The Ambassador´s son

Chapter 1: Goodbye Banjunga.

Alan Drury´s father is the Irish Ambassador in Banjunga, which is a dangerous country. There is often violence there.
Mrs Drury is frightened. She wants to leave Banjunga. Ambassador Drury also wants to go and live in another
country. He tells his government, "It's not safe for my family in this country" The Irish government closes the
embassy. Soon, all the embassies close. It is a very sad time for Banjunga. The Irish government sends Ambassador
Drury to London. The ambassador is ill and must go home.

Chapter 2: A New Friend

The Drury family is happy because it's safe in London. Alan is happy because he can leave the house again. Alan´s
mother is happy that they are in London, but his father is worried. He's got letters from people in Banyunga. The
people are angry.
"All the ambassadors must return to Banyunga," they write. "The foreign businessmen see that many ambassadors are
leaving and now they're leaving too."
"We're staying in London," says Ambassador Drury.
Alan loves to read and he finds many books in the new house. But he's bored in London, too. "I haven't got any
friends here," he thinks. "My books are my only friends.”
One day Alan sees a girl on the stairs. She is small and thin. She has got long, blonde hair. “She is very pretty.” Alan
thinks.
Alan :“Who are you?”
Sophie “I´m Sophie Williams. I live here”
Alan :“But this is our house now”
Sophie :” My mother is the cook and the housekeeper. We live in a flat on the top floor”
Alan is happy that Sophie lives in the embassy. “She will be a new friend for me” he thinks.
“Where do you go to school?” asks Alan.
“Near here,” answers Sophie. “It´s a very good school.”
“I must tell my parents,” thinks Alan. “I want to go to Sophie´s school.”

Chapter 3: A new school

Alan gets a place at Sophie's school. On the first day, the chauffeur waits for Alan in the Ambassador's big, black car.
"You can't go to school in that car," laughs Sophie. "Walk with me."
"You mustn't walk to school, Alan," says Mrs Drury.
"Everybody walks to school. It's not dangerous here," says Sophie.
Mrs Drury thinks for a moment and then says, "OK, but you must promise to come home together after school."
'Yes, Mum, I promise," says Alan.
Alan and Sophie leave the house. A man is watching them. He hasn't got any hair and he's got a tattoo on the back of
his head. Alan and Sophie don't see the man.
The first day at school passes quickly. At 4.00 pm the bell rings. Sophie waits for Alan at the school gates. They walk
home together.
Two days later, Alan doesn't wait for Sophie after school. He wants to go to the bookshop and buy some new books.
"I'm 14 years old," he thinks. "I can buy books alone!"
In the bookshop, Alan sees a strange man. He hasn't got any hair and there's a tattoo on the back of his head.
Alan arrives home at 5.00 pm with his new books. Near the embassy, Alan sees the man again. “What is he doing
here?” Alan thinks, surprised. “What does he want?”

Chapter 4: London
Alan and Sophie are now good friends. At the weekends, Alan helps Sophie with her homework. Sophie takes Alan to
see interesting places in London.
"Let's go to the Tower of London," says Alan. "I like history. And let's go to Saint Paul's. I like architecture."
"I love art," says Sophie, so they visit all the famous art galleries.
"Let's go to a market," says Alan one day.
"Good idea," says Sophie. She takes Alan to the market in Portobello Road.
Alan and Sophie usually take sandwiches with them and pass the day together. Mr and Mrs Drury trust Sophie, but
she and Alan must always be home at dinnertime.
Alan likes his new life very much. He and Sophie visit Covent Garden and Trafalgar Square. They sit at Nelson's
Column and feed the pigeons. In Hyde Park, they go on a boat on the lake. They see the animals in London Zoo.
They travel on the underground and on the buses. Alan loves the top of the double-decker buses. They sit at the front.
The man with the tattoo watches Alan and waits. Alan doesn´t see him. The man knows how to hide.

