Contents
Dedication
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Epilogue
About the author
The Mystery of the Missing Device
by Gabrielle Michael
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.
ISLANDREAMZ Publishing
A division of Islandreamz Innovation Inc.
Copyright © 2014 by Gabrielle Michael
All rights reserved.
Book cover photo credits: Europhotos / Shutterstock.com & filitova / Shutterstock.com
Editors: Kathryn Michaels & Isabelle Michael
To my sister who believed in me.
Thank you for sharing your ideas and opinions;
To my parents who gave me their support and guidance;
To KF who’s always there to listen; and
To my teachers who taught me the techniques.
Chapter 1
“This is so exciting!” said 21-year-old Kathryn Jones happily as she and her older sister, Isabelle got off the plane at the Charles de Gaulle Airport. “We’re finally in Paris!”
It was their first time in the capital of France. They were secret agents on an important mission for S.P.Y. (“Sisters Protecting You”), a top secret agency dedicated to protecting the world against super villains. Only the best teams of sisters were recruited by S.P.Y. The head of the agency, John Crabbe, believed it was the teamwork between sisters that made them such awesome agents for S.P.Y.
Isabelle and Kathryn had been assigned the mission of finding the missing F-143, S.P.Y.’s most important secret device. If activated, it would destroy the world. S.P.Y. suspected that the device had been stolen by Dr. J. Sinister. The Jones sisters had been sent to Paris because S.P.Y. discovered that Dr. Sinister had a secret hideout in the city where he was printing money against the law.
“We have to stop him! That device is dangerous and even if he doesn’t have it, no one should be super rich by only printing money!” Isabelle blurted out back at S.P.Y. headquarters when she first found out about the theft.
Now even in the airport, she was busy worrying about how they were going to locate Dr. Sinister.
Her thoughts were interrupted by Kathryn.
“I hope we find time to do some sightseeing after the mission is over! There are so many interesting places to visit in Paris - the Louvre Museum, the Arc de Triomphe, the Eiffel Tower and the Notre-Dame Cathedral!” exclaimed Kathryn, her eyes sparkling with excitement. It had always been her dream to visit Paris - something Isabelle had never stopped hearing about ever since they were little girls.
“We’ll try,” said Isabelle, “but no promises, okay?”
“I know, I know,” grumbled Kathryn. “The mission comes first!”
“You’ve got that right,” scolded Isabelle as she frowned at her sister.
Although she was older than Kathryn by two years, they looked almost identical. Some people had even mistaken them for twins. Both were tall, skinny and athletic, with emerald green eyes and thick, black silky hair although Isabelle’s was waist length whereas Kathryn’s was only shoulder length.
They were also as different in their character and temperament as night and day. Isabelle was often serious and very focused on her work, whereas Kathryn was more cheerful and loved to crack jokes. They had joined S.P.Y. after graduating from university at the top of their class. Their dad, a successful businessman back home, still had no idea they were secret agents!
As the two sisters were exiting the airport, Isabelle’s phone buzzed.
It was a message from S.P.Y. headquarters, with a clue about where Dr. Sinister’s lair was.
“It’s in a factory!” shouted both girls at the same time. They looked at each other in surprise.
Kathryn questioned, “But how would we know which factory it is?”
“According to headquarters, the informant said it’s somewhere in Charenton-le-Pont, which is in the southeastern suburbs of Paris,” replied Isabelle.
“Then we will have to look around and see what clues we find,” concluded Kathryn.
“Definitely! Let’s stop wasting time and get started as soon as possible!” said Isabelle, as she grabbed her bags and hailed a cab.
Chapter 2
“I wonder if we have time to check out the food festival at the Paris Marathon,” Kathryn said to Isabelle, who was driving the car. It was early Sunday morning and they had identified a possible location where Dr. Sinister could be hiding. “I read online that the Paris Marathon run starts at 8.30 am but there is a food festival as well.”
She loved food, which could sometimes be really annoying to Isabelle. Kathryn always dragged her sister to countless buffets and new restaurants in search of the next amazing meal, regardless of whether Isabelle was hungry or not.
“Focus,” warned Isabelle. She was tense and worried about the assignment, not sure of what they would find in the factory, or how dangerous it might be. “Now is not the time to be thinking of food. You’ve already had breakfast!”
“I know that!” protested Kathryn as she pretended to pout. She loved to tease her sister, “but …”
Kathryn always knew how to distract her sister when she was in a bad mood.
“Fine! I’ll buy you a fresh croissant with a cup of coffee later, at a real Parisian cafe, if you will just pay attention now and concentrate on the mission!” growled Isabelle, surrendering.
Kathryn smiled as she gave her a quick hug. “You’re the best sister ever!”
Isabelle pretended to be mad as she parked the car outside the factory and turned to swat Kathryn on the shoulder, “Pay attention … and don’t get us in trouble!”
