Geronimo Stilton: INTERPOL-The Beginning

Moving to The Good Ol' US of A

Arif Mansion
11.12 a.m.
About 1 hour after helicopter crash

The sun was finally shining again over the neighborhood after the stormy gunfight. All of us had dried ourselves off and drank a mug of my mom's hot chocolate. Geronimo decided to take a shower, as I had provided some of my late father's clothes for him to wear. A deep black suit, a blank white shirt and a red tie. It actually fitted him very well. Sorta looked like my father too. Trap... He couldn't fit in most of my dad's clothes. So, there was only one shirt that could barely fit him. My dad's college sweater from where he was overweight. Me? Just a replacement of what I wore just now... Another black and white plaid and unbuttoned shirt over a blank red tee with deep blue jeans and red sneakers. Thea broke out her purple sweater because it was cold outside, and a pair of white trousers.

The three of us, Thea, Geronimo (while slinging his M4 on his shoulder), and I took a stroll in the front yard while viewing the aftermath of the fight in the street. Police tape wrapped around a few lamp posts closed the street to clean up the debris and to remove the bodies of the enemies on the road. The helicopter was still smoking as the paramedics pulled out the dead pilot and gunner. A local news team and their van was seen reporting the incident outside the tape. Trap walked by us, helping a cop carry a stretcher with a dead Technologist body on it down the helipad to the police truck parked out front.

"Danny, I think it's time we relocate you," started Geronimo.

"Relocate? Why?"

"It's becoming too dangerous and risky if we keep protecting you here. With the helicopter nearly crushing a house when it crashed, I think it's for the safety of the public. They know too much of you in this country. Not to mention a mole situation. Who knows how much they've known about you in Malaysia."

"I'm sorry Geronimo, I'm gonna have to say no. I-I-I love my motherland too much," I rejected, stammering in disdain.

"I thought you might say that. But ask yourself this, how long can you hold yourself here with The Technologists learning about your defenses and weaknesses with every attack their going to launch on you?" He was looking at me with seriousness, raising one eyebrow.

I was overwhelmed with thoughts. He was right, I won't last two days if I continue to stay here. I sighed. "It seems that I don't really have a choice, do I?" I asked rhetorically while looking at him with big, sad eyes. He shook his head in response.

Thea crouched down and looked up at me. "Hey... I know it's hard for you to accept this. But my brother's the wisest guy I know, next to our grandfather that is."

"Thanks, Thea," Geronimo responded to the complement.

"What I'm trying to say is that...you should trust him."

I thought about it for a while. "Where do we go?"

"The United States. I've a safe house of my own back at DC a few miles from the DC headquarters. All of us will be there to protect you. Me, Thea, Trap, Benjamin, and Pandora. We'll leave the other stuff to the other Interpol agents. Unless, you have another place in mind."

I stood there, deadpanned. "When?"

"As soon as possible. Tonight maybe."

Then a car pulled up outside the police tape at the other end of the street. It was Firas. Strange, I thought school was supposed to end at one o'clock. He got out from the rear door, wearing his white uniform with his saddle bag on his shoulder. He looked shocked.

"Oh my God! What the heck happened?" He exclaimed as he ran on the sidewalk, entering the front gates.

"'Sup bro," I started.