Balls, Allie thought.
‘Awesome,’ Zoe said. Shoulders squared, she was already headed towards the door, shoving her way through the crowd ahead of Allie like a little tank. ‘Let’s go and change.’
‘See you outside in five, Carter.’ Jules tone was brisk as she followed Zoe.
There was no time to say anything; feeling sick, Allie ran after them.
The changing room was mayhem as girls struggled to remove their silk and velvet dresses quickly, replacing them with black thermal leggings. Allie tried not to look at Jules as she changed. Tried not to wonder if Carter thought Jules was prettier.
She had nothing to hold her hair back with so when Zoe ripped the ribbons from her hair Allie grabbed one and tried to use it as a ponytail holder, but her fingers were suddenly numb and she couldn’t get it to work.
Standing nearby in a lacy black bra and knickers, Nicole reached over and handed her an elastic hairband. Allie was starting to learn that the French girl missed nothing.
‘This is better, I think,’ Nicole said with a wink. When Allie just stared at her tensely, Nicole stepped closer and took the band from her hand. She studied Allie with understanding eyes as she pulled her hair back and tightened it into place with the band. ‘Don’t be nervous, Allie. It will be fine.’
‘I know,’ Allie whispered, although she didn’t.
When they ran out of the building into the freezing night, Carter was already outside, jogging in place, clad in a warm black jacket and running trousers. As the more experienced pair, he and Jules took the lead, while Allie and Zoe fell into a steady running pace behind them.
The snow fell so heavily now it was hard to see where they were going until they reached the protective umbrella of trees in the forest. Here they sped up, weaving their way through the undergrowth to the stream behind the chapel where Allie had met Christopher weeks before.
Allie’s chest tightened when she realised where they were going.
It will be OK. It will be OK. It will be OK … She repeated the mantra in her head as they skidded down the incline to the stream bed and she looked around with frightened eyes, expecting Christopher or Gabe to jump out at them from anywhere.
But the snow around the stream was pure, unbroken. Nobody had been here for at least an hour or more. They spread out into a line, with five feet between them, sweeping down the stream towards the stepping-stone bridge that Allie had imagined hopping across on a warm summer day.
This was not that day: the stones were covered with snow and ice, and the water looked black and frigid. Jules went first, hopping with athletic grace from stone to stone. She slipped on the fifth step and, catching herself, looked back at them.
‘Careful with this one.’ Then she made it to the other side.
After her, Zoe ran across with ease.
Carter turned to Allie. ‘You next. Be careful.’ He held her gaze too long, and Allie hurried to the water’s edge.
The water rushing past was louder here, which helped her to focus as she picked her way across. The fifth stone wobbled as Jules had warned and she was ready for it. But when her foot hit the sixth stone it skidded, throwing her off balance. To save herself she rushed to the seventh stone and then the eighth. By the time she reached shore she’d completely lost her balance; Jules reached out for her but Carter caught her first, holding her steady.
He’d been right behind her the whole time and she’d never known he was there.
‘Thanks,’ she muttered, not meeting his eyes.
They headed to the fence with Jules in the lead, then Zoe, followed by Allie and Carter. On this side of the stream the snow was just as unblemished as it had been on the other – a pure velvet sheet of white.
‘Nobody’s been here,’ Allie whispered to Carter. ‘Not tonight.’
He glanced up at her. ‘I agree. We’ll check the whole area though.’
‘Any idea what set this off?’
A magpie, startled by their passage, fluttered out of a tree above them sending a flurry of snow down.
One for sorrow, Allie thought, and she looked at Zoe with concern, but she was too far ahead to see it.
‘Somebody saw something,’ Carter said. ‘One of the guards saw footprints, and he said they weren’t his or the other guards’. But they could have been anyone’s. Everyone’s so paranoid right now.’
It felt strangely familiar walking beside Carter in the woods – like the old days – and Allie’s panic began to recede. They fell into an easy rhythm as their feet crunched in the fresh snow, leaving its smooth surface pockmarked.
His next words took her by surprise. ‘You looked beautiful tonight.’ He cast a sideways glance at her. ‘I wanted to tell you that in the dining hall but … I bottled it. Things have been pretty messed up between us lately. I’m sorry about that.’
Allie’s stomach tightened. He’d been so angry with her for so long she wasn’t sure how to take this new attitude.
‘I know we’ve had a rough time,’ he continued, slowing his pace so they dropped further behind the other two. ‘But I’ve missed talking to you. And … I just wanted you to know that.’
An image of kissing Sylvain earlier flashed into her mind and for a second she flushed.
Carter’s not my boyfriend any more, she reminded herself. I can kiss whoever I want. But she didn’t want to think about how he’d react if he found out.
‘I saw you with Jules earlier. You looked happy.’