Free A. N. T. I. D. O. T. E. by Malorie Blackman Page B

it come from?’ asked Nosh.
    ‘That’s just what I want …’ I heard a noise coming from the landing above and quickly raised my head. Someone above us ducked out of sight before I could see who it was.

Chapter Ten
I’m a Friend
    ‘ COME ON, NOSH . We have work to do.’ I pulled Nosh out into the street after me.
    ‘Elliot, will you please tell me what’s going on?’ Nosh said, exasperated.
    ‘Someone’s put this ring in my pocket.’
    ‘When?’
    ‘Some time between the march and me finding it just now,’ I said.
    ‘Who?’
    I dug deeper into my pocket, hoping to find some clue. There was a tiny scrap of folded paper, so small I could’ve easily missed it if I hadn’t been deliberately searching my pockets.
    ‘What does it say?’ Nosh asked breathlessly.
    ‘21:15hrs – phone.’
    ‘Is that from your mum?’
    ‘It must be. I think it means she’s going to phone me tonight instead …’
    ‘But when did she get that note to you?’ Nosh queried . ‘I know! It must’ve been on the march.’
    ‘That’d be my guess,’ I said thoughtfully. I was still trying to figure out exactly when, though. Then I got it! ‘That old woman on the march, remember? The one who bumped into me? She must be the one who put the note in my pocket. That must’ve been Mum .’
    Nosh frowned sceptically. ‘Nah! It couldn’t have been. You’d have recognized your own mum.’
    ‘But I wasn’t expecting to see her. And I never did get a very good look at the woman who barged into me. She was wearing a floppy hat and a scarf that covered most of her face.’
    ‘But even so …’
    After a moment’s pause, I sighed. ‘Yeah, maybe you’re right. I’m just clutching at straws,’ I said, wondering if I’d caught Nosh’s disease of too much imagination. ‘Maybe it was Mum and maybe it wasn’t. I just wish I knew for certain.’
    I desperately tried to remember the face of the woman who’d barged me, but all I could recall was the woman’s back, stalking away from me. And besides, why all the cloak-and-dagger stuff if it was Mum? She wouldn’t do that. She’d come up to me and tell me what was going on – wouldn’t she? I still couldn’t make head nor tail of what was going on. Thank goodness for the school holidays. I don’t think I could’ve gone to school and tried to carry on as if nothing was happening and everything was as normal. I felt like I was in a computer game with lasers and rockets and missiles firing at me from all directions so that I didn’t know which way to turn to get away from them. I needed to sit down alone, in peace and quiet, and just consider what to do next. At the moment I was rushing around like a headless chicken. Lots of things had happened – and were still happening – but I wasn’t giving myself enough time to sort through them or work them out. It was a question of stepping back and taking it more slowly.
    Someone at ANTIDOTE had been listening when I showed Nosh Mum’s wedding ring – only I didn’t know who.
    Think, Elliot. Think! What should I do next?
    Mum had warned me off going to Uncle Robert’s house but really, what choice did I have? The police said he’d be released on bail soon. Maybe he was at home already? I glanced down at my watch. Uncle Robert lived quite a distance away. If I went to see him, I’d never be back at Nosh’s house by the time his mum had specified. I gritted my teeth. That couldn’t be helped. I didn’t want to go against Nosh’s mum’s wishes, but what choice did I have?
    I looked around.
    ‘What’re you looking for?’ Nosh queried.
    ‘A phone box. I thought I’d phone my uncle and see if he’s at home yet.’
    ‘A phone box?’ Nosh’s eyebrows shot up. ‘That’s a bit last century, isn’t it? Why not just use your Mum’s mobile?’
    ‘I’m not sure – but the police could’ve put a trace on it or something.’
    ‘Oh,’ nodded Nosh. ‘Well, what if your Uncle is in?’
    The look on my face gave him his