Agent 40201

By: Albert Sugarman, 5th grade

Part 1

Chapter One Seeking Francis

            “Pigskin wine?” asked Mr. Marque. He was rather the host of this whole affair, if one could call it that particular term. Moreover, it was a confidential meeting, planned to discuss the will and the ways of Christine Holloway.

            The other member of this meeting was Agent Jack Uoieauae, Agent 40201 as he was called. Though he was a policeman, and a quite superior one at that, he was prohibited to work on the case by order of the Jury of the High Court, who disliked him very much because he was a distant cousin of Christine, a woman whom he never knew.  40201 had a hat with a brown brim, and a sickly gray color was chosen for the top, a small corner was emblazed in gold, a hawk. He had a thin face. His jacket was a stale yellow with green polka dots speckled here and there much like pepper on a meal.  His trousers were a dark gray with uncountable stains and holes.  And, in his mouth sat a pipe, which, at this point, produced a black colored smoke.

“No thank you, Dickens,” the Agent said pulling his hat brim over his emerald eyes.  Dickens Maque sat down on the bright sky blue couch nearest to the fire.  40201 lit his pipe as Dickens poured himself a cup of the concoction he called pigskin wine.

“So why, Dickens, do I need to hear about this Christine Holloway.?  I know her great grandchild did child abuse the great-great grandchild, but she lived in the 17^th century!” the Agent exclaimed vexingly.

“Legend has it that Christine Holloway opened the first schooling system in England under Queen Elizabeth’s rule and in return Queen Elizabeth gave Christine the location of her final resting place which was supposedly filled with gold,’ Mr. Dickens recited.

40201’s eyes lit up as much as the fire at the mention of gold.

“I’ll go get the girl!” 40201 said.

“It’s getting late,” M r. Dickens said checking his watch, “We will start in the morning.”

On that note the two men left the room.

Chapter 2  Escape from the Orphanage

Bong! Bong! Bong! Big Ben rung, announcing three in the morning in the city of London, England and despite the curfew, two men were standing at the foot of the towering clock.

            “Got it yet?” one inquired and glared at the other.

            “No, but…

            The other man called Mr. Cache scowled and kicked the clock with enormous force that it made Big Ben ring an extra time.

            Seeing it was already four in the morning Francis Holloway woke from bed and brushed the sweat off her face, as that night she had a bad dream.
Stepping over the sleeping bags of the orphans, she reminded herself of how she was an orphan just like them. Francis was young when her mother had died and she never had been told how her mother died, but she didn’t want to know. The air of the small dormitory was getting musty and fresh air reminded her of a new day. With this in mind, Francis opened the window, where she immediately saw Mr. Cache talking with the man who did not have the item at the foot of Big Ben.

            “No! No! No!” Mr. Cache screamed.

            “I do not take no as an answer! Agent 40201 is on our heels and all I hear is no! No! No! No!”

            “Yes, Mr. Cache! I’ll have it next time.”

            “I’ll have it next time!” Mr. Cache mimicked, “No next time for you, Brown! You’ve been like that ever since Francis Holloway’s mother died in a fire protecting Christine Holloway’s secret for Queen Elizabeth!”

            Francis did not want to eavesdrop anymore. Wiping a tear from her eye, she made her way solemnly to the bathroom.  While her feet took the most direct route to the bathroom, Francis heard stomping up the steps. In her mind, closing your eyes made you think more clearly. As she waved her arms in all directions like a conductor in an orchestra, Francis deeply thought on what the man had said. Before there was much time to think, Francis ran into a robust man with a hat concealing his facial features. The man an unexpected surprise to her, she backed off as far as she could go before she tripped and fell out the open window.

            Luckily, her sweaty hands caught the awning. The man above lifted his hat revealing his facial features. He had kind emerald eyes, was short and in shape, and he carried a briefcase that had a pair of initials on it AJU and under the initials it read Agent Num: 40201. After seeing her careful study of his appearance he said:

            “Trust me.”

            “How can I trust you?” Francis asked.

            He repeated the “Trust me” phrase again as Francis felt helpless as an infant as she dangled above London.

            The man shoved Francis’s hand off the awning letting her fall onto the cobblestone streets. Then he threw the screen making it hit Big Ben. Big Ben rang yet another time. Without further ado he jumped of the window himself landing with no grace on the awning. There he drew a hook with two levers on the end from a paper bag he was carrying.  Pulling the levers on each end of the hook-like object, a rope extended from the sharp end of the hook. The rope looped around Francis’s leg. With haste the man cranked the levers the other way, pulling Francis up.

