Aleksi nodded vehemently. “Yes, that must be it. But maybe not all…” He became lost in his tablet for a moment, holding it up for everyone to see the results of his search. “Here, see? Doctor Llewellyn’s process is being used to make components for weapons, also. But not at this site. Maybe the bad guys don’t know that? I vote we turn the phone on.”
“Me too,” Halli agreed.
There were nods from Craig and Mischa.
“How are you accessing all this information, Aleksi? That looked like a classified document.”
“Oh, I am connected to the Meredith Reynolds, I just asked nicely. The system EI usually allows me to look at stuff as long as I explain why I need it. It is really intuitive, even for an EI.”
Tina and Ron exchanged a quick glance. They knew that Aleksi’s skills must have been noticed by ADAM if he was getting access like that.
Aleksi went over to his bunk and grabbed his charger cable from the nightstand, plugging it into his tablet. He came back over and held his hand out for the smartphone. “We will copy it and look at the contents that way. Here, I’ll do it through my tablet.”
“NO!” Ron and Tina cried in unison.
Ron explained. “Activity like that on one of our tablets would be flagged by Meredith immediately.” Only Tina knew that he was more concerned about being busted by ADAM.
The others were perplexed.
“Trust us,” Tina assured. “The last thing we want is Ms. Dukes and my uncle finding out we did all this before we have proof.”
“So I shouldn't search for the phone’s model number, either.” He put his tablet down.
“So what are we going to do?” Masha rubbed her tired eyes.
Maxim stood and stretched. “We are going to get some sleep, and come at it from a different angle tomorrow. Let us hide the phone. Maybe one of the stones can be loosened? Then it is safe until we are decided.”
“Good idea,” Tina agreed. “It’s late, and we have a full day of pulling machinery apart scheduled tomorrow.”
“John said we're going climbing after breakfast.” Halli yawned as she spoke. “Apparently we’re driving him up the wall, and he wants to return the favor.”
That brought chuckles from them all as they broke apart and prepared for bed.
As she lay waiting to fall asleep Tina couldn’t stop thinking about the kids in the photograph on Doctor Llewellyn’s desk. Were they in danger? She had to find out, and stop whatever was going on here.
United Kingdom, North Wales, Conwy Castle, East Barbican
It was five thirty in the morning, and John had gathered the five Wechselbalg on the grass on the King’s Tower side of the barbican. The wall of the tower had been fitted with a climbing wall during the renovation of the castle and the kids would soon be scaling it.
Maxim craned his neck to see where the crenellations blocked out the morning sun. Ron had told him the towers were just over twenty meters tall, made from reinforced stone. The climbing wall was split down the middle by a series of platforms with a ladder on each side for those who had reached their limit. The result was two identical routes to the top, and the holds changed color at each platform as the difficulty of the climb increased.
“This is perfect for a race,” Maxim remarked quietly to himself. He would usually say these kinds of things to Nestor. It was strange to be so far away from his cousin for so long. “I miss you, brother,” he murmured.
Craig’s sensitive hearing picked it up and he nudged Maxim with his shoulder. “Hey, you okay? Are you up for a race? I’m not your cousin, but I’ll be your buddy.”
Maxim nodded stiffly, saved from an emotional response to Craig’s words by John calling them to attention.
John paced in front of them with his hands behind his back. “Good morning, class. Your first challenge should not be a challenge at all. You’ve all had time on the walls at school, and this is just the same—just on a larger scale.”
None of them were impressed, despite the height of the wall.
John had a twinkle in his eye. “This is just the warm-up. We’re going free-climbing as soon as I’m assured that everyone has their sensible head on today.” He looked directly at Craig for a long moment. “If everyone does, we’ll make a day of it. The whole town is surrounded by walls. Let’s see if we can have some fun and challenge ourselves! This afternoon we’ll work on surveillance. I’ve heard there’s a few nice places to eat in town, so we’re going people watching while we get some lunch.”
