Lux nodded. ‘Hi.’
The office door opened and Obi strolled through. ‘Hey, guys.’ He dropped a stack of papers on to the dining room table. ‘I printed everything you asked for, Jack.’ He flopped into a vacant space on one of the sofas. ‘How was –?’ Obi spotted Lux and his jaw dropped.
Charlie sighed, leant over and closed it for him. ‘This is Obi. Obi, meet Lux.’
Lux smiled. ‘Hi.’
Obi just stared at her.
‘Lux is an expert on New York,’ Serene said. ‘She knows every street, every building layout. If you need help breaking in anywhere, she’s the one to ask.’
‘Impressive,’ Jack said.
‘My dad was a local historian. He had hundreds of books and plans of the city.’ Lux gazed out of the window a moment. ‘I memorised them all.’
‘So,’ Serene said, ‘tell me what’s going on.’
Lux looked back at her. ‘I’m not sure where to begin. It started a couple hours ago.’
‘What did?’
‘Everyone’s being set up. Kismet, Glitch . . . All those guys.’
‘What do you mean, “set up”?’ Serene said.
‘Well, Kismet was first. The FBI arrested him for hacking a children’s charity account and transferring ten thousand dollars to his own bank account.’
‘That can’t be right,’ Serene said. ‘Kismet would never do a thing like that. He’s a good kid.’
‘I know.’ Lux shook her head. ‘At first we couldn’t understand what was going on, but then Glitch was next.’
‘What about Glitch?’
‘He supposedly hacked an ATM in Times Square. It completely emptied itself on to the street before the cops spotted people fighting over the money and tried to stop it.’ Her eyes darted to the window as a police siren sounded in the distance. ‘His apartment was raided, but he managed to get out. So far he’s avoided the FBI.’
‘Tell him to come here,’ Serene said.
‘I think he’s OK for now,’ Lux said. ‘He’s gone to Harvey’s place. He’ll be safe there.’ She let out a breath and sat back. ‘Anyway, we don’t know what’s going on yet. Everyone’s on edge.’
‘We know what’s happening,’ Jack said. ‘We’ve been tracking this guy called Hector. That’s why we’re here – we’re trying to stop him.’
‘This is one person?’ Lux said, incredulous.
‘He’s created a program to hack anything he wants.’ Jack stood up and started to pace the room.
‘What are you thinking?’ Charlie said.
‘Hector’s now attacking hackers, right?’
‘Yeah, but why?’ Wren said.
Jack stopped pacing and turned to the group. ‘My guess is he’s eliminating all the local threats first – anyone that could potentially track him down and reveal where he’s hiding. He’ll start here in New York, then move out until he’s set up every hacker he finds.’
‘He’ll then be free to do whatever he wants,’ Obi said.
‘You’re right,’ Lux said. ‘That’s what I’d do if I had that kind of power.’
Obi’s cheeks flushed and he looked down at his feet.
‘It’s actually quite clever when you think about it,’ Serene said.
‘Nah,’ Slink said. ‘The guy’s an idiot, and when I get my hands on him, I’m going to kick him right in the bu–’
‘Slink,’ Charlie interrupted, frowning at him.
‘Bungalow,’ Wren said, laughing. ‘Kick him in the bungalow, Slink.’
They both giggled like three-year-olds.
‘Bungalow?’ Obi said, looking thoroughly confused. ‘That makes no sense.’
Serene glanced at them all in turn. ‘You need to lie low for a while.’
Charlie looked shocked. ‘Hide?’ she said, her voice raising an octave. ‘Urban Outlaws don’t run from anything.’
Jack cocked an eyebrow at her. ‘What are you on about? We’re always running.’
Charlie crossed her arms. ‘We don’t back down though.’
Serene said, ‘There are times in life when you have to.’
Charlie looked infuriated. ‘But we need to act. We have to find Hector now.’
‘Charlie’s right,’ Lux said. ‘From what you say, this is only likely to get worse.’
Serene’s mobile phone beeped. She looked at the display and groaned. ‘I can’t believe it.’
‘What’s wrong?’ Lux said.
‘I have to go. I’m so sorry.’
‘Go where?’ Wren said.
