I sighed. Gib and Chaucy sighed with me.
‘Chaucy … maybe you’ve done enough. You don’t have to come with us. In fact, maybe you shouldn’t get any more involved in case something goes wrong,’ I said.
‘But I’m already involved,’ Chaucy said firmly. ‘I want to help.’
I smiled at him. He was all right!
‘OK, we know what time they’re leaving and the airport,’ Gib began. ‘The next step must be to …’
‘What terminal?’ Chaucy butted in.
‘Pardon?’
‘What terminal are they flying from? Heathrow has got five,’ Chaucy said.
I hadn’t a clue and my horror-stricken face told him as much.
‘I didn’t see that bit on their tickets,’ I whispered.
Gib glanced up at the train indicator board. ‘Quick! We’ve still got four minutes before the train arrives. We’ll phone the airport and find out.’
Gib fished his phone out of his pocket.
‘Hurry up, Gib,’ I urged.
‘Phone directory enquiries to get the number,’ Chaucy piped up.
‘What should I ask for?’ Gib asked doubtfully.
‘Airport information?’ I suggested. ‘I know, just google it. Search for Heathrow Airport information.’
Gib did just that.
‘Which airline?’ Gib asked as he tapped at the screen on his phone.
‘Er … Air France,’ I whispered.
‘Air France,’ Gib repeated.
It took less than a minute to learn that Air France had four flights to Rio leaving that day. Apart from one at silly o’clock in the morning, they left at four o’clock, six o’clock and ten minutes past eight. Each flight stopped off in Paris, and each left from Terminal Four.
By this time our train had pulled into the station. We raced onto the platform. Chaucy leaped onto the train just as the doors were closing. Using his body to keep the doors apart, he pushed at one of them, allowing Gib and me to duck under his arm to get on. Chaucy sprang towards us and the doors immediately smacked shut behind him.
‘This is it,’ Gib said quietly as the train began to move. ‘If we mess this up, we’re not going to get another chance.’ Which didn’t make any of us feel better.
‘Don’t worry, you two,’ Chaucy said, trying to sound cheerful. ‘We’ll stop them, no bother.’
I looked from Chaucy to Gib and back again. They both looked worried.
Do I look like them? I wondered. I must do.
‘We’ll do all right,’ Gib said firmly.
I wished I could be sure.
Chapter Fourteen
WE SAT IN silence for the last two tube stops before Heathrow, Terminal 4. My stomach was rocking inside me. The tube was stuffy and smelly and now jam-packed full of people. I would never have guessed that there’d be so many wanting to go to Heathrow in the afternoon, but in our carriage it was standing room only.
I couldn’t wait to get off. Yet I knew that once we got out it would be all up to us. And that thought was so scary. If the plan Chaucy, Gib and I had come up with didn’t work then all the work we’d done so far would be for nothing. Sebastian and Beth would get away scot free. And worst of all, by far, Dad might end up in prison.
So this was it.
Now I wished we’d told someone, tried to get some help. But who would believe us? Adults tended to stick together over things they considered important – like money. And the lies we’d told to get this far! By the time Mum and Dad knew the whole truth we’d have stopped Sebastian and Beth taking all that money out of the country. We’d have proved that Dad was innocent. So the theory was that our parents wouldn’t be too angry.
I looked at Gib and he looked at me. Neither of us said a word. Gib’s lips were set in a frown. He looked like he never wanted to smile again. I glanced down at my watch for the umpteenth time in about thirty seconds.
‘Vicky, we’re here.’ Chaucy nudged my arm as at last we reached the stop for Heathrow, Terminal 4.
We travelled along the long, grey corridor with painted abstracts on each wall, then up in one of the lifts to the departure level – all in total silence. If I thought the tube was bad then the airport terminal was far, far worse. I’d never seen so many people milling about. The whole place was huge. There were queues and check-in counters and noise everywhere. And as I gawped, two policemen strolled by carrying guns! It was so strange to see armed police just wandering around, mingling with the tourists..
