Four Wheeled Hero by Malcolm Brown Page B

was desperate to try and find
his father, so the two boys headed in the direction of the office
from which the crooks had emerged. On reaching it Smithy opened the
door slowly and quietly just in case there were any surprises
waiting for them. With the door open just a little Smithy stuck his
head in to take a look around.
     
    ‘There’s no one
here’, he said opening the door wider to allow Tommy to enter.
     
    ‘He must be
here’, pleaded Tommy getting a little worried for the safety of his
Dad.
     
    No sooner had
he said it than the boys heard a sound coming from behind a door at
the back of the room. The boys moved slowly over and Tommy placed
his ear to the door.
     
    ‘There’s
someone in there’, he whispered so as not to be overheard by
whoever was behind the door. ‘We had better open it to find out who
it is’, Tommy added as he slowly turned the handle.
     
    The door swung
open and there in the middle of the room was Tommy’s Dad bound hand
and foot and tied to a chair. He had tape over his eyes preventing
him from seeing his kidnappers so he could not identify anyone at a
later date. Tommy and Smithy looked on speechless their hearts
jumping with joy at seeing Tommy’s Dad.
     
    ‘Who’s there’,
said Tommy’s Dad. ‘Come on I know there’s someone there’, he
added.
     
    Smithy was
about to move forward when Tommy suddenly grabbed his arm while at
the same time putting his finger to his lips to indicate that
    Smithy should
not say a word. Tommy then took hold of the door handle and closed
the door.
     
    ‘What are you
doing’, Smithy asked in a low voice. ‘I thought we came here to
rescue your Dad, so let’s go and set him free’.
     
    ‘We can’t’,
Tommy replied in a whisper. ‘If we do that we’ll have to explain
everything, how we got here, how we overcame the crooks etc.
     
    ‘Your right’,
said Smithy now looking a little disappointed at not being able to
play the big hero.
     
    ‘We will have
to hide outside the building and call the police to take care of
the crooks and release my Dad’, Tommy said just as disappointed as
Smithy.
     
    The boys headed
back along the walkway heading for the stairs. Looking down into
the ‘Stuffing Department’ they were just in time to see the crooks
heading into the ‘COVERING ROOM’. The machines had done a good job
of stuffing the crooks mattresses as they were now tightly jammed
into their wire prisons with stuffing sticking out of every part of
their clothing including their mouths.
     
    Tommy recalled
his legs and the boys were soon out of the building and out through
the wire fence which Tommy welded back together. Moving around to
the front of the factory Tommy and Smithy took up positions across
the road hidden in a shrubby before Smithy pulled out his Mum’s
mobile phone and dialled 999.
     
    ‘Police, Fire
Brigade or Ambulance’, asked the operator.
     
    ‘Police’, said
Smithy in as grown up voice as he could manage.
     
    ‘Braodacre
Police here, how can we help you’, said the voice on the other end
of the phone.
     
    ‘I think
there’s a robbery going on at Goodnight Mattresses on the Broadacre
Industrial Estate’, Smithy said finding it difficult to continue
speaking in such a low voice. ‘I’ve heard screams coming from
inside which sounded like someone was being murdered’, he added to
make them give the call a little more priority.
     
    ‘Can I take a
few details about yourself’, the Policeman asked.
     
    ‘No you jolly
well can’t’, replied Smithy. ‘I don’t wish my name to be known in
case they try and murder me in my bed for reporting them’, he added
just before pressing the button that would cut their
communication.
     
    Five minutes
later all hell broke loose as police cars with sirens blazing came
in all directions to squeal to a halt in front of the factory
gates. In no time at all the police had cut through the chain on
the gates and they were spreading all over the outside of