by David Alric
Helen and Julian thanked him. They exchanged contact details and it was agreed that a strategy meeting would be arranged in the next month or so, to which both the Fossfinders and the Bonaventures would be invited.
As they left Helen and Julian were delighted with the outcome of their interview.
‘The crater is now safe, but is still effectively secret as far as the public are concerned,’ said Helen. ‘I can’t wait to tell the others but we’ll wait till they’ve recovered from their flight.’
Two weeks later, relaxed after their holiday, it was time to return to England. Before they left Rio, Julian arranged a meeting with Inspector Colarinho’s colleague in Rio, Inspector Poirot, to enquire about the professor. Poirot was the detective who had originally investigated an attempt by the professor to murder his research assistant, Lucinda, and steal her research.
‘I’m afraid I’ve got some bad news,’ said the detective after they had exchanged greetings. ‘The blighter’s escaped’.
‘What do you mean escaped?’ asked Julian with a frown. ‘I thought he was desperately ill under armed guard in hospital.’
‘He was,’ said the policeman uncomfortably. ‘He had a brain operation – that was about three weeks ago now – then made an amazingly good recovery; he’s a tough character all right. Then he suddenly disappeared under the very noses of the guards.’
On hearing the word “disappeared” Helen and Julian immediately looked at each other in horror. Not only was the professor at large once again but it sounded very much as though he had recovered an invisibility robe that he must have kept concealed in Rio. They were frustrated at not being able to explain about the invisibility factor to the policeman, especially as it would reassure him that his arrangements for guarding the professor had not been as inadequate as they now seemed. They both knew, however, that the invisibility robe must remain secret until Lucinda was ready to present it as a scientific development to the world of physics.
‘What about Lucinda Angstrom, the girl he tried to kill?’ asked Helen.
‘Well, that’s really confidential police business, but between ourselves we’ve told her to remain in hiding with her sister. The only other person who knows she’s still alive, apart from the university authorities, is her boyfriend, Peter Flint. He sends her work from the university. If the professor learns she’s still alive I’m sure he’ll have another go at her.’
Julian and Helen thanked the detective for his help, wished him luck in re-capturing the professor (though privately they knew that it would be almost impossible) and headed back to the hotel to pick up Mark and their baggage to head for the airport. Later, on the plane, they discussed the professor’s escape.
‘The first thing he’s going to do,’ said Julian, ‘is try and get some more ore to extract that special stuff – what was it – photogymnospar?’
‘Photogyraspar,’ corrected Helen with a smile.
‘Well, whatever it is, he’ll need more of it. He’ll probably try to return to the crater to pick up that crate of the stuff he left behind. He doesn’t know we brought it out with us and sent it to Peter Flint at the university.’ Julian was referring to the fact that the professor had tried to force Julian to transport a crate of ore out of the crater and had only been prevented from doing so by his near-fatal collision with the plane’s propeller.
‘It doesn’t matter now, either way,’ said Helen with a grin. ‘After our chat with the UN the crater is now a complete no-go area. He can’t get anywhere near it.’
‘Gosh you’re right!’ exclaimed Julian, ‘I hadn’t thought of that. ‘And that means …’
‘Yes,’ Helen finished for him. ‘If and when his present robe fades, or stops working, or whatever, he’s done for as far as making himself invisible is concerned. It’s probably just a question of time. How long nobody knows, except perhaps Lucinda. We’ll just have to hope he doesn’t get up to too much mischief in the meantime!’
And on that note they settled down to sleep as the plane headed east into the night sky.
6
Serengeti Safari
After arriving home in London Joanna and Richard lost no time in putting their plans into action. They had decided on the plane that they would have to return to the Congo to try and establish the truth about the feral child they had read about.
They didn’t want the rest of the family to know why they were going, as they still both thought in their heart of hearts that their quest would end in disappointment. Luckily, their interest in botany provided the perfect excuse for visiting the African rainforest – the need to make some scientific comparisons with the South American rainforest they had just visited. The children, still on holiday, were eager to accompany them, but they felt that the presence of the family would hinder their investigations so they had arrived at a compromise plan. On the entirely valid grounds that the political situation was still unstable in the Congo the family would fly to Tanzania for a holiday. After some days spent together Joanna and Richard would then leave Clare in charge of further sightseeing with Lucy and Sarah while they flew to the Congo for a few days, purportedly to undertake their botanical studies, but really to check out the feral child story. They would then return to Tanzania to rejoin the rest of the family before returning to England.
While they were discussing these plans, the children’s cousin Ben who was ten, the same age as Sarah, pleaded to come with them; he had done a school project on the Serengeti and the prospect of actually visiting the place he knew so much about seemed too good an opportunity to miss.
Joanna and Richard were doubtful.
