‘I know you must have a million questions –’ Cordelia began.
Max reached across and held his sister’s hand. ‘Like who’s trying to kill us for a start.’
The woman took a deep breath. ‘Yes, well, they won’t want to be anywhere near me when I find out.’ Dame Spencer’s face hardened for a moment. ‘I suspect we have a double agent or two in our midst,’ she said, glancing towards Willow Witherbee, whose eyes hit the floor. ‘Our drivers are the most reliable in the world, though there are clearly a couple who are working to a different agenda.’
Song and Sidney appeared carrying two fat leather-bound books, which they passed to the twins with a deep bow.
Kensy stared into her grandmother’s green eyes – the same colour as her own. ‘Are you a spy?’ she asked. She looked around at everyone else in the room. ‘Are you all spies?’
Every head nodded up and down.
‘So does that mean Derek Grigsby is a spy?’ Max said, frowning. ‘He went to Central London Free School too.’
Magoo MacGregor almost choked on his incredulity. ‘Oh good heavens, no. Could you imagine it? I believe you two have just had him locked up. Only a small number of our students are involved in the organisation. It’s part of their –’ his eyes darted to Dame Spencer before he corrected himself – ‘your training. The majority of the children must never know, but all of the staff are on board.’
‘So you don’t have singing lessons, then?’ Kensy said, turning to Autumn.
The girl shook her head. ‘No, and that was a really dumb excuse. I’m completely tone deaf. You would have found that out pretty quickly. Although I do play the piano.’
Inez winced. ‘Ooh sorry, Autumn, I think I was the one who dropped you in it there.’
Max grinned and pumped his fist. ‘Yes! I always knew there was something different about Mum and Dad and Fitz – I just could never put my finger on it.’
‘As if,’ Kensy scoffed, and caught Mrs Vanden Boom’s eye. ‘My watch? You said it looked just like an MK 13. What’s that?’
The woman trembled from head to toe with excitement. ‘An incredible communications system that I was completely unaware existed outside of these walls,’ she fizzed. ‘But we can talk about that later.’
‘And the newspaper?’ Max asked.
‘Cover and coded messages,’ Fitz replied. ‘And the daily news.’
Max looked at his long-lost grandmother. ‘Why haven’t we ever known you? Mrs Grigsby said that your son and his wife and cousin were killed in a plane crash – but that was Dad and Mum.’ He turned to Fitz. ‘Does that make you Dad’s cousin? And, Mim, are you Granny’s sister?’
‘Sister-in-law,’ the woman said, her grey eyes glistening. ‘Your grandfather was my brother.’
Fitz nodded. ‘I am your father’s cousin and there’s a lot to explain, but believe me when I say that your mum and dad have only ever wanted to protect you both.’
‘Did something bad happen?’ Kensy asked. She couldn’t think why else her parents would abandon their family and start a new life.
‘Your parents just wanted you to have a normal existence,’ Fitz said.
Max raised his eyebrows. ‘By moving every six months and living in ski resorts all over the world? That’s so normal – I mean, that’s what most children do, isn’t it?’
Fitz chuckled. ‘Yes, I see your point. It could have been worse, though. They might have worked for the tax office and opted for a quiet life in the suburbs.’
‘Mrs Grigsby said that Dad has a brother,’ Kensy said, turning to her grandmother.
The woman smiled tightly. ‘That would be your Uncle Rupert. He’s away at the moment. I imagine this news will be a little –’ she paused, searching for the right words – ‘unsettling for him. You will meet in due time.’ Cordelia placed a hand on each of the children’s shoulders. ‘Everything you need to know is contained within those pages. Welcome to Pharos, my darlings. You have just become part of the world’s most secret and significant spy organisation. Now, let’s find your parents, shall we?’
Named after Roman Emperor Julius Caesar, the Caesar cipher is a basic method for encrypting and decoding text. It involves moving the letters of the alphabet up or down by a fixed number of positions. The word ‘cipher’ refers to a secret or disguised way of writing – a code of sorts.
For example, Julius Caesar shifted each letter of the text down by three positions and used this code in private correspondence. In this case, the letter A would become X, B becomes Y, C becomes Z and so on. The diagram below of the Caesar cipher will help you decode the chapter headings as well as the inscription in the book that Max discovered in the library.
There are many variations of the Caesar cipher, such as the Reverse Caesar cipher and another called the Vigenère cipher. You can do it too. Have a go by moving the bottom row of letters left or right to create your very own secret language!
Writing something new is incredibly exciting and more than a little nerve-racking. You want to get it right, and for me that means I need to be completely in love with my characters as well as the storyline. The characters of Kensy and Max have been brewing for a long time, but they needed to take shape and find a setting in which to have their adventures and that took a little longer. It’s also been difficult to contemplate writing a new series while I’m still absolutely wedded to Alice-Miranda and Clementine Rose – but the girls have given me some leeway lately, and Kensy and Max have demanded my complete attention (until I write the next Alice-Miranda and Clemmie books).
This new series has been shaped by lots of people – not the least by my wonderful husband, Ian Harvey, who never complains when I want to bounce ideas around for hours, or when I ask him to read the manuscript over and over. He’s undoubtedly my biggest fan and the best manager anyone could want or have. He’s fabulous at the small details and I can’t thank him enough for everything he does to support this somewhat crazy career of mine. I love you to the sun and stars and back again.
