The Pact by John L. Probert Page A

her eyebrows. “Did I say I worked for the government?”
    No , Parva thought, you didn’t. But I’m trying to get you to admit that you do. “That’s what this is about, isn’t it?” The phone buzzed again. Parva decided to press harder. “You’ve already admitted the girl you wanted to interrogate was the daughter of the man who got me sent here. Jack Willoughby’s a lot of things, but he’s not friends with gangsters, and I can’t think of anyone else who would have ex gun-runners in their employ.”
    “An arms negotiator.” Amanda actually looked incensed at Parva’s accusation. “And yes, seeing as you wish to be so pushy about it, I’ll admit than I am working for the people who run this country, one of whom is rather unhappy about the fact that his daughter got caught in the crossfire.”
    “What crossfire?” Parva was determined to get this woman to talk. “What was so important that you were willing to risk poisoning four young girls?”
    Amanda sighed, her face sagged, and for a moment it looked as if she might drop her weapon. So secret government agents get tired of their lot from time to time as well, Parva thought, as her phone buzzed for a fourth time.
    “Jennifer...actually let’s just stick to her Christian name to protect those who pay me a lot to help things stay that way, shall we? Anyway, Jennifer X, who was a pupil at this school, got involved with a man who was much older than her. Much older and rather influential where certain matters of state might be concerned. He was a friend of her father’s and his predilection for...younger women was well known. Her father was foolish enough to believe that he would never go after the man’s own daughter.”
    “And that’s why she had to die?” Parva could hardly believe it. “So this man’s disgusting little ‘predilection’ as you call it, could be kept secret?”
    Amanda shook her head. “Haven’t you read the papers in the last ten years? No one really cares about that sort of thing anymore. In fact if anything the one thing guaranteed to restores a flagging politician’s reputation in the opinion polls is for him to have an affair.”
    So he was a politician. Parva filed that little fact away. “What, then?”
    “Everything would have been fine if they hadn’t broken up,” said Amanda.
    “The world is full of stories like that,” said Parva. “It’s hardly anything new. Why should this be any different?”
    “Because, if you were as familiar with relationship break-ups as you are trying to pretend to be, you would know that they can often be very messy.” Amanda was standing between the two girls now. Her gaze swept from one to the other before settling once more on Parva. “People are angry. They do stupid things. And little Jenny did something very, very stupid indeed.”
    “She gave the things he kept in her room to the charity shop,” Parva breathed. Suddenly it was starting to make sense. “And among those things there was something important.”
    “No.” Amanda obviously didn’t like being pre-empted. “Among those things was something very important. I’m sure she had no idea what she’d done but it became imperative we find out. I was ‘awoken’, and instructed to investigate, with orders to dispose of her and anyone else who might be aware of the item.”
    Parva’s phone began to vibrate continuously “What was it?” She thought about trying to edge back further but knew Amanda would shoot if she did. She changed tactics and took two steps forward.
    Amanda surprised her by taking a step back. She gave a nervous laugh. “Do you think I would tell you? Or these two trussed up children? Oh no, Dr Corcoran. I’ve had enough trouble trying to track the damned thing down without risking yet more people knowing about it.”
    Parva tried moving forward again. Now she was in between the two girls. She still had no idea what she was going to do but at least Amanda had moved back from Emily and