Above the Vaulted Sky - Page 95

            ‘You talking about me, sweetie?’ Elle calls, throwing her head back, fluttering her eyelashes.

            ‘You wish,’ I say.

            She aims a punch for my arm but I dodge neatly to the side. I think everyone needs an Elle.

            Yates has already sped ahead into the living room. Almost immediately, he comes speeding back out. ‘Nononono,’ he says too quickly.

            ‘What’s wrong?’ I ask. He frets and pulls on his hair.

            ‘It’s gone,’ he says. ‘It’s all gone, someone’s taken it.’

            ‘What’s gone?’ Graham asks. The curious way he was looking at him back in London is gone. Now he’s retreated to the cold safety of incredulity.

            ‘My research,’ Yates snaps. ‘I knew we shouldn’t have left, I knew it. This is karma for what I did to him.’

            ‘Do you really believe in karma?’ I ask. ‘This isn’t anything like that, Yates. Let’s look inside.’

            When we enter the living room, I can see Yates is right. All the papers are gone. All his notes tacked to the walls, the books for reference, everything.

            ‘Who did this?’ Yates talks more to himself than anyone. Pacing around like he’s at a crime scene. I suppose he is. Dead we may be but we can be stolen from.

            ‘You don’t think…’ starts Elle walking towards him. ‘Hold on, I want to try it.’

            She closes her eyes and spreads her hands out like she’s preparing to dive from the high board.

            She comes back out and sways a little. ‘I’ll give you three guesses,’ she says. ‘No that’s too easy. One and a half.’

            ‘Teague?’ I say.

            ‘What’s going on?’ Graham asks. ‘I’m missing something aren’t I.’

            ‘It’s a dead thing,’ I reply. ‘You’re not tuned to the network.’

            ‘What is it?’ Yates looks as confused as Graham. ‘You’ve found something.’

            ‘You remember what I showed you? When you close your eyes and you see people. Do it in here.’

            Yates closes his eyes, concentrates for a second and then takes a step back like something scary appeared in front of him.

            ‘What is that? The blue light, it’s like the room’s on fire.’

            Graham closes his arms around himself. ‘I swear, if someone doesn’t tell me what’s going on?’

            ‘Teague leaves a trail behind him,’ I say. ‘You saw that light, it’s part of it. It’s like he’s a vibration but he’s resonating at a different speed to everything else, both living and dead.’

            ‘Music leaves it too,’ Elle says. ‘It’s like the 60s at every concert.’