Want to know how well my masterful plan got before it was derailed?
Halfway to the gate out of the Brown's garden, that's how far I'd got when an official looking car pulled up and two people jumped out. The driver was a tall blond man and his companion was a smaller woman whose face was dominated by a pair of glasses even larger than Taranee's. Both wore long blue coats and from the way that they looked at me, I was obviously not who they were expecting - or perhaps hoping - to see here.
"Miss Vandom," the man started only to be elbowed by the woman.
"Will," she greeted me carefully. "It's good to see you again."
I waved my hand casually, wondering who these people were. Not teachers, not family... I walked towards the gate - there was no point doing anything suspicious like running away right now. For one thing, they were blocking the way out and I had no idea if there was a back gate or note. Bluff?
No, I decided. Not the best idea. They obviously had some expectations of Will and I'd probably be caught out quickly.
I'd come clean to Mom, at least partially. Maybe it was better to keep things simple.
"Sorry, you have the wrong girl," I replied once I was in easier earshot. "I'm guessing you think I'm Will Vandom?"
"You're not her?"
"An identical twin perhaps?" the man said sceptically.
I adopted a put-upon face and stopped outside of easy grabbing range. "Yeah, like I've never heard that before. I wouldn't mind if we were, honestly, but Mrs. Vandom says she'd remember having had twins so I don't suppose we are. And, uh, you would be?"
"I'm agent Maria Medina, from Interpol," the woman introduced herself. "And this is my partner, Joel McTiennan."
"International police?" I gave her a wide-eyed look. "Wow. How does Will know you?"
"We met last night, at the Lairs, just to ask a few questions about Elyon's disappearance. Now, since we've introduced ourselves... are you going to do the same?"
"I'm Hope." I stepped forward guilelessly and shook hands with them both. "So do you have any idea where Elyon might be? We're all worried about her." The second part was true at least.
"If we did, we'd have found her by now," Joel declared bluntly. "So what were you doing here?"
"Seeing if she's come back." I looked down at my sneakers for a moment, thinking of a plausible reason. "We've got a kind of pact. Someone checks every day and when they're back we let Cornelia know so she can shout at Elyon for scaring us all like this."
"Cornelia does the shouting does she?" asked Maria.
I spread my hands. "Girl's got a talent."
"I bet she does. And do you know anything about all your friends going missing this morning?" Joel pushed the gate sharply open and then headed up the path with quick, long strides. His coat billowed dramatically behind him as he called: "I'll see if they're inside!"
"What?" Well it wasn't a problem if he looked around, I had faith in Cornelia's wall as a defense for the portal.
Warm fingers closed around my wrist and I looked up in surprise to see that Maria had taken hold of me. "Will, whatever you're hiding, you can tell me," she pleaded.
"Uh... haven't we talked about this before? I'm Hope, not Will."
"That's not much of a cover story." She smiled slightly. "You should at least have added a family name."
I'd have folded my arms but that would have been kind of awkward with her holding onto me. "Oh come on. Call Mrs Vandom, she's met me."
Maria gave me a level look. "And I suppose you'll stay right here while I'm using the phone?"
"Look, I'm taking it on trust you're a police officer!"
She humphed. "Alright, I'll make you a deal. I'll call her if you sit in the back seat of the car while I do."
"Deal!"
"And you tell me your family name."
...Oh crab-baskets, as Irma might politely put it.
"Well?"
"That's... kind of complicated. Will says I can use Vandom but I don't think her Mom agrees. I don't have any other family name though."
"Oh come on." Now she looked like she wanted to cross her arms in frustration.
"Look, cross my heart and hope to die," I moved my finger across my chest in a sort of X-shape. "Stick a needle in my eye, I swear if I have ever had another family name I have no idea what it is!"
"That's... not how you cross your heart," she sighed and rubbed her forehead with the heel of her free hand. "Okay, just get in the back."
I had no sooner done so than she closed the door and did something fiddly with the lock of her door that locked both of the back doors. I was torn between surprise that anyone would build that into a car, sadness that there was so little trust in her that she thought it was necessary and irritation that I'd have to get out over the front seats if it came down to it.
Maria pulled out a notebook, leafed through it and then dialled a number that I was pretty sure was our home number. Well, the Vandom home number. I wasn't sure how welcome I'd be there now. Hopefully I could at least get a few things. The sleeping bag would be nice. Van Dahl's picture of me, which was up in my little loft, would be less useful, but meant more to me.
"Mrs. Vandom? This is Maria Medina, I'm with Interpol." Maria paused, listening to the reply. "Yes, it's about your daughter Will. I met her last night at the Lairs." More listening. "Run away, I see. Well I've just run into a girl who looks very much like her, but says she's called Hope."
