CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

Janna's breath whistled though her teeth. 'So the guy who killed Iwardi is the same man who tried to kidnap you at the station.'

'Has to be,' Alpha confirmed. Icy fingers welled up her spine and her voice came out croakily. 'There's something else… that place where you found Iwardi's ghost… it's right next to Mr Thom's office.'

'Farting Frogspawn!' said Janna. 'Was it Mr Thom who stuffed Iwardi in that case?'

Alpha forced herself to remember the scene she'd witnessed in Janna's mind, when Iwardi had been caught. She swallowed, tried to make herself sound more in control. 'No, whoever it was he was a lot taller than Mr Thom. But they could be working together.'

'I'll search his desk and his bedroom,' volunteered Sunday.

Alpha grabbed him by the arm. 'No!' She could imagine the telepathy teacher's reaction if he found Sunday sneaking into his rooms. 'Let's get out of here, then we can decide what to do.'

Her stomach churned, matching her buzzing thoughts on the journey back, and she hardly noticed the crawl space. A few minutes later Sunday flipped back the trapdoor. Alpha, who was next in line, froze at what was waiting for them. Mr Thom stood there, arms folded, his face an impassive mask. But his earlobes were tinted a deep, angry purple.

He spoke in an icy voice. 'You know the West Wing is forbidden territory, but that isn't enough to stop you. So I will. You're grounded for a month. No student lounge, no TV, and you stay in your own rooms every evening. '

'But Mr Thom…' began Janna. Alpha hushed her by standing on her toe. If there was one person she didn't want to tell about Iwardi and Pasha it was Mr Thom.

Mr Thom wasn't interested in Janna's comments anyway. 'I don't want to know. Lily's waiting for you and you too, Sunday. Alpha, you're coming with me.'

As Sunday and Janna hurried away Alpha stared at their retreating backs, feeling frightened and very much alone. Reluctantly she followed Mr Thom outside. He crossed the grass, aiming for the woods, covering the ground with deceptive speed in spite of his short legs. Alpha found herself running to keep up with him, when all she wanted to do was run in the other direction.

The wood cut out most of the light from the sun; in it beech trees battled for space with sycamores and oaks and Alpha made out several well-trodden routes. Small creatures scuttled through fallen leaves. After walking in front of her without saying a single word for about fifteen minutes, Mr Thom turned down a steep path that carried him into a glade filled with ferns. At the bottom he bent to take a sip of water from a stream. He must have walked off some of his fury, for his ears had returned to their normal nut-brown colour.

He snorted deeply, then crossed the flowing water, stepping on the stones scattered within the stream. When he reached the middle he sat down on a boulder and looked back at Alpha, patting the rock beside him, gesturing for her to join him. 'Fresh air clears the mind and opens the psychic channels, and the water helps to neutralise bad karma,' he told her.

I wish it would neutralise you, thought Alpha, clambering across slimy rocks.

'We've going to find out how powerful you are. Dr Scott believes you're stronger than anyone else he's measured.' His nose twitched and Alpha could see that he found that difficult to believe.

Alpha squirmed, unable to find a comfortable position on the hard rock. Aren't we supposed to working on the train smash?

But Mr Thom ignored that. 'I want you to reach for Dr Scott's mind.'

'But he said I should never try to get into anyone's head.'

'Don't fret; he knows exactly what I have in mind. In fact, he's waiting for you to find him now. We're going to test your range first.'

Alpha let her mind go, hunting the thoughts that felt like a warm bath. She'd been in Dr Scott's mind, and she knew his thought signature. To her surprise the blue/black egg in her pocket began to merge with her thoughts as she spun through the woods, beyond the drive, across grassy plains. It made the mind journey easier, and allowed her to see the route her mind was taking. Soon she settled on the sandy cove. She tried to frame a mindtalk bubble to connect with him but before she could ready her thoughts Mr Thom jogged her hand, demandingly. 'Have you found him yet?'

'He's on the beach.'

'Hmm… a range of nearly a mile. Impressive. Now shift your mind into the house. Hunt for surface thoughts only, remember, we don't enter anyone's mind unless they give us permission first.'

Alpha let her mind drift again. Though the hill made it difficult, the spillage of the staff at the big house flitted through her consciousness, and she was about to choose one to focus on when she suddenly found a very disturbed mind. Rondel's!

Rondel was stuffing things into a bag, and eyes were full of tears. Goodbye school! she said silently. I've lost my chance to be a psychic; I'm not coming back.

'I've found Rondel. She's leaving the school, packing her bags.'

'That's ridiculous. It's not long since she finished a session with Lily. Try again.'

Alpha felt her blood boil. How dare he suggest she couldn't read something as simple as a bit of spillage?

'I am right – she's packing her things, and she's not happy about going.' In her fury Alpha rammed through the tissue barrier of Rondel's brain right into her mind and the first thought she found there startled her. 'She's running away!'

'What!'

'She's leaving Krakow Bond. She's determined to go, even though half of her doesn't want to.'

She slid sideways as Mr Tom leapt right over her. He raced across the stepping-stones and began pounding up the hill, his legs pumping like pistons.

'Shall I tell Dr Scott,' she called, once she'd regained her balance.

'No time for that,' Mr Thom cried out, already halfway up the hill.

Why doesn't he want Dr Scott to know? Is he going to force her to stay against her will? Is she leaving because of him? Alpha sent her mind chasing across space towards Dr Scott, hoping she could find him again; each time she reached out she burned up more of her supply of psychic energy.

But the egg came to her aid again, stretching her abilities, drawing her towards the principal like a dart flying true to the bull's-eye. Dr Scott, it's Alpha, she projected, pushing the mindtalk bubble right up against his nose so he wouldn't miss it. Get back to the house - Rondel is running away.