by Pam Harvey
Sean frowned. ‘Remember—you promised.’ He went to his room and shut the door.
Hannah lay awake listening to the night sounds, still wondering what she’d said or done to make Gabby so standoffish, but try as she might there was nothing that immediately came to mind. Maybe someone else has done something to upset her and it’s got nothing to do with me, she thought, feeling a little better.
She went to sleep thinking about the UFOSITE caravan and the slightly creepy couple they’d met.
In the morning, Hannah woke feeling like she hadn’t slept much at all. She lay in bed for ages until a tap at her door made her sit up.
‘Hannah, can you have a look at this thing now?’
Hannah followed Sean into his room. He stood proudly with his arms folded staring at his desk.
‘Well?’ Hannah asked, slightly impatiently. Sometime during the night she’d made up her mind that she would get to the bottom of Gabby’s behaviour and find out once and for all what was going on. She didn’t have time for Sean’s problems.
‘On the desk there,’ Sean said, indicating with his head. Hannah walked over and picked up the tiny metal object. She turned it over gently in her hands, frowning.
‘What do you think?’ Sean asked, expectantly. Hannah was very knowledgeable about gadgets and things. If anyone knew what it was, she would.
Hannah shrugged. ‘Come with me.’
Sean followed her into her bedroom. From beneath her bed Hannah pulled out a large wooden box full of gadgets, tools, scientific equipment and other bits and pieces. She rummaged through various broken watches, small jars, keys, transistor radios, walkie talkies and other items until she found what she was looking for.
‘Okay, let’s take a closer look,’ she said, holding up a large magnifying glass. Sean followed her to the window and watched as Hannah inspected the silver gadget. ‘Interesting,’ she said.
‘What?’
‘Where did you say you found this?’ she asked.
‘Up at the old rifle range.’
‘Well, I don’t think it’s got anything to do with guns,’ Hannah muttered. ‘Sean, can you find that little screwdriver set for me? It’s in a small plastic box. The one with all the different colours.’ Sean knew the box she meant; he’d used it often enough without her knowing.
Hannah selected the smallest screwdriver; its point was almost as narrow as the tip of a sharpened pencil.
‘What are you doing, Han?’
‘It looks like there are three tiny pads here. They actually press in,’ she added, gently pushing the end of the screwdriver against them. After exerting pressure on each of the three tiny square buttons, she put the screwdriver down and tried to pull the canister open. It didn’t budge. ‘Weird,’ she muttered. She tried again. Same result.
‘I guess we could smash it open,’ Sean suggested. He’d already thought about putting it on the chopping block outside and thumping it with the flat end of his father’s axe.
‘And probably destroy whatever is inside it? No way, Sean. That’s a last-resort solution. But I tell you who might know.’
‘Byron Watts?’
Hannah nodded. ‘Let’s grab some breakfast then go and ask. Maybe he’ll be back by now.’ Sean helped Hannah pack her things away and together they walked into the kitchen.
Hannah always took a long time over breakfast and that day was no exception. In a way, she was glad to put off confronting Gabby. Finally, they left the house, got on their bikes and rode to Byron’s. The house was still silent, its windows dark. Hannah hesitated but Sean put his bike down and made his way to the front porch.
There was an empty feel about the place that made Hannah shiver. ‘I get the feeling that there’s still no one here,’ she said, trying to peer through a window. She knocked on the door.
‘Let’s try the back,’ Sean suggested.
They stepped around overgrown weeds, broken pots, rotting wood and numerous other items of rubbish. Hannah pulled open the rotting fly-wire screen door and knocked on the back door.
‘It’s unlocked,’ said Sean, watching the door move under the force of Hannah’s curled hand. They crept into the house.
‘Hello? Is anyone home?’ Hannah felt for a light switch. ‘Byron? Are you here?’
They were standing in the kitchen. A bowl of half-finished cereal was on the table along with a newspaper open to an article on UFOs. Hannah checked its date.
‘Friday’s paper,’ she muttered.
‘Check this out,’ Sean said, opening a huge scrapbook. It was full of pasted-in newspaper and magazine articles—all about UFOs.
