Harry caught it and placed it in the back of the little VW, while Charlie straddled on to the roof. She crabbed over a few rows of roof tiles and Harry grabbed her legs as she dangled over the gutter.

‘Can you drive?’ Charlie asked, after he’d put her down. ‘I’ve only had my licence six months, so I’ve never driven after dark.’

‘I think we’re better on foot,’ Harry said. ‘With my mods I can run fast. If you tell me what you want from this storage unit, I can go get it on my own.’

Charlie shook her head. ‘It’s too heavy and I drove all the way to Care4Kids in daylight. If we avoid main roads, things are fine.’

‘They might be better organised now,’ Harry suggested. ‘And, no offence, but your car wouldn’t outrun a shopping cart.’

Charlie tutted. ‘I’m not forcing you to help me, Harry. You can take the vaccines to Kirsten. I’ll grab what I need from the storage unit and we’ll meet at your building later.’

Harry shook his head. ‘I think we should stick together. So let’s drive.’

‘I don’t want a scene with my foster parents,’ Charlie said, glancing towards the house. ‘We need to shift before they see I’m gone.’

Charlie looked back mournfully as her titchy Volkswagen rolled down the drive and on to the street.

‘What’s in this storage unit?’ Harry asked, ignoring a red light at a junction that would normally be clogged with cars.

‘Modding equipment,’ Charlie explained. ‘I trusted Mango with all my financial arrangements. I’ve got two grand in emergency cash, but the attorney said the Feds will seize every cent they can lay their hands on. Chances are, Mango has already given them my account details. So I’ll be broke when I need money for a lawyer.’

‘Don’t they need to prove you’re a criminal before they freeze your assets?’ Harry asked.

Charlie shook her head. ‘The attorney said the Feds can freeze any assets they believe are the proceeds of criminal activity. The onus is then on me to show a judge how I earned the money legally. Which, seeing as I’m a seventeen-year-old schoolgirl with no legitimate income, means I can wave my savings goodbye.’

‘That blows,’ Harry noted.

‘Turn at the next left. I need the third storage unit, but stop by the main entrance so I can make sure nobody’s around.’

As Harry pulled to the kerb, Charlie reached into the rear seats, unzipped her backpack and pulled out an automatic pistol.

‘Where’d you get that?’ Harry gasped as Charlie opened the clip to check that the gun was loaded, then clicked off the safety.

‘My foster dad’s dresser.’

‘I thought this was an empty storage unit.’