Alpha Class - Discovery

by N. D. Roberts

  The light above the door turned green and Tina took the phone out of her pocket. “Leave it, you two. I'm switching the phone on.”

  The boys flanked her, craning to see the small screen as it came alive in her hand.

  “What should we look at first?” Tina asked once the power-up sequence had finished.

  “No password?”

  Tina shook her head. “No, Aleksi. That’s practically asking people to take a look, if you ask me. What do you think, then? Messages?”

  The boys agreed, so she opened the message box. She didn't try to hide her disappointment. “It's empty.”

  “Try the gallery,” Ron offered.

  Tina came out of the message box and clicked on the gallery. “Oh!” She almost dropped the phone—her initial reaction to the single thumbnail in the folder was so strong. “Poor Doctor Llewellyn!”

  “What is it?” Ron took the phone from her and clicked on the image to open it. “Oh my God, it's Doctor Llewellyn's family!” He passed the phone to Aleksi, who was equally disturbed.

  “Why are those men holding guns? Those little children are terrified!” he cried, clenching his fists. “We were right, she is being coerced!”

  Just then, the red light above the door turned green.

  “Quick, turn the phone off!” Tina hissed.

  Aleksi fumbled the off button as he shoved it into his pocket but it was too late. The door was open. The three looked guiltily at the door as Jean strode in, followed by Doctor Llewellyn.

  “What are you doing in here?” she demanded hotly. “I told you to stay in your dorm!” She caught sight of Ron and pointed at him. “You definitely shouldn't be here!”

  “Sorry, Ms. Dukes,” they said sheepishly, heads down.

  “Never mind sorry!” she bawled. “If it hadn’t been for Aleksi using his tablet, I wouldn’t have been able to find you! Your locator beacons don't work in here, I thought you'd been kidnapped! I specifically told you all not to wander, and you choose to ignore me while we're in the middle of a power outage?”

  She glared at them all in disappointment. “I expected better of you all. You especially, Tina. How would I explain it to your uncle if anything had happened to you? Or to Jeff if Ronnie had taken a turn for the worse? I trusted you.” She glared at the students in turn, letting each of them feel the full weight of her disapproval.

  Doctor Llewellyn spoke up. “They're just kids, they are, Jean. Don't be too hard on them, hey?”

  Jean gave the doctor a look that made it clear her input was neither needed nor welcome.

  Tina felt her face burning, tears of shame pricked at her eyes. “I'm so sorry. I didn't think. We just wanted to see the room.” She hated lying to Jean, but she didn't want to give the phone up until they all had a chance to talk about what they’d found.

  Jean didn't soften a bit. “Get your things. I'm going to make sure you get to the dorm without any more distractions. As of this minute you're on lockdown. No more wandering around unsupervised.” She turned on her heel and marched out of the room.

  Doctor Llewellyn gave them a sympathetic look before leaving.

  Jean didn't speak another word to them as she escorted them to the tower. There was a Guardian at ease in the hallway when they arrived.

  Not wanting to risk Jean’s further ire, Tina led the boys into the dormitory.

  Jean watched the students head into the dorm, nodding to let the Guardian know she would be with him in a moment.

  She paused with her hand on the door, ready to close it. “Kids,” she called. “James will be outside all night. He knows you’re grounded, so don’t pester him.”

  “Yes, ma'am,” they said as she closed the door.

  “Why do you think there's a Guardian out there?” Ron asked.

  Tina pulled both boys by the sleeves over to the far side of the room. “Keep your voices down; he can hear us. The others will be back soon. What time is it?”

  Aleksi looked at his tablet. “Almost six, why?”

  She plugged her tablet into the TV monitor. “It's time to call Yana and Nestor. You should join us, this concerns us all.”

