‘Shhhhhhhhheeeesh,’ he cried out in pain, now about halfway up. At first he could only see the blue sky but as he got closer to the surface the anxious faces of Kensy, Song and Anna hove into view. The three of them grabbed hold as he reached the top and dragged him to safety.
Kensy hugged the man tightly, causing him to cry out in pain again.
‘Kensy, get off him. He’s hurt,’ Anna said, shooing her daughter away.
‘Sorry, Fitz. I didn’t mean to make it worse.’ Kensy bit her lip.
‘I’m okay – I think I busted my shoulder on the way down. It was a bit of a drop,’ Fitz said.
Anna didn’t like the look of the man’s pallor at all. He was grey and clearly needed urgent medical attention. With Song’s help, she managed to get Fitz to a sitting position, then she carefully removed his jacket to take a closer look.
‘Good self-diagnosis, Fitz,’ Anna said. ‘I don’t think it’s broken but it’s definitely dislocated.’ She carefully ran her fingers over the area. ‘I’m going to have to pop it back in.’
‘What? Here?’ Max asked with a grimace.
‘Here’s as good a place as any,’ Fitz said. ‘Although I’m guessing you don’t happen to have anything that might numb it a bit, do you?’
Anna raised her eyebrows and pulled a small first-aid kit from her jacket, though it wasn’t your usual bandaids and betadine. Within seconds she’d administered a shot of a strong painkiller.
‘That’s brilliant,’ Fitz said, obvious relief washing over his face. ‘I can’t feel anything now.’
Anna looked at the man. ‘Okay, well hopefully you won’t feel this either.’ She quickly crunched and pulled and within seconds the bone that had been out of the socket was back where it needed to be.
‘Oh Mum, that was disgusting,’ Kensy shook her head. ‘But clearly you’ve done it before.’
‘Many times, darling, though most people aren’t as brave as Fitz,’ the woman said with a wry smile.
Anna helped the man to his feet and he leaned up against the snowmobile.
‘What happened to you?’ Max asked. ‘How did you end up down there?’
‘Well, I was following Fox and Heike and Axel – on a borrowed snowmobile,’ the man began.
‘You mean stolen. Don’t worry, we stole these two to come and find you,’ Kensy said.
‘I stayed a long way back, but then their tracks just came to a stop. Completely disappeared along with any sign of the three of them or their vehicles. So I parked in among the trees down there . . .’
‘Max found the snowmobile – it’s buried under a tonne of new snow,’ Kensy interrupted him again, garnering a glare from her mother.
‘Please, darling, just let Fitz finish,’ Anna chastised.
Kensy clamped her mouth shut.
‘Anyway, I headed off on foot, looking for them and I fell through that hatch there into an old military bunker. I was just about to test another way out when I heard you calling me,’ the man explained. ‘You couldn’t have come at a better time given there was a high probability I might have electrocuted myself in the process.’
‘What’s down there?’ Max asked.
Fitz went on to describe the place complete with rats and ancient tins of baked beans before the biggest surprise of all.
‘There’s a huge room packed to the gills with military grade weapons from the Russian army. My phone is at the bottom of a crate full of hand grenades. Hence the lack of communication. I was in the middle of typing a one-finger message when the darn thing fell inside and I couldn’t retrieve it no matter what I tried. Smashing it open wasn’t an option,’ the man said.
‘But Dad got your message – at least a couple of words and that’s how we knew you were stuck somewhere,’ Kensy said.
Fitz frowned. ‘It must have knocked the send button on the way through. Did you use the GPS locater?’
Song nodded. ‘We only had this place as your last location – here on top. We suspect the phone battery must have died straight after the message came. I will go and get it now. Which crate is it in?’
Fitz quickly explained while Song put the harness on and used the winch to drop down into the cavern below. Kensy wanted to go with him, but the adults all objected. Besides, Song was down and back in no time flat with the missing device and having taken quite a few photographs of the lair too.
‘Do you think the arms have something to do with the Van Leers?’ Max asked.
