by Paul Heron
Michael closed his eyes, with deep breaths and a vivid imagination, he began to picture them all going into the arena, nobody getting hurt, nobody getting caught. Just them, successfully swooping into the bullring, getting the fragment. Everybody healthy. Everybody happy on the jet returning to Bruce’s Cave.
This visualisation technique made Michael feel it wasn’t only achievable, but he felt they'd already achieved it. This technique was something his Gaelic football coach Mr Conlan practised with them before a game. And it helped them believe the win was possible. Michael laughed to himself. Four months ago, he was visualising himself and his team winning their final football match of the year. Now he was using the same technique to go into Madrid, take a precious stone from the Spanish president surrounded by his enhanced Mancini security and tens of thousands of Spanish spectators.
‘You okay?’ Scarlett shouted from the front.
Michael opened his eyes, Eduardo was to his right, his knees still performing a nervous dance, Scarlett looking at him thoughtfully.
Before Michael could say anything, Ringo shouted as he looked in the mirror. ‘He's alright. He’s grown into the fearless leader we all need. From the nervous little shit we all met last week to the man with balls who put his face up there in front of a camera for the world to see. That took some guts.’
Michael was about to respond when Scarlett – staring at her phone – shouted. ‘Listen to this. The Spanish president says that everyone who comes to the free event at the festival's first day will be witness to the most important day in Spanish history.’
‘He doesn’t realise what he’s doing!’ Michael shouted.
‘Well, he'll definitely go down in history, being remembered throughout the ages,’ Eduardo laughed sarcastically. ‘Dumbass.’
Michael was about to call Sofia in the other car when she'd called him just as he unlocked his phone. ‘Ringo, connect us through the sound system, it’s Sofia.’ He answered it. ‘Sofia, have you seen the news broadcast?’
‘What the hell's he thinking?’ Sofia said. ‘Looks like there’s still some Fomorian inside him. We should have just killed him when we had the chance.’
‘They've voted in a dumbass, that’s for sure,’ Mohammad half joked.
‘The Mancini Corporation want as many people to flock to Madrid as possible. The greater the crowds, the harder it'll be for us to get in and out,’ Carolina said, as she jumped into the call from the other car. ‘These guys are not stupid, and this is not like the jungle where we have all that room to breathe. Or in France where we had time to sneak into the museum. We're going to be snatching the fragment in front of thousands of people and thousands of phones with recording capability.’
The evening was building with pressure and Michael's headache was growing with it. He knew it was going to be an eventful evening in the Spanish capital. He only hoped it would end with them leaving the country with the fragment. He shook his head, not knowing what to do. He closed his eyes and an image popped into his head. An image of them all getting caught. Hospitals across Spain being filled with sick, dying patients. Doctors and nurses being sick. He felt faint. He opened his eyes and looked at Ringo in the mirror. He closed them again, trying to focus on the fresh air coming in his window.
‘Michael,’ a voice spoke to him. The man’s voice did not come from inside the car. But it sounded like, with it, came a rumbling of the earth and an increase of wind hitting his face. He felt his entire body tingle as if he’d been wrapped in an energy. ‘Michael, the gods of the Otherworld don’t have much to help you with. We can’t contact you for very long. It gives the Dark One knowledge of your whereabouts whenever we do. You all must stay together, Michael. Stay together. That’s your greatest strength.’
Michael opened his eyes, wrapped in an indescribable sense of peace. And given their current plight, it was not how he should have been feeling. Together, we’re strong. He concluded. Which didn’t really give him much more than he already had. He remembered feeling that way in France. But this wasn’t France and it couldn’t be like their last mission. Or could it. They won’t be expecting us to do the same as in France... they’d think we’re too clever for that. His grinned to himself.
‘What are you thinking, pal? I know that look by now, I know you've got something up your sleeve.’
‘If they're using the crowded streets to slow us down, then there's only one way we get in and out freely.’ Michael looked at Eduardo.
‘Yes, amigo! Let’s use the chopper and create a memorable evening in Spain.’
There were mumbles coming through the call, whispers sounding like a debate that they didn’t want the others to hear.