‘The Belgium Triangle,’ Hannah read. ‘Two police officers were on patrol when they saw what appeared to be a large triangular platform with three powerful searchlights beaming down onto the ground. They also noticed a red light in the middle of the triangle. The large object flew directly over their heads emitting a low, soft humming sound. It then moved towards a dam and hovered over it for about 45 minutes.’ Hannah read on, silently.
‘What happened next?’ Sean asked, trying to think of any plane he knew that would look like a triangle from underneath.
‘Oh, wow,’ Hannah said, still reading.
‘Hannah, what?’
‘It says here that there were so many witnesses and phone calls that the air force scrambled two fighters to check it out.’
‘Did they shoot it down?’
‘Hang on.’ Hannah continued reading the article. ‘When the fighters attempted to lock it onto their radars, the UFO immediately reacted, changing shape,’ she read.
‘Changing shape?’ Sean leaned over Hannah’s shoulder.
‘It increased its speed to over 1000 kilometres per hour and took evasive action. It accelerated from 280 kilometres per hour to 1800 kilometres per hour in only a few seconds. Experts say that humans couldn’t survive that kind of force.’ Hannah opened the scrapbook to another page.
‘And that book is full of different stories like that?’
‘Stories, sightings, reports. I reckon Byron has got every story ever published about UFOs in here,’ Hannah said. She closed the book and picked up the cereal bowl, sniffing its contents. ‘Doesn’t smell off,’ she mumbled, putting it back down again.
‘Byron’s just been abducted by aliens,’ Sean laughed. ‘Again!’ Hannah frowned and walked over to the kitchen bench. It was covered in unwashed dishes. ‘Han, I was joking.’
‘I know you were,’ she said.
‘So where do you think he’s gone?’
‘You know what? I’ve got a feeling those UFOSITE people might know. How do you fancy another trip out to that caravan?’
‘Why? The people there said they were going to move because now we know their secret place.’
‘Yeah, well that’ll be interesting to check out also—to see if they have moved. Come on.’ Hannah pushed open the screen door.
‘Are we going to ride all the way there?’ Sean asked, following his sister outside.
‘Nope, we’re going to get E.D. to take us on the four-wheeler.’
‘Cool,’ Sean cried, grabbing his bike.
‘And after that I’ll go and talk to Gabby,’ Hannah muttered to herself.
‘He’ll be in the garage for sure,’ Sean said, dumping his bike on the De Lugios’ front lawn and racing towards the garage where E.D. and his brothers worked on their motorbikes. Sunlight beamed in through the opening and for a moment Sean couldn’t see anyone inside.
‘Hey, Sean!’ E.D. called. Hannah was just in time to see Gabby disentangle herself from E.D.’s arms, wiping her eyes with a tissue.
‘Gabby?’
‘Sorry, I was just leaving,’ she muttered, her head down.
‘No, wait up, Gab. We need to talk.’ Hannah ran after her.
‘I’m sorry, Hannah. I can’t at the moment.’ Gabby half ran up the driveway and turned right.
‘Wait, where are you going?’ But Gabby didn’t reply.
‘Leave her be
,’ E.D. said, coming up alongside Hannah.
‘What is going on?’ Hannah shrieked, anger boiling inside her. ‘Why doesn’t anyone want to tell me what’s happening?’
‘Hey, I don’t know myself. But I’m sure it’s got nothing to do with you, or me—or any of us for that matter. I think it’s something big.’
‘Too right it’s something big.’ Hannah was breathing hard. She looked out onto the road but Gabby had already disappeared out of sight.
‘Anyway, what brings you guys here?’ E.D. said, turning around and heading back towards the garage.
‘Sean can explain,’ Hannah snapped, heading over to her bike. Maybe she could catch up to Gabby. Or maybe she’d go the opposite way.
‘Looks like it’s just you and me again,’ E.D. said as the two of them watched Hannah storm out of the yard.
CHAPTER 9
Tuesday
‘Girls,’ sighed Sean, flopping down onto a chair to watch E.D. and his brothers. ‘I just don’t get them. A moment ago Hannah was all fired up to find out more about Byron and that little silver thing I found. Now she’s raced off in a foul mood and won’t want to talk to me for the rest of the day.’
