Blackout

by Peter Jay Black

  Obi steered Robbie down the side of the building and round to the front. It had a large impressive oak door with a brass knocker and handle.

  There was still no sign of security and Robbie was too low to the ground to get a good look through the windows.

  Jack glanced at Charlie. ‘Well?’

  She shrugged. ‘I don’t know, Jack. We could just go for it.’

  Jack cocked an eyebrow at her. ‘OK, which way then? Office window or front door?’

  ‘Both.’ Noble turned in his seat to look at them. ‘Go both ways.’

  ‘He’s right,’ Jack said. ‘Charlie has the best chance at deactivating the alarm control panel. I’ll go with her through the front door. Meantime, Slink and Wren can get into the office through the window at the back and see if the safe is in there. That way, if Charlie has any problems with the alarm, we’ll still have got a good look at the place.’ He turned to Obi. ‘Use Robbie to patrol the grounds. Any movement, let us know.’

  Charlie handed them all headsets.

  ‘I’ll stay and keep an eye out here,’ Noble said. ‘Make sure we don’t get any unwanted visitors.’

  ‘Me too,’ Obi said. ‘I’ll use Robbie to patrol the grounds.’

  Jack, Charlie, Slink and Wren climbed out of the ice-cream van and hurried through the trees.

  They reached the gate and jogged silently across the lawn.

  When they got to the house, Jack and Charlie headed to the front door, while Slink and Wren ran round the back.

  Once everyone was in position Jack spoke into his headset. ‘Slink, can you see any security now you have a better view?’

  There was a short pause before Slink said, ‘Yeah. There’s a sensor on this window.’

  Jack looked at Charlie. ‘Well?’

  Charlie cupped her hands over the glass panel in the front door and peered into the hallway. ‘I can see the alarm on the wall.’ She swore under her breath.

  ‘What’s wrong?’ Jack said.

  ‘It’s old. Never seen that type before.’

  ‘Old is good though, right?’ Jack said. ‘Isn’t it easier to crack?’

  ‘I’m used to systems that are a little more advanced.’ Charlie pulled back, slid a wallet of lock picks from her bag and set to work on the front door.

  Jack pressed a finger to his ear. ‘Slink?’

  ‘I can get this window open easily. No problems.’

  ‘Wait until we say.’ Jack glanced around to make doubly sure there were no cameras.

  There was a click as Charlie unlocked the door. She straightened up.

  Jack nodded at her. ‘Go.’

  She opened the door and the beeps from the alarm started. Charlie jogged over to the panel.

  ‘Go, Slink,’ Jack said into his microphone, and he hurried in after her.

  Charlie was right – the alarm box on the wall had huge grey buttons and looked like an antique typewriter.

  The beeps started speeding up.

  ‘So?’ Jack said, looking between Charlie and the panel.

  Charlie pulled off the cover and peered inside at the components. She frowned, muttering under her breath as her eyes traced the paths of the wires.

  The beeps grew faster.

  How much time did they have left? Twenty seconds? Ten?

  ‘Would you like some help?’

  Jack leapt back and spun around.

  Noble strode over to them. ‘Ah, the Go-Secure two-thousand,’ he said. ‘I remember when these first came out.’ He glanced at Charlie. ‘May I?’

  Charlie stepped aside.

  The beeps were so fast now that it would be only a matter of seconds before the alarm went off.

  ‘They don’t make them like this any more,’ Noble said, peering inside the box.

  Jack’s stomach knotted.

  Noble cleared his throat. ‘Now, let’s see.’ He gripped either side with both hands. The rapid beeps turned into one long tone. With a swift movement, Noble ripped the box off the wall, breaking all the wires and bringing a chunk of plaster with it.

  Jack stared in disbelief.

  Noble glanced up at the ceiling and listened for a moment. Finally, he said, ‘That should do it,’ and tossed the alarm box out of the front door and on to the gravel driveway. Noble bowed. ‘See you back at the van,’ he said and strode from the house.

  Jack had to snap himself back to reality. ‘Slink?’ he whispered into his headset.

  ‘We’ve found the –’ Slink hesitated. ‘Erm, safe?’

