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First published in Great Britain in 2019
by Electric Monkey, an imprint of Egmont UK Limited
The Yellow Building, 1 Nicholas Road, London W11 4AN
Text copyright © 2019 Lisa Heathfield
The moral rights of the author have been asserted
First e-book edition 2019
ISBN 978 1 4052 9386 0
Ebook ISBN 978 1 7803 1869 1
www.egmont.co.uk
A CIP catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
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For my brother and sisters Philip, Lara, Emma and Anna – for choosing hope and love as your weapons of choice.
Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
SIX MONTHS LATER
AUTHOR’S NOTE
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
They say I am number 276.
And that I can’t escape.
They tell me what to do, what to wear, where to go. They try hard to hollow us out, to shrink us, to make us so that we can’t exist.
But they don’t see inside of me. The part of me that they’ll never destroy.
They call me number 276, but that’s not my name.
My name is Ruby West. I am fifteen years old.
And I won’t let them silence me.
CHAPTER ONE
‘Our country was sinking into a black hole, but you voted for us to save you. We will re-establish order and we will make you safe. We will make our country strong again.’ – John Andrews, leader of the Traditional Party
It’s his gun I see first. Hard metal tucked into his belt, his fingers touching the tip.
A soldier, in our street.
I’m behind him now, a few metres away. Close enough to see how his green uniform has been ironed with a line down the back, like some weird backbone pushing through the material. And there’s the red slash on his arm to show us he’s a Traditional. As if we didn’t know.
His boots are big, but they’re quiet on the pavement. He’s quiet. And he’s walking so slowly that I have to go past him. He turns and looks at me as I do, but I keep facing straight ahead. I don’t want to see his hair, his eyes.
I smell him though, a jolt of aftershave. And he’s whistling, quietly. I want to run, but I can’t, I must keep walking, concentrate on the houses ahead. I bite my lip, taste my strawberry lip balm.
His whistling stops. I feel his eyes on me, on the undercut above my bare neck.
‘The school day starts soon.’ It’s his voice, speaking to me.
A hand suddenly links through my arm and drags me forward. It’s Destiny. She’s in my year at school and even though I don’t think we’ve ever even spoken to each other, right now I want to hug her.
‘Come on,’ she says. ‘Or we’re going to be late.’
She leads me away from him, away from the soldier and his gun, and we’re running around the corner and leaving him behind.
When we’re far enough away we slow down and Destiny unloops her arm from mine.
‘Thanks,’ I say.
She shrugs and smiles. ‘No problem.’
‘I can’t believe that there are soldiers on the streets,’ I say.
‘It’s a bit terrifying.’
‘Do you reckon they’d use their guns?’
‘Why carry them otherwise?’ Destiny says. It should feel odd to be walking along together, but that soldier has looped a strange thread of fear between us.
‘Why do you think they’re here?’ I ask.
‘Apparently it’s to keep us safe.’
‘From what?’
‘Precisely. They’ll blame it on the Core Party, as they always do.’
‘Because of the protests?’
‘They’ll pretend it’s something like that. My mum’s not surprised though. She thought it’d happen as soon as the Traditionals got into power. She’s only surprised that it’s taken them three months.’
I don’t remember seeing Destiny with glasses before. They’re nice. The frames are thin and almost bubble-gum pink against her skin.
‘My stepdad says John Andrews is actually mad,’ I say.
‘Your family didn’t vote for them then?’
I feel vulnerable suddenly. I realise I don’t know for sure what side Destiny is on. Since the election and the new government some people have really shown their true colours.
‘No,’ I tell her, trying to make my voice sound proud in what I believe in.
‘I’m a Core supporter too,’ she says. ‘Although my mum told me I shouldn’t say either way.’ There’s her laugh again. I wonder how it can be so strong when we’re on a street that might have another soldier around the corner. ‘She says we haven’t seen anything yet.’
‘There’s worse to come?’
I watch the cars drive past as they always do when I walk to school. The familiar sounds of their wheels on the road, people leaving their houses, a woman pushing a buggy on the pavement opposite. How much can really change? How much bad can a new government really do?
‘They made Hannah Maynard go and change her skirt,’ Destiny says.
‘Who did?’
‘The soldiers. They told her it was indecently short.’
‘Are you serious?’
‘Completely.’
‘They didn’t put that in their campaign speeches,’ I say.
‘They’re all about traditional values, aren’t they? We should’ve guessed they’d eventually come round to the way we dress.’
‘They’ll have us in high collars and skirts that touch our ankles.’
We’re silent for a bit. Around us it’s getting busier the closer we get to school. The gates are still a walk away but even from here I can see two soldiers standing either side of them. I look over at Destiny but I can’t read her face – it’s kind of neutral.
‘Are we still going to go in?’ I ask.