Chapter 5: The Seaside

One Saturday, Sophie says, “Let´s go to the beach. We can go by train.”
“I must ask my parents first,” says Alan.
“Why?” shouts Sophie. She is angry. “You´re 14 years old, but you are a baby, Alan Drury! You cannot leave London
without permission, but I can!”
Sophie walks to the train station and Alan thinks “Now Sophie is angry with me. I want to go with Sophie to the
beach. Perhaps it is OK for us to go there.”
Alan follows Sophie and the man with the tattoo follows Alan.
At the station, Alan and Sophie buy two tickets for Southend, a popular holiday town near London. They wait for the
train. Alan decides to phone his parents but suddenly Sophie sees a man. “
Look Alan! That man is looking at us.”
“Who?” asks Alan.
“That man near the wall,” says Sophie. “He is very strange. He has got a tattoo on the back of his head.”
“He was in the bookshop”, says Alan. “He was near the Embassy, too.”
“There are a lot of men with tattoos,” Sophie says. “It is not the same man every time.”
“Perhaps I am imagining things,” Alan thinks. Alan forgets to phone his parents.
In Southend, Alan and Sophie buy fish and chips and eat it with their fingers from a paper bag. Then they sit on the
beach. They walk in the sea.
The man with the tattoo watches Alan and Sophie on the beach. He looks at his watch, then he speaks quietly into a
mobile phone. “He´s here,” he says in the language of Banyunga, “and I am ready.”
In the afternoon, Alan and Sophie go to the amusement park. They enjoy the rides and the Hall of Strange Mirrors.
They laugh at the strange reflections in the mirrors. Sophie wins a ball game and gets a coconut as a prize.

Chapter 6: Danger!
Alan and Sophie forget about the time and it's late now. They must go quickly to the train station. Sophie goes to buy
some chocolate at the kiosk. Alan waits on the platform. He looks round and sees the man with the tattoo. This time
Alan is sure. The man is hiding behind the kiosk.
Sophie returns with the chocolate.
"The man with the tattoo is here," says Alan. "I think he's from Banyunga."
"Are you sure?" asks Sophie.
"Yes. I'm not imagining it," Alan answers. "He's following me."
"Why? You're just a kid," says Sophie.
"Sophie doesn't understand," Alan thinks. "Sometimes it's dangerous to be an ambassador's son."
It´s dark now. The train comes into the station. Everyone gets into the train. Alan and Sophie run to the train. They are
frightened. The man with the tattoo runs after them. He shouts something. Sophie doesn´t understand the words, but
Alan recognises the language of Banyunga.
The man with the tattoo runs after Alan. He is big and strong and he is very quick. He grabs Alan and Alan falls to the
ground. The train leaves. Sophie turns and runs to Alan. She wants to help him.
“No, Sophie!” shouts Alan. “Go and get help!” Sophie listens to Alan. He is right. She must get help.

Chapter 7: Late for dinner

In London, Ambassador Drury and his wife are sitting in their dining room. It's time for dinner but Alan isn't home
yet. Alan's parents start to eat without him.
"Alan is late for dinner," says his father. "I'm very angry. Where are they?"
“I do not know. It is very strange. Alan and Sophie are always home at dinnertime.”
"I hope he's OK," says his mother. She's worried.
They finish dinner. Alan doesn't come home.
The Ambassador isn't happy. "Why are they late tonight?" he asks.
"Don't worry. Sophie is only 12 years old but she's usually very responsible," says Mrs Drury. "She often goes places
alone."
"Sophie Williams isn't an ambassador's daughter," says the Ambassador.
The Ambassador calls Mrs Williams into the dining room. "Is Sophie home yet?" he asks.
"No, not yet," says Mrs Williams. She isn't worried. She trusts Sophie.
"You don't understand," says Ambassador Drury. "Alan is an ambassador's son. It's dangerous for him to be out late.
Some people detest my country and they want to hurt my family. We must phone the police"
Mrs Williams is surprised. "In my opinion, we don't need the police yet," she says. "Can't we wait?
Sophie usually pays attention to time. They'll be home soon."
Chapter 8: The Airport
In Southend, the man with the tattoo holds Alan on the ground and speaks to him in English. "I don't want to hurt
you," he says. "There's someone following your mother, too. We can hurt her very easily. Do you understand what I'm
saying?"
Alan understands. He must do what the man says. He must protect his mother.
Alan and the man get into a taxi.
The taxi driver thinks “This boy is very frightened, and the man is very strange. He has got a tattoo on the back of his
head”
They go to a small private airport near Southend. There is a private plane on the runway. The pilot is from Banyunga,
too. Alan and the man get into the plane
The man phones Ambassador Drury on his mobile phone. "We've got your son," he says. "You must return to
Banyunga and open the Irish Embassy."
"First, I must speak to my government," says the Ambassador.
"Then I'm taking your son to Banyunga," says the man "We're in a plane. Now will you change your mind?"
"Where is the plane?" asks Ambassador Drury. "Let's meet and talk about this."
“Oh no, Mr. Ambassador, you must go to Banyunga. You must be there tomorrow morning"
Alan is very frightened. He knows that it is dangerous for his father to go to Banyunga.

