Perfectly Reflected (12 page)

“Honestly,” I repeated for about the tenth time, “I know nothing about it, and I care even less. I really don’t want to go out with Rob!”

“Well, he tells it differently,” replied Mia, biting reflectively into her cheese baguette. Great chunks of tomato slid out of the other end and landed in her lap. “Damn!” she muttered under her breath, picking up the bits and putting them on her plate. She finally looked up from wiping the mayonnaise off her jeans. “He says you two have kissed and made up – he talks about the kissing part quite a lot – and that it’s all back on.”

“Well, he’s a complete lunatic, and you can tell him I said so. I can’t stand the guy!” I couldn’t work out why Rob kept going on about it. I had made myself perfectly clear at the party.

“Ashley’s taken it really badly. I’m not sure she’ll be in for the rest of the term.”

“That’s a bit of an overreaction; she was only going out with him for about a fortnight.”

Mia’s voice dropped and she leaned in towards me. “Actually, I agree with you, but she won’t hear differently. She’s determined to be miserable.” 

 “Not my problem,” I shrugged as I finished my rather dull salad. “Listen, would you mind covering for me at choir practice? I have to go and call the bank.”

“Rather you than me – it sounds like a nightmare. See you at break.” Mia gave me a quick smile then started trying to rebuild her sandwich.

“Thanks, I’ll catch you in the common room later.”

The fields were hot and dusty after a long term of frenetic activity. Great patches of bare earth showed through the grass and in several places the white lines of the running track had been painted directly on to the mud. It was too hot for most of the girls to be outside unless they were sunbathing, so my favourite spot under the big horse-chestnut tree was deserted. When I called Callum he arrived very quickly, and my guilty conscience made me immediately worried that something had already gone wrong.

“Everything OK?” I asked as innocently as I could, trying to gauge from his reflection in the tiny mirror what he knew.

“I
think
so,” he replied with a frown. “But there’s something weird about Olivia this morning.”

“How so? What’s she been doing?”

“Well, nothing I can put my finger on, to be honest. She’s just acting a bit strangely.” He looked down for a moment, shaking his head. “It’s almost as if, well, something was really worrying her but she was frightened to say. I wish she would let me help; I hate to see her like this.”

He looked up and immediately saw the look on my face. “You know what this is all about, don’t you?”

“I do,” I confessed, grimacing. “I’m sorry, I had no idea she would be quite so transparent.”

“What? What have the two of you done?”

 “It was a mistake, honestly. I was sat in the garden last night and I felt a tingle in my arm so I thought you were there and I mentioned something about Catherine…” Finally I had to stop to take another breath. “It didn’t take Olivia long to put two and two together,” I added apologetically.

He sighed. “Damn it! How am I going to keep her quiet? This puts you in even more danger; what if Lucas finds out?” His expression was exasperated, but at least he didn’t look furious.

“I’ll be fine,” I said as soothingly as I could. “I’m in no more danger now than I was before we started worrying about Catherine and her antics. This is staying firmly on my wrist.” I nodded towards the amulet, which was glinting in the dappled sunlight, the rich colours flashing as I moved. I couldn’t think of any situation that would compel me to take it off.

“I told Matthew, like we agreed,” Callum said after a pause. “We were able to go somewhere on our own and I told him everything.”

“What did he say?”

“He thought that it would be better to keep quiet about it for now. It’ll be the safest thing to do. But he did make an interesting suggestion,” Callum said reflectively. “I’m fairly sure that you aren’t going to like it though.” As I watched he started stroking his chin, looking at me with narrowed eyes.

“Well, you’d better tell me then. It’s the only way to find out!”

Callum drew himself up, suddenly serious. “OK, but hear me out before you throw a fit, right?”

“OK, OK, just tell me!”

“Catherine managed to get over there with you by stealing your memories. She left you for dead and she nearly killed Grace
as well. Since she’s been there, she’s done nothing but make your life a misery and she shows no sign of stopping.”

“Yes, I know all that. So what?”

“To get me over to you, we need a mind we can wipe clean, but we don’t want to hurt anyone, obviously. But what if there was someone who hadn’t been so scrupulous herself, who kind of deserved it…”

“You mean, Catherine? Kill Catherine and use her – my – memories to bring you back here?”

