Mia and Wes sat in the van, watching through monitors as a group of police officers surrounded Hearst High. Mia was freaking out as they saw the scene unfold right before their eyes.
"What do we do? Oh God, they're going to go to jail, aren't they? Oh God! Oh God!" Mia said, her voice rising.
Wes put a hand on her shoulder and told her in a calm voice, "Chill, relax. This is the type of situation where I work best, Princess."
Mia took a deep breath and breathed out. She took a look at the monitors behind Wes and observed the situation.
"Okay, Team Pom-Poms is hiding in their car behind the school, dressed as cheerleaders. They can't leave while the cops are outside. And Team Strikeforce is still in Mr. Georgette's classroom." Mia informed him.
Wes digested this information, chewing on his lower lip and rapping his fingers on his thigh, then he snapped his fingers.
"Okay, I know how to get them out of there. First we'll need a police scanner. Unfortunately, I don't own one..." Wes began.
Mia interrupted, "Ugh! I wish Nishan were here. He has a whole cache of gizmos."
Wes smirked, "You didn't let me finish. We can however, improvise a little bit."
Wes went to the glove box of the van and rummaged through it. He came back with a screwdriver and a pair of pliers. He disassembled his walkie-talkie and fiddled around with the wires for a while. He put it back together and began tuning it to the police scanner frequency. He heard static for a moment and then some chatter.
"'Listen up, son. We're out here because your dad and I go way back. If the Chief finds out we're wasting our time refereeing some high school prank war, I'm in a whole stew of trouble," a gruff sounding voice stated.
Mia looked at Wes, clearly impressed, "Wes, you continue to amaze me," she told him with a smile on her face.
Wes gave her a two-finger salute as they continued to listen to the cop's conversation.
"I'm telling you, Officer! They stole my key, and they're using it to get into the school! Now get in there and find them!" a deep voice responded insistently.
There was only one person who had that particular voice. Mia and Wes looked at each other with a knowing look.
"Max." They said at the same time.
They looked back down at the radio and continued listening to them speak.
"Yeah, yeah. We're going in. You at least coming with us?" The cop asked.
"I'm on my way. I'll be at the school as fast as I can!" Max replied.
"Fine, kid, whatever you say." The officer said as he hung up on Max. "All officers, inside, now!"
Wes looked at Mia and he smirked.
"You hear that? The cops are going inside." he told her.
"Which means that Team Pom-Poms has a chance to escape," Mia finished up his train of thought.
"Exactly!"
Wes tuned in to the team frequency and talked into his walkie-talkie. "Team Pom-Poms, this is your chance to escape!"
Across the campus, Payton, Julian, Autumn, Jason and Kimberly sat up the moment Wes radioed in.
"You don't need to tell me twice, sweetie," Payton responded.
She put the car into drive and sped off the campus. Wes and Mia watched their progress and whooped the moment they were off.
"Yes! They're out!" Mia cheered. "One down, one to go!"
"We'll stick around incase Team Strikeforce needs a ride." Julian told them.
"Let's check in on them." Mia said.
Sakura, Nishan and Jess had been huddled under this desk for God knows how long. Long story short, we were not doing okay. This was not planned for. We could hear footsteps outside and at any moment, the cops could decide to check the classrooms. We were as silent as mice with only our heavy breathing to break the silence.
All of a sudden, the walkie-talkie crackled with static and Wes's voice came through, "Hey Jess. You there?"
I took the walkie-talkie out of the waistband of my pants and responded, "I'm here."
"You guys doing okay?" he inquired.
"Yeah, let's just say we're doing fine," Jess responded sarcastically.
"I need you to trust me. Don't worry. I'll get you guys out of there," he told me gently.
Wes turned off the walkie-talkie and tuned in to the police scanner and began listening in on the cop's conversation with Max.
"Warren, I don't see anyone in here," The cop informed Max.
"They might be hiding in a classroom. Search 'em, Jenkins, " Max ordered him.
The cop whom Max called Jenkins groaned in frustration, "Seriously, kid? Only because it's a slow night. If anything else comes up, we are out of here."
Wes tuned out and looked at Mia. Mia asked him, "Now what do we do?"
Wes gave her his classic smirk and answered, "Now we wreak havoc. And I just know the right people for the job."
Wes took out his phone and began making some calls.
Jordan was sitting on his couch with a bowl of potato chips in his lap when his phone rang. He took it out of his pocket and answered it.
"Yo, what up bro?" he greeted.