There are many other people to thank too, starting with the fabulous team at Penguin Random House Australia: my publisher, Holly Toohey, who always takes my calls, listens to my mad ideas and never fails to make me think I can do this; my editor, Catriona Murdie, who is clever and pedantic and challenges me to be better every single time and does it all in the nicest way possible; the superstar marketing and publicity team so ably led by Dot Tonkin, with a special mention to Zoe Bechara, my publicist extraordinaire; Jen Harris, Tina Gumnior, Kate Sheahan and Suz Katris (before she went to the dark side!); head of sales, Angela Duke; the rights team led by Nerrilee Weir; Eleanor Shorne Holden and Vicki Grundy; the lovely Laura Harris, publishing director for Young Readers; and the fabulous Julie Burland, whose leadership is inspiring and whose friendship is greatly valued – that you find the best people and provide so many opportunities for them to shine is testament to why you’re the ‘Big Boss’.
I must give special thanks to my brilliant illustrator, Anne Yi, with whom I have now done 30 books. Anne is one of those incredibly talented people who can take a description and turn it into something wonderful. I adore how she has brought Kensy and Max to life. And to our designer, Christa Moffitt – thank you, the cover is fabulous.
I also need to thank a very special group of readers who have been with me along the way – some from the very beginning and others more recently. To Toby Cox, Georgia Cameron, Linda Cameron, Georgie Mallyon, Denae Vanderplas and Justine Wallis, than k you for being my first readers, for telling me the bits you loved (and liked not so much) and for ultimately helping me to shape the book into something I hope lots of kids are going to want to read.
Heartfelt thanks to my family and friends, my readers, all the parents, librarians, teachers and booksellers who have championed my books and given me so much encouragement to write Kensy and Max. I also want to thank the real Gary, from The Morpeth Arms in Millbank, for taking me on that tour of the cells and telling me all about the spies and, in do
ing so, giving me the idea for where to set the first book. Huge thanks to Dame Gail Rebuck, former CEO of Random House UK, for being a wonderful supporter of my work and inviting me up to her office in Vauxhall Bridge Road, which unexpectedly provided me with another perfect location and perhaps some inspiration for another very special dame.
And to Kensy and Max, may you head out into the world and find readers who fall in love with you as much as I have.
Jacqueline Harvey
Jacqueline Harvey taught for many years in girls’ boarding schools. She is the author of the bestselling Alice-Miranda series and the Clementine Rose series, and was awarded Honour Book in the 2006 Australian CBC Awards for her picture book The Sound of the Sea. She now writes full-time and is working on more Alice-Miranda, Clementine Rose, and Kensy and Max adventures.
www.jacquelineharvey.com.au
Books by Jacqueline Harvey
Kensy and Max: Breaking News
Alice-Miranda at School
Alice-Miranda on Holiday
Alice-Miranda Takes the Lead
Alice-Miranda at Sea
Alice-Miranda in New York
Alice-Miranda Shows the Way
Alice-Miranda in Paris
Alice-Miranda Shines Bright
Alice-Miranda in Japan
Alice-Miranda at Camp
Alice-Miranda at the Palace
Alice-Miranda in the Alps
Alice-Miranda to the Rescue
Alice-Miranda in China
Alice-Miranda Holds the Key
Alice-Miranda in Hollywood
Clementine Rose and the Surprise Visitor
Clementine Rose and the Pet Day Disaster
Clementine Rose and the Perfect Present
Clementine Rose and the Farm Fiasco
Clementine Rose and the Seaside Escape
Clementine Rose and the Treasure Box
Clementine Rose and the Famous Friend
Clementine Rose and the Ballet Break-In
Clementine Rose and the Movie Magic
Clementine Rose and the Birthday Emergency
Clementine Rose and the Special Promise
Clementine Rose and the Paris Puzzle
Clementine Rose and the Wedding Wobbles
Jacqueline Harvey is a passionate educator who enjoys sharing her love of reading and writing with children and adults alike. She is an ambassador for Dymocks Children’s Charities and Room to Read. Find out more at www.dcc.gofundraise.com.au and www.roomtoread.org.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted by any person or entity, including internet search engines or retailers, in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including printing, photocopying (except under the statutory exceptions provisions of the Australian Copyright Act 1968), recording, scanning or by any information storage and retrieval system without the prior written permission of Penguin Random House Australia. Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.
Version 1.0
Kensy and Max: Breaking News
ePub ISBN – 9780143780649
First published by Random House Australia in 2018
Copyright © Jacqueline Harvey, 2018
The moral right of the author and illustrator has been asserted.
A Random House book
Published by Penguin Random House Australia Pty Ltd
Level 3, 100 Pacific Highway, North Sydney NSW 2060
penguin.com.au
Addresses for the Penguin Random House group of companies can be found at global.penguinrandomhouse.com/offices.
eISBN: 978 0 14378 064 9
Cover illustration and maps by J.Yi
Cover design by Christabella Designs
Ebook by Firstsource
Breaking News Page 17