Ch5-Stop, Thief!

CHAPTER FIVE Stop, Thief! "Oh, man," said Jack, dazed. "She was nuts. Everyone here is nuts, including Mr. Dickens." "It's all my fault," said Annie. "I shouldn't have—" "No, no, don't worry," said Jack. "We just have to catch him and try to fix things."

"He couldn't have gone far," said Annie. She and Jack glanced up and down the busy street. The afternoon sun had disappeared. Dark clouds filled the sky. "Look, there he is!" said Annie, pointing. Jack saw Mr. Dickens weaving through the horse-and-carriage traffic. He was signaling to a cabdriver with his walking stick. "Mr. Dickens!" cried Annie. She started into the street, but Jack grabbed her just in time. Another horse and cab clattered by, barely missing them. "He's getting away!" said Annie. "I know," said Jack. "But we don't want to get run over!"

"Look!" said Annie. "There's the driver who brought us here! I'll bet he's waiting for us!" Across the street was the red cab pulled by the small, fat horse. "Great!" said Jack. He dodged the carriage traffic and rushed toward the driver. "Hi! Hi there!" Jack yelled. "Thanks for coming back! We need a ride! We have to follow—" He started to climb into the cab. "Sorry, no free rides today, boy!" the driver said. "I've got mouths to feed at home!" He jiggled his reins, and his horse took off. Jack nearly fell backward onto the sidewalk. "Wait! Don't you remember us?" he called. "We're the young gentlemen from Frog Creek!"

But the driver didn't seem to hear him in all the traffic. Annie touched Jack's arm. "He didn't recognize us. We don't look like gentlemen anymore," she said. "Our clothes are ragged, and we're covered with soot." "Oh, man," said Jack. "Everyone was nice to us when we looked rich. Now it feels like the whole world's against us." "I'm sorry, it's all my fault," said Annie. "Forget it," said Jack. "We just have to find Mr. Dickens. Come on. Let's try to find his carriage." Clutching his green bag, Jack led the way down the street. He and Annie half ran, half walked past a long row of shops. As they looked for Mr.

Dickens, they passed little girls sewing in the window of a dress shop. They saw boys sweeping trash and polishing boots, and girls selling matches and meat pies. Jack had never seen so many kids working at real jobs. "Hey, isn't that him getting out of that carriage?" said Annie. She pointed to an intersection in the distance. A small man wearing a top hat and carrying a walking stick was climbing down from a cab. "Yeah, I think it is!" said Jack. "Hurry!" Jack and Annie ran up the sidewalk, dodging shoppers and merchants. By the time they got to the intersection, Mr. Dickens had disappeared again.

"Darn," said Annie. "Let's keep looking," said Jack. "If we don't find him soon, we'll go back to his house and wait for him outside the gate." A light rain began to fall as Jack and Annie started down a crowded, muddy road. They passed shabby shops and rows of small shacks. They passed vendors selling secondhand clothes and hats and shoes. They saw lots of ragged kids hanging around the street. Jack caught the eye of a big, tough-looking boy slouching against a lamppost with his hands in his pockets. As Jack passed him, the boy looked him over. Jack saw the boy say something to another