by Ailsa Wild
I snatch the USB from Jessie for a closer look. It’s definitely got the Zoom Mining logo. The label on it says ‘secret safety records’.
Jessie looks at the woman sternly. ‘Are these the safety records you’re hiding from the police?’
I can’t believe Jessie is doing her big-sister voice on a grown-up. Jessie is so cool.
The woman looks like Vee does when she’s been caught sneaking chocolate. ‘It’s got nothing to do with you,’ the woman says. Then she turns to me. ‘Give it back.’
I clutch the USB in my fist behind my back and lean against the wall, squashing my hand.
Messy dances in front of me, like we’re about to play fetch with the USB stick. I think about how mad that would make the Zoom Mining lady and nearly do it, just for fun.
‘You weren’t watching the tunnel in our playground at all, were you, Mr Hinkenbushel,’ Jessie says. ‘You were watching the Zoom Mining lady getting secret information!’
I can’t believe she’s talking like this.
Mr Hinkenbushel nods at Jessie and turns to me. ‘And now, I think you’d better give that to me,’ he says.
I’m about to give it to him. He is the police, after all. But then I clutch the USB tighter. I’ve thought of something. ‘Mr Hinkenbushel, if I give this to you, will you promise not to tell Dad and Alice what we did today?’
Fluoro Guy bursts into laughter. ‘What a cheeky lot of kids you are.’
Mr Hinkenbushel goes red. Then he mutters, ‘I promise.’
Zoom Lady is trying to dodge around to get to my hand, but Messy and Vee stand in her way. Messy isn’t so friendly to her anymore. He’s growling.
I think about Mr Hinkenbushel’s muttering. It doesn’t sound like a proper promise. I think if Jessie can do her big-sister voice to a grown-up, I can too.
‘Mr Hinkenbushel, say it like you mean it,’ I insist, like Dad does when he’s making me say sorry. It comes out quite well and I feel proud of myself. Then I think of something even better. ‘Actually, pinkie-swear with Jessie.’
‘Fine. Whatever.’ Mr Hinkenbushel goes even redder, but he links pinkie fingers with Jessie.
‘Now repeat after me,’ I say. ‘I pinkie-swear not to tell Tom and Alice –’
‘I pinkie-swear not to tell Tom and Alice,’ Mr Hinkenbushel mutters.
‘That we went down a drain and nearly died,’ I finish.
‘That we went down a drain and nearly died,’ he copies me, looking super embarassed.
‘Good.’ I nod and hand him the USB.
Fluoro Guy grins. Zoom Lady turns pale.
Mr Hinkenbushel turns to Zoom Lady. ‘You’ll be hearing from me and the Undercover Operations Unit just as soon as I’ve had a thorough look at these files,’ he says to her, waving the USB stick. ‘But first I have to lie to some parents.’
He scowls at me. But he doesn’t quite look like the crankiest man in the universe anymore.
Dad laughs at us and calls us drowned rats. He doesn’t even blink when we say we got caught in the rain. He shakes Mr Hinkenbushel’s hand and rings Messy’s kennels to let them know he’ll be staying the night with us.
We have hot showers and put our pyjamas on, even though it’s not bedtime. Alice makes hot chocolates and we all sit on Jessie’s bunk with the doona wrapped around us. Messy curls up on my lap.
I’ve still got a knot in my stomach, because there’s something I have to say to Jessie.
‘Jessie, you were so right about not going down the tunnel,’ I tell her. ‘It was so dangerous. And you were so cool with Zoom Lady. I’m sorry for being an idiot.’
Jessie actually blushes. ‘I was feeling bad for not being brave enough to go down there with you.’
I stare at her. Jessie was feeling bad? Jessie didn’t go because she wasn’t brave enough?
Vee bursts out laughing.
‘What?’ Jessie and I say at the same time.
‘You both felt bad, but actually you were being a good team,’ Vee says. ‘Joke’s on you.’
We all crack up.
Just then, the sound of the news from the lounge room catches our attention.
‘In breaking news, police have uncovered new information in the Zoom Mining case. A large number of secret files recording the mine’s unsafe practices have found their way into the hands of the police.’
I grin. ‘Found their way?’ I say. ‘More like: were discovered by a team of super-ninjas and traded for a lifetime of police loyalty!’
Messy jumps up and barks proudly and we all laugh and clink mugs.
The news is talking about something else by the time we finish gleefully cheers-ing each other with our hot chocolates.
‘There’s something I don’t understand, though,’ Vee says.
‘What?’ we ask.
‘If the Zoom Mining woman really is the bad guy, how come Messy liked her? Don’t dogs always know who the bad guy is?’
I pull Messy in towards me and rub behind his ears. I remember the neat woman smiling as she made friends with him on the park bench. ‘Yeah, and she seemed so nice,’ I say.
‘Maybe she’s only eighty-five per cent bad, and the other fifteen per cent likes dogs,’ Jessie says.
‘And maybe,’ Vee says, ‘Messy knew that he’d get that USB by being friendly.’
Messy wags his tail and licks her nose.
‘Probably.’ I nod and then we all laugh because we know it’s not true.
I lean back against the wall and sip my hot chocolate. I feel a bit sad that the adventure is over.
‘What are we going to do now?’ I ask.
‘We don’t have long before Messy goes to America,’ Jessie says. ‘Maybe I’ll have a turn of actually playing Dog Tag tomorrow.’
‘Woo!’ Veesays, anddoesaKicking-Two-Jump-Scramble up to her bunk. She knocks Messy on the way, who does a howling half-somersault back onto the mattress.
He knocks my hot chocolate, which goes flying in a big brown arc. All over Jessie’s doona.
Ailsa Wild is an acrobat, whip cracker and teaching artist who ran away from the circus to become a writer. She taught Squishy all her best bunk-bed tricks.
Ben Wood started drawing when he was Baby’s age, and happily drew all over his mum and dad’s walls! Since then, he has never stopped drawing. He has an identical twin and they used to play all kinds of pranks on their younger brother.
Squishy Taylor and the Tunnel of Doom
published in 2016 by
Hardie Grant Egmont
Ground Floor, Building 1, 658 Church Street
Richmond, Victoria 3121, Australia
www.hardiegrantegmont.com.au
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publishers and copyright holders.
A CiP record for this title is available from the National Library of Australia.
eISBN 9781743584347
Text copyright © 2016 Ailsa Wild
Illustrations copyright © 2016 Ben Wood
Series design copyright © 2016 Hardie Grant Egmont
Series design by Stephanie Spartels
Illustrations by Ben Wood
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