Free Into the Fire by Pam Harvey Page A

certainly timely but is Derwent’s Hut secure?’ Hannah held her breath as she listened to a man speaking on the other end of the line.
    ‘It’s on the eastern side of town and won’t be a problem.’ Hannah heard Mrs Hastings laugh.
    ‘And have you heard from our couriers?’
    ‘No, but that’s not a concern. Has our Moroccan friend been in touch? He’s not the only buyer, you know.’
    ‘I am aware of that. Not as yet, but he will.’
    ‘One moment. I think there’s someone…’
    ‘Patricia? Hello?’ Hannah listened to the man’s heavy breathing coming down the phone line. From somewhere inside the library she heard a door close.
    ‘Hannah?’ Ling whispered, running back into the room. ‘There’s someone coming. Should we go and ask about Gabby?’ Hannah pressed the mouthpiece against her shirt, shaking her head and pointing to the phone. Another red light came on. Was someone else listening in? Mrs Hastings’ voice came on the line again.
    ‘Don’t worry. The people who committed this crime will be caught and punished and we’ll get the brooch back.’
    ‘What on—?’
    ‘I must go now. There’s someone waiting out the front of the building.’ Suddenly the girls were aware of footsteps approaching in the distance from the corridor outside. Hannah put down the receiver, taking care to ensure that it didn’t settle properly back into its holder. It had just occurred to Hannah that Mrs Hastingsprobably suspected that someone was eavesdropping on her conversation. If Mrs Hastings found the receiver off the hook when she checked the phone, it might make her think she was mistaken.
    Then Hannah had another thought. She raced over to the security system her father had installed. Surely the tape would have information on it? Footage of the thief stealing the brooch? She pressed the eject button but nothing happened. Maybe the police had taken it already. Or had the thieves stolen it themselves?
    And then she remembered. Some sort of code was needed to get the tapes out. But what was it? No one could get the tape out without the code.
    Ling interrupted her thoughts by waving frantically. The footsteps were getting closer. Hannah grabbed Ling’s hand and together they scurried out of the larger office and back into the tiny room full of old newspapers.
    They heard someone entering the office. ‘Is there someone here?’ Mrs Hastings called. The girls held their breath. They had wedged themselves behind a stack of boxes in the corner near the door. Outside the wind lashed the trees causing a branch to scrape violentlyagainst the glass of the small window high above them.
    There was a faint rustle as Mrs Hastings picked up the receiver of the phone. Straining their ears, Hannah and Ling just made out a high-pitched beeping, then a click as Mrs Hastings replaced the phone on the cradle. A moment later she left the room. The girls listened to her footsteps gradually fading.
    ‘Hannah, this is stupid. We need to talk to her, not hide from her. She’s the librarian.’
    ‘No, she’s the thief!’
    ‘What are you talking about? Gabby’s missing. She might have seen her.’
    ‘Oh, I’m sure she has. We don’t want to talk with Mrs Hastings. It’s the police we need.’
    ‘Hannah, this is crazy. Let’s just ask. I saw her this morning. It was Mrs Hastings who organised the whole exhibition.’
    ‘You didn’t hear the phone conversation I just did.’
    ‘Conversation with who?’
    ‘It was Mrs Hastings and some man.’
    ‘So, what were they saying?’
    ‘Something about the fires being a distraction and couriers and a hut.’
    ‘A hut? Hannah, we don’t have time for this. Come on.’ Before Hannah could reply, Ling raced into the passageway, heading swiftly towards the main body of the library.
    ‘Oh, damn it,’ Hannah muttered, heading off after her. She pulled up quickly at the entrance to the library. Mrs Hastings was smiling stiffly at Ling. Beyond them, Hannah could see a group of