The Big Apple Posse Trilogy Read online

  “Is it okay if we leave all of our stuff here?” asked Amanda.

  “Of course. Just leave it all in the bedroom. When you get back, Mr. Garvain will make dunch,” said Miss Virginia.

  “What’s dunch?” asked Peter.

  “It’s what you eat when lunch is so late, it’s almost dinner,” said Mr. Garvain.

  “Oh,” said Peter.

  The children took the computer and flash drive upstairs to the bedroom. Amanda quickly pulled the covers up on the beds. She never made her bed at home, but they were guests. Then they went back downstairs and said goodbye to Mr. Garvain and Miss Virginia who insisted on hugging all of them.

  “I will be downstairs all day. When you come back, ring the bell and I will answer right away,” said Mr. Garvain.

  “Good luck, darlings, and please be careful,” said Miss Virginia. “Promise me you will stay at least a block away from the bad guys.”

  “We will try,” said Amanda.

  “Trying is not good enough. Does your camera have one of those, uh, zoom features?” asked Miss Virginia.

  “Yes,” answered Amanda.

  “Well, then use it. When things get back to normal, there will be computer crime labs like they have on TV shows and they have ways to enhance blurry images. You stay far away and stay safe,” said Miss Virginia.

  “What’s a zoom?” asked Mr. Garvain.

  “I will tell you later,” said Miss Virginia. “Let’s say goodbye to these brave children and wish them well.”

  And so they did.

  Chapter X

  The newly named Big Apple Posse walked out the door of Mr. Garvain’s house and began to travel quickly up Third Avenue, zigzagging around all abandoned cars clogging the street. Amanda was very nervous, looking for the man who had attacked her last night, but she moved quickly, even with her sore knee. They had eighteen blocks to go before they reached 57th Street and they also had only about an hour before the bad guys were supposed to be at Tiffany’s.

  There were looters on the street, but no one bothered them. Perhaps four stage burglars running down the street in broad daylight did not look like an easy target.

  When they arrived at the corner of 57th and Third Avenue they stopped and Amanda pulled them to the side of the street. “We are three blocks away. I think we can travel in the open until we reach Madison, but then we need to start hiding behind the cars.”

  “How did you know how many streets it is across town?” asked Cindy.

  “I may live in Connecticut, but I love to shop,” said Amanda.

  “Me too,” said Thibodeaux. “But now we need to get a move on.”

  The posse quickly traveled two blocks across town. When they got to the corner of Madison and 57th, they stopped again.

  “We need to get on the north side of the street and creep along hidden by the cars. Here, give me the camera,” Amanda said to Peter who was carrying the camera bag.

  Amanda hung the camera from her neck by the strap. “Okay, now follow me and don’t make any noise,” said Amanda as she started slowly moving across town to Tiffany’s which was on the SE corner of 57th and Fifth Avenue.

  “I think you should follow me. I’m the one with the street smarts,” said Thibodeaux.

  Amanda glared at Thibodeaux.

  “Okay, okay,” said Thibodeaux.

  “Shh!” said Cindy.

  The posse began to move very slowly and very quietly from Madison to Fifth, hiding behind the cars in the street. When they were almost at the corner, they saw some men doing something at the side door to Tiffany’s. They were putting some small blue barrels next to the door. The blue barrels had wires running between them and were tied together with duct tape.

  “That’s a bomb,” whispered Thibodeaux.

  “What?” whispered Cindy.

  “They are going to blow up the door so they can get inside,” said Thibodeaux.

  Amanda very quietly grabbed the other three children and motioned for them to follow her back the way they came. They walked quietly back toward Madison and were just approaching the corner when Thibodeaux grabbed the camera pulling it from Amanda’s neck.

  “Stay here. I will be right back.” Thibodeaux started running back towards Tiffany’s, hiding behind the cars that were clogging the streets.”

  “No. Stop,” Amanda whispered, but he was gone.

  “I am going with him,” said Peter.

  “Oh, no you are not.” Amanda and Cindy grabbed Peter and pushed him down on the street and climbed on top of him. “I am not letting you get blown up. Mom would never forgive me.”