Kathryn smiled cheekily and winked as she got out of the car. She went to check the back entrance of the factory.
The door was unlocked.
When the two sisters entered the building, they were hit by the strong smell of Clorox. It was coming from the big, shiny, silver printing machines stretching from the front of the factory to the back. The powerful machines were eerily silent in the early morning, standing tall and still in the morning sunlight that managed to find its way in through the dirty windows. There was a narrow metal staircase on their left leading up to a small office with glass windows overlooking the factory floor. The whole place seemed empty.
Isabelle looked around and spotted a large table partially hidden behind the machines. She gave Kathryn the signal to follow her.
The two sisters went over to the table to investigate. Spread across it was at least a few million Euro in stacks of fake five hundred euro notes. They were looking through the counterfeit money when they heard a loud sound coming from the office above them.
It was the radio, playing music.
Then suddenly, out of nowhere, the machines started running.
The two girls looked at each other.
“Quickly!” Isabelle hissed at Kathryn, as she pulled her phone out from her pocket. “We have to hide before they find us. We don’t know how
many of them are here. We need to call for backup!”
But before the sisters could hide or make the call, they heard a shout from behind them, “Stop right there!” It was a guy in a dark green jacket. His name was Jack. He had seen them touch the money.
“Run!” screamed Isabelle as she grabbed Kathryn’s arm and ran towards the back entrance but Don, a tall man in an ugly orange sweater blocked the exit with an evil grin. Another four bad guys ran down from the upstairs office and started to advance on the girls.
Trapped, the two girls looked around frantically for an escape route.
Chapter 3
“This way!” Kathryn yelled. She had spotted an open door to their left which was not blocked. They could make it outside before the bad guys caught them.
The problem was … there was no way to make it back to their car.
The Jones sisters ran out of the factory as fast as they could into the streets of Paris.
“Get the bikes!” barked Jack.
As the sound of motorcycles roared to life, Isabelle knew that if they didn’t find somewhere to hide, the bad guys would catch up with them very soon. She and her sister were fast but there was no way they could outrun men on motorcycles.
Their options were running out quickly.
The streets were nearly deserted. It was still too early in the morning.
There was no one around to help.
They turned right at the next intersection and soon heard a different type of sound in the distance — the sound of cheering.
“It’s the Paris Marathon! Everyone must be gathered there. Follow me!” shouted Kathryn as she picked up speed and ran towards the noise.
It wasn’t surprising when the girls found a huge crowd of people, cheering on the runners, the air sparkling with excitement. The Paris Marathon was one of the five biggest in the world, with almost 40,000 runners from 70 countries, covering the famous 42 km around the most prestigious points in Paris: from the Avenue des Champs-Elysées to Avenue Foch, via Bastille, Nation, Vincennes and the Tuileries gardens.
Isabelle ducked behind a young boy carrying an enormous poster, cheering for his father, “Papa is #1!”
The two sisters decided to hide amongst the crowd watching the marathon. It would be harder for the bad guys to find them with all the people around. They tried to disguise themselves by changing their appearance. They both tied up their hair. Isabelle shoved a blue cap on her head whilst Kathryn turned her reversible blue sweater inside out and drew the green hood up to cover her head.
“Slow down,” Isabelle advised as she grabbed Kathryn who was still walking very fast, “let’s try to blend in.”
They could see the bad guys shouting at each other from the edges of the crowd as they abandoned their motorcycles and spread out to look for the girls.
“We’re not going to be able to lose them,” said Kathryn worriedly.
“Hang on,” said Isabelle as she pulled her phone out of her pocket, “I’m calling for backup.”
Kathryn scanned the crowd nervously as they walked down Avenue de Gravelle. She could see Don in his ugly orange sweater searching the crowd across the street, about two hundred meters behind them. There was no sign of Jack. The other bad guys were further down the street.
The family in front of them were snacking on muffins, as they watched the runners go by. One of the kids accidentally dropped his muffin and started crying loudly.
“Shhh!” Kathryn hushed the toddler as she bent down to pick up his muffin. The last thing they needed was to draw attention to themselves but he refused to listen. He cried even louder.
Suddenly, a voice yelled, “There they are!” One of the bad guys had spotted them. It was Jack. He was directly across the street from them. He began pushing through the crowd and running vertically through the race to get to them! A runner tripped and fell as they crashed into each other.
“Run!” hissed Isabelle as she pulled her sister in the direction of the Foire du Trone, an annual fun fair held every April in Paris. “The fair’s this way!”
Chapter 4
“No,” argued Kathryn as she dragged her sister in the opposite direction. “It’s this way!”
“We don’t have time for this, Kathryn!” scolded Isabelle. “Listen to me, okay? I know where I’m going!”
Kathryn rolled her eyes and gave up as she followed her sister down the street.