I’d been to the airport before but I’d been a lot younger then and I could hardly remember anything about it. And, of course, that had been with Mum and Dad. My heart was jumping about all over my body now. I was terrified. I felt minuscule amongst all these people and all this bustle and jumble and noise. I looked at Gib and Chaucy. Thankfully, they both looked how I felt – nervous, to say the least.
‘Where’s the information about when the planes leave?’ Gib asked.
I pointed. A number of TV monitors were suspended from the ceiling with departure information on them. All three of us walked over to the closest monitor and stared up at it. The Rio flight wasn’t on it.
‘That’s a fat lot of good,’ Gib said with disgust.
We walked around, waiting for more flight information to be displayed and wondering if our plan stood any chance at all of working.
In the centre of the hall, we noticed more monitors.
‘Rio … Rio …’ Gib muttered as we each scanned down them.
‘It isn’t there!’ Chaucy said dejectedly. ‘The only Air France flight I can see is going to Paris.’
I looked up at the monitor, and suddenly something clicked in my brain. Something from when I was looking at the airline tickets. Flight AF2581 … at 1600 … to Paris. That must be it!
I tore over to the Air France desk and practically launched myself at the smiling, blonde woman in a smart uniform.
‘Excuse me,’ I said, ‘Your flight to Rio – do you have to get on a flight to Paris first?’
‘Yes, that’s right,’ she replied. ‘We don’t fly direct from London to Rio. First you have to fly to Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris, and then change planes. The next flight is AF2581 – I can check you and your parents in here if you like?’
‘No, that’s OK, thanks. I was just checking!’
I legged it back to Gib and Chaucy.
‘That’s it!’ I pointed at the monitor. ‘AF2581 to Paris, taking off at sixteen-hundred hours. That’s the first leg of the trip to Rio!’
Almost directly opposite the monitors was a sign which said:
PASSPORT HOLDERS ONLY BEYOND THIS POINT
‘Do you think they’ve already gone through?’ Gib said what I was reluctantly thinking.
‘Of course not,’ I said firmly, crossing my fingers. ‘Why should they go through this early? It’s not one o’clock yet.’
‘But we don’t know for sure that they haven’t,’ Gib said.
‘Victoria is right. They wouldn’t go through this early,’ Chaucy replied. ‘Chill out, Gib! We’ll get them.’
I smiled at Chaucy’s confidence, hoping it was infectious.
‘Right. I’ll go and do my bit now. Don’t get lost, you two,’ I said.
‘Don’t worry – we won’t,’ Gib said, his voice sharp with nerves. ‘Just make sure you keep your eyes open.’
I walked away from them back towards the Air France desk.
‘They couldn’t have gone through yet,’ I told myself. Please don’t let them get away with it. Please don’t. I muttered the words over and over again like a song or a spell.
The sign over the counter said ‘Business Class’. This time I had to stand behind two people, impatiently waiting my turn. At last, they moved on after being served, and the check-in woman smiled across at me from over the counter.
‘Er, excuse me,’ I began. ‘Me again! Can you help? Could you tell me if Beth and Sebastian Carter have checked in yet for the four o’clock flight to Paris?’
> Her smile faded. ‘I’m sorry. We’re not allowed to give out that information.’
‘But it’s really important,’ I pleaded.
The woman shrugged. ‘I’m sorry.’
I wanted to scream. I was falling down at the first hurdle.
‘Thanks anyway,’ I mumbled, walking away from her.
Someone was waving at me. It was Chaucy, with Gib next to him. They were standing by the escalators. I ran over to them.
‘It’s no good,’ I puffed. ‘The woman at the desk wouldn’t tell me whether they’d checked in or not.’
‘I’ll find out,’ Chaucy said, his face determined. Before we could stop him or ask any questions, off he strode.
‘Where’s he going?’ I asked Gib.
‘Haven’t a clue.’
‘Shouldn’t we go with him?’
‘If he’d wanted us with him, he would have said so,’ Gib said calmly.
Five minutes later we found out where Chaucy had gone.
‘Would Mrs Beth Carter and her husband, Mr Sebastian Carter, please report to the information desk,’ a man’s voice boomed out over the loudspeaker system.
Gib and I looked at each other.
