The Mini Bus

      Dads Ghost looked at me with the most serious face I had ever seen like Norman Osborn in the first Spiderman when he has the nerve gas before he becomes the Green Goblin and he said By his phone were some keys.

      And I said What?

      He said By Mr Rosens phone there were some keys. They will be the keys to one of the mini buses.

      My face was now even more serious than Dads Ghosts face because I was very scared about what he was about to say and about what I was going to say and it was one of those times when you know the words before you say them but you say them anyway as if you are reading from a book and they went like this.

      He said You have to take the keys.

      I said Why?

      He said You have to drive the mini bus.

      I said I cant.

      He said I will teach you. I will tell you what to do. You have driven before. Remember I showed you in the car park in Mums Ka car.

      I said Thats a small car not like a mini bus and I only did it for ten minutes and I was rubbish and this is stealing and Ill be in trouble.

      He said Sometimes you have to do something that is wrong to do something bigger that is right. Mum is in a lot of trouble tonight Philip. A lot of trouble. Some men are coming to the Pub later tonight Philip. Theyve got baseball bats and one of them has got a gun. Youve got to get to Mum and make her safe.

      I said I wont have time.

      And he said You will have time. They are coming to the Pub at half past four when all the streets are quiet. It is only midnight and a three hour drive if we go fast.

      And I thought of other things I could do like tell a Teacher but they wouldnt believe me or phone Renuka or Nan but I didnt have their numbers. I could have phoned 118 118 for Renukas number but she is X Direct because of the bad phone calls and I couldnt remember Nans address. Dads Ghost was mind reading because he said Theres no other way.

      I went back down the corridor.

      The quiet was screaming and I got to the door and I pressed down the handle and held my breath like I was going underwater. I opened the door and closed it but not all the way and Dads Ghost went through me and in front and pointed at the floor where the keys were. Mr Rosen was snoring and I bent and didnt breathe and my hand went low and touched the carpet and then I moved my hand like a SPIDER and touched cold metal and picked them up in a tight fist clink and I stood up and started to walk out still dark underwater and Mr Rosen turned over and said my name like a question Philip? and I looked at Dads Ghost and Dads Ghost said Tell him youre going to the toilet and I said Im going to the toilet and Mr Rosen made a noise which was like OK but he was falling back to sleep and Dads Ghost pointed to my shoes and my jumper on the floor and I picked them up and I kept going and out and shut the door click.

      We went back down the corridor fast and quietly on the Brillo Pads and one of my shoes was wanting to escape and not steal the mini bus and was coming out of my arms. I walked really fast past Mrs Fells room and the toilets and the girls room but at the end of the corridor the shoe dropped clump on the floor. I picked it up and pushed the door at the end which had glass like Maths books and then I turned right past the posters about Hadrians Wall and Housesteads and the fire alarm and got to the other door which had a special handle I had to turn but Dads Ghost just went through.

      Outside it was COLD and I sat on the step under the lamp and put my shoes on. They felt weird because I had no socks and I put my jumper on but still felt cold because I had my pyjama bottoms on.

      Dads Ghost was halfway to the car park and telling me with his hand to hurry up so I stood and ran and let my feet get louder as we got further away from the building and the light. And then I saw Dads Ghost turn white and turn into a strange shape with lots of straight lines moving in the air and the lines came towards me fast and that is how ghosts fly. And when he got to me he landed and looked like Dads Ghost again and said There are two mini buses.

      I said Yes I know.

      He said Lets see the keys.

      I showed him the keys and he said I think its for the red mini bus not the white one.

      And I got to the car park and I couldnt see the red bus because you cant see colours in the dark but I could see white so I went to the other mini bus.