The two sisters ran and ran until they came to the Foire du Trone. It wasn’t open yet. It was too early. The fair was deserted. There were a few people setting up the different food stalls, attractions and rides but no one paid any attention to the girls.
“This way!” Isabelle shouted breathlessly as she grabbed Kathryn’s sleeve.
They were both getting tired but they had no choice. They had to keep on going.
They ran past big wheels, traditional roundabouts, haunted houses and shooting ranges until they came to a bright yellow and red tent. It was completely dark inside.
“Inside!” ordered Isabelle, motioning to Kathryn to follow her.
Less than thirty-seconds later, the bad guys rushed after them into the pitch-black tent.
That’s when the bad guys got a huge surprise. It was a trap!
Isabelle had arranged for other agents from S.P.Y. to wait for them at the Foire du Trone while she and her sister led the bad guys into the trap.
Surrounded by over twenty S.P.Y. agents, the bad guys had no choice but to surrender.
“We give up!” Don shouted.
They were going to jail and they weren’t happy about it.
“Tell us where the secret device is!” demanded Kathryn.
“Never!” shouted Don. “You’ll have to find it yourself!”
“We should have gone the other way,” grumbled Jack, “we would have at least escaped even though S.P.Y. found all the fake money we printed so far. Now by following these two,” as he pointed angrily at Isabelle and Kathryn, “we’ve lost everything — including our freedom!”
“Too bad,” Isabelle scolded them, “then you shouldn’t have gone into a life of crime! This is the punishment you get for all the wrong things you did.”
The bad guys were not sorry for what they had done.
“We’ll get you for this!” swore Don loudly as the agents led them away. “You may have ruined our plans but we will have our revenge! We promise you that!”
Chapter 5
Dr. Sinister wasn’t one of the bad guys who was captured.
The agents searched the entire factory later that evening and although they found all the fake money and the secret F-143 device hidden in a secret compartment in the office, they couldn’t find any sign of Dr. Sinister, or any clue to his identity.
However S.P.Y.'s leader, John Crabbe wasn’t worried. The villains were locked up in jail and the secret device was back safely in S.P.Y.'s possession again.
“The case is closed,” John told Isabelle and Kathryn. They were standing in the middle of the factory, watching the S.P.Y. agents collect all the evidence after the police had taken the bad guys away. “Both of you should take some time off and see the sights in Paris.”
“But Dr. Sinister is still on the loose!” protested Isabelle. “We should continue to look for him.”
“There are other agents working on that,” replied John. “When we get more information, we will let you know.”
Isabelle was like a dog with a bone. Once she got on a case, she wouldn’t let go and give up until all the bad guys went to jail. She wanted to continue arguing with John but Kathryn tugged at her arm.
“Come on, Isabelle,” said Kathryn persuasively. “John is right. We’ll be in Paris anyway and if any new clues turn up, we can investigate! Meanwhile, we can go sightseeing!”
Isabelle was very reluctant but she could see that her sister really wanted to take a tour of the beautiful city of Paris. So, despite her instincts and her training, she gave in.
“Okay, okay,” agreed Isabelle finally. “We
can go.”
“Yippee!” shouted Kathryn in joy. “Paris, here we come!”
Chapter 6
Meanwhile, in a dark prison cell on a cold Monday morning, Jack and the other bad guys were plotting to get their revenge on Isabelle, Kathryn and S.P.Y.
They finally figured out a way to trick the guards so they could escape and get their revenge. Don said with a wicked laugh, “Getting even with the girls and S.P.Y. will be better than robbing 10 wealthy men’s houses at the same time.”
“Yes,” agreed Jack. “So, we will break out of jail tonight?”
“Yup,” said Don, “plus we will have a little help from our ‘friend’ inside S.P.Y.”
Nobody knew it but back at the agency, there was a traitor. He had been smuggling plans and secret documents from S.P.Y. to the bad guys. That was how the bad guys got hold of the secret device. The traitor had told them exactly where it was kept and how it would be guarded.
Now, the traitor was about to help the bad guys escape and get their revenge. The worst part was the traitor was actually someone very close to the Jones sisters, someone they trusted with their secrets. He knew how much they loved each other and would do anything for the other, especially Isabelle who was very protective of her younger sister, Kathryn.
Since he knew their weakness, he told the bad guys so they could use it against the Jones sisters to get their revenge. They now knew that Isabelle and Kathryn were sisters.
“The only way for us to get what we want is to exchange it for one of them!” declared Jack.
“That’s a great idea!” agreed Don with an evil chuckle. “Once one is gone, the other will look everywhere and do anything to get her back. That’s the power of sisterly love! We can either make her steal the secret device from S.P.Y. and give it to us in exchange for her sister’s life, or make her pay us loads of money to get her sister back. Either way, we get what we want!”
The Mystery of the Missing Device (A Secret SPY Agent adventure Book 1) Page 1