  Jack and Charlie hurried down the corridor and through the last door on the right.

  The office was wood-panelled and several oil paintings hung on the walls. A large desk sat next to the window.

  Slink had pulled back one of the wood panels from the wall to reveal a metal door, two metres tall, one wide, with a large dial in the centre and a handle.

  ‘That’s not a safe,’ Charlie said. ‘That’s a flipping vault.’

  There was a scraping sound and Jack wheeled around as Robbie came trundling into the room.

  Jack said into his microphone, ‘Obi, you’re supposed to be patrolling the perimeter.’

  ‘I had to see.’

  Robbie’s camera tilted up.

  Jack walked over to the vault door and stood next to Charlie.

  She knelt down and unzipped her bag. She put on a pair of headphones that were attached to a microphone inside a suction cup. She pressed the cup to the vault door and started to rotate the dial slowly.

  Charlie closed her eyes as she listened to the mechanism inside.

  Jack held his breath.

  Charlie stopped and mouthed the number ‘nine’ to him. She then turned the dial slowly the other way and stopped again.

  ‘Twenty-seven.’

  She rotated the dial back in the opposite direction.

  ‘Seventeen.’

  There was a click.

  She grabbed the handle and unlocked the door.

  Charlie put the microphone and headphones back in her bag and stood up.

  Jack glanced at the others, then swung the vault door fully open.

  It was empty.

  Nothing but bare shelves.

  Robbie rolled forward and the camera looked from left to right, up and down.

  ‘Well, that’s just brilliant.’ Slink leant into Robbie’s camera, his face a few centimetres away. ‘Empty again.’

  ‘We have company,’ Noble said in their ears. ‘Main driveway.’

  Jack spun around. ‘Get out of here,’ he said to the others and he sprinted from the office and down the hallway.

  He reached the front door and peered out in time to see a car coming up the driveway.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  The car followed the curve of the driveway, heading straight towards the house.

  Jack pressed a finger to his ear. ‘Obi, who’s this?’

  ‘My uncle.’

  ‘What? I thought you said he was in London?’

  ‘He was.’

  Jack glanced at the burglar alarm box on the ground in front of the steps. There wasn’t enough time to grab it and get back inside without being seen.

  He slammed the front door shut and ran down the hallway. When he got to the office, he was stunned to see Charlie was still there.

  ‘What are you doing?’ he said. ‘Get out of here.’

  ‘Wait a minute.’ Charlie turned slowly on the spot, her eyes narrowed and scanning the room. ‘It has to be here somewhere. I know it.’

  ‘What are you on about? We have to go.’

  ‘No,’ Charlie waved a finger at the vault. ‘This can’t be where he kept a copy of the will.’

  ‘Why not?’

  ‘Because Obi said his dad never trusted his uncle.’ Charlie’s eyes moved around the room, still searching for something.

  ‘Charlie, we don’t have time for this.’ Jack grabbed her arm, but she pulled away from him.

  She ran to the far side of the room and lifted a painting of an old
boat from the wall. She looked behind it, then lowered it back into place and moved to a portrait of a French general.

  ‘Hey, guys?’ Obi said through the headset. ‘What’s going on?’

  Jack didn’t respond. He was rooted to the spot, watching Charlie.

  She ran her fingers around the portrait of the general, muttering to herself.

  Jack heard a car door slam.

  Charlie cursed and moved to a set of shelves. She lifted a few books and examined them before putting them back.

  ‘Charlie.’

  She held up a hand. ‘Just a few seconds.’

  Jack heard the distant sound of someone fumbling with a set of keys. ‘We don’t have a few seconds.’ He hurried over to the office door, closed and locked it, then turned back.

  Charlie was now sitting behind the desk. She opened all the drawers on the left, before moving to the right-hand side. She then slid open the top drawer and ran her finger under the edge of the work surface. ‘Yes.’ There was a small click as she pressed a button. She slid open a hidden compartment. ‘Knew it.’

  Jack stared, dumbfounded, as she lifted out a stack of papers and envelopes and started rifling through them.

  The front door slammed. ‘Who’s there?’

