‘So what do the numbers mean?’ asked Hitch.

      ‘Beats me,’ said Ruby, turning back to her bowl of Cheerios. ‘That’s the big “don’t know” – I’ve figured out that the code breaks down into those numbers. But I haven’t a clue what the numbers stand for.’

      ‘So. . . give them to Blacker?’

      Ruby nodded. ‘Might as well, my head’s too sore to think about them. Tell him it’s a ternary numbering system. He’ll understand.’*

      Hitch turned to go, then looked at his watch. He frowned.

      ‘What’s up?’ said Ruby.

      ‘A message,’ he said.

      ‘Who from?’

      ‘Well, you, actually.’

      ‘Me?’ said Ruby.

      ‘Yes,’ said Hitch. ‘Tell me. . . on your little adventure, did you happen to lose the Escape Watch?’

      Ruby checked her wrist. ‘Um. . . yeah.’

      Hitch sighed. ‘Well then I guess someone got a hold of it.’

      ‘Someone like who?’ asked Ruby.

      ‘No idea,’ replied Hitch.

      ‘So what do they want?’ asked Ruby.

      ‘How would I know?’ replied Hitch, ‘the message happens to be in code.’

      Ruby looked at him. ‘You think it might be the skywalker?’

      ‘The thought is crossing my mind,’ said Hitch.

      ‘So what are you going to do?’ asked Ruby – she was beginning to feel the smallest flicker of panic.

      ‘Sit tight,’ he replied, ‘it’s one of those Spectrum rules. Bide your time, until things begin to make sense – same goes for you by the way.’

      And with that, he was gone.

      Mrs Digby wouldn’t hear of Ruby going to school. Ruby had mild concussion and as Mrs Digby so wisely said, ‘You don’t want to play fast and loose with concussion.’

      Ruby’s donut phone rang.

      ‘Hey, it’s me,’ said Clancy. ‘You wanna meet at the diner this morning?’ He was trying to sound brighter than he felt; he needed to see her.

      ‘I can’t today,’ said Ruby. ‘I had a bit of an accident last night, my whole face is smooshed and I took a knock to the head so Mrs D says I gotta lie low.’

      ‘Are you OK?’ asked Clancy. He sounded alarmed, Ruby could hear his arms flapping.

      ‘Relax would you Clance, I’m totally fine, OK. I don’t look so good but I’m all there.’

      ‘You sure you’re sure, Rube?’

      ‘Yeah,’ she said, ‘I’ll call you if I start dying.’

      ‘OK, promise you will.’

      ‘I promise, Clance.’

      Ruby’s eye was turning a nice shade of purple and she had a fat lip. The graze to her arm was looking OK but her knee looked gruesome. Ruby looked a long way from picture perfect. Too bad her mother had booked that Ada Borland portrait – today was really not the day for it.

      ‘You know, I’m going to cancel,’ announced Sabina, sweeping into the room.

      ‘Why?’ said Ruby.

      ‘Take a look in the mirror Ruby, have you caught sight of yourself lately?’

      Ruby peered at her reflection in the bathroom mirror. ‘I don’t have a problem with getting my picture taken.’

      ‘But you don’t look how you look,’ explained her mother.

      ‘What are you saying?’ said Ruby. ‘This is exactly how I look.’

      ‘Yes, how you look after you collided with a cop car,’ said her mother.

      ‘And how many mothers can say that about their kid’s picture? That’s gotta be more interesting than the usual snap.’

      ‘Snap? Snap?!’ Sabina’s hands were on her hips, her voice raised unusually loud. Ruby thought she maybe needed another of Hitch’s herbal teas. ‘Do you have any idea what a privilege it is to have Ada Borland take your picture? I was ecstatic when I won that raffle but you, you couldn’t just do this one thing for me, you had to louse it up Ruby, because it’s all about you and what you want! If my daughter could have just done this single sweet thing for me, I swear I’d be happy until Christmas!’

      Sabina turned and strode out of the room with such force that the soap fell out of the soap dish. Ruby heard her mother dial the photographer’s number and leave a message to the effect that she was very sorry but her daughter had been in an accident and the portrait would have to be cancelled. Ruby felt truly bad. As much as she didn’t particularly want her photograph taken, even if it was to be by the great Ada Borland, she did understand how much it meant to her mother. But what could she do?

      She tried to block out these unpleasant feelings by switching on the TV matinee and strangely it was while watching The Rise of the Zombies that Ruby thought of something.

      She had a plan.

Chapter 38.