CHERUB: Class A - Robert Muchamore Page 0,23

Junior a few paces behind.
The security guard in the store opposite had seen the whole show and came after them. When James glanced back over his shoulder, the guard was shouting into his walkie-talkie, requesting back-up.
‘You tit,’ Junior shouted, as shoppers dived out of their way. ‘What a great plan.’
James couldn’t work out what he’d done wrong. Two security guards came out of a department store up ahead, blocking their path and forcing them to cut into a women’s clothing store. A woman with a buggy went flying into a display of leggings as James crashed into her. The store was crammed with rails of clothing that brushed against James as he ran. Junior stumbled. One of the security guards got a hand on him, but he spun away and recovered his balance.
James burst out of the fire exit at the back of the shop, setting off another alarm. He’d hoped the door would lead out on to the street, but he’d emerged into the central concourse of the shopping centre. There was a big fountain and a stand where they did temporary exhibitions. The yellow banner hanging over the exhibition stand sent James into shock:

BEDFORDSHIRE POLICE THEFT PREVENTION SQUAD.

FIND OUT HOW TO PROTECT YOUR

HOME AND CAR FROM CRIME.

There was a long fold-out table, with three policemen behind it handing out crime prevention leaflets.
‘Holy shit,’ Junior gasped, stopping in his tracks.
With the police up ahead and security guards behind, their chances looked about nil. James considered surrendering, but Junior noticed a door with a toilet sign a few metres away and barged it open. He led James down a narrow corridor, with six pairs of men’s shoes clattering after them. They passed the entrance to the ladies’ toilet and crashed through a fire door, into the dim confines of a multistorey car park.
They sped towards the lift, but there was no time to wait for it. Instead, they scrambled on to the staircase and ran down, leaping three steps at a time, fuelled by adrenalin. James twisted his ankle, but he didn’t have time to think about the pain, or the fact that if he tumbled he’d smash his head open on bare concrete.
The policemen were more cautious on the stairs and the boys had gained ground by the time they booted open a set of doors that led into a sunlit alleyway. There were massive steel bins and boxes of rubbish piled around them. They clambered over everything, reaching the front of the shopping centre as the police emerged through the doors at the bottom of the stairs. The security guards had given up.
There was a pedestrian crossing, with two lanes of waiting traffic. James saw the green man flashing and they made a dash for it. They ran into the outdoor car park, crouching low and jogging between the bumpers of two lines of parked cars.
The police got stranded on the other side of the road, waiting for the lights to change. One cop tried to stop the traffic with a hand signal and nearly got splattered by a motorbike. By the time the cops had halted the traffic and made it across, James and Junior were crouching behind a car a hundred metres away.
The three cops stood on the pavement by the car park, staring hopelessly at row after row of parked cars. The boys kept low until they came to the far side of the car park. They pushed themselves through shrubs, emerging on to the narrow pavement beside a fast-moving dual carriageway. Junior started to run.
‘WHOAH,’ James said. ‘Keep cool.’
Junior turned around. ‘What?’
‘Walk,’ James said. ‘It looks less dodgy if we’re spotted.’
They walked nervously for twenty minutes, looking back over their shoulders and having miniature heart attacks every time they spotted a white car. When they noticed a bus coming, they sprinted to the stop and hopped on. They went upstairs and sat at the back, well away from the other passengers. James finally felt safe.
‘Sorry about that,’ he said breathlessly. ‘You’re not pissed off with me, are you?’
Junior burst out laughing. ‘That was mental. The look on those cops’ faces when we lost ’em. Oh man …’

‘I’m an idiot,’ James said. ‘You know what I did? When I put the games in, I must have pushed the foil down the bag so it wasn’t covering them over.’
‘Who cares now?’ Junior grinned. ‘Gimme, gimme, gimme.’
James unzipped his pack and pulled out nine Playstation games. Junior read out the price stickers.
‘Forty, forty, twenty-five, thirty-five.