tried, but it seemed her new friend was a whack-job. Finally Caro stopped dead on the pavement and spun around.
‘I haven’t quite nailed it, but there’s something going on at school. Something bad. I know you probably don’t want to hear all this on your first day but I’d feel bad if I didn’t tell you and then something happened to you.’
‘I don’t understand.’
‘Well, for a start, the school’s incredibly private. No one knows who’s behind it. It’s some sort of educational trust set up about ten years ago, but beyond Hawk there seems to be no hierarchy or management.’
‘Hawk?’
Caro smiled. ‘The headmaster, Mr Sheldon. It’s his nickname. You know, the way he looks at you as if he’s deciding whether to swoop down and eat you?’
‘Oh, I get it. But how do you know? About the management, I mean.’
‘I did a little digging. Well, make that a lot of digging, but I can’t find any information on how the school is funded. And no one seems too bothered by that.’
‘That’s not exactly evidence of a cover-up though, is it?’
‘I know I sound like a mad conspiracy nut, but I’m convinced of it. I mean, have you seen the staff? The teachers may look like the usual losers with patches on their elbows, but let me tell you, most of them are geniuses. Pick any one and Google them, they’ve all come from Oxbridge or Ivy League professorships, they’re the best in their fields. And they have to be; they’re about the only ones who can keep up with the kids. I asked a few of the teachers why they’re here and they made a joke along the lines of “they made me an offer I couldn’t refuse”. Obviously private schools have a lot of money, but we’re talking a serious wedge here - and that’s before you start getting into the NASA-standard computer and science equipment they have in the basement.’
April thought it through. ‘But that doesn’t mean there’s a conspiracy, does it? I mean, it could be funded by some eccentric billionaire, like that Microsoft guy, who wants to keep his name out of it.’
Caro slapped April on the back, making her stumble forwards a few steps.
‘Ha! I knew you’d get it!’ She laughed. ‘Yes, I thought of that - maybe it’s even a corporation like Coca-Cola wanting to make money from the science breakthroughs or whatever. What do you think?’
‘It’s interesting - odd accounts, supercomputers and all. But I don’t see the scandal.’
Caro held up a finger. ‘The scandal is in the vanishings.’
‘Vanishings?’
‘People are disappearing. Not just from the school—although eight kids have vanished in the time I’ve been at Ravenwood.’
‘Vanished where?’
Caro shrugged. ‘The official line is that those kids returned home, Korea, India, Russia or wherever, or moved out of the area. But I knew three of them, and I could never get in contact with them again.’
‘So what do you think happened to them?’
‘I think they got them.’
‘“hey”? Who’s “they”?’
Caro paused dramatically then leant forward and whispered, ‘The vampires.’
April laughed, but the smile faded when she realised Caro wasn’t laughing along with her. Is she serious? Surely she’s winding me up? She waited for a moment, hoping there was going to be a big punchline, but Caro just looked at her, her expression completely serious.
‘The vamp—’ began April, but her phone rang. She fumbled it out of her bag and looked at the screen. It was Fiona.
‘Sorry, Caro, I’ve got to take this.’
‘That’s okay. I’ve got to get home anyway and that’s my bus,’ she said, pointing towards the bus stop. ‘Maybe mention it to your dad, eh?’ she shouted as she sprinted across the road. ‘It’d be great to discuss it with him.’
April smiled and nodded, waving as Caro turned the corner.
‘Hi, Fee,’ she said into the
‘I haven’t quite nailed it, but there’s something going on at school. Something bad. I know you probably don’t want to hear all this on your first day but I’d feel bad if I didn’t tell you and then something happened to you.’
‘I don’t understand.’
‘Well, for a start, the school’s incredibly private. No one knows who’s behind it. It’s some sort of educational trust set up about ten years ago, but beyond Hawk there seems to be no hierarchy or management.’
‘Hawk?’
Caro smiled. ‘The headmaster, Mr Sheldon. It’s his nickname. You know, the way he looks at you as if he’s deciding whether to swoop down and eat you?’
‘Oh, I get it. But how do you know? About the management, I mean.’
‘I did a little digging. Well, make that a lot of digging, but I can’t find any information on how the school is funded. And no one seems too bothered by that.’
‘That’s not exactly evidence of a cover-up though, is it?’
‘I know I sound like a mad conspiracy nut, but I’m convinced of it. I mean, have you seen the staff? The teachers may look like the usual losers with patches on their elbows, but let me tell you, most of them are geniuses. Pick any one and Google them, they’ve all come from Oxbridge or Ivy League professorships, they’re the best in their fields. And they have to be; they’re about the only ones who can keep up with the kids. I asked a few of the teachers why they’re here and they made a joke along the lines of “they made me an offer I couldn’t refuse”. Obviously private schools have a lot of money, but we’re talking a serious wedge here - and that’s before you start getting into the NASA-standard computer and science equipment they have in the basement.’
April thought it through. ‘But that doesn’t mean there’s a conspiracy, does it? I mean, it could be funded by some eccentric billionaire, like that Microsoft guy, who wants to keep his name out of it.’
Caro slapped April on the back, making her stumble forwards a few steps.
‘Ha! I knew you’d get it!’ She laughed. ‘Yes, I thought of that - maybe it’s even a corporation like Coca-Cola wanting to make money from the science breakthroughs or whatever. What do you think?’
‘It’s interesting - odd accounts, supercomputers and all. But I don’t see the scandal.’
Caro held up a finger. ‘The scandal is in the vanishings.’
‘Vanishings?’
‘People are disappearing. Not just from the school—although eight kids have vanished in the time I’ve been at Ravenwood.’
‘Vanished where?’
Caro shrugged. ‘The official line is that those kids returned home, Korea, India, Russia or wherever, or moved out of the area. But I knew three of them, and I could never get in contact with them again.’
‘So what do you think happened to them?’
‘I think they got them.’
‘“hey”? Who’s “they”?’
Caro paused dramatically then leant forward and whispered, ‘The vampires.’
April laughed, but the smile faded when she realised Caro wasn’t laughing along with her. Is she serious? Surely she’s winding me up? She waited for a moment, hoping there was going to be a big punchline, but Caro just looked at her, her expression completely serious.
‘The vamp—’ began April, but her phone rang. She fumbled it out of her bag and looked at the screen. It was Fiona.
‘Sorry, Caro, I’ve got to take this.’
‘That’s okay. I’ve got to get home anyway and that’s my bus,’ she said, pointing towards the bus stop. ‘Maybe mention it to your dad, eh?’ she shouted as she sprinted across the road. ‘It’d be great to discuss it with him.’
April smiled and nodded, waving as Caro turned the corner.
‘Hi, Fee,’ she said into the
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