Undercover

by Jacqueline Harvey

  ‘He’s a journalist who’s been helping me with the paper trail, uncovering exactly what you’ve been up to all this time,’ Lucy said. She took a few steps towards him. ‘Tinsley’s gone, Dash, and she’s taken Van and Ellery with her. You’ll never find them.’

  ‘What are you talking about? What have you done?’ the man spat. ‘My wife is at home with our children – exactly where she belongs. She knows better than to try to leave me.’

  ‘Someone sent her a letter about your sister and how she died. Tinsley said that she couldn’t stay with you any longer. She and the children weren’t safe,’ Lucy retorted.

  ‘Lies! It’s all lies!’ Dash looked at the box in his hands. He placed it on the ground and unlatched the clips, then reached in and pulled out a phial. ‘If any of you dare to come closer, I will break this and we will all be dead within a week.’

  ‘No! Don’t you dare!’ Hector yelled. ‘It cannot end this way.’

  ‘Clear a path for me to get to my vehicle and I will let you live,’ Dash said evenly.

  Lucy stepped aside and George did too. Hector pulled Marisol back, shielding her.

  The man edged past them. When he neared the door, he turned, his eyes full of venom. ‘Catch!’ he shouted, and launched the phial high into the air, then fled into the storm.

  The little glass container tumbled up and up and over and over.

  Max sped towards it but it was too far. Kensy spotted Curtis standing at the shed entrance and yelled, ‘Curtis! Catch it!’

  The boy could see the object in the air. A flashback to last year’s C-grade cricket final began to enter his mind, but he pushed it away. This time he wasn’t going to drop the ball. His eyes never left the tube as he reached out. To everyone’s great relief, it landed safely in his hands.

  ‘Well done!’ Hector shouted. ‘Now, hold it very carefully.’

  But the distraction had given Dash more than enough time. He was already in the car, its wheels spinning.

  ‘He’s getting away!’ Lucy yelled as she, George and the twins charged out after him.

  They could see Dash’s tail-lights melting red in the pouring rain as the car rocketed down the sodden track, skidding and sliding. George ran towards his car, but a branch had come down in the storm, blocking it in. Meanwhile, inside the shed, Curtis had returned the phial to the box and secured the locks.

  ‘Excuse me,’ Curtis said to Hector and Marisol, ‘I think I should go and help my friends.’ He ran outside to join Kensy and Max. The rain had stopped and all around them steam was rising from the earth.

  Kensy threw her arms around the boy. ‘You were brilliant, Curtis, and your timing couldn’t have been better.’

  ‘I heard lots of angry shouting and thought I’d take a look, in case you needed me.’ He shrugged. ‘Don’t worry, I was ready to run as well.’

  ‘But we lost Dash. He’ll be heading for the plane,’ Lucy said. ‘With his evil cargo.’

  ‘He doesn’t have it,’ Curtis said. ‘I took out the boxes and hid them behind a tree.’

  Just as the children were about to retrieve them, they were stunned to see headlights on the driveway. Moments later, Song and Rupert leapt out of a silver sedan.

  ‘Where is he?’ Rupert demanded.

  Kensy gasped. ‘Uncle Rupert, what are you doing here?’

  ‘No time to explain. Where’s Dash?’ the man said desperately. He had a wild look about him, as if he hadn’t slept in days.

  ‘He got away,’ Max said. ‘He’s heading for an airstrip.’

  ‘Where?’ Rupert pleaded.

  ‘I know,’ Lucy said. ‘I can take you there.’

  Rupert jumped back into the driver’s seat. ‘Quick, get in!’ he yelled out the window.

  ‘I’m coming too,’ George said, making a run for the sedan. ‘I’ll call the police on the way.’

  ‘No police,’ Lucy said. ‘He has everyone in his back pocket, right up to the commissioner.’

  ‘Uncle Rupert, how did you know?’ Kensy cried out, but the man was already gone.

  Song ran towards the children. ‘Are you all right? He didn’t hurt you, did he?’

  ‘We’re fine,’ Max said. ‘We’re all fine.’

  Song looked up and caught sight of Hector and Marisol standing by the shed door, instantly recognising them from the handful of occasions they had attended family events at Alexandria. He rushed towards them. ‘Are my eyes deceiving me?’

  ‘Dear Song.’ Marisol kissed the man on both cheeks and hugged him fiercely.

  ‘Excuse me, I have a question,’ Curtis said, putting up his hand. Everyone turned to look at the boy. ‘Who are you all?’

