The Turncoats (The Thirteenth Series #2) Read Online Free

give me your bracelet I could maybe do a few tests.” He turned her hand over a few times inspecting it.
    “I wish it was that simple, it won’t come off.” Val tugged but it was impossible. “Sorry.” She gently pulled her hand away. “So what now? Are you off again?” Val held her breath unsure if she wanted to hear the answer.
    “No. I have decided to spend a little more time here with Shane, but there’s another reason for me coming to see you. I was wondering if you wanted to have lunch tomorrow, at my new house.”
    “Yes! I’m free between twelve and one.” Val wondered if skipping at this point would be highly inappropriate.
    “Great! Here’s my address.” Sam handed her a card. “I’ll see you then.”
    “Yes, you will.” Val took it and stood as still as she possibly could. She waited, hardly breathing, until Sam had left the shop, and then let out a huge squeal, ran around the counter and started prancing around the entrance. At this point Wendy, Jason and Fran came running.
    “What’s wrong? Are you ok?” they chorused.
    “Look at her; they are playing with her mind,” Fran said to Jason.
    Val grabbed Fran and used her as an anchor as she came to a halt. “I’m fine, Fran, just happy.”
    “Well, you’re going to be ecstatic in a minute. Come and see this.” Jason led Val towards his new headquarters. Val walked into the cupboard and looked about her, wondering what all the fuss was about. They had placed the two boxes down on the floor, moved the mop and a couple of other things about, but there was nothing worth singing about.
    “Ok Val, what can you see?” Jason pointed towards the wall in front of her. Val looked. There were shelves and a very dodgy picture of a ship.
    “Nothing special.” Val shrugged and turned to look at the others.
    “Wendy, you found it, so you do the honours,” Jason said. Wendy moved past Val and pulled back the picture.
    “Oh my goodness!” Val gasped. “There’s a safe.” She moved to stand beside Wendy to see the brick-sized metal square jutting out of the wall, a white key pad on the front of it.
    “Yes, we haven’t got a clue what the number might be to open it, but it’s a start.”
    Val moved closer. “I think I know what it is.” She typed in the number twenty-three twelve and the door made a clunking sound. Val turned the handle and it opened with surprising ease. The others watched silently. Val pulled it back and there it was: a stash of money. “Oh yes, you beauty.” Val pulled a pile out and handed it to Wendy, then another, then another. There were also a few pieces of paper that Val placed on Jason’s new desk.
    “How did you know what the number would be?” Wendy asked as she started to count the notes in her hand.
    “It was Excariot’s prison guard ID, just a lucky guess. So how much?” She turned to the others.
    “Well I have five hundred.” Wendy held out her stash.
    “Same here,” Jason and Fran chorused.
    “So Wallace left us fifteen hundred pounds.” If Val’s grin had been any wider a plate could have fitted in the gap.
    “What now?” Jason handed over the cash.
    “Snakes and Ladders for burgers on me.” Val took the money.
    She shoved a few notes in her pocket and put the rest back in the safe and closed the door.
    “Hello anyone there?” a voice called from the front of the shop.
    “Did you hear the door bell?” Val darted a glance at the others. They all shook their heads. Jason quickly moved back to back with Val. She placed her hand on the sword but didn’t want to pull it in case they were wrong. They made their way cautiously up the main aisle and as they were getting closer to the entrance the stranger called out again.
    “Hello, it’s Zac Efron here.”
    “Did he just say Zac Efron?” Jason looked at Val.
    She nodded and relaxed her stance, replacing her sword into her back pocket.
    “Hi Zac, what’s wrong?” Val made her way towards the counter.
    “We have a