CHAPTER TWELVE

The next morning Celia and Dette gave Ruby details of the next group of Labs to be settled in two houses in a London suburb later that week.

‘Ben and the others will take care of two more new houses in their area. Valerie has enrolled them on a short course in office management and English,’ Dette explained.

‘We want you and Keith to visit all the Labs in London and make sure everything is OK,’ Celia said.

Ruby and Keith found the Labs in all the houses had settled in to their new lives. The students in Ben’s and Sophie’s houses were still very politically active.

‘We are arranging a petition to be presented to the Prime Minister on the inequalities in education around the country,’ Sophie told her.

‘Without access to a decent standard of education, too many young people can’t escape poverty!’ Megan added.

‘You mustn’t get mixed up in anything that may lead to you becoming involved with the police,’ Keith warned them. ‘It’s great to have ideals, but the safety of the Labs comes first!’

Ben nodded. ‘Don’t worry. Yes, we’re all aware of our restrictions at the moment. Our own people must come first.’

Keith decided to stay an extra day in London to view possible future properties and suggested that Ruby took some of the others go and see the sights.

Lucy and Helen eagerly agreed and persuaded Ben and Dylan to join them. Sophie, Megan, and Joseph decided to come too.

‘We can start at the Tower of London,’ Helen said, spreading out a visitor’s map of the city.

‘Then go on to the London Dungeon!’ Ben and Dylan suggested eagerly.

‘No! I think I’d prefer to visit Madame Tussaud’s,’ Megan said. Her brother and sister nodded.

‘Well, we could start at the Tower of London, then we can split into two groups,’ Ruby said. ‘Then in a few weeks’ time you could take some of the newcomers around yourselves. None of them wanted to join us today.’

‘London is a busy place after the Caves!’ Lucy said.

Ruby felt as excited as the Labs as they walked around the Tower. She had never visited London in her old life. She was wandering around admiring the huge suits of armour when she heard a familiar voice.

‘Ruby, what are you doing here?’ Isaac was standing beside her.

‘I’m visiting a few friends down here and we’re doing a bit of sightseeing.’ she smiled. ‘And you?’

‘I’m staying with my uncle for a few days. He persuaded me to look after a friend of his today as he’s busy. So we’re doing the sights, too!’

At that moment Sophie, Megan, and Joseph appeared, followed by Ben and Dylan.

‘Are you ready to go now, Ruby? Ben and Dylan are impatient to get to the Dungeons!’ Megan laughed. ‘Oh, hello,’ she added, turning to Isaac.

Ruby noticed Isaac’s expression as they were joined by Helen and Lucy.

‘What’s this? A twins convention? And triplets, too?’ He looked bemused.

‘Something like that!’ Ruby decided not to try to explain. ‘Well, goodbye, enjoy your day!’

She mulled over it for the rest of the day and told Keith of her meeting as they drove back home that evening.

‘Twins and triplets are not so strange, are they?’ he asked her.

‘Not really, but it does seem strange that we should be involved with so many,’ she replied. ‘How can I explain the situation?’

‘What did he say? A convention? Tell him he was right!’ Keith suggested.

Ruby wasn’t convinced.

She felt ill at ease when she bumped into him in the main street near his newspaper office.

‘Oh, hi, Isaac,’ she said brightly.

‘Hi. I haven’t seen much of you lately,’ he said.

‘I’ve been pretty busy,’ she replied.

‘How come you know so many twins, and triplets, too?’ he said.

Ruby looked away. ‘Multiple births aren’t as rare as you’d think these days, with IVF treatments. Did your uncle’s friend enjoy the London sights?’

‘And I looked up your old Nottingham address. Funny thing, it doesn’t actually exist!’ Isaac continued, ignoring her question. ‘Where do you all come from?’

‘What is this?’ Ruby knitted her eyebrows, ‘The Spanish Inquisition?’

She started to walk past him, but he caught her arm.

‘Where are you all from?’ he repeated, his face near hers. ‘What have you got to hide?’

She drew back. ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about, Isaac! You’re getting a bit carried away with your big news story ideas!’

She shook his hand off her arm and walked away. As soon as she had turned a corner she leaned back against the wall and took a deep breath. She must go home and speak to the others immediately.