Callum nodded. “That’s what Matthew suggested. Two birds, one stone.”

It was horrific, but the more I thought about it, it did have an appealing symmetry. She tried to kill me to get my memories, so Callum could kill her to get those memories back. An eye for an eye…

A sharp breeze suddenly swept across the sports field, whisking the dust into mini tornadoes as I watched. I shivered, realising that I had, if only for a second, contemplated murdering someone.

I clenched my fists tight. I was appalled with myself for even thinking about it. “We can’t do that, Callum. We just can’t. It would make us as bad as her.” He had been watching me closely, and as I spoke I saw him exhale.

“I know. And I’m glad you feel the same way.” He gave me one of his rueful smiles. “Tempting though, isn’t it?”

“Hugely.” I smiled back, nodding. “But definitely not the right choice for us.”

“That wasn’t Matthew’s only idea. He didn’t think either of us would go for that, but he did have another thought.”

“OK, I’m listening, as long as this one isn’t immoral.” 

“Don’t worry.” He was smiling again. “This one could stop Catherine pretty effectively. I quite like it.”

I nestled back against him, straining to feel the tiny resistance against my shoulders. “Go on.”

“Catherine is human again, has all your memories, and she’s using them to make trouble, but – and this is the interesting bit – she doesn’t have an amulet. I could stalk her and start picking off those memories as she thinks of them, then she’s sunk! She won’t be able to make any more plans. What do you think?”

He was grinning at me, eyebrows raised. I took a deep breath. “Callum, that will only wind her up even faster. Can you imagine just how mad she’s going to get if she realises what’s going on? We would only make things worse.” In fact, the more I thought about it, the more I was against the idea. Callum could take the memories only as they actually crossed her mind, so it could take weeks or months, and she was bound to notice the gaps. Actively provoking someone that angry and vicious would be madness.

I could see the truth of what I was saying sinking into him. “No, you’re right. Bad plan, especially as I can’t actually see the memories when I gather like that. It’s an all-or-nothing choice with Catherine. No half measures.”

I reached for where his hand was. “I’m sorry,” I whispered. “I didn’t mean to dismiss all your good ideas, especially when it’s so hard. I just can’t bring myself to behave like her. I hope you understand.”

“Of course I understand, and I didn’t really expect you to go for either idea. I thought it was worth mentioning anyway. Am I forgiven?” His feather-light touch was soft on my hair.

“Always. All the ideas are worth discussing, even the terrible ones. If she’s so miserable that having all my happy memories
doesn’t even cheer her up, she’s a lost cause. Let’s hope she gets bored and finds someone else to persecute.”

“Very true.” He paused for a moment to stroke my arm just above the heavy silver band. The touch made me sigh. “Gone off me, have you?” he asked in a lighter tone, stroking further up my arm and brushing his lips against my temple.

“Not at all. We just don’t seem to have had much time for this sort of thing over the last few days. Far too much drama…”

“And there was me thinking that you just didn’t care any more.”

“Ha! As if. I just wish we were somewhere a bit more private, or even better, at the top of the dome. There are too many prying eyes around here.” I was aware of a group of junior schoolgirls heading my way, so I couldn’t even try to kiss him back.

“I’m sure I can arrange another bout of maintenance at the dome soon. When did you say term finishes?”

“End of this week. How do you do that anyway – make them shut the dome?”

He nuzzled deeper into my neck. “Trade secret. Couldn’t possibly tell you.” His voice was muffled.

“Well, it’s very impressive, however you manage it. I can’t wait!”

“It’s one of my many talents,” he said drily, raising his head to look at me. I could see my desire mirrored there.

“
Very
many,” I murmured, sitting up a bit straighter as the younger girls arrived in the shade. “Hang on a sec.” I put on my best sixth-form voice and waved my phone mouthpiece at them. “Hey, private conversation going on here. Find your own tree.” They quickly turned and headed off, and I could see them muttering and glancing back in my direction.

 “Now,
that’s
what I call impressive! Such command.”

“It’s not so hard when they’re only nine,” I confessed. “I can’t see that working on any of my year.”

