Raelia (The Medoran Chronicles Book 2) (32 page)

While undergoing her makeover, Alex was aware of the others whispering amongst themselves, but she couldn’t hear what they were saying. She was relieved when Skyla said she was done, and Alex left her to pack up while she rejoined the others.

“What is it?” Alex asked, noting the hesitant, guilty and determined looks on their faces.

“We think it’s a good idea if some of us remain behind, just in case we need a backup plan,” Tom said. “Since the waiters are a good cover and I’m the only musician, we’ve decided that we can probably get away with sending just two guests in. We’re thinking Declan and Pipsqueak should go, while you and Skyla remain behind.”

“What?” Alex asked loudly. She indicated to herself and Skyla who had just joined them, “Don’t we get a say in this?”

“Alex, can I speak with you in private?” Jordan asked.

“Jordan—”

“
Alex
,” he said firmly, motioning for her to follow him.

Once they were out of hearing range, he looked apologetically at her. “It’s not you, it’s Skyla.”

“What do you mean?”

“You know what she’s like,” Jordan said. “Her head’s in the clouds ninety-eight percent of the time. She’s harmless but she’s
also unreliable and we’re worried she’ll be a liability. We need someone to keep an eye on her, and since you’ve already had to do so much over the past two days, we figured you should be allowed to sit this one out.”

“I don’t
want
to sit it out.”

“Please, Alex,” Jordan begged. “You can see why we don’t want her in there, can’t you?”

Alex glanced over to where the others were standing and could just make out their silhouettes in the dark. Skyla was sitting on the tree trunk, polishing her nails in the limited light, while everyone else stood tense and ready. Her voice carried over to them, and Alex cringed when she heard her ask if they would get to dance at the party.

“I do understand,” Alex admitted. “But I just wish I didn’t have to be the one to babysit her.”

“I know,” Jordan said softly.

She followed him resignedly over to the others and listened while Tom explained to Skyla that she and Alex would be remaining behind.

“But that’s not fair!” Skyla exclaimed loud enough that they had to shush her. “I’m all dressed up and beautiful—I should be allowed to go! Don’t you trust me?”

The girl’s eyes were filling with tears and Alex realised that it was up to her to intervene. “Skyla, don’t you see? You and I have the most important mission tonight. If something goes wrong for these guys, it’ll be up to us to complete the task. They’re only leaving us behind
because
they trust us so much.”

“Really?” Skyla asked, sniffling quietly.

“Really,” Jordan said, playing along.

“I guess that’s okay, then,” Skyla said, standing taller. “Don’t worry, we’ll look after you if something goes wrong. We’ve got your backs.”

Alex released a breath and reached for Skyla’s sparkly pink ComTCD as Declan handed it over.

“I’ll keep you updated on what’s happening,” he promised.

“Thanks,” she said. “Now, you should all get out of here. And Tom, don’t forget your banjo-thing.”

He looked at her strangely. “My what?”

She pointed to his backpack. “You’re the musician, remember. I’m pretty sure you need something to play.”

“Right,” he said, shuffling over to his pack to retrieve the instrument. “I haven’t played in years.”

“Hopefully it’s just like riding a bike,” Alex said.

“What’s a bike?”

Alex gave a startled laugh at the absurd comment before she brushed his question off and told them all to leave.

“We’ll come get you once we have the performer guy we’re meant to find,” Jordan said.

“Sure,” she replied, trying to act okay about it all when really she was frustrated that she had to stay behind with Skyla. “Take all the time you need.”

Alex watched as they made their own path down the hill and crept along under the cover of the now completely dark sky. After a while it was difficult to see them, but she spotted them again once they were closer to the well-lit mansion. One by one they broke away from the group and entered the building.

“
We’re in
,” Declan’s voice whispered through the ComTCD. “
The waiters are heading to the kitchen and Tom’s joining the band. Pip and I are going to introduce ourselves to the host
.”

“Don’t forget to use your fake names,” Alex reminded.

“
Oh, right. Thanks.
”

It was another twenty minutes before Alex heard anything other than the indecipherable chatter of the various guests and the distorted music from the orchestra.