‘Listen, if any of you have a better idea, great. Let’s hear it. But otherwise it's our only option. They're testing us. Let’s play with them then.’
‘How? Michael, we're running out of time,’ Mohammad said. ‘Get that thinking brain of yours working double time.’
‘We use the chopper to swoop in, the same as France. The only difference is, we'll be snatching the fragment and not the president in front of thousands of spectators.’
‘Yes, so we know how we're getting out of the arena,’ Carolina sounded irritated, ‘but how are we getting in?’
‘We split up,’ Marcel said. ‘Just like we did in the jungle. We split up, using the Sirani network to stay connected, go in as groups of two, and meet somewhere in the arena.’
‘Or we go in separately and remain separated until we spot the fragment. When the chopper swoops in, we all make our way towards the metal bird.’ Eduardo tried to steady his voice. ‘Whoever's closest to the fragment snatches it.’
‘Something doesn't feel right,’ Carolina complained.
‘You're always complaining,’ Mohammad griped. ‘And it's creating bad vibes.’
‘Shut up, Mohammad!’ Carolina shouted.
‘No! You keep saying something doesn't feel right, then something happens.’
Michael looked at Ringo, feeling nervous. He wanted an answer from him that everything was going to be okay, but he didn’t think Ringo would tell a lie. He was as nervous as the rest of them.
‘Will you all stop being pussies and quit crying,’ Ajit shouted, as if he was focussed on something else. ‘I think Ahmad is close to the fragment. He's moving towards the arena. We're only twenty minutes away in current traffic.’
‘Hold that thought, Ajit!’ Ringo said cautiously. ‘Shit! This is all we need.’
‘Oh no,’ Scarlett repeated. ‘Welcome to our first problem.’
Michael and Eduardo looked at each other, then watched as Ringo led their entourage into a queue of idling vehicles, passing through a police check point like customers waiting in line to be served.
‘Great!’ Eduardo said.
Michael’s mind raced, growing tired at their continuing bad luck.
‘Maybe we turn back, find another way?’ Eduardo said. ‘We get caught, and there's nothing that we can do from a jail cell.’
‘These will be everywhere,’ Scarlett said, discreetly pulling her pistol out. Ringo looked at her disapprovingly. ‘Don't look at me like that, Ringo. We may need it!’
‘We'll go through it,’ Michael said, rubbing the side of his head.
‘Here.’ Scarlett passed Michael a box of paracetamol. Michael swallowed two and washed them down with his bottle of water.
As Michael finished the water, he looked up and saw two police officers coming with sniffer dogs, checking the vehicle in front of them – an SUV towing a trailer of horses. He told Mohammad to rattle their cage.
Michael and Eduardo laughed as they watched the dogs start to bark at the officers.
‘Ajit!’ Michael said.
‘I’ve already cut of their radios. They'll not be calling for backup any time soon.’
‘Guys, you do know, if this is anything like France, those cops will be Mancini agents,’ Sofia said. ‘Just mow them down.’
Although a little shocked initially,
Michael wasn’t surprised to hear Sofia say that. She was gutted to hear that her godmother was murdered by the Mancini Corporation.
In a moment of uncontrollable panic, Eduardo jumped out of the car. Michael had a flashback to Oxford Street in London when Ahmad did the same. Eduardo tried to sneak over into bushes on the edge of the country road. The dogs spotted him, barking in his direction with just enough time for the cops to turn and catch a glimpse of him.
Mohammad whistled a deafening whistle again and the dogs erupted, biting their handlers. The two officers shouted after Eduardo to stop, weapons drawn as they approached.
‘Michael, don’t move!’ Scarlett shouted as she opened her door to get out, but Michael had already jumped from the back seat after Eduardo. He got two steps when he stopped, feeling dizzy. A few seconds of being unsteady on his feet, he shook his head, hearing two Spanish voices shout for Eduardo to stop. They fired warming shots, then pointed their guns at Eduardo. Scarlett put a bullet in each of the officer's legs, dropping them instantly. ‘They’ve got lightning bolt tattoos. We're running through them. Eduardo, get back in the car.’
