“Cerberus is so cunning and clever he could get in anywhere.”
“Cerberus? This is the dog you claim is leading the others to attack places? Well, I’m not sure about that, Toby.”
“You don’t know Cerberus. Jamie’s mum called him that ’cause he’s so evil, and he’s clever and she thinks —”
“Ok, so Jamie’s mum, whoever she is, thinks this dog is clever. But we know a dog is just a dog don’t we, Toby?”
“But Cerberus is different. You’ve no idea what he’s capable of!” cried Toby, defiantly.
“No – and I don’t think I want to!” Tom laughed. “You’ve had a very adventurous time, Toby, and I expect a very stressful one too. Stress can do funny things to you, makes you imagine things. You’ll see things in a different light once you’ve had a rest and feel safe again.”
Toby blushed.
I haven’t made it up! It did all happen! Why do adults never believe me?
“Have you seen any dogs?” he asked, trying to hide his disappointment. If Tom and his men didn’t believe him, how could they help him find his family and keep them all safe – from the dogs as well as the raiders.
“Dogs? No, no dogs. We’ve only seen the wolves that have been breeding in the mountains. There are a lot of those now. Besides, I thought you said all the dogs were at Fort George? They couldn’t possibly have got this far south so quickly!”
Oh yes, they could have.
Just then the scary-looking man, Bill, strode up to Tom.
“You’d better come – we have some new information just in.”
Tom nodded and left Toby to find his own way back to the medical bay. Toby found Tash sitting in bed reading a book, with Snowy lying near her feet.
“Look what the doctor found for me: a Russian book!” she said excitedly, holding it up for Toby to see.
“Yeah, great isn’t it? They’ve got a library full of all sorts of books. It’s an amazing place, Tash. There’s a lab where they’re doing experiments, and a gym, and the hugest garage with loads of tools to mend stuff. And…”
“But what is it all for?”
“Tom says this was a Scottish base for one of the SAS regiments, sort of covert undercover operations and all that. It’s been here for years, long before the red fever.”
“Like in James Bond?”
“Er, that kind of idea. Anyway, some of the men from the regiment survived the red fever and came back here. They’ve been gathering intelligence on the effects of the illness on Scotland, and seeing who’s left.”
“So why haven’t they got soldiers’ names then?”
“What? You mean like Tom’s not called a Major or Captain? Well, Tom says that there are only a few real soldiers. Most of the people who stay here now are civilians: engineers, scientists, mechanics, teachers – about fifty altogether.”
“Does Tom know all about the raiders?”
“Tom told me last night that the General is creating a new state where he’ll be in charge and live in luxury. I’ve told him about the dogs and Cerberus, but he doesn’t believe me. They have seen loads of wolves. I bet it was wolves we heard when the ponies got spooked and took off.”
“I’ve never seen ponies so scared,” she sighed wistfully. Toby could see she had been blaming herself for losing the ponies.
“I’m going back to sleep now. I still feel a bit yuk.” Tash yawned.
Toby went to look for Tom.
He found him looking serious, talking to a group of men including Simon and Bill. The men all appeared fit: tall and well muscled. They were talking enthusiastically about going on a job.
What job? Where are they planning to go? They look like they’re kitted out for a mission.
The men were wearing their winter camouflage gear again, with white snowsuits on and goggles slung round their necks. As Toby approached they fell quiet and stared at the map on the desk. He followed their gaze and realised that the area around Stirling had been circled in red pen, and there were arrows marking a route.
“So you know exactly where New Caledonia is?” asked Toby bravely. He sounded much bolder than he felt.
Tom frowned at him and Toby thought for one moment he was going to get a row, but Tom’s face softened and he said,
“Yes, Toby, we know all about the activities of the General, we’ve been spying on him and his New Caledonia for months. Give him his due, he’s intelligent, well organised and he must have some charm to be able to persuade the others to do what he says. He’s made a good job of fortifying the boundaries of his new country. We’ve been planning a mission for a while now —”
“Can I come?” Toby blurted out. A couple of the men laughed.