"Hey, Jordan. I need a favour," Wes informed him, not wasting too much time on pleasantries.
"Really? Right now? Coz' I was kinda in the middle of something..." Jordan said, his reluctance oozing into his tone of voice.
"Were you?" Mia snarked.
"Wait. Whoa. Did you put me on speaker?" Jordan asked. "Not cool bruh."
"That's besides the point." Wes said, sounding a bit irritated. "I know you like hanging out where you're not allowed to. How do you feel about chilling in that old, abandoned warehouse just outside of town?"
"Seriously? I'm in." Jordan agreed.
"Excellent. Grab Mary while you're at it and have yourselves a good time," Wes added as he hung up.
Owen was at the skatepark, skateboard in hand, watching her partner Lily doing a bunch of skateboard tricks. The skater crowd that was gathered cheered him on. A call came through her Bluetooth earpiece and she tapped on the side to answer.
"Hello?" she asked.
"Owen, it's Wes. I need a favour," Wed told her abruptly.
"I'm kinda..." she began but Wes interrupted her.
"I know you were in the middle of something but trust me you'll like it."
"I'm listening," she told him.
"I know you're probably with Lamar, so I'm going to ask this; how do the both of you feel about skating in places that you're not supposed to be skating in?" Wes asked.
"We just got ourselves the best assignment ever." Owen smiled
Wes called Jordan and Owen to see if they had done as they had been requested. He first called Jordan...
"Jordan, how is it going over there?" he asked.
"Wes, my man. Well, the good news is, I'm hanging out with Mary over in the abandoned warehouse, just listening to music and eating Taco Bell... Bad news is, I think some people driving by might've seen us and called the cops." Jordan informed him.
Wes snickered, "Believe me, that's some good news. Excellent work. Now you'd better run."
He then called Owen and was greeted with whooping and laughter and the rolling of skateboards...
"I take it that things are going well?" Wes asked with a smirk.
"Fantastic!" Owen yelled. "Grinding on guard rails and tail-stopping off tail-pipes!"
"Has anyone seen you guys?" Wes inquired.
"Duh! Half the neighborhood and I'm guessing from the disapproving looks we got and cellphones in their hands, they've been calling the cops with a load of complaints," Owen replied.
"Perfect. Now you'd better scram before the cops catch you."
"You got it, boss."
After he hung up, Wes tuned on to the police frequency and he heard Officer Jenkins grumbling, "Listen, Warren, I've got reports coming in from all over town; skaters, slackers, who knows what. I'm sending half my boys to check it out."
Max growled in anger, "Argh! Fine! But keep searching the school with the rest!"
Wes switched the walkie-talkie off and spoke, "Seems we need to wreak more havoc."
Mia smirked and patted Wes's shoulder, "Oh, leave that to me."
Mia took out her phone and called Bella. "Hey. I need you to pump up the music at that house party you at. And while you're at it, get a couple of people in a car and have them drive around the town."
Wes flicked on the walkie-talkie just as Officer Jenkins was talking, "Look, son, this is over. I'm getting reports of some major parties going on across town. We gotta go deal with them."
"Are you kidding me?" Max asked incredulously. "If you want to send all your men out, fine, be my guest. But I expect you to stay and keep searching, or my dad will hold you responsible!" Max told him.
"Ugh. After this, he owes me one nice Christmas gift..." Officer Jenkins groaned.
Wes called Jess on the walkie-talkie, "Hey Jess? It's down to one cop. This is as good as it's going to get. The three of you need to make a break for it."
Jess, Nishan and Sakura were still under the desk. They could hear Officer Jenkins pacing outside.
"How the hell are we supposed to make a run for it? The officer is just outside." Jess questioned.
"I wish we had a cardboard box to use as a disguise," Sakura sighed.
"Sure. Coz this is Metal Gear Solid and we're Solid Snake," Jess snorted.
"Hey, a girl can dream, can't she?" Sakura defended herself.
"Of all the days to leave my optic camo at home..." Nishan murmured.
Suddenly, Sakura had an idea. She gasped and snapped her fingers.
"Wait, if the cop is in the hallway, it means we can go above him, right?" Sakura suggested. "It means there is an air vent around here."
Sakura got out from their hiding place and she looked around and said, "Aha!"
The remaining duo followed her lead and followed her gaze up to the air vent above the door. Jess's eyes widened and she whispered in fright, "Oh, no!"
Sakura cheered, "Oh yes!"
Jess looked at Sakura and asked, "Do we have to?"
