Undercover

by Jacqueline Harvey

  Kensy wrinkled her nose. ‘Are you serious?’

  Curtis’s jaw fell open, horrified at the thought. ‘But the train’s moving, and it’s going way too fast. We’ll be killed!’

  ‘Not when I apply the emergency brake. I’m going to do it here, on the bend.’ Max showed Kensy and Curtis the map on his phone. ‘The train will have slowed already and, with the brake on, it should almost come to a stop.’

  ‘You never said that we were going to jump off a moving train,’ Curtis said, biting his lip.

  Kensy turned to him. ‘You don’t have to come. You can move to another carriage and pretend you don’t know us. Although I’m not sure what sort of secret agent you can call yourself if you’re not prepared to take the leap of faith,’ she said, knowing full well that Curtis would hate her saying that.

  The boy licked his lips nervously. He knew watching all those martial arts videos online would come in handy. Just last week he’d been practising his commando rolls at the park. The children watched as the ground sped past them.

  ‘I’ll do it,’ Curtis said with a gulp.

  Kensy smiled and gave his shoulder a reassuring squeeze. ‘Good man.’

  ‘Almost there,’ Max said as the three of them stood by the door. At least it looked like they would be landing on soft ground – there hadn’t been too many rocks since Moss Vale. Max pulled the lever and the brakes screeched. ‘Now!’

  Kensy leapt off first. She tumbled along the grass and dirt, then scrabbled to her feet. ‘Come on, Curtis!’ she yelled.

  ‘I can’t believe I’m doing this, but here goes!’ The boy clamped his eyes shut and jumped out of the train. He rolled over and over, coming to a stop in a clump of wet manure. Thankfully, he didn’t take too long to catch his breath, but his mother would be none too pleased with the stain on his jacket.

  ‘Max, go!’ Kensy shouted as she spied a guard running through from the carriage behind.

  Max backed up, then put his head down and sprinted towards the door, his arms spinning like windmills in the air, before he landed with a thud on his feet.

  ‘I’m calling the police, you little brats!’ the guard shouted above the squealing brakes. The train had almost completely stopped, but Kensy, Max and Curtis had already set off through the thick stand of trees and into the fading light. A loud crack of thunder rumbled overhead and lightning split the sky. The children ran on, their feet flying over the dry ground. Kensy was gladder than ever that she’d worn her boots instead of those silly pumps Song had wanted her to buy.

  ‘There, Max! There’s the shed,’ she said as they drew closer. The building was surrounded by a high hedge and hidden below was a fence topped with barbed wire.

  ‘What is this place?’ Curtis asked.

  ‘I told you – no questions,’ Kensy said. ‘Just trust us and do as we say.’

  Kensy and Max decided to scout the perimeter. They rounded the corner and spotted Dash’s car and a white ute.

  ‘How are we going to get in?’ Max said.

  But it was Curtis who saw it first. There was a gate in the fence and it was open. The door to the shed was too. ‘Not as hard as you thought, maybe,’ the boy said.

  ‘You stay here,’ Kensy ordered. ‘If we’re not back in half an hour, go to the nearest house – no, not the nearest one, the next one after that and call the police.’

  Curtis nodded. He still had no idea what the Greys were up to, but if that was his role, that’s what he would do. ‘Max, take this,’ he said, offering his backpack.

  Max grinned tightly. ‘Thanks.’

  Thick, fat drops rained down from the sky as thunder rumbled louder and closer until it collided with a lightning strike that shook the ground. Curtis jumped into the air, then ran and hid behind Dash Chalmers’ car, out of sight.

  Kensy and Max entered the building. There were a couple of tractors and various machines at one end, and at the other was what looked to be an office. The twins scurried towards it. Max poked his head around the open door and was surprised to see a heavy metal trapdoor in the floor. He tried to lift it by the handle, but it was firmly secured.

  ‘It’s a bunker,’ Kensy whispered. ‘There must be a ventilation shaft somewhere.’

  Max nodded. He crept back to the main part of the shed and shone Curtis’s torch under the largest of the tractors before he found what he was looking for. ‘There!’