‘Highly likely,’ Fitz said. ‘Though I’m at a loss to see how they’d be able to move anything at the moment in the middle of winter.’ He looked around and tried to work out where the end of the room full of weapons would be in relation to where they were now. He measured it out in his mind.
Anna noticed that Fitz was shivering. Some fierce-looking storm clouds were rolling in from the north and a chill wind had begun to blow.
‘We need to get you home and into a bath then to bed,’ the woman said. ‘The effects of that painkiller will definitely wear off before we get there and we’ve got to return the snowmobiles too, hopefully without anyone noticing.’
Fitz nodded.
‘Song, can you record all of the coordinates?’ Fitz said.
‘Of course,’ the man replied. He’d already started the process.
Max and Song trekked back to retrieve the buried snowmobile. Max wondered how long it was going to take to dig it out, but then Song produced a small pod from his pocket, about the size of a pea. He crushed it between his fingertips before setting it down on top of the snowy pile. Within less than a minute the snow had melted away.
‘Wow, that’s a good gadget,’ Max said. ‘How come we didn’t see those when we got all our gear?’
‘There was far too much to show you in that short time. But do not worry. I will equip you when we return to the chalet. It is a simple chemical reaction inside of the pod that causes extreme heat – not unlike those hand and toe warmers you can get for inside your ski boots and gloves, but this one is much more powerful and not something to be toyed with.’
Fortunately the engine fired first go and the pair quickly rode up to meet the others. Anna had helped Fitz onto the back of the machine he’d been leaning against while Song returned with Max and Kensy got to ride on her own – but only after a stern talk from her mother who told her she wasn’t to try any daring manoeuvres.
The family headed down the mountain with Song in the lead again, Kensy in the middle and Anna and Fitz bringing up the rear. As they neared the farmhouse Song pulled into a stand of trees. He would don his snowshoes and investigate that it was still empty before they returned the snowmobiles.
The man did a lap of the house and gave the others a wave when he was certain that the coast was clear. A couple of minutes later the transports were safely back in the garage and the family had set off down to a cluster of lodges where Anna had organised for a taxi to meet them.
It was after one by the time the family arrived back at the chalet. Anna and Song fussed over Fitz, while the children rushed straight to Kensy’s room where she pulled the silver container out of her pocket and set it down on the bedside table.
‘So did it work?’ Max asked as he closed the door.
Kensy nodded. ‘Sure did. I got right inside Heike’s head. It was the weirdest thing ever and don’t get me started about Fox’s Superman long johns – that was information I didn’t need.’
Max grimaced. ‘Okay, what else did you learn?’
She quickly blurted everything that had come through about their grandmother. ‘Unfortunately there was a lot of interference so it was really disjointed.’
Max’s eyes scanned the room for some paper and something to write with, but he couldn’t see anything so quickly raced back to his own room and reappeared with his journal and a pen.
‘Again, tell me what she thought,’ the boy instructed. He opened to a fresh page and began to take everything down.
‘Um, so it started like, that Cordelia Spencer, she
is so . . . then there was a long crackle and she said smug and another long crackle. Then and perfect then another lot of interference and the last word that seemed to have anything to do with Granny was coming, before Heike complained about the helmet hurting and suddenly it all stopped,’ Kensy said.
Max looked at the text then wrote it again with gaps where Kensy said there had been interference. Maybe they could work out the words that were missing for themselves.
‘Why would she be thinking about Granny?’ the boy said.
‘Well, if I knew, I’d have already solved the case,’ Kensy said.
Max flipped his notebook to another page and realised the note from Magoo was tucked inside. He pulled it out and Kensy frowned.
‘Did you have any luck with tip?’ she asked.
Max shook his head. ‘I haven’t had any time to work on it. Do you want to take a look now?’
‘Sure,’ Kensy said. She glanced at the code and pointed. ‘There!’ she said and snatched the pen and the notebook from her brother. In a series of lines she worked backwards to find the first three letters, t-i-p, but there was more.
