Then Kelly took a closer look with the binoculars. Molly had moved around the horses and was standing just beyond Mrs. Newton’s house. Mrs. Newton had stepped out onto the lawn, and Molly appeared to be talking fast, motioning toward the dunes and looking scared. When Kelly moved the binoculars back onto the horses, Molly had disappeared from her view. Why would Molly go into the widow’s house? she wondered.
V
“I’ve got it,” Nick whispered to John while the thugs were outside. “Let’s put our hands together and try to open the knife. We can try to cut away the tape. You cut mine; I’ll do you. Hurry, before those guys come back.”
After seconds—that seemed like precious minutes—of fumbling with the knife, the boys were able to thumb it open.
Nick could hear his heart thundering in his chest. If Ally plans to do something, he thought, now is the time. He knew she’d caused the flat. He grinned, realizing what a good idea that was. But what about Molly? he wondered. Where are the police?
With his fingers on the knife handle, Nick told John, “Just hold still.”
“I am!” John whispered loudly.
“Don’t get mad,” Nick said, trying to calm down John—and himself. Nick needed to keep his groping fingers steady to find the cutting blade. Then he had it. “All right,” he said, “hold tight while I pull.” He could cut the tape where it was away from their skin, but Nick knew there was no way to get the cuffs off their wrists without the key. He figured the key must be on the ring that Pack had taken to start the RV. Those were the only keys Nick had seen. But how to get to them?
Nineteen
Where Are the Keys?
Ally watched as Pack and Lug stood at the tire. She could see them from under the RV, their legs still, now stooping, now standing; they weren’t going anywhere. Seeing her chance, she stepped out of the underbrush and walked forthrightly toward the RV, trying to step softly to keep her Nikes from crunching on the hard dune sand. The door was open. When she reached the steps, Ally stopped and listened.
“I don’t know how to use this jack!” Pack exclaimed.
“It’s just a regular jack, man.”
“Then you work it out.”
Someone threw the jack onto the ground.
“I’ll loosen the lug nuts. You figure out the jack!” Lug shouted. It was obvious neither of them knew what he was doing.
“Good,” Ally whispered and slinked onto the first step. It creaked and Ally waited, relieving the pressure by relaxing her foot.
“What was that?” Lug said.
“How should I know?” Pack answered.
“I’m gonna check the RV.”
He started around. Ally knew it was now or never.
She stepped up silently and, once inside, glanced around quickly. The only place to hide was under the table, even though it was crammed with junk. Crouching down, she began to move the boxes of junk, garbage, and clothing, wrinkling her nose in disgust at the smell. Moving one box out of the way, she crawled below the table, clutching her legs and pulling in a box as quietly as she could. A second later, she heard Lug’s boots on the stairs.
V
Molly listened as Mrs. Newton dialed the phone number, hitting three buttons: 9-1-1, that was it, wasn’t it?
Mrs. Newton began to talk. “Yes, sir, this is Mrs. Newton of 664 Pine Woods Lane. Apparently there’s something going on in the horse preserve right now, some men trying to hurt the Spanish Mustangs. They’ve abducted two children. Yes. Thank you. All right. I’ll wait outside.”
The woman smiled and walked back in. “Let me go and pick up my housecoat,” she said. “The police will be here, but it’ll be a few minutes. Do you want something to drink? Orange juice, Coke, grape juice?”
“Yes, orange juice, please.” Then Molly reconsidered. “No, I’d better go home and tell my parents.”
“Oh, no, please don’t do that,” said Mrs. Newton. “We’ll need you to tell the police where to go. And anyway, it might be dangerous for you to go back outside.”
“Oh, all right.”
Molly didn’t think staying was a good idea. Her parents had told her a thousand times never to go into a stranger’s house. But as long as Mrs. Newton had called the police, there shouldn’t be any reason for her to run home.