  But the vent was covered by a grate. Fortunately, Curtis’s Swiss Army knife had myriad screwdrivers, and within a few minutes the children had prised it free. Max shone the torch into the cylinder. It looked to go straight for a little way then turned at an angle. They needed the rope.

  Kensy secured the end to the tractor suspension and dropped it into the hole, then lowered herself down. Max took a deep breath and followed suit. Outside, thunder boomed and lightning crashed.

  Above the noise, Curtis heard a car approaching. He stole a peek and recognised it as the silver Mazda he’d taken down the numberplates for the other day. The driver was the man who’d been snapping pictures of Van and Ellery. There was a woman with him too, but all Curtis could make out was her blonde hair. They parked behind a tree but didn’t get out. Curtis had no idea what they were doing there, but he wasn’t about to show himself. He needed to stay focused – if whatever the twins were doing went horribly wrong, someone had to be able to get help.

  Kensy realised too late that the rope wasn’t long enough. She dropped the last metre or so, causing a huge bang, which coincided perfectly with a booming clap of thunder. Her feet plummeted through a grate and onto something soft and completely unexpected – a couch.

  Max landed beside her. ‘What is this place?’ he whispered, looking around at what appeared to be some sort of living quarters. There was a kitchen in the corner and another room off to the right.

  ‘Hector, is that you?’ a woman called from the other room.

  The twins froze as a slim woman with clear blue eyes and fine features opened the door and startled at the sight of the two children in front of her. For a moment nobody said a thing.

  ‘Am I dreaming or are there really two children standing before me?’ she said.

  Hector Clement appeared through another door. He was shorter and broad-shouldered with a full grey beard and grey hair several shades darker than the woman’s. He walked to his wife’s side and peered at the twins, wondering if, after over a decade in captivity, he had finally begun to hallucinate.

  Kensington couldn’t help thinking the woman’s resemblance to their mother was striking.

  For once it was Max who spoke first. ‘My name is Maxim Val d’Isère Grey – no, Spencer – and this is my twin sister, Kensington Méribel Spencer.’

  Marisol’s face drained of colour and she looked as if she was going to pass out. She reached for her husband’s arm to steady herself.

  ‘You are Anna and Edward’s children?’ Hector said.

  Kensy and Max nodded. ‘We’ve come to take you home, Grand-mère and Grand-père,’ the boy said.

  ‘Mum and Dad have been looking for you for months,’ Kensy added.

  Marisol’s eyes filled with tears. ‘Oh my word.’

  ‘They are here too?’ Hector asked.

  Kensy shook her head. ‘No.’

  Marisol’s breath caught in her throat and she crossed her hands on her chest. ‘Is this real, Hector? Am I dreaming?’ Tears slid down her cheeks.

  ‘We’re real, Grand-mère,’ Kensy said, smiling through her tears.

  Marisol opened her arms and pulled the twins into her embrace. Hector enveloped them all. For more than a minute they stood together, weeping.

  ‘We’ve got to go,’ Kensy said eventually, wiping at her eyes.

  Hector shook his head. ‘There is no way out of this place. Believe me, we have tried.’

  ‘There has to be,’ Max said. ‘Someone put you in here and now we’re going to get you out.’

  There was a loud whoosh as the trapdoor opened and Dash climbed up th
e ladder with Nick behind him. Both men were carrying a biohazard box in one hand.

  ‘I don’t understand how the transport was cancelled,’ Dash said. ‘Lucy had it all organised. She’s never messed up a transfer.’

  Nick shrugged. ‘I was waiting for ages. When I called the number she’d given me, it said it was disconnected.’

  Dash tried to phone his assistant for the umpteenth time since leaving the city, but she wasn’t picking up. The woman had been absolutely devoted to him for the past ten years and he couldn’t remember there ever being a time she didn’t take his calls, no matter the hour. This didn’t make sense at all. ‘I’ll have to get these to the plane myself or we’ll miss the connections,’ he said, hefting the large biohazard case onto the floor.

  ‘There are four more,’ Nick said. ‘I’ll bring them up.’

  Dash glanced at the man’s arm. ‘You know Tinsley’s on to you.’

  ‘What do you mean?’

  Dash chuckled. ‘She saw the scratch and thinks it was you who carjacked her, but don’t worry, I’ve spoken to the police commissioner and you’re in the clear. You’ll have to be more careful next time.’

