The Complete Ruby Redfort Collection. Lauren Child

Danger did that to him – he had a weak stomach when it came to life and death situations.

      ‘I certainly hope not, not now I have seen some of the likely suspects – one of them looked like Dracula.’

      ‘What, you saw the actual gang?’

      ‘No, not the gang, just some possible suspects – just in a slide show.’ Ruby hadn’t meant to tell him about that. She was telling him far too much – knowing too much about a bunch of ruthless killers wasn’t going to do his health any favours at all.

      ‘So who were they?’

      ‘Look, we’re here now Clance – I’ll tell you some other time, OK? It was no big deal – just a few faces.’

      ‘Tomorrow?’ said Clancy.

      Minutes later the cab pulled up on Maverick Street. The two of them stepped out on to the sidewalk. There was no one around, it wasn’t a residential neighbourhood and being Friday evening the shops and offices were deserted.

      ‘This place gives me the creeps,’ said Clancy.

      ‘Well, I’m not planning on staying the night – we’ll take a look in the box and then go home.’

      ‘Box? What box?’

      ‘Just a box of Lopez’s stuff.’

      ‘What stuff?’ said Clancy

      ‘The stuff she had on her when she died.’

      Clancy shivered – he wasn’t feeling so good. ‘I’m not sure about this Rube – can’t you just ask LB about it again tomorrow?’

      ‘Look you don’t get it Clancy – there is no tomorrow. LB fired me, OK?’ She hadn’t wanted to tell him that.

      He was suitably stunned.

      ‘So do you see why I have to do this?’

      Clancy nodded; he knew she had no choice.

      ‘Look Clance, we’ll just break in to the office, take a look around and then I promise I’ll take you home.’

      ‘Break in to the office?’ said Clancy not a little alarmed.

      ‘Well, it’s not technically a break-in. I have the key code, Blacker gave it to me, it’s just we will probably be murdered by Spectrum if we get caught using it.’

      Clancy was speechless as he watched Ruby punch in the door code and turn the handle. ‘Well come on bozo, don’t hang around waiting to get caught.’

      Clancy was unimpressed by the Spectrum secret agency office.

      ‘What a dump!’ he marveled. ‘I think someone has been pulling your leg, I don’t think these people are secret agents at all.’

      But Ruby wasn’t listening, she was busy climbing up the high file shelves which spanned the back of the office.

      ‘What are you doing?’ said Clancy.

      Ruby pointed at the box on the very top shelf, it was wrapped and ready for mailing, ‘I can’t reach, I am going to have to stand on your shoulders.’

      ‘Oh man, you owe me, you really owe me.’

      It was a little perilous but somehow Ruby was able to balance without either falling or injuring her friend; ever so carefully she reached for the little brown box.

      ‘You really owe me,’ repeated Clancy.

      Once down Ruby placed the package on the desk and carefully unwrapped it. She lifted the lid and one by one took each item out. There was a silver metal water bottle, some sunscreen, some gloves, a penknife and a powder compact.

      ‘How very strange,’ said Ruby lifting out the compact.

      ‘What is it?’ said Clancy peering over her shoulder.

      ‘Why would Lopez take a powder compact up a mountain?’

      ‘Maybe she was very into her appearance,’ suggested Clancy.

      Ruby gave him a look. ‘She’s dangling off a mountain Clance, when exactly do ya figure she’s gonna powder her nose?’

      ‘I was just coming up with a possible explanation is all – perhaps it was her lucky powder compact.’

      Ruby rolled her eyes.

      ‘OK, if you’re so clever you tell me.’

      ‘I think,’ said Ruby holding up the compact, ‘I think she took this with her for a reason.’ Ruby clicked open the case. ‘I think this just might be where she hid the code!’ But when Ruby looked inside she was dismayed to see nothing but a puff and some slightly tired looking beige powder.

      ‘Oh,’ she said.

      Clancy chewed his lip. ‘Never mind Rube – you could have been right, it’s perfectly possible – I mean perhaps it was where she kept the code but someone already found it.’

      ‘Yeah, and perhaps I was just actually wrong, perhaps it’s got nothing to do with nothing.’

      Ruby sat down, deflated. ‘I guess we better put everything back just how we found it and get out of here.’

      ‘Look I’ll do it Ruby, I’m good at leaving no tracks.’

      Clancy had just repacked the box and Ruby was just struggling to push it onto the topmost shelf when they thought they heard a car pull up – its lights illuminating the shabby office. They held their breath and waited – but the car drove on by.

      ‘Can we maybe get outta here?’ pleaded Clancy.

      The whole way back Ruby said not one word. And she spent the weekend alone.

       Chapter 27.

      A formula for murder

      ‘WELL LOOK WHO IT IS – it’s that Redfort kid’

      ‘Ha ha, very funny Del,’ said Ruby.

      ‘So how’s your grandmother?’ asked Mouse.

      Ruby caught Clancy’s eye. ‘She’s as well as I’ve ever known her.’

      ‘That’s great,’ said Red.

      ‘Yeah it would be if she wasn’t dead,’ muttered Clancy under his breath – Ruby kicked him quite hard in the back of the leg, his squeal drowned out by the sound of the school bell. The five of them made their way to class.

      ‘Hey Ruby,’ said Clancy when the others were out of earshot, ‘you said you were going to tell me what you saw in that slide show – did you see anyone really dreadful?’

      ‘Oh that, they were just having a beauty pageant of all the likely suspects.’

      ‘What do they look like?’

      Ruby wanted to tell Clancy everything but the more he knew the more at risk he was and for that matter the more at risk she was.

      This is why one should only have dumb friends, thought Ruby.

      ‘Catch you at recess OK?’ he mouthed.

      One hour on, at recess, Ruby tried to take charge. ‘Look Clance, the thing you gotta remember is, you aren’t meant to know anything. I would get practically torn limb from limb for telling you a zillionth of what you know.’

      But Clancy just replied by assuring her that he could be trusted. ‘You know me Rube, they could feed my toes one by one to a hungry pack of vultures but I would never blab.’

      ‘Pack isn’t right, Clancy.’

      ‘What?’ said Clancy. ‘Pack, it isn’t a pack of vultures. It’s something but it isn’t a pack,’ replied Ruby.

      ‘Pack, gang,