Fortune Cookie by Jean Ure Page A

with it.”
    â€œYeah? Well, I don’t want no questions. OK? Hermum asks where it’s gone, you say you lost it. You don’t bring me into it. You got that?”
    I said that we had. “What about the money?”
    â€œAll in good time,” said Shane. “Don’t push your luck.”
    â€œBut w—”
    â€œI said, don’t push your luck!” He suddenly plunged his hand into the back pocket of his jeans, causing both of us to spring backwards, in a panic. I distinctly heard Cupcake go, “Eek!” I don’t think I squealed, though I may have done.
    â€œHere’s your poxy money! Where’s the ring?”
    I felt quite faint with relief. He was actually holding out a wodge of notes! I grabbed them from him and shoved them at Cupcake.
    â€œCount it!” I said.
    â€œTrust me,” said Shane, “it’s all there. Now, gimme the goods!”
    By now, we’d reached the top floor. The doors had opened, and to my huge relief a couple of people weregetting in. I bent down to fiddle with my shoe, scooping out the ring and slipping it into Shane’s hand as I stood up. He grunted.
    â€œJust remember,” he hissed, as we reached his floor, “if you’ve bin having me on I’ll be back!”
    I knew he would. But as I said to Cupcake, we hadn’t been having him on, so there was nothing to worry about.
    â€œWe’ve got the money and Cookie can have his operation!”

CHAPTER EIGHT
    Â Now that we had the money, I was all for rushing straight back to Cupcake’s place to give it to her mum. She would be so relieved! And Joey would be so happy. I couldn’t wait to see his face! It was Cupcake who stopped me. She pointed out that if we gave the money to her mum now, on a Sunday evening, her mum wouldwant to know where we’d got it from.
    â€œWe could always tell her I got it.”
    â€œShe’d still want to know where it came from.”
    â€œWe could say… one of my grans gave it to me?”
    â€œAnd then what happens next time my mum talks to your mum? They’re always talking! She’d say how kind of your gran, and your mum would say what do you mean, and then my mum’d—”
    â€œYeah, OK!” I waved a hand, suddenly impatient. I knew that she was talking sense. Her mum would be suspicious, the way grown-ups are. And if we told her the truth, that Cookie had sicked up the ring and we’d sold it to our friendly neighbourhood thug, she’d go tearing round to my mum and dad in a fit of panic. Then my mum and dad would get in a panic. It would be “ What have you done ?” And “ Dani, how could you ?” Mum would tell me off for even just talking to Shane.
    â€œYou know that boy’s no good!”
    Dad would probably want to go thundering upstairs to threaten him. He’s got a temper, my dad. He oncetold Shane if he didn’t stop revving his bike at 11 o’clock at night he’d knock his block off.
    I looked at the wodge of notes Cupcake was holding. Rather lamely, I said, “So what d’you think we should do?” It’s not very often I’m at a loss for ideas; I’m usually the one coming up with them. I’m usually buzzing with them. But now we’d actually got the money it was like my brain had gone and shut down. That’s it! Finish!
    â€œ I think…” Cupcake said slowly, working things out, “I think we should tell Mum we’re going to do that thing we were talking about… that sitting still thing? We’ll tell her people are going to sponsor us for every minute we manage not to move.”
    I said, “ Yesss! ”
    â€œBut I think,” said Cupcake, “that we’d really have to do it, cos otherwise it would be like telling lies. I know we probably wouldn’t make any actual money, but that doesn’t matter now. We don’t need to make any money. It’s