by Lauren Child
They seemed innocent enough:
Lady of advancing years seeks companion with an interest in cats, crochet and ancient history.
Fitness instructor wanted for fitness phobic Finn.
Learn to cook Greek style! When you’re done – no need for tiresome dish washing, just throw them over your shoulder!
Silently, Ruby read page after page. There were hundreds of these absurd clippings, every one from the Twinford Mirror – there was nothing remotely suspicious or sinister about any of them.
What was it that Lopez saw?
After about an hour of reading Ruby shouted out to Blacker. ‘So what made you look out for personals in the Twinford Mirror?’
‘Well that’s an interesting story,’ said Blacker, walking out of his room and sitting down on a box next to Ruby. ‘The police picked up a known felon, by the name of Fingers Macgraw – he was driving an expensive car that didn’t belong to him and he couldn’t really explain how he had come by it. Anyway, when the car was searched it had a whole batch of these personal ads stuffed in the glove compartment.’
‘So? Fingers read the personals – there’s no law against it.’
‘Right, but there was no way they belonged to Fingers; there wasn’t a single finger print of his on them. It was obvious he didn’t even know they were there. In any case what would he be doing with newspaper cuttings? Fingers can barely read – he is strictly a feel it and steal it kinda fellow – nothing complicated about him.’
‘And this looked complicated?’ said Ruby.
‘It looked like it was something,’ said Blacker. ‘A whole lot of carefully collected newspaper ads and tips from the Twinford Mirror – I mean why? What do they mean?’
‘They look pretty random,’ said Ruby.
‘Yeah,’ he said, ‘that’s just it – they are so random, it made us wonder if they were random, if you get my drift. And why didn’t the person they belonged to ever contact the police to report the car missing? It was a good car – almost new.’
‘But the police must have run a check on the license plates, found the owner?’ said Ruby.
‘Sure they did. We know who the car was registered to but it turned out to be the same dead woman who supposedly visited the bank.’
‘Well, I agree that is pretty suspicious,’ said Ruby.
Blacker nodded. ‘So we ran the ads by Lopez to see what she thought.’
‘And how long before you knew you were on to something?’ asked Ruby.
Blacker pointed at another whole row of files. ‘Lopez started reading the Twinford Mirror very closely – wasn’t until she had filled all of these before we began to see exactly what was going on with the personal ads.’
‘Boy, you people must really have patience,’ said Ruby, pulling file two from the shelf. ‘What was it she worked out?’
Agent Blacker smiled. ‘Sorry, but LB wants to see if you can find that out for yourself.’
For the next couple of hours Ruby barely moved from her chair – she just sat there, reading clipping after clipping.
Most of the clippings were personal ads. Some were titled TOP TIPS: People would write in from all over to suggest ways of, for instance, getting a cat down from a tree, or how to get shoe polish off a pair of corduroy pants. The pieces were at worst boring and at best faintly amusing but there was nothing suspicious about them – nothing, that is, until Ruby spotted the pattern. They were using a number of different variations on the same code, taking the first letter of the ad and then letters at fixed intervals, discarding the rest. The first code Ruby deciphered used every fifth letter to convey the secret message. After some tinkering, Ruby also discovered something else: three dots in a personal ad seemed to indicate a question mark in the coded message. After that you started again with the first letter.
As Ruby deciphered each short piece, it became clear to her what was going on – five or more people were communicating to each other about something and it wasn’t about how to get shoe polish off a pair of corduroy pants.
At around lunch time Blacker ordered pizza.
‘So, is it beginning to make sense, Ruby?’ he asked.
‘I can see where it’s headed.’ She showed him what she had deciphered.
Scotch American up for amiable dominos. Anticipating players of minimal ages 20 to 22.
(Shipment April 22)
Ovens, paint, electric train sets, various models, newer 100 to 200 mph outboards. Uncle Ralph’s jumble bonanza starts Easter.
(Operation 12 hours later)
Want that stain out? Here is one super trick: heat pear with soda, cool, rub in gentle rotations… Slows or eliminates most tough or dried-on nasty gloop. Powder the pear, it cuts time. Store it under sink…
(What is the target? Something precious?)