A moment later Maria's eyebrows climbed up past the rims of her glasses. "Certainly." She reached back, offering me the handset.
I accepted cautiously. "Hello?"
"Is... is Will with you?" Mom asked tentatively.
"I'm sorry," I offered, rather inadequately I felt. "She's very... upset. I think she'll be back."
She hesitated and then, just as I was about to ask if she wanted to speak to Maria again, she asked: "Will you come back?"
I swallowed. "May I?"
She paused. "I want some answers, Hope."
Well I suppose it would have been too much to ask for. "I'll do my best. Assuming Interpol aren't going to lock me away for something or other..." I raised my eyebrows questioningly to Maria, who gestured for me to give her back her phone.
"Hello again..." She listened for a moment. "It's not quite that straightforward, Mrs. Vandom. As far as I can tell she's a runaway -"
"Running away from what?" I muttered rebelliously as she broke off again, and not due to my words.
"That could work, but what if she runs off again? Can you keep her under supervision at all times? ... No, I'm not suggesting putting her in a cell!" She looked up at me, holding the phone away from her ear. "If we take you back to Mrs. Vandom, will you stay with her?"
I hesitated, torn between a desire to say 'Yes, of course, forever if she'll have me!' and a fear of where that could lead. Shouting at me possibly. And now that she knew I wasn't Will, she'd have no reason at all to treat me kindly. I had deceived her, after all.
Maria shook her head and put the phone back. "I don't think -"
"I'll try!" I blurted.
She gave me a thoughtful look and then shrugged slightly. "Well, we can drop her off once my partner's done checking the Brown house. I'll set up a hospital appointment as soon as possible, we need to give her a complete check-up."
"Hospital?" I'd seen hospital shows on television. It looked like any number of awful things could happen there, with doctors always having to work miracles to save people.
Maria looked as if she wanted to laugh. "Okay, I'm not sure how long it'll take us to get to you. In the next hour or so, okay?" She hung up the phone. "I'm sure a tough girl like you isn't scared of hospitals."
I folded my arms and glared. After a minute she did giggle a little. "I bet you're used to getting your way everytime that you pout like that."
I was not pouting. "So you said Joel was your partner. Did you mean work or..." I trailed off teasingly.
She laughed again. "You little minx. The first; and if it was the second too then it wouldn't be any of your business."
D for Drakensis
You're only young once, but immaturity is forever.
Halfway to the gate out of the Brown's garden, that's how far I'd got when an official looking car pulled up and two people jumped out. The driver was a tall blond man and his companion was a smaller woman whose face was dominated by a pair of glasses even larger than Taranee's. Both wore long blue coats and from the way that they looked at me, I was obviously not who they were expecting - or perhaps hoping - to see here.
"Miss Vandom," the man started only to be elbowed by the woman.
"Will," she greeted me carefully. "It's good to see you again."
I waved my hand casually, wondering who these people were. Not teachers, not family... I walked towards the gate - there was no point doing anything suspicious like running away right now. For one thing, they were blocking the way out and I had no idea if there was a back gate or note. Bluff?
No, I decided. Not the best idea. They obviously had some expectations of Will and I'd probably be caught out quickly.
I'd come clean to Mom, at least partially. Maybe it was better to keep things simple.
"Sorry, you have the wrong girl," I replied once I was in easier earshot. "I'm guessing you think I'm Will Vandom?"
"You're not her?"
"An identical twin perhaps?" the man said sceptically.
I adopted a put-upon face and stopped outside of easy grabbing range. "Yeah, like I've never heard that before. I wouldn't mind if we were, honestly, but Mrs. Vandom says she'd remember having had twins so I don't suppose we are. And, uh, you would be?"
"I'm agent Maria Medina, from Interpol," the woman introduced herself. "And this is my partner, Joel McTiennan."
"International police?" I gave her a wide-eyed look. "Wow. How does Will know you?"
"We met last night, at the Lairs, just to ask a few questions about Elyon's disappearance. Now, since we've introduced ourselves... are you going to do the same?"
"I'm Hope." I stepped forward guilelessly and shook hands with them both. "So do you have any idea where Elyon might be? We're all worried about her." The second part was true at least.
"If we did, we'd have found her by now," Joel declared bluntly. "So what were you doing here?"
"Seeing if she's come back." I looked down at my sneakers for a moment, thinking of a plausible reason. "We've got a kind of pact. Someone checks every day and when they're back we let Cornelia know so she can shout at Elyon for scaring us all like this."
"Cornelia does the shouting does she?" asked Maria.
I spread my hands. "Girl's got a talent."
"I bet she does. And do you know anything about all your friends going missing this morning?" Joel pushed the gate sharply open and then headed up the path with quick, long strides. His coat billowed dramatically behind him as he called: "I'll see if they're inside!"
