Max & Olivia Box Set

by Mark A Biggs

  ‘Your scientists will combat our attack and, while they do that, we are working on new variants, which takes us time and money. We don’t want to cause mass casualties. A country must believe there is some hope and, in the end, we want them to pay… let’s call it an annual insurance policy. With Janus, the work is already done and, no matter how smart your scientists are, we can always come up with something different. We will have a guaranteed income for life, from all the major economies. On the other hand, if you have Janus, it will be like having a virus protection system, a firewall on your computer. Every now and then we will still get through but it will be more difficult. So you see, if we have no choice, the only real thing we want is for you not to have Janus. If we have it, it’s worth hundreds of billions of pounds.’

  ‘You need a key and without the key the Janus Machine is useless.’

  ‘Sweetie, we’ve had a key for a very long time, well before even my era. The second key, so I have been told, was never destroyed but that’s enough talking; it’s time for our exchange. Janus for Olivia.’ With that Claudia signalled to the men standing next to Olivia. I watched as one of them levelled a gun to her head.

  ‘This won’t work you know; the governments of the world will get together. You can’t hide those sums of money and that will be the end of you. Let her go; there’s no point!’

  ‘Max, we are the government, you stupid senile old-has-been,’ she snapped. ‘This is far bigger than just money. Now I will give you to the count of three. Three—two.’

  A red dot from a laser sight flashed momentarily into Claudia’s eyes before vanishing back into the darkness. She stopped counting. A voice I vaguely recognised called out from the shadows, somewhere near the door above. ‘I think it’s time to leave, Max and Olivia.’

  ‘Sweetie,’ replied Claudia. ‘This is what they call a Mexican standoff. You may be able to shoot me but my men will have time to kill Olivia. I don’t think you are in a position to negotiate.’

  ‘Max,’ came the voice. ‘You come with me.’

  ‘Go on,’ said Olivia, ‘you have to leave me.’

  ‘Sweetie, listen to me very carefully now. I will let you go so you have time to think this over. I want you to bring me the Janus Machine at…’ She stopped talking to look down at her watch, and continued in a calm and unflustered voice. ‘At four o’clock this afternoon. It’s now one-thirty. By the time you get back to the Waterfront Hotel, there will be a message waiting for you with the location of our exchange. The machine for Olivia; if you don’t bring the machine, Olivia will suffer a long and painful end. We will starve her to slow death but keep her fluids up so that the agony is prolonged. When she finally slips into unconsciousness, there will be no morphine to ease her suffering. As she gasps in those dying breaths, intravenously we will give her more fluid so her lungs begin to drown. It will be your worst nightmare, a long undignified and unbearable end. If, on the other hand, you get the silly notion of attempting a rescue, perhaps with the assistance of the British Government, we will inject her with one of our old viruses. Again it will be a slow and excruciating passing. Don’t forget, we have access to satellites, so we will see if you try anything stupid. You can bring your friend, but no one else. Do we understand each other?’

  ‘Max…’ said the voice from above.

  With no alternatives, I turned to walk into the darkness.

  Three green tubes of fluorescent light tumbled through the air, landing on the ground in front of me. They lit the way ahead for a careful climb. Reaching the door and tunnel I could just make out the silhouette of a man.

  ‘Close and lock the door; it may slow them for a minute or so if they try and chase us.’

  I did as directed and, when the door was closed, the bright beam of a torch came to life, lighting the way in front. Still the man’s back was to me but I felt sure I knew him. It was not until we entered the bunker and its rooms filled with light that I could see his face.

  ‘Jana, is that you?’ Without giving him a chance to reply, I added, ‘It can’t be; where’s the beard? You look fifteen years younger.’

  ‘Hello old boy; no time for questions. I’m afraid we need to get out of here. If they can pop us off to get Janus—I’m sure they will.’

  Jana moved quickly but had to stop and wait for me to catch up. Reaching the heavy steel door he pushed it shut but did not lock it. Looking about and seeing the master switchboard, he pulled all the fuses. The building and the bunker descended into darkness. Once outside he beckoned me to his vehicle.

