Shockwave

by Peter Jay Black

  Dedicated to you, the reader

  CONTENTS

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Acknowledgements

  CHAPTER ONE

  Jack Fenton stood in the darkness, his ears ringing from the explosion and his body shaking. For the first time in his life, he felt real, uncontrollable panic.

  His brain refused to function properly – he just remained still, like an idiot, thoughts frozen.

  The crackling sound of boots on shattered concrete came from somewhere ahead. Jack’s ears strained to locate the sound and he guessed it must be one of the armed men stepping over the bunker’s airlock door – the one they’d just blown from its hinges.

  A light appeared behind Jack, partly illuminating the corridor. Dazed, he turned to look at it.

  Charlie stood in the doorway to her workshop, holding a small torch in her trembling hand. ‘Jack?’ she whispered, her eyes fearful. ‘We’ve got to get out of here.’

  He stared at her.

  Get out?

  No, what he needed to do was wake up.

  How had he got them into this nightmare – the five Urban Outlaws against a group of men with guns and explosives?

  Jack gasped at the thought. Where are the others? Are any of them hurt?

  Charlie stood beside him. ‘Jack?’ she breathed in his ear. ‘What are you doing? We need to move.’

  Jack took the torch from her, edged around the corner and peered down the next hallway.

  It was filled with thick smoke and the torchlight only penetrated a couple of metres.

  Jack glanced at Charlie again, unsure what to do.

  Why can’t I think straight?

  Charlie pulled her bandana up, covering her nose and mouth, and whispered, ‘Is something on fire?’

  ‘I don’t know,’ Jack murmured.

  Maybe it was to do with the explosion or perhaps it was smoke grenades. He couldn’t tell, and that was because at that moment he just felt stunned.

  Jack turned back in the direction of the main bunker and tried to focus.

  What’s the matter with you? he thought. Figure it out, and fast. Otherwise we’re all dead.

  The men Hector had hired to raid the place were obviously professionals. Common thugs would be barking out commands by now, revealing their whereabouts.

  These guys were silent, which made Jack’s blood run cold.

  His ears strained to pick up any other movement and he wondered if they had heat-vision goggles, able to cut through the dark and the smoke.

  Body tensed, he edged forward as quietly as he could, one foot in front of the other, with Charlie following close behind. Somehow, they needed to get to the other Outlaws.

  They’d just reached the end of the corridor when Jack heard the faint sound of more boot-clad footsteps.

  Measured.

  Precise.

  They’re definitely coming in, he thought.

  Panic tore through Jack as ahead of him, through the smoke, faint lights and shadows moved. The men were fanning out and methodically searching the room.

  A torch beam swept in their direction and instinct kicked in. Jack leapt backwards, pulling Charlie with him, and held his breath.

  If there was just a way to –

  Hands grabbed Jack’s shoulders, yanking him sideways. He struggled to fight them off but someone hissed in his ear, ‘It’s me.’

  Slink pulled Jack and Charlie into the generator room, closed the door silently behind them and bolted it.

  An emergency light bathed the generators, pipework and concrete walls in a muted red.

  ‘As soon as I saw them on the CCTV,’ Slink said in a hurried whisper, ‘I ran in here and cut the power.’

  Jack let out a breath. ‘Good work.’

  Thank God someone had reacted fast.

  ‘Then I heard the explosion.’ Slink looked at the door, his eyes reflecting Jack’s concern.

  ‘Where are Wren and Obi?’ Jack asked, fearful of what the answer might be.

  ‘Wren’s following the emergency escape plan.’ Slink thrust a thumb over his shoulder.

  In the corner of the generator room was a large vertical cylinder. It was the main duct that dragged air from the surface. Its access panel was open, and Jack could see the metal ladder mounted to the inner wall.

  ‘What about Obi?’ Jack asked.