‘Things could become dangerous if he continues to investigate our lives,’ Celia pointed out.

‘God knows what Abel would do to him if he thinks he might be a threat to us!’ Dette said vehemently.

Keith took a deep breath. ‘Isaac does not know much about us yet, and we’ll have to make sure we don’t give him any more information.’

‘Yes, we must all remain calm. Give him nothing to fuel his ideas,’ Celia agreed.

Over the next few weeks Isaac found Ruby’s household polite, but very distant from him. He was never able to talk to one person without several more joining them. He felt increasingly frustrated. There was something mysterious about that household. And he had to find out about it.

He spent the next few weeks secretly surveying the house, until one day his patience was rewarded.

First the twins left for college with Dette and Celia. Half an hour later, Keith drove off. And finally he gave a sigh of relief as Ruby stepped out, locking the door behind her, and walked off in the direction of the supermarket. Crossing the road, he silently slipped around the back of the house.

His hand shook as he tried the back door of their house. Locked, as he had expected it to be. He glanced around but could see no windows left open. He reached inside his pocket and pulled out a bunch of skeleton keys. A friend of his at university had shown him how to break into his own flat when he had accidentally locked himself out and he had used this method on one or two occasions since. He had never thought he would use it for illegal purposes, but he told himself that this was justified.

He took a deep breath as he felt the lock give and the door open. He stepped inside and pushed it closed behind him.

‘Hello?’ he called and satisfied the house was empty began a quick search.

There seemed to be nothing of interest in the kitchen. The lounge had two laptops, but he knew it would take him too long to work out passwords to gain access to any useful information, so he headed upstairs. He made a quick search of each room and was finally rewarded when he reached into the pocket of a jacket hanging in Ruby’s wardrobe.

It was a list of names and addresses. ‘Zaf -Sophie, Peg – Megan, Ben – Benjamin, Dil – Dylan …– his eyes narrowed, the girl with Ruby in London had referred to Ben, and Dylan. There were two London addresses underneath. He let himself silently out of the house.

He spent the next three days in London visiting the addresses from the scrap of paper and found that the people he had seen with Ruby were living there. From the neighbours he learnt that they were quiet students who were pleasant enough but who mainly kept themselves to themselves.

He followed Ben and Dylan to two political meetings and also followed them one evening to the house where Sophie lived. They seemed to be living a very similar life to many other students in London. On his last day in London he decided to follow the girls. They left university at lunch time and headed in a different direction on the tube than they normally did. They arrived at a house and were let in by a young girl. Isaac was unsure what to do, but soon the door opened and Megan and Sophie emerged, with two more girls, twins again! Isaac followed them along the road to a small park. They sat on a bench near a duck pond. Isaac sat on a bench nearby and opened a newspaper.

‘It is so different after the Caves,’ one girl was saying.

‘It is at first, but you get used to it, Lily!’ Sophie told her.

‘Our course finishes next week and then we have to start looking for work! It’s worrying!’ the girl shook her head.

‘Yes,’ a second girl said. ‘We must fit in fully with Non-Labs! What happens if we can’t?’

‘Milly and I could put all the Labs in danger!’ the first girl looked near to tears.

‘Have you spoken to Ruby or Celia?’ Megan asked them.

They shook their heads, ‘We feel as if we’ve failed them. Their plan was working so well until we left the Caves!’

‘You mustn’t feel like this!’ Helen told them, ‘If you’re not ready for the workplace, you don’t have to start just yet! Valerie will arrange things. Phone Celia.’

Lucy stood up, ‘You’re right. We must phone them immediately!’

Isaac watched as the girls walked out of the park and headed back home. Then he opened a notebook and jotted a few sentences down. He gave a satisfied sigh and stood up. Time to return to Castlewell.

It was nearly a week before he spotted Ruby alone in the supermarket. He hurried after her.

‘Hi, Ruby! Been busy lately?’ he said with a grin.

‘Just the usual,’ she leaned past him and started to fill a bag with apples.

‘Aren’t you going to ask me what I’ve been up to?’ he continued.

Ruby shrugged, ‘It looks as if you’re dying to tell me. Have you found a good story?’

‘I have!’ he stood in front of her. ‘Have you heard from Megan? Her friends, Lily and Milly – also twins, as it happens – are worried about working with the Non-Labs.’

