THIRD PERSON POV
"episode five - money"
THE POLICE WERE AROUND AT ELM TREE HOUSE. Did Tracy commit large amounts of credit card fraud again? Did Liam get into some sort of trouble with a random pedestrian? Maeve wasn't sure, but she wanted to know.
The adults would tell her, claiming it was nothing of her concern. Of course, Maeve knew this, but she was just nosey.
"Donovan," She began as she opened his door and walked straight in, "the police are here, did you know?"
She pauses when she see Liam suspiciously on his floor next to his bedside table. The both just stare at each other.
"What is going on here?" Maeve ask. She knew Liam was a bit weird, but he was practically elbow deep in the bottom of his bedside table.
Liam looked at back at her, he notices her outfit. Blue, baggy, mid-rise jeans with a red, slightly cropped tank top. And his jacket, she never gave it back.
His enemy was wearing his clothes, and yet, he didn't seem to mind.
"I, uh," He pauses before removing his arm from his table, "Thought I saw like a mouse or something."
Maeve shrugs before throwing herself onto his bed as he stands. "Did you know the police were here? i was just wondering if it was because of something you'd done, normal is." She adds.
The girl is too busy picking at her nails to notice the way the boys face had paled a little.
Liam tried to collect his thoughts for a minute. He was planning on telling her about the money him and some of the other had found in the garden at some point, most likely as a way to rub in that he's rich and shes not.
He thought he'd just tell her now, there's no way he was going to get away with it without her wanting some of the money but, he was willing to give a little up for her.
"Well-"
"House meeting!" Tracy shouts up the stairs.
Guess it's going to have to wait.
Everyone was sat in the living room. Liam was sat in Maeve's spot on the couch but she was quick to throw him off so he was sat next to her instead.
"We just want to know, did any of you see or hear anything unusual?" The police begin.
No reply.
"Tobes, you were in the garden weren't you?" Tracy calls out.
Toby leans forward slightly, "Well, I heard the sirens, and," he trails off.
"And then they stopped." Liam finishes for him, a smile on his face.
The police woman gives the two a pointed look, "I see."
"How much money are we talking about exactly?" Maeve asked the question everyone wanted to know. Well, she assumed it was everyone and not just her.
The male police office replied, "We really can't say."
"A grand? More than a grand?"
"Recovering the money is a priority." The woman interrupts.
Maeve takes this a sort of an answer, "More than a grand?" She was kinda excited and hit Liams shoulder.
Liam felt a little guilty. Maeve was excited about a thousand pounds. He could haven given her that considering his share of the money was a bit over a hundred thousand pounds.
"But our first priority is to keep you safe." The woman adds. "I don't want to frighten you, but there are some dangerous people looking for this money."
Frank leans down and hugs Carmen, "It's alright Carmen, don't be scared."
"Oh, it's okay, I'm not." Carmen laughs a little. Maeve frowned a bit, that was odd.
"So, if you see anything suspicious, tell Mr Milligan, and he will contact us." She concludes and the police leave the house.
Liam, Frank, and Carmen all leave the house to go into town. Nothing that concerned Maeve.
What did interest her though was a young man that her and Toby had just seen in the garden. Toby runs in screaming like he's been kidnapped as Maeve looks at the man.
He doesn't look like someone who would be involved in illegal activity. He looks well put together actually.
"Who are you?" She asks as she crosses her arms over her, "and why are you hiding in a bush?"
"I,uh, I got here a bit early," The man starts, "So i was just listening to some music."
He seems nice, and rather quite handsome.
"Early for-"
"Maeve, get up here." Mikes voice comes out with some urgency as Maeve sees him and Tracy at the top of the garden stairs, "Now."
Maeve had to laugh a little that the ladle in Tracy's hand and the broom in Mikes. She can only imagine what Toby told them when he ran inside.
The man quickly explained to Mike, Tracy, and Maeve that he was Toby's new social worker and it went smooth sailing. There was no way a gang member would be dressed in a blazer, let's be honest.
Mike hands the social worker, Seth, over to Toby and Tracy so they can give him a tour of the house. Toby's still convinced he's a gang member though.
