The Ability (Ability, The) Read Free Page A

agony, and searched the crowd for somebody who could do something to help him. At the front, a teacher stood up and appeared to start shouting for help. All about her, children were crying in fear as they watched Humphries begin to roll around on the floor in agonizing pain, but the sound of them was drowned out by the unbearable noise of children laughing in his head. He felt his temperature begin to rise suddenly and watched helplessly as his hands started to turn purple. Desperately, he looked down from the stage for help and caught the eye of a pale young boy sitting in the front row below him, cross-legged and staring intently at him with an expressionless face.
    Humphries froze. It was at that moment, with a sudden jolt of clarity, that he realized what was happening,and panic swept over him. Using all the strength he could muster, he pulled himself to his feet, and, eyes wide with terror and face a mottled purple, he jumped down from the stage and collapsed on the ground as the children in the front row scrambled to get away. The only child who remained was the pale boy in the crisp new uniform, who sat perfectly still and maintained a steady gaze as Humphries crawled forward in his direction, screaming unintelligibly, and then slowly raised his hands toward the boy’s neck. Worry turned to panic as the crowd realized that Humphries was about to attack the child. The headmistress sprang into action, hitched her skirt up, and jumped down from the stage, grabbing the young boy by his shirt collar and dragging him out of harm’s reach. Humphries raised his head slowly and turned to face the cameras. He opened his mouth and screamed,
    “INFERNO!”
    As soon as the word left his lips, Humphries collapsed to the ground, his eyes open but expressionless, his body quivering in fear, just as he would remain for the rest of his life.

• CHAPTER TWO •

Later that day
    One hundred and eighty miles away, in central London, director general of MI5 Sir Bentley Jones turned away from the image on the television of Cecil Humphries being stretchered out of the school and sighed deeply. He walked over to the large window overlooking the river and looked up at the darkening sky above him, which mirrored the sense of unease that he was feeling. He stood motionless for a few minutes and watched the gray swirls of cloud gather above him, before a knock on the door shook him from his thoughts. He turned to watch as his secretary opened the door.
    “Sir . . . ,” she said, holding up a thick manila folder.
    Sir Bentley nodded and mumbled a quiet thank-you as he took the folder from her. He watched silently as sheleft the room and closed the door. It was only then that he looked down at the folder in his hands, a folder that he had hoped never to see again, and read the thick black lettering on the faded label, which he himself had written thirty years earlier: INFERNO .

• CHAPTER THREE •

Wednesday, October 31
    Christopher Lane sat in his usual chair in the school office and waited nervously, his class teacher staring at him intently from the seat opposite as if he might try to make a run for it at any time—which, to be fair, had crossed his mind. It was only Wednesday, and yet this was the third time this week that Chris had found himself sitting here, waiting for the headmaster to call his name. This time, however, he knew that the matter would have far more serious consequences.
    Across the short corridor, and as yet unaware of the presence of his least favorite pupil, the porcine Mr. Tuckdown, headmaster at Black Marsh Secondary School for the last fourteen years, was looking forward to relaxing in his office with a cup of tea, that morning’s crossword,and a ginger biscuit or two. Or three. Mr. Tuckdown sighed contentedly, slicked down the strands of greasy hair plastered across his bald head, and lowered himself into his exhausted black leather chair. Slowly, he unfolded the newspaper across the top of his empty