recalling the conversation she’d had earlier with him she suddenly knew. He wouldn’t have been able to resist.
45902314 : her test number, the digits that spoke of failure.
She punched them in and the lock clicked open.
People can be so predictable, thought Ruby.
She had no trouble finding what she wanted. She had gazed at them on so many occasions that she would be able to locate them had she been blindfolded. Twenty seconds later, item 202 was zipped safely inside her backpack. She didn’t feel one iota of guilt about it – she needed them, should have been issued them, and in any case, who else here was going to wear them. And after all, she couldn’t skitch everywhere on that skateboard, certainly not to Dry River Canyon, which was where she intended to go.
GETAWAY SHOES
Depress green button on base of left shoe to convert to roller shoes. Depress red button on base of right shoe to activate power jets. Maximum speed 91 miles per hour for a distance of 7 miles approximately. Warning! Can cause feet to overheat. Avoid use on rugged terrain.
They had once belonged to the boy Bradley Baker and were now gathering dust in a display case. That was all wrong, as far she saw it. Ruby closed the glass door hoping no one would notice the empty space. She didn’t think they would. RULE 18: PEOPLE OFTEN MISS THE DOWNRIGHT OBVIOUS.
She was about to leave when her eye caught sight of a “must-have item”, as her mother would put it. The item appeared to be nothing more than a tiny silver backpack, but when she read the description it struck her that this was one very cool and extremely useful piece of gadgetry.
THE GLIDER WINGS
Simply slip backpack on over clothing. Make sure nothing covers backpack. To activate fabra-tech wings jump (minimum height twenty feet) and once falling hit red button located on the right-hand strap.
If wings fail –
The note about wings failing was missing, the paper torn, but she figured that the wings wouldn’t fail and if they did, well, she could figure that out while she was falling. There was a small orange card to the side of the little glider wings no doubt explaining that this item should not be removed without permission, blah, blah.
Ruby figured if she was in trouble for taking one item she might just as well be in trouble for taking two. And anyway, if Spectrum were so worried about her falling off things and so on, then why not be prepared? Surely by taking the glider wings she was actually being responsible – well that’s how she saw it anyway.
In for a penny in for a dollar, she thought, as she headed back to street level.
RUBY STOPPED BY AMSTER GREEN HOPING TO CATCH CLANCY – she felt like she needed to see a friendly face after her disappointing morning at Spectrum. But it was a long shot, and when she climbed the oak and reached into one of the many knots in its bark, she found only a small piece of paper, folded into the shape of a bug. She opened it up and read the message.
ukuevj’t bl wm usxylaptbfc kbvviedw.*
‘Poor Clance,’ sighed Ruby, ‘that Olive kid is something else.’
She climbed back down and began her short trip home. The skateboard ran smoothly along the level road of Amster and her tired limbs took it easy.
As soon as Ruby got in she called Clancy.
‘I got your message, sounds like a drag – couldn’t your sister Minny help you out? She owes you for all those other times.’
‘You got that right,’ grumbled Clancy. ‘Anyway, so where were you today?’
‘I had to take my Girl Scout test.’ Ruby and Clancy had learned from experience to speak in a roundabout fashion on an unsecured line.
‘Are you back in?’
‘Nope.’
‘Whatdaya mean? You must be back in, I mean, what was it testing?’
‘You know, to see if I was all there in mind and body.’
‘And?’
‘Something was missing, apparently.’
‘What something?’
‘Fear.’
‘Is that bad?’
‘They seem to think so – they figure I have some kind of deathwish.’
‘They said that?’
‘No, they dressed it up a bit, called it the Miracle Effect.’
‘This thing they’re saying about you,’ said Clancy, ‘is it true, do you think?’
‘If it’s weird to feel like your number’s not gonna come up then I guess I got some kinda syndrome, call it the Miracle Effect, the Angel Complex, call it any darned thing you want, but it doesn’t change the fact that I’m still here and probability says I shouldn’t be.’
‘So what does it feel like?’ asked Clancy. ‘Believing you can’t die?’
Ruby paused before saying, ‘I sort of can’t help pushing things to see what will happen, to see how it feels to be invincible and every time I don’t die it’s harder to believe I ever will. But I don’t get what the problem is – I mean, I’m a Girl Scout, right? Or at least a trainee agent, so how can fearlessness be a bad thing?’ She paused. ‘Look, you coming over or what?’
‘What,’ said Clancy.
‘That’s funny Clance. . . you’re a laugh a minute buster, you know that?’
‘Yeah, well, if I could I would you know.’
‘I know, but there’s Olive, right?’
‘Yeah, but once I’m done with that I’m planning on meeting Elliot at the diner if you feel like it.’
‘I’ll bear it in mind,’ said Ruby. ‘Meantime, stay outta jail.’ She hung up and went down to the kitchen looking for food but as she was passing the hall table, the telephone began to ring. She picked up the receiver. ‘Twinford Space Programme, slip into an astronaut suit and make gravity a thing of the past.’
‘Uh. . .’ said a hesitant voice down the end of the line.
‘Oh, hi Quent.’
‘It’s Quent,’ said Quent.
‘I know,’ said Ruby.
‘You did? How come?’ He sounded
