Half Moon Investigations - Eoin Colfer [33]
It finally dawned on me what was happening when a mountain bike skidded to a halt by my feet. I looked up to see a rider who was wearing a striped balaclava.
‘Get on the back, Half Moon,’ he said. The voice was all too familiar.
‘Sharkey!’ I gasped.
‘Could be,’ said the figure.
I picked up some gravel from the gutter, throwing it at him. The stones jingled harmlessly through the spokes.
Red rolled up the balaclava. ‘Honestly, you try to help some people.’
‘Help!’ I spluttered, too indignant to be scared. Almost. ‘You attacked me. You set fire to May’s garden. This is a dry month; that could have spread.’
Red swung off the bike, kicked the stand and hunkered down before me.
‘Look, Half Moon, I heard about the letters on your arm, but my hurl was stolen, OK? Someone wanted me to be blamed. The same thing is happening to you. I know you’re too weedy to set fire to a garden.’
‘Thanks.’
‘Don’t thank me. It’s not a compliment.’
‘I didn’t really mean it.’
The sound of Murt swearing at the engine drifted up the road, wrapped in plumes of smoke.
‘We have to go,’ insisted Red.
I wasn’t convinced. ‘How can I believe anything you say? All I ever get from you are insults or threats. Your entire family have a history of theft, fraud and assault.’
Red glanced towards the guard. ‘Forget all that, Half Moon. If you get back in that car, it’s all over. Your big investigation is finished. Whoever is messing with us will get clean away with it.’
‘Us?’ I asked.
Red rolled his eyes. ‘I’m rescuing a parrot, heaven help me. Yes, us. You, me, April, May. Us.’
Curiosity sliced through the weakness and uncertainty. True, this person had threatened to harm me, but if I went to the police station, I would be blamed for the fire and the real culprit would get away unpunished. And if Red had started the fire, why would he want to rescue me when I was all set to take the blame? This question needed an answer.
‘Why, Red? Why would you want to help me?’
Red dropped his eyes. ‘I felt bad about shoving that hurl in your throat the other day. I blew my fuse.’
This was all very noble, but there must be more.
‘And?’
‘And if this assault charge sticks, I could end up in care this time. I can’t let that happen.’ I saw anguish in Red’s eyes for the second time. ‘This is not the way I want my life to go, and it’s going that way anyway. I thought if I just stayed out of trouble, I could be my own man. But Sharkeys are like trouble magnets. You’re the one who got me involved in all this, so you can get both of us out. You’re the detective.’
My instincts told me that Red was telling the truth, but there was something between us that I couldn’t let go.
‘If I’m going to be a detective, I’ll need my shield.’
Red studied an ant on the tarmac for a moment, then dug the shield from his pocket, tossing it on the road between my feet.
‘Sorry,’ he said, still looking at the ground. ‘I lost my head. I shouldn’t have taken it. I mean, you were right. Herod did steal that organizer, even if he won’t admit it.’
I picked up my shield, polishing the face on my shirt. Just having it in my hand made me feel smarter.
Down the road, Murt Hourihan had discovered that someone had put an oily rag on his engine. He balled the rag in his fist, flinging it to the ground. His first thought was that this was mindless mischief. His second was that there was a purpose behind it.
The guard pulled his head out of the smoke, squinting towards his charge.
‘Hey!’ he spluttered. ‘Hey, what’s going on there?’
Red rolled down his balaclava. ‘Coming or going?’
Murt was running now, legs pumping under him.
‘Last chance, Half Moon. Was all that detective talk just talk, or are you the real thing?’
‘Don’t you move, Fletcher!’ shouted Murt, his voice rough with smoke. ‘Stay right where you are.’
Red kicked up the stand. ‘I bet your file is already gone in. I bet the parents’ committee are already having an emergency meeting at the school, making sure you won’t be a bad influence. That’s what they do, you know.’
This was all happening