‘Redemption,’ Dodie says with a small smile.
The recruits are staring at Marquis in admiration, which of course was his intention all along. Sometimes I wonder if he hopes that by showing people how witty he is, they won’t notice how he is different. I wonder if I hope it, too.
‘It makes sense for them to feed us up,’ he tells Dodie,resuming a serious voice. ‘Although they could at least have lit a fire.’
I roll my eyes and take a bite of mashed potato. It’s the first thing I’ve eaten in days and it tastes like heaven. On the other side of Marquis, Sophie is shovelling roast chicken into her mouth as if her life depends on it.
‘Of course, darlin’, let’s set the most secret location in England aglow so that it can be seen from the dragon-infested skies,’ Katherine says, batting her eyelashes at Marquis, who looks pleased.
Katherine seems to have missed the point of blackout curtains.
‘And who are you,my lady?’ Marquis says.
I help myself to more gravy, ladling it across my chicken as my new roommate laughs. She’s about to be seriously disappointed.
‘Katherine,’ she says, eyeing Marquis’s bruised cheek. ‘I’ve always had a thing for men who can brawl.’
Marquis reaches for her hand over the table and kisses it.
‘Oh, for goodness’ sake,’ I say as Dodie laughs into her glass. ‘Katherine, that’s not—’
‘Not my cup of tea,’ says Marquis.
‘You mean brawling?’ Katherine replies.
Marquis doesn’t answer, instead gesturing to Gideon. ‘He’s a strapping lad – I’m sure he’d be up for a brawl.’
Gideon scowls, but at least the tension in the air has broken, and easy conversation mingles with the sound of the radio. There are nine of us in total – five girls and four boys. The boy in the white collar is talking to a quiet-lookingboy with shaved hair called Karim.
‘Made any friends yet?’ Marquis says to me.
‘No,’ I reply bluntly. ‘But it looks likeyouhave.’
Marquis shrugs. ‘Better to have friends than enemies.’
‘Aren’t you worried?’ I say quietly, taking a sip of water.
‘About what?’ he replies. ‘The dragon-infested skies? The fact that we’re essentially prisoners disguised as guests? Or the reality that neither of us know what we’re doing?’
‘That one,’ I say.
Marquis’s smile falters ever so slightly and he lowers his voice.
‘Of course I’m worried,’ he says. ‘I’ve never touched a plane in my life. But we’ll learn, won’t we? I’ll build whatever flying contraption they want building, and you’ll break whatever code they want breaking, and then we’ll go home.’
‘And what if we fail?’ I say, the glass in my hand shaking. ‘We’ll get sent to prison and our family will never be pardoned. And Ursa …’ I put my drink down as my voice breaks.
The boy in the white collar presses a napkin to his lips and shoots me a curious glance.
‘It will be all right, Viv,’ Marquis says firmly.
I know the stubborn expression on my cousin’s face too well. It’s the same look he wore as a child when a group of boys told him he was too much of apansyto make the football team, so he broke his leg trying. Nothing is impossible for Marquis, who eventually became captain of that team. But I’m not like him. I’m … realistic. And I still can’t see what languages and codebreaking and dragons have to do with each other.
‘London has suffered a series of attacks …’
The hopeful atmosphere dissipates as we listen to the reports of bombing and dragonfire. We stay silent until the report finishes and the radio lets out an endless crackling. Marquis stands up and turns it off, and then there’s just the sound of spoons scraping against bowls. The high that we’ve all been riding, the one fuelled by the promise of another chance, plummets.
‘How is your food, Vivien Featherswallow?’
