How Ali Ferguson Saved Houdini (6 page)

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Chapter 7

Gez closed his phone with a sharp snap.

His mission was clear. He had to get an identification on the men. He had to do it secretly. And if he could find out what was in the boxes, then all the better.

It was a good job that he was feeling like a superhero tonight. But then, there were few nights when he didn't feel like a superhero.

He put the phone down on his brother's bedside table. It was Michael's phone after all. Percy, the grass snake that Michael kept in an old aquarium, hissed gently. Was it a warning? An omen?

‘Shh!' Gez said to Percy.

The window was open. Michael always left it ajar in case he missed curfew and had to climb in late. But tonight it was Gez breaking the rules. He needed a cover story. He needed to be able to explain what he was doing outside, in case anyone saw him. He didn't have a cat to put out – his mum was allergic. But he had left his bike outside, thrown down in the yard just under the washing line in the way that drove Mum insane.

That would do! He would pretend to be just a regular little boy, bringing in his abandoned bike before bedtime. Genius!

Gez eased open the window. The sudden rush of cold air made him shiver. He climbed over the windowsill and dropped gently on to the kitchen roof. He steadied himself on the tiles. Then, with a quick scurry, he was across the roof and above the lawn. He lowered himself over the edge, trying not to scrape his belly on the gutter. Then, lightly, he landed on the ground. Excellent. He would get to the bottom of this mystery tonight.

He suddenly realised that it was freezing outside. Why hadn't he thought to put his coat on? What if he got kidnapped in just his Spiderman pyjamas? He did a few quick star jumps to get warm, then left the garden.

The back lane was deserted – black and bare as a tomb.

Apart from the van.

It was parked about thirty metres away. He would have to creep up on it, take the driver by surprise. He inched closer. The number plate was covered in mud, hiding the letters.
Cunning
, Gez thought.

He was getting closer, closer . . .

He could see the side now. There was nothing there. No, name, or picture. No, wait! There was something! Gez crouched down and scurried nearer. There were raised patches on the paintwork. Something had been
painted over
. It was just about possible to read the old name – Tones and Sons. Brilliant! This mission was a doddle.

Then a phone rang. Inside the van.

‘Yes?' a man's voice said.

Gez froze.

He knew he should run. Knew he should get home, get safe, call Ali with the name he'd found. But his legs wouldn't listen. They inched closer to the van door, so that he could hear better.

‘Of course I'm ready,' the man said. ‘Tonight? Sure, why not?' There was a pause. ‘That bird still giving you trouble? Don't worry. I'll take care of her. She'll be gone by Sunday. Trust me, you won't hear a squeak from her ever again.'

Gez's legs turned to jelly. What was wrong with his legs tonight? Perhaps they didn't like hearing murder threats. He couldn't blame them. He had to get out of here.
Now
.

An owl hooted by the river.
Tu-whit-tu
.

Whoo
, the reply came. From the driver's seat in the van!

From the van?

Gez looked from the van to the river, then back again. The driver had made the noise. The gang were using the hoots to communicate. There were no owls. There never had been. He felt disappointed. He'd been listening to them for weeks. Well, at least the foxes were real, even if they had gone missing.

‘Oi!' a voice bellowed, just behind him.

Gez turned slowly. Two men hurried towards him. Their dark shapes seemed huge in the starlight. One of them was carrying an awkward-shaped bundle.

‘Oi! You! What you doing by our van?'

A few paces away, Gez heard a metallic click: the van door opening. The driver got out. Gez was caught between them. He was sandwiched. He was toast. He was a toasted sandwich.

Suddenly, his legs sprang into action, he dodged forwards, sidestepping left, then right. The men tried to step with him, but they couldn't keep up. Gez turned and darted into the woods. He crashed through the first bush. Twigs and thorns tore at his face, but he carried on, diving down into the thick cover of night.

‘Where did he go?' one of the men shouted. The voice wasn't far away. Gez froze, desperate not to give away his hiding place.

‘Can't have gone far. Want me to look for him, Woody?'

There was silence.

‘No,' Woody said eventually. ‘It was just some kid. No need to worry.'

‘Do you think he saw anything?'

‘What could he have seen?'

‘I dunno. Nothing. We just can't take chances. Not after last night.'

There was a cold laugh. ‘I heard there was trouble. The boss was angry?'

‘Yes. O'Connor was on the warpath.'

‘So I heard,' Woody said. ‘Come on, or we'll be next.'

Gez held his breath, struggling not to gasp. O'Connor! That was Caitlin's surname! Were they talking about Caitlin? No, she didn't know anything. It had to be her dad. Why would he be on the warpath?

Unless.