"It's either that or spending the night in jail. I doubt it's as glamorous as it looks in the Fate of the Furious," Sakura snarked.
Jess sighed but she conceded. Jess and Nishan shoved a desk against the wall quietly. Sakura went first, climbing onto it and unscrewed the cover of the vent with an arcade token she pulled out of the pocket of her hoodie.
"Should I be surprised that you carry that with you?" Jess questioned rhetorically.
"Hardly. If video games have taught me anything is that you should always have a contingency plan with you," Sakura replied.
"Coolest. Girl. Ever," Nishan said, admiration and adoration of Sakura evident in his voice.
Sakura pried the cover off and hoisted herself in. Nishan followed her.
"Just switch schools, they said. It'll be fun, they said. You won't have to do anything crazy, like escape through air vents, they said," Nishan muttered under his breath.
"I never actually said anything like that, Nishan," Jess pointed out.
Nishan climbed in andJess was the only person left. Her heart was beating furiously and her palms felt sweaty. She had never really liked confined spaces.
'Be still, my heart. Be still. Oh God, I'm freaking out. I'm freaking out right now,' she thought.
She breathed in and out. Push had come to shove and it was either climb through the vent or take her chances with Officer Jenkins. The former would be better. She followed Nishan through the vent, albeit reluctantly. Jess's breath got heavier as she felt the walls closing in on her. She felt dizzy but she forced herself to focus.
"Wow. This is way much tighter than how vents are in the movies," Nishan whispered.
Sakura gestured for him to shush and pointed down through the grate. Officer Jenkins was patrolling below them. She mouthed, 'We have to move very quietly.'
They nodded in response. Sakura led them through the air vent. Jess pulled herself through quietly and gingerly. They pushed through the vents for what felt like forever until they got to the end. Sakura unscrewed the vent and the trio tumbled out onto the ground outside the school.
"How about we split up?" Sakura suggested. "We'd be much harder to catch that way."
"Great idea. You two go, I'll meet up with you later," Jess stated.
They nodded their heads and Nishan and Sakura ran off, going separate ways. Jess looked straight ahead at the exit to the parking lot and began sprinting across it. Up ahead, she could see the car and Julian waiting. She sprinted harder and her speed increased. She passed the last building and she could taste sweet victory, only for a heavy figure to pop out and tackle her.
"Oof!" she grunted as she felt the wind knocked out of her.
She landed heavily and the person straddled her and put her arms above her head. She looked up and lo and behold, it was Max Warren himself.
"Gotcha!" he gloated as he looked her in the eye.
She struggled to get Max off her but he was stronger than her. This was not good at all.
"Get off me, Max!" she demanded.
"Are you kidding me?" he asked her incredulously. "I caught you red-handed! I don't what you're doing here but you're trespassing!"
She scoffed, "Oh it's less severe than corruption and bullying!"
He rolled his eyes and told her, "Now, I'm going to pull out my phone and call my good friend Officer Jenkins to come pick you up. You're going to have so much fun in jail."
Jess knew he was serious about it, especially when he pulled out his phone from his pocket. She had to think of something, and fast!
"Max, wait!" she called him.
Jess pull out your walkie-talkie and pretend you're contacting someone. "Hello? Chief of Police? Yeah, it's Danny reporting in. I've got definite proof your officers are doing personal favors for the Warren family!"
"Wh... what?" Max asked in confusion
"Sending me in undercover to prove it was a bold play, Chief, but it worked!"
"Wait! No! What are you talking about? Give me that walkie-talkie!"
Jess throw the walkie-talkie into some bushes! Max dives for it... giving you the window to sprint away!
Hey, wait a minute... Get back here!
Jess run as hard as she can with Max in hot pursuit! Right in front of you, Julian throws open his car door! Max almost grabs you, but you dive in just in time!
"Go go go!" Julian steps on the gas, and the car drives off, leaving Max in its dust!
"Nooo!" Max yelled.
"Yessss!" Julian whooped.
Payton drove the group back to the campus. Later, they all regrouped at the Prep Hangout, their hearts pumping and adrenaline racing through their bodies.
Wes commended them, "Amazing work, everyone. I've pulled a lot of heists in my day... but that was by far the best. Team Pom-Poms, great work on the decoy. You were more convincing than most actual cheerleaders."
Everyone chuckled at this, even Julian.
"Yeah, yeah, you did pretty good too, Eagle-Eye. And we couldn't have done it without Team Strikeforce," Julian said warmly.
"Jess kept Max off our tails. Now that's what I call a great teammate," Sakura complimented.