Ruby froze for a moment. She knew they had phoned Celia the previous week.

‘I’m afraid I don’t know what you’re talking about, Isaac,’ she said.

‘I think you do, Ruby! It would make a good news story, wouldn’t it?’ he said evenly, watching her face closely.

He pulled the piece of paper he had taken from her jacket from his own pocket. ‘This is just the start!’

‘Where did you get that?’ Ruby asked him angrily, making a grab for the paper. He moved it out of her reach.

She pushed her trolley to one side and headed out of the shop with Isaac hurrying after her.

‘Wait!’ he called.

‘Why don’t you just go away? Your cheap newspaper story may end up costing people’s lives!’ she hissed at him.

‘I don’t want to hurt anyone. But I do want answers,’ he said.

She stopped, looking flustered.

‘OK,’ she nodded. ‘Come to the house tomorrow evening, at nine o’clock. But you must not breathe a word of this to anyone, you must promise!’

He nodded his head solemnly, ‘Then you will give me some answers?’

‘It’s not up to me!’ she cried, hurrying away from him.

Keith sprang up as Ruby burst into the house a short while later.

‘Ruby! What is it?’ he asked.

‘We must talk! All of us! Now!’ she whispered.

Soon they were all sitting in the lounge. Ruby sat white faced. She took a deep breath and blurted out, ‘Isaac knows something about us! I’m not sure how much!’

‘What does he know? How did he find out?’ several people said at once.

‘Start from the beginning, Ruby,’ Keith patted her arm, ‘Calm yourself.’

‘Somehow Isaac got hold of a bit of paper. I’d written down the names and addresses of Megan and Ben and the people in their houses. I’d taken the details from Celia,’ Ruby could not meet the eyes of the others around her. ‘I really don’t know how he got hold of it! I did mean to destroy it as soon as I got home!’

There was a deathly silence.

‘OK. We must get Isaac to come around here and find out what he does actually know,’ Keith said.

‘I told him to come here at nine o’clock tomorrow evening,’ Ruby told them.

‘What if he has already prepared a newspaper story about us?’ Dette cried. ‘Maybe we should get him round here right now!’

‘Wait!’ Celia urged her. ‘Ruby was right to give us some time to think about this, before we see him.’

‘Let’s discuss a plan of action before he joins us tomorrow,’ Keith said. ‘And we’d better ask Abel to come immediately.’

By midnight Abel had joined them. He turned a scornful eye upon Ruby, who, though pale-faced already, seemed to blanch even further.

‘So we’ll have to get rid of Isaac. He will have to meet with an unfortunate accident!’ he said as he strode into the room.

‘No!’ Ruby cried out. ‘No! You can’t harm him!’

‘You have left us no choice,’ Abel swung around to face her.

‘No, Abel,’ Keith said. ‘Ruby is right, we can’t hurt him. We can’t do away with every Non-Lab that becomes aware of our background.’

‘Not every Non-Lab,’ Abel countered. ‘But any Non-Lab that puts us in danger before we have established ourselves in a secure position.’

‘Keith and I have given the matter some thought. We need something to bargain with,’ Celia ventured. All eyes were turned hopefully to her.

‘What do you mean?’ Johnny asked her.

‘If Isaac has important information about us, how can we be in a position to bargain with him?’ Leon looked puzzled.

‘What does Isaac want?’ Celia continued.

Ruby looked at her and nodded slowly, ‘A big news story to get him noticed in the media world.’

‘And you have given it to him!’ Abel said as Ruby cringed again.

‘No she hasn’t, not yet! I see what you are getting at, Celia!’ Dette began to smile, ‘I think it might just work!’

Keith nodded, ‘It’s a risk, but it gives us some hope!’

‘It may even work in our favour!’ Celia commented.

‘I don’t really understand …’ Johnny began as his twin shook his head, too.

‘Isaac wants a big news story. If we persuade him to wait, he will have the biggest news story ever!’ Celia explained.

‘So, we’ll take another Non-Lab into our confidence? And one who is an unknown factor to all of us? That’s insane!’ Abel stood up, clenching his fists.

‘He’s already in a position to put us all in danger!’ Celia insisted. ‘We need to have him on our side now!’

‘How can we trust any Non-Lab?’ Abel snarled, staring at Ruby. He stormed out of the door.

