10. A Familiar Stranger
At the beginning of July a young family moved into the house previously owned by the Riders. Jamie was sent over with a box of chocolate and blueberry muffins home-made by Eliza to give to the new neighbours. The door was opened by a young woman with lots of dark curls. She had grey eyes and was shorter than Jamie was which was saying something considering Jamie was only fifteen. She was carrying a little girl on the hip of her swollen belly (obviously expecting another little monster). The little girl had dark brown eyes so very unlike her mother's that Jamie assumed that she had inherited them of her father wherever he was. The girl's hair was not as curly as her mother's but wavier than Jamie's long black hair at the minute tied back in a pony tail.
'Hello I'm Jamie Penhallow from over the road my mum sent me over with some muffins to welcome you to the neighbourhood,' smiled Jamie.
'Hello Jamie,' smiled the woman. 'Would you like to come in I've just put the kettle on.'
'If you're not to busy,' Jamie said uncertainly.
'Oh no I would just love a local to tell us the wonders of the neighbourhood. We moved here for my husband's job you see he works at The Royal and General Bank,' she gushed obviously proud of her husband. But Jamie was disquieted knowing that The Royal and General was where Alex got shot outside of. 'Very brave too,' she smiled at the teenager.
Jamie sat down on the coach and looked around. There were things still in boxes but at least half of them were opened. Jamie felt a little guilty for interrupting the pregnant woman's unpacking. But supposed if the woman accepted she could help them. Then she wondered where the husband was considering that it was because of him they had moved, it was then Jamie realised that the woman wasn't from London due to her broad accent. She couldn't quite place it so looked around waiting for the woman to come back. She had sat on a brown coach with turquoise cushions on it. There was a light wooden coffee table where the woman put down her cups of tea and a TV set by the fireplace. The little girl was colouring in a book.
'Would you like me to help with the unpacking?' asked Jamie.
'Oh no dear,' smiled the woman, 'my husband Ben will be down as soon as he's finished upstairs. BEN!' she called. 'WE HAVE A GUEST!'
This was all she said as soon a young man appeared. He seemed to be about twenty-four or five. His hair was darker than his wife's and daughter's was but not quite black. Jamie could see where the little girl got her dark brown eyes from. Jamie thought he was very handsome with an air of danger around him. His well toned muscles and tall physique Jamie thought he looked more like a soldier than a banker. But she supposed Alex's uncle looked the same; maybe all bankers were like this. He had the same dark look as Alex; that of a war veteran. He even watched her in the same way judging whether or not she was threat. He held himself the same balancing on the balls of his feet. Suddenly the man smiled evidently deciding Jamie was not a threat!
'Hello has my wife introduced herself yet?' he smiled looking like he knew the answer. Jamie saw the woman colour. 'That's my Mhari,' he smiled and she smiled back. 'Well I'm Ben Daniels and this is sometimes absent minded wife –'
'Oi!' said the hormonal woman.
'You know it's true,' quipped the Ben.
'Mhari and our wonderful four year old daughter – Katie,' he ruffled the girl's hair. Katie giggled, 'and our unborn son who hasn't got a name yet I like Alex. But Mhari likes Kaleb, ah well I'll have my way in the end.'
'No you won't,' scowled Mhari.
'I like Alex,' squealed Katie.
'An Alex used to live here,' said Jamie thoughtfully. Ben didn't look surprised at this information but Mhari groaned, 'what?' asked Jamie.
'It's a sign,' smirked Ben. 'Our son will be Alex Daniels.'
'Looks like I'm outnumbered,' sighed Mhari.
'Don't you like the name?' asked Jamie.
'I do just I think Kaleb is better but I do agree Alex is a strong name,' smiled Mhari. 'After Ben's colleague as well,' it might have been Jamie imagination but she thought that Ben tensed up for a second.
'Do I smell home baking?' Ben asked. I scrutinized him trying to figure out whether or not he was purposely changing the subject. In the end I decided that it had been an accident as he had relaxed again.
'Yes Jamie here brought us some delicious muffins,' each got a muffin. Katie and Mhari got a chocolate on while Jamie and Ben settled on blueberry.
Jamie then helped the Daniels' family to unpack their stuff. This allowed the six month pregnant, Mhari Daniels, to put her feet up as Katie pottered around more of a hindrance than a help. But no one had the heart to tell her so. Jamie arrived back at her own home much late than intended and only because the Daniels' were about to have their dinner of macaroni cheese. Over the next few weeks Jamie saw a lot of the Daniels and was even once introduced to some friends of Ben's. A Scottish man with red hair and twinkling blue eyes called Dougie MacPhee, an ever frowning black man by the name of Adolphe Chevalier, and a hyperactive blonde with green eyes called Jason Higgins.
It was only a few months later in the middle of August during her summer holidays that Jamie heard from Sabina that Alex had moved back to London somewhere. The older girl sounded worried about her friend. But at the same time accepting like she had expected it to happen at some point but still hated the fact that her worst fears had been confirmed. Tom Harris was seen with Alex a few times but he still had the knack of disappearing for months on end according to Tom's group. Alex never did reappear at Brookland when school started up in September and Jamie thought that the teachers were glad about this; after all Alex was the problem boy!