  ‘Time’s up,’ Jack said.

  Charlie continued flicking through the papers, scanning the titles.

  There was the sound of running footsteps in the hallway.

  Finally, Charlie opened a Manila envelope, scanned over the contents and stuffed it all under her jacket. She stood up.

  The office door rattled.

  ‘Who’s in there? I’ve called the police.’

  They ran to the window and Jack helped Charlie out.

  The office door burst open and a tall man stood silhouetted in the light from the hall. He stepped into the room and Jack could see his face clearly now – it was twisted in rage. Jack recognised Obi’s uncle. His eyes locked on to Jack’s and he lunged forward, hands outstretched.

  Jack spun clear and leapt out of the window.

  Obi’s uncle roared.

  Jack and Charlie sprinted down the path, across the lawn and through the side gate. They stayed close to the wall. When they got back to the road, the ice-cream van had gone.

  Jack spun on the spot, searching for it. ‘Where are they?’

  Charlie grabbed his shoulder and pointed. ‘There.’

  The ice-cream van came screaming down the road towards them.

  Jack stared. ‘What is Noble doing?’

  Suddenly, the van veered off the road and hit the front gates at an angle, buckling them.

  ‘He’s gone crazy,’ Charlie said, open-mouthed.

  ‘No,’ Jack said. ‘Look.’ The van backed up. The iron gates to the driveway were bent and misshapen. ‘Now there’s no way for Obi’s uncle to chase us.’

  ‘Don’t be so sure,’ Charlie said, sprinting towards the van and gesturing over her shoulder.

  Jack glanced back.

  Obi’s uncle was running towards them. ‘Get back here,’ he shouted.

  Jack spun around, ran over to the van and climbed in. ‘Hurry.’

  Noble slammed the ice-cream van into first gear. ‘I thought I was buying us a little time. Seems I was wrong.’

  Through the windscreen, Jack could see Obi’s uncle still running at them like a T. rex hunting its prey.

  ‘He looks determined,’ Slink said.

  Jack glanced back at Obi. ‘Don’t let him see you.’

  Obi ducked out of sight.

  There was a loud thud and Jack turned back.

  Obi’s uncle was spread-eagled across the van’s bonnet, foaming at the mouth and staring through the windscreen at them like a rabid animal.

  Noble wrestled with the ice-cream van’s gear stick and reversed back up the road, but Obi’s uncle held on.

  Charlie leant over and turned on the windscreen wipers. They swished back and forth, slapping Obi’s uncle in the face, but he still clung on. With each pass of the wiper, he looked even more annoyed.

  If that was possible.

  Noble slammed on the brakes, threw the van into first again and accelerated down the road with Obi’s uncle still clinging to the bonnet.

  ‘He doesn’t give up, does he?’ Charlie said.

  ‘I’ll get him off,’ Slink said, climbing out of the side window before Jack could stop him.

  Jack looked out through the windscreen.

  A few seconds later, a foot came down on Obi’s uncle’s hands.

  He roared again, with what Jack assumed to be a mixture of pain and rage.

  The foot came down again and Obi’s uncle tried to grab it, but he missed. The foot swung in from the left, hitting him in the temple.

  Obi’s uncle screamed out in pain and his grip slipped.

  Noble saw his chance. ‘Hold on Slink,’ he yelled out of the window, then yanked the steering wheel hard over.

  Obi’s uncle slipped past the windscreen and vanished.

  Jack glanced through the rear window and watched as he rolled down the road.

  Obi’s uncle then got to his knees and shook a fist at them as they disappeared around the corner.

  Wren shouted.

  Jack spun around. ‘What?’

  She pointed.

  Slink was hanging upside down outside the open side window.

  Jack and Charlie leapt over and grabbed him.

  ‘My trousers are caught on the ice-cream sign,’ Slink said. ‘Have you got me?’

  Jack made sure he had a good grip on Slink’s belt. ‘I think so.’

  Slink shifted his weight and rolled backward.

  His foot sprang free and Jack and Charlie pulled him through the window.

  They hit the floor, panting.

  Slink grinned.