            Francis was not the least bit calm about this whole affair. Who did this man think he was? He acted like he was Superman or Batman and had a gleam in his eyes as though he really did want to be some sort of superhero. Good riddance dreaming, Francis thought in disgust. Though she did not tell the man at the time, Francis had a gash in her leg so deep you could see the muscle.  If you have ever falling from an awning to a cobblestone street in London, you know that such injuries can occur. Finally, she was safe on the awning and almost immediately she fell asleep in the arms of the man. Although Francis did not know it, the man was Agent 40201, and moments later he had to bury a hotel receptionist under massive amounts of paperwork to purchase a hotel room for free.

                                                Chapter 3 – Meeting Agent 40201

            Francis woke up on the comfortable bed hours later. The man sat on the edge of the bed nosily crunching chips while watching The Mishaps of Genghis Khan on the television in front of the bed. Currently, Genghis Khan was beheading a Chinese soldier. The man watched intently and Francis knew he did not know she was awake. Having met her quota of violence for the day by watching five minutes of the movie, Francis took to counting the number of dots in a nearby painting. Genghis Khan’s coffin was rolling across the television screen when Francis sneezed. The man immediately turned around and saw Francis sitting bolt upright, her hand covering her mouth. Using the remote, he switched the television off. Then he picked her up off the bed, and left the room, leaving the door wide open.

            “No time to explain,” he said with thought, and his mouth full with chips. “Here they come.”

            The following moments seemed like a scene out of The Mishaps of Genghis Khan. While the man was confronting the hotel staff, Francis was given instructions to pack all of their belongings in a gray suitcase in the corner of the room. After finding the suitcase, Francis crawled (because of her leg) around the room searching for the man’s belongings, as Francis had not brought anything of hers from the orphanage. She found two knives under the bed, papers about life cycles of the butterfly and the frog, a miniature book about London in the seventeenth century, and seven chocolate bars scattered around the room. Francis put the life cycle papers at the bottom; the book was next to go in, the knives followed the book, and the seven chocolate bars were placed delicately on top. The suitcase closed, Francis used the phone to call for a bellboy.

            In a few moments, Francis was riding a luggage rack pulled by a frowning bellboy whispering to himself about his economic struggle. This was her first taste of happiness since she had met the man, even though the beige suitcase was literally crushing her. Francis met up with the man in the elevator where he gave her a hearty hello and took the luggage rack from the delighted bellboy, whom he dismissed.

             Once inside the elevator the man said, “We haven’t properly met in the English way.”

“No, we haven’t,” Francis agreed.

“I am Jack Uoieauae, but please call me Agent 40201,” the man announced.

“I am…I am…,” Francis hesitated, but then finished her sentence, “I am Francis Holloway.”

“So, you are the one I have been seeking.” Agent 40201 said under his breath.

            At that moment the elevator doors opened and the newfound friends walked hand in hand out of the contraption. Once outside the Agent whistled for a taxi. He and Francis climbed in and fastened their seat belts when the taxi finally arrived at the hotel.

            “Where to?” the toothless cab driver questioned.

            “68 Park Bench Drive.”

            “What’s there?” Francis asked.

“That’s where my friend, Dickens Marque lives. You will be pleased to meet him, I hope. And he will surely be pleased to meet you.”

The taxi started on its way to 68 Park Bench Drive. 

Part 2

Chapter 1 Mr. Marque’s Quest

            Before they knew it, Mr. Marque’s house was in sight. After giving the cab driver a fair tip, Francis and Agent 40201 started up the steps that led to the door of 68 Park Bench Drive. The house was dilapidated. Two sets of green window panes were blowing in the fierce wind. The glass windows which were painted pink had endless numbers of cracks in them. The door hung on one hinge and the roof was lopsided. Who would want to live in a place like this Francis thought.

            Nevertheless, Agent 40201 knocked on the door. Mr. Marque answered and immediately inquired:

            “What are you doing here? Have you got the girl? What about…”

            “Patience, my dear friend, patience. You will know everything in good time,” Mr. Dickens assured.

            “I’ll make a pot of tea.” Mr. Marque announced and disappeared inside.

            “Come, Francis,” Agent 40201 said and they entered the house together.