Eye Spy by Tessa Buckley

he’s even more unpredictable than usual, so we didn’t know what to expect. Donna looked especially unhappy, pushing food around her plate instead of eating it. I guessed she was feeling guilty because of what she’d said to Dad about the money. Eventually she stopped pretending to eat and said, “Why does he push us away when things go wrong for him? He never lets us comfort him.”
    Nan shrugged. “What can I say, lass? Ian’s never been good at handling rejection; it makes him feel a failure.”
    All three of us felt like failures that evening. I hoped that day was just a low point, and that from then on things would get better. But they didn’t get better; they just went on getting worse.

Chapter Twelve: HOLTECH
    At two thirty on Thursday afternoon, we were sitting in the hall with the rest of Year Eight, waiting for the Managing Director of Holtech to appear. Donna and I sat right at the back. It was only six days since the poker game, and we didn’t want to give Mr Bull any more opportunities to pick on us. So far that week we’d been quite successful at keeping a low profile, but it wasn’t worth taking any chances.
    The buzz of conversation stopped suddenly as Mr Bull walked onto the stage accompanied by a man and a woman. The man was very tall with a high forehead and receding hair. I thought he looked familiar, but I couldn’t work out where I’d seen him before. The woman, who had short, glossy blonde hair, was wearing a black trouser suit and a red top. Mr Bull ushered them onto the stage as if they were royalty, pulling out a chair at the table for the woman to sit on. You could see he was in a good mood as he stood on the platform with his hands clasped behind his back, swaying gently from foot to foot and beaming widely at us. He was doing his Father Christmas act again.
    â€œToday, boys and girls,” he began, “we are privileged to have with us the Managing Director of Holtech Systems, Miss Diane Fairchild, and her colleague Mr Lionel Caulfield, who are going to talk about what the company produces and explain to you the fascinating careers that are open to those who work in the field of cutting-edge technology. I’m sure we’re in for a really stimulating talk. Miss Fairchild…” He sat down and gestured to the woman to start talking.
    The heating was going full blast once more, and it was very warm in the hall. I let my thoughts drift, and the voice of the woman explaining all the different manufacturing processes Holtech was involved in gradually receded into the background. I dozed off for a few minutes until Donna suddenly nudged me.
    â€œWhat?”
    â€œListen! This is interesting.”
    The woman was listing some of the products the company produced. “…a range of components such as infra-red lenses, which are used for night-time photography, and miniature sensors, which have all sorts of commercial applications.” I saw what Donna was getting at. A company that made sensors and optical lenses might just be interested in a robot that used the same technology. I did wonder briefly how Dad had managed to overlook the fact that the largest employer in Holcombe Bay was also the ideal company to approach with his ideas. Maybe Dad spent so much time locked in his workshop that he had no idea what was going on locally.
    The woman finished her talk and sat down. As the man began to give a video presentation about Holtech, Donna and I held a whispered conversation.
    â€œDo you think we should try and speak to them after the talk?” I asked. “Sound them out about the robot?”
    Donna was enthusiastic. “We’ll never get a better opportunity. We can waylay them in the car park as they’re leaving.”
    I looked up and saw Mr Bull glaring at us. Had he noticed us whispering? If he had, we were in trouble. As soon as the lecture finished, and Mr Bull had thanked the Managing Director and