  ‘I want to take the M20,’ I said.

  ‘It’s got a GPS tracking device on it,’ he responded.

  ‘I know.’

  His face betrayed confusion, but quickly changed to acceptance. ‘Okay, I’ll meet you at the hotel.’

  I followed Jana back to the hotel and, while I parked at the front, he hid his car from view. Three minutes later and almost right on two o’clock we were seated in the lounge. My mind was full of questions for Jana but they were outweighed by Olivia’s predicament and the events unfolding in London, a constant reminder of which played on the TV in the background.

  ‘What are you doing here—no, don’t answer. Sorry Jana, but I’m not as good at this kind of stuff as I used to be. Give me a couple of minutes to gather my thoughts. I need to take a short walk to clear my mind; then I’ll be back.’ But rather than leaving I continued speaking. We have to save Olivia; that’s my first priority.’

  As I began to stand, Jana replied, ‘I understand Max. Will you let me call someone who may be able to help us—Inspector Axel?’

  ‘Inspector Axel?’ I said with some alarm. ‘Olivia and I are worried he’s working for the organised crime gangs.’

  ‘I can assure you that’s not the case. Let’s just say, I’ve had some first-hand experience with Mr Axel. If you can just wait two minutes, I’ll give him a call. You can listen to the conversation; it might help to set your mind at ease.’

  Hesitating, I put my hand on the table and gently lowered myself back into the chair.

  Jana took out his mobile phone into which he dialled some numbers before lifting it to his ear.

  ‘Pierre Gicquel,’ began Jana. ‘Good afternoon Inspector, now that I have your attention. We had the pleasure of meeting in Clyst Hydon and then again under more difficult circumstances in Mawnan. I’m here with Max.’ Jana stopped speaking briefly and I assumed Axel was asking a question. ‘No, no Inspector, nothing like that. Max and I need your help. Where are you?’ After waiting for the reply, he said, ‘Excellent, St Andrews,’ repeating the location for my benefit. Jana then proceeded to briefly describe what had occurred in the bunker but left out the part where I had found the Janus Machine. He added instead, ‘Olivia has the final piece of the puzzle; we need Max and Olivia together to find the Janus Machine. As you can appreciate—you must come alone and unfortunately we have very little time. Can you be here by, um, two-thirty? Thank you, Inspector. Oh Inspector, we think they are working with a foreign government, so be extremely careful.’

  ‘That was very clever,’ I said to Jana, who smiled.

  Standing once more and rubbing my forehead with one hand and carrying the box in the other, I said, ‘I’ll be back before two-thirty. I need some time to think.’ As I made my way to the door the voice in my head kept saying over and over again, there must be some way of getting her out alive before being interrupted by the hotel manager.

  ‘Excuse me; a phone message came in while you were out.’ In his outstretched hand he held a piece of paper.

  Feeling the weight of my age and unable to think clearly I turned to the manager and said, ‘Thank you, would you mind giving it to my friend over there?’ pointing to Jana and continuing on my way out of the hotel and onto the street.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Showdown

  ‘Here he is,’ I heard Jana say as I walked back into the hotel lounge. Jana was still seated at the same table at which I left him. He had been joined b
y another man, to whom he introduced me. ‘Max this is Inspector Axel, Inspector Axel, this is Max.’

  Ignoring the formalities and without bothering to sit down, I pointed to the stairs and said, ‘Gentlemen, would you like to come up to my room? Perhaps the environment may prove a little more conducive to our conversation.’

  Once in the room, we made ourselves as comfortable as the surroundings would permit. I sat on a chair, Jana on the only other chair and Inspector Axel on the bed.

  ‘How are we going to get Olivia out?’ I asked.

  Inspector Axel pointed toward the box which I had placed near my feet and said, ‘Is the Janus Machine inside?’

  ‘It is,’ I said, but, not wanting to focus the discussion on the box, I continued, ‘Somehow we need to keep the Janus Machine and rescue Olivia. I assume the note, the one I asked the manager to give you,’ I added, looking to Jana ‘was the location of where the exchange is to take place?’

