Noughts And Crosses

Some time has passed, and Sephy recalls her difficult transition to life at boarding school. She suffered from the heartache of Callum’s decision not to run away with her, and though she didn’t believe she was drinking that much, she also suffered from alcohol withdrawal. She now sees her move to boarding school as “a chance to remake myself, start from scratch” (365). Sephy stays away from home on breaks and joins a Cross dissident group that fights for change in society. Minnie has informed Sephy that their mother continues to drink excessively and that she plans to go to university as far away from home as possible even though their mother puts up a fight to stop her. Sephy, however, no longer drinks and is focused on building a new future for herself without Callum. She has decided to become a lawyer and is inspired by Kelani Adams, but she does still occasionally wonder if Callum thinks of her.

Callum recalls his two years in the Liberation Militia as he worked his “way up the ranks” (369). He uses his newfound connections in the militia to exact revenge upon the three Cross girls who attacked Sephy, which he enjoyed and feels fully justified in doing. He describes the members of his cell: Pete, who is the leader; Morgan; and Leila. He recounts meeting Leila in a coffee shop as she impressively fought three men who disrespected her. Callum rejects Leila’s offers to become lovers and focuses on his work. He builds a reputation of having “nerves of steel” and never balking at danger (374). Callum claims he has lost his soul through his work and has become “one of the youngest sergeants in the whole of the Liberation Militia” (375). He sends money to his mother whenever he can and never sees his brother until Jude is assigned the new lieutenant of his cell. Callum senses his brother still doesn’t trust him and that his whole cell may end up suffering because of that lack of trust.

The school year has ended two and a half years after Sephy’s first arrival at boarding school. Now 17 years old, she reluctantly returns home. Sephy plans to stay home only for one week before she begins a job at a law practice near her boarding school. When Sephy arrives home, Sarah hands her a letter from Callum. In the letter, Callum asks Sephy to meet at the beach later that evening. Sephy experiences a rush of old emotions she thought she no longer had, and she waffles over going to the beach that night. She feels there is no harm in going, but she also feels there are reasons she should just stay home.

Callum and his cell excitedly prepare for a new mission that promises to make the militia a lot of money. Jude questions Callum’s loyalty but eventually relents and celebrates their inevitable success.

Sephy waits at the beach and wades in the water. She reflects on how she no longer yearns for her father’s love and attention or her mother’s approval. She is excited to create a new life for herself and hopes that she and Callum can be friends. Callum appears at the beach, and she notices how different Callum looks. She greets Callum warmly, but he responds only with “a brief, icy cold kiss on the lips […] his eyes filled with regret” (385). Sephy notices four noughts behind Callum and runs for her life. Someone grabs Sephy and punches her in the stomach. They drag Sephy along the beach and place a dark bag over her head.

The cell places Sephy in the trunk of their car, and they celebrate the success of the kidnapping. Jude tells Callum he is proud of him, but Callum slams Jude against a wall and demands he never question his loyalty again. The cell plans how to begin communication with Sephy’s father for her ransom. Jude continues to test Callum’s loyalty by seeing how he reacts to Jude’s suggestions for how to handle Sephy. Callum volunteers to gather the evidence of Sephy’s capture to send to her father with the ransom note and reminds himself that they have captured just some Cross girl, not his Sephy. He denies his true self and tells himself to do what he has to do.

Sephy is in pain from the punch in her stomach. Callum enters her cell, cuts off a lock of her hair, and commands Sephy to hold up today’s newspaper while he films her. When she refuses, Jude threatens to break her arms. Leila comes in and mocks Sephy, but Callum is angry that the other noughts have come to watch over what he is doing. Callum commands Sephy to read the script as Callum records, but she still refuses. Jude slaps her, threatens to kill her, and then leaves Callum alone with her. She attempts to convince Callum that there are other non-violent ways to fight against the inequalities in their society, but he is angry and convinced of carrying through with the plan. Sephy suspects she will be killed because none of the cell members have bothered to hide their identities. He commands her to read from the script once more, and Sephy finally submits.

