followed her one at a time. First Rachel, then Sylvain, then Allie.

  For Allie, the run across the clearing seemed to take for ever – she felt so exposed. Gritting her teeth, she ignored the pain in her knee, forcing herself to run faster than she’d thought she could. Trying not to limp.

  It only took seconds.

  When she was safely beside the others, leaning against the cold stone of the house, she bent down with her head hanging between her shoulders and struggled to catch her breath. Glancing up, she saw Rachel watching with concern.

  ‘You OK?’ she mouthed. Allie nodded, aware of the irony of Rachel worrying about her.

  When the others had made it across, Zoe led them around the building to the far side where she’d heard Eloise’s voice before. A boarded-up window was just above their heads.

  Nicole stood on her toes to whisper. ‘Eloise?’

  They all stopped to listen. There was no reply.

  ‘She could be asleep,’ Rachel whispered. ‘It’s late.’

  They hadn’t thought of this possibility. As they exchanged blank looks, Allie’s heart sank. Had they risked so much for nothing?

  Reaching up, Sylvain felt around the edges of the plywood covering the old window.

  ‘Here,’ he said, tugging gently at the lower right corner. The wood had been poorly nailed down and it could be pulled out a few inches – far enough for him to slip his hand underneath and tap the glass behind it.

  Tap. Tap. Tap.

  ‘Eloise?’ he whispered. ‘Are you awake?’

  Tap. Tap. Tap.

  Allie pressed her ear to the wall as if she could hear the librarian through the foot of stone that separated them. Silence.

  Sylvain stopped tapping. ‘Maybe she’s not in there. Perhaps she —’

  They all heard it at once, coming from the other side: Tap. Tap. Tap.

  ‘It’s her!’ Zoe hissed. Reaching up, Sylvain tapped their reply.

  ‘Is that you, Eloise?’ he whispered.

  ‘Yes.’ Her reply was so faint it was hard to believe it was real. Through the walls it sounded ethereal; ghostly.

  Her love of Eloise making her forget her concerns, Rachel stepped to Sylvain’s side. ‘Are you OK?’

  A pause. Then, ‘Yes.’

  Carter leaned towards Sylvain. ‘Ask her if she’s guarded now.’

  ‘Is someone in the house?’ Sylvain asked. ‘Guarding you?’

  ‘Yes.’

  Allie pictured Eloise standing by the window, whispering to them through the glass, lonely and imprisoned. Someone must be in the next room, keeping watch on her. As if she were a criminal.

  Anger rose inside her like white heat.

  She turned to Sylvain. ‘Ask her if there’s some way we can get her out.’

  ‘Can we help you escape?’ Sylvain asked. ‘Is there… a way out?’

  This time the pause was very long. ‘No.’

  Allie wanted to weep with futile rage. There had to be something they could do.

  Rachel turned to Sylvain. ‘May I?’ He inclined his head and stepped back, holding the plywood up so she could speak to the glass.

  ‘Eloise, we know you didn’t do it,’ Rachel said. ‘Or at least we think you didn’t. I mean, you were with Jerry. Is there something we could do from this side to prove you’re innocent?’

  The silence that followed was so long, Allie wondered if Eloise had been found out – silenced somehow.

  Then… faintly, Eloise spoke again. ‘The key.’

  Rachel leaned closer to the window. ‘What about the key, Eloise?’

  ‘Isabelle’s office… the one I used… find the key.’

  Doubt squeezed Allie’s chest like a vice. Why did she want them to find it? Did she expect them to take it so the teachers couldn’t find it? To protect her? Was she guilty after all?

  Wrapping her arms across her torso, she stared at the ground.

  Rachel reached up to the window ledge. ‘I don’t understand, Eloise. What do you want us to do?’

  When the librarian spoke again, Allie got the impression she was crying. Her voice sounded muffled. ‘Zelazny gave it to Jerry and then… he took it back. I think he… hid it. Find it. A small, silver key. Give it to Isabelle.’

  At her words, Allie’s head snapped up. Her eyes met Carter’s. She could see the shock in his eyes.

  Is Eloise saying Zelazny set her up?

  Sylvain stepped closer to the window. ‘Why would he do that, Eloise?’

  She didn’t reply.

  Allie felt drained. They’d toyed with the idea of the spy being Zelazny but none of them had truly believed it. If he knew where the key was hidden…

  Anger made her shake.

  How could he do that to her? How could he let her be held like this and not say anything?

  The only reason for him to do that would be if he had something to hide.

  She was so lost in her angry thoughts the faint creaking sound didn’t register at first.

  Then the front door thudded shut.

  Allie’s heart seemed to stop. She and the others stared at each other in horror. The moment seemed to stretch on for ever.

  Without warning, Carter grabbed Allie’s hand and began to run.

  It all happened so quickly Allie didn’t have time to react. By the time she thought about Rachel it was too late.

  Sylvain will help her, she told herself. He was standing right beside her. Surely he would have grabbed her, knowing she didn’t have training.

  She kept trying to look back to see if the others were behind them, but Carter gripped her hand so tightly and moved so quickly through the rough terrain she could see nothing but darkness and blur.

  They jumped over the stream and a twig snapped sharply under her foot; she winced and kept going – they didn’t have time to be quiet now. They just had to be fast.

  Air burned her lungs like fire and each step sent pain jolting through her knee. Carter’s pace was relentless; they ignored the branches grabbing roughly at their arms and faces, and the stones that skittered under their feet. They crashed through the dried bracken and winter-dead brush. They must have run half a mile and Allie was just beginning to wonder if she could go much further when they reached a natural dip in the ground, shielded by a fallen tree. Leaping down into it, Carter pulled Allie in after him, down to the forest floor.

  Then all was still.

  For long minutes they lay without moving. Allie strained her ears to hear footsteps but the woods gave nothing away. A breeze blew through the branch
es high above them, crashing them together in a low roar.

  When the wind finally quietened, the only sound was her heart hammering in her ears and her strained breaths.

  They were completely alone.

  Slowly her breathing returned to normal and she could pay more attention to where she was. She was aware of Carter’s weight – he was almost on top of her, one arm thrown across her shoulders, his head resting in the cold, loamy soil next to hers.