Balls by Tommy Dakar
Robbie handed over his trainers as Kenneth Kavanagh, cleared of all charges, took his wife's hand. He had been freed, reinstated and offered the government's most sincere apologies. Bobby Hornsby had been caught unawares after Chris Morton's tip off, the hideout had been surrounded and Robbie had been released relatively unharmed. It had not been difficult to establish that the famous bone handled knife was the same one used to kill Mr. Swan, the same one used to threaten Jill, especially as he pleaded guilty to all charges. True to his word, he had refused to cooperate – he was not a grass. The police had tried to trick him by telling him that the Mortons had split on him, had sold him down the river, but he wasn't falling for that. And try as they might, the police were unable to get a conviction for anyone other than Bobby, who proudly accepted all responsibility. Chris, Danny and Tommy, though repeatedly interrogated, denied all charges and were eventually released through lack of evidence.
It was too early to say what long term effect all this would have on Robbie, his mind was still young and malleable, he had reached no conclusions, and unlike adults his opinions had not yet been cast in bronze. Would he, like Catherine, always remain a victim, or would he, like so many before him, eventually grow into an executioner? He lay on his back in the kids' adventure park, surrounded by hundreds of coloured plastic balls. Outside he could see his Mum and Dad, and Susie, who had unconvincingly stated that she was now too gown up for such trivialities. The other children had moved on to the next section, a mini football pitch, and for the time being he was totally alone.
He tried to calculate the movement of the balls. If he moved a leg or shifted, no matter how slightly, he provoked a multi-coloured cascade which would form new patterns impossible to predict. He held his breath and stayed as quiet as possible, trying his hardest not to move so that everything would remain exactly as it was. But it was impossible. His very breathing set the balls in motion.