Anthony Horowitz - Necropolis

What else can we do? The Old Ones have disappeared. And even if we knew what they were doing, we’re not yet strong enough to take them on. Only four of the Gatekeepers have come together. There have to be five.

And now there are. At last we’ve found Scar.

It’s hard to believe that today I actually held a picture of her in my hands. Now she has a name – Scarlett Adams. We know where she lives. We can actually reach out to her and tell her the truth about who she is – or was.

Ten thousand years ago, she was in charge of her own private army. Jamie actually met her and fought with her at the final battle when the King of the Old Ones was banished and the first great gate was constructed. She must have a power – we all do. But he never found out what it was. When he met her, he said she was brave and resourceful. She could ride a horse, fight with a sword, lead an army of men who were at least twice her age. But she never did anything that looked like magic… at least, not anything that he noticed.

Very soon, we will leave Nazca. I really want to see England again .

And now I’m going to bed.

Richard is worried that Scar turning up is the start of a new phase. The Old Ones have left us alone but now they’ll have been alerted. If they were planning a move against us, this is the time when they’ll make it.

But I don’t care. There are five of us and that means that soon this whole thing will be over. We’ll get together and do whatever it takes to bring it all to an end. After that, I’ll go back to school. I’ll take my GCSEs and my A-levels. I’ll have an ordinary life.

That’s all I want. I can hardly wait.

Twenty-four hours after the fax had arrived, Professor Chambers organized a dinner. It was her way of saying goodbye. The following day, Matt, Richard, Pedro, Jamie and Scott would be leaving for England – the professor had arranged passports for all of them – and at last she would have the house to herself.

Joanna Chambers had spent most of her life in Peru, studying the Incas, the ancient Moche and Chimu tribes and, of course, the Nazca Lines. She was an expert on a dozen different subjects, a qualified pilot, a good shot with a rifle or a handgun and a terrible cook. Fortunately, the meal had been prepared by a local help: creole soup, followed by lomo saltado – a dish made with grilled beef, onions and rice. There were two jugs of Pisco Sour, a frothing, white drink made from grape brandy, lemon and egg white – it tasted much better than it looked.

Richard Cole was sitting at the head of the table. He had changed in the past few months. His hair had been bleached by the sun and he had grown it so that it fell in long strands over his collar. He had a permanent, desert tan and although he didn’t quite have a beard, he looked rough and unshaven.

Tonight, he had changed into jeans and a white, linen shirt. Normally he slouched around in shorts and sandals and if the house had been nearer the sea, he might easily have been mistaken for a surfer. He started every morning with a five-mile run. He was keeping himself in shape.

Scott and Jamie Tyler were sitting on one side of the table, together as usual. Matt and Pedro were on the other. There was one empty seat and someone had placed the article with the picture of Scarlett Adams on the table in front of it, as if she were there in spirit.

All six of them were in a good mood. The food had been excellent and the drink had helped. Upstairs, their cases were packed and ready in the various rooms. Professor Chambers waited until the food had been cleared away, then tapped a fork against her glass and rose to her feet. Matt had never seen her wearing a dress and tonight was no exception. She had put on a crumpled safari suit and there was a small bunch of flowers in her buttonhole.

“We ought to go to bed,” she began. “You have a long journey to make tomorrow – but I just want to wish you bon voyage. I can’t say I’m too sorry that you’re finally on your way…” There were protests around the table and she held up a hand for silence. “It’s been impossible to get any work done with all your infernal noise, football games out on the front lawn, four boys clumping up and down the stairs, and all the rest of it.

“But I will miss you. I’ve enjoyed having you here. That’s the truth of it. And although it’s wonderful that Scar has finally turned up, I can’t help wondering what lies ahead of you.” She stopped for a moment. “I feel a bit like a mother sending my sons off to war. I can only hope that one day I’ll see you again. I can only hope that you’ll come back safe.”

She lifted her glass.

“Anyway, here’s a toast to all five of you. The Five, I should say. Look after yourselves. Beat the Old Ones. Do what you have to do. And now let’s get some hot chocolate and have a final game of Perudo. You have an early start.”

Later that night, Richard and Matt found themselves standing on the veranda outside the main room. It was a beautiful night with a full moon, an inky sky and stars everywhere. Matt could hear classical music coming from inside the house. Professor Chambers had an old-fashioned radio that she liked to listen to while she worked. Scott and Jamie were sharing a room on the first floor. Pedro was probably watching TV.

“I can’t believe we’re going home,” Matt said.

“England.” Richard gazed into the darkness as if he could see it on the horizon. “Do you have any idea what happens when we get there?”

Matt shook his head. “I don’t know. I’ve thought about it. I’ve tried to work out some sort of plan. Maybe it would be easier if we knew what the Old Ones have been doing all this time.” He thought for a moment. “Maybe we’ll know when the five of us get together. Maybe it will all make sense.”

Matt stared into the darkness. The nights in Nazca were always huge. Even without seeing it, he could feel the desert stretching out to the mountains. There seemed to be five times more stars in the southern hemisphere than he’d ever seen in Europe. The sky was bursting with them.

“What you said yesterday…” He turned to Richard. “About the Old Ones…”

“They were looking for kids with special powers,” Richard said. “That’s how they found Scott and Jamie. If Scarlett went through the door at St Meredith’s, they’ll know about it. They’ll have read the article too.”

“You think they’ll be waiting for us?”

“Scarlett’s being watched by the Nexus. Her father’s with her. She took a couple of days off school. So far everything seems OK. She doesn’t seem to be in any danger.”

Richard had been in constant touch with the Nexus, the strange collection of millionaires, politicians, psychics and churchmen who knew about the Old Ones and had come together in a sort of secret society to fight them. It had to be secret because they were afraid of being ridiculed. How could they admit that they believed in devils and demons? The Nexus had made it their job to look after Matt and the other children. At one stage, they had paid for him to go to a private school. They were still paying for everything while the four of them were out here.

And they were also protecting Scarlett Adams. They had moved in the moment she had been identified in the national press, hiring a team of private detectives to watch over her night and day. They were lucky that she lived in England. That made things easier. One of the Nexus members was a senior police officer called Tarrant and he had arranged for all her calls to be monitored. Meanwhile, Scarlett had gone back to school. Her father was still with her in London and there was a Scottish helper living in the house. By now, Richard knew a great deal about her. She was in the school play. She had a boyfriend called Aidan and she regularly beat him at tennis. She seemed to have a happy life.