“I’m sorry. It does sound likely that they have your family, and I realise you must be very worried about them. But let us handle it – these men are trained professionals. They know what they’re doing.”
“But I can be useful. I know things about the raiders,” said Toby, trying to keep Tom’s attention. “For instance, the General’s henchmen all have a special tattoo on their wrists, just here.” Toby pulled back his sleeve and pointed to the place where he had seen NC on the men’s arms.
“Thank you. That’ll be useful in identifying the raiders, but I’m afraid I still can’t take you. I can’t jeopardise a mission.” Tom turned on his heels and strode off.
The guy called Bill smirked, but Simon came over and put a hand on Toby’s shoulder.
“Sorry, Toby, it isn’t your age. We never take untrained civilians, ok?”
Toby shook his head, and then felt a red-hot surge of anger.
How dare these men treat me like a baby? After all the scary things I’ve had to do. Who rescued Jamie and his mum, and who got me and Tash this far?
He took a deep breath; falling out with Simon wasn’t going to help his cause. He’d have to be more cunning than that. “So are you going to go in all guns blasting then?” he asked, trying to sound innocent.
“Absolutely not,” replied Simon, stooping to hide the map from Toby’s curious eyes. “It’ll be a stealth operation: quick in and out.”
“How are you going to rescue all the people that fast?”
“We’re not. We’re only going to bring out the General and his henchmen – just the ringleaders. It’ll be easier now you’ve told us about the tattoos – we’ll be able to identify them quicker.”
Toby felt the anger rear its ugly head again and this time he couldn’t help blurting out, “But what about my dad and Sylvie? You’re going to leave them there? You can’t do that. They’re prisoners. You need to rescue them! That’s what you do, isn’t it? Rescue people? You rescued me so why can’t you rescue them?” Toby’s voice was getting louder and louder and a few people in the canteen were starting to stare. Simon took him by his arm and led him out into the corridor.
“I’m really sorry about your family, Toby,” he said, “but they’ll be safer this way. We haven’t got the firepower or the trained men to take on the General in a full-scale attack. You heard what Tom said: the General’s been careful to protect his territory. It would be a suicide mission. Lots of innocent people could get injured and you don’t want that, do you?”
Toby shook his head.
“This way,” continued Simon, “we take out the worst of the raiders and the place will soon fall apart. From our observations, we know that most of the men are not hardened criminals. Most of them just seem to have fallen in with bad company to survive. We remove the bad company and hopefully the others will behave in a civilised way again and let the innocent people live freely.”
“Hopefully?” exclaimed Toby. “What do you mean hopefully? And what if they don’t?”
“Then we’ll have to think again, won’t we? Toby, we can’t rescue everybody anyway. This place won’t support any more people. We’re at full capacity as it is now and all those here came by invitation because they have some special knowledge.”
“What?” cried Toby. He saw in his face that S
imon hadn’t meant to tell him that. Simon shrugged and walked away, muttering something about it being a hard world and there were things that just had to be done.
They don’t want to rescue Dad and Sylvie. They’ve known for ages that the General has been kidnapping people and torturing them. Tom doesn’t want anyone else here. How can he leave the prisoners at the mercy of those men? Even if the bad guys aren’t there, who knows what will happen? I’m going to have to rescue them myself.
Toby raced back to his room in the medical bay. His clothes had been washed and dried and were now in a locker beside the bed. He pulled them on quickly, then, throwing his rucksack over his shoulder, he slipped out into the corridor.
They are not going without me! I’m going to Stirling and they can’t stop me.
He realised that they could, and they would if they caught him trying to go with them.
They must be leaving soon – they were all kitted up. Maybe if I find out which vehicle they are going in, I could stow away in it?
This didn’t sound like a very good plan; the chances of being able to hide from professional soldiers seemed slim.