‘Of course.’ Yet when she looks up at me I can see she’s not neutral after all. There’s rebellion deep in her eyes. ‘They’re not going to stop me doing anything.’
We’re nearly there when I reach up for my ponytail and pull down my hair, letting it fall dead straight to my shoulders.
‘Ruby!’ I hear Luke call my name as soon as I walk through the door. Whatever the chaos of everyone getting into school, we always wait in the same spot for each other. And after one year, two months and five days I still get that crazy blood-flip when I see him. Even though he recently cut off his curls, he still looks beautiful.
‘Hey.’ He’s leaning against a wall as he kisses me, but I pull away from him.
‘Did you see them?’ I ask, remembering the soldier’s smell. His eyes on me.
Luke puts his arm round my shoulder and pulls me close enough to feel the beat of his heart.
‘They’re only people,’ he says. ‘Just in different types of clothes.’
‘But they’ve got guns,’ I remind him.
‘They’re just here to scare us. So don’t let them.’
The bell for tutor time rings out.
‘Did your dad know they’d be here?’
Luke shrugs. ‘He suspected. But sometimes journalists are the last people to find out. People try to hide everything from him.’
‘Hurry up, you lot.’ Our head’s voice ricochets down the corridor, scattering everyone.
‘See you in Art,’ Luke says, kissing me before I head off to my tutor room.
Mr Hart is looking for something in his drawer. It’s only a matter of time before the pile of books on his desk topples.
‘What do you think of the soldiers?’ Sara asks. I put my bag on the chair and sit on the table, my back to the front of the classroom.
‘There weren’t any on my street.’ Conor swings back on his chair, his new shoes up on the table next to me. He hates them. When the Trads brought in a no-trainer rule in all schools he tried to start a petition, but it didn’t get very far.
‘My dad told me not to be frightened of them,’ Sara says. ‘That they’re here to do good.’
‘What good ever came from people with guns?’ Conor snaps at her.
‘Don’t be so arsey,’ Sara says. It’s not like these two to fight. ‘I thought you of all people would like seeing men in uniform.’ She leans over and pulls one of his blond curls and lets it ping back into place.
‘Leave it, Sara,’ he says, swatting her hand away.
‘Settle down!’ Mr Hart shouts from the front.
Sara moves my bag so I can sit. Conor takes his feet from the table but doesn’t stop rocking backwards.
‘Sir,’ Sara calls out. ‘What’s happening?’
‘Do you mean right this moment?’ Mr Hart asks, adjusting his tie so it goes wonky the other side. ‘Or in the country in general?’
‘Both.’
Normally at least a few people are still talking, but now it’s more silent than I’ve ever heard it in here.
‘Well, right this moment we have soldiers outside our school.’ Mr Hart coughs and rubs his hand over the stubble on his chin. ‘And the country in general seems to be in the grip of a maniacal political party who want to take us back to the Stone Age.’
‘With John Andrews as the caveman,’ Conor says.
‘As he’s their leader,’ Mr Hart says, ‘it would appear so.’
‘Surely, sir,’ Ashwar says. ‘He’s just trying to make a better place for all of us to live.’
‘All of us?’ Mr Hart says. ‘Or just the people like him?’
‘By like him,’ Ashwar says, ‘do you mean people who believe in the family unit? Who believe in a safe country?’
‘It depends what your definition of better is, Ashwar,’ Mr Hart answers. ‘I’m not sure that dictating how we think and what we do is necessarily better. Take, for example, their proposed law about single-sex schools throughout the country. You do realise that would mean this school will no longer exist as it is? You’d all be split off, divided.’
‘It’s been proved that they work,’ Ashwar says. ‘Grades are consistently higher when boys and girls are separated.’
‘But it’s about choice,’ Mr Hart says.
‘We’ve had choice for tons of years and look where that’s got us,’ Ashwar says.
‘Do you actually work for the Trads, or something?’ Conor asks and a few laughs scatter about.
‘I’m just saying that perhaps it’s better to finally be told what to do. To have someone in charge who has the guts to put their beliefs into place.’
‘Are you mad?’ Conor asks her. Even though we all know she’s not. Ashwar is a straight 9 student and probably heading for Oxford.
‘I think she’s got a point,’ James says.
‘You would agree with her,’ Sara says. ‘You just want to know the colour of her knickers.’
Laughter cuts into the atmosphere again and James’s face goes so red I think he might explode.
‘I think what you have to consider,’ Mr Hart says, waving a book in the air to quieten us, ‘is why John Andrews and his party are really introducing these new rules. Could it be less about what’s good for society and more about control?’
‘Curfew for anyone under eighteen definitely seems like control to me,’ Conor says.
‘Or could it be that they just really care about what happens to us?’ Ashwar says.
‘The Core Party care,’ Conor tells her. ‘They stand for Champion Of Rights for Everyone, if you remember.