Everyone cheered for Jess, who blushed and downplayed it.
"It was teamwork at the end of the day," she told them.
"Anyway, I have the transcripts. I'll go home and review them. Then we can have the Student Council present them to the Board tomorrow," Wes informed them. "For now, go home and rest. It's been one hell of an evening."
Everyone nodded in agreement and went their separate ways. Tomorrow, they would bear witness to the fall of an empire.
The next day...
Jacob and Jessica were dressed sharp as they waited on Professor Edwin, the only member of the Board who was willing to hear the accusations against Hearst High. Luckily for them, Professor Edwin was the type of person who kept time. She arrived dressed immaculately in a black skirt suit. The dynamic duo of Jessica and Jacob went up to her and greeted her with presidential smiles on their faces.
"Professor Edwin, thank you so much for coming out to meet us," Jessica greeted her and held out her hand for a handshake.
Professor Edwin took her hand but with a scowl on her face, "I'm a busy woman, so don't waste my time. After what happened at your disastrous science fair, you should be lucky I'm here at all."
"Of course. We'll keep this fast and professional." Jacob said.
Professor Edwin nodded, "Much appreciated. Now what is it you've found?"
"We've managed to get our hands on some information that you absolutely must see..." Jacob began.
"It proves, beyond a shadow of a doubt, a tangled conspiracy of corruption and fraud in Hearst High..." Jessica continued.
"A conspiracy that goes all the way to the top!" Jacob finished.
Jacob and Jessica showed the transcripts to Professor Edwin, along with Sakura's notes. She took out a spectacle case and put on her spectacles. She began reviewing the evidence carefully, her eyebrows folding into a frown the more she read. After a few minutes, she finally spoke, "This is... incredibly troubling. I'm not even going to ask how you got your hands on it."
Jessica smiled. "That's probably for the best."
"I'd long suspected there was something suspicious occurring at Hearst... but I never imagined it was this flagrant or sweeping. I'll need to present a copy of this to the rest of the School Board. I can't promise you they'll act on it... but I'll do my best." she assured them.
She left with the evidence in hand. Jessica and Jacob looked at each other and nodded. Now, all they had to do was wait.
After school...
The gang was hanging out in the Slacker Hangout, waiting for any news on Hearst to appear on the local news. As they waited, they were recounting the most memorable parts of the Heist to each other and having a good laugh about it.
"And then, Julian was all like, 'I sure am a cheerleader! I love yelling and flipping and-'" Payton began recalling.
All of a sudden, Jess noticed Professor Edwin on the TV and it seemed that she was holding a press conference.
"Yo, check it out. It's Professor Edwin." Jess announced.
Everyone's focus shifted to the TV and Jess turned up the volume with the remote.
"... saddened to report that an anonymous tip has revealed significant corruption, favoritism, and bullying at Hearst High. The School Board has gone over the information and decided to place Hearst High under review. Independent monitors will be placed within the school to closely review all academic exchanges, as well as look out for bullying or harassment. In addition, Principal Warren has been suspended without pay," Professor Edwin read out from a typed up press statement in front of her.
"In other words...the fall of an Empire" Wes stated.
They all cheered and clapped at this.
"I think it's safe to say that Hearst won't be bothering us anytime soon," Wes stated with a smirk on his face.
Jess's phone buzzed with a text. She took her phone out of her pocket and frowned at the text she read.
"Yeah. Wes, I wouldn't be so sure about that." Jess told him.
Jess held up her phone so that all could read the text she got from Max.
'Jess. We need to talk. I'm coming to you.'
"What the hell does he want? No way he would try anything after this mess," Payton wondered.
"Only one way you find out. Let's go to him," Jess said, beckoning to them with a slight shift of her head.
The others stood up and accompanied her to the parking lot. A few minutes after their arrival. Max's car pulled into the parking lot.
"Get ready." Jess murmured.
Max and Kara got of the car. Max's face was a mask of fury while Kara's was slightly apprehensive, a total change from her normal sneer. Max jutted a finger in Jess's direction and growled, "You! You got my dad suspended."
"I think your dad got himself suspended" Jess glared back at Max
"You think you're so clever, don't you? Breaking into our school, hacking Mr. Georgette's computer, giving the tip to Professor Edwin..." Max raged.
"Whoa there. That's a heck of a lot of speculation. Where's the proof? Julian asked.
"I saw Jess there!" Max shouted in frustration.
He lunged forward only for Kara to stop him.