‘Max, it’s not tip, it’s tippie.’ She looked up.
‘What? Show me,’ the boy said. His sister was right. He’d been wondering if it was something about the tip of the iceberg or a tipping point but Tippie – what did Magoo’s wife have to do with it?
‘Her name adds about as much significance as Song’s did,’ Kensy said. ‘Seriously – what if it doesn’t mean anything?’
Max took the page from her and folded it up. He placed it back in the front of his journal. ‘I’ve got no idea, but at least Mrs VB’s mind-reader actually works – that’s so cool. Are you going to tell Mum and Dad?’
‘What I heard about Granny, yes, but not that it came from the mind-reader. Mrs Vanden Boom was insistent that I didn’t tell anyone and I’ve already told you and lied to Mum about having a new listening device. Given the mind-reader works, I’d really like Mrs Vanden Boom to be able to reveal it to everyone herself. It might go some of the way to patching up whatever has happened between her and Granny and Tippie – she definitely gave me the impression that they weren’t on great terms.’
‘Vanden Boom could probably run rings around Mrs MacGregor. Maybe they’ve been rivals for a long time. I mean they’re both clever, but Mrs VB is a genius as far as I’m concerned,’ Max said.
Kensy nodded. ‘And why is Heike thinking about Granny? Unless she and Fox are going to make a takeover bid for the Beacon, but they’re way off there. Granny won’t ever sell. Anyway, I want to plant the other mind-reader in Fox’s helmet tonight when we’re at dinner and I’ll probably need your help.’
‘Absolutely,’ Max said. ‘And you can help me too. I know you think I’m crazy, but I want to take another look at that apartment block where the mystery firefighter was – or his twin or whoever that guy is.’
Kensy agreed, but they’d have to wait a little while. There was no way their mother would let them go anywhere at the moment with a blizzard raging outside. As they’d returned to the chalet an icy wind had sent snow flurries twisting and twirling and the village was blanketed in low cloud. It was forecast to clear by late afternoon, but the odd patch of blue sky gave the twins hope that it might be sooner.
In the meantime they needed to tell their mother and Song what Kensy had ‘heard’ Heike saying about their grandmother.
Kensy peered through the telescope across the valley towards the Van Leers’ place. ‘The weather’s improving. I can see Soren. He’s in his bedroom.’ The girl turned to her brother who was sitting on the couch doodling in a notebook.
Max had been writing down all of the odd things that had happened recently, trying to uncover any tangible links as well as thinking about what his sister had heard in Heike’s head.
‘What’s he doing?’ the boy asked.
Kensy fiddled with the focus and zoomed in closer. ‘Drawing, I think.’
She waited until Soren took his hand away and realised that the picture was of a girl and it looked a bit like her. Kensy felt a strange twinge in her stomach.
‘What is it?’ Max asked.
‘Nothing interesting,’ Kensy deflected her brother. ‘His laptop’s open too and I think I can hone in on the site he’s looking at.’
The girl brought the computer screen up closer.
‘Okay, well, that’s just weird and worrying,’ she said.
‘What is?’ Max looked up, pen in hand.
‘I’m pretty sure that he’s on the Beacon website,’ the girl said, turning to her brother.
Max rolled off the couch and jumped to his feet, eager to see for himself.
Kensy stepped aside and, sure enough, Max saw his sister was right.
‘Tonight we need to get into his room and have a proper look around,’ Max said. ‘That computer is the first port of call – especially his search history. Maybe he knows a lot more about his parents’ business dealings than he’s letting on.’
Kensy frowned. ‘He might just be good at current affairs and he’s realised who we are?’
Max pressed his lips together tightly, his brain in overdrive. ‘You really think so – after what you “heard” from Heike?’
Kensy shook her head. She didn’t know what to think any more.
Song arrived at the top of the stairs, having just finished a load of washing. He took a couple of things out of his pocket and placed them on the bench.
