"Okay," said Miss Virginia. "Here, I will get you started." Miss Virginia picked up Herman Wouk's The Winds of War and began to read.

Everyone was very restless, but soon they were quiet and listening. Amanda had never spent a day listening to someone read before. It wasn't as interesting as television or Wii, but since they did not have electricity, it wasn't bad. Amanda did not know much about World War II and was hearing what happened and what the world was like then for the first time. Cindy and Peter were quiet too. It was very strange to be sitting in a city that had been terrorized by some bad guys and to read about how one very bad man had terrorized the entire planet.

At noon, Mr. Garvain brought in some bread and cheese and cookies and they all took a break and sat on the back patio. Afterwards, Miss Virginia was tired of reading so Amanda and Thibodeaux took turns reading to the group.

By four o'clock it was too dark in the living room to read by daylight. They had all been lying on the floor of the living room, using some cushions that Mr. Garvain had stored in a closet, listening to the book, only stopping for bathroom breaks.

"Well, why don't we all stretch our legs?" said Miss Virginia.

Everyone walked outside to the back patio except Peter who walked over to look at his computer. He hit a key and suddenly the internet was on. "I have internet access," he yelled.

Amanda, Thibodeaux, and Peter came running back into the room. Peter truly did have access. There was no electricity or cell phone connection, but suddenly they had internet access. Everyone gathered around. Amanda and Thibodeaux stood on either side of Peter while Mr. Garvain, Miss Virginia, and Cindy watched from the front.

"Ok, send an email to Mom and Dad first and attach all the files and tell them to find the police and give this to them," said Amanda.

Peter wrote quickly. "We are all fine and we are staying with some nice people and please give these files to the police. Your son, Peter."

"Don't send it yet," said Cindy. "Here let me put my mom's email address on it too."

"Quick, we don't want to lose our connection," said Amanda.

"I got it. Here we go," said Peter as he hit send.

"Check to see if it is in your sent email," said Amanda.

Peter checked and there was the email.

"Okay. We need to find an address for Homeland Security, the FBI and the New York City police," said Amanda.

Peter Googled both of these organizations and got their email address. He then wrote another email. "Some very bad jewel thieves caused the explosions and put the powder everywhere. The only place it is dangerous is downtown at Federal Plaza. Please catch them. I am sending a video clip of them robbing Tiffany's. Please read, this is very important." Peter then wrote a subject line, Bombings in New York City, attached the three files and hit send.

Everyone present then thought of everyone they could tell about what happened and wrote more emails and each time the email went through.

They then logged onto some internet news pages and read how the FBI and Homeland Security thought that New York City had been targeted by terrorists and how they had first gone into the city to try to assess the damage but when they found anthrax in the building downtown, they had decided to withdraw until they could come up with a plan to test the entire City of New York for anthrax and how it might be weeks before the City was safe again.

The children and Miss Virginia continued to send emails to their friends explaining what had really happened to the city. They had been on the internet for about an hour when suddenly there was a loud noise. Someone was trying to break through the front door. Thibodeaux and Amanda ran to the window and looked out through the window bars. They saw two of the men from the robbery and the men saw Thibodeaux.

"They are here." Amanda was close to being hysterical.

"Who?" asked Miss Virginia.

"The bad guys from Tiffany's. They must have followed us home, but we looked and looked and we did not see anyone following us," said Amanda.

"What are we going to do, brother?" asked Miss Virginia.

"We need to get out of here," said Mr. Garvain.

"Get out of here?" said Miss Virginia.

"Yes, pack up a few things. Everyone fill your water bottles and meet me in the kitchen," said Mr. Garvain.

"Don't you think you are overreacting, brother?" asked Miss Virginia.

"The people who blew up this city are banging on our door. I am definitely not overreacting," said Mr. Garvain.

"Get your things. We are evacuating. No one can get into this house. There are too many locks and bars," said Mr. Garvain. "But I don't want to take a chance, we need to leave."

