Zac ran into the music room and stared at his brothers.
"There you are! Why aren't you ready yet?" he hissed. "They'll be here soon!"
"Who'll be here?"
"Aaron, Pete, Mike, Troy, Tracy, Daphne, Stella, Nikki and Paul," Zac nodded. "For the... thing... y'know... T. A. D."
"It's happening today? Since when?"
"Since when? I've only been... oh, don't tell me I forgot to tell you?" Zac sighed. "Oh well, we'll have to improvise. Some noise please Ikers."
Isaac shook his head in disgust and played a few more instruments telekinetically.
"The lowdown is this - usual meeting place unavailable, and we have to have a meeting because of some new developments. Don't worry what the new developments are right now, that'll come up in due time. Our last proper meeting was after the tornado when Tad wasn't around."
"Okay. I know how Aaron, Pete, Mike and Troy are... but the rest of them?"
"Friends of mine."
"Should we be worried?"
"Just play along. It won't involve anything distasteful to your virgin senses."
"And are we supposed to know who they are? I've never met your friends."
"Well, yes," Zac said thoughtfully. "But if we don't do any introductions, and you don't actually use any names, we should be good."
Taylor
"So wait, what are we doing?" Taylor tried to get a grasp on things.
"Where in the house are we holding this thing - away from the kids mind you. And being able to talk fluently without knowing what we're talking about? Why didn't we organise this before?"
Zac and Isaac
"Oh, umm yeah, okay well we're a gang," Zac said. "We're into stealing stuff and selling it to rich people who like having private collections of national treasures and stuff. Bit of smuggling. Blackmail. Whatever. Not going to talk about past exploits unless it's something like, 'remember that job back in '98?' or 'that job in Tempe'. Vagueness. Don't want to think of specific things that happened and find out it was the wrong thing to say because Tad know about about what really happened or something. The topic of discussion is current events. Make stuff up. You've gotten some information on a Mr X about a certain daughter of his and whatever. Don't worry, the guys know what's up. Follow their lead."
"So, what you're saying is improvise?"
"Exactly."
"I think we're going to need more than this."
Zac sighed.
"The major development is that we think there are spies in our midst. We're not interesting in murdering people, but this may be a case of preserving ourselves, blah, blah, blah. Oh, Ella's going to keep an eye on the kids, and Saku is going to keep an eye on Tad. Y'know trying to keep him from listening in without actually preventing him."
Taylor
"Ok then..." Taylor murmured, strumming his guitar again.
"When are we expecting them here?"
Zac
Zac looked at his watch.
"Oh, about ten minutes," he said casually. "So, Ike, you may wanna get out of your PJs."
Isaac gave a mock sigh.
"Do I have too?"
"Yes."
Taylor
"Ten minutes?" Taylor growned, putting the guitar down and delaying having to get up.
"Great advanced notice thing you've got going there, Zac."
Isaac and Zac
"Hey, I thought I told you! I didn't remember that I forgot to tell you. It happens," Zac mumbled.
"Yes because it's easy to forget to tell people things when you live in the same house as them," Isaac commented.
"Well, in case you've forgotten there is a certain other person living here that we don't want to overhear. So remembering at the right moment is easier said than done. I'll meetcha's downstairs."
And on that, Zac bounded out of the room. Isaac looked at Taylor.
"I suppose I should get changed."
Taylor
"You and me both," Taylor sighed, finally getting up.
"We weren't exactly expecting company. Guess I'll meet you somewhere when we're done."
Isaac, Tad and Zac
Isaac nodded and headed to his room.
Meanwhile, Tad was looking at all the food set out in the dining room.
"Planning a party?" he asked of Zac, spotting him entering the room.
"Something like that," Zac replied cheerfully. "You wouldn't mind having a night off would you?"
"I think I'll stay here."
"Pity. Oh, there's the doorbell."
Zac turned and bounded off to the front door, and swung it open.
"Greetings!" he said. "Come on in. Beware of the puppy."