Haven’t had a chance to say goodbye to Tash. I hope she’s not going to be too mad I’m going without her, but I’ve got to do this.
23. New Caledonia
Toby crept quietly down a corridor heading to the huge garage he had seen with Tom, trying hard to remember where he was in the vast bunker. Suddenly he froze; he could hear someone angrily shouting and a banging noise coming from somewhere nearby. He listened again. One of the voices seemed familiar. Sliding round the corner, Toby peered through the window of what seemed like a prison cell. There inside, banging with a metal cup on the wall, was Carl, the driver of the Land Rover Toby had taken.
Carl? How did he get here?
Toby bobbed under the window and sneaked a look inside the next cell. There, on a narrow metal bed, sat the driver of the white van, looking very pleased as he gobbled up a large plate of hot pie and chips.
“Eh – you? It’s you! You wee maggot!” Carl had come to his window and spied Toby. “I know you!” he shouted. “You’re the wee toad that stole my Landie. If I get my hands on you, you’ll be sorry you ever set eyes on that truck!”
Toby didn’t wait to reply but sped on up the corridor and through a metal door into the garage. It was more like a small aircraft hangar with its tall curved roof and big doors at the bottom end. Toby crouched in the shadow of a large lorry, watching out for men. There were mainly green army Land Rovers parked alongside the skidoos, but also there were a couple of big lorries, and a white van.
The white van? That must be Carl’s mate’s van, the one we were following from Fort William. Why have they captured that?
Just then, two of the soldiers appeared out of a side door, and slung a couple of bags into the open back of the van.
They must be taking the van on the mission. That’s clever! They’ll be using it to get inside this New Caledonia place, to fool the guards.
Two other soldiers appeared and got into one of the green Land Rovers, banging the doors shut. Toby heard the noise of an engine starting.
They must be leaving – I’d better get going.
He ducked and dived behind the lorries and trucks until he reached the white van and then, glancing around him, jumped into the back. Wriggling under a bench seat, Toby pulled an old blanket around him. Now all he had to do was wait.
It seemed like ages as he lay there trying to slow his breathing. Were they taking the van? Or was he going to be left behind? As he was beginning to think that he had made a big mistake, he heard voices. It was Bill and Simon, and they were discussing the route to Stirling. One man got into the cab of the van and the door slammed shut. The engine revved into life and they started to move. There was the sound of the huge metal doors opening, and then the van picked up speed.
Toby’s stomach lurched as the van headed up a ramp, bumping him around in the back. He was on the way to Stirling now.
Bright winter sunlight flooded in through the rear window. Toby hadn’t realised what time of day it was; it was easy to lose all track of time in the bunker. Judging by the lowness of the light, it was early afternoon. It would soon be dark.
Toby began to feel sick, as the driver threw the van around corners and raced along the country lanes at speed. He tried to think of a plan for when he arrived at New Caledonia but he couldn’t concentrate. He braced himself against the struts of the bench, holding his breath with every lurch and bump, scared that the driver might hear him gasping.
What am I going to do? How am I going to find Dad and Sylvie? And what will I do when I’ve found them?
The journey seemed to go on and on forever, but just when Toby thought his stomach wouldn’t be able to take much more, they lurched to a halt. He heard muffled voices calling out in the dark. The driver wound down his window and shouted something gruffly. The van started up again, slowly moving and then manoeuvring around until it came to a stop and the driver turned the engine off. Toby peeped from under the blanket just in time to see the driver hide the van keys behind the sun visor, before getting out of the van and closing the door quietly. Then there was silence.
Toby lay for a while, wondering what to do. Was it safe to leave the van? Or was there someone out there? He had to take the risk and look. He wriggled out from under the bench, his legs stiff and cramped, then crawled over the front seats and into the driver’s place. He peered out of the windscreen into the murky darkness. The van appeared to be parked in a large car park alongside a fleet of lorries and white vans. He could just make out the sentry post they had passed through. Two large men stood with their backs to him, hunched with cold, staring into a fiery brazier burning with coals. As the heat-hazy light threw shadows onto them, Toby could see the AK47 rifles slung over their shoulders.