  Max grinned at his sister. ‘That’s probably a story for another time.’

  Curtis sighed. ‘No, you need to tell me – who are you really?’

  ‘Let’s just say, Curtis,’ Kensy said, throwing an arm around his shoulder, ‘that one day, when you least expect it, you might get a call and all your wildest dreams will come true.’

  ‘I still don’t understand,’ the boy said, shaking his head. ‘But I’m really glad you’re my friends, because you’re kind of scary – in a good way, I think.’ Curtis checked his watch. ‘Oh heck, is that the time? Do you think we could go home soon? Mum’s doing a bolognese for dinner and it’s my favourite.’

  ‘Home,’ Marisol said with tears in her eyes. She squeezed Hector’s hand and gazed at her grandchildren. ‘What a wonderful notion.’

  After a hearty breakfast, the furthest the twins and their grandparents had moved was from the kitchen to the couch in the family room, where Hector had promptly sat on the stray ninja star Kensy had forgotten about from their training the other day. Max had quickly snatched it away, mumbling something about not knowing where on earth that could have come from. Before Hector and Marisol had come downstairs, Song had gently reminded the children that their grandparents had no knowledge of Pharos and for now it had to stay that way.

  ‘Mum looks a lot like you,’ Kensy said to her grandmother. ‘You have the same nose and eyes.’

  Hector smiled. ‘Your mother is a great beauty, like your grandmother.’

  ‘And Anna is very clever, like her father,’ Marisol said, looking at her husband.

  Kensy grinned. ‘That’s just like us. Max is pretty and I’m smart.’

  ‘You don’t know what you’re talking about, Kens. I’m pretty and smart.’ Max rolled his eyes and his grandparents chuckled.

  Marisol patted her granddaughter’s hand. ‘I see you two have a wonderful rapport.’

  ‘Most of the time,’ Kensy said, squeezing the woman’s hand in return. She didn’t ever want to let it go.

  Max curled his legs up on the couch opposite his grandmother and sister. ‘I still can’t believe Dash Chalmers had you captive for twelve years. That’s the whole of our lives and a little bit more.’

  ‘When you spoke his name, I was in shock,’ Hector said, shaking his head. ‘We had been in discussions with his parents on a project that would have changed the world.’

  Marisol’s blue eyes hardened. ‘That man needs to be caught and brought to justice, and I hope with all my heart that his parents had no idea what he was up to.’

  ‘Don’t worry, Uncle Rupert seemed pretty determined,’ Max said, though he and Kensy were still completely in the dark as to why the man was there in the first place and whether or not he’d managed to capture Dash Chalmers.

  As for Nick, Song and the children had imprisoned the man in Hector and Marisol’s flat until Pharos could determine what they would do with him. They could afford to take their time as he had enough supplies to survive for months. All things considered, the twins felt as if their mission was like a giant jigsaw puzzle that was still missing several important pieces.

  ‘Would anyone care for a piece of cake?’ Song asked.

  ‘Yes, please,’ a voice called from the front hall.

  ‘Fitz!’ Kensy and Max charged down the short flight of steps to the
lounge room. ‘We did it! We found them!’ the said, jumping about excitedly.

  Fitz stepped back and grinned. ‘Amazing job, kids.’

  Kensy peered over his shoulder, a worried look on her face. ‘But …’

  ‘I did it too, Kens,’ Fitz said as the door pushed open and Anna and Edward Grey walked inside.

  ‘Mum! Dad!’ the children exclaimed, rushing into their parents’ embrace.

  ‘You two are a sight for sore eyes,’ Ed said, smiling from ear to ear. ‘We’re so proud of you both.’

  ‘I can’t believe you found them,’ Anna said, her eyes brimming with tears. She looked up and gasped. ‘Maman, Papa.’ She clasped her hands to her mouth and ran to her parents.

  Amid the weeping and hugging, there was simply nothing to say – for the moment. Hector and Marisol greeted their son-in-law, but when it came to Fitz, Marisol faltered.

  ‘Fitzgerald,’ she said, ‘is that really you?’

  ‘He’s let himself go, hasn’t he?’ Ed teased, and the twins giggled.

  ‘My dearest Marisol, I can assure you, I will be back to my old self in no time flat,’ Fitz said. He cast a worried glance at the butler. ‘Won’t I, Song?’

