by Mark Robson
Niamh sighed and nodded. ‘Yes, it’s true,’ she confirmed.
‘Wow! How absolutely wizard!’
Wizard? Are you still overdosing on Biggles or is it The Famous Five?
‘If you say so,’ she said aloud. Archie put the case down at the end of the bed and looked at her expectantly like a dog waiting to be fed. ‘Right. I’ll see you later then,’ she added in a not so subtle hint for him to go away.
‘Yes. Yes, of course. Righty ho then. Cheerio for now.’
As the door closed behind him, Niamh fell back on to the bed and heaved a deep sigh. She stared at the ceiling for a moment and then closed her eyes and tried to reach into the part of her mind where she normally sensed her brother. ‘Where are you, Sam?’ she breathed. ‘Come on! Hurry up and get found so I can get my life back.’
No sooner had the words spilled from her lips than she felt a wave of guilt wash through her. Sam was lost and in danger, her dad was in a cell and here she was, moaning about living in luxury with rich relatives.
‘Get a sense of perspective, Niamh,’ she muttered. ‘You’ve got it easy.’ But despite feelings of guilt burning inside her, the tight knot of selfish anger stubbornly refused to unwind. Why was she feeling guilty? It wasn’t as if this was her fault. It was Sam’s pig-headedness about taking the boat out that had caused all this. Despite being worried for him, she couldn’t help being angry with him at the same time. If he’d listened to her in the first place, they would still be in Florida soaking up the sun and relaxing by the pool. Dad wouldn’t be in prison and she would not have come within a hundred miles of Aunt Aggie and her nerdy son.
On the other hand, she probably wouldn’t have met Tony either. A fleeting image of the look on Tony’s face after their parting kiss flashed through her mind, bringing a brief smile to her lips. But even that positive had been short-lived. There were thousands of miles of ocean between them now. Why did life have to be so complicated? It was time to ring Beth. She probably wouldn’t have any answers to the difficult questions, but it would be good to catch up.
‘Sam, I promise that when I find you, I’m going to hug you and punch you really hard . . . not necessarily in that order.’
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Sitting with his head in his hands, Sam didn’t flinch as he felt a hand squeeze his shoulder.
‘I’m sorry, mate. I don’t know what to say.’
‘Thanks, Cal,’ he answered without looking up. ‘I don’t think there is anything to say. I just can’t believe that Nathan won’t do anything to save her.’
‘What sort of thing did you have in mind? Storming the capital? Come on, Sam! There’s only a handful of us. Your mum and the others are in the middle of the City of the Imperium. There must be tens of thousands of raptors in there baying for her blood. You’ve got to admit that Nathan’s got a point. Any attempt at a rescue wouldn’t stand much chance of success.’
‘I know,’ Sam sighed. ‘But they’re going to publicly execute her, Cal. How can I just give up? I can’t sit back and let my mother die without trying to do something. I’ve only just got to know her again. There has to be a way. There has to be.’
Callum was silent for a moment. ‘You can’t blame yourself, Sam. Sometimes there really isn’t a way. It’s not your fault. There’s simply no time to even plan something. Sherri says the executions are going to be held in just a few hours. It would take a miracle to get them out of there.’
‘Then perhaps you’d better start praying for one,’ Sam said, climbing slowly to his feet. ‘I can’t sit here any longer. I’m going back to the city. I know it’s crazy, but I’ve got to do something.’
‘Ssssamm. Sssstay.’ It was Nipper. Neither Sam nor Callum had heard him approach. ‘I ’o,’ he said, pointing first at his own chest and then towards the cave entrance.
‘You go?’ Sam asked, his heart suddenly racing. ‘Have you got a plan? What are you going to do?’
Nipper turned and said something in raptor speech that made no sense to Sam. His clicking, growling speech was loud enough to draw everyone’s attention.
‘What!’ Nathan exclaimed. ‘Are you sure?’
‘What? What did he say?’ Sam begged.
Nipper spoke again and everyone in the chamber listened, though Sam and Callum had no idea what he was talking about. Sam could sense excitement rising among the rest of the party, but he couldn’t tell what was happening. It was David who explained.