‘Ha, welcome to my world,’ Tony laughed, wiping his brow with the back of his hand. Sean settled back to watch the brothers at work. He enjoyed the smell of the room, the radio playing in the background and the friendly banter as they went about their business with the machinery and engines. But it looked like E.D. was more interested in working on his motorbike than he was in trying to find Byron.
‘Oh, well,’ Sean said, giving up. ‘I’m going to head off now.’
‘Yeah, no worries, Sean. Sorry, mate. I’ve just got to finish this bike for Tony before he leaves later this morning. I promised him I’d fix it ages ago.’
‘It’s cool, E.D. I’ll ring you if I find out where Byron is.’
‘Yeah, or if you find out anything more about that little gizmo gadget as well.’
‘I think I’ll go to Angus’, Sean said. ‘Hannah’s in a foul mood, Gabby’s crying, and you’re busy.’
‘Righto, mate. Gabby said that Ling was at her house for the holidays. Maybe you should ask her—she’s one smart dude.’ E.D. gave Sean a slap on the back and turned back to the bike he was working on.
As Sean was pedalling back down the street he realised that Angus would probably still be at the race track with his father. He slowed to a stop.
‘Maybe I should ask Ling. Anyway, Hannah might have gone to Gabby’s,’ he muttered, swinging the bike around. Ten minutes later Sean was standing on the doorstep of Gabby’s imposing mansion. When he pushed the door bell, a chime echoed deep within the house. A few seconds later Sean could hear footsteps approaching.
‘Hello?’
‘Hi, Mrs Hunter. Is Ling in?’ Sean winced. The rhyme sounded so dumb but it had just come out that way.
‘Hello, Sean. Yes, Ling’s in—and so is Gabby. Come and see them.’ Mrs Hunter smiled. ‘Excuse all the mess.’ Sean followed Gabby’s mum down the hallway. It was cluttered with boxes, all neatly labelled. ‘Ling, you’ve got a visitor.’ Mrs Hunter held a door open and Sean went in.
‘Hi, Ling,’ Sean said, grinning. Mrs Hunter winked at Gabby and quietly left the room.
‘Sean! Haven’t seen you for ages.’ Ling came over and gave Sean a hug. He blushed. ‘What are you up to?’
‘Nothing much. Just looking for Hannah.’ Sean looked at Gabby. ‘Are you alright?’
‘I’m fine.’ Gabby smiled briefly.
‘Oh, okay. That’s good. Can I show you something?’ Sean dug deep into his pocket and pulled out the metal cylinder. Gabby leaned back in her chair, her eyes closed. ‘I hope I’m not interrupting or anything.’
‘No, Sean, it’s fine,’ Gabby said, yawning. ‘We were just watching a DVD. It’s a stupid movie anyway, don’t you think, Ling?’
‘I’ve seen it four times already,’ Ling said.
‘Four?’ Gabby cried, opening her eyes and sitting up. ‘You said you’d only seen it once and even then you’d missed the finish.’ Gabby said something in a low voice and fell back into her chair. Ling gave Sean a knowing nod and held out her hand.
‘Hannah got a magnifying glass out and she found these tiny little buttons on it. She pressed them but nothing happened. And E.D. doesn’t know what it is. You might be able to work it out. E.D. said you were one smart dude.’
‘E.D. said that?’ Ling said, laughing. Sean noticed that Gabby was suddenly sitting up again.
‘Did he say anything about me?’ she asked, looking intently at Sean.
‘Um, well, he did say once that you were the hottest girl in the whole of Teasdale.’
‘He did, did he? Anything else?’ Sean could feel himself being backed into a corner, as Gabby kept up her stare.
‘No, not really.’
‘Are you sure? Come on, you guys are always having good chats, aren’t you?’ Sean liked the idea of being one of the boys and having Gabby hanging off every word he was saying. He watched as she reached for a large glass jar full of all kinds of different chocolate bars and lollies. ‘Do you want to put your hand in here and take whatever you can hold?’ Sean thought it was great to see Gabby smiling again.
‘Sure,’ he said, moving towards Gabby.
‘So, did E.D. say anything else?’ Gabby held the jar against her chest.
‘Well, he did say that he thought he wouldn’t stand a chance with you unless he made more of an effort with the way he dressed, and his hair and stuff. And cut down the amount of time he spends with his brothers and his motorbikes.’
