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pistol.
I’ve never seen one in real life but I’ve seen them on the TV in action movies
, thought Shakespeare.
Not only is he a horrible man. He’s armed and dangerous!
    ‘This one does look more promising,’ said Sophie as they approached the hole in the ground. There was a rickety fence built round the mineshaft to stop anyone accidentally wandering in. ‘That horrible man isn’t around to tell us off, and look, there’s a rope dangling over the edge. Looks like someone’s put it there so you can climb down.’
    Ben was already over the fence and peering into the black hole. ‘Hellooo,’ he yelled, his voice disappearing into the blackness.
    ‘Helloooo,’ echoed Ollie, standing next to his brother.
    Ben knelt down and grabbed the rope. It was tied securely to one of the fence posts. ‘And it’s a new rope,’ he said excitedly, ‘so it’s dead safe.’
    He was shocked as a head poked out of the hole. ‘Yup,’ said the lady, smiling as she hauled herself out of the hole. ‘Perfectly safe.’
    ‘Crikey,’ said Ben. ‘We weren’t expecting anyone to actually be down the mine!’
    ‘I’m a rock climber and caver,’ said the lady, holding her hand out to shake Ben’s. ‘Jess Bradley.’
    ‘Hi, Jess,’ said Ben, looking her up and down.
She was dressed in brightly coloured survival gear. She took off her helmet and removed her backpack with a sigh of relief. ‘I’ve been exploring these mines for the last couple of days,’ she said. ‘It’s tiring work!’
     

     
    ‘You’re nicer than the other person we just met,’ said Ollie. ‘He was really horrid.’
    Jess’s mood seemed to change in an instant. ‘What other person?’ she asked, looking left and then right, her eyes darting around.
    ‘A horrible man with tattoos,’ piped up Ollie.
    ‘When did you see him?’ she barked, her fear transferring to the kids.
    ‘Ten minutes ago,’ said Ben. ‘Why? What’s wrong?’
    ‘Quick, kids,’ warned Jess, ‘follow me.’ She skipped through the wet grass towards a cluster of trees, the children in hot pursuit. They reached the hiding place, breathless. ‘Down,’ she ordered, just as the man’s head bobbed over
the hill. Jess and the children lay flat, their heads poking out of the grass as the man approached the deserted mine.
    ‘Who is he?’ hissed Sophie as the man climbed over the fence and tugged at the rope. ‘He said he knew the mines like the back of his hand.’
    ‘Haven’t you heard the news?’ whispered Jess. ‘There’s an escaped prisoner. Yesterday. From a maximum security prison. Distracted the guards and climbed over the wall. The first one ever to escape.’
    The children gulped as the man took off his backpack and rummaged inside. ‘And the prison is only five miles from here,’ hissed Jess. There’ve been police helicopters and everything.’
    Ben’s eyes were wide as he remembered it hovering over them this morning. ‘We saw it,’ he mouthed. ‘What do you know about the prisoner?’
    ‘Very dangerous,’ mouthed back Jess, pointing towards the man. ‘I saw it on the news this morning. The police warned the public not to approach him.’
    ‘It might not be him,’ suggested Ollie. ‘What’s the description?’
    ‘Tattoos,’ hissed Jess. ‘And a gun.’
    All eyes went back to the man whose tattooed arms were reaching into his backpack. Ben gulped as he pulled out a revolver. He stuffed it into his belt and prepared to go down into the disused mine.
     

     

9. Trapped!
    The tattooed man gripped the rope and disappeared into the mine, the pistol tucked into his belt and a torch between his teeth. Shakespeare had watched enough cop shows to know that he was now up to his neck in his very first proper spy mission.
    The lady and the children had panic etched on their faces. Shakespeare ignored the flash of protectiveness that swept over him. He was getting carried away by the danger of the moment – this was all about the mission and being able