Woody and Angel were waiting outside the van. They were in a deserted, litter-strewn street with three-storey townhouses on either side. Angel pointed. ‘That way,’ she said quietly. ‘The area has been cleared. We’re inside the police cordon so you shouldn’t see any members of the public. Take a left at the end. You’ll see the goods entrance. Go carefully and stay in contact as much as you can.’ She fist-bumped each of them in turn. ‘And guys: work together, okay? That’s the most important thing. You’re a team now.’

The truth was, they didn’t feel like a team to Max. He sensed that both Lukas and Jack saw themselves as leaders. They almost shoulder-barged each other as they ran in the direction Angel had indicated. Max, Sami and Abby followed. At the street corner they all stopped and looked to the left. Sure enough, there was the goods entrance to the school. There was a large area of tarmac beyond it, leading to the administration offices: Block Yellow.

It was strangely quiet. Apart from the distant hum of the circling helicopters, Max could hear nothing. He would have expected a terrorist incident to be noisier. But it was the silence, he realised, that was so strange. This was the middle of London. It was supposed to be noisy and busy. It was dead quiet because something was very wrong.

‘We should go one by one,’ Max said. ‘That way, if one of us is spotted …’

‘Yeah, I get it,’ Lukas said without looking at him. ‘I’ll go first.’ It was weird, hearing his voice both in real life and over the comms earpiece.

Without waiting for a reply, Lukas ran in the direction of Block Yellow. Despite his muscular build, he was fast and light of foot. As soon as he reached the building, he hid on the side furthest from the main school block. It meant he was out of sight of the other recruits, but they heard his voice over the comms.

– It’s me, Lukas. I’m in position on the west side of Block Yellow.

– Roger that. The comms reply was crackly.

Abby went next, then Sami. Max and Jack watched them go. When they were alone, Jack turned to Max. ‘Do what I tell you in there,’ he said, very quietly so that the comms team would have trouble hearing him. ‘Remember that you didn’t pass selection. You’re not really one of us.’

Max tapped his earpiece, as if to say, ‘I’ll do what the Watchers tell me.’ They heard Sami’s voice.

– In position.

Jack scowled at Max, then ran towards Block Yellow.

It felt weird, being on his own. The silence was oppressive. Max looked back over his shoulder. That way lay safety. In the school, danger. He could still choose one over the other, if he wanted …

Jack’s voice over the comms.

– In position.