by Emery Hale
‘The package drops still could have been made.’
‘We will not show Trojan we are inferior. If they saw that, they would send more suicide bombers. We need to show them that we do not surrender. By stopping the show we would have done just that.’
‘Someone is dead!’ I shouted back.
Without a moment’s hesitation Harkness grabbed me by the chin, but then his hand lowered, crunching my throat like a boa constrictor. I sucked in as much air as I could, my hands grabbing his. I knew how to stop Harkness, I had to disorientate him – shove my thumbs in his eyes, knee him in the crotch and then deliver a swift right hook – but did I do any of those things? No.
‘I will not have you undermining me.’ Harkness pushed harder against my throat and suddenly my airway got smaller, only slivers of air getting through. ‘We need soldiers, I told you this. I let it slide the first time. I won’t do so again.’
I tried to speak but Harkness’ grip was like iron, and the only noise that came out was dry gasps for air.
Then the swing of the door sounded. I craned my neck to see Quinn standing there: her face was one of concern, but soon after she bowed her head, avoiding the sight in front of her. Abruptly, Harkness let me go and I fell forward, hands on my knees. I didn’t even watch where he went as he headed past me down the corridor. I waited until he was gone before I let coughs splutter out, the scratchiness in my throat returning.
‘Jessica.’ Quinn said, now finding the courage to move, her voice full of worry as she ran over to me, pressing her hands to mine. ‘Nightingale, we need a medic.’
‘No, it’s fine,’ I told her. A couple more coughs left my throat before I straightened myself back up. ‘It’s fine, doesn’t matter.’
‘Doesn’t matter?’
My hand shot forward and covered her mouth – Harkness was on the same frequency as us, he would hear it. I couldn’t imagine what he would do to me if he came back.
‘Repeat, do you need a medic?’ Grace asked, her voice a lot clearer than before.
‘No,’ I said, keeping my voice as level as possible, swallowing down another cough. ‘No, we don’t need a medic.’
‘Alright.’ And with that, Grace’s voice was gone.
I dropped my hand, but Quinn’s eyes pleaded with me to reconsider. She didn’t say anything but her mouth opened and closed like she wanted to, her mind scouring for the questions she wanted to ask.
I could never understand why – why Harkness would do that. It was like all his rage was focused on me, like I could ruin his reputation. Did I have that much power? Did he believe it was the only way to get me to listen?
After everything I knew, I should have kept my mouth shut, I shouldn’t have undermined his authority, but Naomi was here and she shouldn’t have been. Kayson was meant to keep her safe!
Without another thought I stood up tall, my head held high, and walked back through the doors to the wings, trying to shake all the tension from my body. I grabbed the water bottle from the side, downing a gulp before setting it back.
I needed to get it into my head that tonight, I didn’t call the shots.
I needed to stand there and look pretty.
CHAPTER 7
Dimensional
Undeniably believable.
NAOMI JADE
After nearly a week of intense online shopping and breaking in shoes I bought two years ago, I was ready for my first date with Kayson! Well, I actually couldn’t tell if it was a date or not, maybe he meant for us to be friends? I could get behind that – by that I didn’t mean him!
He did seem like a good guy, a gentleman. He went to the trouble of picking up my phone, calling Jessica and then bringing it back. Who does that? Especially around this area. It had to be a good sign.
There I went with the overthinking again! Ever since I’d met Kayson all I worried about was screwing everything up – he went to Reign for crying out loud, he probably had exceptionally high standards. Perhaps he was rich, maybe his family were politicians or lawyers. Shoot, he’d be able to see right through my glib small talk. If he saw through that and my terrible pickup lines, this whole thing could go up in smoke.
OK stop! Come on, Naomi, you can do this.
‘How many times do I have to tell you?’ The shrill tones of my mother called from the bottom of the stairs. ‘If you’re going to eat in your room, bring down the plate and cup afterwards. Not to mention the three you’ve already got in there!’
