The Great Ice-Cream Heist (10 page)

Eva stepped forward, then broke into a run. ‘Jamie! Jamie!' she yelled. But he didn't hear her. Or, if he had heard, he pretended not to.

Jamie fell on to Melanie's passenger seat; the door closed. Melanie got in and the car sped away.

Eva stopped. She was close to her house now. The other cars pulled away too. Only a few officers were left.

‘Please!' Eva stepped up to the nearest one. His skin was tanned and crinkled, as if he spent a lot of time outdoors. He smiled at her, though he looked distracted.

‘What is it, pet? This is no place to be hanging around. You should get home.'

‘Please, he's my friend. The boy in the car. Jamie. Do you know where Melanie's taking him?'

The police officer shrugged. ‘No idea, sorry. It's Child Protection's job now. They'll look after him.'

‘When will he come home?'

‘Here? If they do right by him, they'll never send him back here.'

Chapter 17

Eva realised that Gran and Heidi had come to stand beside her. They were the only ones left. The cars had gone; the McIntyres' house was shut up like a keep, silent as a ruin.

‘What should we do?' Heidi asked.

Eva didn't know.

‘Should we tell Sally and the others? Do you think they were arrested because of the lodge?'

‘I don't know.' Eva's mind was whirling.
Poor Jamie
, she thought over and over.

‘There's nothing to be done,' Gran said. ‘The McIntyres are none of our concern now. You should get on home, Heidi, before your parents start worrying.'

‘Mum's not home,' Heidi said cheerfully. ‘She won't be for ages.'

Gran frowned. ‘Well, maybe you'd better come in with us then. Is that OK, Eva?'

Eva felt suddenly shy. It had been a long time since anyone had come to her house. At school, she was the odd one, the weird one, the one with the dead mum, the one who couldn't read.

Heidi was waiting for an answer. She bit her bottom lip and looked anxious.

Eva suddenly realised that Heidi really wanted to be invited inside. She wanted to be here. It felt like the sunlight got a bit brighter, just for an instant. ‘Of course Heidi can come in. I'd like that.'

Heidi grinned and her face went back to its normal, happy expression.

‘OK then,' Gran said. ‘We all need sugary drinks. That's quite a shock you've both had.'

They followed Gran into the kitchen, and sipped the orange juice she prepared. Then Eva led Heidi out into the garden. There was still a silence from the house next door, but it felt like the kind of silence that followed a shout – just a pause before the next shout came.

Heidi sat on the swing. She pushed herself gently, careful not to spill her drink.

‘Where do you think Jamie is?' she asked.

‘With Melanie somewhere?' Eva suggested.

‘He might have gone into care.'

Eva didn't really know what that meant, not really. She had images of orphanages from films: it was all gruel and rags and angry wardens. And there was Tracy Beaker, of course. She'd seen that on telly. Maybe Jamie was getting up to mischief and hoping that a new family wanted to adopt him.

No.

Eva knew there was no way he'd be hoping that. He loved his family, whatever anyone else thought of them. He'd be wanting to come home.

‘He'll be hating it. It's his worst nightmare. He told me that he'd never let Melanie take him away from his family. But he couldn't stop her. This is my fault,' she said quietly.

‘How is any of this your fault?' Heidi asked.

‘He should have been at the lodge today. If he'd been with us, then Melanie wouldn't have come to take him away. But he stayed home.'

‘I'm still waiting for the part where that's your fault.'

Eva felt her face redden. Her cheeks were hot with shame. ‘I didn't give him a chance to explain. Last night, he asked me to meet him. But I was angry, so I didn't go. I knew that the police were going to talk to Michael. I'm just like everyone else, judging Jamie by what his family does.'

‘Do you think he wanted to explain?' Heidi asked.

Eva nodded. ‘He waited for me for ages. He thought I was his friend, but I let him down. If I had met him last night, he might have come to the lodge with us today. He might have helped with the clean-up. He might have been there making it right – instead he was in his house. The police must have called Melanie as soon as they knew he was home. She wouldn't have taken him away if he'd been with us. Oh, Heidi, he thinks that no one cares about him.'

‘You care,' Heidi said. ‘Sounds like you care a lot.'

‘He doesn't know that. And now he's gone.'

Heidi was silent for a moment. She kicked at the scab of dry soil beneath the swing. ‘Maybe it's for the best though. Whoever's fault it is. Maybe Jamie will be better off wherever he is now.'

Eva shook her head. ‘No way. He loves his family. Even if they are a bit of a nightmare. He's going to hate wherever it is that Melanie took him.' Her nails dug into her palms. She realised that she was feeling angry, as well as guilty.

‘Heidi,' she said, ‘I need to find him. I need to see that he's OK. I need to say sorry. Maybe even get him back! What do you think?'

Heidi's eyebrows shot up. ‘Get him back? He isn't a computer game you've lent to someone. His social worker has taken him into care. You can't just ask nicely and get him back.'

Eva looked at the rickety fence that divided her garden from Jamie's. Sunlight dappled it with warmth. Even the shed looked more golden than brown. It was all right for her. She was here, with Gran and Heidi, and Dad was on his way home. It was all normal. But everything had changed for Jamie, and it was all because of her.

‘I have to go and find out where he is,' she said.

‘Go where?'

‘Next door. Mr McIntyre might be there. Or Drew. I can ask them where Jamie's gone.'

Heidi stood up. She looked horrified, as though a whole cyberman army had materialised next to the swing. ‘You want to ask Mr McIntyre if he knows where Jamie is on the day that his wife and son were arrested and his other son has been whisked away by the council?'

Eva nodded slowly. She
thought
that was what she wanted to do.

‘Wow. Well, all I can say is what song do you want played at your funeral?'