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  United Kingdom, North Wales, Snowdonia, SAS Camp

  Broadbent yawned. The night had been long and tense as John Grimes ringed the camp with the kids in their wolf forms. They had never come within sight of the night watch, but the sporadic howls had left them all on edge. He himself wasn’t bothered by the TQB kids, but the men were afraid of the Wechselbalg. They had finally ceased their intimidation just before dawn, just when it was too late for any of them to get any rest. It provoked Broadbent no end, they would be cozy up at the castle while he and the SAS lads were left bleary-eyed. He was determined to see a resolution to this pig’s breakfast – sooner rather than later.

  He paced back and forth across the tent with the phone to his ear. His orders were changing yet again, and he had a burning sensation creeping upwards from his stomach. He listened as the voice went on.

  “They’ve switched the phone on, Broadbent. We have an opportunity to draw that gorilla Grimes out.”

  “What do you mean, draw him out?” Broadbent’s brow furrowed in confusion. “I thought the whole point was to avoid poking the bear, so to speak.”

  The reply was almost a sneer. “Are you stupid, man? We can't let a chance like this pass! You would do well to remember what happens to operatives who refuse to obey orders, Broadbent. If I tell you to lick my boots, then you'd jolly well better start acclimatizing yourself to the taste of rubber, you chundering nitwit! I had Perkins send another photograph of the family to the mobile device the little rotters stole from the asset's office. As soon as Grimes leaves, you swoop in.”

  Broadbent winced. He was quite used to the temper tantrums of the higher-ups; usually empty threats from blustering fools with no power whatsoever. He would normally ignore it and achieve the desired ends his own way. He only reacted this time because the threat had the weight of the entire branch behind it.

  “Director General,” he began. “You know me. I have never been one to hesitate, not even in Kosovo—and we all know what a shambles that turned out to be.” He remembered the screams from the mortared school building, courtesy of one side’s malfunctioning guidance system, and shook the memory from his mind.

  “What are you getting at?”

  “That’s what I was calling in to report, sir. At least five of the TQB children are Wechselbalg. Even when John Grimes leaves, there will still be a minimum of five Wechselbalg in the castle. If the young are there, they haven’t been left unguarded. We can expect at least two more trained adult Wechselbalg, sir.”

  The Director General's voice dripped sarcasm. “They’re not even human, Broadbent. If they get in your way, see to it that there are none left to get between you and Jean Dukes' guns. I'll send more men and some additional ordnance, if it will make you happy.”

  Broadbent sighed, knowing full well that it had more to do with greed. Laura Llewellyn had reported that the Dukes’ weapon was stored in a safe in Jean's suite at the top of the King's Tower during the day. The children were bunked in the suite next door. “They're just kids, sir. Is there no other way?”

  “We've spent too long doing this the nice way. Stop being such a pathetic lily-livered wet blanket and get on with it, Broadbent! I don't care if you have to end every life in that damned castle—do your duty!”

  The line went dead before he could acquiesce.

  Broadbent took a minute to compose himself. When he'd called to check in with Perkins, he'd been transferred to the DG before he had a chance to brief Perkins of the discovery he'd made in the forest. Perhaps there was still time to avert the disaster. He couldn’t live with the deaths of any more children on his conscience. Even if they were the children of monsters.

  He dialed again, tapping a foot as he waited for Perkins to pick up.

  “Sir?”

  He was almost relieved to hear the analyst’s voice. “
Perkins! For the love of all that is holy, please tell me you haven’t sent that image yet?”

  “I’m sorry, sir.” Perkins’ voice was full of regret. “He was standing right behind me when the phone was switched on, so I had to do it. He wasn’t very specific with what I could requisition on your behalf, though. I believe his exact words were, ‘give Broadbent whatever he thinks will get the job done.’ That gives us a fighting chance, at least.”

  Broadbent smiled. “It gives us more than a fighting chance, Perkins. Get me the Royal Armored Corps on the line.”

  United Kingdom, North Wales, Conwy Castle, Student Dormitory

  Maxim was at the head of the pack as they charged up the stairs, laughing and shoving at each other as they raced to be the first back to the dorm. John had sent them up to unpack as soon as he saw Jean waiting in the lobby with her arms crossed.

  “I wonder who’s in trouble,” Mischa chirped as they rounded the penultimate bend of the spiral.