Maxim and the others whooped for joy. They had been working hard since they arrived at the castle, getting a glimpse of their future lives as Guardians. The situation with Doctor Llewellyn was also weighing on their minds. A little fun and some physical exertion were just what they needed.
“That’s more like it,” John exclaimed. He picked up a bowl of chalk from the equipment stand and held it out. “Maxim and Craig, you’re up first.”
Maxim dipped his hands in the chalk and rubbed them together. “Are you ready to race, my friend?” he asked Craig.
“You bet your furry butt I am!” he replied smartly.
They lined up side by side, ready to go on John’s signal.
He gave a whistle and they raced to the tower, both boys leaping as high up the wall as they could to catch a jug hold to get a head start on the race. John and the girls cheered them on, spurring them both to greater speeds.
Maxim kept his eyes on the section of the wall above, plotting the most efficient route as he went. The first part of the wall was easy, Maxim found plenty of holds evenly spaced, and the wall was textured to make it easy to grip with his feet. It was ideal for beginners, and no trouble whatsoever for an energetic young Wechselbalg.
He powered up the wall, and Craig was right beside him the whole time. Maxim did not watch his rival’s progress out of the corner of his eye. Instead, he focused on looking up toward the mid-portion of the wall, which was where things began to get interesting.
As soon as they passed the first platform, the wall transformed under his hands. The easy grips were gone, and the boys had to work to find the next one instead of being given the multiple options they’d had on the first section.
“How’s it going over there?” Craig called from a hair’s breadth below him.
Maxim grunted and kept pushing himself upward.
The third section of the wall increased in difficulty again. As well as the reduction in available grips, the wall was no longer flat. Stones jutted, creating overhangs the boys had to scramble up and around. There were no more platforms after this, and the two routes merged into one wall for the last ten feet.
Maxim saw the slip before it happened.
He reached across and grabbed Craig’s arm, enabling the older Wechselbalg to get a grip again before he fell off the tower.
Maxim didn’t think the fall would have killed a Wechselbalg, but it would have left Craig stuck in medical—again. They heaved themselves over the top and stood panting, holding themselves upright with their hands on their thighs as the adrenaline dissipated.
Craig grinned and held up a hand as he caught his breath. “Duuude, that was epic! I love teaming up with you. I always push myself that little bit harder!”
This time Maxim reciprocated Craig’s high-five. Maxim was coming to realize that Craig could be a loyal friend and staunch ally. They were a good match physically, and any problems Craig’s seniority might have caused Maxim’s alpha tendencies were dispelled by Craig’s sunny nature and the solid character his joking disguised.
He pulled Craig into a backslapping hug. “You challenge me also, my friend. It is good to be your teammate.”
Craig grinned again. “Come on, let’s see who’s next.”
An hour later, John was satisfied that all the students had sufficient climbing skills to be let loose on a real wall. They all piled into one of the facility’s vehicles—a silver Land Rover Sport with tinted windows—and waited for John to return from the castle kitchen.
<
br /> He came back carrying three bulging kitbags and a cooler—with ease. He put everything in the back before climbing into the driver’s seat.
“There’s rain forecast for this afternoon,” John said casually. “Looks like the people-watching is cancelled.”
The girls groaned as one.
“What about lunch?” Craig asked hopefully. They could all smell the food John had put in the trunk.
“What about climbing?” Halli added.
“We’re going out to Snowdonia to camp for the night instead. Doctor Llewellyn told me about a place you kids can really work off some steam.” He hooked a thumb toward the back of the car. “I think you can all smell your lunch. Fair warning, dinner will not be as delicious as lunch.”
“What?” Halli’s face was incredulous. “Will we have to hunt?”
John laughed. “You can if you want to. I was thinking we'd just eat the food substitutes I brought, but if you’d rather eat rabbit we can do that instead.”
“My vote is for pizza,” Mischa said quickly, trying to negotiate.
“Mine too!” Masha agreed. “Who knows when we’ll get to eat real pizza again after this trip?”
“I think we all vote for pizza!” Craig concurred.
“Maybe there will be somewhere we can stop and get some takeout,” John conceded.