‘Chaucy!’ we exclaimed.
‘Where’s the information desk?’ I asked.
‘I’ll find it. You wait here and watch the check-in desks in case Beth and Sebastian turn up,’ Gib ordered.
A few minutes later the same message came out again over the loudspeakers.
I finally caught sight of the information desk but I couldn’t see Gib or Chaucy, and I couldn’t see any sign of Beth and Sebastian. All this looking around was giving me a crick in my neck. I scanned the check-in desks. Still nothing. I kept looking around, desperate to catch sight of our quarry.
‘Anything?’ Chaucy asked, appearing before me from out of nowhere with Gib close behind him.
I shook my head. ‘Not a sausage. I take it they didn’t turn up at the information desk?’
Chaucy and Gib shook their heads.
‘They can’t be here yet,’ Gib said hopefully.
‘Right then. Time for phase two. Let’s split up again,’ I said. ‘When they do arrive they’ll have to check in first, so between us we should spot them. Remember, the first one to see them has to go into action and the others stand by to act as back-up. Keep your eyes on the Air France desks. Don’t forget what you have to do. I’ll be over there where I can keep an eye on the passengers going through Security.’
We split up again, each of us going in a different direction.
The minutes ticked by too slowly. Standing still while everyone else rushed around me was really strange. Like watching the world go by all speeded up without being a part of it. I’d felt like that a lot recently. Even looking at my real mum and dad’s photo over the last couple of days didn’t help any more. In fact, it made me feel more sad. Like I was stuck out on the middle of an island somewhere and no one knew I was there. And no one cared that I was there. I knew I was feeling sorry for myself, but it didn’t change the way I felt. I told myself I had more than a lot of people. I had someone to call Mum and Dad, even if they weren’t my real parents. So why did I feel that it wasn’t enough? I never used to feel like that … not really. Not all the time. Not until Gib and I had our big quarrel. I wanted to know more about my real parents, so much more, and there was no one to tell me. I wanted to find out who they were, what they liked and didn’t like – as if in finding out about them, I would find out about myself.
Leaning against the wall next to a cash machine, I had nothing to do but think – and my thoughts were making me feel pretty miserable. It felt like even my adopted parents were slipping away from me. Dad was in trouble. Mum was having another baby. And Gib? Gib thought of me as an intruder, as someone who didn’t belong. And he was right. I didn’t belong. Not really.
I stood and brooded while the minutes ticked away. I wasn’t sure what I wanted any more. I only knew that this – whatever this was – wasn’t it. I didn’t want to stay where I wasn’t wanted. I wouldn’t stay where I wasn’t wanted. But hadn’t Dad said that he and Mum thought of me as their real daughter? And I believed him. So maybe the problem was Gib. Or maybe the problem was just me …
‘Stop them. Stop those two! They’ve stolen some money. They’ve stolen seven million pounds!’
Gib’s voice instantly stopped my daydreaming. I straightened up, looking in the direction of his voice. I saw Gib run up to Beth and Sebastian who were standing in the queue for passengers travelling first-class. I couldn’t see Beth properly – she was partially hidden behind Sebastian and her face was obscured by a white hat with a huge brim. But I could see Sebastian all right. He was carrying the two suitcases – one large and one small – that Gib had told me about before. He was dressed in a cream-coloured shirt and trousers and wore mirrored sunglasses.
Sebastian and Beth turned to each other, before glaring at Gib. I dashed over to them, stumbling in my haste to get there. I wasn’t going to leave Gib alone with them.
‘Help me, someone!’ Gib shouted at the top of his lungs.
Apart from me, no one was moving. It was as if everyone around had suddenly sprouted roots. They stared at Gib with astonished faces but nobody budged. Sebastian took off his glasses to glare at Gib, more to intimidate him than for any other reason, I reckoned.
‘Help me, someone – please!’ Gib shouted desperately. ‘They’ve stolen money from my dad’s bank!’
‘Why you …’ Sebastian’s expression turned from furious to murderous as he leaped towards Gib, making a grab for him.
Gib lashed out to knock Sebastian’s arm away. Sebastian was faster though. With fingers of iron he grabbed Gib by the arms.