  ‘Next time?’ Nick repeated.

  ‘Only if she starts acting up again.’ Dash glanced at his watch. ‘Hurry, I’ll put this in the car.’

  Dash picked up the two cases and walked out of the office into the shed. The door had blown shut in the wind. He kicked it open and hurried outside. The large spats of rain were coming down harder and faster. Dash charged around to the back of the four-wheel drive and pulled open the door.

  Curtis had just enough time to get out of the way. He pressed himself against the back tyre on the left-hand side and hoped that Dash wasn’t about to drive off. His heart was pounding so loudly it was a wonder the man couldn’t hear it over the crashing storm.

  ‘How do they get things in and out of the lab?’ Kensy asked.

  Hector showed her the device which served as a dumb waiter, sliding back and forth through the wall.

  ‘I think I can fit in there,’ Kensy said.

  Max shook his head. ‘What if it’s sealed on the other side?’

  ‘We have to try,’ Kensy said. She wasn’t relishing the thought of tucking herself into a ball and being pushed through a thick concrete wall, but there was no other way.

  Marisol clutched the girl’s arm. ‘No, you mustn’t go,’ she said vehemently. ‘They will kill you.’

  ‘I have to,’ Kensy said. She looked to Max for support. The boy took his grandmother’s hand in his and squeezed it.

  ‘Good luck, ma chérie,’ Marisol whispered, and kissed Kensy’s forehead.

  Kensy flicked on her torch as the box moved slowly towards its destination. If there was anyone waiting for her on the other side she was in big trouble, but to her surprise the panel slid up and she found herself in what looked like a control room.

  Kensy unfurled herself and stared at a large screen. She studied the diagram and hoped with every fibre of her being that she was about to make the right choice. Her finger hovered over the green button for a moment, then she bit the bullet and pressed it. Seconds later, a panel slid away and she came face to face with her grandparents and Max.

  ‘Come on!’ Kensy hissed as they rushed through. She flew up the ladder and through an open trapdoor with the others behind her, then came to a screeching halt at the top. ‘Nick,’ she breathed.

  The man looked at her in surprise. ‘What are you doing here?’ he demanded. ‘How did you get in?’

  ‘You know you work for a monster,’ Kensy said. She hopped off the top rung and slowly walked towards the man.

  ‘Turn around and go back downstairs,’ Nick ordered. ‘NOW!’

  Kensy inched along the wall of the office, trying to distract him. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Max hop over the top of the ladder too and then her grandparents. ‘I’m not going anywhere, but you will be – straight to prison when the police arrive.’

  Nick lunged at the girl, but Max was ready. He charged at the man, sending him sideways. Hector grabbed Marisol’s hand and the two of them scurried across the room as Kensy spun around and landed a heavy kick to Nick’s stomach. She lined up for another, except this time he managed to grab her by the foot and fling her away.

  ‘Kensy!’ Max yelled, running to his sister’s aid. He delivered a blow to Nick’s kneecap, aggravating an old football injury, which had the man moaning in agony. Max looked for something to defend himself. He spotted an open toolbox, but before he could reach it, Nick grabbed Max’s leg and began pulling him towards the trapdoor.

  ‘Oh, no, you don’t,’ Max said, suddenly remembering his glasses. He pressed the logo on the side and a reticle appeared on the lens in front of his left eye. He zeroed in on Nick with the crosshairs and pressed the logo again, this time firing a tiny poison dart straight into the man’s neck.

  ‘Ow!’ Nick swatted at the microscopic device, but the effects were immediate. He stood up and staggered forwards until he fell through the open hatch and onto the concrete floor below.

  ‘Oh my word.’ Marisol’s eyes were huge as she watched her grandchildren in action.

  Kensy looked at the two biohazard cases near the door. ‘What about these?’

  ‘Bring them with us,’ Hector said. ‘But be very careful.’

  ‘Quickly, someone’s coming,’ Max said. He guided Kensy and his grandparents to the other end of the shed. It was Dash, returning to collect the next two cases. He soon realised they weren’t there.

  ‘Nick! Hurry up. I’ve got to meet the plane in thirty minutes,’ he shouted.