"Max, no! Hearst is already under review. Do anything now, and we will be in deeper shit than before," Kara warned him.
Max narrowed his eyes and cracked his knuckles. He exhaled and sighed, "Funny thing is, she's right. You may have won this battle but you haven't won this war. Know this, Jess Hearst will rise back up and when it does, watch your back."
Max and Kara walked back to the car and drove off. Jess watched them leave. Wes put an arm on her shoulder and asked," You letting him go? "
Jess was silent for a moment before responding, "Yeah. We've beaten him already. No need to rub it in. It is said that you should be wise and graceful in victory."
Wes thought about it and nodded in agreement. Jess then turned around and faced him. She looked him in the eye and spoke, "Wes. None of this would have been possible without you. Thank you so much for helping us."
Wes shrugged it off, "Hey. Just helping out my new school."
"If there's anything I can do for you..."
Wes rubbed his chin in thought and told her, "Well...there is one thing. See, it's always been my dream to pull something like this off. It's not just that it's the perfect heist. It's also for a good cause. It's kind of silly, but I always had this image in my head that when I was done, I'd stand in front of a fountain and celebrate my victory."
The group walked to the water fountains near the picnic benches. Wes stood in front of one of them. Jess joined him. Julian, Autumn and Payton came over to stand with her, followed closely by Mia, Nishan, and Sakura. Jess asked him, "How's this?"
"Absolutely perfect," Wes replied.
They all stood in silence, enjoying the sweet taste of victory. The splashing water only served to add to the serenity of the moment.
After a while, Julian walked over to Wes and held out his hand.
"You did good, Wes. You ever need me to get your back, just let me know," Julian commended him.
Wes shook his hand in return. Nishan piped in, "Yeah, me too. Thanks for showing me that I could run and sneak and all that. I feel like a new man!"
Payton squealed, "And I just can't believe we're finally done with Hearst! Best news ever! Whooooo!"
Sakura added, "Mission accomplished. Achievement unlocked. GG, everyone."
Mia stated, "Maybe this is the wake up call my dad needs. Something to make him finally realize how badly he's treated people."
Autumn went over and hugged Jess firmly. She told her, "I always knew you'd turn this into a great school, Jess. And now, without having to worry about Hearst all the time, you can finally focus on important things."
"I can focus on my studies. I might be interested in joining an art club." said Jess
Autumn shrieked hugging Jess. "Your welcome to join that way we can spend time together so many possibilities to paint."
"We have midterm exam coming up." Nishan cheered
"That's explains Nishan always remind the teacher to give us homework." Julian groaned
"Your welcome giving you education and no Julian I'm not doing your homework."
"Messing around kiddo I'm not like Max."
"Alright everyone lets gather at the library." Nishan called
Everyone groaned
"I got a date coming up it's been ages having a date with Tommy." Payton shrieked
"I haven't had a date with Julian in a while were going to a art gallery." said Autumn
"Exam first then you guys can sort out your love life." said Nishan
Everyone except for Sakura groaned
"What's wrong?" Jess asked
"Here's the thing, Jess. Studying with Nishan is the worst." said Julian
"Like, seriously, THE WORST." said Mia
"I thought it was fun..." said Nishan
"All you do is make us sit in the library while you yell facts at us for hours!" Payton complained
"Well, you didn't pay attention when I talked at a normal volume!" said Nishan
"Hmm... maybe we should try to come up with a way to make studying more fun. I have a few ideas..." said Jess
Jess and all your friends are gathered in the library... Playing a game of Study Trivia! You and Julian are on one team, and Payton and Mia are on another!
"The end of the Civil War? That was um... um... 1865!" said Payton
"Correct! That's worth five points for Team Fire Ferrets, putting them in the lead 67 to 66!" said Nishan
"Woohoo!" Payton cheered
"Girl power forever!" said Mia
"Okay, Team Womp Rats... you've got one last shot to win this game. This is what it all comes down to." said Nishan
"We've got this, Jess!" said Julian
"And the question is... which planet is famous for its big red spot?" Nishan asked
"I was wrong! We don't got this! I have no idea!"
"Um... well... I think the answer is Jupiter!" said Jess
"That's correct! Five points to you! Team Womp Rat wins!" said Nishan
"Yeah! That's how we do!" Jess and Julian high-five!
"Aw... I was so sure we'd win..." said Mia
"But I still had fun... and I actually feel like I learned stuff!" said Payton
"You did!" said Nishan
"Can we have a rematch?" Mia asked
"Of course!" Nishan smiled