‘I'm taking the cop car,’ Michael shouted. Marcel and Mohammad joined him. ‘You two want to join the Spanish police?’
‘Sure, why not!’ Mohammad said.
The other cars in the queue had sped off. Carolina and Sofia helped Scarlett tie up the officers and throw them in the boot of the marked police car. ‘Michael, maybe put the siren and give us an escort to the arena,’ Sofia said, shutting the boot of the car with the officers tied up inside. ‘Maybe it’s better you let Scarlett drive, you'll crash this thing.’
Mohammad took the front passenger seat. Marcel and Michael jumped in the back. Scarlett got behind the wheel. They used the police radio to listen over the waves to hear what was been said in the local area.
Ten minutes later, Maria called. ‘Five minutes until we arrive. We're now in the Guindalera quarter of the Salamanca district, and no doubt Mancini land. Keep the siren flashing. It'll get us through the crowds. One good thing about having one of those cars is people clear the road for you.’
As Scarlett turned left from the Calle de Alcala Street onto the Calle Julio Camba which led to the arena, they all looked in awe as the beautiful tree-lined street was overshadowed by the magnificent Plaza de Toros de Las Ventas. The exquisite building constructed in the 1920s was in the neo-mudejar style designed by the architect Jose Espeliu. The Moorish styling with it’s ceramic incrustations was nothing less than a work of art. It was a good thing they were in a police car; otherwise, they'd have had a hard time getting through the sea of people.
‘Look at the crowds,’ Scarlett said, as the car led the way through what was without a doubt the busiest street in Madrid at that moment.
‘Plough through,’ Sofia said. ‘If they realised what we're doing, they'd soon get the hell out of the way.’
Michael was relieved when Guillermo answered his call quickly. ‘Where are you? We’ve just arrived.’
‘Michael, I'm walking there now. It’s too busy to drive. I had to park the car somewhere or risk getting stuck in traffic.’
‘How close can you get to the fragment?’
‘Pretty close, I think. I’m interviewing the president for the news. The story will go everywhere, and I’ve already informed President Perez that I want to see this so called “new find”.’ Guillermo laughed. ‘You should see how crazy people are getting about this. I can see a crowd of people dressed as bulls. Perhaps they always go to the arena like this. I’m not a fan of it so I wouldn’t know.’
‘Keep an eye out for Ahmad. He’s joined the Mancini Corporation for the day. He's been selected to guard the fragment while it’s being moved to the arena. So, if you see him, there's a good chance the fragment will be close by.’
‘Ahmad’s not going to do something stupid, is he?’ Guillermo shouted, as he walked past a crowd of singing Spaniards.
‘He is crazy,’ Michael said, half jokingly. ‘But it's taken some balls for him to do that.’
‘Okay, listen, it’s getting too noisy now!’ Guillermo shouted. ‘I’ll text you when I know more. I'm just heading in now. See you soon.’ He signed off.
‘How did he sound?’ Carolina asked.
‘Like a bag of nerves.’
‘I think he’s more afraid of the repercussions of what he’s doing, and how it'll affect his family,’ Maria said.
‘Then we pull his family out of Spain when we're leaving,’ Michael said.
‘Agreed, we don't need another unstable member like Ahmad going off the rails to get their family back,’ Sofia said.
‘His family has already been contacted,’ Scarlett said.
Michael looked out through the tinted windows. A sea of people – some dressed as bulls, some dressed normally – all looking excited, unaware of what this fragment could really do. The thought of being responsible for the lives of all these people made his stomach churn; especially looking at them all individually: men, women, and children. Families. Families like his own. It was a lot to take in. The atmosphere was so pressurised it felt as if the car was about to cave in. It reminded Michael of the arrival at the stadium in France. The overwhelmingly tense atmosphere. To be the most wanted person on the planet, sneaking through thousands of people, including world leaders, was both exhilarating and frightening.
