The Enemy

‘You’re a terrible patient, you know.’

‘I don’t want to be a patient. What about my ribs?’

‘They could well be broken. But there’s no bones sticking out or anything. You can’t do much for cracked ribs. You just have to be careful. And try not to laugh.’

‘That’ll be easy.’

Maxie stared up at the ornate ceiling of the ballroom. All wedding-cake plasterwork with gold leaf and fancy bits and pieces. Dusty chandeliers dangling down all over the place. Fu

‘Maybe you should go up to the sick-bay with Blue,’ said Maeve. ‘Let Rose and her nurses look after you. They’re pretty sorted up there.’

‘No,’ said Maxie. ‘I’m not putting myself in their hands. I’ll be all right.’

She didn’t feel all right. Her side was one big bruise and she could barely move her arm.

And she couldn’t stop thinking about Freak.

They’d buried him in the palace gardens that morning, as soon as they’d got back from the fight. Standing in the rain, everyone silent and miserable. Maxie had wanted to say a few words, like Freak had done when they burned Arran’s body, but she had nothing to say.

‘I’ll get you some more painkillers,’ said Maeve.

‘Thanks.’

‘And try to think positive thoughts. You’ll get better much quicker.’

‘Positive thoughts…? Right.’

‘I know it’s hard.’

‘The idea was, Maeve, that when we got here everything was going to be all right. But it isn’t. Everything’s crap.’

‘Come on,’ said Maeve. ‘Don’t forget so soon what it was really like back at Waitrose. It was hell. There was one less of us nearly every week.’

‘At least before we knew where we were. We were friends. We stuck together. Now there are too many of us. We’re falling apart. Losing touch with each other. It’s too complicated.’

Before Maeve could say anything the doors opened and Ollie came in.

‘I’ve just been up to see Blue,’ he said. ‘He’s in the sick-bay with that girl we rescued near Green Park.’

‘I’d forgotten about her,’ said Maxie. ‘How is she?’

‘Pretty bad, I think.’

‘And Blue?’

‘He’s conscious at least, but being sick everywhere. Puked up this stuff that looked like egg yolk.’

‘Bile,’ said Maeve. ‘Often happens if you get concussed.’

‘Is anyone with him?’ asked Maxie.

‘Whitney was up there but Rose got rid of us. Says he needs to rest. How are you doing?’

‘I’m fine.’

Ollie sat down. ‘Only David wants to talk to you about what happened this morning.’

‘I’ve got nothing to say to him.’

‘We owe it to him to –’

‘We don’t owe him anything!’ Maxie exploded.

‘We do actually,’ said Ollie. ‘They’ve given us their food. They’ve let us stay here. David may be a bit of a dick but he’s smart and he’s organized. We don’t want to screw things up.’

‘I’m not going to spend the rest of my life fighting his fights for him,’ said Maxie. ‘What kind of a life is that?’

‘Right now it’s the only life we’ve got,’ said Ollie. ‘Wherever we go in London it’s going to be the same. We’re going to have to fight. That’s how the world is now. Better that we fight for something that’s worth it. Better that we stick with the strongest bunch around. With whoever looks like coming out on top.’

‘OK, so what if those tossers we fought today look like coming out on top? Would you join them?’

Ollie sighed and ran the fingers of both hands through his red hair.

He thought for a while, but said nothing.

50

Sam and The Kid had hold of Rhia

After spotting them Nick had ducked back inside the carriage to get something and the children had bolted. It was only a matter of time before he caught up with them, though. He knew his way around and he was faster.

‘We need to hide,’ said The Kid.

‘Where?’ said Rhia

‘Search me,’ said The Kid.

They heard pounding footsteps behind them and looked back to see a torch beam scouring the darkness, bouncing off the walls. The Kid whipped his lighter out and lit it one-handed. They saw an exit sign and followed it. They ran down a short tu

‘That way,’ The Kid hissed and they darted up the middle. It was easier going on the stairs than the stationary escalators, which had taller steps.

When they got to the top Rhia

‘We’ve got to keep going,’ Sam said to Rhia

‘We must,’ said Sam, and he shook her.

Rhia

Another tu

‘We must be nearly there,’ said Sam. ‘Once we’re outside it’ll be easier.’

‘I-won’t-make-it-up-there…’ said Rhia

Sam looked around. There would have been two escalators here, but one of them had evidently been under repair. It was boarded off. There was only the one way up and down. There was a pile of rubbish dumped at the foot of the escalator that was out of action. Bits of plywood and wire and sheets of cardboard.

The footsteps were getting nearer. The torch beam was shining along the tu

Sam nodded to the pile of rubbish, not daring to speak.

The three of them climbed behind some cardboard and ducked down, huddled together, trying to make themselves small. Rhia

‘I can’t go on,’ she wheezed. ‘I feel like I’m going to explode. I’m so dizzy. Don’t make me go on. Please…’

‘Shhh,’ said The Kid, ‘be quiet now.’

Sam made sure he could see what was going on, peeking from behind a flap of cardboard. He watched Nick come charging down the tu

Rachel swore. ‘Did they go up?’

‘Du

‘Have they got away?’

‘They can’t have done,’ said Nick. ‘They was only just ahead of us.’

‘Did they go the other way then?’

‘Could have done. Could be anywhere.’

Rachel looked back up the escalator. Something was making her nervous.

‘Maybe we should let them go, lover?’

‘Let them go?’ said Nick. ‘After all the food we’ve wasted on them?’

‘I don’t want to go up top.’

‘Maybe they’re not up there,’ said Nick. ‘Maybe they never made it this far.’

‘You think maybe they’re still down in the tu

‘Must be. I’ll go back down and look.’

‘I’ll carry on up to the ticket hall,’ said Rachel. ‘I’ll holler if I hear anything.’

‘All right,’ said Nick. ‘But go carefully.’

‘Ah, they’re only kids,’ said Rachel and she started up the escalator.

Nick ran off back the way he had come.