Dette stood up and followed him, ‘I’ll go and talk to him. I’ll see if I can persuade him to consider your idea.’

Abel’s face was still sullen as they sat with Isaac in their midst the following evening.

‘First tell us what you do know, and we’ll fill in the details,’ Keith spoke quietly to Isaac.

‘Well, I suppose I don’t know that much really, but I’ve a gut feeling that things aren’t what they seem with you people,’ Isaac looked less sure of himself surrounded by them all than he had with Ruby on her own.

‘So …?’ Celia prompted him.

‘I know you are in contact with groups of students around the country. Many of them are twins, like you boys. I know these students are going under false names. And I know some of them are nervous, afraid of another group called the “Non-Labs” …’ He looked up as Johnny stifled a giggle. Celia silenced him with a glare.

‘And, I know you didn’t go to Sherwood State school,’ he finished.

‘So you don’t really know that much at all, do you?’ Abel sneered.

‘I have addresses and enough to start an interesting newspaper story on the increase in twins and triplets among the student population. This is worth further investigation!’ Isaac turned to him, his face flushed.

‘Who’d be interested in this?’ Keith asked quietly.

‘My uncle – he’s a reporter for The Times – some of his friends, some of my own colleagues,’ Isaac continued doggedly.

‘How could you find out more, if we don’t cooperate?’ Abel asked him.

‘I’d gain public interest by writing an article about twins and triplets. I’d start by interviewing some of these students!’ he took the paper from his pocket. In a flash, Abel had removed it from his hand. Isaac looked at him. ‘I do have copies, you know! I left some stuff with a friend, for security, before I came here today!’

There was silence for a moment.

‘Isaac,’ Keith broke the silence, ‘your interference at the wrong time may cause the loss of lives, hundreds of lives! You will have to wait for your big story until the end of our plan.’

‘I knew there was more to this! I can wait! I swear I wouldn’t print anything that may endanger lives!’ Isaac looked at him eagerly.

Keith looked around the room. The others nodded, except for Abel who turned away with a grunt.

For the next hour Isaac listened with widening eyes, occasionally asking a question, as Celia and the others explained the situation and their plan to free the Labs.

At one point Isaac turned and smiled at Johnny, ‘That’s why you laughed when I said a group called the “Non-Labs”! I’m one of them!’ Johnny grinned back and nodded.

Finally there was silence.

‘Wow! What a story!’ Isaac gave a soft whistle. ‘Surely we could break in, like you’ve done before, and free the rest of the Labs?’ he said, leaning forward excitedly.

‘We could free the Mature Labs, yes. But what about the developing Labs in the Nursery Ward? There are over two hundred of them at the moment,’ Abel pointed out.

‘Couldn’t you free those, too?’ Isaac asked him.

‘We’ve never tried arresting the development of the Labs in the Nursery Ward. They are on an accelerated growth programme. We don’t know what the results would be if we stopped their development before maturity. They’re not like Non-Lab children,’ Dette told him.

‘Look, if I got my uncle who’s with The Times to publish this story, we could get everything out in the open! Get the Centre closed down straight away!’ Isaac suggested.

‘No!’ Abel shook his head vehemently. ‘If the story came out, who knows what would happen to the Labs in the Centre, especially the vulnerable ones who are still developing! We need someone important to go in and take control completely with some of us beside them.’

‘This story must not be made public yet!’ Celia warned Isaac.

‘Hmmm … I can see that! Look, I still want to help you. I’m sure I could be useful in some way, you know,’ he said.

Abel grunted. ‘Our Non-Lab friend, Ruby, helped us by supplying you with crucial names and addresses!’

Ruby blushed and looked down.

‘No, she didn’t!’ Isaac reached inside his pocket and pulled out the skeleton keys. ‘As we’re all being honest, I have to admit I looked around your house one day when you were all out.’

He gave Ruby an apologetic smile. ‘Sorry!’ He spread his hands. ‘Hey, it’s a skill that you may find useful! And I also have useful contacts in the press, through my uncle.’

Keith nodded slowly. ‘Yes, you may indeed prove a useful ally, Isaac.’

Abel glared at him again. ‘But if you ever do, or think about doing, something that will put any Lab in danger, you will regret it!’

