Olivia pushed past Billy at the window to have a look, but everyone else in the room stood still, waiting. Jerry wondered what the police were doing at his house; he’d never done anything wrong. Unless it was something to do with Madeleine. Adiblo hid himself behind the lounge door, hoping everyone would forget about him. Mrs Mumberson fiddled nervously with her apron, but Mr Mumberson was as stiff as a statue, except when his eyes flickered as Billy ran to the front door to open it.
The tall policeman towered over Billy, and his muscles bulged through his jacket. The other man, who was almost hidden behind him, wore a uniform that looked as though it belonged to someone two sizes bigger. In spite of their moustaches and their dark glasses and their peaked policemen’s caps, both of them looked familiar. Too familiar.
Jerry came to the door. ‘What’s up, officers?’
The thin man poked his head around the big man, who stood like a large rock in the doorway, and said, ‘We have reason to believe a Mr Mumberson is staying here.’
‘I’m Jerry Mumberson, and I live here.’
‘You’re not the man we’re looking for. He’s an older man, rather scruffy looking.’
Billy pulled at his father’s sleeve, trying to get his attention. ‘Dad.’ Jerry ignored him.
The thin policeman added, ‘We need to take him to the station to question him about some missing diamonds. Possibly stolen.’
Mr Mumberson came to life. He marched out into the hall and pushed past Jerry at the front door. ‘That’s right. My diamonds. Which have been stolen off me! I’m happy to come along and give you the information.’
Billy said, ‘Grandad! I don’t think they...’ but his grandfather bulldozed his way past the large policeman and headed towards the police car. The large policeman followed him, and opened the door for him to get in.
‘Come back here, Mumberson!’ shouted his wife, banging on the bay window. He ignored her. She rushed out into the hall. ‘Jerry, make him come back.’
Stevedore, who’d come out to see what was going on, began to bark at anyone who moved,, especially Mr Adiblo, who’d snuck out from behind the lounge door and was trying to see if there was a back entrance he could escape through.
‘Ah, Mr Adiblo,’ said the thin policeman, spying the little man. ‘How convenient. We’d like you to come as well, to help us with our enquiries.’
‘Me?’ said the jeweller, shaking almost uncontrollably.
The policeman nodded. ‘We believe you may be able to confirm Mr Mumberson’s story.’
Before Mr Adiblo could say another word the large policeman, who’d come back to the front door, pushed past Jerry, walked into the hall and grabbed Adiblo firmly. ‘Come on, you.’ He hauled him down the steps - Adiblo’s feet barely touching the ground - and threw him into the car.
‘Dad!’ said Billy, ‘They’re not real policemen.’
‘Don’t be stupid, Billy.’
‘Mr Mumberson,’ said Olivia, ‘they’re...’
‘Give it a break, Olivia.’ Jerry turned to his mother. ‘I’m going along with Dad. Can’t leave him to deal with this on his own. He’s bound to muck it up somehow.’ He told the skinny policeman, ‘I’m coming too.’
The policeman gave a warped grin and said, ‘As you wish, Mr Mumberson.’ The large policeman, who’d come back for a third time, took Jerry by the arm and thrust him headfirst into the car. ‘Watch out!’ yelled Jerry.
Within seconds they drove off.
Mrs Mumberson was aghast. ‘Billy, what on earth’s going on? Are they arresting them all?’
‘Grandma, they’re not policemen. They’re the ones who tried to take blood off me at the Factory yesterday. We have to follow them. We’ll go in Dad’s car.’
‘I haven’t driven for twenty years, Billy. I don’t know if I can remember how.’
‘Come on, Mrs Mumberson,’ said Olivia, pulling her by the arm.
Mrs Mumberson insisted on putting her coat on. ‘You need coats too!’ she said to the children.
‘Haven’t got time, Grandma!’ said Billy. He grabbed the spare car key hanging up in the kitchen. ‘We’ll lose them if we don’t hurry.’ They raced out of the house, banging the front door behind them, and scrambled into the car. Mrs Mumberson got in the driver’s seat. ‘It’s automatic,’ she groaned. ‘I don’t know how to drive an automatic.’
‘I’ll show you,’ said Billy.
‘It’s easy, Mrs Mumberson,’ said Olivia, who’d got into the back with Stevedore. She leaned over to make sure Billy got things right.
‘Get your seat belt on,’ he said to her, and then to his grandmother, ‘Key goes in here. Start it up. Foot on the brake. Gear into reverse.’ His grandmother juddered out of the driveway, and swung around so that she was facing downhill, the way the police car had gone.
‘You drive, Mrs Mumberson,’ said Olivia, ‘I’ll watch where they’re going.’
‘Yes, dear.’ Near the end of the street they could see the police car turning towards the town centre.
Olivia leaned forward between Billy and his grandmother. ‘They’re not going to the police station!’ Stevedore gave a loud woof of agreement that made them all jump.
‘Of course they aren’t,’ said Billy. ‘They’re going to the Factory!’ He gave his grandmother precise instructions for a back street shortcut to the Factory. She gripped the wheel as though it might escape, but managed to do what Billy said.
‘Do you think it’s a good idea to go back to the Factory, Billy?’ asked Olivia. Billy thought she sounded a tad anxious.
‘I don’t think we have a choice.’
‘What do you mean, Olivia?’ asked Mrs Mumberson.