The Doberman continued sitting in front of her, staring at her like she was a hunk of beef. Mrs. Newton pulled open the refrigerator door. She was a slight woman, but her grip in helping Molly up the stairs had been strong. Molly had an uneasy feeling in her stomach. If she’s such a tough old lady, why is she being so friendly?
Mrs. Newton produced a glass of orange juice, set it on the table next to Molly, then smiled and said, “Drink up. I’ll be right back.” She went upstairs.
Molly moved her feet back and forth, caressing and kneading her ankle. She drank a little of the juice and waited uncomfortably. The dog watched her with unblinking eyes. His stare made her think she should leave as soon as she could but still be polite about it, of course. Now or never, she thought.
Mrs. Newton came back in a blue-and-white housecoat. “I’m going to look out for the police. I’ll be right back,” she told Molly.
Why did Mrs. Newton go outside? Molly wondered. And why didn’t she take the dog? Then Molly realized that for all her friendliness, the woman seemed nervous. Molly stood up to go.
The dog growled.
Molly froze.
“I’m just looking is all,” she said.
Molly sidestepped to the window. The dog rose menacingly but didn’t advance.
Out of the window, Molly saw Mrs. Newton get into her car. She sat inside doing something. A phone. She has a car phone. She’s calling someone, Molly thought. She tried to make sense of this. Mrs. Newton was talking to someone. But why was she doing it out in the car?
Suddenly Molly knew. Because she doesn’t want me to hear.
Molly regarded the big Doberman and edged toward the kitchen counter where the phone was. Some phones, she knew, had a redial button that would dial the last number called if you pressed it.
Molly peered at the phone, then at the dog. “I’m not doing anything,” she said, as the dog suddenly barked and growled.
“Okay, I’m just picking up the phone.” The dog was quiet.
Molly scrutinized the different buttons and read the letters under each one. One said REDIAL. That was it. She quietly took the phone off the hook and pressed the button.
The redial beeped.
She waited.
Nothing happened.
She hung up and hit the button again.
The same beeps rang in the phone again. There was a pause as if the phone was waiting for more numbers. Shouldn’t the police answer? Molly felt uncomfortable being sneaky and all. But what had happened?
The phone resounded. “The number you have dialed is incomplete. Please…”
Molly hung up. Something was wrong. She knew she had to get out. She decided to make a run for it.
Molly edged toward the porch, but the dog stalked her. She jumped when she heard a voice behind her. “You won’t get out that way, Missie.”
She turned around. Mrs. Newton was walking directly toward her, grimacing and motioning to the dog.
The Doberman stepped toward Molly with cold hate in his eyes.
Before Molly could react, Mrs. Newton had her by the arm. Now Molly noticed how powerful Mrs. Newton looked, even in a house dress. She was strong, not one of those weak, grandmotherly types. With an iron grip, she dug her fingers into Molly’s biceps.
Molly screamed.
“That will do you no good, young lady.” She dragged Molly to the chair. “You’ll just sit here and Roscoe will watch you,” she said. “You’ll be quiet as a mouse. Correct?”
Molly looked into the old lady’s eyes with terror.
Mrs. Newton said with a glint in her eye, “You shouldn’t have broken into my house, Missie. Now you’re in big trouble.”
“Broken in?”
&nb
sp; “Roscoe!” The dog bounded over and stopped in front of Molly. He sat back on his haunches and glanced at Mrs. Newton, who said to him, “Don’t let her move, boy!”
Mrs. Newton left again, but Molly was stuck. Now the police wouldn’t come at all!
V
Ally scrunched up tighter under the table as Lug’s boots stalked by. The phone rang, and Ally labored to quiet her breathing as she heard Lug grab the phone from the table.
“Yeah? You’re kidding! You’re right we got a problem. A big one…. I don’t know what to do…. All right…. We’re changing a tire now. We think someone let the air out…Okay, we’ll be waiting.”
He slammed the phone down, saying, “Stupid old lady,” then lurched back outside.
Immediately, Ally pushed out the box hiding her and crept to the bedroom door. Nick and John lay there still fumbling with the knife then turned around in terror.