‘Would anyone like some hot chocolate and a slice of carrot cake?’ the man asked.
‘Yes, please,’ the twins chorused.
Downstairs Fitz was fast asleep, having had a long soak in the tub after which Anna had given him a complete check-up and administered another shot of painkiller. She was in the office on the second floor, doing some research. She and Song had both been surprised by what Kensy had heard Heike saying about Cordelia and she was keen to investigate whether there were any obvious links between the Van Leers and the Beacon.
‘I have brought a couple of gadgets up that you might be interested in,’ Song said as he poured some milk into a small saucepan and found the cocoa powder in the cupboard.
The twins walked over to join him at the island.
‘Oh, that’s one of those instant melt devices,’ Max said, picking up the small silver capsule.
‘Yes, but whatever you do, do not crush it in your ski suit pants. Your bottom will feel as if it is on fire,’ the man said. ‘Trust me – I learned that one the hard way.’
Max chuckled.
‘And what about these?’ Kensy picked up a little tin of what looked like mints. ‘Are they for Max’s bad breath?’
Song looked at Max, a wry grin on his lips. He gave the boy a wink.
‘Why don’t you try one, Miss Kensington?’ the man suggested. ‘They are delicious.’
Kensy flipped open the lid and popped one into her mouth. It tasted just like a regular mint.
‘Ask your sister a question, Master Maxim,’ Song directed.
Max looked at her, wondering if this was similar to their French grandparents’ truth serum, which Kensy had trialled in one of her remote-controlled insects. He was surprised he hadn’t seen them on this trip and wondered if she’d brought them along.
‘Um – a question. So do you like Curtis?’ the boy asked. He was hoping that the mint made her mouth run away with itself and he’d get all the dirt on exactly how she felt.
Kensy opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. Her vocal cords were paralysed – not even a whisper.
Max started laughing and Song did too.
‘I wasn’t expecting that.’ The boy grinned.
Kensy looked at them her palms upturned. ‘What?’ she mimed.
‘How long does it last?’ Max asked.
‘Anywhere from five to fifteen minutes,’ the man replied. He turned and walked into the butler’s pantry.
Kensy’s jaw dropped and she stormed away to the telescope. But a few m
inutes later she was leaping about, trying to get Max’s attention.
‘Max!’ the girl screamed, though she hadn’t meant to and had surprised herself as much as anyone else.
The boy almost dropped his mug. ‘That wore off quicker than expected. What’s the matter?’ He rushed over to join her.
‘It’s him,’ she said, pointing towards the street below.
Max leaned in and saw who she was talking about.
‘Come on,’ he said. ‘Let’s go.’
Song was still in the butler’s pantry when the pair dashed downstairs.
‘We’re going for a walk,’ Kensy called, hoping that someone had heard her.
The twins grabbed their jackets and boots and were out the door before anyone had time to stop them.
‘What exactly are we hoping to find?’ Kensy asked. ‘Apart from that guy.’
‘A name would be helpful,’ Max said. ‘And if that fake firefighter is a twin then this man won’t recognise me anyway. We might even be able to talk to him – start up a conversation about us being twins and he could give something away. You never know.’
Kensy jogged along next to her brother on the path beside the river, their rubber-soled boots squeaking on the fresh snow. There were still a few flurries coming down, but there were patches of blue sky too and it had warmed up a little.
From the chalet, Kensy had sighted the fellow standing on the bridge near the statue of Mother Mary. He’d looked as if he was waiting for someone, checking his watch several times.
The pair slowed up as the structure came into view, but it was now crowded with a group of tourists gathered together for a photograph. There was no sign of the man.
‘I knew we wouldn’t get here in time,’ Kensy said, her shoulders dropping.
Max sighed. ‘We can go and have another snoop around his apartment. We might even be able to get inside and we can check the other letterboxes.’
They were about to turn right when something caught Kensy’s attention. In the cemetery on the other side of the bridge she spied a man in a dark coat. He was talking to someone, but they were partially hidden behind a gravestone.
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