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Chapter Four
Eden almost ran into the back of Henley as everyone came to a grinding halt, shoes crunching in the grit and rubbish littering the floor of the alley.
"What is it?" Jack asked quietly. He was holding up the rear, just behind Eden, her personal escort again apparently. He didn't sound half as breathless as Eden, but then again, he wasn't trying to run in heels.
"They've found our car," Daniel answered from the head of the line. The five of them were pressed up against the wall of the alley, breath puffing from their mouths in little clouds. Daniel was peering round the edge of the alleyway before his head quickly snapped out of sight of the road. "Back-up plan it is then."
"We should have been more prepared," Henley hissed at him.
Merritt sighed. He was stuck between the two of them. "Please let's not have a domestic right now."
"We are prepared, Henley, that's why we have a back-up plan," Daniel retorted, trying to keep his cool. Eden just hoped they had a back-up plan for the back-up plan. It seemed like things weren't going the way they were meant to tonight. There was a rusty cog in the well-oiled machine that was the Four Horsemen, and Eden guessed she was that bad cog. "We take the subway."
"The tube," Eden found herself automatically correcting. They all looked to her. "The tube station is just down the road," she continued, trying to play it off like a nervous stutter. She wasn't cut out for this. The tension made her want to talk incessantly, as if that would ease it. In reality, it would probably just get them caught.
Daniel was frowning at her, but it looked more like he was concentrating than he was annoyed. "I take it you know your way around the tube well?"
Eden nodded. "Yeah. I hope you all have tickets, though."
Daniel allowed himself a smile as he fished four of them from the inside of his suit jacket. "Got it covered. You?"
Eden tapped the pocket of her blazer. Her oyster card was still there. She pulled it out and showed it to him. She never put it in her bag; too fiddly to keep diving in and out of your bag for your oyster card when trying to hurry through the turnstiles. If she had left her blazer at the Albert Hall like she had her bag then they'd have been out of options. There was no time to buy tickets.
On Daniel's signal, the five of them scurried across the road, careful to avoid the brightest patches of light the street lamps cast. Eden allowed herself a glance in the other direction. There were a number of dark figures crowded around a black SUV. Thankfully, none of them were looking this way. They'd looped round as they'd left the house via the back door. Whoever was after them was expecting them to be coming from the other direction.
They hurried in a line down the pavement, heading for the glowing sign of the tube station. During this getaway, Eden had been consciously aware of Jack behind her. Every now and then he'd lightly place a protective hand on her back or arm, ushering her along. She wondered now what exactly would have happened if she'd kicked him out of her cab just a few hours ago. Maybe nothing, maybe something she didn't want to know.
They paused beside the tube map outside the station entrance. Daniel was trailing his finger along the map, down the Piccadilly line from Kings Cross St. Pancras. Eden winced internally. Kings Cross might be an easy place to lose someone who was following you, but it would also be an easy place to lose a friend. She hoped they weren't planning on changing lines there.
She was about to voice this when Daniel gestured for them to get moving. She bottled it, keeping her thoughts to herself. They had to know what they were doing.
They all went through separate turnstiles to save time. As they hurried down the stairs, their footsteps echoing in the quiet station, Eden had to force herself not to glance over her shoulder. She felt like a child, adamant they were being watched by something in their wardrobe.
Jack was hurrying down the stairs beside her. His shirt sleeves were rolled up, revealing toned arms, an observation Eden thought wasn't entirely appropriate to make at a time like this. "Where are we going exactly?" she asked him.
He glanced at her. He didn't look worried, like Eden expected she looked. Instead, there was a sharpness to his expression. She realised it was a mix of determination and sheer thrill. "Kings Cross St. Pancras," he said, keeping his voice low. "We'll change to the Piccadilly line and take it all the way to Heathrow. That is if the feds don't meet us along the way. We might have to change lines and go in circles a bit."
Eden's lungs were starting to burn. She didn't know if it was from the exercise or the sudden fear that had gripped them like a vice. She stumbled on the final step and Jack, with quick reflexes, caught her. "Whoa, careful," he said, but Eden wasn't listening.
She found her fingers digging into his shoulders, holding on for dear life like he was about to be washed away from her. "Heathrow?" she asked.
"Yeah," he clarified nonchalantly.
She brought her eyes up to meet his. The nonchalance quickly faded from his face when he took note of her panicked expression.
"Heathrow," she repeated. This time it wasn't a question. "An airport. We're going to an airport."
He licked his lips nervously again. "Yeah, your dad was seen in New York, remember? Are you-"
"Hey! What's the hold up? The train's coming!" Merritt was paused just before the turning to the platform.
Jack took Eden's hand in his, walking towards Merritt, but Eden didn't budge. He stopped when he felt the tension of their interlocked hands trying to go in different directions. He looked back at her, and Eden couldn't deny she was a little bit glad to see that he finally looked worried.
But Heathrow? She hadn't twigged that agreeing to this would mean leaving the country. She didn't have her passport or a suitcase or anything. She didn't even know if she was fully in agreement with this whole thing anyway. Going to America with strangers in search of her long-lost father? It didn't really sound like something she should be doing.
Merritt seemed to know what she was thinking. "You can't back out now, sweetheart. Don't worry about anything; we have it all sorted."