Maxim hoped they weren’t going to be driving for long. The food smelled good, and breakfast was only a distant memory in his teenage Wechselbalg mind. John drove them out of the parking lot and through the security barriers at both ends of the tunnel leading out of the facility grounds.
Maxim blinked at the rapid change in the light levels as they crested the dip at the tunnel exit. The steel gray sky was jarring after the dimly-lit tunnel.
The journey passed quickly. He leaned against the front passenger-side window as they drove through the countryside. Craig and the girls were in the back, laughing and pointing out the road signs as they saw them. Each tried to outdo the others with outlandish attempts to pronounce the Welsh words as they went.
“You okay, buddy?” John asked from driver’s seat. “You’re quiet today.”
Maxim looked over at John for a moment before returning to watching the sheep and the trees go by. “I am fine, thank you, sir.”
“Hmm-mm,” John murmured, focusing on the road and giving Maxim time to put what he was thinking into words.
“I think I have been unkind to Craig,” he said softly. “I dismissed him as a fool, but he has more depth than that. I am ashamed of myself for being judgmental.”
“So you should be! I’m awesome!” Craig yelled from the back of the car, pounding the back of Maxim’s seat with his fists.
Maxim groaned. “And then he behaves like this and I want to throttle him!”
John laughed heartily. “Looks like you found your Tabitha!”
“Hey!” Craig began to protest. “Actually, I’ll take that. Ranger Two is B.A.D.A.S.S. When I grow up I wanna be just like her!”
The whole car burst into laughter as they crossed the bridge at Betws-Y-Coed and headed into Snowdonia.
United Kingdom, North Wales, Snowdonia National Park, Swallow Falls
“Perkins! Answer the comm, damn you!” Broadbent was having a miserable time playing tourist. He had been hanging around the falls for the last couple of hours while he waited for the SAS contact he was meeting to appear.
“Sorry, sir,” Perkins sounded excited. “I was just confirming a report from Doctor Llewellyn. It seems John Grimes has left the castle, sir.”
Broadbent grinned, startling some young lovebirds enjoying the romance of the day as his mouth performed the unfamiliar movement. “Jolly good! Perhaps he’s going to sod off back to space and let us get on with things, eh?”
This could be the turning of the tide for this absolute bollocks of an operation, he thought.
“Oh,” was all Perkins said in reply.
“What do you mean by ‘oh?’”
Perkins gulped loud enough to be heard over the comm. “Erm…sir? He’s headed your way.”
Broadbent had to take control of his body before it betrayed him. He took a firm grip on the tree beside him. “As in, ‘he knows who I am and he’s headed my way to end me?’” His knees went to jelly, and his stomach threatened to eject the rum-raisin ice cream he’d eaten instead of lunch.
“Looks that way, sir. Satellite has him getting into a vehicle with five others at the castle and driving to Betws-Y-Coed. Looks like they're headed into Snowdonia.”
The last time Broadbent had been this afraid, he had been crouched in the burnt shell of a ruined building while the bombs exploded around him. Now, as then, he felt naked and exposed. He shrank back, suddenly certain that anyone who looked at him would be able to see the terror pouring out of him. This was beyond fight or flight. He had taken those children, and he knew what would happen when John Grimes found him.
He only hoped that he could face his death with more bravery than he’d shown in this moment.
“Sir.” Perkins interrupted his thoughts. “I’ve managed to clean up the image from the castle car park a fair bit. I may have jumped the gun a little, sir. John Grimes is escorting five of the TQB children.”
Relief hit Broadbent like a hammer, and he released a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. “Looks like we get to live another day, Perkins. He wouldn’t take kids to an execution.”
“Jolly good, sir. Retirement is looking rather attractive at the moment, I must say.” Perkins signed off.
“I couldn’t agree more,” Broadbent muttered to himself. The young couple looked at him strangely again.
Time to move on. It wouldn’t do to be remembered if John Grimes did turn up and start asking questions. If only the SAS chap would hurry up!