“It’s me!” Ally whispered.
“Thank God,” Nick said. “You’re all right. We thought they got you.”
“Not yet.”
“We need the keys,” Nick said, holding up his cuffed hands. “They’re on the key chain, maybe in the ignition. We have to get them if we want to get out of these handcuffs.” He handed her the knife. “Nice job slashing their tires.”
“I just let the air out of one,” Ally corrected. “But I can slash this tape.” She began to cut the tape binding the boys’ legs together. When she was through, Nick and John stretched. “I thought I was going to die in that position,” John said.
The cuffs rattled on the metal railings under the bed. “Can you get the key?” Nick said. He pulled the cuffs—but not much distance. “We won’t get far this way.”
“Let me check.” Just as Ally started to open the door she heard Lug outside say, “Go in and start it. Move it about two feet.”
“Get down,” Nick said. “Get under the bed.”
The two boys laid back down. Ally said, “I can’t fit under.”
“Okay, get on the other side of the door, so if he opens it, he won’t see you.”
Ten seconds later, the RV jerked forward just a few feet then stopped.
With the engine idling, the front door slammed.
“What happened?” she said to Nick.
“I don’t know,” he answered.
“I think he left it running.”
“He definitely left it running,” John said.
“Fine distinctions,” Nick said.
Ally almost laughed. “Then the keys are still there,” she said.
She crawled around to the door, creeping on her hands and knees out to the front of the RV. The keys, as expected, were in the ignition. The engine was purring brightly underneath her. She looked at the keys to figure out which were for the handcuffs and how to get them off. They were on a ring, and she’d have to be careful not to turn off the engine in the process.
Ally got the two little silver keys she thought must be for the handcuffs and in thirty seconds had them off the ring.
Then with a sudden cough, the engine stalled. Ally froze. Had she accidently turned the ignition key?
She looked at it more closely. No, the engine had simply stalled.
Ally sat there listening. The two men had been clinking around in the back.
“Better check it, Pack,” she heard Lug say.
“Ah, it just stalled.”
“Check it out.”
Ally scurried back under the table, her heart still pounding. Pack’s boots scuffed on the stairs, and he went to the seat. He rolled down the window and called out, “Just stalled, that’s all.”
“Well, leave it off then.”
Pack went back out, and Ally wriggled out from under the table. She hurried back to the room. When she opened the door, Nick said, “Have them?”
She nodded. “But only two. We have to hurry.”
“Get me out of here,” Nick said.
Ally tried the different keys on the handcuffs. The ring on Nick’s left hand opened, releasing him from the rail. Then the one on John’s hand opened. But neither of the keys worked in the middle set that linked John and Nick together.
“Let’s go,” Nick said. “We’ll just have to run this way.”
“But you won’t be able to run fast, and you could get caught.”
“What else can we do?” Nick whispered.
“Okay,” Ally answered, “but stay low. If those guys see us, we could be in worse trouble than we are now.”
Twenty
Molly Escapes
Molly stared at the Doberman.
“How can you do this? What kind of animal are you?” she asked. “Don’t you know the horses are in trouble?”
A growl rumbled in the dog’s throat.
Molly started to stand.
Immediately, Roscoe stood up and bared his teeth.
“Okay, okay. Don’t get in an uproar about it!” Molly looked around the room. On the ocean side was a porch with a door down to the dunes. But if she did manage to get that far, there was no stopping the dog.
She glanced around and saw the stairs to the upper level.
Maybe that was the way.
Suddenly, tears burned her eyes. She was so stupid. John had said it enough times. She was too young. She never thought ahead. How could she have gone into Mrs. Newton’s house like that when her parents had warned her millions of times not to do such a thing?
For a moment, Molly sank down on the seat and sniffled. “God, I’m sorry…”
But then something welled up in her breast. What had Ally said about trust and not giving up? She couldn’t give up! “Okay,” she said. “God, I’m trusting you.”