Olivia, who still hadn’t put her seatbelt on, shouted, ‘Hurry!’ in Mrs Mumberson’s ear, and didn’t answer her question.
‘I’m going as fast as I can!’ Nevertheless, she gave the accelerator a push and the car shot forward. ‘That’s more like it!’
On the main road down below them, they could see the police car driving up Habitation Hill past the cable car tracks, scattering skateboarders in every direction.
By using Billy’s shortcut they reached the Factory gates almost at the same time as the police car. ‘Don’t get too close, Grandma,’ said Billy. ‘We don’t want them to see us.’
The police car had stopped at the main entrance. The gates began to open of their own accord, without anyone using an access card. And as the car went through the opening, an extraordinary thing happened. The car changed colour from white to green, and all the police markings slid off and vanished. It was a perfectly ordinary Holden Commodore again.
‘There must have been a time limit on the spell,’ said Olivia. She seemed not at all surprised at what had happened. ‘That’ll be why they were in such a hurry.’ Billy and his grandmother were still staring open-mouthed, wondering if what they’d seen had actually happened.
‘Drive round the right side of the wall, Grandma,’ said Billy. ‘We need to see where they’re taking Granddad.’
‘And your Dad,’ said Olivia. Stevedore woofed loudly and enthusiastically, even though Jerry had called him a smelly mutt earlier on.
‘Is there another gate?’ asked Mrs Mumberson. ‘I can’t see one.’
‘We have to go through a special door, Grandma. But you’ll be too big to get through it.’
‘What on earth do you mean?’ said Mrs Mumberson. ‘I can’t let you go in there by yourselves. What am I going to do?’
‘You’re our getaway car,’ said Olivia. That didn’t make Mrs Mumberson any happier.
They reached the clump of oaks with their skirt of bushes. Mrs Mumberson parked as near as she could without getting in the way of passing traffic. Olivia gave her the cellphone. ‘You’ll need this in case we have to contact you.’
Mrs Mumberson sighed. ‘I hope I can remember what you taught me.’
Billy and Olivia leapt out of the car and scrambled through the bushes again. They heard Mrs Mumberson shout, ‘Be careful, children!’ They pushed at the door...and pushed again. It wouldn’t open. ‘What’s happened?’ said Olivia.
‘They must have remembered it was here,’ said Billy. ‘Now what?’ He bashed at the door with his feet, hoping that it might suddenly move. It didn’t. ‘We’ll have to climb over the wall, then,’ he said. ‘We’ll have to risk being seen.’
Olivia was up and away in a moment, pushing back through the bushes. ‘Mrs Mumberson!’ she shouted, ‘can you move the car right up against the wall? We’re going to climb over.’ Mrs Mumberson protested, but the children persuaded her it was the only way they were going to get in. Billy wasn’t too sure his father would appreciate him climbing on the car, but there were more important things at stake here.
Mrs Mumberson backed the car up then drove forward carefully, hoping she wouldn’t scratch Jerry’s shiny Fiesta. She parked as close as she could to the wall. Stevedore leapt out and had to be told to get back in.
‘I don’t know why I’m letting you do this,’ said Mrs Mumberson. ‘I hope it’s not going to end in disaster.’ She helped the children up onto the car because Olivia kept sliding off when she tried on her own.
Once the children were balanced on the top of the car, there was nothing more Mrs Mumberson could do except watch and hope they didn’t fall and break something. Stevedore stood on the car seat with his head out the window panting furiously.
Billy leant forward until he could hold onto the top of the wall, which, though it was made of bricks, was rounded and mostly smooth. He put one leg over. He wasn’t quite sure how he was going to manage from there. It was two or three metres to the ground on the other side. His heart was beating fast, and he felt sick in his stomach. ‘Hurry up, Billy!’ shouted Olivia. He took a deep breath, spread himself out along the wall, held on tight and slid his other leg over. He closed his eyes and hoped he wouldn’t break a leg. Or both legs.
He let go, slithering down the wall - grazing his knees in the process - and tumbled into a heap at the bottom. When he stood up, he seemed to be intact, though his rear end was sore.
Olivia was already on the top of the wall, ready to slide down. She was shorter than Billy and before he could worry that she might hurt herself, she was on the ground - legs and arms and body all mixed up. Two seconds later she was up and running towards the building.
This time they went straight round the front, because it seemed unlikely Lavitch was guarding the door if he was also trying to keep an eye on three people at once; Slaggard didn’t look as though he’d stop a feather blowing away.
It was just as well they didn’t go straight through the revolving doors. As they arrived a procession came down the stairs inside. At its head was Venska. Behind her were Lavitch and Slaggard, no longer in the police uniforms. They were leading both the Mumbersons and Adiblo by a long cord attached to more cords wrapped around the trunk and arms of the three men. ‘They’re prisoners!’ whispered Billy. Behind them came several of the Which Sisters in their suits, diamonds sparkling from earrings, pendants and brooches in the late afternoon sun shining through the low windows.
Venska led everyone towards a corridor off to the left of the stairs. ‘We need to follow them,’ said Olivia, ready to spring through the revolving doors.
But before she could do so, a voice spoke behind them, making them jump. A woman was standing there, a woman they recognised. It was Ligula, the Sister who’d shouted at Venska. Her earrings jangled in the breeze.
Another one of the Sisters stood beside her, a wand ready in her hand.