A muddy four-wheel drive pulled up beside him, polluting the air with thrashing guitar music. Damn kids. Broadbent wrinkled his nose as the window wound down and a head popped out. “Broadbent?”
He nodded to the driver, who flashed his ID, confirming he was the contact Broadbent had been waiting for.
“Get in if you will, sir. We haven’t got all day!”
He sighed as he got into the passenger side of the beat-up vehicle.
The driver held out a hand for Broadbent to shake. “Corporal Sykes, sir. Nice to meet you. So…what’s it like, being a spook?”
Broadbent pursed his lips and shrugged. “Nothing like the telly shows, that’s for sure. Where are we headed?”
Sykes looked askance at him. “We’re bivvied a short way into the forest, sir. Have I offended you in any way? You don’t seem pleased to be here.”
Broadbent shook his head. “It’s been a long couple of weeks, that’s all. You don’t look like an AC/DC fan, Sykes. Bit before your time, I would say.”
Sykes grinned, the action making him look even younger to Broadbent’s weary eyes. “Oh, I loves the old bands, sir. My dad was an SAS man before me, and his unit had all the hits recorded for when they went into the theatre. You want me to turn it off?”
Broadbent shook his head again. “No, you’re all right, lad. Leave it on.”
They listened in silence as they drove. The road gave way to a lane, and the lane led to a dirt track through the forest that culminated in a muddy clearing full of similarly distressed-looking vehicles.
“What’s with all the cars?” Broadbent asked.
“We don’t want TQB spotting us, so everyone drove in by a different route once we left Anglesey. We’re all playing tourist; it’s the perfect cover in Wales. Everyone who’s not a local is a tourist at this time of year.”
A beefy man wearing a rugby shirt approached. “Agent Broadbent, is it?”
Broadbent nodded, showing his ID.
“Good to have you with us.” He held out a chunky hand for Broadbent to shake. “Captain Myerscough, at your service. Now, tell me about what we’re up against here. All I have is speculation. I’m surrounded by a bunch of wet-nosed sissies
who are too scared of the boogeyman to do their jobs properly!”
This time Broadbent kept the sigh inside. It wouldn’t do to be disrespectful to the man commanding the hundred-strong unit before the assault on the castle.
“John Grimes is here, sir. I’m sure you’ve heard of him?”
“Not really, Broadbent, I’ve only ever heard of one John Grimes, and it can’t be him.”
Broadbent nodded to the captain.
Bradley paled. “That John Grimes is here? Who is running this shambles?”
“That would be you, sir,” Broadbent said with a rueful smile. “I’m just here to liaise.”
Captain Myerscough began bellowing orders at the soldiers standing around, and within twenty minutes there were a number of small recon teams scrambling to leave.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
QBBS Meredith Reynolds, Etheric Academy, Administration Office
“What do you mean you’ve got a date?” Diane squealed. “Don’t tell me you got that pilot to ask you out!” She adjusted the phone against her ear and scooched into a more comfortable position to receive the gossip.
“I did!” Dorene whooped. “Better yet, he has a handsome friend and I set you up, too! Hang on, I’ll be at the office in a moment. Put the kettle on, would you, dear?”
Dorene swept through the door just as Diane placed two steaming-hot mugs on the table. She pushed the Earl Grey tea toward Dorene and blew on her coffee while she waited for her sister to get settled.
“DJ! So, when is our date? It will be a double, won’t it?”
“Everything’s double with us, my dear!” Dorene wiggled an eyebrow, making Diane choke on the donut she’d just dunked in her coffee. “It’s tomorrow night, at All Guns Blazing.”
“Ooh, it’s been so long since we’ve been on a date! I told you apologizing to Jean would make it all better.” Diane ignored the sour look from her sister. “Are you sure about dating a pilot, though? It didn’t go so well last time.”
When she opened the attachment Dorene had sent, it was not the handsome pilot face she expected. “Not the roster!”
Alpha Class - Discovery: A Kurtherian Gambit Series (The Etheric Academy Book 3) Page 7