‘That mission I told you about.’ She hurried to the gadget room, walked over to a metal cabinet, opened it and pulled out a canvas bag. She strode back into the room as she checked the bag’s contents. ‘I shouldn’t be too long. A couple of days at the most.’
‘Do you need any help?’ Lux said.
Serene zipped the bag up. ‘I have to do this one alone.’ She hurried to the spiral staircase. ‘I’m so sorry I have to leave you, especially now. I’ll be back as quick as I can. There’s plenty of food in the cupboards.’ She looked at Jack. ‘I really am sorry. I have no choice.’
Jack nodded. ‘It’s OK. Thanks for everything.’
Serene half smiled at them all, then left.
Slink looked at Jack. ‘Great, now we know where Hector is, but we have no transport.’
‘Where do you need to go?’ Lux said. ‘If someone is setting up my friends, I want to help.’
‘Fifth Avenue,’ Jack said. ‘There’s an apartment building opposite Central Park, near 79th Street.’
Lux stood up. ‘I’ll call Drake.’
‘Who’s Drake?’
‘Another friend of mine. He’s our local transport expert, and when he hears what’s going on, I’m sure he’ll wanna help us.’
‘Thanks.’ Jack walked over to the dining table, spread the papers out and stared at them.
Obi had printed various plans, maps and pictures of the apartment building and surrounding area.
There had to be a way in there without being spotted, but Jack was struggling to find it.
The others quietly gathered around the table and helped.
A few minutes later, Lux joined them at the table. ‘Drake says he can take us. When you’re ready, I’ll text him, and he’ll be here in fifteen minutes.’
‘That’s brilliant,’ Jack said. ‘Thank you.’
Lux looked at the printouts. ‘Can I help?’
Jack pointed at a street view of the Hindleton Building. ‘I’m pretty sure Hector’s apartment will be on the top floor.’
‘How do you know that?’ Obi said.
Jack put the picture down. ‘The receptionist said the Del Sarto family were their most valued clients. That means they would have the finest apartment in the building. That’ll also mean they’ll have the best view over Central Park. The upper two storeys have balconies and there are four balconies per floor, which means two per apartment.’ Jack held up a zoomed-in image of the top floor and pointed. ‘Hector will be in one of those.’
‘Right,’ Charlie said. ‘But how are we going to break in?’
‘We can’t go through the front,’ Jack said. ‘The doorman knows our faces and he’ll probably warn his replacement when his shift finishes. Besides, even if we could get into the lobby again, the woman behind the desk has control of the inner door via her computer. There’s no way to just sneak past.’
‘If she controls it by a computer, can’t you hack it?’ Obi said.
‘No,’ Lux said. She looked at Jack. ‘Isolated security, right?’
Jack nodded.
‘So,’ Charlie said, straightening up, ‘the front way into the apartment is out of the question.’
‘Yep.’
‘What about the back?’ Lux pointed. ‘There’s an alleyway. There must also be a back way in.’
‘Yeah, I know.’ Jack held up the satellite image. ‘But they have isolated CCTV cameras.’
‘What about this?’ Slink slid over a plan of the sewers under the buil
ding.
‘No way through those,’ Lux said. ‘The nearest pipes big enough for a person run from Central Park to a manhole in that alley.’ She pointed. ‘It does branch off here, under the building, but it’s no good, too small.’
Obi huffed. ‘Are you sure we need to go right now, Jack? Can’t we wait? Take the time to plan something properly?’
Jack shook his head. ‘We have to do it tonight before Hector realises we’re on to him and disappears. And I need to go myself, in case we have to hack into Hector’s computers or something.’ He sat back and let out a defeated breath.
Everyone stared at the printouts for a long while.
Finally Slink said, ‘So, that only leaves the roof.’ He grinned. ‘I knew we’d have some fun here.’
‘No.’ Lux reached across the table and picked up another satellite view. ‘The gap between buildings is too wide – you couldn’t jump across.’
‘Bet I could if I had Charlie’s spring shoes.’ Slink took the sheet from Lux and examined it a moment. ‘What about this?’ he said, pointing.
Jack leant in for a closer look.
He was pointing at a wall that separated the alleyway from the yard and ran between the Hindleton and the neighbouring building.