  Charlie punched his arm.

  When they were several kilometres from Chateau Gailan, Charlie removed the Manila envelope from under her jacket and handed it to Obi. ‘Is this what you wanted?’

  Obi’s eyes went wide. With shaking fingers, he slid out the sheets of paper and scanned the pages.

  Finally, he looked up at the others.

  ‘Well?’ Charlie said.

  ‘It’s Dad’s real will.’ Obi’s eyes welled up, but he didn’t cry. He looked at them all. ‘Thanks,’ he said, his voice cracking.

  On the journey back through the Channel Tunnel, Obi remained silent. He held the Manila envelope in his hand and stared at it.

  ‘Well, come on then,’ Slink said eventually.

  Obi looked up. ‘What?’

  Slink rolled his eyes. ‘We travelled all that way. Nearly got caught – several times – and not to mention the fact that I’m going to have stiff muscles for a week. The least you could do is tell us what it says.’

  Obi held the envelope out to Charlie.

  ‘You want me to read it?’ she said.

  He nodded.

  Charlie slid the paperwork out and cleared her throat. ‘The last will and testament of Mark Brian Harlington. I revoke all previous wills and codicils.’ Charlie glanced up at Obi, then continued to read. ‘I appoint as executor and trustee of my will Antony James Harlington.’ Her eyes skimmed down the page. ‘Your mum and dad also made him your legal guardian. Wait a minute . . .’ She looked up at Obi. ‘You were right – they left the business and all assets to you and your sister.’

  ‘How can that be right?’ Slink said. ‘He’s only a kid.’

  Charlie continued to read. ‘It says here that Obi’s sister is supposed to run the business until Obi’s eighteen, then they share the responsibility.’

  ‘Read the bit about my uncle,’ Obi said in a flat tone.

  Charlie read some more, then looked up. Her eyes were full of compassion. ‘He was left fifty thousand pounds and a Rolls Royce. He was never supposed to inherit anything else. You and your sister are the rightful heirs.’ She slid the will back into the envelope and handed it to Obi.

  Obi stared down at it.
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br />   ‘I suggest everyone returns to their hiding places,’ Noble said. ‘We’re nearly back in England.’

  Noble drove off the train, followed the signs and they reached the last checkpoint. The bored man behind the glass glanced over Jack and Noble’s passports, then handed them back.

  The barrier lifted and Noble went to pull forward but another border official stepped into their path, holding up his hand.

  Noble leant out of the side window. ‘Is there a problem?’

  The man’s eyes narrowed as he took in the dents and the scratches on the ice-cream van’s bonnet and bumper. With a stern expression, he pointed to the side, where two more men in border agency uniforms were waiting. ‘Pull over there please.’

  Jack’s heart sank.

  Noble edged the van forward.

  Jack glanced at him. It was clear that Noble was considering making a break for it, but they’d never get away, especially in an ice-cream van.

  Noble pulled up as instructed. The two men started walking around the van, checking underneath with mirrors on poles.

  ‘Nobody breathe,’ Noble hissed over his shoulder.

  The first border official stood in front of the van, inspecting the dents. He then walked around to Noble’s window. ‘How did you get those?’

  ‘I came off the road avoiding a collision,’ Noble said. ‘Hit a tree.’

  The man frowned. ‘Are you American, sir?’

  ‘Yes.’ Noble smiled at him. ‘Though I am now also a fully fledged citizen of the United Kingdom.’

  The border official looked at the dents again.

  Even Jack had to admit it appeared like they’d hit a lot more than just a tree.

  The man held out his hand and said, ‘Passports, please.’

  Noble gestured behind them. ‘We just showed them back there.’

  The official’s eyes narrowed. ‘Passports.’

  Noble sighed and handed them to him.

  The man took a long time checking them over, his face close to each picture page as if trying to detect whether the passports were forgeries or not.

  The men with mirrors were now on their second sweep around the van.

  Jack’s stomach tightened. It was as if they knew Noble and Jack were hiding something.

  Jack tried to relax and show no outward sign of his anxiety.

  Finally, the border official handed the passports to Noble. ‘How long were you in France?’