28. BUNKS.

The hut slept eight, so James, Kyle and Bruce got a set of bunks each.

'Oh, glorious day!' Bruce said brightly, as he came from a slightly grungy bathroom dressed in shorts. 'Sun is shining and life is good!'

'Sod off,' Kyle moaned, pulling a pillow over his face. 'My body hurts.'

'What bit?'

'All of it,' Kyle said, as he sat up. 'I'm old.'

'You're twenty-six,' Bruce noted. 'Jesus.'

Kyle saw a tangle of sheets in the next bunk across. 'Is James up?'

Bruce smiled. 'Kerry arrived on a boat around three a.m. They were all over each other.'

'I wish I had that,' Kyle said.

'What?' Bruce asked.

'James and Kerry,' Kyle explained. 'They're like an inst.i.tution. None of that messing around trying to find my perfect guy. You just meet someone when you're twelve and it all goes great.'

Bruce laughed. 'They've broken up a hundred times.'

Kyle nodded as he pulled up a set of tracksuit bottoms. 'But did we ever doubt that they'd get back together every time it happened?'

'I dated Kerry,' Bruce pointed out acidly.

'No offence,' Kyle said, clutching his ribs and groaning as he stood up.

'So over it,' Bruce said. 'Thai girls are awesome! How's your love life these days? You still seeing that quant.i.ty surveyor with the nose ring?'

'He dumped me for an Indian PHP programmer,' Kyle said, sighing as he checked his iPhone and slid feet into Adidas. 'Breakfast?'

'b.l.o.o.d.y right,' Bruce said. 'I've got a crazy appet.i.te.'

The main kitchen and dining-room was undergoing an off-season refurbishment, so the chef had made do with a domestic kitchen in a staff flat. She'd cleared sofas out of a living-room and found odd chairs and fold-out tables to make a dining s.p.a.ce.

'Ahoy, mateys,' James crowed, as Kyle and Bruce joined him at a buffet table.

'Look at that grin,' Bruce teased, as James loaded his plate with bacon, eggs and sausage. 'Someone got lucky last night.'

'Where is Kerry?' Kyle asked.

'Shower,' James explained.

Lauren was eating with Capstick at one table, while a rowdy crowd of current agents sat at the next.

'Why you holding your back, Kyle?' Alfie shouted. 'Need a walking stick? Or maybe a Zimmer frame?'

Bruce narrowed his eyes. 'How's them ribs I smashed into the poolside, Alfie? Nice and bruised, like Daniel's eye?'

'You guys should probably take things slow today,' Leon added, as he stuffed scrambled egg into his mouth. 'People your age gotta think about your blood pressure.'

'Or popping your haemorrhoids,' Alfie added, as his table erupted in laughter.

Friendly whoops went up as Kerry rolled in. Lauren and Kyle gave her hugs.

Kerry turned sharply and looked at Bruce. 'So, when do we get to smack these sarcastic brats around the dojo?' she asked.

'Soon enough,' Bruce said, as he took a seat next to Lauren. 'See how smart they are tomorrow morning, when they've got no front teeth.'

'I'm not scared of you,' Alfie told Bruce. 'I've found bigger objects than you up my nose.'

Laughter roared around the current agents' table. James gave Kerry a kiss as they pa.s.sed in opposite directions. James with his plate stacked, Kerry heading to the buffet. As James settled between Lauren and Kyle, Tovah darted out of the kitchen, holding a fruit plate covered in cling film.

'What?' James asked, as he poached a hash brown on his fork.

'Bad news,' Tovah told James. 'I did some calculations. If you want to fly on this mission, you need to lose four kilos.'

James gawped as Tovah swapped his bacon and eggs for sliced melon, garnished with two red grapes.

'You're kidding me,' James said, pointing at Kyle. 'He's fatter than me.'

'Hey!' Kyle yelped.

Tovah shook her head. 'Kyle may be overweight for his body size, but he's shorter so he's still only sixty-four kilos. You need to be under seventy-five.'

Everyone apart from James started laughing.

'Who ate all the pies?' the teens at the next table started singing. 'Who ate all the pies?'

'These sausages are dee-licious,' Kerry teased, as James glowered at his melon. 'Is it every meal, or just breakfast?'

'Every meal,' Tovah said. 'Serious calorie restriction is the only way James can drop four kilos in five weeks.'

'Hey,' James growled, as Lauren snapped a pic with her phone. 'What are you doing?'

'Had to, bro,' Lauren explained. 'Your expression right now is priceless!'

While CHERUB had blown its investment budget on the sw.a.n.ky new Campus Village, the summer hostel had been neglected. The gym was no exception, with creaky floorboards, cracked glazing and fighting mats patched up with duct tape.

Capstick led the training session, starting with laps and stretches. Kyle hadn't sparred for ages, but triumphed over aches and put on a decent show sparring with Leon. Daniel got outcla.s.sed by Tovah. As the two biggest, James paired with Alfie, and their session got red-faced and bad-tempered as it progressed. Bruce and Kerry had been sparring since they were nine years old, but since Kerry hadn't trained intensely since leaving uni, Bruce had to go easy.

After ninety minutes and a few partner swaps, Tovah, the five Currents and the five Crustys lined up breathlessly in front of Capstick and McEwen.

'Yawl worked hard,' Capstick said, smiling. 'Especially you, Kyle, blowing off a lot of cobwebs.'

Kyle smiled as Bruce slapped him between the shoulder blades.

'But,' Capstick said dramatically. 'Since Currents and Crustys are in compet.i.tion, I want each side to pick their three best fighters for three bouts. Winners get first dibs at showers and lunch buffet. Losers run ten laps and wipe down sweaty mats.'