  “Please don’t anyone else leave,” said Cindy. “I am scared to death and I don’t want to be alone.”

  “Okay. But I am a boy and boys are supposed to be brave,” said Peter.

  “Ten year old boys are supposed to stay alive. Now wait here for Thibodeaux,” said Amanda.

  “Twelve year old boys are supposed to stay alive, too,” said Peter.

  “Yes, they are. And he will come back. He’s got street smarts. He’ll be okay.” Amanda was frightened out of her mind for Thibodeaux, but she could not let Peter and Cindy know. The plan to make a film of the bad guys seemed so foolish now that they were hiding a block away from a bomb.

  Amanda held onto Peter and Cindy as tightly as she could. She moved them behind a building so they would have some protection from an explosion.

  Suddenly there was a loud sound, what must have been the bomb going off. Amanda ran to the corner of the building and looked down the street and saw a black cloud engulfing the street in front of Tiffany’s. Amanda tried to see Thibodeaux but could not.

  “We have to rescue Thibodeaux,” said Peter.

  “You are right, we have to go find him. Here, Peter, you and Cindy take out your pepper spray.” Amanda, opened her camera bag and pulled out a knife.

  “How did you get that knife?” asked Cindy.

  “I took it from Mr. Garvain’s kitchen when he was not looking,” said Amanda.

  “That is stealing,” said Cindy.

  “I put a note in the silverware drawer just below the knife stand,” said Amanda.

  “Oh, that’s good.” Cindy sounded like she was in shock. Why was she asking about a note when Thibodeaux was in so much danger?

  Amanda pulled Peter and Cindy with her and edged out into the street and hid behind a car. They moved quietly down the street, using the cars for cover.

  When they were half way down the block they could hear two men and Thibodeaux. They were too far away to hear what they were saying, but one of the voices they heard was definitely Thibodeaux’s. Amanda motioned to Peter and Cindy to be quiet and they continued creeping down the street.

  As they got closer, they could hear more. Thibodeaux was saying something about how he was just walking by and saw what was going on and thought they could use some help.

  “Be very quiet.” Amanda kept pulling her band down the street, stopping and waiting to listen.

  Thibodeaux was still arguing with the men, but then suddenly the arguing stopped. Amanda sat on the street behind a car, holding Cindy and Peter close, wondering what happened to Thibodeaux.

  “Listen, I need to leave you two here and I need to go help Thibodeaux. Stay right here and I will come back and get you. If I don’t come back, run as fast as you can back to Mr. Garvain’s house. I love you both,” Amanda told Peter and Cindy.

  “Don’t leave me.” Cindy was clawing at Amanda trying to pull her down.

  “I am going with you,” said Peter.

  “No, you have to stay here with Cindy. She is short and someone needs to take care of her and I can’t let Thibodeaux be hurt. Get in this car and lie down on the floor board and hide.” Amanda pushed them down and put their pepper sprays in their hands. “If anyone tries to hurt you, you get them good girl,” Amanda told Cindy.

  Amanda quietly opened a car door and Cindy and Peter climbed inside. Amanda gently pushed the car door shut and then she left Cind
y and Peter and slowly and quietly walked down the street. She could see men coming in and out of the side door of Tiffany’s carrying boxes. But Thibodeaux was nowhere to be found.

  Amanda kept creeping down the street to the end of the block and right there on the corner of Fifth Avenue and 57th Street was Thibodeaux, tied to a street sign with duct tape.

  Amanda got down on her hands and knees and crawled to the corner, still using the cars as cover. She got to within a car length of Thibodeaux and whispered, “Thibodeaux, it’s me.”

  Thibodeaux looked at her and slowly shook his head. Amanda lay on the street about eight feet away from Thibodeaux and waited for a few minutes. Suddenly Thibodeaux spoke, “Get the video camera, it is under that Mercedes about five cars back. Then come back and try to help me.”

  “I’ve got a knife. I can cut that duct tape,” said Amanda.

  “Go get the camera,” said Thibodeaux.

