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Jack can’t believe what she’s hearing. Actually has to stop and try and process Kyra’s words. Kyra is out? She’s done? She’s actually giving up on Alex? Jack thinks what astounds her most in that moment is that Kyra seems to have chosen this point to draw the line… Not after the pair of them were attacked by their own clones in France. Not when the three of them had nearly been killed trying to escape Craystar in Amsterdam. Not when Kyra and Tom were tracking Alex across the wilds of Malta. NOW?
Jack has never been so cross with Kyra. So utterly and completely furious. Because she knows without a shadow of a doubt that if Kyra, if any of them really, were in trouble Alex would never, ever have given up. How dare Kyra think she can just back out now? Now, when Alex needs them more than ever to remind him of who he really is?
Tom apparently feels the same because he’s glaring at Kyra with a steady ferocity so unlike him that for a moment, just for a moment, he looks much older than his sixteen years.
Kyra seems to wilt slightly under their glares. “How?” her voice cracks and Jack thinks for a second that Kyra might be about to… cry?
Now that is surprising. Kyra has always seemed so strong and confident, independent and, well, if Jack is being brutally honest, cold… So the idea that Kyra would be moved to tears at the thought of Alex in danger… No, not just moved to tears. Kyra had looked devastated at the idea that Alex might have joined Scorpia. Even more than that, she’d looked… betrayed?
Jack softens slightly, watching closely as Kyra fiddles with her rings, picks at her nails and refuses to meet their eyes. Thinking. Jack is almost starting to feel guilty about shouting at her, almost, when…
“Okay. I will help. But mostly because I need answers. If we can get him away from Scorpia then good. But also, I need answers.”
Ohhhhhh. And suddenly it comes to Jack, slamming into her, this realisation. Because it’s so obvious now – a classic love story has been playing out in front of her and she’s been completely blind to it. Until now.
Well, not classic exactly, more: girl gets sent to creepy finishing school. Boy gets sent to same school as undercover spy. Boy meets girl. Boy and girl take down evil criminal mastermind who also, as it happens, cloned them both. Boy and girl later reunited to take down second evil criminal mastermind and save the world. Boy, girl and boy’s best friend then go off on holiday together and end up uncovering super evil group of criminal masterminds that they now have to also take down…
Though if that isn’t the basis for a great love story she doesn’t know what is.
Well. Sort of. Because really when she puts it like that it sounds ridiculous, insane, completely fictitious. What’s not fictitious, however, is how Kyra clearly feels about Alex and now that Jack has seen it, well… it’s: So. Damn. Obvious.
She grins. It’s amazing that something is able to make her happy at this time. And that’s a luxury she’s going to hold on to.
.
It’s a beautiful day outside – one of those crisp, late autumn days with lovely sunshine and no wind when it seems as if the weather has forgotten that it’s supposed to be barrelling towards winter. They can hear a group of kids playing football in the street, the whir of a lawnmower as one of the neighbours gets in a final grass cut of the year, the distant cheer of people at the pub celebrating a goal. Jack wonders, not for the first time, how it is that the world can continue to move on so peacefully when the three of them, shut up in the kitchen, are experiencing such turmoil.
It’s not fair, she thinks, a statement that has become somewhat of a mantra for her since Ian died.
But it is what it is and so on that beautiful sunny day, the last they are likely to see in a while, three of the four regular inhabitants of 42 Reverdy Road barricade themselves indoors and begin to plan.
They discuss their options, but ultimately decide that their best bet is to gather together as much information on Scorpia as they can in the hope that The Department will be willing to trade it in return for helping and protecting Alex. No matter what he’s planning to do. Or has already done… but Jack doesn’t dare express that particular thought out loud. She has to have faith in Alex, in his goodness, his bravery.
It turns out Tom has filmed or photographed absolutely everything the kids had done in Malta. Jack is astounded, and even Kyra seems grudgingly impressed as she downloads gigabyte after gigabyte of data, carefully sorting and filing it.
She’s very quiet as she works, Jack notes, quieter and more pensive than normal, but she can’t blame the girl for that. They are all terrified. Tom is less subtle, remarking that Kyra has gone all “brooding and grumpy” and gets a vicious scowl in return. He doesn’t dare comment again.
Together the three of them work their way through the files slowly, pulling together a folder of key information they might need, something they can hand off to The Department if Mrs Jones and her cronies agree to their terms.
The photos of Alex, Kyra and Jay exploring an ancient temple complex are ignored, even a lovely candid one of Alex trying to steal Kyra’s sunglasses that almost makes Kyra smile. Jack sees her lip twitch slightly before she moves on to the next photo.
There’s a nice one of Alex and Kyra laughing on a boat, as well as a very sweet one of the pair of them sat either side of a sofa, heads buried in their laptops, legs just touching. Both of these get disregarded too, though Jack does think that maybe she’ll ask for copies later. She shakes her head at her stupidity – displayed like this it’s so very clear something had been forming between the two of them. She wonders if Tom has noticed. Given the number of photos he’s taken of them, maybe?
They set aside several videos of Alex and Jay rock climbing, despite Tom’s very funny background commentary in which he chats to Kyra from behind the lens of his camera, encouraging her to place a bet on which of the climbers will fall first – Jack thinks, not for the first time, that the boy definitely has a future career in the media industry.
There’s a time lapse of a sunset… then seven more of them (“You know it’s different every day?” Tom declares when they question his need for so many sunset videos), and a silly film Alex must taken of Tom and Jay doing some ridiculous handshake. At least that gets an eye roll from Kyra.
There’s a video of Tom and Kyra on a scooter, taken from Tom’s head cam, that includes a glimpse of Tom’s arms around Kyra’s waist – and Jack raises an eyebrow at Alex’s best friend when the moment flickers across the screen.
“Hey! I was a perfect gentleman!”
Even Kyra cracks a smile at that.
They pull together a map with key GPS co-ordinates, a recording of the guards around a beautiful, but creepy, garden villa, boat schematics, a terrifying video of a boat exploding, a film of a ruined looking place that Kyra and Tom assure her is Scorpia’s headquarters, and more. So much more.
Jack is shocked, and more than a little scared at everything the three teenagers have managed to gather while seemingly on a ‘school holiday’. Oh God how did she get herself into this life? Oh Alex, please, please be okay. Another mantra she’s taken to repeating.
.
Everything prepared, they pull on coats and shoes and leave the house, glancing to make sure that the car that’s been hanging around is indeed still following them. Tom takes the lead, winding through the familiar streets towards the bus stop, but Jack pulls back slightly to walk side by side with Kyra.
Reaching out, she squeezes the younger woman’s hand, just for a moment, before smiling down at her.
“It’s okay – we’ll make sure he’s looked after. He’ll be alright.” She thinks maybe she’s saying it for herself as much as she is to comfort Kyra.
Kyra nods but seems unable respond, just looking at Jack with those big, dark eyes of hers, the emotions that are mapped across her face screaming her thoughts as clearly as if she’d been speaking them out loud.
And then eventually, “thanks.”