“I’m sure that you would find some way of getting what you wanted,” he said, smiling at me lazily. “You usually seem to manage.”

I glanced at my watch. “Damn. One thing I can’t change is the timetable – I’ve got to go back inside. Will you be able to come to the house after school?”

“Sure. Do you want me to bring Olivia?”

“I don’t think so. I’m not going to be able to walk the dog as Grace and I are going to the cinema later. You’ve not managed to put me off seeing films completely just yet.”

“That’s fine. I’ll take her somewhere quiet and I can make sure she knows how important it is to keep her news to herself. What are you going to see?”

I smiled. “We thought that new one about the hairdresser.”

Callum’s face was a picture. “Really? It’s terrible, you know. That actor spends the entire time taking his shirt off.”

“We know,” I smirked.

He laughed. “You have appalling taste!” Before I could agree he was gone. 

Blame

I was really looking forward to my night out with Grace. Over the last few weeks we had both become absorbed in our boyfriends, and had spent rather less time together than usual. Things were going so well between her and Jack that they were planning a trip together during the holidays. She gave me some of the details when she came round to pick me up.

“We’re going to drive down to the Gower a couple of weeks after the end of term,” she told me when we were in the privacy of my bedroom. She was lounging on the futon chair, her long legs practically touching the door. I stepped over her to get my shoes out of the wardrobe. Thankfully she was too preoccupied to worry about what I was wearing.

“Mmm, lovely. Have you been there before?”

“The Gower? No, all I know about it is what you’ve told me and the videos from those geography lessons. It’s at the bottom of Wales, isn’t it?”

“Yes, with one of the largest beaches in Europe. Where are you staying?”

“Jack’s godfather has a caravan down there at one of the big campsites by the beach. The picture looks lovely.” Her aura danced and glowed a vibrant gold.

“Are you talking about the beach or the caravan?”
I murmured under my breath, smiling. She obviously heard me as one of my soft toys thudded against my shoulder.

“Behave! Jack’s godfather will be there too, you know, or Mum would have refused to let me go. It will be so romantic to go walking on the beach. I’m really looking forward to it.” She sat back, eyes focused on the distance. I closed the wardrobe door and waited. It took a couple of seconds but she finally looked at me, and then did a double take. “I’m not going out with you wearing that! Not even to the cinema. Get changed immediately.”

“I thought you’d never notice,” I laughed, taking off the pink hoodie. “You were away with the fairies!”

“I can’t help it,” she said in a dreamy voice, the yellow light dancing just above her hair. “Jack is so – well, Jack. I can’t believe my luck.” She paused for a moment and the light suddenly flicked out. “You are OK about all of this, aren’t you? I mean, you’ve been friends for Jack far longer than I have.”

“Of course I am,” I reassured her, “because that’s exactly what he is to me – a friend. Really, gorgeous as he is, I’ve known him for so long I sort of think him as another brother. I could
never
go out with him.”

“Are you sure? Because he is, as you say, quite gorgeous.”

“No really, he’s absolutely not for me, and he’d tell you the same thing. We’ve seen each other on camping trips, and we’re both a
lot
less gorgeous there, that’s for sure. Anyway, you certainly seem to be happy, Grace. Not like Ashley – did you hear the latest?”

“I heard that they’d split up, but no big surprise there. Is there something more exciting?” She sat up straight and started considering me again.

“Apparently Rob’s been saying…” It got a bit muffled then as Grace started pulling off the T-shirt I was wearing too.

“Have I taught you nothing about clothes?” I heard her mutter as she dived into my wardrobe.

“… that he’s going out with me instead!”

Grace stopped in her tracks. “No! Not after all that garbage a few weeks ago, surely?”

“That’s what Mia says, and she should know.”

Grace abandoned trying to find anything exotic and uncreased in my wardrobe and handed me a non-contentious top. “Well, what are you going to do about it?”

“I put Mia straight, and hopefully she’ll tell Ashley. He’s been so cruel to her.”

“You’re going to have to talk to him.”

“I know. I’m just not looking forward to it.”

“Tell you what, how about we go to the pub after the film?” Grace had a scheming look in her eye. “I think a bunch of them are due to be there tonight, and if Rob’s with them you can tell him how it is in front of all his mates.”