‘I hadn’t forgotten.’ Ashwar glares at him. ‘But they didn’t get voted in, did they? People voted for the Traditionals. They’d had enough of our country sliding towards oblivion.’
‘That’s ridiculous,’ Conor says. He manages not to shout it, which is pretty impressive for him. For years he was angelic Conor, terrified of spiders and wasps, but since his mum got ill anger sometimes turns him inside out.
‘My mum voted for them,’ Sara says. ‘But she didn’t expect them to start telling us what we can and can’t wear. Even half her wardrobe isn’t suitable by their standards.’
‘Well, I’m not complaining about the length of her skirts,’ Leo says, smirking at her.
‘Shut up.’ I reckon if Sara had a book in her hand she’d lob it at him.
‘Maybe John Andrews is right,’ Ashwar says. ‘That without the trigger of provocative clothing, rape crime will go down.’
Conor slams his fist on to the desk. ‘You seriously believe it’s a girl’s fault if she’s attacked? Because of the way she dresses?’
‘I seriously believe that it’s a complex topic,’ Ashwar says calmly. ‘No other government has tried to face it and we’re left with a country that’s rotting from the inside out.’
‘Sir,’ Conor shouts. ‘You’ve got to stop her spouting this bullshit.’
Mr Hart waves his book from the front again, but this time he looks like he has fury in his veins. ‘I think –’ he says, his voice raised enough to get everyone quiet, ‘– that if we voted again now, some of your parents who ticked a box for the Traditionals might change their mind.’
‘It’s a bit late though, isn’t it,’ Conor mumbles.
‘Yes,’ Mr Hart says. ‘Yes, it is.’
The only class I have with Luke is art. Sara says I only took it so I could be with him and I think she might be right. I’m rubbish at drawing, but Luke is like the next Picasso or something.
‘You okay?’ he asks, sitting on the stool next to me. He puts his hand underneath my hair and I can feel his palm against my skin. When he kisses me I wonder if the Trads will stop this too. If they say short skirts lead to promiscuity and teenage pregnancies, what will they think of outright kissing?
‘Everything’s just a bit weird,’ I say.
‘There was nearly a fight in maths,’ Luke says.
‘So much for the Trads bringing peace and harmony.’
Miss Mason bangs her giant paintbrush on her desk. It’s her way of getting our attention and somehow it’s always worked.
‘There’s a change of plan for our lesson today,’ she says. She’s wearing her long hippy dress as usual so she’ll be fine with any new rules the Trads impose. ‘The whole of Year Eleven are having an assembly in the hall.’
‘Now?’ someone asks.
‘Yes.’ Miss Mason goes to the door and opens it. ‘In silence though. Other year groups are still working.’
‘Miss, I really want to finish my still life,’ Kaylee moans.
‘I’ll open the room at lunch for anyone who wants to make up the time.’
‘No thanks,’ Conor laughs, walking across the top of the tables to get past everyone.
‘Off there,’ Miss Mason tells him and he jumps down, using Kaylee’s head to support him.
‘Wanker,’ she says, swiping at him.
‘Language,’ Miss Mason says.
‘The Trads will knock your head off if they hear you say that, Kaylee,’ Conor says.
‘I said silence,’ Miss Mason shouts.
‘What’s going on, miss?’ Luke asks as we pass her.
‘I’ve just been told to get you all to assembly,’ she says as she flicks off the light and closes the door behind the last of us.
There’s a soldier standing at the front of the hall. It looks wrong that he’s here inside our school. Next to him Mr Edwards, our head, paces up and down, directing people where to sit, filling up the chairs from the front. Luke squeezes my fingers before he lets go of my hand.
Normally in assembly there’s so much noise, people shoving and shouting, calling out to each other. But there’s something about the soldier that sews all our mouths shut. All except Tristan.
‘He’s fit,’ I hear him say.
‘Shh.’ Sara yanks his arm. Since the Traditionals have come into power they’re suddenly very vocal about what they really think of gay people. They say it’s a choice and they’ve made it clear which way they want people to choose.
Luke and I manage to sit together and when everyone is inside, the big double doors close and we all look to the two men at the front.
‘Good morning, everyone,’ Mr Edwards says. I can tell he’s nervous as he exaggerates looking at his watch. ‘Yup, it is still morning, just.’ A few of the teachers around the edge try to laugh, but there’s nothing from any of us. ‘Right, well, I’m going to hand over to Chris Stewart, a member of the Traditional Party.’ Mr Edwards steps to the side, his hands strangely clasped together. I’ve never seen him fade in the presence of anyone before. He normally struts around like some sort of demented peacock.
