Inside the Shadow City (10 page)

“That's right,” said Oona, glaring at each of us.

“Ananka and I have uncovered evidence of an underground city deep beneath downtown Manhattan.” Kiki gestured to the map. “It's called the Shadow City, and it was built about two hundred years ago by criminals looking to smuggle goods and hide from the police. If I'm right, there are huge tunnels about seventy feet underground,” she said, pointing at the diagram she'd drawn. “They're connected to the surface by long ladders that lead to hidden rooms underneath buildings throughout the city.

“Right now, we're the only ones who know the Shadow City exists. Even Ananka and I don't know what's down there yet. We've only seen a tiny part of it, and it was never completely explored, even back when it was still in use.”

“Do you think there's treasure down there?” asked Luz.

“That's what I'm hoping,” said Kiki. “But before we start to search for treasure, the Irregulars are going to map all the entrances to the Shadow City.”

“Who wants a map if we could have treasure?” demanded Oona.

Kiki rolled her eyes. “Really, Oona. I thought you of all people would understand. It's very simple. If we have the only map, we control the Shadow City.”

“So what?” asked Oona.

“If we don't control the Shadow City, someone else will.”

The Boy Scouts were onto something when they advised their members to “Be Prepared.” They understood that those who prepare will prevail.

If you want to be prepared for adventure of any magnitude, make sure to carry the following tools in your handbag at all times.

1.
A Compass:
Always know where you are—and where you're going. Even the most familiar environments can be confusing under certain conditions, such as rain, snow, or darkness. Getting lost is not only dangerous, it's a waste of time.

2.
A Pocket Flashlight:
You can purchase inexpensive flashlights no larger than a pen at most discount stores. Keep one on your person at all times—even if you're not afraid of the dark.

3.
A Swiss Army Knife (or Equivalent):
A standard SAK comes with a valuable set of tools that can help you out of countless scrapes—such as a screwdriver, scissors, a magnifying glass, and a nail file. Do not attempt to board an airplane with one unless you enjoy a good frisking.

4.
A Credit Card (Expired):
Should you find yourself locked in (or out) of a room, a credit card can be used to open a surprising number of doors. Practice on a bathroom door until you master the technique.

5.
A Notebook and Pen:
Boring? Perhaps. But these are the two most essential tools of any adventurer. Always keep track of what's been said, where you've been, and what you've learned.

6.
Duct Tape:
Take a roll with you wherever you travel. It can be used to immobilize criminals, fix essential equipment, and make a cute skirt if you're in a bind.

7.
Chewing Gum:
Fresh breath should be a priority for everyone. However, gum also comes in handy if you want to jam a car's ignition or stick notes in secret places.

8.
First Aid Supplies:
If you can't understand how these might come in handy, please refer to the end of
chapter 8
.

Confidence is the force that runs the world. Mixed with a dose of charm, it has the power to produce everything from prom queens to presidents. You see, the sad truth of the matter is, most people are hopelessly gullible. Look us in the eye and spin a good story, and we'll be more than happy to believe you. You could tell the average person that the moon is made of cheese, and if you said it with a pleasant smile and the right amount of conviction, her only question would be “Cheddar or Swiss?” Tell five twelve-year-old girls that they can take control of an underground city and if you say it like there's not a doubt in your mind, they'll never ask how.

Leaning casually against the fireplace, Kiki Strike oozed confidence. With one arched eyebrow, she made it clear that there were no questions that couldn't be answered, no arguments she couldn't defeat. But while we may have had our reservations, Kiki had already won us over. It didn't matter if she were mad, malevolent, or
simply mistaken. At that moment, all that mattered was that, of all the thousands of girls in Manhattan, she had chosen only five. She had seen things in us that no one else had ever bothered to look for.

DeeDee was the first to speak up.

“I thought you said we were the only ones who knew about the Shadow City. Has someone else found the tunnels?” she asked.

Kiki pulled a scrap of newspaper from her pocket and handed it to DeeDee.

