He didn’t know what to say. Keeping quiet was probably best. He didn’t want her to know that he’d never been on a plane or that he didn’t quite understand what she was talking about.
‘Are you doing any sciences?’ she asked.
He wasn’t sure cooking would count, but he went for it anyway, told her he was doing an NVQ, with two days a week work experience attached. He didn’t know if such a course even existed, but it sounded cool. And because he wanted to impress her more, he took the bottle of whisky from his jacket pocket and held it out. ‘Look what I’ve got.’
‘Where did you get that?’
‘My mate. You want some?’
She shook her head, but he unstoppered it anyway, tipped the bottle back and took a long slug. Before he’d had time to swallow, she reached over and grabbed it from him. Whisky spilled down his chin and onto his jacket. He wiped his mouth, laughing. ‘You said no.’
She smiled prettily. ‘I changed my mind.’
He didn’t know what would happen next and he didn’t know what he’d do when it happened. He watched her sip. She grimaced as she swallowed, then passed the bottle back.
‘Listen,’ she said. ‘I should probably go back. They might wonder where I am.’
‘I’ll come with you.’
‘If you like.’
It was only as they went through the gate that he realized he hadn’t found out anything useful about her brother at all.
‘So,’ she said as they walked back up the slope. ‘How does your mate know Tom?’
She stopped walking and smiled. He knew she’d seen him falter. She leaned in to him, whispered, ‘You better get your story straight, because here he comes.’
Tom Parker came walking down the slope towards them. He was thinner close up, and looked younger. He had big blue eyes, like he wouldn’t hurt anyone. But Mikey knew his secret.
Tom smiled at his sister. ‘All right, Ellie?’
So that was her name.
He said, ‘Found someone to talk to in the end?’
She shrugged. ‘Whatever.’
‘Don’t be like that. I’ve been looking for you for ages. Where have you been?’
Ah, it was thrilling how close he was. He had designer stubble, a sore place at the side of his mouth, a spattering of freckles across his nose. If they were alone, Mikey would reach into his pocket for the spanner. He’d yank it high and slam it down on the bastard’s skull.
Tom frowned at the whisky in Mikey’s hand. ‘Where did you get that?’ He leaned right in and grabbed the bottle from him.
Mikey shot a glance at Ellie. She was smiling, or rather trying not to laugh. ‘Leave it, Tom. He didn’t know it was Dad’s.’
Tom waved it at them. ‘You know how much this is worth? Two hundred quid a bottle. I’m sorry, but this is definitely not for public consumption.’
Mikey wanted to say something funny, but couldn’t think of anything.
Tom turned to Ellie. ‘Who is this?’
She hesitated. Mikey could hardly breathe, waiting for what she’d say. Finally, ‘He’s with me.’
Mikey liked that. All the tension coiled out of him, knowing she was on his side.
A boy came running up, pulled on Tom’s sleeve. Mikey saw he was desperate for something. ‘Your dad’s freaking out,’ the boy puffed. ‘Some bloke’s been asking questions about you and your dad thinks he’s a journalist.’
‘Where’s the bloke now?’ Mikey asked. He couldn’t help himself, knew this kid was talking about Jacko.
The boy shook his head. ‘Dunno. We chased him, but he got away.’
Maybe the relief showed on Mikey’s face, because Tom narrowed his eyes at him suspiciously. ‘If this is anything to do with you, you’re in big trouble.’ Then he spun off with the boy across the garden.
Ellie said, ‘My brother’s a bit wired tonight. Sorry.’
‘Yeah.’
‘He’s had a hard time.’
‘He should drink some of that whisky, help him relax.’
She didn’t say anything to that, but she eyed him steadily for a moment. He didn’t know what that meant.
‘I should go and see if they’re OK,’ she said. ‘If my dad’s freaking out, the party’s pretty much over.’
It was a disaster. Not only was she walking away, but Jacko had been chased out, which meant Tom Parker was going to escape a kicking for the second time.
‘Nice to meet you,’ she said.
He had to stop her. ‘Give me your mobile number.’
She turned round. ‘Why?’
Because he was supposed to be gathering intelligence. Because she was the best source. Because he could see the same anger simmering in her that he had in him and he wanted to know why. But what he said was, ‘I’d like to see you again.’
She frowned. Maybe she didn’t like him. They’d been laughing and it had seemed like it was going well, but maybe he’d read it wrong. The signs were probably different with girls like her. He kicked the dirt with his foot. She was making it difficult. She was making it seem real.
She pulled her phone from her pocket. ‘You give me yours instead.’
He reeled it off. It wasn’t what he wanted, but she shook her head when he asked for hers again. ‘I might change my mind in the morning.’
He gave her his best grin. ‘Why would you change your mind?’
She shrugged. ‘You can’t rely on anything.’
She looked sad for a minute and he thought he had to do something quickly. ‘I’d like to get to know you better,’ he said. ‘No kidding.’
‘Then maybe I’ll call you.’
He watched her walk back up to the house, all the doors open, all the windows blazing with light.
Eight
Ellie had followed all the rules of invisibility. She wasn’t wearing make‑up, not even mascara. She’d taken out her earrings, removed her necklace and tied her hair up neatly with an elastic. Her grey skirt was regulation length and her white shirt was buttoned to the top. She had no perfume on.
A yell from downstairs made her jump. ‘Hurry up, Ellie, we leave in five minutes!’
Maybe it would be all right. She gave herself a final look in the bathroom mirror, then opened the door and went downstairs.
Her mother clapped her hands to her face. ‘Oh, love, you look perfect.’
Dad and Tom looked up from their breakfasts and took it all in, from the flat‑heeled shoes to the thick black tights.
‘Very smart,’ Dad said.
Tom waved his fork in agreement, ‘Looking studious, kid.’
Ellie pulled on her cardigan and did the buttons up slowly. ‘You know everyone’s going to stare at me?’
Her mum gave her a doleful look, but didn’t say anything.
Tom said, ‘I wish I was doing something normal today.’
‘Well, why don’t you go instead of me?’
He pulled a face at her. ‘Very subtle, thanks.’
Ellie sighed, poured herself a juice and took a sip. Her mum stood at the end of the dining table wielding serving tongs. The platter in front of her was loaded with fried egg, sausage, bacon and mushrooms and next to it was a basket of croissants and pastries.
‘Anyone for any more?’ she said, and she snapped the tongs at the men like crocodile jaws.
Ellie frowned. ‘Why have you made all this food?’
‘Your mother’s feeding us up,’ Dad said. ‘We’ve got a conference with the barrister this morning.’ He had a notebook and pen in front of him, scribbled something down, then turned to Tom. ‘We need to get together a record of your academic achievements – everything you were involved in at school, everything at college. Clubs, prizes, that kind of thing. Extra‑curricular activities will go down well.’
Ellie reached for a croissant and spread it with butter. It was hardly a low‑fat breakfast, but if she thought of herself as a soldier going into battle, then the calories were justified.
Dad continued to scribble things down in his notebook. ‘The golf club tournament would count,’ he said. ‘You got through to the semi‑final in that, didn’t you, Tom?’