  “As long as it’s not us, I don’t care!” Craig quipped, shouldering his way past the twins to try to overtake Maxim.

  The five teens ground to a halt when the familiar scent of Guardian James hit them. They finished their ascent at a walk, trying to act like they weren’t surprised by his presence as they crossed the hallway.

  “Morning, kids,” James said, failing to hide his smile at their antics. “Did you all have a good time in the mountains?”

  Halli and the twins suppressed their giggles. They’d had a fun night making sure the British army guys didn’t get a wink of sleep.

  “It was an absolute howl, sir,” Craig said in his terrible approximation of a British accent, bursting into a fit of laughter. It quickly spread to the whole group.

  Guardian James looked at them like they’d lost their minds. “You’d better get yourselves into the dorm, kids. We’ve had a power outage and an attempted break-in today. You’re all safer in there where we can keep an eye on you.”

  Their good mood evaporated in an instant.

  “Was the intruder apprehended?” Maxim asked.

  Guardian James shook his head. “That’s why I’m here. You’ll have either me or Guardian Donal outside the door at all times until we catch our would-be thief. Go on, your classmates are in there already.”

  They went into the dorm and found Tina, Ron, and Aleksi talking to Yana, Nestor and little Bai Hu on the flat-screen TV in the sleeping area.

  The three turned from the TV to see who was coming when the door opened. When Maxim saw the worry etched across his friends’ features, he crossed the room quickly and knelt by the bed they had sat on. “What happened here while we were gone?”

  “I came up with a way to see what was on the phone. We were about to tell the others what we found.”

  “Maxim! Good to see you, my brother!” Nestor called from the screen.

  “Hey, Maxim. Hey, everyone.” Yana smiled. “Come and join the others so we can all know what they discovered.”

  “We will, Yana,” Maxim told her. “But I want to know how you three got around the problems you were so worried about.”

  The five Wechselbalg crammed themselves onto the bottom bunks nearest the TV and settled in to listen. Even Craig was solemn.

  Tina looked around the group with wide eyes. “It wasn’t anything special. I just noticed there was a Faraday room. It blocks signals. We were totally busted, but before that we saw the photo of Doctor Llewellyn’s family being held hostage by men with guns.”

  “Do the adults know about the phone?” Maxim asked.

  Tina, Ron, and Aleksi shook their heads.

  Ron wrung his hands as he answered. “We need to make sure we’re doing the right thing. What if we make things worse?”

  “I don’t see how it could be worse,” Masha exclaimed. “Did you know there was a break-in attempt today?”

  “No, but that explains a lot. We saw Doctor Llewellyn up here, or at least we saw someone we think was her,” Aleksi said. “There’s a secret passage behind the fireplace. Someone was up here just after the power cut.”

  “How do you know?” Craig asked.

  “Because we were following her just before the power went out,” Tina explained. “Jean sent us up here, and we saw the passage close.”

  “You must tell Ms. Dukes and your uncle,” Yana stated firmly. “There are children in danger, and we cannot hope to help them by ourselves. Doctor Llewellyn may not be our enemy by choice, but that is perhaps worse.” She wrapped a protective arm around Bai Hu and Nestor. “I am not a mother like Doctor Llewellyn, but I know that I would do anything to keep my family safe. Call us when it is over, please?”

  “We will,” Tina assured her friend.

  Maxim nodded his agreement, as did everyone else in the dorm. “You are right, Yana. We will go to them now.” He stood to leave. “I will call soon, Nestor. You can tell me about the fighter group then.”

  “Wait until I tell you of the game we devised!” Nestor exclaimed.

  “I cannot wait to hear, brother,” Maxim replied.

  Nestor signed off, leaving the TV blank.

  “I guess we’d better go face the music,” Ron said weakly.

  “It will be okay, my friend,” Maxim said, patting Ron on the back. “The adults will know what to do.” He hoped he sounded more confident than he felt.

  ***

  “You did what?”

  Tina had been nominated as spokesperson for the group, the rest of them thinking that the close relationship she had with both adults would deflect most of their ire.