Where am I? This place looks enormous.
There was no sign of the driver, so Toby got out very carefully and slunk round the back of the van. He realised that he was in the car park of what looked like a huge castle with towering walls and batteries looming up to his left.
This must be Stirling Castle!
He remembered passing the place when he and his family had travelled down to Glasgow to see his grandma. He had wanted to explore the melodramatic castle with its lofty buildings and fortifications, all perched on a huge rocky cliff high above the main road.
There was a large parade ground in front of the castle, leading to the main gateway. He wouldn’t be able to get through there as the open ground gave him no cover, and he reckoned there must be guards there, too.
There must be an easier entrance.
The van was parked with its back to a wall in which there was a narrow wrought iron gate swinging off its hinges. Toby crawled along the gravel to the gate and slipped through onto the grass on the other side.
Oh no, a cemetery, and in the dark too.
Toby flashed his torch on. He’d have to take the risk of someone seeing the light; he wasn’t brave enough to crawl through a graveyard at night. All around him stood lines of stones sticking up like rows of giant black teeth. Some of the gravestones were decorated on top with Celtic crosses, urns, and one even had a huge angel, wings aloft, staring down at him with empty eyes. He moved quickly through the broken ground, tripping over tussocks of long grass in his haste to get out of the cemetery.
I’ll go round the back of the castle. There may be an entrance there that’s not guarded. After all, Cerberus managed to find a way into Fort George.
Toby stopped and held his breath. Could he hear something snuffling about in the bushes beside the wall? No, he must be imagining it. He started slowly picking his way round a stone slab which had slipped off a grave and lay crookedly across the grass.
Hope the person inside doesn’t fall out, too!
“AH!” Toby screamed. A large gloved hand grabbed him by the shoulder. Out of the darkness stepped a short thick-set man in a black balaclava and da
rk clothes.
“Got yer!” he cried. “Yer coming with me!”
The man twisted Toby’s arm behind his back and marched him, stumbling, back across the cemetery to the main entrance of the castle. They passed across a dry moat and under an archway, the man’s head-torch bobbing a light in front of them. At the other side of another bridge sat a large stone gatehouse from which light spilled onto the flagged pavement. The man threw Toby roughly to the ground.
“What yer gone and caught this time, Bert?” someone called out from inside the gatehouse.
“Looks like a minnow to me!” called another. Laughter spilt out into the night. Toby kept his face down because he didn’t want to be recognised; some of these men might have seen him at Fort George. But then he heard a voice he knew.
“Wait! Let me have a good look at him!” It was the Captain of the raiders. He tugged Toby’s head up by his hair. “That’s the lad who got away from us and nicked McNaught’s boat, too. He was furious. Think you’ve just used up another of your lives, cat-boy!”
The other men roared with laughter and came out of the guardhouse to get a better look at this lad with nine lives, who had dared to do such things.
“Take him straight to the General. He’ll be very interested to meet this one. Maybe he can use him to get his dad to talk!” barked the Captain. Two men dragged Toby across a large sloping courtyard towards an arch bridging the corner. This had a crenellated roof and gothic windows in its side. Peering out of one of the windows, caught in the glimmering lights of the men’s torches, was a small pale face encircled with fair gossamer hair.
Jamie!
“Get a move on!” one of the men grunted at him, pushing him roughly. They climbed up a cobbled ramp and were in another courtyard. To their right stood a massive pale-gold hall decorated with statues and lots of fancy plasterwork. The men pushed Toby through a huge wooden door. The Great Hall was even more magnificent inside, with hundreds of large candles shimmering against the creamy white walls, casting flickering patterns of light and dark into the wooden beams of the vaulted ceiling.
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