Chapter 6

CHAPTER SIX

As Mercury walked up the garden path of Bodhi House, his belly churned. Although things hadn't exactly been an argument, the telling-off that Nick had given him the previous Friday still stung. Mercury didn't want to lead these kids on. That would be cruel. Why shouldn't he give them some of his knowledge too?

He heard noises coming from inside. Of course, the kids would be there all day now the school holidays had begun. He rang the bell and waited.

"Let me go."

"I'm answering it."

The door was flung open by a breathless Brooke, closely followed by Olena.

"I figured it would be you," Brooke said, beaming.

"Ta-da," Mercury said, holding his hands out.

Olena giggled and ran down the corridor. "It's that posh bloke," she shouted.

Brooke stood to the side for him. Mercury wandered through into the main room. Olena and Anna were on one of the sofas, giggling at something on their phones. Hassan was reading a book.

Mercury had a rush of love for the young boy. All this technology surrounding him and he'd opted for the old-fashioned way.

Mercury shook his head as he came in. "That posh bloke? It's not as if my name is difficult to remember. Have you met a lot of Mercurys?"

Olena grinned. "Sorry."

Nick appeared in the office door. To Mercury's instant relief, he was smiling. "Good morning."

"Morning," Mercury said shyly. "No Eddie?"

"He's coming later," Brooke said.

She settled down next to Hassan. Another couple of kids were over by the window. Mercury didn't know them. Well, not yet.

"You're all bright and early," Mercury continued. "I haven't had enough coffee yet."

Nick held his mug up. "Only one way to fix that."

Mercury laughed. He strode across the room and took it. "Tea?"

"That would be lovely."

This time, he would make the perfect brew. As he walked through into the kitchen, he sensed he was being followed. Brooke stood in the doorway, biting a nail.

"Are you after a drink too?" he asked.

"Nah," she said, coming into the room a little more.

"What's up then?"

She glanced at him. "Would you…would you teach me to take good photos? You know, with my phone."

Mercury glanced over her shoulder. He did not want a repeat of Friday before he had even had a coffee.

"Nick wasn't all that happy with me on Friday," he said. "How about I get settled in first? Then I'll see what I can do."

Brooke's face lit up. "We can always talk Nick around one way or the other."

The kettle boiled as Mercury guffawed. "Is that right? You'll have to share your knowledge with me too."

"You've got a deal," Brooke said with a wink.

"Brooke," Nick called through. "Are you ready?"

Brooke dashed into the main room. Mercury finished making the drinks and wandered through.

"I don't want any falling out or cheek," Nick said in his sternest voice. "Geoffrey is giving his time for free, remember."

A nervous man hovered in the other doorway, laden down with what seemed to be artists' canvasses.

"Hello," Mercury said. "Can I get you one?"

Geoffrey shook his head. "I had a chai latte on the way here. That's enough for anyone."

"Art room then, guys," Nick said.

The small group of teenagers all scrambled off the sofas and obediently filed upstairs. Mercury couldn't believe his eyes.

"They seem like a smashing bunch," Geoffrey said. "I'm looking forward to this."

A matron of a woman came out of the office. She had short brown hair and a booming laugh. "They are. Don't worry, I'll be with you if you need any support."

Geoffrey stuck his chest out. "I've taught art therapy in prisons. I'm sure I'll be fine."

There was a crash upstairs.

"Hassan!" Anna shrieked.

"Good stuff," Nick said. "Then we'll let you deal with whatever that is. I need to introduce Cath to our newest member of staff."

Geoffrey ran up the stairs.

"Mercury, this is Cath. She's my right hand and everyone's favourite."

Cath pushed him. "Don't be so silly. The kids adore you. I'm pleased to meet you, Mercury."

"And you," Mercury replied. He took an instant shine to her. The positive vibes that emanated from her were infectious. An almost perfect mirror image to snarky Gavin.

Another furore came from upstairs.

"I'd better go," Cath said, leaving them to it.

"Do you think they'll be okay?" Mercury asked, handing Nick his mug.