Maeve was attempting to get a nap in. Today was one of those days were the house was just a bit quiet; Maeve concluded it was because Liam wasn't in.
"Maeve!" Toby whisper yelled as he slams her door open. It jolts the poor girl awake. "You've got to help me hide this bag!"
It's only then did Maeve notice the huge duffel bag in the younger boys hand.
Her face drops, "That better not be what I think."
"It is!"
Toby had a duffel bag stuffed full of money. The exact thing the police were looking for. "What do you mean hide it? Just hand it in." Maeve was rather confused.
"No! I know that Seth is the person the money belongs to, I just need to get proof."
"Toby, Seth isn't in a gang."
He makes sure the door is fully closed before going back to the girl, "I am supposed to keep this a secret but Seth has a tattoo on his arm," Social workers aren't really supposed to have tattoos, "It has to be a gang symbol."
Maeve was feeling a little bored today so she thought she'd just go along with it rather than try and ration with him.
"Yeah, sure, whatever." She pauses, "Wait, did Donovan know about this?"
Toby's face was guilty, "Maybe."
Maeve was going to kill that boy.
Toby and Maeve had a plan, kind of. They distracted Seth and Tracy by telling them the police were in the garden and they think they found the money. Once the two adults had left, the two children took Seth's phone that he had carelessly left on the kitchen table. It was time for a bit of snooping.
They made Gus take a secret note to Tracy, making sure that Seth didn't find out. They needed to talk to her in the toy cupboard immediately.
"Toby, Maeve, what is going on?" she questions as Toby shuts the door behind her.
"Check out Seth's phone!" Toby exclaims as Maeve passes the phone over.
Tracy takes it and looks, "Who's Killdog?" She almost laughs.
"That's Seth!" The paranoid boy continues, "That's what the K was on his tattoo."
Tracy looks over to Maeve slightly alarmed. "I'm not gonna snitch because of a tattoo, Trace." The younger girl holds her hands up in defence.
"Check out the texts from Axeman." Toby encourages.
"Still no sign of it mate, think one of the kids must have taken it. I could strangle the little-." Tracy cuts herself off from reading the rest of the text as she looks at the two children in shock. "What is all this about?"
"Seth's lying! He's the one in the gang, he's the one that took the money and he's come back to get it." Maeve pats the young boys shoulder as he rushes to finish his sentence.
"Guys, the moneys not here. The police have looked everywhere."
Toby looks at his older friend, Maeve looks at Tracy, "Not everywhere." Maeve had a smile on her face when saying this. She was mostly happy her day was getting more interesting.
The two kids carefully lead Tracy outside the house to the outside entrance of another basement. It was mostly where old outside toys were kept and a bunch of nicknacks.
Maeve opens the big door before walking in and uncovering the duffel bag of money. "Look what we found." She still had her smile.
Tracy's face goes into shock at seeing the wads of cash in the bag. "How much is in there?" She asks.
"I counted around a hundred thousand." Maeve replied nonchalantly, "That's only a section of it as well." She's less happy knowing that Liam had the same amount of money hidden is his room as the same time she was in there earlier.
"Toby?" The three spin around after hearing Seth's voice close by, he was coming down the stairs to the room they were in.
Tracy quickly moves and hides behind the door as the two kids stand in-front of Seth. He made his way towards them.
"Nobody needs to know about this." Seth says looking at the children, his voice low, "Just give me back my property."
Maeve was starting to actyally believe that Seth was in a gang now. She makes eye contact with Tracy.
Tracy moves from her hiding spot and shoved Seth to the ground before grabbing Maeve and Toby, pulling them out the door. She slams the door behind them and Maeve is quick to begin locking it.
Turns out pretty much all of the kids in the house knew about the money. Not only knew about it, but had their fair share of it. All Maeve got was practically cornered by a possible gang member because of the money she didn't even have a part of.
Tracy had the bag at the end of the kitchen table, the kids stood at the other end. "I know you're disappointed guys, but you've got no choice." Tracy tells them.
"What are you hoping for some reward from the police or something?" Sapphire argues.
"No? Of course not. Look i'm just saying, if the police don't catch you, the gang will."
Maeve kicks her feet up, pulling her, well Liams, jacket tighter around her. He notices.