Everything came back to cups and plates with this woman, she needed to get her priorities straight. She had me drying the sink yesterday – who goes about their day drying sinks? Not any sane person.
I rolled my eyes before shouting down.
‘I was gonna bring them down once I finished getting ready!’
‘That’s all I hear from you these days, “I was gonna”. Honestly.’ With that, my mother’s high heels clacked away to the kitchen.
She’d just come home from work and gone on a cleaning spree – ever since that small explosion at the bank she’d been antsy.
The news reported it as a suicide bomber, some drunk who’d gotten a hold of TNT. I remember the Chief of Police saying that the man was no longer a threat and had no links to any known terrorist organisations. I found it a bit odd, but hey, who was I to question the man in charge? My mum worked as a journalist for the Scottish Times and something had convinced her there was more to the story, whatever that meant.
Late that afternoon, I stood in front of my full length mirror, proudly smiling at my reflection: the pink and white skater dress hugging my waist, stopping halfway down my thigh, the cropped denim jacket matching my low cut Converse. The one thing I will never do is wear heels to impress a guy – besides, Kayson didn’t wear them (I presumed), so it wasn’t as if he would ever out-heel me.
During the entire process of getting ready, my room had become something similar to a bomb-site: towels from my shower lay on the bed, unwanted clothes strewn at all corners of the room, make-up scattered everywhere and a glass of rosé sat on the floor next to me. Cause, you know, pre-drinking before a date was a solid move.
Ignoring the state of my room, I grabbed my bag, closed the door behind me and headed down the grey-walled and grey-carpeted staircase. Just as my foot hit the bottom step and my hand reached for the door, I heard my dad.
‘Where are you going?’
Yeah, I hadn’t told them about Kayson yet.
‘Out . . . with Katie and the girls,’ I lied.
‘I thought you said you were done with that group,’ my dad said, pointedly crossing his arms.
‘We made up,’ I lied, again.
‘You women, I’ll never understand you. One day you hate each other, the next you’re best friends again.’
Not knowing how to respond to that, I said the first thing that came to my head.
‘We’re a complicated species, Dad.’
‘Tell me about it, you know your mother asked me to hoover under the couch today. Under the couch! No one even looks there – I don’t even look there!’
‘You know how Mum is.’
From the front door I had the perfect view through to the kitchen and out the open back door, where my mum was occupied hanging up the second washing of the night. My fist almost punched the air – no interrogation today!
‘Right, I’ll be back later,’ I blurted to my dad before practically yanking the door open and running out.
‘Naomi!’ Dad shouted after me.
I looked back for a moment.
‘I’m late for my train!’ I shouted. ‘Don’t wait up!’
* * *
The train ride to Queen Street dragged on, every stop lasting for an eternity. For me, the moments leading up to any event took forever, either because of nerves or fear. This one seemed more like a nerves thing. Everyone got nervous going on ‘kind of but probably not’ dates, right? I still didn’t know much about Kayson. Sure, he had all the makings of a bad boy: a charming smile, glorious
hair and pearly white teeth, but there had to be more to him. He went to the Academy so there had to be something credible in his family – it was the kind of place you needed to know someone to get in.
I’d thought about sending in an application once, but in the end I didn’t, since I wouldn’t have gotten in anyway.
With a shaky sigh I ran my palms down the floral dress a couple of times, trying to collect my thoughts. I needed to get it together.
An agonising half-hour passed before the train pulled into the station, the platform bustling with the evening crowds. The carriage where I sat was densely packed, and when everyone stood up we were like a tin of sardines, all mushed together. I kept my head down and shuffled towards the doors as best I could, trying not to bump into anyone. One man dressed like a waiter, or maybe an usher, shot up from his seat and barged into my shoulder, sending me stumbling forward. I was about to call out to the man but he disappeared before I could say anything. Must have been late to his shift or something.