Isaac stood to face him. ‘I’m on your side! It’s in my interest to keep this story under wraps until the correct time, the same as it is for you.’ He paused. ‘Hey, maybe we could even be friends?’ He held out a tentative hand. Throwing him a derisive look, Abel turned away.

The following day Ruby found Isaac beside her in the supermarket again.

‘Shopping again?’ he asked her.

‘I didn’t get anything the other day, don’t you remember?’ she smiled.

‘I’m glad we’re friends again.’

She nodded as she reached for a box of cereal from the top shelf.

‘Here, let me,’ Isaac said, passing one to her. ‘See? I’m useful already!’

Ruby smiled again. ‘You’d be even more helpful if you let me get on with my shopping.’

She continued to the next aisle, with Isaac beside her.

‘So, any developments?’ he asked.

‘Nothing new since we saw you yesterday!’ she said.

‘Are you going to be setting up new homes soon?’ he continued. ‘Maybe I can help?’

‘Celia organises these things, it’s really not up to me,’ Ruby said.

‘I’d like to be involved as much as possible! Then when the Centre is exposed, I will be able to tell the real story from the inside!’ Isaac told her.

‘I’ll speak to Celia,’ Ruby promised him.

He approached her again the next day when he called around with Sara and Jane.

‘Have you seen this?’ he asked, unfolding a national newspaper. He showed her the story on a political rally to be held in London the following day. A group calling themselves “Forever England” were to march through the city centre to protest against the number of immigrants allowed into the UK. ‘Are any of your group involved?’

She got up and signalled him to follow her to the garden. ‘Ben and some of the others are holding a counter-meeting at the university.’

Isaac frowned. ‘That could be an explosive situation! Isn’t it dangerous for them to take part in it?’

‘Yes!’ Ruby nodded, ‘Abel has tried to persuade them not to attend, but Ben and Megan insist they must stand up for what they believe in or they might as well be still living in the Caves!’

Isaac looked thoughtful. ‘I’ll get in touch with a friend of mine who works for a London paper. He might have some details about this march.’

‘That would be helpful, Isaac,’ Ruby said. ‘Abel must be very worried or he wouldn’t be planning on going to London himself.’

‘Tell him maybe I can be of use if I go with you to London,’ Isaac told her.

But Abel was adamant that Isaac did not accompany them to London when Ruby suggested it later that evening.

‘We don’t need his help! We can take care of our own!’

‘He has friends in London. He’s going to find out what they know about this demonstration,’ Ruby told him.

‘He is not travelling with us. He can stay with his friends,’ Abel said, and turned away.

Ruby phoned Isaac to tell him.

‘I know you are trying to be helpful, Isaac. Abel finds it difficult to trust Non-Labs,’ she said. ‘It will be a while before he accepts your help. He’s still not happy to have me around but Celia insisted I go with him to London as I could be useful.’

‘Well, I’m going to go to London and cover the story anyway. I’ll phone you if I hear anything,’ Isaac sounded disappointed.

The following day Ruby, Abel, Ben, and the other Lab students from London were in front of the university where a large podium had been set up.

Several of the students had made speeches about the right of people all over the world to be allowed to travel freely.

Ben was speaking about the lack of equality between the different countries and how many people like himself would like to see opportunities and resources shared out more equally.

‘We don’t need to divide the world into places you can go into and places you are barred from! We need to open the boundaries between countries!’

Ruby stood near Abel, watching him speak.

‘He obviously feels very strongly about this,’ she whispered to Abel.

The Lab’s face was set. ‘I am not happy about him bringing such attention to himself and the others!’

Just then Ruby’s phone began to ring; it was Isaac. She moved to a quieter place so she could hear him.

‘Ruby! Things aren’t looking good! My friend has heard that the Forever England group have hired some hecklers to join the university demonstration. They’ll be here soon! You’d better get your people out quickly!’ Isaac told her. ‘The police are to be sent in. There’s bound to be some arrests!’

‘Ben’s on the podium speaking at the moment! The others are near him. I can’t see Abel. He was here a moment ago! Where are you, Isaac?’ Ruby felt her heart racing.

‘Calm down, Ruby. We’ll be all right. I’m near the podium. I’ll speak to Ben as soon as he gets down and get him to get the others together. I’ll get them out on this side. You find Abel and both of you get as far away from here as soon as you can, OK?’