What about her mum, her friends, her boss? They'd think she'd gone missing, they'd phone the police. She had to at least contact one of them.
"Do any of you have a phone?" she asked. "I wanna tell my mum that I'm safe."
"Yeah, here." Jack fished in his trouser pockets and handed her a cheap phone.
"Just don't tell her any major details, okay?" Merritt said. Eden nodded. "Okay, now come on."
Eden numbly let Jack drag her onto the platform as the train came barrelling into the station with a roar and a whoosh of air. The five of them got into a mostly empty carriage. Eden dropped into a seat, trying her best to type out a message to her mum without saying anything that might worry her.
Mum, it's Eden. Please don't worry. I've gone to look for Dad. I know he was a magician, and I know why he disappeared. I can't really explain, but this is something I have to do. I'm perfectly safe. I'll be back soon. Show this to Maisie, yeah? And give my boss a good excuse? Thanks Mum, I love you.
Eden typed in her Mum's number and pressed send. She immediately regretted it. The message had sounded feeble, useless. How could a text be of any comfort to her mum? It would have to do. She was involved in this now whether she liked it or not.
They sat in silence for most of the journey to Kings Cross. Eden asked if they wanted her to lead the way at the station seeing as changing lines there could be a bit confusing. Daniel looked a bit like he wanted to protest, but Henley interrupted and said it would be a great help. Eden felt that maybe if she were to actively do something then she might feel more a part of it. Maybe it would make her feel like she was doing the right thing.
When they reached Kings Cross, Eden was first off the train. She took a moment to gather her bearings. It was much busier here. She began to lead the way, heading for the Piccadilly line. At one point they almost got separated, and despite herself Eden fumbled for Jack's hand. She didn't want to be on her own in this.
She thought everything was going alright until Jack suddenly yanked her to the side.
"Piccadilly is that way!" she protested, pointing towards the direction she had been heading in.
But Jack's only reply was, "They've spotted us!"
Eden hurriedly looked around. Sure enough, there were a gaggle of men in suits gesturing wildly in their direction. But there was no sign of Daniel, Henley and Merritt.
"Jack!" she said, tugging on his hand. "We've lost the others."
Jack stopped and spun in a full circle, searching frantically. He pointed. "They're over there. They must have seen the feds too. They'll lead them off, take a different route."
They started moving again. Eden didn't like this, not at all. Her heart was going mad. There were suddenly too many people on the planet. She needed space, she needed fresh air, but there was nothing of the sort as they headed from the station proper into the underground. She looked over her shoulder, and her heart almost threw itself into her throat. Most of the agents had gone in pursuit of Daniel, Henley and Merritt, but there were two battling their way through the crowd to try and reach her and Jack.
"They're still following us," she told Jack. She could hear the desperation in her own voice. It was safe to say she'd never been pursued by the authorities whilst holding hands with a boy she barely knew. Her life had always been normal and average and boring, and she had wished something exciting would happen for once. Yet now she'd got what she'd wished for, and she didn't know exactly how she felt about it.
Jack picked up pace, darting in between people. He shoved his way to the front of the shortest queue for one of the turnstiles, ignoring the irritated huffs from those waiting. The two of them rushed through, and Eden heard the familiar sound of tube trains slowing into platforms. It was the sound of home, and now the sound of her escape.
When they turned onto the platform they wanted, Eden almost groaned in despair. She glanced up at the red writing trailing along a little screen. One minute till the next train arrived.
Jack showed no signs of letting go of her hand. Eden grimaced as she felt her palm getting sweatier, but he didn't seem to care. Instead he relaxed his posture, stopped bouncing on the balls of his feet. He glanced around casually, as though he were bored waiting for the train. Eden tried to emulate him; better not to draw suspicion on themselves. Even as she attempted to relax, she couldn't stop her heart beating so hard that the material of her dress twitched against her chest in time to her pulse.
There was a rumble as the train approached the platform. People began to arrange themselves, guessing where the nearest doors would be. Eden didn't notice how she tightened her grip on Jack's hand in apprehension.
A shout came from not far behind them. It had come from around the corner so they couldn't see, but Eden guessed the agents were closing in on them.
There was a tiny rush of relief as two headlights appeared in the mouth of the tunnel. The train materialised, sliding to a stop. The doors opened and the people inside spilled out. Jack edged the two of them closer to the nearest set of doors, impatiently waiting for everyone to get off. Then came their turn to climb aboard.
"Where are the others?" Eden asked as they squeezed into a gap at the back. Jack finally dropped her hand to grab onto a railing, and Eden did the same. She couldn't deny that action made her feel separated from him, like she was on her own in all this.
"It's fine," Jack reassured her. "They can get the next train and meet us at the airport. They might even be on one of the other carriages." The corners of his mouth curved into a confident smile. "It's fine, it's all going to plan."
"I'll take your word for it," Eden muttered. Jack heard her and laughed quietly.
His smile quickly faded though as, outside the carriage, two men in suits rushed onto the platform. The train admitted a shrill beeping and Eden held her breath, shrinking away from the open doors. The agents looked around wildly, trying to spot which carriage Eden and Jack were in. One caught sight of them and pointed, but just as they charged forwards all the train doors closed in unison. The train began to pull away. The agents smacked against the doors and windows, their shouts muffled, but it was too late, the train was on its way.
Eden and Jack were on their way.