‘It appears your friend plans to claim the right of ritual challenge on behalf of Claire and the others,’ he explained.
‘Ritual challenge?’ Sam asked. ‘What does that mean?’
‘If the Council of the Imperium agree to it, then it means he will fight the Imperium’s champion for the lives of the captives. Apparently it’s an ancient law among the raptors. He thinks they will have little choice but to accept his right of challenge.’
‘So if he wins, the Imperium will just let them go?’ Callum said, amazed. ‘I find that hard to believe.’
‘They’ll have no choice,’ David explained. ‘It’s that or break one of the longest-held traditions of the raptor world. That would not sit well with the wider raptor population. If the Council do not allow the challenge, they would risk a possible backlash.’
‘And if Nipper loses?’ Sam asked. ‘What will they do to him if he loses?’
‘They won’t do anything to him. He’ll be dead.’
‘The ritual challenge is to the death?’ Callum gasped.
Sam reached out and touched Nipper on the arm. He stared into the cold reptilian eyes of the raptor, searching for something that would explain the raptor’s offer. ‘You would do this? You would fight to the death to save Mum and the others?’ He shook his head as he tried to understand the raptor’s motivation. ‘Why?’ he asked. ‘I don’t understand. You have shown Callum and me nothing but kindness since we were stranded here. Why would you do this?’
Nipper turned to David and uttered a quick sequence of clicks and growls.
‘He says it’s the raptor way,’ David explained. ‘When a raptor finds prey, he faces a choice: to kill or to adopt. Not adopt in the way humans do, making you a full member of your family, but sort of a step up from a loved pet or a slave. I suppose you get a sort of half-status in his family. Nipper adopted you, as he has adopted other humans in the Reserve. When he did that, you became a part of his family. That makes your mother a part of his extended family, no matter how distant the relationship. Nipper takes his responsibilities seriously as head of his family. He sees this challenge as protecting his own.’
Sam drew a deep breath as he soaked up the answer.
‘Can I come with you, Nipper?’ Sam asked. ‘I want to come.’
The raptor shook his head. ‘Sssssam sssstay,’ he repeated, pointing at the floor of the cave with the central claw on his right hand. ‘Ssssaaafffer.’
‘Please, Nipper! I don’t want to be safe! I want to help save Mum.’
‘Listen to him, Sam,’ Callum urged. ‘Don’t be an idiot! If you go with him, you’ll only be in his way.’
‘How do you know?’ Sam snapped back. ‘I could help. I could. . .’
‘What? What could you do?’
‘I don’t know,’ he admitted, his shoulders sagging. ‘I don’t know what I could do. I just want to help, that’s all.’
‘We all want to help,’ Nathan said. ‘I’ve known Claire a long time now. I probably know her better than you do. I want to help, but I think this is something that your friend is going to have to do without us. He needs to move swiftly if he’s going to do this – faster than any human.’
Nipper looked across at Nathan and chattered something at him quickly in raptor. Nathan nodded and replied with a short series of clicks and growls.
‘He says Grunt is going with him to act as his second,’ he explained to the boys. ‘I’m not sure what that involves, but I’ve wished him well and thanked them both.’
Sam nodded. He turned again
to Nipper. For a moment, he struggled for words. ‘Thank you,’ he said finally. ‘Fight well and don’t die. Look after him, Grunt.’
‘Urghh,’ Grunt replied, baring his teeth in a wide grin.
The two raptors turned, and the boys watched as they leapt lightly across the stream and disappeared outside at a loping run. How long would it take them to reach the city? It was a fair distance and they would surely arrive there tired. After carrying the boys and the ammunition boxes all the way to the cave and running all the way back to the city, how could Nipper hope to be in any condition to fight a raptor champion? Sam knew Nipper was strong, but that sort of sustained exercise would surely take a heavy toll. His friend was going to be at a huge disadvantage if he had to fight straight away.