Witch has a cat and toad, lizards, charm, all to order at special price. Reply early, coz this ace offer undersells the others. Hats, wand, frogs also. Excellent deals…
(What is more precious than gold?)
Value a rest? U need latest calming comfrey + pea treatment. Sleep w/out any drugs, say bye bye to lost repose with simple tea. To hear more, you must try to phone Legera Botanicals
(Vault impenetrable without plans)
Pools, lawns and sand pits: good, mature yard man looks for jobs. I will show refs and past works if you like. Classy home maintenance, DIY too. Own a van. Special rates.
(Plans memorised – will hand over)
Madam Unice seeks Twinford’s absolutely fab social denizens for deeply cool music, prayer, impact. Every Tuesday evening. Vanquish vices! Amen.
(Must obtain security device)
Dance event. Very mixed acts. See the only pros waltz in 5 years, enjoy tango live. Hot dancing magic starts early December. You have to see what Ted Sarkey can do in only two hrs with those toes of his. Amazing skill in our town.
(Device not yet located but we know who has it)
‘Not bad,’ said Blacker. ‘I think you’re gonna prove me right.’
‘So where is the security device?’ asked Ruby.
‘That’s the thing, the gold vault at the bank doesn’t have a security device – not as such. It has a two-part code. Freddie Humbert, the bank manager, has one half, and his security chief has the other. There’s no way anyone can get their hands on the code without kidnapping both of them, and since LB’s brought in round the clock high security protection – kidnapping is near impossible.’
Ruby frowned. If the Fool’s Gold Gang were worthy of Spectrum’s concern, then why hadn’t the Gang noticed that City Bank security had been tightened? Why didn’t they know that they had to get their hands on a code, not a device? They didn’t stand a chance with a plan like this. These bozos might well know how to get shoe polish off a pair of corduroy pants but they had no idea how to go about robbing the safest safe in the USA.
Ruby pondered all this for a while. Something didn’t make sense… unless, of course, the gang had something much bigger in mind.
Was this plan only the beginning of things?
Was the real plan way more cunning? Is that what Lopez had discovered? Did the Fool’s Gold Gang know more about the Twinford City Bank than anyone gave them credit for?
At three o’clock Hitch called to see how she was doing. ‘Look kid, I’m sorry but I’m going to be a little late picking you up – something has come up at HQ. Just hang on till seven and I’ll be there.’
Ruby was exhausted and the idea of staying on into the early evening was not very appealing. To make things worse Blacker poked his head round the door and said, ‘I’m sorry Ruby, I’ve been called in to HQ. Got to deal with a crisis. A replacement agent is coming over to watch over you. I’ll stick around till they get here.’
‘Oh,’ said Ruby. ‘OK.’
She started reading, and ten minutes later a voice broke her concentration, she looked up to see the smug face of the Silent G.
‘Well, well, well if it isn’t little Ruby Redfort.’
‘Oh brothe
r!’ sighed Ruby.
‘Believe me little girl,’ Froghorn said, ‘I’m not exactly turning somersaults to be here.’
Blacker frowned. ‘You play nice, Froghorn, you hear? Ruby, I guess I’ll see you tomorrow.’ He grabbed his jacket and made for the door, calling out, ‘Be nice, Froghorn! You remember how to be nice, don’t you?’
Froghorn pinched his lips together like he had just sucked a lemon.
‘Never fear,’ he said. ‘Your little babysitter friend will be back to keep you company tomorrow. And I’m sure Hitch will make you an ice cream sundae when you get home.’
Geez, this potato head was really winding her up, but she decided to keep her cool.
Keep a lid on it, Ruby.
That day Ruby did about as much reading as she had ever done, and Ruby was a big reader. She had once read a hundred and two Spy-Scoundrel graphic novels in one day, but this was a whole different type of reading.