Chapter 18

Eva glanced from Heidi back to the fence and Jamie's house. She imagined walking up to the front door, ringing the bell and asking a distraught Mr McIntyre if he knew where Jamie was. It would be like finding a hornets' nest and telling the hornets that their queen was ugly. She wouldn't get out of there in one piece.

‘You're right,' she said. ‘I can't ask Mr McIntyre, not today at least. But the longer we leave it the colder the trail will get.'

‘Phew. A wise choice.' Heidi sat back down on the swing. ‘And are you absolutely, definitely certain that you want to find him? I mean, you're sure that he isn't better off wherever Melanie has him?'

‘I'm sure. Jamie will want to come home. No question.'

‘OK. So, what's the plan?'

Eva took a few deep breaths. Heidi thought she could come up with a plan. Heidi trusted her, just like Jamie had. She had to think of something. ‘Dogs!' she said.

Heidi looked puzzled. ‘Not the answer I was expecting.'

‘The dog walkers in the park. They could lend us a bloodhound. It could track Jamie down. They can smell tiny traces of scent in the air.'

Heidi shook her head. ‘I don't think there even is a bloodhound at the park – it's all Labradoodles and Yorkshire terriers. And Jamie went in a car. They won't be able to trace him. Hey, I know, we should ask Shan – she's clever. She'll come up with something.'

Shan? She wouldn't help Jamie, not in a million years.

Heidi must have seen the thought displayed on Eva's face. ‘I know she won't want to help Jamie, but she might help us. Come on!'

‘Won't she have gone home? I don't know where she lives.'

‘She'll still be at the lodge. She'll be doing something with the radio. Or something. Can you come back there now?'

‘I'll have to ask my gran.'

‘OK, come on then.'

Eva followed. She'd do whatever it took to find Jamie.

Chapter 19

Gran gave them twenty minutes. Back in time for lunch, she said, before Dad got home.

Eva hoped that was enough time to convince Shan. They raced back to the lodge and found Shan in the main hall, sitting on Brian's old sofa. Heidi explained what had happened to Jamie.

‘I suppose you've called his mobile?' Shan asked.

Eva shook her head. ‘I don't have his number. He lives just next door. I never thought to ask him for it.'

Shan sighed. ‘You really do need help, don't you?'

‘Does that mean you will help us?' Heidi asked.

Eva grinned. She hadn't thought that there was an ‘us', not really. She'd assumed that Heidi would wander off soon, find someone more interesting to be with. But here she was saying ‘us' and it sounded as though she meant it.

Shan pursed her mouth. ‘I don't see why I should. It's not as though I'm a founder member of the Jamie McIntyre fan club. In fact, I don't like him. He's trouble.'

Eva caught at her lip with her teeth. ‘I know what you mean,' she said quietly. ‘But doesn't that mean he needs our help even more? I mean, what's the point of helping someone with no problems?'

The door opened and Dilan tumbled in. He was carrying a big net full of footballs. ‘Look!' he said. ‘Some bloke from the sports shop dropped these off. He heard about the damage and wanted to help. He said he was moved to be generous. Wait till your campaign really gets going, Shan. We'll get loads of cool stuff.' He dropped the net. Twenty or so balls bounced with a weird tinny sound. ‘Why does everyone look so serious?' he asked.

‘We were just talking about being generous,' Heidi said. ‘About whether you should help out, if you can, when someone needs you to.'

‘Oh,' Dilan said. He edged a ball with the outside of his shoe. It clattered against the others. ‘Well, of course you should. Who says you shouldn't?'

Shan sighed dramatically. ‘Fine. Fine, I'll help. And so will Dilan. But don't be surprised if it ends badly, OK? And, if I help you, you need to help me back. Sally and I have been talking to the local radio station. They want to come down here to broadcast tomorrow. I'll need people here bright and early to help them set up. By “people”, I mean you two. Deal?'

‘It's a deal. Thank you!' Eva suddenly felt that this might not be impossible after all, that it might be easy to find Jamie. With help from the others. ‘Where should we start?' she asked.

‘There's no point Googling him. There will be thousands of Jamie McIntyres in the world and he's never done anything that means he'd be on the internet. Unless they list court appearances,' Shan said. ‘There is one place, though, where we might be able to find his number.'

‘Where?'

‘Sally's office. We all had to fill out forms, remember? With our contact details. In case of emergency. His mobile number might be on that. And, luckily, his good-for-nothing brothers made such a mess of the office that Sally won't notice a bit more rifling.'

Eva remembered the form. She had no idea what it said on it, because Dad had filled it all in for her. Forms were like A4-sized panic attacks as far as she was concerned. But Shan was right – the form must have everyone's phone numbers on in case someone got hurt in a random painting accident. If Jamie had filled his in properly, then this would be easy-peasy. Jamie would be found.

‘Dil, you go and distract Sally,' Shan said. ‘Heidi, keep a lookout. Eva, you're with me.'

‘Why do you get to be the boss?' Dilan moaned. ‘And who are we helping anyway?'

Shan raised an eyebrow. ‘I'm the boss because these two came to me for help. And I'm
always
the boss of you. Off you go. Ask Sally for a game of football or something. Let her win so she doesn't abandon the game. We need at least fifteen minutes to have a good look. The office is in a right state.'

Eva followed Shan and Dilan out of the lounge and into the hallway. Stray bags were starting to pile up there: black bin bags with cushions and curtains in, plastic bags with art supplies, cardboard boxes with board games. Even a PS3.

‘Has all this just come in now?' Shan asked Dilan.

‘Yeah. Word's got out. The whole town is sending us stuff. We'll have enough for three lodges if it carries on like this.'

‘Especially after we're on the radio,' Shan said. ‘Now go and find Sally and keep her busy.'