  With an air of frustration showing in his voice, Inspector Axel said, ‘You said on the phone that you didn’t have the Janus Machine.’

  ‘I didn’t say a thing, it was Jana who lied. But, now you’re here.’ Again refusing to be drawn into a debate, I said, ‘Do you know where the exchange is to take place?

  Inspector Axel waited before answering, probably considering the predicament and weighing his options after being lied to. Finally he sighed before saying, ‘Yes. Jana and I have already looked at it on Google Earth.’

  ‘It won’t be easy,’ interrupted Jana. ‘From what we saw, it’s an old farm house on a slight rise in the middle of open fields. It’s at least 600 metres, maybe more, from the nearest cover and there’s only one track in. A perfect place for an exchange assuming they have helicopters. It would be nearly impossible to overrun without being seen.’

  ‘I understand that we have to get Olivia back,’ said Inspector Axel. ‘But if we are going to succeed, you must trust me—let me organise some help.’

  ‘I agree with him Max; we won’t be able to do this on our own. If you make the exchange there is no guarantee that they will release Olivia and, if I was a betting man, they will take you both hostage so they can escape.’

  ‘Max,’ continued Axel, ‘I can access satellite photographs and, in twenty minutes, we can have the very best of personnel standing by. If you want to go it alone, I promise not to interfere—but think about it. If you go in without some kind of back up, you can’t win. There is no easy way out of this, if at all.’

  I decided to inject a little humour, which was my way when the severity of a situation was overwhelming my thinking. ‘What about the old secret escape route which runs from the edge of the fields and comes up in the cellar beneath the cottage?’

  ‘You’re thinking of some fictional plot from a spy novel,’ replied Axel in a way that indicated he was not sure if I was joking.

  ‘Okay, how about the cache of guns and explosives you have in the boot of your car?’

  Now it was Jana’s turn who, after sharing a nursing home with me for the last two years, was a little more accustomed to my bouts of sarcasm. ‘Ah, that would be from one of those Hollywood blockbusters.’

  ‘Go on Inspector,’ I said with all seriousness returned to my voice. ‘What are your thoughts?’

  ‘Very well,’ he said, shaking his head and obviously wondering what on Earth had just taken place. ‘We may have to play this a bit by ear. There is so little time to organise anything, which I am guessing was their plan in the first place. A couple of options have come to mind. We place marksmen around the perimeter; 500 to 600 metres is within their range. If we get a clear shot at all of the terrorists at the same time, we take it. We could also consider putting a couple of men in the boot of your car. Use it a bit like a Trojan horse to get them closer to the house. The final thing I am considering is using men in camouflage to slowly bridge the open space undetected. We could then storm the house and take them using stun grenades and the like. I won’t really know until we have a proper look at the place. There is one thing I am certain about; they will be expecting you to try something and will have planned some counter moves. Perhaps if you use the car, the one Jana said has the GPS tracking device on it, they might be a little less suspicious and drop their guard—although I doubt it.

  ‘There is one thing that I can tell you Max and Jana. If they get the Janus Machine, even if you are all taken hostage—we won’t be letting them leave. You do understand that?’

  I nodded in silent acknowledgement. Axel stood and, from his pocket, he took a two way radio. ‘Here, take this so that we can talk because, I’m afraid, I have to go back and make some plans with people who do this kind of thing for a living. I’ll let you know what we decide on. Looking at the time we have left, that may not be until you’re driving to the exchange point. Good luck and dump the radio out of the car window sometime before you go down the driveway.’ With that Inspector Axel headed toward the bedroom door.

  ‘Inspector,’ I called as he was leaving. ‘I was really sorry to hear about Kate and of course Edward.’

  He acknowledged me not by words but by folding and then biting his bottom lip while looking briefly down.

  ‘One more thing,’ I continued. ‘Can I have your mobile phone? You can keep the SIM. I only want the phone.’

  Without a moment’s hesitation and without asking questions, he took the phone from his pocket, removed the SIM and threw the phone across to me. Then he was gone, leaving Jana and me alone. After a moment in silence I looked to Jana and said, ‘I need some wire.’