‘It means that Clare would be in charge of Lucy, Sarah and Ben in Tanzania when you and I are in the Congo,’ Joanna said to Richard. ‘It’s too big a responsibility to place on Clare’. Richard agreed, but Clare broke in.
‘I’ve got a great idea!’ she exclaimed. ‘Why don’t we ask Clive to come along as well? The two of us can easily look after the others for a few days and you can relax and enjoy your study trip without worrying about me.’
Richard and Joanna looked at each other. They knew there was more than one reason Clare wanted Clive to come along. They had, however, both formed a very high opinion of Clive during their recent adventures in South America and what Clare said made perfect sense.
‘Well, if Clive wants to come and can get more time off from medical school I suppose that would solve the problem,’ said Richard.
‘And the trip would be much more fun for Sarah if Ben comes along,’ added Joanna.
And so it was agreed. Clive was delighted to join the party and rang his parents who were still in Rio to let them know. Just one week later the party of seven landed at Kilimanjaro International Airport in Tanzania on the start of what would prove to be another momentous adventure.
For the first part of the holiday they were all together. Using a hotel in Arusha as a base they visited the great natural features of that amazing area. They stood spellbound at the sight of Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa, which provided the stunning and extraordinary spectacle of a mountain capped in snow rising from the plains of the equator. They visited the famous Ngorongoro crater, the world’s largest unflooded volcanic caldera, with a floor covering over 100 square miles containing an amazing variety of wildlife. Lucy was enthralled to speak to the African animals, all of whom had been eagerly awaiting her arrival after learning of her visit through the animanet.*
After Richard and Joanna left to fly to the Congo, Clive and Clare planned to take the younger ones on a one-week safari in the Serengeti National Park, but soon after her parents had left for the airport, Lucy became ill with food-poisoning. Sarah and Ben were so excited about the safari trip that Clare and Clive felt they couldn’t disappoint them, so Clare stayed behind to keep Lucy company in the hotel in Arusha while Clive took Sarah and Ben to the offices of the tour company that would take them out to the safari lodges in the bush. Clare and Lucy planned to join them when Lucy had recovered.
Sarah and Ben were bursting with excitement as they reached the first of the lodges where they were due to stay. After unpacking their things they set off in an open truck in the afternoon to see the wild animals. The truck had zebra stripes on the side just as they had seen in documentaries and films about Africa. There was a driver and a ranger in the front and about eight passengers behind on raised seats. As they bounced along the dusty roads Ben and Sarah were thrilled to see herds of zebra and wildebeeste. Gazelles could be seen grazing at every turn, and now and then they saw bigger antelopes, buffaloes, giraffes, and elephants.
After a while the truck stopped near some rocks and they all got out and sat on folding bush chairs under the shade of some trees for a picnic.
‘This is usually a quiet spot where it is safe to sit out,’ said the ranger. ‘We’ll stop for an hour or so. If you need to go behind a bush or a rock for a wee it’s safe as long as you don’t go too far away. Just watch out for snakes and insects.’
Just then an elderly man in the group groaned and clutched his chest. Clive, now in his third year of medical school, went over to him, then turned to the driver.
‘I think he may be having a heart attack. He seems OK just now but I think we should get him back immediately.’
After some discussion it was decided the driver should take the patient and Clive back as quickly as possible to the lodge while the ranger, who had a rifle, would wait with the party until the driver returned to continue the tour. Clive asked one of the other tourists to keep an eye on Sarah and Ben, then hurried off to help the driver get the sick man into the truck.
It was a little daunting for the tourists seeing the truck drive away. For the first time they felt they really were out in the African bush and somewhat vulnerable. The ranger seemed completely relaxed, however, and soon everybody settled down to enjoy their picnic. After lunch the guide took one or two interested tourists to examine some dung beetles which were busily disposing of a pile of elephant dung nearby and the woman looking after Ben and Sarah started to doze under the combined effects of jet lag, the afternoon heat and the large glass of wine she had just drunk.
‘Come on,’ said Ben to Sarah. ‘Let’s see what’s on the other side of the rocks.’
‘Do you think we should?’ asked Sarah.
‘He said it was OK to go a little way, and we’ll just be very careful,’ replied Ben confidently. They scrambled over the nearby rocks and found themselves looking out over an open area dotted with bushes and occasional trees. They wandered here and there, fascinated by the giant millipedes, the beetles and the lizards. They had gone about a hundred yards from the rocks when Sarah suddenly realised how far they had strayed and said they should go back. Just then they saw something move. In the bushes ahead of them three lion cubs were playing tag with each other.
‘We’d better run back,’ said Ben, turning pale, ‘their mum may be around.’
‘No,’ said Sarah. ‘Cats like to chase things that run. I think we’d better move back very slowly and keep watching all the time.’