Towards the end of Jamie's summer holidays and with her parents both working Jamie ended up being baby sat by her oldest brother, Zac, who was at work in Customs. Jamie hated being the youngest, she hated being babied by her five older brothers, and she was even the youngest in the year! She only just made it into their Year having been born on the thirty-first of August just before midnight, the cut off date for going to Year one. This made today her fifteenth birthday. What a lousy way to celebrate her birthday! Here she was stuck in customs with her older brother when she could be out partying with her friends at a night club or something. Emma had gone out to a Chinese bar. There was a new James Bond movie out in the cinemas that she had wanted to see with her friends. But no apparently just because there had been some terror attack in Edinburgh her parents were terrified and she wasn't allowed to go. It was all the way up north; Scotland wasn't even the same country! True enough she felt sorry for those who had been caught up in it but still.
It had been a week ago that the news came out. There had been a hostage situation at The Summer Festival. There had been a band of gun men surrounding the tourists according to the news the gun men were all dressed in black with turquoise bandanas. But just as they were about to shoot them all dead there had been a distraction in the form of The Camera Obscure being blown up. On the screens the whole world could see the orange flames licking the sky where a lithe figure seemed to be diving off the top. Nobody knew who the small figure was only that he had stopped a major plot because the gunmen rushed back to the Camera Obscure; it turned out that the Camera Obscure had been their Operations Base. They were planning to kill the tourists because they felt that Edinburgh as well as the rest of Scotland was becoming too commercialised too touristy. Jamie thought this was strange for two reasons.
One if they had managed to succeed in this plot wouldn't it have left marks on the famous city. Because she was sure that the bullets that missed would leave noticeable evidence all over the beautiful old town of Edinburgh. Especially considering that the attack had taken place in the middle of the Royal Mile. But Jamie supposed that these crack pots weren't exactly best known for their reasoning being insane and all. So it could be true on that account.
Two. If they were doing this all for Scotland – in their minds anyway – shouldn't they be wearing kilts, or something distinctly Scottish? At the time she wondered if bandanas might be Scottish. But no apparently, according to Google anyway bandanas originated from the East. So why would some, crazy, Scottish, activists be wearing them? Also, the colours? Wouldn't blue and white be more appropriate for Scotland?
Jamie had the distinct impression that the British public were being lied to. But Jamie's parents being parents told Jamie off for listening to conspiracy theories. The funny thing that there were no other theories to what had happened on the internet. After a while even Dean started to ignore Jamie when she tried to talk about her theory. It didn't take a genius to work out that no one was going to believe her. Jamie wondered if this was what Alex Rider felt like whenever he was gossiped about. Then she shook it off deciding that she better just let it drop, despite her best instincts to investigate. She thought she might be getting close because recently she had felt like she was being watched but soon as she turned around there was no one there. Feeling freaked out Jamie thought it would be by far safer not to do any sleuthing.
On the October holidays Jamie was once again left with Zac whilst her mother and father were working. Jamie couldn't wait till she turned sixteen then they would let her stay in the house on her own! Honestly everyone else she knew did. But according to Dylon (who had had the same problems at her age) the Penhallow parents were just really old fashioned. Probably had something to do with Grandpa Jimmy who had been a world war two veteran and had strict family values. Jamie couldn't remember him too well; being four when he died. But Zac said he "was a paranoid old bugger". Jamie had seen his Victoria's Cross and had deduced he had a hard war. But as much as people may call him paranoid she felt he was really brave.
Nobody at Customs could find anything to do with Jamie so they decided that she could come and sit with Zac whilst he translated for the refugees and immigrants. Jamie saw a lot that day. There was a young black woman with a girl barely ten years younger than her holding a rag muffin teddy which looked like it had been on the tip. The young woman had scars down her arms and the little girl was clutching the teddy as if for dear life. They were refugees fleeing from hostile conditions. There was a slim Indian teenager with very round brown eyes wearing a long turquoise dress. There were several Polish workers who managed to get in for labour usage.
Then came the biggest surprise of all. The teenager that Zac was working with; a fifteen year old, Russian boy whose family whole had just died in Russia and the government had managed to locate an English aunt. He had travelled from Russia to England. He wore grey trousers and a white shirt. His hair was messy, and blonde with chocolate brown eyes. Jamie knew who he was from the start. He would never forget Brookland's most mysterious and infamous pupil – ex-pupil. So the question was why was Alex Rider pretending to be a Russian immigrant? She could even see the "aunt" on the other side who didn't look to excited to see her orphaned nephew but looked at the teenager in the same way that a art dealer looked at a expensive painting knowing that it would bring them in the money.
'Alex?' asked Jamie in surprise.
The teenager looked at Jamie in confusion.
'Um Jamie,' said Zac slowly, 'the boy's name is Andrei Volsky.'
The boy looked up at Zac at the mention of his name.
'Are you sure?' asked Jamie.
'He doesn't even speak English,' replied Zac.
'Hello,' Jamie said hesitantly. Andrei looked at Jamie blankly. 'Oh you looked like someone I knew,' Jamie was blushing now at her mistake.