The posse ran upstairs and grabbed their already packed bags and came downstairs. The guys outside were looking in the barred windows and picking at the multiple locks on the front door.

Miss Virginia came back into the kitchen with two canes and a small bag. Mr. Garvain was hot on her heels with another small bag. Miss Virginia gave one of the canes to Mr. Garvain. "Here, brother, we may need these."

"Get your water. We are leaving," said Mr. Garvain.

Mr. Garvain led all five of them out into the backyard, turned to lock the five locks on the door to the patio and went to the back gate. Mr. Garvain pulled out a key and opened the metal gate and went into the yard to the apartment building that was behind theirs. Mr. Garvain then led them to the side of the apartment building where the garbage cans for were stored. They walked down the side of the building and stopped at the gate.

Mr. Garvain looked up and down the streets and said, "The street is clear."

They released the latch, pushed open the gate and walked out onto Lexington.

"Why did you have that key?" asked Cindy.

"I know the superintendent of this building and he lets me leave this way in exchange for a big Christmas tip. My favorite restaurant is on Lexington and this way I don't have to go up and around. Well, my favorite restaurant was on Lexington," said Mr. Garvain.

The posse stood on the sidewalk looking up and down the practically deserted streets. They could see a few groups of people looting, but they were all a few blocks away.

"Where is the closest subway?" asked Thibodeaux.

"The subways are not running," said Miss Virginia.

"No, we need to get in the subway to hide. We can walk north to my aunt's house if we can just get in the subway," said Thibodeaux.

"This way. I never ride on the subway, but I do see the entrances." Mr. Garvain quickly led them to a subway entrance at 40th and Park and they all climbed down the stairs. Amanda and Thibodeaux helped Mr. Garvain and Miss Virginia to climb over the turnstiles, something they had most certainly not learned to do as children.

Amanda led her posse over to the edge of the platform and lying on her stomach, she dropped her legs down. Thibodeaux did the same and then they helped Peter and Cindy get down.

Mr. Garvain looked balefully down at the children on the tracks.

"It is easy. It only looks hard. Lie down on your stomach and drop your legs over the side. We will help you get down," said Amanda.

Mr. Garvain and Miss Virginia gingerly lay down on the subway platform and with much huffing and puffing, they were pulled down onto the tracks.

Thibodeaux and Amanda handed flashlights to everyone. "Come on, we need to get away from here fast," said Amanda.

They were back in the tunnel, walking on the Lexington Avenue line on their way to Harlem.

Chapter XII.

The Big Apple Posse walked up the subway tracks followed by Mr. Garvain and Miss Virginia. It was dark in the subway, but at least this time they all had flashlights.

The backpacks the children were carrying were very heavy, but they had to be carried.

They walked slowly and methodically down the middle of the deserted tracks.

"That is the third rail," said Amanda to Mr. Garvain and Miss Virginia. "I don't think the power is on, but stay away from it anyway."

"Thank you dear," said Miss Virginia.

They continued trudging up the tracks heading towards 116th Street.

"When we get to my Auntie's apartment, we can rest. She always has plenty of food and water. 'If you can't plan ahead, you have no head,' she always tells me," said Thibodeaux.

"Your Auntie sounds like a very smart woman," said Miss Virginia.

"She was born and raised in Harlem and she tells me that if you can live your life in Harlem, you are one of God's blessed children," said Thibodeaux.

"Well, I am looking forward to meeting your Auntie Tina," said Miss Virginia.

Amanda walked on the tracks thinking about the last few days. She was grateful they were all alive and safe, but the responsibility of taking care of five people was beginning to overwhelm her. She thought about her mother and how her mother would expect her to be the brave one. Her mother had told her that, "When I am not there, you are me." But being the brave one, was really hard work.

It took about three hours to make it to 116th Street subway station where they planned to get out and walk across town to Thibodeaux's neighborhood. They had to move slowly, at the same pace that Mr. Garvain and Miss Virginia were able to walk. The subway tracks were deserted. No bad guy wanted to be down here when there were so many places to loot on the streets. When they arrived at 116th Street Amanda said, "Here, help me get up on the platform and I will check to see if it is safe for us to go outside."