From the instant Nipper left, every minute dragged, laden with worries. Questions went round and round in Sam’s head as he sat staring into the fire. Each led back in circular fashion to the central question. Could Nipper do it? Could he successfully challenge for the lives of Claire, Alex and Einstein?
Surprisingly, it was David who broke the morose atmosphere with a suggestion that suddenly triggered heated debate.
‘Nathan, your people risked a lot to get me out of the Imperium science labs,’ he began. ‘But I’m not going to be a lot of use to you without significant resources.’
‘Tell me something I don’t know,’ the bearded man growled.
David looked down at the floor for a moment as if questioning the wisdom of what he wanted to say. Then he lifted his head again.
‘I’ve been thinking about what the boys here were talking to me about earlier,’ he said. ‘Forgive me if I’m out of line, but having risked so much to get me, don’t you now have the perfect diversion to complete the job and steal my flying machines as well?’
‘What do you mean?’
‘Well, Sam said you’d have to wait for Claire before making a move on the aircraft, but every raptor eye in the continent is going to be focused on the news this afternoon. Your mother is infamous, Sam. The execution of the human rebel leader is an event that will captivate the raptor world. If ever there was a perfect time to commit to another strike, it’s now. They’ll never expect you to make such an outrageous move in the face of such a major disaster to your cause.’
‘He’s right, Nathan,’ Sherri said, her voice carrying a note of excitement. ‘And it’s exactly what Claire would want us to do.’
Newton growled and nodded his head.
‘But we’re all beat,’ Nathan pointed out. ‘We don’t have a plan and we don’t even know where the machines are.’
‘I do,’ David said. ‘And the more I think about it, the more I think I can get us inside without much of a fight. If you can take out the guards once we’re in, then I think we could pull it off.’
‘We?’ Callum asked. ‘So you’ve made the decision to join us then?’
‘I guess I have,’ he replied, a strange light burning in his eyes. ‘I’ll be honest – I have an ulterior motive. If joining you means I get a chance to fly one of my machines, the risk is worth it. But I can’t fly them both and why steal just one? What do you think, Callum? Would you be willing to fly the other one?’
‘Does it have a conventional joystick control?’
‘Not exactly, but you’ve done some flying before, so I’m sure you’ll pick it up quickly enough.’
‘Quickly enough not to die in the first few seconds?’
‘I don’t think you need worry too much about that,’ David replied with a chuckle. ‘I can draw you a quick diagram of how the controls work. The principles are similar to those of a glider, but rather than a column control, you use a horizontal bar and there are no foot pedals. Don’t worry. It’s really simple.’
Callum thought for a moment. ‘Count me in,’ he said, looking across at Nathan. ‘What do you think?’
‘Are you crazy?’ Sam butted in. ‘You’re not seriously considering this, Cal, are you?’
‘It’s no more crazy than your stunts on those cables last night,’ Callum said. ‘I’d love to have a go at flying one of those machines. And if it helps your mum’s cause too, then why not?’
‘And you really think you’d be able to get us inside?’ Nathan asked David thoughtfully. He ran his fingers through his beard as he considered the proposal. ‘How many raptors could we expect to face once we’re in?’
‘Well, normally there are only two,’ David answered. ‘But I imagine they increased the guard after you snatched me out of the science labs last night. The truth is I don’t know, but I would guess eight to ten at most. There’s no room to house any more than that. The machines are kept in an outbuilding that’s not much more than a glorified shed.’
Nathan stared David in the eye, his gaze steady and unblinking as he considered the proposal. David matched his stare, his stance strong and defiant.
‘I’ve got to admit, it’s a tempting prospect,’ Nathan admitted, chewing at his lower lip. ‘And Sherri’s right. It’s exactly what Claire would want us to do, given half a chance. All right, fly-boy. You’ve got my attention. Where is this shed of yours?’
‘Yes!’ Callum yelled, pumping his fist as if he’d just won a crucial point in the Wimbledon final.
‘Do you have a map of the city?’ David asked. ‘I’ll show you. If we’re going to do this, we’re going to have to move quickly. Even if we leave now, it’s going to be tight to get there in time to coincide with the scheduled executions.’