‘What about it?’ Lux said.
‘I go up here,’ Slink traced his finger over the wall, ‘and along that wall.’ He stopped between the buildings. ‘I jump across to the apartment block.’ He indicated a drainpipe. ‘Up that and along the ledge and – bingo – I disable the cameras so that you can break in through the back door undetected.’ Slink tossed the sheet on to the table with a flourish.
Lux stared at him. ‘You can do that?’
Slink grinned. ‘Of course.’
‘That might just work,’ Jack said, a flood of renewed hope coursing through him.
‘It’s doable?’ Charlie said.
‘Yeah. If Slink can climb up there, we stand a chance.’ Jack rose from his chair. ‘We leave in thirty minutes.’
Before Jack had time to ask her, Lux was sending a text message to her friend Drake.
Slink slapped his hands together. ‘About time we had some fun.’
‘Fun always gets us into trouble,’ Obi said.
Slink beamed at him. ‘Exactly.’
• • •
Half an hour later, a yellow taxi turned into Pell Street.
Lux pointed. ‘Here he is.’
In the driver’s seat was a boy who looked only a year or so older than Jack and Charlie. He had shoulder-length mousy-brown hair, dark brown eyes and wore a bright orange T-shirt.
Jack frowned. ‘That’s Drake?’
Lux nodded.
‘He doesn’t look old enough to drive.’
Lux shrugged. The taxi pulled up in front of them and she opened the passenger door. ‘Hey, Drake.’
‘Hey.’
Lux gestured at the others as she climbed into the passenger seat. ‘This is Jack, Charlie, Slink and Wren.’
‘Nice to meet you,’ Charlie said.
Drake winked. ‘Nice accent.’
Charlie blushed and turned away.
Wren stared at Drake. ‘He’s pretty,’ she whispered.
Slink snorted as he opened the back door. ‘Boys can’t be pretty.’
Wren glowered at him. ‘Why not?’
Slink went to answer, but Charlie said, ‘I think he’s pretty too, Wren.’ Her eyes flitted to Jack and she climbed into the back seat.
Wren stuck her tongue out at Slink and clambered in after her.
Letting out an annoyed breath, Slink got in too.
Jack managed to squeeze in and close the door.
As Drake pulled away, Jack explained what the plan was, and ran it through several times, so that by the time they were driving through Central Park, everyone knew exactly what they had to do.
Jack thought it seemed eerie at night, with its trees casting strange shadows.
Drake stopped the taxi and turned in his seat to face them. ‘You want me to wait at the rendezvous point like you said?’
Jack nodded. ‘Thanks. We might need to get away fast.’
‘Go get this Hector idiot,’ Drake said. ‘He’s hurt a lot of our friends.’
‘I know,’ Jack said. ‘We’ll do what we can.’
‘What about me?’ Lux said. ‘What shall I do?’
‘Could you wait here and keep an eye out for the police?’
‘No problem.’
Jack, Charlie, Slink and Wren pulled up their hoods and bandanas and jumped out.
As he watched Drake drive off towards Fifth Avenue, a strange feeling of foreboding washed over him – he hated not having enough time to plan missions properly.
Mind you, it was as crazy as their usual plans, so it should work.
‘Everyone clear on what we have to do?’ he said to the others.
The three of them nodded.
Jack pressed a finger to his ear. ‘Obi?’
‘Commander Obi here.’
Jack looked at Charlie.
She smiled back at him. ‘Let it go,’ she whispered. ‘Where’s the harm in it?’
Jack let out a slow breath. ‘OK, Commander.’
Slink snorted. ‘Idiot.’
Jack shot him a look. ‘What visuals you got?’
‘I have four,’ Obi said. ‘Two cameras at the front of the buildings, a little way down the road. One of them is on a motorised mount and I can just make out the roof of the apartment when I tilt it up.’
‘Good,’ Jack said. ‘Any lights on inside?’
‘Yep. Both sets of top windows.’
‘What else have you got?’
There was a short pause then Obi said, ‘I’ve hacked into another two cameras. One is a block away and I just saw Drake heading to the meeting spot. The last camera is pointing down the alleyway at the back of the buildings. It’s dark, but I’ll be able to tell if anyone goes there too.’