  Hector, Marisol and the twins were hiding behind a tractor. Who knew what Dash might do when he worked out what had happened?

  Outside, Curtis hadn’t dared to move. He was soaked to the bone, his hair plastered across his face. He poked his head out around the back of the car and was shocked to see the man from the ferry and the blonde woman were making a run for the shed.

  ‘Nick! Where are you?’ Dash peered into the opening and recoiled when he saw the man lying unconscious at the bottom. He looked around in confusion, then scampered down the ladder and grabbed another container. He didn’t stop to check if Nick was still alive – there were far more important things on his mind.

  ‘Hello?’ a woman’s voice echoed through the shed.

  ‘Lucy! What the heck are you doing here and why haven’t you been answering your phone?’ Dash demanded, as he exited the office with the case.

  ‘Who’s that?’ Kensy whispered.

  Max peered out just far enough to see that it was Dash’s assistant. But then he spotted the man from the ferry lurking in the shadows, out of sight, with something in his hand. ‘It’s Lucy,’ Max whispered, ‘and that journalist, George Kapalos.’

  ‘I need to ask you something,’ Lucy said, her voice wavering.

  ‘What?’ Dash roared. A huge clap of thunder shook the building. Rain hammered the tin roof.

  ‘What is it that I’ve been organising the transport for all this time?’ she yelled.

  ‘For heaven’s sake, not now, Lucy. I’m in a hurry. Your mess-up has meant I need to get this batch to the plane,’ Dash shouted.

  ‘This isn’t a vaccine, is it?’ she pressed, marching into his path. Her hands were balled into two tight fists and her body was so tense it felt like it could snap at any second. ‘I know what you’re doing, and it has to stop.’

  Dash scoffed. ‘I’m saving millions of people, that’s what I’m doing.’

  Max peered around the tyre again and realised that George Kapalos had a phone out, filming the exchange.

  ‘You make people sick,’ Lucy hissed. ‘You spread the diseases then you make millions from the cures.’

  Max turned to his grandparents. ‘Is that true?’

  Hector nodded.

  ‘You’re delusional, Lucy. Did you take a bump to the head?’ Dash shouted.

  Max hesitated for a second then stood up.

/>   ‘What are you doing?’ Kensy grabbed at his trousers, but he was too quick.

  ‘She’s telling the truth,’ Max said loudly as he emerged from his hiding spot.

  Lucy flinched in fright and Dash did a double take. ‘Max?’ he baulked. ‘What are you doing here?’

  Kensy appeared too, followed by Hector and Marisol.

  Dash dropped the biohazard case in his hands. ‘How on earth did you …?’

  ‘So, it was you,’ Hector said. ‘You have been our captor for these past twelve years.’

  Marisol clung to her husband’s arm, shaking.

  ‘Might you at least have the decency to tell us your name?’ Hector said.

  Lucy’s jaw gaped open. She had no idea who these people were, but her boss had clearly done something even more despicable than she had uncovered.

  ‘He’s Dash Chalmers,’ Kensy said. ‘Head of The Chalmers Corporation.’

  At the revelation of the man’s name, Hector staggered. ‘Your parents are Faye and Conrad Chalmers?’

  ‘Do you know them?’ Kensy asked. It was her turn to be confused.

  Marisol nodded. ‘We were in talks to do business with them when we were taken. Their reputation is impeccable, but we never met their son.’

  ‘I don’t have time for this,’ Dash said. He picked up the case and looked set to make a run for it. ‘If it makes you feel better, my parents don’t know a thing.’

  ‘But why do it in the first place?’ Hector breathed.

  ‘Are you kidding?’ Dash retorted. ‘You had developed a vaccine that would rid the world of every strain of the common cold. We would have lost everything going into business with you. I couldn’t let them do it. This way, the company made billions.’

  Hector shook his head. ‘Thousands of innocent people suffered and many have likely died because of you and your greed.’

  ‘Collateral damage, old man,’ Dash sneered. ‘Now, get out of my way.’

  ‘You’re not going anywhere.’ George Kapalos stepped into the light. ‘Except to prison. We have enough evidence to put you away for the rest of your sorry life.’

  Dash frowned. ‘Who are you?’