After that, the stream of people in the carriage lessened so I quickly moved onto the platform. I was always scared of losing my mum down here when I was younger; you could lose sight of anyone. I pulled my jacket a little closer as I walked up the stairs, taking them quickly and darting around anyone who was too slow.
One of my strengths was speed – I was always picked first for sports teams in school because I was a good runner, and I played a mean game of badminton too.
I made it through the ticket turnstile and headed out of the station, the streetlights popping to life as I walked onto the street and stood at the edge of the pavement. The buzz of chatter was quieter than usual, everyone keen to keep to themselves, though there was blaring music from the bar opposite and the occasional drunken yell. It was nearly seven so everyone was either dressed for a night out or still in their work clothes.
Wait, could I be overdressed? Should I have gone for the jeans?
‘Hey gorgeous,’ the heavy baritone voice called.
My head whipped around to see Kayson sauntering over, and a blush rose to my cheeks. No one had ever spoken to me like that before. He wore a tight-fitting black T-shirt, black jeans, combat boots and a plaid shirt tied around his waist. Once again he wore a couple of rings on his fingers and had a silver chain around his neck, but it was tucked under his shirt, so what lay underneath was a mystery. How he could go without a jacket was beyond me since I was practically shivering.
‘You coming?’ he asked, holding out a hand for me to take.
A giddy feeling rose in my chest as the butterflies fluttered intensely in my stomach. In return for accepting his hand, he squeezed it, his hand rough but his touch gentle as he tugged me down the street.
Kayson let out a rich laugh before he spoke again.
‘So . . . have you lost your phone again since I last saw you?’
‘No,’ I said, dipping my head. ‘No, I’ve kept a firm grip on it.’
‘I’m glad. I don’t think your parents would appreciate a stranger turning up every couple of days with your phone. Might look a bit weird.’
‘You probably wouldn’t be a stranger by then.’
‘Guess not.’
We headed down the pavement away from the station, keeping to the main crowds near George Square, when the question popped out of my mouth.
‘You said we were heading to a bar for a drink?’
Kayson and I had talked all last week, about random stuff like movies and our favourite places to eat, after which he suggested that we make good on our plan to go for a drink. Now I wasn’t the biggest drinker in the world, but I could do two shots of vodka and not feel anything! So it was safe to say I could hold my own for a couple hours, but from the stature of this guy, he would drink me under the table.
‘Yeah well, actually,’ he started, and I glanced up to him confused.
He himself looked unsure of what he was about to say . . . oh shit. I knew I shouldn’t have said yes to this sorta date! I barely knew the guy! Why did I agree to this – next thing I know my organs would be on the black market and I’d never see my family again! Or even worse, I’d be involved in his parents’ political scandals! Was his mother on the Shadow Cabinet?
‘I got us two tickets to see that musical at the Hallwell Theatre.’
Wait, what now?
At my unenthusiastic expression, Kayson groaned. ‘I knew I should have asked you first, wanted it to be a surprise, you know?’
It took me a moment, but I managed to blurt out a response, shaking my head vigorously.
‘Oh no, no it’s not that. I just – I’m just shocked is all,’ I babbled. ‘You know, I’ve never seen a musical.’
‘You hate them don’t you?’ he asked, cutting me off, and continued before I could answer. ‘This is why I’m terrible at surprises.’
‘It’s not a terrible surprise.’
‘It’s not a good one either.’
The bad boy image I’d built up in my head melted away. Embarrassment was written all over his face, his eyes moving rapidly around the street, looking anywhere except mine.
‘Hey,’ I said, squeezing his hand, which grabbed his attention, ‘I’d love to go to the theatre. Who wants to go sit in a pub with loads of drunk old men yelling about football anyway?’
Kayson had gone to the trouble of buying tickets which probably weren’t cheap, to surprise me. It was a sweet gesture and I certainly wasn’t going to ruin it. Sure, I wasn’t the biggest fan of musicals, but I wasn’t complaining. No boy I’d ever gone on a date with had gone to so much effort.
