ACADEMY FOR THE DAMNED

Chapter Twenty Two

Chapter Twenty Two

Dee was also dreaming. She lay in her replica bed in her replica bedroom and while she slept her eyes beneath their lids underwent rapid movement. She was in a desert. Above her was the bluest sky she had seen in her life and here and there were wisps of white cloud. In the distance she saw ochre hills and she stood on what looked like red earth. She could smell the burnt earth and felt the heat rising off the land.

She was aware of somebody standing behind her. Dee turned but the figure remained behind her. She turned again but the figure was always behind her.

"Dido St Clair."

The voice was neither male nor female. Dee wanted to run and hide but felt locked in place by sheer terror.

"You don't need to be afraid."

"What do you want?"

"Listen."

"Where am I?"

Dee screamed as she was plucked off the ground. The red earth beneath dissolved and she found herself precariously perched on the top of a building. She swayed as she tried to keep her balance, and not plunge down off the place she found herself on.

"I have you."

She felt hands on her, steadying her body. She relaxed somewhat.

"Look down."

Dee did and saw she was standing on top of the apex of the tower of the building she had been shanghaied to. She saw the wall around the building but she did not see monsters beyond the wall. What she saw was the world stretched out to her. There was no horizon. Paradoxically she could see the entire world. She saw every person, every street in every city. She saw every home and every family and every creature that crawled or ran or swam across the surface of the Earth. She saw the fabulous wealth of her planet and its awesome beauty.

"It's yours," said the voice. "I give it to you. Everything on this world is yours."

"Mine?"

"Yours."

"How is that possible?"

Dee's eyes widened and she felt a thrill course through her body. She felt as though she had been given the greatest gift anybody could ever receive. There were times in the orphanage where she had come down on Christmas morning and beneath the tree had been presents that were hers and hers alone and she had pulled off the wrapping in anticipation of what was held in those brightly coloured packages. What she felt now were those sets of emotions multiplied by a factor of one million. She could hardly contain the pleasure welling within her.

"You know I can give this all to you."

"Yes, you can," said Dee.

She could not take her eyes away from the staggering vistas that lay spread out before her. She was held in thrall by the beauty and the splendour of this vision. Dee wanted it to be real so much. She realised she would do anything at all to possess it. The little miserable girl from the orphanage would be never be snubbed or ignored or slighted again.

"There is something I want you to do for me," said the figure behind her.

Dillon sat in Durand's office. He wore nothing but the boxer shorts he always wore in bed. Durand and Frank and Lahr surrounded him. The man he knew as Dimitri stood to one side with his arms folded.