"Of course. They're hardly going to eat him, are they? Deep down, the kids love getting their emotions out with paint. It's really effective. I must warn you. They've asked if you can go and see the finished products."

"I'm not exactly popular in the art world at the moment. I promise I have no red wine on my person."

They went through into the office. Mercury was so relieved that things appeared to be okay although he didn't want to simply brush it under the carpet.

He sat at his desk. The huge stack of logbooks was where he'd left them.

"About Friday," he began.

"I wanted to talk to you about that," Nick replied. "I think I owe you an apology."

"Me?"

Nick shifted uncomfortably on his chair. "I think I judged you a little harshly. I can't help being protective over these kids. Social media is the worst thing that happened to teenagers."

Mercury frowned. "You think?"

"Of course. They're expected to show these perfect lives in the best clothes. Don't even get me started on the weirdos that hang around on there."

Mercury couldn't argue with that. He had received more than his fair share of filthy and threatening messages.

"You're right," he replied. "I wouldn't have been able to handle that at their age. My mother wouldn't let me have any accounts until I was eighteen."

Nick nodded. "I can imagine it's ten times worse being famous."

Madeline's fame had always been there. It was a fact of Mercury's life. That didn't make it always smooth sailing.

"When I was fourteen, someone followed me home from school," Mercury said. "Ever since we came to London, my mother's insisted on security. I found it so embarrassing. I begged her to stand them down. In the end I succeeded. Six months later, this man appeared in the park."

Nick frowned. "What happened?"

"I ran," Mercury explained. "And didn't tell my mum. She would have insisted on getting another bodyguard. Two weeks later, the same man was disturbed in the garden by Gwen, our housekeeper. He attacked her to try to get in the house. He kept screaming he was married to my mum and my natural father."

Nick stared at him, his eyes wide. "That must have been terrifying."

"We were out, but Gwen got pretty roughed up. Thankfully, my paranoid mother had made sure cameras were installed everywhere. Honestly, our house would give Big Brother a run for its money."

"Did it go to court?"

Mercury shook his head. "He pleaded guilty, thankfully. Poor Gwen was in no shape to face a trial."

"What happened to her?"

"Nothing. She still works for us. Mum promised her a job for life and a massive wage increase. Honestly, she's the best."

"Did the guy get jail?"

"Yeah, a few years. He'll be out now. Thankfully, we've not heard anything from him. If he comes within a square mile of us, he'll go straight back inside."

Nick sipped his tea. Mercury noticed he didn't grimace. That had to be progress.

"He would have had a shit time," Nick said. "Men who attack women aren't treated very nicely."

Mercury regarded him. "You sound very knowledgeable."

"It's no secret," Nick replied. "I've been to prison."

Once again, Mercury tried not to be shocked. "Oh, right," he said.

"Don't worry. I'm not an axe murderer."

Mercury desperately wanted to ask what Nick had been convicted of but knew better. "How come you're allowed to run this place?"

"Good question and a very long answer. Let's save it for another time."

Nick signalled they were at the end of the conversation by sitting up to his desk. Mercury stared at his strong back for a second more before doing the same.

You're a man of many layers, Nick Campbell.

Mercury found himself relishing the prospect of peeling them away while at Bodhi House.

The week passed without incident. Mercury had begun to make a dent in the logbooks and Nick had finally begun to drink all of his tea.

The kids had been great for the most part. Mercury had stumbled into the middle of a fight between Olena and Anna. Much to his own surprise and everyone else's, he'd broken it up and made them go into separate rooms.

By the time he'd finished talking to them, they were firm friends again.

It was lunchtime on Thursday and Mercury sat in the kitchen with Nick, Cath, Brooke, Eddie and Hassan. He had made them fattoush, a Syrian salad dish. Like most teenagers, they'd greeted the prospect of new food with trepidation.

Yet once Eddie had tried it and declared it "all right," the others dug in. Mercury revelled in the sense of pride when they were all munching away, evidently enjoying it.

The only problem was he'd had to make a deal to get Eddie to try his food and payback was going to be terrifying.

"Can't wait until Monday," Eddie said with a twinkle in his eye.