Since Ning and Alfie were mates and Leon and Daniel were his little brothers, Ryan had a.s.sumed a leadership role amongst the Currents, and led the quintet into a circle by the back wall.

'Bruce is going to beat whoever,' Alfie began. 'Ning's too fast for James, Kyle's a wreck and I reckon Ning can take Kerry or Lauren, because they're both out of practice.'

Ryan nodded in agreement. 'So if Bruce wins his bout and Ning wins hers, it'll all be down to the third match-up.'

'Hang on,' Ning said. 'I'm the best, Bruce is the best. We should fight each other.'

The four lads shook their heads. 'Nah, we have to be tactical,' Ryan said.

Ning smiled. 'I've been hearing about the legendary Bruce Norris since my first dojo session on campus. I've always wanted to fight him.'

'But then we'll be a bout down,' Ryan said. 'What's the point?'

Ning put indignant hands on hips. 'Who says I can't win?'

The boys laughed and shook their heads.

'Ning, for G.o.d's sake,' Alfie said. 'Bruce won the All-in Campus Fighting Championship every year from when he was thirteen. He's been training some of the best young fighters on campus.'

Ryan nodded. 'Bruce has been living in Thailand. He teaches Muay Thai boxing to Thai people.'

'I can take him,' Ning said, pounding a fist into her palm. 'I'm fighting Bruce, that's all there is to it.'

29. TAPES.

Lauren Adams faced Ryan in an even first bout. Ryan's height and speed, versus Lauren's technique and low centre of gravity. After a lot of circling, Lauren suckered Ryan into overreaching on a punch. She went low, tripped, flipped and won with an arm bar.

Alfie and James repeated their sparring from earlier. Bulky and slow, they grunted, turned red and wound up on the floor in a stalemate. Capstick declared Alfie a narrow winner, mainly because he wanted the third bout to count for something.

Bruce Norris was a few centimetres shorter than an average bloke. Slim, muscular and so fast that opponents often found themselves on the floor and b.l.o.o.d.y-nosed before they got to make their first move. Ning was the same height. Her broad back and muscular arms made the Chinese state pick her as a future Olympic boxer when she was a little kid and you could see why as she went eye-to-eye with Bruce.

'Fight,' Capstick snapped, as the sweaty onlookers hummed with excitement.

Bruce did what he did. He swept in fast and brought Ning down with a leg hook. It looked like it was over inside three seconds as Bruce dived on Ning's back and tried to wrench her arm. But her powerful shoulders didn't yield the way Bruce expected and there was huge power in the flying knee that slammed him in the ribs and sent him off balance.

Now Ning rolled on top. Bruce writhed as Ning got a knee across his chest and started pounding his face with her gloved fists. If more was at stake, Bruce might have taken the pain and tried to throw her off, but he didn't fancy doing the rest of his mission prep trying to breathe through a broken nose, so he thumped on the mat to submit.

The crowd seemed delighted by Ning's shock victory. Even the Crustys, who now faced gym laps.

'Losing it, Bruce!' Alfie shouted.

Ning's own celebration was muted. She knew Bruce had made a tactical surrender as she gave him a hand off the mat and strolled towards an equipment bin, peeling her gloves.

'You hit hard,' Bruce said, grinning.

Ning had beaten enough boys over the years to appreciate the ones who didn't b.i.t.c.h and make excuses when they lost.

'You've never seen me fight,' Ning said. 'I've seen videos of your campus championship bouts. You always did the same thing against fighters in the early rounds, when you thought it would be easy.'

'My mistake,' Bruce said, smirking as he ripped off a boxing glove and lobbed it into a canvas bag. 'I certainly respect you now. And I've broken my nose too many times down the years to push that one too far.'

Ning shrugged. 'You'd beat me every time if you knew my fighting style.'

'But you played me,' Bruce said, unable to contain a huge smile as he eyed Ning. 'Gotta admire that. You heading straight to uni when you leave CHERUB?'

'Can't decide,' Ning said.

'I'm good mates with the owner of the dojo where I work in Thailand. If you wanted a gap year, I could probably get you work as a trainer. Maybe even earn something on the side from professional bouts, if you're that way inclined.'

'It's a thought,' Ning said brightly. 'I came out of China penniless, so I could certainly use some funds.'

'Pay's not great,' Bruce admitted. 'But the lifestyle's cool. You can find yourself a nice Aussie surfer boyfriend.'

Ning looked awkwardly at her feet and grunted. 'All guys ever want is skinny girls with giant b.o.o.bs.'

Bruce laughed. 'Don't be so down on yourself. Loads of guys would go for you.'

Ning snorted. 'Like who?'

Bruce smiled. 'Like me.'

Ning was flattered and erupted in a big smile, but it was also weird because she couldn't work out if Bruce was flirting, or just being kind. Bruce felt just as awkward, because he'd realised that he was flirting. But he wasn't on some Thai beach. He'd been working as CHERUB staff, and Ning was a seventeen-year-old agent.

As the pair flushed red, they were both relieved to see Instructor McEwen coming their way, pointing at Bruce.

'Join the other Crustys,' McEwen shouted. 'Ten laps. And Ning, get your sweaty a.s.s out of my gym and into the shower.'

James lunched on hummus and carrot batons while everyone else got pizza, but he cheered up when he took charge of fifteen 450cc Honda bikes.

'Who's ridden a motorbike before?' James asked, as the two teams and four training staff gathered.

Lauren, Bruce, Alfie, Ryan and one of the training a.s.sistants raised their hands.