“It's a story from the
New York Times,
” she announced. “Six weeks ago, the police got word that a shipment of counterfeit designer handbags had made its way from Shanghai to Chinatown. But when the cops got to the address on Canal Street, they found an ordinary herb shop. They tore open boxes and dumped out every drawer, but they couldn't uncover anything hotter than chili powder.

“They were about to leave empty-handed, when one of the cops remembered a story he'd heard about secret rooms hidden beneath some of the older buildings in Chinatown. So he went back for another look, and sure enough, he found a trapdoor in the shop's basement. Below it was a hidden room filled with not-so-designer handbags. From the description in the article, the hidden room sounds a lot like the room Ananka and I discovered. If any of the smugglers had bothered to look a little harder, they might have found a second trapdoor.” Like a character in a movie, Kiki paused for dramatic effect. “One that led to the Shadow City.”

DeeDee passed the article to me. The picture that
accompanied the story showed a young policeman standing in front of a dingy building in Chinatown, dozens of counterfeit handbags dangling from his arms. Nearby, two handcuffed men leaned against a van with a crosseyed dragon painted on its side. I heard a faint gasp behind me. Oona was reading over my shoulder. Kiki's eyes darted in our direction.

“Anyone you know?” she asked Oona.

Oona shook her head, but the expression on her face said otherwise. She looked like she'd been zapped by an electric cattle prod, and her breathing was fast and shallow. Kiki held Oona's eye for the briefest of moments before she continued with her explanation.

“As I was saying, Chinatown is full of secret rooms and smugglers. Unless we take action, someday soon, someone is going to find an entrance to the Shadow City. My guess is that it won't be the police. And there's no telling what could happen if smugglers take control of the tunnels. But if we have a map, we can use it to keep the Shadow City free of criminal scum. We'll block any entrance that's in danger of being discovered.”

“Just out of curiosity, why shouldn't we tell the police about the Shadow City?” asked DeeDee.

“We could,” said Kiki with a shrug. “But where's the fun in that? Besides, if there
is
treasure down there, do you think the police would let
us
keep it?”

That was all that the rest of us needed to hear.

Kiki spent an hour answering everyone's questions, but as soon as the sun began to set, she called an abrupt end to the gathering.

“When's the next meeting?” asked Luz.

“Monday evening,” said Kiki. “I need to get a few supplies together. Ananka, do you mind if we meet at your house? We'll need to use your library.”

“Sure,” I muttered, overcome by a tsunami of dread. It may be difficult to believe, but I had never invited anyone to my home.

• • •

I spent the following day tidying my apartment in time for the second meeting of the Irregulars. For as long as I could remember, the place had never received a proper cleaning. Aside from my father's aunt Beatrice, who had lost both her vision and sense of smell in an unfortunate deep-sea fishing accident, no one ever came to visit. As a result, we had no reason to pick up after ourselves, and our sloppiness had gotten out of control.

I devoted an exhausting hour to removing the splatter from a batch of spaghetti sauce that lent one wall of our kitchen the appearance of a gory crime scene. In the bathroom, I discovered a patch of mold growing on the tiles that had assumed the size, shape, and texture of a small wombat. My parents watched with growing amusement as I traveled from room to room with my bucket, rags, and bottle of hot pink household cleaner.

“I didn't know we could afford a maid, Bernard,” I heard my mother say to my father as I passed by.

“You'd be surprised, Lillian, child labor is remarkably affordable these days,” my father replied.

“I
knew
there was a reason we wanted a child,” said my mother.

“Think of it. If we'd only wanted three or four more,
we could rent Ananka out to the neighbors,” said my father.

“You're hilarious,” I huffed, wishing my parents would take me seriously. “You know, I could use a little help. My friends will be here soon, and this place is revolting. Haven't you noticed the smell?”

“If there's a smell in here, it never seemed to bother you before, Ananka. We'd like to help, but your father's giving a lecture tonight, and we have to prepare. Besides, haven't you heard? The Fishbeins don't do windows.”

“Or floors or bathtubs or dishes or laundry, I guess.”

“Isn't she witty?” said my father. “She must get that from me.”

I gritted my teeth and tried to stay calm.