‘What do you think you’re playing at?’ Sebastian asked, absolutely livid.
I launched myself up into the air and leaped on his back.
‘Let him go, you creep!’ I shouted.
Sebastian swung around in surprise. He tried to prise my arms from around his neck with one hand while he kept Gib in his clutches with the other. I was determined to get him to release Gib, but deep inside the thought sprang up that Sebastian couldn’t have done better if we’d paid him. The moment the crowd saw him going for Gib, they sprang into action.
‘Sebastian, don’t be a fool!’ Beth called out, but the warning came too late.
Everyone started to move in then. Two men from the next check-in queue ran over and angrily pulled Sebastian’s hands off Gib, while a woman behind him in the queue screamed for the police while beating Sebastian over the head with her handbag. I dropped down on to the ground before she ended up hitting me as well.
‘That boy is lying!’ Beth shouted at the crowd which was gathering around now.
‘I’m not!’ Gib protested. ‘They’ve stolen seven million from my dad’s bank and blamed it on my dad. Look in their suitcases. They’ve stolen the money, I swear.’
‘What’s he talking about …?’
‘Is someone making a film …?’
‘Does that man know this boy then …?’
I could have stomped up and down with frustration. Wasn’t anyone going to do something?
‘What’s going on here then?’ asked a tall man wearing a charcoal-grey jacket.
‘Who are you?’ asked one of the men who was still holding onto Sebastian.
‘Detective Sergeant Andrews, Heathrow Police Division,’ the man answered.
‘This boy says these two have stolen some money,’ said the other man, who now relinquished his hold on Sebastian.
‘They stole the money from my dad’s bank. They’re rotten, stinking thieves,’ Gib said earnestly. ‘And now they’re trying to run off to Rio with all that money.’
‘Is that likely?’ Beth said smoothly. ‘This child is obviously just playing a joke. A joke that’s in very poor taste.’
‘I’m not,’ Gib said indignantly.
Sergeant Andrews looked from Beth to Gib and frowned deeply
. I had to admit, Beth looked very believable. Not the sort of woman to steal, not the sort of woman who looked like she had to steal.
She looked totally different. Her hair wasn’t in its usual ponytail, it was loose. She had on a wide-brimmed, floppy white hat with a black band around it and wore a white jacket with black lapels and a white skirt. She even wore black and white shoes that matched the rest of her outfit.
I’d always thought she wasn’t particularly interested in clothes or how she looked. I’d never seen her looking so smart. She’d even changed her earrings. Instead of the usual gold studs, she wore long, dangly earrings, shaped like pears. Each of the pears was at least two and a half centimetres long. They had to be clip-ons. Anything else would have pulled her earlobes off.
‘Really! This is too ridiculous.’ Beth smiled, a frosty, angry smile.
‘We don’t even know this boy,’ Sebastian said to the policeman.
‘I mean, do we look like criminals, officer?’ Beth laughed.
‘Criminals don’t walk around with that word stamped on their foreheads, madam,’ Sergeant Andrews replied politely.
‘Aren’t you going to arrest them or something?’ Gib asked. ‘Beth took seven million pounds from Dad’s bank. She and Dad both work at Universal Bank.’
‘This is too much.’ Beth wasn’t laughing any more. She had a face like thunder. ‘If you don’t mind, officer, my husband and I have a plane to catch.’
‘Just what is your name, madam?’ Sergeant Andrews asked.
‘Beth. Beth Carter,’ Beth replied.
‘Her full name is Elizabeth Janine Carter,’ I said quickly. ‘Ask her if you don’t believe me.’
‘And who are you?’ The sergeant frowned at me.
I looked at Gib. He was watching me.
‘I know him,’ I said, pointing to Gib. ‘We’re friends – sort of.’
Gib opened his mouth to speak.
‘I’m with him,’ I interrupted firmly. ‘That’s all.’
‘Hmm!’ The sergeant turned back to Beth.
‘Is your full name Elizabeth Janine Carter or not?’
Beth didn’t answer.
‘May I see your passport please?’ Sergeant Andrews asked.