Chapter 9: The Rescue.

In Southend, Sophie runs through the streets. She´s crying. A taxi stops.
Sophie says “A man kidnapped my friend. We must help him!”
"Can you describe your friend?" asks the taxi driver.
"He's 14 and he's got red hair," says Sophie. "The kidnapper hasn't got any hair. He's got a tattoo on his head.
The taxi driver talks into his radio. "A man with a tattoo on his head kidnapped a 14-year-old boy today," he says.
"Can any drivers help?"
All the other taxi drivers hear the message.
"They were in my taxi," says one driver. "Now they're at a private airport in Southend."
Next, the taxi driver phones the embassy. A policeman answers the phone. The taxi driver tells him about the airport.
The policeman says, "Help is coming."
"I hope the police arrive in time," says the taxi driver "The plane is waiting to go."
Sophie and the taxi driver arrive at the airport. They see the plane move along the runway. Many taxis are arriving.
The taxi drivers are brave. They drive their taxis in front of the plane. The plane can't move.
Soon four police cars appear. The policemen quickly get out of the cars. They've got guns. They shout to the
kidnappers, "Give us the boy, then you can go!"
The kidnappers are frightened. They release Alan.
Chapter 10: Home again
Alan and Sophie go home in a police car.
At the embassy, Alan's parents and Sophie's mother are waiting for them in the living room.
They're very happy to see them. They kiss their two children. Alan and Sophie are happy that they're home again.
There are two policemen in the embassy, too. They want to ask lots of questions but Alan and Sophie are very tired.
The policemen are kind.
The policemen say goodbye and leave the house.
Mrs Drury turns to Alan and Sophie. “Go to bed and have a good sleep,” she says.
"First they must answer my questions," says the Ambassador. "Why did you leave London without permission?"
"It was my idea," says Sophie.
"My son must be responsible for his actions," says the Ambassador. "Alan, I'm waiting for an explanation."
"I'm very sorry, Dad," says Alan. "I wanted to go the beach with Sophie."
"You can't walk to school and you can't go out with Sophie," says Alan's father. "You mustn't leave this house again
without my permission. Do you understand?
“Yes, Dad," says Alan. He's very sad. Sophie is sad, too.

Chapter 11: Moving again

It is six weeks later. Alan´s very bored. The car takes him to school and brings him home. He can´t go to the
bookshop. He does not go out at the weekends.
One day Alan sees boxes in the hall. He knows what this means. They are moving again. He is very sad. He loves his
school and he has got a lot of friends there.
“I´m responsible for this,” he thinks. Then he thinks, “No, I´m not. My father is responsible. I do not want to be an
Ambassador´s son. I want to be a normal child with normal parents. I want to stay in one place and go to the same
school.
Sophie sees the boxes and she's sad, too. "Are you moving again ?" she asks.
"Yes, probably," says Alan.
"Where are you moving to?" she asks.
"I don't know," says Alan. He's very angry. "Nobody tells me anything. Nobody asks me anything. What I want to do
or where I want to live isn't important," he says.
"I'm sorry that you must leave," says Sophie. "We have fun together. Please don't forget me."
Alan smiles at Sophie. "Don't worry," he says, "you're my friend." Alan puts his arm around Sophie.

Chapter 12: A normal life

The Drury family are having dinner.
"You're very quiet tonight, Alan," the Ambassador says.
"We're moving again," says Alan. "I detest moving all the time."
"This time it's different, Alan," says his mother. "Do you know where we're going?"
"It's not important," says Alan. "I don't want to leave my school, I don't want to leave my friends, I don't want to leave
London and I don't want to leave Sophie."
"Alan, I'm an ambassador and it's dangerous for us in London, too," says Alan's father. "We worry about you all the
time. I've got a new job in London. Now you can have a normal life."
"I can't believe it!" says Alan. "You're taking a normal job. Is it really true?"
“Yes, Alan, it's really true," say his parents.
"Can I stay at my school? Can I go out with my friends?" Alan asks. Now he's very excited.
“Yes, of course," say his parents. They're smiling.
"Can I go and tell Sophie now?" asks Alan.
His mother laughs. “Yes, you can," she says. "Sophie's a very nice girl and she's a good friend."
Alan walks to the door. "She's not only a friend," he says. "She's my tour guide and my ….bodyguard!"