  Slink looked at the floor and sighed. ‘He was in his chair. I was so determined to grab Wren and cut the power that there . . . there just wasn’t enough time to get him.’ He looked up at them. ‘And then I couldn’t go back without being spotted.’

  Charlie rested a hand on his shoulder. ‘You did brilliantly. If it wasn’t for you, we’d all have been caught by now.’

  Slink shrugged. ‘Maybe. So, what now?’

  Jack looked at Slink’s ankle – he’d sprained it just before the Facility mission. Slink said it was healing nicely but he still limped when he walked, and that, coupled with the virus, meant Slink wasn’t on top form.

  Jack gestured to the air vent. ‘You go first.’

  Slink didn’t move.

  ‘Go,’ Jack insisted. ‘Please.’

  With Jack and Charlie’s help, Slink reluctantly climbed into the vent and disappeared up the ladder.

  ‘What about Obi?’ Charlie asked.

  ‘I’m going back for him.’

  ‘What?’ Charlie said. ‘You can’t. They’ll get you.’

  ‘I have to try.’

  ‘I’m coming with you.’

  ‘No,’ Jack said. ‘That’ll double our chances of getting caught.’ He gestured to the ladder. ‘Meet us at the top.’

  Charlie hesitated.

  ‘Please, Charlie,’ Jack said urgently. ‘We’re wasting time.’

  Charlie’s shoulders slumped. ‘Fine. But be careful, OK?’

  ‘Sure.’

  Jack helped her inside and as soon as she was safely on the ladder, he ran to the door, pulled back the bolt and slowly turned the handle.

  Jack peered into the hallway and, seeing lights still coming from the main bunker, he slipped out and sprinted in the opposite direction.

  As he ran, Jack switched on Charlie’s torch and cupped it in his hand, allowing just enough light to see a metre or so ahead.

  His body ached, which made running hard, but Jack found the next hallway and peered around the corner. It was empty. He hurried to the end, went right and then darted into Obi’s bedroom.

  Jack’s heart sank.

  Obi wasn’t there.

  Jack rushed to the other door, which led back to the main bunker, opened it a crack and peered through.

  In the gloom, he could just make out Obi. He was sitting perfectly still in his modified dentist’s chair, shielded from the torchlight by the darkened screens of his computers.

  Jack glanced about. He had to get Obi’s attention without alerting the men.

  He spotted Obi’s mechanical grabber on the table by the door, scooped it up and peered into the bunker.

  Several torch beams swept the room. The men were checking under furniture and were being careful to stay in sight of one another, fanning out and blocking what they thought was the only exit.

  Jack looked back at Obi and reached out with the grabber. He was about to tap him on the shoulder when Obi let out a giant sneeze that made Jack almost leap out of his skin.

  A torch beam fl
ashed in their direction.

  ‘There,’ a deep voice snapped.

  A pair of hands grabbed Obi and he cried out.

  Jack spun around, sprinted through Obi’s bedroom and back into the corridor, the sound of a pair of heavy boots in hot pursuit.

  ‘Stop!’

  Jack ran up the hallway and took a sharp left. His feet almost tripped over one another, but somehow he managed to stay upright and keep going.

  He heard the man slide around the corner and slam into the wall behind him.

  Not looking back, Jack took another left and shouldered open the door to the generator room. He slammed it shut just as a body crashed into it from the other side.

  Jack threw the bolt across and stepped back, wheezing and feeling tight-chested.

  Obi.

  He’d failed.

  ‘One of the kids just went in there,’ a voice said.

  There was the sound of hurried footfalls then a motor whirred.

  Jack took another step back as sparks flew.

  They were grinding off the door’s hinges.

  He hesitated, desperately trying to think of another way to get to Obi, but there was no way for him to make it back to the main bunker without being caught, and the other Outlaws needed him, especially now they were all ill.

  Realising there was nothing more he could do, Jack muttered, ‘I’m sorry.’ With a heavy heart, he hurried to the air duct and climbed in.