"What?" Well it wasn't a problem if he looked around, I had faith in Cornelia's wall as a defense for the portal.
Warm fingers closed around my wrist and I looked up in surprise to see that Maria had taken hold of me. "Will, whatever you're hiding, you can tell me," she pleaded.
"Uh... haven't we talked about this before? I'm Hope, not Will."
"That's not much of a cover story." She smiled slightly. "You should at least have added a family name."
I'd have folded my arms but that would have been kind of awkward with her holding onto me. "Oh come on. Call Mrs Vandom, she's met me."
Maria gave me a level look. "And I suppose you'll stay right here while I'm using the phone?"
"Look, I'm taking it on trust you're a police officer!"
She humphed. "Alright, I'll make you a deal. I'll call her if you sit in the back seat of the car while I do."
"Deal!"
"And you tell me your family name."
...Oh crab-baskets, as Irma might politely put it.
"Well?"
"That's... kind of complicated. Will says I can use Vandom but I don't think her Mom agrees. I don't have any other family name though."
"Oh come on." Now she looked like she wanted to cross her arms in frustration.
"Look, cross my heart and hope to die," I moved my finger across my chest in a sort of X-shape. "Stick a needle in my eye, I swear if I have ever had another family name I have no idea what it is!"
"That's... not how you cross your heart," she sighed and rubbed her forehead with the heel of her free hand. "Okay, just get in the back."
I had no sooner done so than she closed the door and did something fiddly with the lock of her door that locked both of the back doors. I was torn between surprise that anyone would build that into a car, sadness that there was so little trust in her that she thought it was necessary and irritation that I'd have to get out over the front seats if it came down to it.
Maria pulled out a notebook, leafed through it and then dialled a number that I was pretty sure was our home number. Well, the Vandom home number. I wasn't sure how welcome I'd be there now. Hopefully I could at least get a few things. The sleeping bag would be nice. Van Dahl's picture of me, which was up in my little loft, would be less useful, but meant more to me.
"Mrs. Vandom? This is Maria Medina, I'm with Interpol." Maria paused, listening to the reply. "Yes, it's about your daughter Will. I met her last night at the Lairs." More listening. "Run away, I see. Well I've just run into a girl who looks very much like her, but says she's called Hope."
A moment later Maria's eyebrows climbed up past the rims of her glasses. "Certainly." She reached back, offering me the handset.
I accepted cautiously. "Hello?"
"Is... is Will with you?" Mom asked tentatively.
"I'm sorry," I offered, rather inadequately I felt. "She's very... upset. I think she'll be back."
She hesitated and then, just as I was about to ask if she wanted to speak to Maria again, she asked: "Will you come back?"
I swallowed. "May I?"
She paused. "I want some answers, Hope."
Well I suppose it would have been too much to ask for. "I'll do my best. Assuming Interpol aren't going to lock me away for something or other..." I raised my eyebrows questioningly to Maria, who gestured for me to give her back her phone.
"Hello again..." She listened for a moment. "It's not quite that straightforward, Mrs. Vandom. As far as I can tell she's a runaway -"
"Running away from what?" I muttered rebelliously as she broke off again, and not due to my words.
"That could work, but what if she runs off again? Can you keep her under supervision at all times? ... No, I'm not suggesting putting her in a cell!" She looked up at me, holding the phone away from her ear. "If we take you back to Mrs. Vandom, will you stay with her?"
I hesitated, torn between a desire to say 'Yes, of course, forever if she'll have me!' and a fear of where that could lead. Shouting at me possibly. And now that she knew I wasn't Will, she'd have no reason at all to treat me kindly. I had deceived her, after all.
Maria shook her head and put the phone back. "I don't think -"
"I'll try!" I blurted.
She gave me a thoughtful look and then shrugged slightly. "Well, we can drop her off once my partner's done checking the Brown house. I'll set up a hospital appointment as soon as possible, we need to give her a complete check-up."
"Hospital?" I'd seen hospital shows on television. It looked like any number of awful things could happen there, with doctors always having to work miracles to save people.
Maria looked as if she wanted to laugh. "Okay, I'm not sure how long it'll take us to get to you. In the next hour or so, okay?" She hung up the phone. "I'm sure a tough girl like you isn't scared of hospitals."
I folded my arms and glared. After a minute she did giggle a little. "I bet you're used to getting your way everytime that you pout like that."
I was not pouting. "So you said Joel was your partner. Did you mean work or..." I trailed off teasingly.
She laughed again. "You little minx. The first; and if it was the second too then it wouldn't be any of your business."
D for Drakensis
You're only young once, but immaturity is forever.