Tad, who had discreetly follow, frowned. There wasn't any dogs here, what was Zac talking about? Or maybe he was just being stupid again.
Taylor
Taylor came down the stairs when he was ready, hearing the voices of their guests just as soon.
He grinned when he recognised a few and made his way in to where they were.
"Hey guys," he greeted, "long time no see."
Isaac, Zac and Tad
"Food in the lounge," Zac said.
"Cool," said Paul. "But we should get started as soon as everyone arrives, man. This is majorly important."
"Well, if it wasn't we wouldn't be having it here and now," Zac nodded. "Especially with puppy hanging around."
"Puppy? What's with the puppy?" Tad thought to himself. "There are no dogs here. What or who is he - oh."
Tad remembered that had been what Christian had called him in the past. Zac must've picked it up. Well, well - obviously they didn't want him to be there - good thing he had hidden himself.
"Hey guys," Isaac said, coming down the stairs. "Everyone here yet?"
"Naw, still a couple to get here yet," Zac nodded.
Taylor
"Just missing... a few," Taylor seemed distracted.
In reality he was just wondering what the heck they were going to do.
He sat himself down in the living room and grabbed something to eat.
Isaac, Zac, Saku and Tad
"Okay, cool," Isaac said.
He sat down and also raided the food.
"Hey, save some for later," Paul said, with a grin.
"First in, first serve," was Isaac's response.
Zac stayed at the door, waiting for the rest to arrive. Meanwhile Saku took it upon himself to pounce on Tad.
"Hey!" he yelled. "Stupid cat."
For that Saku hissed at Tad and swiped at him, claws out.
Oh great, now everyone knew he was there. Annoyed, Tad figured he should leave the scene - given that he believed that this little get together was something he didn't think they wanted him to witness (all the more reason to). No matter, he would return.
Taylor
Taylor looked up toward the doorway when he heard Tad's yell, then smirked and flashed his brothers a grin.
"Trust Mike and Aaron to be late," he murmured, reaching forward for more food.
Zac, Saku and Tad
"Ah ha! About time you guys got here," Zac said as Aaron and Mike walked up the path. "We've been waiting."
"That sounds omnious," Mike responded.
Zac cackled evilly.
"Zac?"
"Yes Aaron?"
"Don't do that."
It wasn't long before the lot of them settled down to the meeting. Saku was playing a mock game of hide and seek with Tad. Tad always trying to get away from Saku and listen in, and Saku (who of course, knew that they wanted Tad to listen in), harrassing him every now and then just to make him think that he had been asked to distract him.
"Okay, to business," said Pete.
"Wow," murmered Daphne, "You don't leave much time to chit chat, do you?"
"This is important," Pete insisted. "Look, we all wanted to know why our last operation went down the tube."
"Maybe it's because we called it Operation Tube," Zac joked.
"Very funny."
"Well, we did."
"And who came up with that name anyway?"
"Stella."
"Me?" Stella looked up innocently (because, of course, she hadn't excepted to get nominated).
"Yeah, you."
"Yeah, well, well, well..." she looked around the lounge room, "there were TVs involved."
Taylor
"And a great many of them," Taylor's eyebrows rose, starting to get nervous at the company but trying not to show it.
"The point is..." Pete went on, "we need to work out what went wrong so it doesn't happen again. Now, all signs point to someone ratting us in. I mean do you really think it was a coincidence authorities happened to rock up just at that time?"
Isaac and Zac
"So, where do you start looking for a rat?" asked Tracy.
"You don't. You build a trap," Mike nodded.
"I know this sounds like the simple answer," Isaac spoke up, "but are we sure we didn't just trigger a slient alarm?"
"No way man," said Paul, punching his fist in his hand, "I had that place worked out. We'd gotten past everything - there was no silent alarms."
"Okay, so a rat. But who?" Zac asked.
Taylor
"Who else knew?" Taylor sat back with a frown.
"There was only us, unless one of you told someone," Pete insisted.
Aaron raised his hand sheepishly.
"I told my girlfriend, but I swear she wouldn't tell anyone."