  ‘Of course, sir.’ Song picked up the small bottle of solvent from the kitchen bench and waved it about a little too enthusiastically. It slipped from his grasp and flew into the air. Max was under it like a shot. He dived and caught it millimetres from the floor.

  ‘Great job, Max!’ Ed cheered.

  Max stood up and passed the bottle to Fitz.

  ‘Thanks, mate,’ the man said, breathing a sigh of relief. ‘You know you might just make a champion slips fielder yet.’

  ‘Has anyone told my mother the good news?’ Ed asked.

  Max shook his head, a twinkle in his eye. ‘We were waiting for you,’ he said. Then, lowering his voice, added, ‘Is this the end of our time with Pharos?’

  ‘On the contrary, I suspect you and your sister are only just getting started,’ Ed replied with a wink.

  Max grinned and Kensy beamed at her parents. ‘We’ve got so much to tell you,’ she gushed.

  ‘It’s going to take days – no, weeks – to catch you up on everything,’ Max said, his eyes widening. ‘Maybe even months.’

  Anna laughed. ‘Take as long as you need, my darlings. We’ve got all the time in the world.’

  Originally a monoalphabetic cipher used for the Hebrew alphabet, the Atbash cipher is one of the earliest and simplest substitution ciphers to have been devised. The cipher simply reverses the plaintext alphabet to create a ciphertext alphabet. For example, the first letter of the alphabet, A, is encrypted to the last letter of the alphabet, Z. B becomes Y, C becomes X and so forth.

  While not considered a strong cipher, it still provides an easy way to conceal messages and can be made more difficult by adding ten digits at the end along with commonly used punctuation.

  Ready to do some spy work of your own? Using the key on the previous page, try your hand at decoding the chapter headings in this book. Good luck!

  Jacqueline Harvey taught for many years in girls’ boarding schools. She is the author of the bestselling Alice-Miranda series and the Clementine Rose series, and was awarded Honour Book in the 2006 Australian CBC Awards for her picture book The Sound of the Sea. She now writes full-time and is working on more Alice-Miranda, Clementine Rose, and Kensy and Max adventures.

  jacquelineharvey.com.au

  Books by Jacqueline Harvey

  Kensy and Max: Breaking News

  Kensy and Max: Disappearing Act

  Kensy and Max: Undercover

  Alice-Miranda at School

  Alice-Miranda on Holiday

  Alice-Miranda Takes the Lead

  Alice-Miranda at Sea

  Alice-Miranda in New York

  Alice-Miranda Shows the Way

  Alice-Miranda in Paris

  Alice-Miranda Shines Bright

  Alice-Miranda in Japan

  Alice-Miranda at Camp

  Alice-Miranda at the Palace

  Alice-Miranda in the Alps

  Alice-Miranda to the Rescue

  Alice-Miranda in China

  Alice-Miranda Holds the Key

  Alice-Miranda in Hollywood

  Alice-Miranda in Scotland

  Clementine Rose and the Surprise Visitor

  Clementine Rose and the Pet Day Disaster

  Clementine Rose and the Perfect Present

  Clementine Rose and the Farm Fiasco

  Clementine Rose and the Seaside Escape

  Clementine Rose and the Treasure Box

  Clementine Rose and the Famous Friend

  Clementine Rose and the Ballet Break-In

  Clementine Rose and the Movie Magic

  Clementine Rose and the Birthday Emergency

  Clementine Rose and the Special Promise

  Clementine Rose and the Paris Puzzle

  Clementine Rose and the Wedding Wobbles

  Clementine Rose and the Bake-Off Dilemma

  Jacqueline Harvey is a passionate educator who enjoys sharing her love of reading and writing with children and adults alike. She is an ambassador for Dymocks Children’s Charities and Room to Read. Find out more at gofundraise.com.au and roomtoread.org.

  A Random House book

  Published by Penguin Random House Australia Pty Ltd

  Level 3, 100 Pacific Highway, North Sydney NSW 2060

  penguin.com.au

  First published by Random House Australia in 2019

  Copyright © Jacqueline Harvey 2019

  The moral right of the author has been asserted.

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, published, performed in public or communicated to the public in any form or by any means without prior written permission from Penguin Random House Australia Pty Ltd or its authorised licensees.

  Addresses for the Penguin Random House group of companies can be found at global.penguinrandomhouse.com/offices.

  ISBN 9780143791911

  Cover illustration and maps by J.Yi

  Cover design by Christabella Designs © Penguin Random House Australia Pty Ltd

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