“Hmm, I’m not supposed to go to the pub tonight, I promised Josh. He’s got a date with an old friend of ours and thinks his baby sister will cramp his style.”

“Oh well, it’ll wait then. Come on, you look a bit better now. If we don’t get a shift on we’ll be late and I don’t want to miss the opening scene – you know, you’ve seen the trailers. It’s when he gets his shirt ripped off him for the first time, remember?”

Callum was right; the film was terrible, but it was so bad it was funny, and Grace and I roared with laughter at all the wrong places. We were still laughing about it as we made our way out and I checked my mobile. There was a text from Josh:
Interesting development. Come to pub after cinema if you can.

“Do you mind a quick detour to the pub after all?” I asked Grace.

“Course not. Perhaps we’ll see Rob and you can tell him what you think!”

As we arrived at the pub we could see Rob and some of the others sitting near the open terrace windows. Next to him was Ashley.

“Oh no, I’m not going anywhere near them,” I hissed at Grace, pulling her arm to stop her marching across the room. “If they’ve made up again and Ashley sees me here there’ll be all sorts of trouble. I could do without another slap.”

“It would put a stop to it for good if they can both see that you mean what you say.”

“I know, but I really don’t want to ruin our night out by getting involved in a slanging match. Because that’s what’ll happen, you know it will.”

Grace pursed her lips as she thought about it. “Fair enough, but you do have to do something about Rob Underwood. And soon.” She looked around the bar. “Where’s Josh got to, then? Are you sure he’s in here?”

“Yes, look, he’s over there.” In the far corner of the bar was a more secluded area. Josh was sitting there alone, finishing the last of his pint. “Let’s go and see what’s up.”

As we weaved our way through the bar towards him I could see him looking at his watch and then around towards the Ladies; on the table there was another glass, which was half full. “Oops,” I said smiling as we reached him. “Are we interrupting? You did say to come over.”

“It’s all been really weird, actually. You might as well sit down; I think she’s gone anyway.”

“Cliona? Without saying goodbye?”

Josh took a deep breath and tried to take another swig of his drink before he remembered it was empty. He put the glass carefully down on the table and looked at me. “Yeah, well, here’s the thing. It wasn’t Cliona. Do you want to tell me what’s going on?”

I could feel the hairs on the back of my neck rise. “What do you mean? What’s it got to do with me?”

“You tell me. She said it was a joke that you would get. Did you set me up with one of your mates for a laugh?”

“What! Of course not! I’d never do that, not even to you. Who was it, if it wasn’t Cliona?”

“I’ve no idea, but she was a real oddball. Probably too oddball to be one of your friends, actually. You know, it was flattering to start with. She’s absolutely gorgeous and she’d gone to a lot of trouble to set this all up, but after a while it got a bit too creepy. I mean, even a gorgeous stalker is still a stalker, right?”

I tried again, forcing myself to stay calm. “So come on, description? What does she look like?”

“Mid-height, long, dark-blonde hair, stunning green eyes. Actually I’ve never seen eyes like it. She must have had some weird contacts in. Fit as well.”

I could feel the blood draining out of my face. “Where is she now? When did she leave?”

“About five minutes ago – just after you came in, now I think about it – she went off to the loo. Either there’s a very long queue or she saw you and legged it.”

I had been looking around the bar as he spoke, but there was no sign of anyone matching his description. “You two wait here for a second. I’m just going to check the loos.” I stood up a bit too quickly and my chair clattered noisily to the floor, making me
flinch and momentarily silencing our part of the bar. I picked it up and hurried to the Ladies. What would I say if it was Catherine? What on earth
was
all this about?

As I got to the door to the toilets a large gaggle of girls burst through it, laughing. Catherine wasn’t with them. I took a deep breath and walked in, my heart fluttering. The room was deserted. I checked each cubicle, but no one was hiding. Almost disappointed, I headed back to the corridor to return to the bar and felt an unexpected breeze. Down at the end of the passage the fire exit was open. I silently crept up to it and cautiously put my head round the door to look outside, but it was very dark in the alleyway. I stepped through to get a better look but there was no sign of anyone. If it had been her she had disappeared into the night. Sighing gently I turned around to make my way back to the others. The sudden voice cut through the darkness like a knife.