My words seemed to relax Kayson a little as he ran a nervous hand through his hair, before I pulled him to the side of the pavement. Countless people passed us but I didn’t pay them any attention.
‘You planned a surprise and I was surprised, end of story,’ I said to him.
I knew I needed to look confident.
Part of me wondered if I had always been this confident, especially around guys, but the other part of me knew it was always there. Sometimes it just took the right person to bring it out.
With that I took my hand out of his and walked a couple of steps backwards with a stupid grin on my face. I crossed my arms over my chest, looking the boy up and down, and he finally relaxed, his arms hanging limply at his sides, but there was something in his eyes that contradicted that. It was almost like the cogs in his mind were on overdrive, working at a million miles an hour – was he an overthinker like me? I hoped not, we’d both be screwed.
‘So, are we going to this thing?’ I asked, tilting my head a little. ‘Or are we going to stand out here in the freezing cold?’
Kayson let out a laugh, rolling his eyes.
‘Yeah, I guess so.’
‘Oh, don’t pretend to be cool now,’ I said, walking backwards as Kayson came towards me, his strides a lot bigger than mine.
‘I’m not pretending, sweetheart.’
‘Oh, really?’ I asked, shaking off the fact he called me sweetheart, ‘Cause you looked pretty shaken for a second there.’
‘You think so?’
‘Oh yeah.’ I held my hand out for him to take. ‘I’ll let you lead, pick up your confidence somewhere along the way.’
Kayson scoffed, his eyes wide with disbelief – I could barely believe what I was saying.
‘You have a cheek.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘Oh, so you don’t remember when I came to your door? You stared at me for a solid minute before you actually said anything.’
To that I paused and cringed. Thinking back, maybe he did have a point.
‘Wanna call it a draw?’
* * *
By the time we got the theatre it was already packed, people pouring in the doors from all directions. It was like being back on the train but this time the feeling was multiplied by a thousand, everyone pushing and shoving to get past.
Kayson and I were next in line to get our tickets checked when I saw someone strange out
of the corner of my eye: the Head of Scotland Yard at the other side of the lobby, in a heated discussion with an usher. I was sure his name was Edward, he’d been in the news a few times this past week explaining the new anti-terrorist protocols. What the hell was he doing here? Had something happened?
Before I could question anything, I felt Kayson’s hand press against the small of my back, nudging me forward. The corners of my lips shot up automatically, and I had to resist the urge to bite my lip. When I looked back, the Head of Scotland Yard and the usher were already walking away down a corridor.
‘Luca, how you holding up?’ Kayson asked the usher checking our tickets. He was a little smaller than Kayson, had dark skin with brown eyes and a brilliant smile.
‘Good, man, you know me, hanging in there.’ Luca had a kind voice but as soon as he saw me, that tone fade along with his smile. ‘Who’s this?’
‘Naomi, she’s my date for tonight.’
Date? Oh so this was a date, it was a date! Although Luca didn’t seem too enamoured by what his friend had to say.
‘But she’s not part of –’
‘Yeah, I’m aware,’ Kayson snapped sharply. Luca scoffed as he checked the tickets before handing them back.
‘You’re the second row. I’m guessing you can count your way to your seats.’
Did I miss something? Kayson and Luca must have been friends, given how they spoke to one another, but it didn’t look like this usher approved of me being there.
As we walked past Luca and through the double doors to the auditorium I turned to look back at him. My instincts told me there was something I missed and they were right. Luca pressed his fingertips to his ear before he spoke – it was quiet, but I was close enough to hear.
‘I need Blackbird to front of house.’
Blackbird? Was that theatre code for something?
Even though I tried to slow down and hear more, Kayson was already pulling me down the aisle to our seats. My gut was telling me there was more; something about this theatre was off. Maybe I was just paranoid, but little things were starting to stack up in my head.