  The trip from the hotel to the farm house took only twenty minutes. Jana drove while I cradled the box and spoke via the radio to Axel. We paused before starting the 500 metre trek up to the house, not only to dispose of the radio, but to ready ourselves for what was to come.

  ‘Are you ready?’ I asked.

  Jana didn’t reply, but nudged the M20 gently forward. As it slowly picked up speed, I took the opportunity to scan about, trying to spot our marksmen, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. If the inspector had not said that they were there, I would have assumed we were alone.

  Jana kept a steady pace as we approached the farm house. From the car, we could see three armed men and two helicopters, one either side of the house. If there were more armed people inside, it was impossible to tell. There were no outbuildings, no trees and no stone fences. The house stood all alone.

  Stopping five or six metres short of two of the men, who seemed to be our welcome committee, Jana switched off the engine. Taking a couple of deep breaths, we both left the vehicle, me holding the box and Jana his rifle. We looked to each other for reassurance then moved off towards the men. One approached us while the other stayed behind—watching with his levelled gun. The approaching man walked straight past us. I turned and watched as he inspected the back seat of the M20 before lifting his gun and discharging three rounds into the boot.

  ‘What was that for?’ I demanded.

  Ignoring my outcry, he levelled his gun and indicated for us to walk towards the house.

  ‘Stop,’ said the other man as we approached. ‘Spread your arms and legs while I check you for wires.’

  We did as we were told, Jana still holding his rifle, which seemed of little interest to our guards, and me, the case. With the pat down over, he took Jana’s phone, before saying ‘Okay, move on.’

  The entrance to the stone house opened onto a large room with doors leading from it on the left and right and one to the rear. A desk sat roughly in the middle, behind which sat Claudia watching a computer screen. Two empty chairs awaited us in front of the desk. The room was well lit by two small windows, one either side of the entrance but, to my dismay, Olivia was not present.

  ‘Hello again sweeties; come in and sit down but Jana, if you don’t mind, please leave your rifle by the door.’

  Jana did as he was told and we moved on into the room.

  ‘Where’s Olivia?’ I snapped.

  ‘All in goo
d time, sweetie. Be seated gentlemen, please,’ she continued, pointing to the two vacant chairs. ‘Now, where’s the Janus Machine?’

  I held up the box.

  ‘Excellent, Max. Now, let me explain, sweeties, how this is going to work,’ she said, turning the computer screen to face us as she spoke. There on the screen, via a live feed, was Olivia, tied and gagged.

  ‘It all very simple sweetie. You give me the machine and, in exchange, I tell you where Olivia is and, before you make up some cock-and-bull story in the hope of stalling so that you can be rescued, Olivia has…’ Claudia looked down at her watch. ‘…exactly twenty-three minutes before she dies. As we speak, the house where she is—is filling with gas.’

  A long pause followed and, when I was just about to speak, she continued, ‘In…’ and she looked down at her watch again, ‘…twenty-two minutes and thirty seconds, an automatic timer will strike a flame and, just like Kate and Edward—Boom.’

  I jumped out of my seat, startling one of the guards, who immediately levelled his gun and moved in front of the window. I had to cover Claudia from any snipers sighting her from outside until I knew where Olivia was being held.

  ‘Semyon,’ said Claudia calmly, ‘Max has been naughty and brought some friends. Cover the windows and tell the others to keep out of sight; we may be expecting company. Max you have—let me see, oh yes twenty-one minutes and thirty seconds left. It will take say nineteen minutes from here to reach Olivia. The Janus Machine. Please.’

  ‘How do I know you will let her go?’

  ‘Sweetie, you don’t, but, as you can see—you have no choice. The Janus Machine please.’

  Moving back from in front of the window, with Semyon pulling the curtains closed behind me, I carried the box holding the Janus Machine and placed it carefully on the desk in front of Claudia. In doing so, I pushed one of the buttons (BEEP) of the mobile phone which I had secured to the front of the box. Wires ran from the phone, vanishing inside.