Scarlett led the way into the arena’s car park. On any other occasion, arriving in a police car would turn some heads. But on a day like that, police were everywhere so they just blended in with the other marked cars. She reversed into the corner bay. As soon as she shut the engine off, the noise of the crowds added to the atmosphere. Michael put on his huge sunglasses, truly feeling like a Mancini agent, and stepped out of the vehicle. As soon as his trembling foot made contact with the concrete floor, it was real.
Chapter Twenty-Four
MICHAEL FELT THE SAME as he did in France: the tension, the crowds, the fear that every person could be the enemy. The idea of spending the rest of their lives in a prison if they were caught was both good and bad. Good because Michael used that fear to drive him. An overload of fight or flight hormones would for sure keep him moving forward.
He pressed his ear piece. ‘Is everyone connected?’
‘Si,’ Sofia said.
‘Hear you, chief!’ Mohammad shouted, followed by everyone else. They were all beside each other in the crowd, but with the noise, it was easier to communicate through their earpieces.
Scarlett touched the back of Michael's head, making him flinch. ‘Sorry,’ she said. ‘Was just checking if it was still healed. The last thing we need is you dropping in the stand – chosen one.’
‘I’m hungry!’ Mohammad said. ‘Let's grab some grub.’
‘Good idea, we need to at least act normal,’ Sofia said, ‘but we're not here to eat hotdogs and drink coffee. We can’t switch off!’ She said all this while staring at Carolina. ‘What’s wrong with you?’ She followed Carolina’s line of sight, landing on the police car. It was rocking from side to side. The noise of the arena helped drown out any banging the cops in the boot were making, but it would eventually catch the attention of someone.
‘That’s going to attract some unwanted attention,’ Mohammad said.
Scarlett pulled her pistol out, staring at the car while fitting a silencer. Walking over to the boot, she asked the group to form a semi-circle around her. She inserted the key and slowly lifted it open. One of the officers had turned into a Fomorian. But this one was not like the overgrown trolls they’d seen in France or Mexico. This was more human looking, just pale and gaunt. It’s eyes were gone, leaving shadows, were the sockets formed. It was eating the other officer.
‘Looks like one was Fomorian. The other’s on his way to the Otherworld to become one.’ Michael scratched his head. He looked at Scarlett. She looked at him, and before anyone else had a chance to say another word, she pointed the gun at the Fomorian and pulled the trigger.
&n
bsp; Michael slammed the boot closed, then looked at Ajit, his eyes buried in his mobile as usual. ‘Are you tracking Ahmad?’
‘According to L'amico, he’s not far.’
‘Which means the fragment’s close by, too,’ Marcel said. ‘Hopefully we can see some bull fighting while we're here. Never seen it, but it looks like a cool sport!’
‘Abusing animals is entertaining to you?’ Mohammad griped. ‘How about we get you to run around like an idiot for a while then stick you with a sword at the end!’
‘I'd just take the sword off you and hit you a kick in the arse for my trouble!’ Marcel laughed.
They made their way through the car park and around towards the entrance gates, blending in to the sea of people that was flowing like a giant current in the direction of the entrance.
‘Right, you guys, gather around.’ Maria grouped everyone together beside the statue of Sir Alexander Fleming, adding to the arena's unique and culturally pleasant character. ‘Enrique and I will go and look for Guillermo. We have the luxury of not being famous yet.’
Enrique checked his gun. ‘There is a CCTV control room close to the ground floor emergency exit, at the west side entrance. Try to get in there. But you need to be careful, we know Mancini agents are getting into every pocket of society. Don’t be surprised if they're in charge of the arena's security too. In fact, I’d bet my life on it.’
‘Okay,’ Carolina said. ‘Stay connected and let us know when you find Guillermo.’
‘I've just received a text from Ahmad,’ Michael said, feeling excited. ‘He says he’s at the north entrance with another agent. He said they have two armed agents at each door to the building.’
‘I'll have no problem pulling my weapon if I have to,’ Enrique said.
‘Me neither,’ Maria said. ‘Right, we'll go. All of you. They know we're here. So, keep your eyes open and don’t get noticed.’ She looked around at the crowds. ‘This sea of enthusiastic people is a blessing in disguise.’