‘Thank you,’ Chris Stewart says. He clears his throat, his hand balled in front of his lips. ‘I’m very proud to be here as a representative of John Andrews and the Traditional Party.’ He’s older than the soldier on my street this morning. And he doesn’t have a gun, but that doesn’t make me feel any better. ‘As you all know, this is a very exciting time for our country, because for too long we’ve been at the mercy of people with weak vision and weak focus. We are different. We bring change. We’re determined to restore our country to be the great place we know it can be.’ He looks so smug standing there, as though he’s expecting us all to jump to our feet and high five him or something. ‘The Traditionals are not just a party of words but of actions. Already our policies are working. Since we came to power three months ago, violent crimes are decreasing. With us leading you, I promise that your quality of life will continue to rise.’
He’s convincing, I’ll give him that. I know a lot of people will be lapping this up, oblivious to how much will be destroyed for this so-called life. Like our voice, our freedom. I nudge Luke gently with my arm and he nudges me back. Thank God for his sanity in this madness.
‘We know,’ the soldier continues, ‘that much of the country voted for us. People knew it was time for change. And we believe in the importance of solidarity. We know that you want to be as proud of the party you voted for as we are proud of you. Therefore, from today, you are all instructed to wear a band on your arm depicting your allegiance.’
Mr Edwards takes a step backwards. It’s obvious that he didn’t know this was going to happen.
The soldier’s smile doesn’t seem friendly to me. ‘Some of you look confused,’ he says. He looks like a snake. ‘Let me explain it more clearly. You are about to come up here and choose a band of either the Traditionals or the Core Party. You will wear that band at all times.’
There’s not even a murmur. Two hundred silent students. I glance around, but everyone just stares at the front.
Two soldiers appear from the side door carrying a box each. And both are carrying guns slung over their shoulders. They put the boxes on a table. Across the front of one there’s the red slash against the green of the Trads, the other has a rectangle of purple with four yellow upward steps. One soldier slices a knife across the top of one box, then the other.
‘The decision of which band you choose must be your own,’ Chris Stewart says from the front. ‘Don’t be influenced by your friends. And if your parents were foolish enough to vote for the Core Party, know that you don’t have to follow them. They may be frightened of change, but this is your chance to stand up to them, to be your own person. Break free of their chains.’
‘What an idiot,’ Luke whispers so quietly that it’s probably only me who hears it.
‘The front row first,’ Chris Stewart says. No one moves until he points to the girl on the end. ‘You,’ he says. ‘Come and choose your band. The rest will follow in silence.’
She’s a new girl. I don’t know her name, but she goes straight to the Traditionals’ box. She reaches in, pulls out an elasticated green band and pulls it over her school jumper to the top of her arm, turning it so that the red slash is clearly visible. Chris Stewart pats her on the back and she smiles up at him as though he’s some sort of hero or something.
It’s Shaun Williams next and he doesn’t even hesitate before he chooses the Trads. Then James and Ashwar from my tutor group and Tristan. He’s not laughing now as he pulls the green band up his arm.
I don’t know if they all really want to, or if it’s the men holding guns behind them that make them do it.
Sara is first in the second row. I know her mum voted for the Trads as she wanted a change. She said other governments had led us nowhere and she wanted to give someone else a chance. Her dad couldn’t decide so he hadn’t voted. But Sara? She’s been my best mate since our first day in this school and her head is screwed on right.
She gets to the front and hesitates. She looks at Stewart who watches her, before she walks past the Core’s box and puts her hand into the one for the Trads. I drop my head down. Luke reaches over for my hand and this time he doesn’t let go.
I don’t want to see any more of it. I don’t want to believe that it’s happening. So I close my eyes. Are they doing this with Year Eight? Are they going to make my sister choose?
‘I’m not ashamed.’ The voice that makes me look up is Conor’s. He’s pulling a purple Core Party band up his arm, positioning it so that the yellow steps are visible for everyone to see.
‘Ignorance is not something to be proud of,’ Chris Stewart says, glaring at him. I think Conor is going to say something else, but the soldiers with the guns stand straight and he walks back to his seat.
There are a handful of people in the rows in front who have the purple band. The logo of the steps are meant to represent walking up to a brighter, better future, yet not enough people seem to be listening. Or are they just scared? I wish my dad was here, as he’d tell them not to be intimidated. But he lives so far away now that he might not even know this is going on.
It’s my turn. Our line stands up and I follow Jen along the length of chairs. Luke is behind me. The air, all of the sounds, seem to have been sucked from the room as we walk to the front. I can’t tell which I feel more – defiance or fear. But there’s never any doubt about which I’ll choose.
I don’t look at the soldiers, at their empty eyes and loaded guns, as I pull the purple band over my wrist and the sleeve of my jumper. The material it’s made of is stretchy and clings to my arm. I twist it so that the steps face out and as I walk back to my seat I keep my head held high. I look calm, but if you sliced me open now you’d see my heart struggling to keep up with its beating.