Sam could barely believe what he was hearing. It seemed like everyone had forgotten that his mum and two other members of their group were facing execution. He couldn’t believe that they were now thinking of their impending deaths as a useful diversion. Anger swelled inside him like a vast black tide and he realised he had to get away before he exploded with the pressure of it. He scrambled to his feet and without a word, stomped off towards the cave entrance.
Sherri shot Callum a questioning look, but all he could do was shrug. He was as mystified as everyone else. ‘I’ll go,’ he mouthed, gesturing that he would follow his friend. Sherri nodded, giving him an encouraging smile as everyone else gathered into a huddle to plan the new mission.
Callum crossed the cave, stepping lightly across the stones in the stream and striding out to catch up with his friend. He intercepted Sam at the cave mouth and placed a hand on his shoulder. Sam stopped and twisted hard to throw Callum’s hand off.
‘What do you want?’ Sam snapped. ‘I thought you’d want to plan your adventure.’
‘Come on, Sam. Don’t be like this. You know what David suggested makes perfect sense.’
‘You’ve all written Mum off already like she’s totally expendable. You don’t care about her at all.’
Callum sighed. ‘Don’t be ridiculous! You know that’s not true. Of course we care. Just because she’s your mum doesn’t mean that you’re the only one who’s upset. Nathan, Sherri and the others have been close friends with Claire for years. Don’t you think they’re worried about her – that they would help her if they could? I think your mum is possibly the coolest person I’ve ever met. She’s amazing, Sam, but she’s also in a situation that is totally beyond any of our abilities to help. Only Nipper and Grunt can do that now.’
‘So you’re just going to ignore the fact that the Imperium are going to execute her this afternoon and go play rebels instead.’
Callum stared at Sam for a moment. It was obvious to him that nothing he could say was going to dig Sam out of his current mood, but he felt he should at least try.
‘You heard Sherri and Nathan,’ he said. ‘It’s what your mum would want us to do. Do you think she’d rather we all sat in a dark corner and sulked? That’s not the Claire Cutler that I met. I know you’re hurting inside, Sam. But you’re not thinking straight. When you see sense and snap out of your mood, come and join us inside. Just don’t leave it too long. I imagine we’ll be on the move again soon.’
Sam didn’t reply. He stared out along t
he rocky valley as the quiet sound of Callum’s retreating footsteps echoed lightly behind him. He felt bad about how he’d spoken to his friend, but he wasn’t ready to apologise yet. Instead, he concentrated on trying to picture how far Nipper and Grunt might have been able to run by now. Could they have reached the city yet? It was probably too soon for that. They were quick, but he doubted even a raptor could cover ground that fast.
‘Go, Nipper!’ he breathed softly. ‘Fight well and win . . . please win.’
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Niamh’s heart gave a flutter of excitement as Tony’s image appeared on her laptop screen. Whoever invented Skype is a genius! she thought.
‘Hey, Niamh! Great to see you. How was the flight home?’ His voice came out of the speakers slightly out of synch with the lip movement on the screen image, but it was wonderful to hear his voice.
‘Not bad, thanks. The cop they sent with me was about as chatty as a stone statue, but it was pretty uneventful. You OK? How’s Carrie?’
‘She’s fine. She’s in the other room at the moment, but she’ll be through in a minute for a chat. I’m missin’ you already. I just felt I’d started to get to know you when the cops came an’ whisked you away. They wouldn’t say who tipped them off, but I’m sure it was Tessa. We had ’em round again today askin’ questions.’
‘Same here,’ Niamh said. ‘I had my first interview today.’ She stared at Tony’s face on her laptop screen. Even slightly distorted as he was by the laptop camera, he looked gorgeous. What she wouldn’t give to be back in Florida with him and Carrie now!
‘Really? How did it go?’
‘It was no big deal,’ she told him. ‘It seemed to be a form-filling exercise. The real deal is going to be tomorrow. I’ve got to go somewhere in Banbury to a special police interview room. It’s not at the police station, but apparently, an officer from the CID is going to do the questioning.’