"Oh no, you don't. I live up here and I'm a boy and boys do the scary things," said Thibodeaux.

"Okay. You can go too," said Amanda. "Come over here and get on my shoulders and climb up on the platform."

Thibodeaux climbed up on Amanda's shoulders and without waiting to pull her up, ran across the platform yelling, "I'll be right back."

Amanda was furious. She was in charge of this posse, not Thibodeaux. "Here, push me up on the platform. If everyone helps, I can get up."

Mr. Garvain walked over to Amanda and picked her up and put her on the platform.

"Thanks. I hope you did not hurt your back," said Amanda.

"Appearances to the contrary, I do lift weights," said Mr. Garvain.

"I will be right back," said Amanda.

Amanda quickly ran across the platform and jumped over the turnstile. Just as she was about to enter the stairway, Thibodeaux came flying back down the stairs.

"Get back into the subway. They are here. Those bad guys were waiting for us upstairs. They have motorcycles and they are chasing us," said Thibodeaux.

Amanda and Thibodeaux jumped back into the tunnel and started running north followed by Cindy, Peter, Miss Virginia, and Mr. Garvain. They had made it about ten feet when the two men who had tried to enter Mr. Garvain's home made it to the subway platform.

The men jumped down from the platform and began to chase them down the tunnel.

"Stop, just give us the flash drive and your computer," said one of the men.

Amanda whispered to the gang. "Turn off your flashlights, and get out your pepper spray."

Amanda grabbed her posse and pulled them to the other side of the tracks. It was totally dark in the subway tunnel. Suddenly the two men were right on them. "Okay, now."

The posse sprayed pepper spray in unison on the two men who began to cough. Mr. Garvain took his cane and started whacking the two men yelling. "Run, run."

Amanda and her posse and Miss Virginia ran down the tracks about twenty feet and stopped. Amanda turned on her flashlight to see the two men on the ground and Mr. Garvain running toward them. As soon as Mr. Garvain reached them Amanda said, "No flashlights. But, we need to keep on moving."

And so they did, traveling as quickly as they could in the dark until they were about a city block away. Amanda whispered, "Stop. Listen."

She could hear the men complaining about their eyes, but they sounded like they had not moved from where they left them.

"Keep going. I will turn on one flashlight to light our way," said Amanda.

They continued walking on the tracks until they were about two blocks away from the 116th Street subway entrance when Peter said, "Stop, we need to talk."

"You're right about that," said Thibodeaux.

"How did they know we were here and how did they know we had the flash drive?" asked Cindy.

"Almost as soon as you had internet access, those men were outside the house," said Miss Virginia.

"The flash drive must have a GPS on it. That's how they knew we were at the 116th Subway station too. The internet must be up all over New York City," said Peter. "Why didn't I think of that before?"

"We need to get rid of the flash drive," said Amanda.

"I copied it onto my computer so we don't need it anymore," said Peter.

"But if we throw it away, it won't matter. They will just figure we will get out at the next station and wait for us there," said Amanda.

"So we won't get out at 125th. We'll go farther north until we know for sure that they are not still following us," said Thibodeaux.

"But don't you think they will follow us to all the stations?" said Mr. Garvain.

Thibodeaux pulled a wrinkled up old subway map from his back pocket and looked at it by the light from his flashlight. "I have a plan. We can walk north until we get to 149th Street and then we will walk back down on the 2 line until we get to 103rd Street on the west side of town."

Peter took the flash drive out of his pocket and placed it next to the wall in the subway.

He looked around and took note of where he was in case he ever needed to tell someone where he had left it, even though he no longer needed the actual flash drive since the contents were on his netbook.

"Okay, it is gone. Let's go," said Peter.

"We have to move quickly. We need to out run them because as soon as they can see again, they will know we are going to 125th Street so we need to move quickly," said Amanda. "Everyone turn on your flashlights and let's do it."