The very next morning, Monday morning, Eddy and Reagan were back to the same old routine. She was delaying going downstairs and Eddy was doing his very best to help her out on that front.
She was especially late this morning but she said that was okay. Her daddy was going away on a big business trip and she was allowed to leave for school late so she could kiss him goodbye. Mummy had said so.
‘Wh-where’s he going?’
‘To China. On a really big plane that takes hundreds of people.’
‘China.’ Eddy had never heard of a place called China before but it sounded really good to say it.
‘Yep. And he says he gets a special seat. His seat can turn into a bed.’
‘Yeah?’
‘Yep.’
After a brief silence (and there were no awkward silences between Eddy and Reagan any more), Eddy said what was on his mind.
‘Th-there was a fl-flower in my room y-yesterday.’
‘Cool, can I see it?’
‘Grandma D-daisy came and t-took it away.’
‘Oh . . . what sort of flower was it?’
‘It was p-pink. It was growing on m-my tree.’
‘The one growing in your room?’
‘Yep. Grandma Daisy, sh-she picked it.’
‘Well then, she must’ve thought it was really pretty. She’s probably got it in a vase downstairs.’
Eddy didn’t really think so. Monday was also rubbish collection day and he had good reason to believe his blossom would be making that particular trip today. No fancy aeroplane ride to China for his flower.
‘So, do you want to do jam sandwiches again soon?’
‘Yep.’ Eddy felt the first touch of warmth inside since Grandma Daisy’s decapitation of Mr Tree yesterday. Reagan always knew just what to say to make him feel better.
And she was just about to say something else too when her attention was grabbed by something beyond Eddy’s view.
‘Go up to your front window . . . quick!’
‘Wh-why?’
‘Just do it . . . trust me.’
Eddy trusted Reagan more than anyone else in the whole wide world, so he did exactly as he was told. Not that he particularly appreciated what he saw when he got there. It was Bert – no, Nathan. Reagan had said his name was Nathan. She’d also told him Nathan’s little brother’s name was Dion, not Ernie.
And no hangers-on either. Not even Dion this time. Nathan must’ve caught the movement out of his eye (the one that wasn’t still heavily bruised from his last encounter in this part of the street) because he looked up just as Eddy settled in against the window. For a second, Eddy thought that was all it was going to come to. Just a nasty stare, no ‘Pissy Pants’, no ‘kissy, pissy girlfriend’ jokes either. But in the end, it was all a little too much to ask for. As Nathan came right beneath Eddy’s front window he turned his head up and mouthed a word that, to Eddy at least, made no sense. Then he put out his right hand and stuck his middle finger out, all the while keeping a very close eye on Reagan’s front steps.
And then . . .
BANG!
Eddy almost jumped out of his skin but that was nothing compared to what Nathan did. He hit the ground like his legs had fallen off.
BANG! BANG!
Now Nathan was crawling like a madman along the ground until he disappeared around the back of a parked car. Next thing, his head poked around behind the rear of the car and then he was off like a shot, sprinting down the street as if a T-rex was right on his tail. Arms all waving and legs struggling to keep up.
It was only then that Eddy heard Reagan’s howls of laughter. She was really going at it too. When he got over to the side window he saw that she was physically doubled over as the cramps kicked in.
‘Wh-what did y-you do?’
Reagan tried to tell him but she couldn’t. Every time she tried to make the noise she’d just lose it again and fall back into another fit of hilarity. In the end, she gave up altogether and decided to show him instead. Grabbing two hefty books, one in each hand, she slapped them together as hard as she could.
BANG!
Now Eddy got it . . . and he got the laughing bug too.
Mr Crowe may not have had a gun . . . but his daughter was just as dangerous.