Daylight Robbery- Tuesday 3rd August 1993

Jo couldn’t quite believe what she was hearing.

“So let me get this straight: you not only want me to help you rob a museum, but you want to do it in broad daylight,” she said at last.

“Sounds about right. There’s less security during working hours,” said Maddie conversationally.

“Yeah, but there’s the people working there who would love to stop us. What about Shark Hansen?” said Jo.

“Bah! What about him? There’s only three people working there at once, they don’t stand a chance!” said Maddie.

“You’re already underestimating them. That’s a stupid way to look at things. You haven’t thought this through!” She wriggled her tentacles with frustration.

“Sure I have, what else am I supposed to do to keep me occupied during work. It’ll be a doddle,”

“What are we stealing anyway?”

“The book that will solve all of our problems,” said Maddie with a smile.

She felt incredibly self-conscious entering the public domain now that she was cursed. Maddie had mercifully leant her a hoodie so that she could hide her face. As Jo and her sister walked side by side, she tried to shrink away from the people they passed on the pavement.

Any one of them might turn around and squint into her hood and point at her freakish head. They would scream at her and she would be hounded by evil scientists who wanted to dissect her and turn her into some form of hideous experiment.

Jo shuddered. It was a grim life ahead of her if they failed. Maddie was right. There was no way they were going to let this go wrong. It couldn’t happen. She wouldn’t allow it.

They stood outside the rear entrance to the museum, hearts racing, adrenaline pumping. Jo was beginning to have second, third and fourth thoughts about agreeing to this, but it was too late for that now. Maddie grasped the door handle and pushed. It swung open easily.

“See! What did I tell you: a doddle,” she exclaimed.

Jo fiddled with the edge of her balaclava and tried to tug it over her tentacles nervously.

They entered the hall, which was lit by dim, flickering bulbs. As they trekked down the corridor and closer to their goal, Jo became less afraid and more excited. She had always felt the same when embarking on some of Maddie’s crazier schemes. They were breaking the law. In a weird way, it was fun.

At every corner turned, they half-expected the cleaning lady to spring out at them, armed with a mop and unafraid to use it. Or worse: what if it was old Shark Hansen himself lying in wait with his pointed teeth and tiny, glittering eyes.

The archives were cluttered with ancient, mouldy-smelling books, with a little desk squeezed in the centre. Jo was amazed that anybody could fit in there, never mind work in there.

Maddie thumbed her way through the bookshelves whilst Jo kept a lookout at the door.

With every second Jo waited, anticipation grew. Would they get away with this? She could hear footsteps echoing around the museum. Were they getting closer or not? Jo couldn’t tell. After what had seemed like an age, Maddie gave a cheer of triumph- she had found it! She pulled out the heavy tome and shoved it inside the swag-bag.

As the story goes, the moment Jo was distracted was the moment Shark Hansen came tearing down the corridor “WHAT THE-“

He wasn’t given time to finish. Maddie barrelled past him and had already started to run. Jo tried to copy, only Hansen caught on and gabbed hold of her wrist.

“Got ya! You thieving little bastard!”

Jo pulled at his fingers and tried to prise them off. For an old guy caught by surprise, he had one hell of a grip.

Maddie kept on running.

Jo watched as Maddie turned her back on her and stopped wriggling for a second.

She didn’t want to believe it. Maddie must have heard Hansen advertising her capture. Why was she running?

It was as though the world had suddenly turned the right way up, after being up-side-down for years. Maddie wasn’t going to help her. Maddie was running away. Maddie, the big sister she had always admired, was a coward.

Hansen now had her pinned to the wall. The lights flicked on in Jo’s brain. She needed to move. Jo slammed her knee into good old Shark Hansen’s crotch and ducked under his arms. From there she ran. She even managed to catch up with her sister, but couldn’t bear to make eye-contact. The ugly feeling of betrayal settled inside her and fermented.

They didn’t stop running until they had reached the park. Their gloves and balaclavas had been stashed in the swag-bag along the way. Jo pulled her hood up so that people wouldn’t see her head. Puffing and panting, they settled on a bench and ripped their shoes off. After all, it wasn’t wise to leave a trail of footprints straight to Maddie’s door.

Maddie grinned like the biggest Cheshire cat, but Jo did not respond. The smile withered. Nobody wanted to start the conversation they were definitely going to have.

Maddie clutched at the ancient book. This should have been a moment of glorious triumph. Everything was going according to plan, yet it was all wrong.

“I am so stupid,” said Jo “No more magic, no more illegal stuff. So you rob a museum and grab the nearest magic book,” Jo spat on the pathway “Brilliant,”

“I was trying to help you!” said Maddie.

“Trying to help me? You left me behind!”

“Jo...I wasn’t thinking, I was too busy thinking about the book, about fixing things,” Little tears had begun to crawl down Maddie’s face.

“Maddie, we are sisters, we are a team, we are partners in crime. Partners don’t leave each other behind to face the shit. That’s just not how it works,” said Jo.

“You should have kept a better watch!” Maddie hissed.

“Don’t you try to blame me! YOU left me BEHIND!” She hated Maddie. Stupid, stupid, horrible Maddie, why on earth had she allowed herself to get dragged into this?

“And if- well if that’s the way you’re gonna treat me, then maybe we shouldn’t be a team. Maybe we shouldn’t even be sisters,”

They sat on the bench in chilling silence. Maddie couldn’t think of a single word to say. There were no more excuses when you have been morally lectured by an eight-year-old.

“Let’s go home,” said Jo at last. Maddie stood obediently and they walked to her flat without uttering another word.