This chapter begins with the letter Sephy is ordered to read aloud on camera. The letter details that Sephy’s father has 24 hours to follow the cell’s instructions or she will be killed. Sephy cries and holds up the newspaper at Callum’s direction. Callum commands her to detail each item of clothing she is wearing and tells her to remove her shirt. Sephy asks Callum if he is going to kill her, but he avoids the question. Callum takes the shirt and tells Sephy to put her other clothes back on. While she is undressed, he notices how much Sephy’s body has developed and how beautiful she is. Sephy presses Callum about all the time they spent together as kids and whether any of it meant anything to him. Callum and Sephy lash out at each other and Sephy uses racial slurs she promised Callum she would never say again many years ago. Furious, Callum cuts Sephy’s finger, but his anger subsides quickly when she reacts in pain. He apologizes as he places her shirt over the wound to use as part of the ransom. Callum places Sephy’s wounded finger in his mouth. Sephy asks Callum to be the one to kill her and asks him to do it quickly. Callum leaves the room and catches his brother watching him. Jude is pleased with Callum and leaves him in charge of Sephy as he and Pete leave on another mission. Callum feels he needs to be very careful around Jude.

Sephy hears Callum enter her cell to bring her some food. She throws the plate and refuses to look at him or speak to him. She hears Callum leave, noting that he always remembers to lock the door behind him.

Callum struggles to fall asleep. Leila attempts to seduce him, but he once again denies her, and she leaves as he gets dressed. He hears a noise and finds Leila in an armlock of a tall blond man. The man eventually offers the secret password and introduces himself as Andrew Dorn, “the General’s second-in-command” (408). Andrew asks to see Sephy, and when Callum takes him there Callum notices Sephy’s surprised reaction when she sees Andrew’s boots, which are flashy, but he doesn’t understand why she would react like that. They leave Sephy’s cell. Andrew tells Callum the general has ordered Sephy to be killed, and Callum agrees to kill Sephy himself.

Sephy recognizes Andrew Dorn but is unsure where she has seen him before. She searches for anything to help her escape. She wishes she could see her family one more time despite being desperate to leave just a few days ago.

The cell watches the news as Kamal Hadley resigns from office temporarily, which was part of LM’s demands to return his daughter. They review their plans to retrieve the ransom. Callum is ordered to stay behind with Sephy, but he resists and feels he could be of better use playing an active part. He eventually relents but only to stop embarrassing his brother in front of his commanding officer. Andrew charges Callum to shoot Sephy if the police arrive. Callum recalls watching Sephy’s car pull away that day she left for boarding school, frustrated at how different his life could have been if he had caught her. He wishes he could leave.

Sephy is still in pain and refuses to look at Callum. Callum rubs Sephy’s abdomen and confesses to Sephy that he loves her. She begs him to let her go. He tells her about how he ran after her car the day she left for boarding school, and Sephy cries. Callum asks Sephy if she loves him and kisses her as she is overcome by thinking about what could have been if he hadn’t been late that day. They have sex. As they get dressed, Sephy weeps. The door of the cell opens, and Jude and Morgan see Callum and Sephy together in bed.

Jude and Morgan inform Callum that Leila has been arrested and Pete has been killed. Jude accuses Callum of raping Sephy and hits him in the face while telling him how stupid he is. Jude tells him they could have simply gotten what they wanted from Sephy’s father and then let her go despite what Andrew ordered. Callum punches Jude in the nose and tells him never to hit him again. As the brothers fight, Sephy escapes. They chase after her, and Callum prays he's the one who catches her.

Sephy keeps running and gets lost in the woods. She hides behind a tree and hears Jude asking her to come out, promising not to kill her. She closes her eyes, hoping they will pass her by, but when she opens them Callum is in front of her. He misdirects Jude and Morgan back to the cabin and gives Sephy instructions to the road. Before leaving, Sephy remembers that Andrew Dorn is the nought man she saw speaking to her father once years before when she came downstairs late at night before that first day of school, so she warns Callum he works for her father. They separate.