V
Kelly studied the scene through the binoculars as Mrs. Newton jumped into her car and sped off. The radio was reporting that the robbers at the liquor store had given up their hostage and were surrendering. Kelly wondered if Mrs. Newton wanted to see what was happening. But this early? And why isn’t Molly coming out? she wondered.
Kelly picked up the video and kept it trained on Mrs. Newton’s car as it wound around the curving road back to the main road. Suddenly she made a decision. She was going down to that house to see what Molly was doing and to find out where all the others were. This adventure was no longer fun.
After climbing down the ladder and rigging, Kelly trotted through the house. She thought about waking her father to let him know where she was going. But no, she decided, he might make me stay. Creeping out the door and closing it quietly behind her, she checked her backpack one more time. She had the video camera, binoculars, and a spare jacket. Stepping into the brisk air, she ran down the street, passing Mr. Tomoro’s. At Mrs. Newton’s front door, Kelly banged loudly.
Roscoe went nuts, whipped around, and ran to the door, barking.
Molly recognized her chance.
She bolted for the stairs, limping on her sprained ankle.
The dog pounded after her.
“Molly! Molly! You in there?” Kelly screamed at the door.
Kelly heard the dog’s barking move back, deep into the house. There was no way she was going to open the door with that monster inside.
Molly reached the top level then disappeared into a bedroom just as Roscoe sped directly at her, growling.
Molly slammed the door in his face then fumbled for the lock and latched it tight.
The dog hit the door at full speed.
The door held.
Molly sat down for a second, her heart pounding.
A second later, she heard Kelly yelling from outside, “Molly! Molly? Where are you?”
Molly made for the window and pushed it up.
“Here! Here!”
Kelly whizzed around the side of the house and looked up.
“What are you doing up there?”
“Help me down! My ankle’s hurt. Mrs. Newton is the one trying to hurt the horses!”
Kelly looked around and shook her head. “There’s no ladder.”
&nb
sp; Molly pushed the lightweight screen out of the window. Behind her the dog slammed into the door with a boom that shook the walls. Quickly she climbed through the window onto a small balcony, then closed the window behind her.
“Wait! Wait!” Kelly yelled. “There are some old sofa cushions here. I’ll lay them down so you can jump onto them.”
“Okay, hurry!” Molly shouted. On the other side of the bedroom door, Roscoe was growling, barking, and chewing at the floor.
Kelly pulled the pile into place.
At the edge of the balcony, Molly backed over the railing, hanging on and dangling her legs toward the ground.
“It’s about six feet down,” Kelly said as Molly hung out over the roof.
A moment later Molly dropped. A shot of pain tore through her leg. “Come on,” she said, getting up bravely. “Get Mr. Tomoro! We have to call the police!”
Kelly ran ahead, and Molly hobbled after her. Soon they were at Mr. Tomoro’s door, banging hard. A minute passed before the old man appeared in his pajamas. “Molly-san!” he said. “And Kelly-san. What…?”
Molly didn’t let him finish. “Mr. Tomoro, there are people trying to kill the horses. They want to inject them with a disease. Mrs. Newton hired them.”
“Her daughter. Her son-in-law,” Mr. Tomoro said, nodding.
“What?” the girls asked in unison.
“He own big construction company. Wants the nature preserve to develop real estate!”
“That’s it!” Molly cried. “I have to go back and warn Nick, John, and Ally about Mrs. Newton.”
“But you can hardly walk!” Kelly exclaimed.
Molly turned to Kelly. “Go home and get our parents.”
“Yes, go!” Mr. Tomoro answered, tightening the tie on his robe.
V
Nick pulled John from the bedroom while Ally led the way. Suddenly they heard Lug shout. “Hey, the boys aren’t in the room!”
“Oh, we’re in for it now!” Ally whispered.
Both men looked through the dirty windows. “There they are! And a girl’s with them. Hey, you!”
Nick yelled, “Ally—can you drive this thing?”
“With a flat?”
“With anything!”
Ally looked ahead at the driver’s seat. “Yeah!”
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