The Crystal Diary - Me (best book club books for discussion .TXT) 📗

about him. I got Rebecca to tell me a little bit about him. If we capture him, he could lead us right to the state treasury. Think how glad you will be that you listened to me. Then I promise that you may do what ever you like with the remainders of the Oxford family.”

“How did you get your “friend” to tell you anything about her without making her suspicious that you were a snoop or something?”

“You seem rather interested in the methods I use,” My deceitful guardian snapped. “Besides, the reason I called you here was to lay out our plan for getting into the treasury. Let me handle the information gathering you make a better kidnapper and thief.”

“And just how do you propose to get the little wimp to tell us where her dad is?”

A pistol cocked in the room and I looked inside out of curiosity to a brown wig lying on the floor along with a collection of many types of guns that looked like they were from the army. Black suitcases full of various things that a every villain would need for every possible purpose. My guardian‘s real features were the biggest surprise of all. Instead of the so-called Thelma Tustin, the most wanted woman in America--Minet Reginal, sat on a bed only five feet away from me. Her beauty was as deceptive as that of a rattlesnake. Her jet-black hair, high cheekbones and beautiful green eyes could make any man faint. There were even stories about how she was able to set any object on fire just by staring at it which I doubt is true. But still she was very dangerous.

Anyway she had a gun pointed at her own henchman and was wearing a black, frustrated look. She starred at him out from heavily mascara painted eyes.

“You agreed to do this job my way, using my methods, and not questioning the way I handle my victims. I told you before I will take care of the crystal and the diary, and I will not tolerate any more questioning from you-- do I make myself perfectly clear?” Pete or what ever his real name is hesitated, and then nodded. Minet smiled and put her gun back up her sleeve.

“Good; because I can always get myself another sidekick remember that.”

“What do you want to go over with me boss?” The henchman asked in a more submissive tone. And they began to take out papers and talk in very low voices that I couldn’t make out. Without a sound I swung away down the carpeted floor. My mind was full of shock and disbelief, Thelma or eh… Minet was my worst enemy and Dad’s. How would I get away from this horrid fate? I was a cripple with two bad legs and crutches, easy prey. How would I survive unless…………………. Wait! could I try to walk, it would probably be easier now that I had unbreakable bones. I reached my room and locked it quickly hoping that Minet and Pete’s meeting would be a long one. I would have to reteach myself to walk, take a search through mom’s room for extra money, then throw some clothes in a bag along with mom’s diary, and slip out the door without being noticed. I swung over to my bed and sat on the edge while yanking off my backpack. I slowly put it down on the floor and decided that I had to do it now. I had to walk no matter how hard it was, no matter how much it hurt. I lay down the crutches across the bed and set my feet down on the floor. My feet felt steady but when I stood my legs felt like lead. I balanced myself against the backboard of my bed and took my first step. I nearly fell but caught myself, I tried again then I again I fell and was left kneeling on my knees. Then I finally realized why I kept falling, I looked up toward heaven.

“God,” I whispered, “please help me to stand, please help me to live through this day.” After praying I felt stronger and rose to my feet without the help of my bed. I breathed deeply and took my first step and my entire body moved as easily as if I hadn’t been injured at all. I walked all around the room and had felt as strong as ever. I looked up at heaven.

“Thank you God,” I whispered. Then I heard much to my horror the two villains in the hall, but thankfully they were walking in opposite direction as my room. I heard them soon walk back into their room and sighed with relief. I searched around the room for some kind of temporary suitcase then looked at my backpack, it was perfect for a carrying case and better yet it was just an ordinary backpack that was fairly small and not recognizable. I pulled my textbooks out and stacked them into a fairly neat pile.

Then I took three pairs of jeans and six tops out of my dresser and stuffed them in my pack. Then not hearing anyone I bent down next to my nightstand and brought the diary out of its hiding place and stuck it in a separate compartment.

After I poked my head outside the door to make sure that the conman and woman meeting was still in session I walked into mom’s former room and shut the door. It was stuffy and desperately needed airing out. I walked over to mom’s nightstand where she used to keep her money then I remembered that Minet had already gone through mom’s things.

Well there’s no harm in looking anyway, maybe she didn’t have time to go through the dresser. I reasoned and prayed as I opened the first drawer and found the brown cash box undisturbed. I opened the box and counted the money.

$100,000!! That should be enough to get me anywhere I need to go, I confirmed. After stuffing the cash in my pocket I wondered where I should go. All my relatives lived in Wisconsin and I didn’t know them and they didn’t know me. Then I remembered my dad’s letter and knew where I was going. Albany here I come! I confirmed as I walked out of mom’s room. Then to my horror heard Minet walk close to her bedroom door.

“I ‘ll get myself some coffee and come back. What do you mean you still don’t understand? Here, I will go over this with you one last time.”

I had no time to lose over being relieved and walked quickly out of the hall. Out of what was once my home I shut the door and ran to the nearest elevator. I banged on the down button furiously and then heard Pete’s voice near the door then a loud bang. Then all was quiet, Minet must have lost her temper and decided to dispose of her disobedient, ignorant sidekick.

I forgot all pain, and when the stubborn elevator didn’t rise I ran to the stairs. I all most tripped over most of them and their spiral shape nearly made my dizzy head faint. Fear swallowed me; I didn’t feel safe until I was out the door, ignoring many curious people ‘s stares. It wasn’t until I reached the bus stop that I realized how much pain I was in from running. I sat down panting heavily as though I had run three miles when in reality I had only ran a block.

Chapter 8
My Journey’s Beginning

I was so afraid that Thelma or Minet was close behind, and was relieved when the bus came. Many people pushed in front of me and the bus driver only saw me when he was about to shut the bus door. He opened it again and told me as if I were a toddler that this was a public bus and I needed money to ride.

“I know that, how much does it cost?”

“More than you have got.” I held two twenty dollar bills up and waved them in the air astonishing him and the other bus people.

“Fine, climb aboard kid.” The bus driver muttered and it encouraged me to flash him a sassy smile. The bus was nearly full and the only seat that I could find was at the very back listening to people talk. At least I was far away from Minet Reginal though, and could read mom’s diary in peace. Soon I was swallowed up in reading moms diary. One entry after another grabbed my attention but if I described them this story would be rather boring. I took out dad’s letters and began to read one after another. None them provided any more information on where he was to be found. I decided not to read anymore diary entries until I was one hundred percent out of Minet ‘s reach.

At last the bus stopped at the train station, I got out and searched the crowd for signs of Minet in case she had somehow followed me. When no shouts, screams, or gunshots were heard I mixed with the wave of people to discourage snoops from starring at and wondering what I was doing away from my family. If anyone was curious they certainly didn’t show it, every one was talking causing me to barely hear my own voice. Businessmen in variously colored suits were carrying big briefcases and the crowd of people inside the station were so thick Minet wouldn’t have been able to see me if she tried.

I elbowed and shoved my way to the nearest train schedule and found that the soonest train that left for Albany left in thirty minutes. I hoped that Minet, or whoever she was walking around as, wasn’t anywhere close to the train station. A half an hour gave her plenty of time to send the authorities