Read Online Paper Alice by Charlotte Calder - Free Book Online

ducking our heads and putting our hands to our mouths – it was all so obviously bullshit. He was frowning earnestly, waving his arms about and then pointing in the direction of the street behind us.
    But the boys in black seemed to be completely taken in. They stared at him, open-mouthed, then started craning their necks to catch a glimpse of whatever drama it was occurring just up beyond us.
    And the next thing we knew, wonder-boy was giving them a pat of thanks on the car window and a cheery wave, which they returned, all smiles, before the driver proceded to reverse and then pull into the no-standing zone.
    Milly and I snorted and squeaked, trying to control ourselves as Andy walked back towards us, the tiniest smirk on his face. He allowed himself his own little gasp of laughter as he hopped in again, before murmuring through gritted teeth: ‘Stop laughing – they might come and kill us.’
    That set us off all over again; I couldn’t even look their way as we sailed past. As we turned into Crown Street I saw the Jeep reversing rapidly, back the way it’d come. They obviously weren’t game to go forward, into the danger zone.
    â€˜Let me guess,’ cried Milly. ‘Was it a fire, or an ambulance?’
    â€˜Neither.’
    I glanced in the rear-vision mirror and caught Andy’s eye, gleaming wickedly.
    â€˜It was a shoot out,’ he went on cheerfully. ‘One body lying in the middle of the road in a pool of blood, two men taking pot shots at one another from opposite doorways. A woman screaming from a top window. Bullets ricocheting, neighbours running for cover and not a cop in sight.’
    I ended up being nearly three-quarters of an hour late getting home, and since Dad was off somewhere else in his car, I knew Mum would have had to take a taxi to her meeting across town. But that night the thought of her being shitty didn’t worry me nearly as much as it normally would’ve. I was too hyped.
    I did, however, toddle off to bed quite early – for me at any rate – determined to turn over a new leaf and not end up pushing the snooze button endlessly in the morning. But my body clock was not adjusted to going to sleep at ten o’clock, and anyway, after the events of earlier on I couldn’t seem to switch off.
    I lay there, curled in a ball, doona pulled up to my chin, chuckling at the thought of those two guys in the Jeep and the looks on their faces. They probably considered themselves to be just about the coolest things on four legs, yet even in the half-dark I’d been able to see their mouths dropping open, like little kids being warned of an alien landing.
    We’d laughed about it practically all the way to Central. My eyes were so full of tears I could barely see; at one point I nearly drove into the back of another car. Our passenger wasn’t quite so hysterical; I was sure that this sort of thing went on with him all the time. Life with Andy, I thought, would never be dull.
    And now my phone beeped in the darkness, from over on my desk. I knew who that’d be – I hadn’t spoken to him all day. I sighed, snuggling deeper in my warm cocoon. If I’d really been serious about going to bed at some ungodly hour, why hadn’t I switched off my mobile?
    Suddenly I felt almost drowsy – there’s nothing like the thought of getting out of bed to put you to sleep. Surely I could answer Dunc in the morning . . .
    Then I sighed again, switched on my light and went and grabbed my phone. Jumped back into bed before checking the message.
    Hey it said. Whats up? x
    Funny evening , I typed in, but going to sleep now. Then I stopped, frowning. I didn’t know whether I wanted to even tell Dunc about my expedition on Milly’s behalf. He tended to get irritated by her carry-on, and certainly wouldn’t approve of me banging on strange doors to rescue one of her shoes. He and Mill have never hit it off one hundred