Nick caught Mercury's eye and chuckled.

"I still think it's an unfair deal," Mercury muttered. "You get to eat a delicious salad and I have to climb a wall."

"A five-metre wall," Eddie added.

Mercury shuddered. "I've hated heights ever since I froze on the diving board in Antibes."

"You don't have to do it," Cath said.

"Yes, he does," Eddie cut in. "A deal is a deal."

The little mercenary was having a great time.

"Have no fear, I won't back down," Mercury said. "I never refuse a dare."

"What's Antibes?" Hassan asked.

"Where's Antibes," Nick corrected.

"It's a place in France," Mercury explained. "One of our security guards took me to a water park."

Eddie frowned. "Didn't your mum go?"

Mercury smiled. "No. Once my mum gets involved, everything gets complicated. Can you imagine Madeline Morrison wandering around Marineland?"

"My dad took me on all the rides at Chessington," Hassan said. "It was ace."

Madeline had never done anything like that with him.

"What was your favourite?" Mercury asked.

Hassan thought about this very carefully before launching into a long monologue featuring the pros and cons of each attraction. His face was alight as he told Mercury what he and his dad had thought of them.

There are lots of different kinds of wealth.

Once again, he caught Nick's eye. This time he had a warmth to him, as if reading Mercury's mind. It might be a perfect summer's day, but Mercury was feeling an altogether different kind of heat.

"Everyone finished?" Nick asked.

"And all clean plates," Mercury added. "I'll have to cook for you again."

"Please," Brooke said. "That was well nice."

"Okay," Nick said. "Everyone into the garden. We'll teach Mercury how to play tag on high."

Mercury lifted his trouser leg. "I win."

Eddie burst out laughing. "It's not like that. It's a bit stupid but Nick makes us do it."

"I like it," Hassan said.

"Less talk, more action," Cath declared. "Give us ten minutes to clear away, unless anyone wants to help."

The youngsters piled out of the door.

"Easiest way to get teenagers to move," Cath said.

They began to stack up the plates.

"I think we can call that a success," Mercury said. "I'm pleased. They're great kids."

"You're very good with them," Nick said. "I'm sorry again for last Friday."

Mercury dumped the plates next to the sink. They didn't have a dishwasher at Bodhi House.

"Hey, don't sweat it," Mercury replied. "I might not be blind to my privilege, but I'm realising I'm not totally aware of it either. These kids are giving me just as much."

Nick shook his head. "I never expected to hear that when they told me I was getting a posh boy to do his community service."

"Sorry," Mercury replied. "I'm sure you would have preferred someone with more skills than making a salad and taking a decent photo on a mobile phone."

"Oh, I don't know. I think there's more to you than meets the eye. Let's see what else we can find in there."

The frisson of excitement that swept through Mercury was like something he'd never experienced before.

"Dig away," he said. "I'm an open book."

"First lesson, how to wash up manually. I bet you've never done that before."

Mercury turned the tap on and instantly flicked water toward Nick, drenching his T-shirt.

"Be careful what you bet on."

Nick swatted him with the tea towel.

"I'll leave you boys to the clearing up," Cath said. "But please don't take too long. Hassan is too good at this game and I can't stand on the bench for too long. I get vertigo."

She left them to it.

"It really was delicious," Nick said.

The water was filling up the sink.

"Thanks," Mercury said. "There's plenty more where that came from. My grandmother insisted I knew how to cook. She reckoned it was the best way to find a wonderful wife. Poor misguided fool."

Nick chuckled. Mercury was growing to love that sound. In fact, everything about Nick was ticking boxes that Mercury didn't know he had.

He picked up a cup that was floating around in the soapsuds and instantly pulled his hand out.

"Shit, that's hot. Ouch."

Gently, Nick took hold of his hand. It was bright red.

"You haven't scalded yourself," he said. "Just a bit hot."

He didn't let go of Mercury's hand. They stood there for a second until a holler from outside broke the spell. Nick sprang away and resumed clearing the table.

Yet, that moment had happened. Mercury watched Nick's strong back as he reached for Hassan's discarded plate.

It had definitely happened.