Zac and Isaac
"You told your girlfriend," Zac said slowly. "Right... anyone else tell any outsiders?"
"Stella babbles when she's drunk," Troy offered helpfully.
Stella whacked him.
"And we all know how often Stella gets drunk."
Stella whacked him again. In truth, Stella didn't drink.
"Okay, so Aaron told his girl, Stella might have babbled when drunk," Zac said, trying to hide the smile that was threatening to form on his face. "Anyone else?"
"What about Kylie?" Isaac suggested. "I'm not saying that any of us would have told her, but let's face it, there is a possibility she could be a snoop."
"Great, so we have two security risks in this house? Fantastic."
Taylor
"Did Kylie have a problem with it before?" Taylor asked, "because if she thought you weren't spending enough time with her or something she could have tried to bring us all down."
"Same goes for Aaron's girlfriend though," Pete shrugged.
Zac
"Well, if we had gotten caught and everything, we could have been put in jail," Zac said. "So if they thought that by taking us down we'd be able to spend more time with them, then that plan would fail horribly."
"I like the Stella babbling idea myself," Troy said.
"Do you want me to hit you again?" Stella threatened.
"Yes, baby, hit me. Hit me good."
Stella pulled a face, then grinned charmingly.
"Well, if you insist I can kick you in the balls."
Troy prompted stood and moved to the otherside of the room. Stella chuckled.
"But seriously guys, this is a problem," Pete said. "I... I hesistate to suggest this, because we've all known each other for so long... could... could one of us be a tratior?"
Taylor
"It would more of a case for revenge," Taylor defended his case.
"I don't think any one of us would blab," Nikki said suddenly, "seriously, what would we gain from it? We're all friends here. We have to watch each others' backs."
Isaac and Zac
"Very true," Isaac agreed with Nikki.
"Okay, revenge I can understand. Kylie has plenty of reasons ot hate me, but then I hate her," Zac nodded.
"And yet, you slept with her," Paul pointed out.
"We were bored. I didn't think she would become this much of an obsessed, posessive bitch."
"Boredom," Isaac shook his head. "Yeah, there's a good reason for sleeping with someone."
"I think it is," Troy said cheerfully.
"That's because you're a freak," Daphne nodded.
"Guys, guys, this isn't helping," Pete said. "Okay, we've come to the conclusion that we have no idea - no real idea - of who the rat is. So..."
"Do up security? Set a trap?" Aaron suggested.
Taylor
"I say we set a trap," Taylor agreed, "it won't be that hard."
"Maybe for that job we have scheduled in a fortnight?" Pete suggested, "have you got the place sussed out?"
"Indeed I have," Paul nodded.
Zac
"Okay, so what kind of trap?" Zac asked. "Each of us give out false information?"
"What kind of flase information?"
"Entry points or soemthing? I don't know."
"What about in Stella's case? Y'know her getting drunk, she might blab that what she's telling them is false information," Troy suggested cheekily.
Stella eyed him from the otherside of the room with a dark expression.
Taylor
"Well we could leave Stella's as the truth," Nikki suggested softly, "and everyone else have a different one. The place is pretty big, yes?"
"It's pretty big, I mean there's a lot of stuff," Taylor scratched his chin.
Zac and Isaac
"Yeah, but if it is the truth," Zac said, "and it turns out that Stella babbling while drunk is how the information is getting out... then we'll get caught."
Stella moved her glare to Zac.
"Hey, it's logical."
"He has a point," Mike said.
"How about I stay sober?" Stella beamed.
"Really, Stella," Troy piped up. "An alcoholic like you? Suggesting you stay sober?"
Troy started laughing.
"Alcoholic my foot."
"Denial! She's in denial!"
"Doesn't look wet to me," Isaac joked. "Get it? Denial? The Nile?"
"That was lame."
"Uhh, guys? Hello?" said Pete. "We have a rat to catch. Zac, how about, Stella being given the truth, we can just say that the plan is subject to change at the last minute? In fact we should do that anyway."