  Air rushed past him, dragged down by a large fan beneath his feet. Jack scrambled up the ladder as fast as his aching limbs allowed.

  Finally, above his head, the duct tapered, becoming too narrow for him to fit in. He turned around and squeezed through another opening.

  Once out of the air duct, he glanced down the shaft in time to see a man wearing a gas mask step on to the ladder. He had a rifle slung over his shoulder.

  Jack turned back. He was now in a small room with no windows or doors. Ahead of him, low to the floor, was a thick concrete sewer pipe, two metres in diameter, with a section of its wall removed.

  Charlie was loading a cart into it. It was one of her own creations – the cart looked like an oversized skateboard with a large electric motor on the back, a padded seat and several batteries.

  Two other identical carts rested against the wall.

  ‘What happened?’ Charlie looked pale in the artificial light.

  ‘Hurry,’ Jack urged her. ‘I’ll explain later.’

  Charlie climbed on to the cart and lay down. ‘See you there.’ She pressed a button on the hand control and zoomed off down the pipe.

  Jack grabbed one of the remaining carts.

  The ladder in the air duct rattled.

  If he hadn’t been so stupid – so slow to come up with a plan – he would’ve got Obi out of there and they’d both be making their escape with the rest of the Outlaws.

  Swearing under his breath, Jack lifted the cart into the pipe and climbed on. He clutched the hand control and flipped a switch. A spotlight came on between his feet, illuminating the tunnel ahead.

  ‘Stop right there.’ The masked man climbed down from the air duct and swung his gun from his shoulder.

  Jack pressed another button on the control and his head was thrown back as the electric cart shot down the pipe at blistering speed.

  And that was the moment Jack seriously regretted what he was doing – as his cheeks rippled with the force of the air, and his eyes streamed, he remembered there was no way to slow the cart down. The second he’d pressed that button, there was no going back because it was automatic.

  Jack managed to lift his head a few millimetres, blinked away the tears and peered forwards. The lamplight showed nothing but a black hole ahead of him, as if he was hurtling towards the centre of the Earth.

  For a couple of hundred metres the pipe remained straight and the cart continued to accelerate, gaining speed with every second, making it hard for Jack to keep his head up.

  The electric motor emitted a high-pitched whirring sound and the rubber wheels buzzed and smoked.

  Suddenly the pipe snapped to the right, almost throwing Jack off. Then it made a sweeping left turn and straightened up.

  Jack closed his eyes briefly and prayed he made it to the end in one piece.

  The pipe rose up a steep incline then dropped down, like a crazy roller coaster. Jack held on tight.

  As impossible as it seemed, the cart continued to speed up, and for a split second Jack imagined what would happen if its wheels came off.

  The pipe went into a tight corkscrew with the cart shooting up the sides of the spiral. Then, mercifully, it straightened out again.

  Jack took deep breaths, trying not to throw up.

  He heard a buzzing noise behind him and managed to turn his head enough to see that the masked man was on the third cart and seemed, incredibly, to be gaining on him.

  Jack looked forwards as the pipe went up a short incline then took a sharp right and another.

  He tried to remember how much further it was. Whatever happened, he couldn’t let the masked man either catch up with him or reach the end.

  As Jack’s cart continued to follow the twists and turns of the pipe, he wriggled out of his hoodie, pulled it over his head and clutched it to his chest.

  The pipe straightened and he glanced back. The masked man was only a few metres away.

  Jack threw his hoodie behind him and watched as it got caught in the pursuing cart’s wheels, flipping it forward and slamming the masked man’s head into the pipe’s ceiling.

  Jack winced and turned around.

  His cart went up another hill then right, and started to slow down.

  Jack loosened his grip and tried to bring his breathing under control. Sweat soaked his clothes and stung his eyes.

  Finally, the pipe opened and the cart slid to a halt.

  Charlie held out a hand and pulled Jack to his feet.