  Amanda crawled back down the street until she saw the Mercedes. Her video camera was under it but she had to crawl under the car to get it. Amanda got the camera and then slowly made her way back to where she could see Thibodeaux.

  Thibodeaux looked at Amanda and quietly shook his head. She could hear the men who were robbing Tiffany’s. She waited for what seemed like forever, with her knife in her hand.

  Suddenly Thibodeaux spoke, “Now.”

  Amanda ran over to Thibodeaux and started cutting the duct tape away. The knife was sharp, but the men had put a lot of it around Thibodeaux. Just as she was about to cut the last bit, one of the men came outside and saw them. Amanda quickly cut the last piece and grabbed Thibodeaux by the hand. Thibodeaux reached down and grabbed a roll of duct tape from the ground and then followed Amanda as she ran back towards Madison and toward Peter and Cindy. One of the men was chasing them down the street. Amanda ran screaming, “Cindy, Peter run.” Up ahead she could see Cindy and Peter getting out of the car and running towards Madison.

  Suddenly Amanda heard one of the men yelling, “Get back here. We are almost done. We don’t have time to fool with a bunch of kids. We got his Iphone so we have his photos.”

  Amanda caught up with Peter and Cindy and pulled them down Madison. They ran two blocks and then turned on 55th and kept running toward the east.

  When they were between Park and Lexington, Amanda saw a deli with a door that was ajar. She pulled everyone inside and closed the door. The deli had been ransacked, but there were still some bottles of unpopular drinks like ginger ale on the open shelves. Amanda grabbed drinks and handed one to everyone else and pulled them down behind a counter to hide.

  “I know, the note. I will take care of the note later,” said Amanda. “We need to stay here until night. It is not safe for us to be out on the street while those guys might come looking for us.”

  “Hey, Amanda. Thanks for coming to get me,” said Thibodeaux.

  “Of course, I would come get you. You are part of our posse and you are my friend,” said Amanda.

  “But you risked your life and I am not even a relative like Cindy or Peter,” said Thibodeaux.

  “I saved your life so now you are my brother. Deal?” asked Amanda.

  “Deal,” said Thibodeaux.

  “Me too. You can be my brother too,” said Peter.

  Everyone looked at Cindy. “Oh yeah, me too,” said Cindy.

  “So what are we going to do until dark?” asked Thibodeaux.

  “Hide,” said Amanda.

  “Let me see if I can do something about locking that door.” Thibodeaux looked in the back of the deli and found a mop which he threaded through the two inside door handles to keep someone from opening the door. “It’s not much, but it is something.”

  “Good job,” said Amanda getting up from behind the counter.

  Amanda looked around the deli. The place had been trashed. Food had been pulled from the shelves. The coolers were open which meant that all the refrigerated foods were bad. But there were still some crackers and cookies which she picked up and handed to Peter, Cindy, and Thibodeaux.

  “Be careful. There is some broken glass here by the door,” said Thibodeaux.

  “Okay, let me find a piece of paper and a pen and I will leave a note,” said Amanda.

  “Let me look around and see if there is anything here that can help us get back to Mr. Garvain’s.” Thibodeaux walked around the deli looking around the shelves for anything that would be useful.

  “No roller skates or skate boards,” said Thibodeaux. “Does anyone need any cleaning supplies.”

  No one bothered to answer. Amanda grabbed some tabloid magazines and handed them out. “Here, catch up on your gossip.”

  “This is boring,” said Peter, handing the magazine back to Amanda.

  “Well, I guess we will just have to be bored. Bored is good. Bored is safe. We can sit here and be bored until it’s night time,” said Amanda.

  “Hey, Thibodeaux, why did that man say he got your I-Phone?” asked Amanda.

  “When they saw me, I hid the video camera and pulled out my I-Phone and started taking photos. So that’s what they took. My Mamma is going to be so mad when she finds out I lost my I-Phone,” said Thibodeaux.

  “She probably won’t even care because she is so worried about you,” said Peter.

  “Nope, she’ll care and so will Auntie Tina,” said Thibodeaux. “That was a really expensive gift.”