Taylor
"Ok, so..." Taylor leant forward, "I say we each nominate an entrance point. Then something like hours before we call around or meet up and pick a certain one for real. I don't know that I'm going to make it, so I can choose it randomly and let you guys know..."
Isaac and Zac
"Holding out on us, huh?" Tracy said. "How do we know there isn't a traitor and you're it? Probably set us up, and you won't be there when they - "
"Hey," Zac objected. "No need for wild accusations, Tracy. We've been at this for years and no one been accused of being a traitor before."
"First time for everything."
"Guys, please," Isaac frowned.
"I'm not a guy," Tracy replied. "And you're brothers, for all we know you could be in on it too."
"Trace, stop being a snit," Daphne cut in. "Not all of us have been at every raid. I was going to say I'd sit this one out too. Were you going to call me a traitor too?"
"If the shoe fits -"
"Tracy!" Pete objected. "C'mon girl!"
"Sorry. But that cop almost got me. You can understand I'd be a little sore," and Tracy glared at them.
"We have to can this petty bickering," Isaac said. "Seriously! Okay, how about everyone who sits out decides? I sincerely doubt that there's a group of us conspiring against the others."
Taylor
"Seriously, we'd be in more danger if I came," Taylor insisted, voice low but still loud enough for Tad to hear.
"And we can't afford for questions to be asked. So who else is sitting this one out? Just me and her?"
Zac and Isaac
Zac winced at Taylor use of 'her'. Well, albiet he didn't know her name, but still...
"Okay, see, now, I want to know," Tracy said. "C'mon, what's so bad that you -"
"Now, now, Trace," Zac cut in. "All of us from time to time have sat stuff out because we would have hindered the operation. Taylor has an unfortunate but, ahh, temporary medical problem at the moment. You wouldn't want him to have a seizure or something in the middle of the shibang."
Tracy chewed her lip.
"Oh, sorry," she said, suitable rebuked. "Anything we can do?"
"No," Isaac said. "It'll pass."
"Okay," said Mike. "I have here a map of the complex."
And Mike put on the coffee table a reasonably large sheet of paper with a number of boxes drawn on it. Along with the boxes was writing, and the writing (instead of saying sensible things like what the rooms were supposed to be), said things like "Mike is the hotest guy ever", "Nikki has a nice rack" and "Zac smells like a monkey's bum". There were comments about everyone on it.
Taylor
Taylor gave Zac a glance when he noticed the look on his face, but chose to ignore it.
"Ok, everyone choose an entry point," he insisted, leaning forward again.
Zac
"Well," said Mike, seriously. "I'll go there."
He pointed to the spot where it said "Mike is the hotest guy ever".
"Okay," said Zac, grabbing a pen to write on the paper. "Mike here."
But he actually wrote "NOT!" Then he moved to the spot where his name was.
"And I pick this spot," he went on.
And he crossed out what Mike wrote about him. Smells like a monkey's bum indeed.
"Okay," said Tracy, reaching out for the pen. "I'll go here."
And following Zac's lead, she changed the comment that Mike had written about her from "Tracy is a snot" to "Tracy is a shot"
Taylor
Taylor waited while the others chose, keeping his ears peeled for any noise from Tad's direction. But there was nothing.
When there was practically nothing left, he leant forward and tapped his fingers on the table.
"And I'll take that one," he said.
Zac and Isaac
"Hmm," Zac said.
He grabbed the pen and started writing something.
"Why do you need to pick one if you and Daph are deciding?" asked Aaron.
"Because we need to know if the info is leaking through us, duh," Daphne responded. "Done, Zac?"
Zac nodded and handed Daphne the pen. He had written "Tay = boring cos didn't even pick the spot with his name on it". After reading this, Isaac took the liberty of whacking him over the head.
Taylor
"Are we done?" Taylor's eyebrows rose.
"We did need to hurry this up."
Zac and Isaac
"Such impatience," Zac shook his head.
Daphne picked a random spot and wrote "You are such a knob, Zac".
