Chapter 5

It was morning. The sun rose. I slept in till eleven. After a relaxing shower, I checked myself in the bathroom mirror. Although only eleven, I was already starting to grow tall. The cricket games I played with Sherwin really enhanced my shoulders.

Sherwin wasn't in the living room, so I went upstairs to his bedroom. The curtains were drawn, making the bedroom dark. Sherwin sat by the computer.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"Just browsing the Internet."

"Sherwin, did you hear any strange noises last night from Wayne's house?"

"No."

"I heard a girl scream."

"Keith, we've lived here for ten years now. We both know there are no girls in this neighbourhood. How many times do I have to tell you?"

"She was in Wayne's house."

"Is this that ghost you keep seeing? Seriously, Keith, I think you need to see a doctor--get your head checked or something. There's something wrong with you. You're not normal."

"I saw someone. She was in a dream as well."

"You really need to see a doctor."

"What do I have to do to make you believe me?"

"You need evidence."

"What do you mean?"

"I'll only believe you if you go into Wayne's house and take a picture of the girl."

Sherwin was kind enough to give me five spy cameras. They were small lipstick-sized cameras with lenses on one side and a small antenna on the other side. A long-lasting battery inside the camera insured it would operate non-stop for over thirty years. The images the camera received were transmitted to a television in my bedroom via radio waves. All I needed to do was get the camera into Wayne's house and I could see what happened inside.

Sherwin was also kind enough to give me a lock pick. He said he was confident it could open ninety percent of all locks in the world.

From my bedroom window upstairs I watched Wayne's rusty Ford backing out the driveway. The car drove off into the distance. I had no idea when Wayne was coming back. Maybe he was visiting relatives on the other side of the city. Then again, maybe he was just getting milk from the supermarket.

Five minutes later, I walked out the front door with a spy camera, a lock pick, and a mobile phone. Sherwin stood by my bedroom window upstairs. If he saw Wayne's car coming he'd be able to warn me.

Wayne's house looked dark and scary as I approached. The clouds above turned grey. Sherwin's lock pick didn't seem to work at first. I shoved the needle into the keyhole and jiggled. After a while, I heard a click and the front door opened.

Wayne's living room was dark. The place smelled like sour fish. Over by the couch was the giant Picasso picture. I knew exactly what was behind this picture.

With the small spy camera in my hands, I looked around the living room and tried to find a suitable place to put the camera. It had to be installed somewhere where no one would look. After two minutes, I walked to the pot plant at the corner of the room and attached the camera to the plant. This was where the hairy spider jumped on me four years ago.

I looked carefully at the pot plant from the middle of the room, making sure the camera was not visible from far away. It wasn't. Mission accomplished, I thought. It felt like I was in a James Bond movie.

As I walked to the front door with the intention of leaving, I passed the couch. Something on the couch caught my attention. It was a folder with the words TERRORIST HANDBOOK printed on the front.