By six o’clock she was exhausted – she had barely looked up all afternoon. She stretched back in the chair and absentmindedly pulled the keyring puzzle out of her jeans pocket. She stared at it without thought – she was too tired to think. She sat there motionless for a few moments before being brought back into focus by a buzzing sound – a housefly had roused itself and was hovering over in the corner of the office. She watched as it settled on the seat of the bike, propped against the wall. It was a woman’s bike; she guessed it must have belonged to Lopez. Ruby looked at the door and looked over at Froghorn – he was chatting on the phone. She paused for one whole split second just weighing something up.
‘Excuse me,’ she said, ‘but I gotta be going. Hitch phoned to say I could cycle home if I liked – he’s not gonna be finished for a while.’
Froghorn put his hand over the receiver. ‘Sure, sure, run along home little girl, what do I care?’ He motioned for her to go. ‘Maybe you’ll be allowed to watch some TV before bedtime.’
Ruby thought she might just do that – she had done enough reading to last her a week.
Mrs Digby, on the other hand,
was missing her reading. . .
She was without her beloved paperbacks, which had apparently been rejected by the burglars and left in her basement apartment. Mrs Digby was a voracious reader and loved her crime fiction even more than she loved her TV thrillers.
If they had to go and steal everything including me then why in tarnation couldn’t they have the decency to steal my valuables too?
Then she stopped to think.
Ah, ah, but they will have stolen Ruby’s valuables and I can count on that kid to have a little old thriller I can settle down with.
Then she noticed the clock – nearly seven.
Quick, not much time.
Although unable to escape her luxury prison, Mrs Digby could at least make herself a cup of tea – although the milk had gone bad. ‘Rats!’ she muttered, before settling down in an armchair to watch her favourite game show, What’s Your Poison?
She was just getting comfortable when she was startled by an alarming, high-pitched scream.
Before Mrs Digby could turn around she heard the voice of a woman. ‘Stay right where you are lady, don’t move a muscle, don’t even twitch an eyelash.’
Mrs Digby was a tough old bird but even she knew when it was wise to twitch an eyelash and when it was not.
Chapter 16.
Don’t look now
IT WAS NICE TO BE BACK ON A BIKE AGAIN, and Lopez’s bike, although a good deal too big, was a pretty deluxe one. It was fast and light and Ruby seemed to be gliding along speedily with little effort on her part, which was lucky since it was beginning to get dark and the bike had no lights. She was just making her way up the steep hill – a deserted stretch of road – which connected East Twinford to West Twinford, when she started to feel the unpleasant sensation of a deflating back tyre.
Oh geez, that’s all I need! She hopped off the bike and surveyed the flat. There was no way of fixing it; she was going to have to walk home and it was a long way. To make matters just that much more miserable, it began to gently drizzle.
Fabulous, just fabulous.
A few cars passed her as she trudged up the hill – some of them slowed down but none of them stopped. She didn’t want them to either, not unless it was someone she knew, someone she could count on. By now it was pitch black, there were a few streetlights but this was the industrial part of town and none of the mostly-abandoned warehouses were lit. The drizzle had become rain, real drenching rain.
Ruby thought about her own bike with its sturdy, heavy-duty, all-terrain tyres – speed was all very well but given the choice she would take reliability any day.
Darn it!
She was so busy cussing and complaining to herself that she didn’t at first sense the car behind her. She had vaguely heard it in the far distance as it approached the hill, its gears shifting down as it began to climb. But what she hadn’t noticed was the sound of the engine slowing to almost walking pace; not overtaking, just following. Puddles were beginning to form on the road and her feet were soaking wet. The lace of her left sneaker had come undone and she bent to tie it. It was sodden and her fingers were cold, unable to get a proper grip. She made an ugly knot and stuffed the ends into her shoe.
And that’s when she really became aware of the car.
Still crouching, she turned her head; the headlights were on full beam and she held her hand in front of her eyes to protect them from the glare. The car was moving very slowly towards her, but she was unable to make out the driver’s face. Ruby’s mind began to weigh the options – friend or foe? What kindly stranger would be so stupid as to shine their lights in a person’s face and edge nearer to them in this creepy way?
Foe, it had to be.