  They couldn’t have been more wrong.

  Jean’s temper was a sight to behold. The students lined up in front of her, eyes down. John stood to the side, silent and disapproving.

  “What possessed you to sneak around instead of coming to me or John when you first suspected Doctor Llewellyn?”

  Tina told her pleadingly, “How could we accuse Doctor Llewellyn with no proof? What if we were wrong, and ruined her life?” She pulled her hand out of her pocket and handed the phone to Jean. “This is the real reason we were in the Faraday room…so we could look at this without alerting the bad guys. We weren’t wrong. She is the saboteur, but she’s being forced to do it. They’ve got her family.”

  Jean took the phone and switched it on. “There’s proof on here?”

  The students confirmed there was. The phone beeped in Jean’s hand.

  “A message.” Jean’s face hardened when she opened it. “Wait in your dorm. Do not leave it. I’m going to have a word with Doctor Llewellyn.”

  United Kingdom, North Wales, Conwy Castle, Laura Llewellyn’s room

  Laura sat in the chair by the bed with her head in her hands, exhausted. She couldn’t keep this up much longer. The armor was complete, and her lies to MI5 about Jean’s guns would soon come to light. If only I knew who took the phone.

  Why hadn’t Jean worked it out and confronted her, figured out that she was the one causing the breakdowns? The agent had been clear what would happen if she asked for help from TQB, but she had to try and get them involved somehow. It was her only hope of ever seeing her husband and children again.

  But no, nothing. Her boss was too caught up in making sure the schedule for shutdown didn’t go completely out of the window. She was afraid for Leo and Lexi; they were too young to understand any of the frightening things that were happening.

  She wished she had never taken the job at TQB.

  She was about to go to bed when the door slammed open and she looked up to meet the angry stare of Jean Dukes.

  “You’ve got some explaining to do,” Jean demanded roughly, throwing the missing phone onto the bed. “My students have just given me this.” She pointed at the phone with a scowl. “Why didn’t you tell me you were being coerced?”

  “Because they’re bloody listening, that’s why!” Laura’s heart fell. “They told me if I said anything then I wasn’t going to see my family alive again.” She couldn’t hold back the tears an
y longer. The relief of not having to pretend everything was okay combined with the certainty that her family were lost to her forever wracked her and made her body shake. “You can just kill me now,” she sobbed. “There’s no need to wait for Bethany Anne to hear about it. I’ve got nothing left if I haven’t got them.”

  Hurricane Jean calmed in a second. “Shit, I’m not going to let that happen, Laura. What kind of person do you think I am? BA is going to be pissed that you didn’t ask for help, but she’s not going to kill you.” She sat heavily in the chair beside Laura’s. “I just wish you’d come to me instead of pulling all the saboteur crap. I thought we were friends.”

  “That’s exactly why I sabotaged things!” she cried. “I couldn’t talk. I hoped you would find me out and then… I don’t know what. After everything you and Bethany Anne have done for me? I didn’t know what to do, okay?”

  “We’ll get them back,” a gruff voice said. John stood in the doorway, admiring the doorframe Jean had ruined as she came into the room. “Do you know who took them?” His voice was soft and calm, belying the deadliness Laura knew he was capable of.

  “It’s the government,” she whispered, letting the tears fall. “MI5. They want your goddamn guns, and the Gauntlet armor with all its weapons.”

  Jean’s nose wrinkled in distaste. “Why am I not surprised?” She turned to John in the doorway, holding out the phone. “There are two images on this. One old, and one new. Can you get with our IT guy on this? Find Laura’s family and bring them back?”

  John looked confused for a second. “IT...oh. Yeah, sure. What about you and the kids? I don’t want to leave you here unprotected.”

  Jean laughed. “Do I look like a freaking damsel? Go and rescue Laura’s family, hero-boy. We’ll be fine until you get back.”

  He crossed the room in three strides and swept Jean into his arms. “How about a kiss for luck, seeing as you’re sending me into battle?”

  Laura did her best not to look and the moment was soon over.