  Amanda turned on the camera and looked at the viewfinder. There were images of four men breaking into Tiffany’s after the blast had blown open the door. She could see three faces clearly enough to identify them if she ever saw them in person. They were all tall with light hair. She wondered why they looked so much alike. Where could they be from?

  “Thibodeaux, you got them. We have it now. You really scared me, but thank you,” said Amanda.

  “Thank you for saving me when I got caught,” said Thibodeaux.

  “That was so smart, giving them the I-Phone and hiding the video camera,” said Cindy.

  “Well, my Mamma won’t think that was so smart. I’ll have to do some real talking to explain that to her. But hey, we did it. It’s done. Now we just need to make a plan about how we will get back to Mr. Garvain’s and then get to my Auntie’s house,” said Thibodeaux.

  “Well, if we can sneak up on bad guys and film them robbing a jewelry store, we should be able to save one aunt,” said Peter.

  The posse sat quietly behind the counter only getting up to find more food (and leave more notes) until it was dark outside.

  “Okay, get out the flashlights and pepper spray and go,” said Amanda.

  “Just a moment, let me check the street first,” said Thibodeaux as he removed the mop handle and slowly opened the door. He stopped and listened for a moment and then stuck his head outside and looked up and down the street. There was no one out in front of the store, but he could see and hear people running up and down Park Avenue. “Okay, when I say go, move quickly but don’t run. It’s dark and if someone falls, we will have to carry you back.”

  So the posse left the deli and hurried to Lexington and turned the corner. They stayed together and tried to look as tough as they could. The street was alive with groups of people who were pulling at doors, trying to enter buildings. People were carrying television sets and computers from apartment buildings. The city was being looted.

  They continued moving quickly in the dark, crossing and heading to Third Avenue. The farther they went from the middle of the city, the fewer looters they saw. The looters seemed to have congregated on the posher streets of the city.

  Once on Third Avenue, they moved quickly down the fourteen blocks needed to get to Mr. Garvain’s house, arriving there around 9:00 p. m..

  Amanda knocked on the door and said, “Please let us in.”

  Mr. Garvain opened the door with the fireplace poker in his hand and quickly pulled the children inside.

  “Oh my goodness. You are back. I was so worried. Miss Virginia was yelling at me saying we
should have gone with you and that we should have never let a group of children do a scary task like that alone. Did you get your photos?” asked Mr. Garvain.

  “We sure did. Now all we need is some internet access and we can tell the whole world that there are no terrorists, just a bunch of really bad jewel thieves,” said Peter.

  “Well right now, you need to get cleaned up and go to bed. But what happened to you? You look like you were cleaning chimneys,” said Mr. Garvain.

  Peter started to tell Mr. Garvain about the bomb but stopped when he saw the look in Amanda’s eye.

  “Hey, this city gets really dirty when the street sweepers are gone,” said Thibodeaux.

  “It sure does,” said Cindy.

  “Miss Virginia washed and hung your clothes out to dry while you were gone. They are in your bedroom. So go on upstairs and get cleaned up. We don’t have that much water left in the tank but we have enough so that you can each have a basin. So hurry along. But wait! Are you hungry?” asked Mr. Garvain.

  “Nope. After I took the video, we all hid in a deli until it was dark enough to come back here without being seen,” said Thibodeaux.

  “A deli?” asked Mr. Garvain.

  “Yes, a deli and there were cookies and crackers and nuts and we did not have anything else to do so we ate all afternoon. We did leave a note, though,” said Thibodeaux.

  “Very well. Now be very quiet. Miss Virginia was so upset when you did not come back home that she took a sleeping pill and is sound asleep,” said Mr. Garvain.

  So the posse climbed up the stairs, cleaned up in the bathroom, and went to sleep.

  Chapter XI

  When Amanda awoke the next day, Peter was already up and had the video camera connected to his computer so he could download the video Thibodeaux had taken of the bad guys. For the first time since the explosion, Amanda was beginning to feel okay. They were safe. So far they had been able to eat and sleep and they now had proof of what happened to the city and all they had to do is wait for the power to come back on and they could send their files to the whole world. The police would be able to find the bad guys and people could come back home to the city.