As soon as Isaac had rung off, Ruby began to look around for Abel. She finally spotted him near the entrance to the university and pushed her way through the crowds to join him.

‘Abel! We’ve got to get out of here quickly! There’s going to be a disturbance! The police are on their way; people will be arrested!’ she blurted out.

‘We must get Ben and the others,’ he cried, turning towards the podium.

Ruby caught his arm. ‘Isaac has them, look!’

Ben was speaking to the other Labs and all were following Isaac at a swift pace.

Ruby and Abel were near the entrance of the university when suddenly there was shouting. Several people were pushing their way through the crowds towards the podium. There was the sound of someone screaming. People began to try to leave the square, but a cordon of mounted police blocked them.

Ruby looked with frightened eyes at Abel. He grabbed her hand. ‘We can’t get out that way! Come on.’

He ran into the building, pulling her behind him. At the end of the corridor someone shouted at them to stop. They ran down another corridor, trying door handles, but they were all locked. Finally Abel found one that opened and pulling Ruby in behind him, closed the door. They stood closely together in the dark, Ruby trying to breathe quietly. She knew they were in a storage cupboard from the smell of polish. The handle of a floor polisher pushed painfully into her back. The sound of running footsteps outside made her heart pound. She gripped Abel’s jacket tightly.

‘They couldn’t have gone any further this way!’ a voice said.

‘All the rooms are locked,’ another answered him.

‘Try the caretaker’s cupboard. He doesn’t always remember to lock it,’ the first voice said.

Abel held tightly to the door handle, his face pinched as the person outside tried to move it.

‘No. It’s locked,’ the voice finally said. ‘Let’s try the cloakrooms. They may be hiding in there.’

‘Better be quick before they have time to double back!’ the second man answered.

Ruby and Abel listened to the sound of their feet moving away.

As Ruby gave a sigh of relief, Abel pulled her closer to him. She could feel his heart beating against her. Then slowly he lifted her chin and kissed her gently on the lips. She gave a gasp of surprise.

He quickly released her.

‘Sorry! I…’ He stopped speaking as they heard voices outside the cupboard again.

‘Beats me how they did it! But they’ve somehow got out.’

‘Better get back to the desk,’ the second voice replied, ‘before more of them get in!’

They stood in silence for several more minutes before Abel opened the door and beckoned her to follow him.

It was getting dark when they finally arrived at Ben and the other students’ house. Isaac was seated in the lounge talking to Megan when they entered. He stood up smiling.

‘We’ve been watching the news! We were so relieved to finally hear from you. What happened?’

‘We tried to get through the university building, but ended up stuck in a broom cupboard and eventually had to make our escape through a window in the ladies’ toilets!’ Ruby giggled. The events of the day had left her feeling light-headed.

‘I told you I might be of use to you!’ Isaac beamed at Abel, who gave him a wry smile.

‘Thank you for your quick actions today, Isaac. You did indeed prove to be extremely useful. It seems I was wrong – not all Non-Labs are bad news!’ Abel flushed slightly as he caught Ruby’s eye.

‘We phoned Celia, so they wouldn’t be worried about us when they see the news tonight,’ Ben said.

Abel looked at him, ‘I think you must keep a lower profile until the Labs are in a stronger position to speak out, Ben.’

He looked at Megan and they both nodded.

‘It’s true. Our arrest could endanger many others. But I hope it’s not to be too long before we are in a position to speak out, Abel.’

‘We are freeing as many Labs as we can, but it’s a slow process and there are not enough of us to bring about the closure of the Centre without putting any Labs in danger. If only we could formulate a plan to accomplish that, we’d all be free tomorrow!’ he sighed.

They had been talking for several hours when Abel’s phone rang. He went to the hallway to answer it. His face was solemn when he rejoined them.

‘It looks as if we’re going to have to make a move quicker than we planned. Fil, one of the Labs working undercover at the Centre,just phoned the house. He has heard rumours that the Centre is to be taken over by an American company, and they’re planning on setting up similar sites in several countries around the world! We’d better head back, Ruby.’

As they drove along the motorway, Ruby watched Abel staring stonily ahead. He hardly seemed to be the same person who had held her close and kissed her in the darkness.