"I cant believe none of you shared your money with me!" Maeve exclaims not being able to hold it in much longer, "I would have been good with just a twenty."
Toby walks back into the kitchen. He was outside on door watch, "All in favour of calling the police before Killdog breaks out of there?"
Maeve watches as all the younger members of the dumping ground raised their hand.
Tracy looks at Toby, "That's it then, we give the money back."
Gus enters the kitchen, "What money? Why are you all in here?"
Tracy sighs, "It's a long story, Gus."
He pulls out a chair and places his notebook down. Gus loves long stories.
All the residents handed back in their money. A little bit of it was missing from when a few went shopping, but out of the over six hundred thousand pounds, sure a little bit missing won't make much difference.
Tracy places the heavy bag on Mike and Gina's desk; Toby, Maeve, and Gus stood behind her.
The two adults seem to be just as shocked as Tracy was when she found out.
"Wha-." Gina cant even form words as she rummages through the bag. "What's this?"
Gus sits down, notebook open. "It's a long story."
It sure was a long story. Gus was telling the story in so much detail that even Maeve had forgotten, and she was there the whole time practically.
Mike and Gina called the police from earlier and everyone stood out front to watch them pull in.
The two of them seemed very rushed as they grabbed the bag aggressively and raced their car back out the driveway.
"They weren't cops, were they." It wasn't even a question Tracy said, it was a statement.
Luckily for them, Gus had read their car registration number before they left. He made sure to note it down in his story.
Maeve had almost forgotten about Seth as they unlocked the big door. Now they knew he wasn't the gang member for the money, they were quiet sure what he was.
"Tracy?" The man in questions asks when he sees the door open to reveal everyone. "Is this some kind of initiation process?"
"Seth." Tracy says, void of emotion, "Or is it Killdog?"
Seth shakes his head. "It's just an old nickname. Axeman won't let it drop."
"Axeman?" Mike calls from the top of the stairs.
The new social worker sighs, "My bass player in the band."
Sapphire twirls her hair a little, subconsciously, "You're in a band?"
Maeve looks to the floor as she tries to cover her laugh. She knew Sapphire would agree and think he was a handsome man.
"So what are these texts about then?" Tracy hands Seth his phone back; it's open to the messages Tracy was reading to Toby and Maeve earlier.
He laughs a little after reading, "Not that it's any of your business. We did a gig at a youth club friday night and Axeman's guitar went missing. He reckons one of the kids took it."
"Oh."
"Why? What do you think he meant?"
Gus steps forward, "It's a long story."
Maeve groans before leaning against the wall. She left as though she will never forget this day. Not because it was eventful, just because she's practically had to relive it about four times.
The group had moved into the landing of the house where Mike told them that he had called the police about the fake police. They were caught pretty quickly.
"Top marks to you, Gus, for quick thinking." He congratulates Gus reading the reg plate, "No marks for the rest of you for no thinking at all."
"They have the money back." Tracy defends.
"Not like I got any in the first place." Maeve rolls her eyes.
Mike wraps up the conversation and the kids begin to break off.
Before she can go anywhere, Maeve felt a hand pull her off to the side.
Liam and Maeve were hidden behind a wall, out of view. He adjusts one of the strings on the her, technically his, jacket, one was longer than the other.
"What?" Maeve asked. Surely he didn't pull her to the side just to do this.
Liam looked to her face, he was glad the cut was practically invisible now. He runs his finger along it, "Practically all healed now."
"Yeah, well done, your eyes work."
"Attitude." He warns and she fights a smile. "You said you'd be happy with a twenty." He holds a purple note in front of her face before showing that he's actually got two of them. "What about forty?"
Maeve met his eyes as her mouth falls open, "You kept some?"
He puts the money in the pocket of her jeans. "Some for you, some for Frank's grandad."
She tilts her head and gives him a genuine smile. That could have been the first time Liam has ever received one of them from her.
She hands one of the twenty's back, "We can share it. Like I said, I'm happy with a twenty." She puts it into his jean pocket before moving away, "I think i'm growing on you, Donovan." She pokes fun at him before leaving to go hang out with Sapphire.
"I think so too."
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