“Well, if you aren't going to help, will you at least stay out of the way when my friends show up? We're working on a very important project.”

“Interfere with your schoolwork?” said my mother with the same infuriating smile I'd seen her offer the mentally challenged. “We wouldn't dream of it, dear.”

I grabbed my bucket and sponges and stomped off toward the bedrooms.

“Don't forget to iron the sheets,” called my father. “I like mine with a smidgeon of starch.”

• • •

When the first of the Irregulars arrived, I was still a nervous wreck. Before I opened the door, I uttered a silent prayer to keep them from noticing the spiderwebs I had been unable to reach or the mouse that lived in the cupboard under the kitchen sink. I shouldn't have worried,
however, because the only thing each of the girls did as she stepped through the door was stare at the towers of books that lined the walls.

Kiki and Oona arrived first. They both looked so effortlessly glamorous that I felt dowdy in their presence. Oona wore a silk dress in a vibrant shade of scarlet and the sort of floppy hat that usually only looks good on movie stars. Kiki, dressed casually in black, almost seemed to glow. I was slightly relieved when DeeDee showed up in a yellow skirt covered with purple blotches, followed by Luz in a rather unflattering gray outfit that showcased a little potbelly I hadn't noticed before. Betty was the last to knock at the door. Still out of disguise, but hiding behind another pair of enormous sunglasses, she was soon so busy scanning the titles of books along the hall that she didn't spot the spider that dangled inches above her head.

Once we were all seated in my decontaminated living room, Kiki retrieved a pile of index cards from her satchel.

“This is even more impressive than I expected,” she said, her eyes still skipping across the spines of my parents' books. “Is there some kind of organizational system?”

“Tell me what we're looking for, and I'll tell you where to find it,” I replied, feeling suddenly confident. Most people would have found our library hopelessly confusing. But having spent twelve lonely years searching for subjects to keep myself entertained, I knew where to find almost any title.

“Okay, then. Here are our assignments. Before we pay our first visit to the Shadow City, we need to do a little research.” Kiki handed a card to Luz. “Luz, you're
going to learn all you can about underground New York. You won't find any information on the Shadow City, but we need to know where all the subway tunnels, water pipes, and sewers are. I think we'll be too far down to run into any of them, but we should make sure. I don't want any surprises.”

Next, Kiki addressed DeeDee.

“You're going to be studying the use of explosives in dangerous situations. We may come across barred doors or parts of the Shadow City that have been walled up. We'll need to find a way to get past any obstacles.

“And no surprises for you, Betty,” said Kiki, handing out another card. “You're going to design our uniforms. They should be tough, comfortable, waterproof, and reasonably fashionable.

“Oona,” Kiki continued, “we need to know everything we can about picking locks that date from the nineteenth century.”

“Picking locks really isn't my thing,” Oona complained. “Aren't there any documents that need forging?”

“There will be,” Kiki snapped. “But this is what we need to know right now. I was planning to invite a lock-picking prodigy to join the Irregulars, but the girl I had in mind turned out to be extremely untrustworthy.”

Oona snatched the card from Kiki's fingers. “Just my luck,” she muttered under her breath.

“And here are a few locks to practice with,” said Kiki. She pulled out a sack filled with ancient and rusty locks and tossed it to Oona. Then she turned to me and held out the last of the index cards.

“This subject should be self-explanatory,” she said.
I looked down at the card and discovered a single word.

Rats,
the card read. Instantly, my skin began to crawl.

“There's no doubt they're down there,” Kiki said with a touch of sympathy. “We have to be prepared. You guys can go ahead and get started. I've already found what I need.” I followed her eyes to a pile of books stacked on the fireplace mantel. For a moment, I thought she was mistaken. The only books in that area were on diamonds and precious stones—subjects that, as far as I knew, had nothing to do with the Shadow City. But rather than say anything, I assumed there was a reason for everything. I left Kiki alone in the living room and guided the other girls to the information they would need. Then I went off in search of the rat-related books, which were housed underneath the kitchen sink, in a rodent-proof box next to the home of our resident mouse.