‘Thanks. Keep us updated.’ Jack motioned for the others to follow him down a narrow path between the trees.
In the distance, he could make out the shimmer of a lake. The park looked so natural – like it had been here for ever and the modern buildings had just sprung up around it.
They reached Fifth Avenue. Jack stopped and turned around slowly, looking about to make sure they were alone. Satisfied they were, he nodded at Slink and they both knelt down.
By their feet was a large manhole cover, which they prised open with crowbars.
Jack pulled a torch from his pocket and shone it down the hole. A metal ladder disappeared below. He stood up and glanced at Wren. ‘Will you be OK on your own?’
She stared down and swallowed. ‘Yeah.’
‘There’ll be rats,’ Slink said. ‘American rats are vicious little bug–’
‘Slink.’ Charlie squeezed Wren’s arm. ‘You’ll be fine.’
Wren glanced uneasily at her. ‘I know.’ Though she didn’t sound convinced.
Charlie checked Wren’s backpack was zipped up and secure. ‘She’s good to go.’
Jack handed Wren a torch and she flicked it on, sat down and swung her legs into the hole. With another furtive glance up at the others, she dropped inside and descended the ladder.
Jack watched as Wren reached the bottom, shone the beam of her torch left and right, then disappeared.
He slid the manhole cover back into position and straightened up. ‘Let’s go.’
Gathering up the crowbars, they hopped over the wall, jogged across the road and circled the buildings, heading down the alleyway that ran along the back of them.
Charlie shone her torch on the ground ahead. After a moment she stopped. ‘Here it is,’ she whispered. By her feet was another manhole cover.
Jack and Slink knelt down, jammed their crowbars into the edge and loosened it.
Finally Jack straightened up. ‘Remember,’ he said to Charlie, ‘once you’ve helped us’ – he handed her a crowbar – ‘come back here and open it as planned
.’
Charlie nodded and slipped the crowbar into her backpack.
The three of them continued up the alley until they reached a gate that led to the yard at the back of the apartment building.
Jack held up his hand, stopping Charlie and Slink in their tracks. He pointed upwards. There was a camera covering the back door, the yard and its gate.
Charlie shrugged off her backpack, unzipped it and pulled out a pair of wire cutters. She handed them to Slink. ‘Remember to stay out of view of the cameras.’
‘Yeah, yeah, I’ve got this.’ Slink slipped the cutters into his pocket and looked up at the wall.
It was at least four metres tall, and narrow.
‘You sure you can make that?’ Jack said to him.
‘Easy . . . Obi, hit it.’
Dubstep blared through their headsets and Slink bounced lightly on the balls of his feet, psyching himself up as the music built in intensity. He hunched down. ‘Here it comes.’
The track erupted into an enormous cacophony of bass that vibrated the inside of Jack’s skull.
Slink leapt forward and ran directly at the corner where the back wall met the wall that divided the buildings, then sprang his right foot on to the wall to his right, then his left on the left-hand wall and repeated this until he was on the top.
Jack’s jaw dropped.
Slink smiled down at them both. ‘See?’ he whispered into his headset.
That had been, without doubt, one of the most impressive things Jack had seen Slink do. He shook himself. ‘Go.’
With his arms outstretched for balance, the boy hurried along the top of the wall until he was adjacent to the apartment.
He then crouched and sprang at the drainpipe, grabbing it and hauling himself up until he found a ledge above the camera.
He pulled the wire cutters from his pocket and cut the lead at the back of the camera. He then gave them a thumbs-up and made his way down again.
Charlie stepped up to the gate.
It had a padlock and chain. She removed a wallet of lock picks from her jacket pocket and, in less than a minute, the lock clicked.
As quietly as he could, Jack slipped the chain out of the gate and opened it.
After making sure no one was around, he waved Charlie through.
Slink dropped beside them and the three of them hurried across the yard to the back door.
Charlie examined the lock. ‘Like I thought,’ she whispered. ‘This would take too long to pick.’ She reached into her bag and pulled out a plastic tube with a plunger on one end and a cup on the other.
Lockdown Page 6