‘His hair?’ Gabby squealed, clapping her hands. ‘What did he say about his hair?’
‘He said it probably needed cutting…’
‘I’ve done it!’ Ling cried.
‘Oh, wow, Ling,’ Sean cried, staring at the capsule resting on Ling’s hand. It had opened up and was now double its length. Ling was studying it closely.
‘Gab, have you got a magnifying glass somewhere?’
‘I love his hair just the way it is,’ Gabby said, staring out the window.
‘Gab!’
‘What?’
‘A magnifying glass. Have you got one?’
‘What on earth do you want a magnifying glass for?’ Ling rolled her eyes.
‘Oh, sorry. I think Dad’s got one in his study,’ Gabby said, getting up. ‘Here, Sean, help yourself to the jar,’ she added, thrusting it at Sean as she went out the door.
‘I think you’ve cheered her up a bit, Sean,’ Ling whispered. ‘I’m glad you came.’
‘Oh, well actually—’ Sean paused as Gabby came back into the room carrying a small magnifying glass.
‘Dad uses it for his stamps,’ she said, passing it to Ling.
‘Thanks, Gab.’ She studied the capsule for a moment. ‘Yes, look,’ she said, offering Sean the magnifying glass. ‘I thought I could make out some writing. Can you see the letters?’
‘UFOSITE,’ Sean whispered. ‘So maybe this is what those people up at the caravan are looking for.’
‘It must be a part of something else,’ Ling said, carefully pushing the protruding piece closed again. It shut with a tiny click.
‘How did you open it?’ For the first time Gabby was showing some interest in the canister.
‘I think I just got lucky in the way I pressed these tiny little buttons.’ Ling passed the canister back to Sean. ‘You said that Hannah tried them, too?’
‘Yes,’ Sean replied.
‘Well, why don’t we go back to where you found it and see what else we can find? Gab has to go swimming so it’ll give me something to do. You don’t mind, do you, Gab?’
‘Why should I mind?’ Gabby turned to look out of the window as Ling and Sean left the room.
Sean and Ling walked across the open paddocks adjacent to the rifle range. Sean showed Ling where he’d found the silver object and they looked around for a while. ‘There’s nothing else here,’ said
Ling finally. ‘Let’s look over there.’ She pointed towards an old wooden dug-out.
‘Okay.’
‘So this is where they fired guns from?’ Ling asked, as they stepped into its gloomy interior. The place was in a state of ruin. She was surprised that there weren’t signs up warning people about the dangers of unstable rocks or loose beams.
‘Yep,’ Sean said, eagerly. ‘You stand here and fire at targets on the mound out there. They’d put targets at different heights.’
‘Well, it’s a big enough hill but you still wouldn’t want to be walking behind it,’ said Ling, gazing out the opening. She turned her attention back to her musty-smelling surroundings. It reminded Ling of similar sorts of dug-outs and trenches she’d seen in pictures and films about World War I.
‘I think they fly red flags to warn people.’
Ling made her way over to a small wooden door. It creaked and groaned when she opened it. Inside was a small table and a wooden chair. There was some food in plastic bags hanging from a large rusty nail. On the table was a notepad and pens and folders were scattered about. Ling took a quick look at the notepad. It had a dark blue cover, and was covered in swirly doodles.
‘It’s like someone’s living here,’ Ling said. She glanced about but there was nothing else in the room. ‘Sean. Come and look at this.’ There was no reply. ‘Sean?’ Ling ran back into the dug-out.
‘Over here,’ he hissed, signalling with his arm for Ling to keep low. Crouching, Ling made her way quietly to where Sean was perched on a wooden beam at the far end of the dug-out.
‘What?’ Ling whispered.
‘Over there.’ Sean was pointing to a copse of cypress trees. Ling could see a figure hiding behind one of the tree trunks.
‘What’s he doing?’ Ling asked, eyeing the man. She ducked her head as he peered around the tree, looking in their direction.
‘I can’t see him properly; he’s got the hood of his jacket up. This is a bit spooky, Sean. I think it’s time for us to go. Come on.’
They headed back to the far end of the dug-out on their hands and knees. A sudden thump caused them both to pause. A large rock had been thrown onto the corrugated iron roof. It fell to the ground only a few metres away from where Ling was.