Panic took a grip and Ruby, stumbling to her feet, began to run. She felt the rough stones beneath her soles and heard the sloshing of her shoes in puddles, but mostly she was aware of the thumping of her heart and the single thought that was echoing in her brain, how could you be so dumb?
She quickly turned to check on the car, stumbled and went sprawling onto the road. The car stopped. Through the dazzle of the headlights she saw the door open and the black shape of a figure step out. A man. He paused, faceless behind the light, and then he moved, stepping steadily towards her. Tap, tap went his shoes on the shiny wet asphalt, thump, thump went Ruby’s uncertain heart. She held her breath, her hands unable to make a fist… she felt around for some stone or stick, some inadequate weapon to fend off who knew what. The man leaned down towards her, she could smell his cologne.
‘When are you going to start paying attention kid?’
‘Hitch?’ croaked Ruby, ‘that you?’
‘You better believe it buster,’ came the reply.
Chapter 17.
Strange and uneasy
THE JOURNEY BACK WAS NOT A PLEASANT ONE. Hitch wasn’t mad, he didn’t need to be – Ruby was far too mad at herself already. She was, however, relieved – relieved to be sitting in a nice warm car and not to be in the hands of some mad murderous crazy type. Not that there were a lot of those around but you never could be quite sure and with Ruby’s luck lately, she felt the odds of meeting a mad murderous crazy type were high.
Hitch drove in near silence while Ruby mumbled on. Every now and then he would raise an eyebrow or nod in agreement, but he never bothered to say, “I told you so”.
He didn’t have to.
When they got back to Cedarwood Drive, Ruby slumped down at the breakfast bar while Hitch unloaded Lopez’s bike from the trunk. When he came in he said, ‘Look kid, maybe part of this is my fault, I accept that, I’ve been kinda ribbing you and talking down to you – so maybe you and I need to start over?’
Ruby was astonished – it was the very last thing she was expecting.
‘Yeah well,’ she said, ‘I guess I should have listened but I just like to be independent, you know what I mean?’
Hitch nodded. ‘OK, so how about you ge
t yourself to and from Maverick Street but on your own bike and on the condition that you attach this tracker device to the handle bars.’ He took out a small round orange metal thing that looked exactly like a bicycle bell. ‘The first sign of anything suspicious, you press the green button in the middle and I’ll find you.’
It seemed like a pretty fair deal. ‘Sure, I can do that.’
‘One other condition,’ continued Hitch. ‘If someone ever does tail you, someone meaning someone relating to the work you are doing, someone who’s figured out what you are up to, then we have to pull the plug – no more code cracking.’
‘OK,’ Ruby nodded reluctantly. ‘I guess I can live with that.’ She had no choice other than to agree. But in any case she was determined that no one was ever going to tail her.
On Saturday morning Ruby pulled on her jeans and a T-shirt which simply said, help is at hand. She looked out of the window – Mrs Gruber was walking her cat, as she always did on Tuesdays – apart from that, there wasn’t a whole lot of action. She went downstairs, scratched Bug behind the ears, grabbed her bike and cycled to Maverick Street. Halfway there she got, well, not so much a strange feeling, as an uneasy one. She had no idea why, but she sort of felt as if a pair of eyes were watching her every move.
Getting edgy Rube, that’s not good. Stay alert but don’t ever get edgy.
But she couldn’t shake the feeling that something bad was going to happen. This feeling was justified when the door was opened by none other than Froghorn – the Silent G.
‘Oh look it’s the wonder kid.’ He tapped his watch. ‘You’re late.’
Ruby’s smile faded, ‘I’ve been missing you too – where’s Agent Blacker?’
‘He might be in later, but right now I’m the lucky babysitter.’
Ruby gave him her best Ruby Redfort bozo-look. ‘So where’s the baby? Don’t tell me you lost it already?’
Froghorn extended his index finger and jabbed it in her direction. ‘You think you’re the cat’s pyjamas, right?’ he hissed. ‘Well let me tell you, I’m in charge so you better toe-the-line little girl. You already got me in trouble once, by cycling off home on your own. But I’ve got my eye on you now, and not much gets by me.’