“
Alex, we have a problem
,” Declan said. “
I overheard one of the guests talking about a performer who was in the middle of his juggling act two nights ago when he accidentally dropped a ball into Sir Oswald’s wineglass, spilling it all over him. No one has seen the performer since, but they think he’s locked somewhere underneath the mansion
.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me!” Alex cried. “Do you think he’s our guy?”

“
Pretty certain, yeah
,” Declan said. “
It makes sense, considering Hunter’s instructions to retrieve the performer from his ‘accommodation’
.”

“Do the others know?”

“
No, I haven’t been able to talk with anyone. But I’ll try to get a message to them
.”

“How will you bring the performer out if he’s a prisoner?”

“
I’m still working on that
,” Declan answered. “
I’m hoping one of the others might have an idea. I’ll update you again in a few—
”

His words were interrupted by a loud voice. “
What are you doing in here? Who are you talking to?
”

“
Uh, I was just admiring the view
,” Declan said.

“
Show me your ID
,” the other voice commanded.

Alex flicked her ComTCD to the visual setting so she could watch what was happening. The holograph rose up out of her Device, showing Declan and another man standing in a small room. The other man looked like some kind of armed security guard.

Declan handed over his identification tag and the guard peered at it before saying, “
Dillon Staring? Never heard of you. How did you get on the guest list?
”

“
I came with my girlfriend. She’s a close friend of
—”

Whatever Declan had been about to say was interrupted when the door burst open.

“
Bro, where’ve you been? We’re all waiting for—Oh.
”

Alex would have groaned at Blink’s horrible timing if she
wasn’t so worried about sound carrying through Declan’s ComTCD.

“
Both of you, put your hands up
,” the man ordered, pulling out a weapon that looked identical to the military Stabilisers she’d seen at the compound.

“What’s happening?” Skyla asked loudly.

Alex turned to shush her, but the damage was already done.

“
Who said that?
” the man demanded, looking around the room. “
You there, Dillon, what’s that you’re holding?
”

The man reached out to snatch the Device from Declan’s hand and Alex abruptly ended the call, not wanting to give him time to activate the visual setting on his end and see them.

“Skyla, I need you to wait here,” Alex said urgently. “You need to be very quiet, understand?”

“Where are you going?”

“I have to go and find out what’s happening,” Alex told her. “I won’t be long—I promise I’ll be back soon. But you have to stay here, okay?”

“I will,” Skyla agreed. “I won’t move until you get back.”

Alex swapped her heels for her hiking shoes, lifted her gown, and took off down the hill at a sprint, only slowing once she entered the manicured gardens. Very carefully, she snuck around the various hedges until she was adjacent with the side of the building. Just as she was about to step out of her hiding place and enter the front doors, two burly security guards walked outside and took up positions by the entrance. Alex had to jump behind a peacock statue to avoid being seen.

What now?
she wondered, thinking fast.

She dashed from statue to statue, hiding behind large caricature topiaries until she was at the back of the mansion. Moving quickly, she hurried over the lawn and pressed herself against the building, sliding along it until she found a balcony with light streaming through a double-door opening. She could
hear the sounds of the party inside; the only problem was that it was two floors above her.

“Good thing I changed my shoes,” Alex muttered, as she reached out to grab the vines that decorated the side of the mansion. Her gown made the climb difficult, but after tucking the hem into her underwear—and hoping no one was around to watch the show—she pulled herself up the side of the mansion and over the balustrade onto the balcony. She made sure she was concealed in the shadows before she peered through the doorway.

“Honoured guests,” called an impeccably dressed older man from the far side of the grand ballroom. He stood at the top of an elegant staircase that led down from the floor above. “Forgive the interruption, but it seems we have some party crashers amongst us. Your safety is my highest priority, so please assist my security personnel as they scan your ID tags to check for forgeries. Feel free to continue the festivities whilst we ensure all the intruders are accounted for.”

Alex watched as the security teams spread out across the room and ran small, glowing devices across the top of everyone’s ID tags. Pip was the first of her classmates to be escorted from the room, followed by Jordan, then Kaiden. Tom almost remained unnoticed, but one of the security guards called out for another to scan the musicians.