"Yeah, we're done," she said.
"So, what happens next?" Nikki asked. "I mean, okay, someone rats... presumably the cops show up at such and such an entrance..."
"Well, we'll know from where the info leaked, won't we?" Mike said.
"Yeah, and then what? We give them - one of us - the third degree?"
"One thing at a time," Isaac advised.
Taylor
"The person who did this know's exactly what is at stake," Taylor said softly, as if not to be overheard at all.
"Punishment should be decided in due course. And it won't be pleasant."
Isaac
"Umm, I was thinking about how we were going to track them down from there," Nikki said. "I mean, it could be someone who lives in our household going through our stuff..."
"Although, punishment is a good point," said Aaron. "Seriously, what are we going to do? Kill them?"
"We've never taken a life before," Stella frowned.
"As Tay said," Isaac cut in. "Due course. The most appropriate way to deal with them may become self evident when we find out who."
Taylor
"Exactly," Taylor shrugged.
"As for people going through our stuff, this shouldn't be written down anywhere in the first place. If it's a telepath one of us has crossed paths with, it won't be hard to work out who. But if it's plain word of mouth, then at least we'll knnow who's leaking it."
Zac
"Taylor," Zac said plainly. "What do you call this?"
He pointed to the "map" on the table.
"Seriously, paperwork (whether electronic or actually on paper) tends to be neccesary during the job - even if we do destory if afterwards."
Taylor
"And what do you call this?" Taylor glared, flipping him the bird.
"We each have an amazing thing called a 'memory'. We destroy this now. No one needs to write it down again."
Isaac and Zac
"Oh no," Paul said. "Dude, you ain't going. I'd like to see you memorise all of this, and then try to break in. We have maps for a reason - the very reason why we're having this discussion - security."
"Guys, guys," Isaac interupted. "Lets not fight okay? Paul, we don't actually use the maps on the site - it's only you van guys who use 'em, and even then - you're in the van. Just stick the map in the van now - we've never had a break in in that."
"That's because it's got so much equipment in there that we have to keep it somewhere secure. Anyone finding that baby, and we're outta business," said Zac.
Zac
"Why are you so adamant about having this copy destroyed? What does it matter if the entrance points are marked? Only one of them is going to be used and anyone using a map without them marked will figure out where all the entrance points are anyway," Paul said. "And as Zac said, if anyone finds the van we're gone, so I think it's safe to say it doesn't matter if the map in there is marked or not. But if we keep this copy then we can confirm what we've memorised later when we're tracking down the rat."
"Well, whatever," Zac said. "I think we should bring this meeting to an end. That's assuming we've covered everything?"
They looked around.
"Yeah. I think so."
Taylor
Taylor rolled his eyes.
"We're done," he sighed, sitting back, casting a glance toward the doorway.
Tad, Zac and Saku
The meeting soon broke up after that.
Tad stayed in his vantage point while he watched everyone leave. He frowned, eyes on Stella as she left. Or rather, her bare shoulder - tattooed there was the Fudge Gang symbol.
So. All the Hansons were in this gang. The meeting had seemed a little disorganised, but hey, this was the fudge gang they were talking about here. Only to be expected.
The moment Tad thought the coast was clear, he left for his room where he would compile his notes. He decided to hold off on this report until he had more information.
Saku met up with his father and uncles.
"Where's Tad?" Zac asked.
"His room," Saku replied, eyes glinting. "I made sure he had plenty of time and opportunities to hear stuff."
"Great."
Taylor
"Great," Taylor nodded, mainly to himself.
He ran his fingers through his hair and looked around.
"I guess we should practise. After food, of course."
Zac and Isaac
"Sounds like a plan," Isaac nodded.
"Yes," Zac agreed. "And I promise next time I'll remember to fill you in beforehand."
"Next time?"
"You don't think I'm going to leave it at that little meeting? Oh no. There shall be more. He has not yet begun to look like a fool!"
Zac laughed evilly. Isaac looked at Taylor.
"I'm telling you," he said. "We've created a monster."