Gez felt shivers run up his spine. He had heard the rumours about Caitlin's dad being dodgy, everyone had. And this gang sounded scared of him. What if he was angry with them because he was the one in charge?

No, that didn't make sense. They had attacked him last night. They wouldn't attack their own boss.

Unless they'd had an argument. A mutiny.

And now they were worrying about what O'Connor would do for revenge.

Gez shuddered. He had to get back to his bedroom safely and call Ali.

He was near to the den. Gez knew this little patch of wood like it was his own home. He edged backwards, slow, real slow. There was a low branch just behind him. He stepped over it neatly, treading gently on the wet fallen leaves. He kept his eyes forward; the pale shape of the van was still just in view. He needed to get round it somehow. If he kept creeping back and right, he would trace a big arc around the men and find himself back on the road. He could slip right past them to the front of his own home.

He moved, creeping slowly away from the van. It was out of sight now, and so were the men. The starlight was shrouded by clouds. It was very dark. Were the men still on the road? Gez strained to listen, but all he could hear were the strange scurries and shuffles of other creatures out in the woods. Or was it footsteps? Had Woody been bluffing? Were the gang looking for him after all?

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Chapter 8

‘He's been gone for ages,' Caitlin said.

Ali squirmed under his duvet. She was right – it had been too long.

‘Do you think he's OK?' she asked.

‘Course he is. What could happen to him?'

‘Oh, you know, he could get beaten up, or kidnapped, or he could have just tripped over and broken his leg and now he's lying outside in the freezing cold, shivering to death cos no one but us knows where he is.'

Ali didn't answer.

Caitlin sat up, pushing back her sleeping bag. ‘We have to do something, I can't stand this.'

‘What can we do? My mum would freak if we sneaked out, and we can't tell her that we're going, cos she'd double-freak.' Ali looked across. In the glow from his night light Caitlin looked cross and crumpled. He was beginning to realise that when she looked cross it really meant that she was worried. ‘I'm sure he'll be OK, you know. He's not stupid.'

Caitlin snorted. ‘You've only known him for a day! I promise you, they don't come any stupider than Gez Brown.'

‘So what do you think we should do?'

She sighed and lay back down. ‘I don't know. I just wish he would ring.'

‘Me too.'

The phone rang. Ali leapt up and grabbed it from his bedside table. ‘It's him!' He pressed it to his ear. ‘Hello? Where have you been?' Ali listened for a moment, then frowned. ‘But are you OK? I told you to be careful!' More listening, more frowning. Ali looked at Caitlin. She wasn't going to like this, not at all. He put the phone down slowly.

‘Well?' Caitlin said eagerly.

‘He saw three men. One of them was called Woody.' Ali looked at her face, trying to tell whether she recognised the name. She didn't seem to.

‘And?'

‘He saw the van, and other stuff. He wants to meet up tomorrow to tell us all about it. He nearly got caught.'

‘No!' Caitlin pulled her knees up and hugged them inside her sleeping bag. ‘What else did he say?'

Ali shrugged.

‘Ali! Tell me.'

He sighed. ‘Gez heard them say “O'Connor”.'

Caitlin shrugged. ‘Well, they would, wouldn't they? They beat Dad up right in that spot, just last night. They would be thinking about it.'

Ali twisted the edge of his duvet into a little ball. ‘It might be more than that. Gez said they seemed scared of him.'

Caitlin grinned. ‘They should be more scared of us! We're getting close to them, aren't we? We just need to find out what they've got in the boxes. I bet it's stolen jewels. You know, crowns and things.' She settled back on to her cushions and closed her eyes.

Ali was sure that she would dream of queens and palaces and balls tonight. He had done a really bad job of explaining what Gez had heard. She hadn't even seemed to hear what he'd said. But he had to admit to himself that he hadn't tried very hard. He didn't want to upset her. Dave was all she'd got. He sighed. This was getting more difficult by the minute.

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Chapter 9

‘Orange juice and toast all round!' Mum said.

Ali sat at the breakfast table.

Caitlin sat next to him and smiled warmly. ‘Thanks, Mrs Ferguson.'

‘Yuck. Don't call me that. I haven't been that in years. Call me Anita,' Mum said.

‘OK . . . Anita.' Caitlin turned pink.

Ali spread a thick layer of jam over his toast and took a huge bite. Caitlin wasn't being prickly or grumpy this morning. She was . . . he thought for a moment; she was
happy
. She seemed to have forgotten all about what Gez had overheard. Could Dave really be part of the gang? He took another bite of his toast.

‘What will you do today?' Mum asked.

He shrugged.

‘I have to get home to walk Falcon,' Caitlin said. ‘Ali, do you want to come?'

Ali shook his head. He needed time to think. If Dave was part of the gang, then that changed everything. He watched silently as Caitlin left the flat.