“Well, this sucks,” Alex whispered, as the man on the stairs—Sir Oswald Graham, she presumed—apologised for the inconvenience and told his guests to relax and enjoy the party once more.

Having no idea what to do, Alex scrambled back down to the ground and ran up the hill to Skyla.

“What’s going on?” Skyla asked.

Alex told her everything she’d seen, while racking her mind for a solution.

“We need to assume they’re all together,” Alex said. “Hopefully they’ll be locked up in the same area as the performer we’re supposed to retrieve.”

“Why do we want them locked up?” Skyla asked, confused.

“Because if they’re in the same place, it’ll be easier for us to get them all out at once,” Alex said.

Skyla’s voice was surprised when she said, “We’re going to rescue them?”

“What else can we do?” Alex said. “Leave them there? No way.”

Skyla’s silence was enough to show that she agreed, and Alex began to pace while she thought about what to do. Finally she stopped and turned to the other girl.

“I have an idea. But I’m going to need your help.” Alex outlined her vague plan, giving as many details as she could before she asked, “Do you think you can do that?”

“You can count on me,” Skyla promised.

Alex hoped they weren’t going to end up imprisoned with the rest of their classmates. “Okay, then,” she said. “Can you grab me Pip’s pillow?”

While Skyla was rustling around in the dark for Pipsqueak’s pack, Alex dug through the bag closest to her and retrieved the relaxant spray from the medical kit since her own was lost somewhere in the Durungan Ranges. Skyla handed her the pillow and Alex sprayed a liberal amount of the medication onto the fluffy material, being careful not to inhale any of it. She then stuffed the fuming object into her own backpack along with her heels and Skyla’s makeup case, securing her bag on her back.

“Ready?” she asked, and at Skyla’s nod, the two descended the hill and stealthily made their way to the place where Alex had climbed up to the balcony.

“We’re aiming for that room up there,” Alex said, pointing to an open window about four floors above them. “Do you see that ledge? That’s where we want to go.”

“That’s high,” Skyla said shakily.

“You can do it,” Alex encouraged her. “We’ll stop halfway, and I’ll be with you the entire time.”

Skyla wasn’t burdened by a backpack like Alex was, but she still had more trouble climbing up the vines. Alex whispered reassurances to her, and when they made it to the second-floor balcony, she and Skyla looked into the ballroom.

“See that guy?” Alex said, pointing to Sir Oswald. “That’s him. He’s the host.”

Skyla’s eyes travelled over him, looking more focused than Alex had ever seen. “Got it.”

Alex had to trust Skyla knew what she was talking about. After more struggling upwards in the dark, they reached the fourth-floor window.

The room was dark, which was perfect cover for them. Without being able to see anything inside, Alex pulled herself over the ledge, reaching out to help Skyla climb in. The moment both of them were inside, the overhead light flicked on.

“What’re you doing in my room?”

Seventeen

Alex held her breath as she stared
at the little boy holding a teddy bear and standing in the doorway of what was evidently his bedroom, judging by the toys scattered all about the place.

“Oh, aren’t you just adorable?” Skyla cooed, walking towards the child. “Would you look at him, Alex? I just want to wrap him up and take him home.”

Alex hissed out a low warning, trying to get Skyla to keep her distance from the wide-eyed boy, but it was no use.

“Hello, there,” Skyla said, kneeling a few feet away from him. “My name is Skyla but tonight I’m Samantha. Who are you?”

So much for our fake identities
, Alex thought with a mental sigh.

The boy looked uncertainly from Alex to Skyla before he whispered, “I’m not supposed to talk to strangers.”

“Are you allowed to talk to friends?” Skyla asked. “Because I’d like to be your friend.”

Alex inwardly winced at Skyla’s creepy-sounding words, but her intent sounded genuine—and innocent. Regardless, the boy looked confused and Alex was worried he’d make a run for it. She took an anxious step forward, heaving her bag into a better position on her shoulder. Her eyes widened as an absolutely ridiculous idea came to her. Maybe Hunter’s cryptic note had been instructive after all.