  He wobbled for a second and took a moment to regain his balance. ‘We had company,’ he wheezed, gesturing down the pipe.

  Charlie’s eyes widened. ‘One of them followed us?’

  ‘Yeah, but I took care of it.’ Jack glanced around the room. ‘Where are the others?’

  ‘They’ll be heading to the rendezvous point,’ Charlie said. ‘Following the escape plan.’

  ‘Good.’ Jack straightened up. ‘Come on.’

  ‘What about Obi?’ Charlie asked.

  Jack cringed inside and a wave of guilt washed over him. ‘I’ll explain once we’re back with Slink and Wren.’

  Together, they hurried to the door.

  On the other side was a set of concrete steps, and Jack and Charlie bounded up them.

  At the top, they stopped at a moss-covered wall. At least it looked like a wall. As with a lot of places in London, appearances were deceptive.

  Charlie looked at Jack. ‘Ready?’

  He took a breath and nodded.

  Together they shouldered the wall and it slowly swung open. They kept pushing until there was a gap big enough for them to slip through.

  Charlie went first and Jack followed.

  In front of them was the Tower of London. It looked foreboding with its high stone walls and turrets lit up against a darkened sky.

  Jack glanced around. Directly above their heads was a security camera – a modern addition.

  ‘This way,’ he said, jogging to their right.

  A scraping noise made Jack spin back towards the secret door and his eyes went wide as he saw the masked man stagger out of it, his clothes torn and his face covered in blood.

  ‘You have got to be kidding me,’ Jack said, hardly believing his eyes.

  ‘I thought you said you took care of him?’ Charlie turned and ran.

  Jack raced after her. ‘I thought I did.’

  They sprinted up a ramp and vaulted a low wall.

  Tourists jumped clear as the Outlaws shoved their way past.

  ‘Hey!’

  ‘What’s your game?’

&
nbsp; Jack looked over his shoulder. The man was giving chase, his twisted features expressing pure rage.

  Keeping their heads low, Jack and Charlie sprinted along a narrow street, weaving between sightseers.

  ‘How far?’ Jack shouted.

  The escape plan said they were supposed to be going the opposite way, but Charlie had obviously decided on a different destination.

  ‘Half a mile,’ she called back as she squeezed past an elderly couple.

  ‘You’ve got to be winding me up.’ Jack’s lungs burnt, and his body felt almost out of energy.

  ‘Come on,’ Charlie shouted.

  Jack glanced back again. Now the man had a phone pressed to his ear and was barking commands as he ran after them.

  Charlie darted across the road, and a taxi slammed on its brakes and beeped its horn.

  Without stopping, Jack followed her up another street, dashing between traffic and pedestrians.

  Just as Jack felt he couldn’t run any further, he looked back to see their pursuer slowing down, clutching his side and staring intently at them.

  Ahead, horns blared as two black minivans drove up the street the wrong way.

  ‘Charlie?’

  ‘What?’

  He pointed.

  Several men dressed in military uniform climbed out of each van.

  Charlie swore and darted right, sprinting up another road.

  Jack groaned and raced after her.

  At the end, they took a left.

  ‘Are we running in circles?’ Jack shouted.

  ‘Not exactly,’ Charlie called over her shoulder.

  ‘Great.’ Jack risked another backward glance and saw that the bad guys were still following.

  ‘This way.’ Charlie sprinted down an alleyway.

  When they emerged on the other side, Tower Hill Underground station loomed before them. It was packed with commuters coming and going.

  Jack cringed, thinking of the virus he would spread among them with every panting breath.

  ‘Find another way,’ he shouted at Charlie.

  Two minivans screeched to a halt to their left and more armed men climbed out.

  ‘No choice,’ Charlie shouted back.

  They launched themselves through the station’s entrance and down the steps.

  Four men gave chase.

  ‘They’re not giving up,’ Jack called to Charlie.

  They pushed through the crowds and vaulted the barriers.