Chapter Two

“I have to get going,” Kyle Wilson said that night, getting up from the sofa. “We have school in the morning,” he explained to the guests in his Manchester accent. He kicked Stacey Mackenzie in the leg, “Come on.”

Stacey groaned, “Fine. But if I’m a bitch tomorrow in Regi, it’s your fault.” She heaved herself up. Stacey was identical to Cali, but their personalities were totally different. Cali swore a lot, and she seemed to be naturally violent. While Stacey was more sarcastic. Kyle was a brunette, with spiked hair and clear grey eyes. He had his eyebrow pierced too. “Later,” Stacey said to the other, and they both left.

“School?” Charlie asked. “They didn’t have that last time.”

“Easter holidays,” Brendan McKinlay told them in his Welsh accent. He was lounging on the sofa, his head on Phillip’s shoulder. His short dark brown hair was a mess; his piercing light blue eyes were tired looking. “They ended after you left though. All in all, the event was pretty well timed.”

*          *          *          *          *

“Post!!” Phillip trilled, walking through the house the next morning. He paused when he reached the living room. Stacey was there in her school uniform, searching through the clutter on the coffee table. “What are you doing here?”

“What are you doing up?” she retorted. “I can’t find my RS jotter. Have you seen it?”

“Why would it be here?”

“I had to use the computer base to look up information on abortion. So you haven’t seen it?” Phillip shook his head. She sighed. Cali Roberts wandered out the kitchen, “Bob, have you seen-?” She trailed off, as Cali pressed her red jotter into her hand. “Why did you have it?”

Cali shrugged, “I was bloody bored last night so I thought I’d sleep. Then I couldn’t, so I tried to find something that would put me to sleep.” She looked annoyed, “Who knew Religious Studies was so fucking interesting?” Stacey burst out laughing, Cali glared at her.

“I gotta go. See you unschooled idiots later.” She ducked the swipes that came at her from both sides and ran up to her room, where she would take a portal back to Edinburgh. “Matt,” she acknowledged on her way past.

“Morning!” Phillip called. “You’re up early.”

“Couldn’t sleep.”

“Yeah, being worried you’re going to die does that to you,” Phillip commented. Cali took the mail from him and started to rifle through it.

“‘All of Rediunyn Jr.’,” she read with a glance at Phillip. She gave the rest of the post back to him and opened it carefully. “What the fuck?”

Matt ran down the steps leading to the terrace where the bedrooms were. “What?” He looked over Cali’s shoulder. She was holding a photograph, of all things. She was holding it vertically, and on it was a picture of a girl. She was surrounded by an odd white light, her long hair crackled with electricity, and her eyes were a shiny milky-white, looking like two pearls sitting in her face. They all stared at the picture.

“It’s Kenz…” Cali whispered.

*          *          *          *          *

“Hey,” Stacey called, coming into the house later that day. She’d changed out of her school uniform. She walked towards the kitchen, but stopped half way. “What, Cali? You’re glaring at me more than usual.”

Cali stood up, “Do you know what can happen to you if you’re a white-eye?”

“Depends on whether you’ve actually done anything wrong,” Stacey said, turning round. “Why? Your Mor taken a turn for the worst and gone Mono?” She yelped as Cali slammed a piece of paper into her chest. Cali waited a moment before groaning.

“Shit… I’m stronger than I look…” she muttered, rubbing her chest. Stacey looked at the photo paper, turning it round and upside down before getting it the right way round.

“Holy fuck,” she murmured. “This is one of the best Photoshop projects I’ve ever seen. Who made it?”

“We got it by post.”

A frowned crossed her face, “What?”