“So,” she sneered, “this is your life, is it? Quite pathetic really.”

I spun round. Catherine was emerging from the shadows with a smile on her face that didn’t reach her eyes. She was even more stunning in the flesh than she had been in the mirror, with her long blonde hair lying in thick folds on her shoulders and her hands resting on her tiny hips. But what was even more stunning was that she was
actually there,
as alive as it was possible to be. I felt my mouth drop in wonder before the anger kicked in. I couldn’t decide what to tackle first – the fact that she was a resurrected Dirge or the fact that she was clearly determined to make my life hell. My excitement quickly gave way to fury when I remembered that her most recent act of spite was toying with my unsuspecting brother.

“What do you think you’ve been playing at?” I demanded, squaring up to her.

Her green eyes were flashing in anger as she folded her arms and regarded me with contempt. “As I said, pathetic. Utterly pathetic.”

“Look, whatever I’ve done to upset you, don’t you go dragging my brother into it, or any more of my friends.”

Her lip curled. “Those friends are almost even more pathetic than you. Poor Geeky Graham! Do you think he had a nice drive to the convention the other night? And did Abbi have an enjoyable conversation with Miss Harvey?”

“What
is
your problem? What have any of these people done to you?”

“Nothing.” She shrugged. “I’m just doing it to get back at you.” She looked me up and down. “It seems to be working.”

My fingers were clenched into tight fists but I forced them to relax. “Really? If you think that, then you haven’t seen me really angry.” I smiled as genuine a smile as I could manage.

“Excellent. I was hoping that was the case, because once your friend Grace finds out about all the breathless little love notes that you’re about to start sending the lovely Jack, well, then there should be some real fireworks.”

I was momentarily speechless with anger, so she took the opportunity to carry on. “And on the subject of Jack, what were you thinking? He’s the hottest boy in the year, and you let your best friend have him? I’ve decided that, once I’ve finished with the adorable Josh, I’ll have a little crack at him.” She gestured towards herself. “Am I irresistible or what?”

“Do you seriously think that either of them will fall for your shallow charms?”

“Shallow is what they like, sweetie, don’t you know?”

I shut my eyes for a second to try and calm down. “Look,
Catherine, the police know that it was you who stole all my money. I won’t tell them where to find you if you leave my friends alone.”

“That would be such a generous offer if you actually
knew
where to find me, but you don’t, so I don’t care.”

“Why? Why do you hate me so? You wanted to escape being a Dirge, and now you’re here. I made that happen, so why are you doing all this?”

Catherine continued to look at me as if I were something nasty she had trodden in, but I tried again. “Please, Catherine, tell me! What happened when you took my mind? Did you get all your own memories back too? Do you know who you and Callum are?”

“Oh, that’s rich, coming from you,” she sneered. “Do you know who you and Callum are?” She mimicked my voice.

“What do you mean? I don’t understand.”

She took a couple of steps towards me, her lips drawing back in a snarl. “Really? Well, perhaps you should! It’s been fascinating, this whole regeneration business. The things I’ve learned! And all your memories for me to consider too; pity they’re such rubbish. I’m so very glad I didn’t get your personality too. I don’t think I could bear to be that … perky.” She spat out the final word with considerable venom.

“Well, that’s hardly my fault. It was you who stole my memories, so it’s your tough luck if you don’t like them.”

“Really? It’s time to make you suffer, you unbearable little troublemaker!”

Her cool, casual façade suddenly crumbled and I realised too late that I wasn’t safe, that she was utterly, utterly mad. She was standing directly in front of me, fists clenched and naked hatred on her face. I started weighing up my options: fight or run? Or scream
for help? I could hear the occasional blast of noise from the pub as people went to and from the toilets, but no one had come to see why the fire door was standing ajar. I swallowed hard, trying to control my breathing. She looked pretty fit, so I wasn’t convinced that I would win a fight. In desperation I shouted for the only person she might be wary of. “Callum! Quickly – I need help!” I stared at her defiantly as I could manage. “It’ll only take him a few minutes to get here.”