They held hands and started slowly to step backwards. At that moment one of the cubs saw them and bounded up to them with a little yelp. Then, beyond the cubs there was another slight movement and magically, as though conjured up in a kaleidoscope, the bushes transformed themselves into the outline of a crouching lioness. Sarah and Ben clutched each other in terror as the great cat gave a low growl and slowly began to edge towards them, belly flattened to the ground in an unmistakable stalking movement.
After his conversation about dung beetles the ranger strolled back to the group under the trees. He frowned as he saw the dozing tourist.
‘Excuse me, Ma’am,’ he said, ‘where are the two children?’
She woke with a start, then looked round in horror as she remembered where she was.
‘I don’t know. I must… must have nodded off for a few seconds.’
The ranger grabbed his rifle and scrambled over the rocks. The children were nowhere to be seen. He slowly scrutinised the entire area and then his heart stopped as he saw a child’s sunhat lying on the ground.
‘Oh my God …’ he muttered. He ran over and then saw more clothing. Then, in some sandy earth nearby, he saw the unmistakable pugmark of a lioness. He immediately called for help on his radio, then turned and ran back to the group.
At that moment the driver returned to the tour group. Clive jumped down from the truck, little realizing he was about to receive the worst news he had ever heard in his life.
* The “animanet” is the name given by Lucy to a worldwide animal communication network that reminds her of the internet.
7
Oresome Developments
Peter Flint, Senior Lecturer in Geology at Sabedoria University, looked in dismay at the e-mail he had just opened. It was from Detective Inspector Colarinho of the Manaus department in the Amazon. The news it contained threatened to bring an end to the most promising research project of his career and would, he knew, come as a bitter disappointment to his fiancée Lucinda. He dreaded the thought of telling her.
Hi Peter Flint,
Thanks for your query about the location of the crater which we recently visited in an attempt to locate the data stolen from your department by Professor Strahlung (currently in hospital awaiting interrogation). I’m afraid that we have been informed that the crater has been declared a site of exceptional national interest under the auspices of the UN and its location must remain secret. We have, furthermore, been informed that, at the request of the UN, the crater is under continuous satellite surveillance and we are to investigate immediately any attempt to land an aircraft in or near the site. These instructions have been conveyed to us from the highest government levels and I can only conclude that the crater must contain something of great importance relating to national security. I am aware of the fact that the rocks in the crater are of great interest to your scientific endeavours but regret to say that there is nothing further I can do to help you. If the cloak of secrecy surrounding this place is ever lifted I will, of course, let you know immediately.
With kind regards
Manuel Colarinho
Detective Inspector.
P.S. I hope you are managing to cope with the situation concerning Lucinda Angstrom.
Peter leaned back in his chair with his hands behind his head and wondered how to break the news to Lucinda. His mind inevitably, went back over the events of the last few months. For years the geology department had been a quiet and uneventful corner of the university. As the vice-chancellor had once remarked, with completely unconscious irony,
‘We never expect anything ground-breaking to happen in Geology.’
That had all changed earlier that year, however, when a charter pilot had asked Peter to look at some rock samples he had found in a remote crater, deep in the Amazon jungle. He had flown to the crater to rescue some stranded explorers and picked up the rocks as ballast for his small plane. After noticing that the rocks appeared at times to glow he thought they might contain a valuable radioactive ore such as uranium and had taken them to the university for analysis. Peter had discovered that the rocks were not radioactive but that they contained a previously unknown metamaterial which seemed to have the power to distort beams of light. He had given the rocks to his then girlfriend (now fiancée), an expert on light, who worked in the physics department, and she had given the name “photogyraspar” to the ore. The new metamaterial had proved to be of crucial scientific importance for it had enabled her to create the world’s first invisibility robe. When her head of department, Professor Lucius Strahlung, learned of her amazing breakthrough he had immediately recognized the criminal potential of her discovery, stolen her research data and attempted to murder her. He was, however, unaware of the fact that Lucinda had actually survived and the police inspector who had investigated her case had advised her to remain in hiding in case the professor discovered she was alive and made another attempt on her life.
Lucinda,
staying in secret with her sister, had continued her invisibility research at her sister’s home, in collaboration with Peter who was her contact at the university. They had by now used up all the original samples of ore given to Peter by the pilot. Their breakthrough discovery about invisibility was still known only to the Fossfinders, the Bonaventures and of course, the professor, and they now urgently required further supplies of ore so that they could complete their research and formally present their findings to the scientific community and the public. Peter had e-mailed Inspector Colarinho for help in locating the secret crater where the ore had originated and he now looked dejectedly at the reply he had just received as he forwarded it to his own laptop. The inspector had advised him not to use his office computer to contact Lucinda in case somebody in Peter’s office should realise she was still alive, so all their e-mails were conducted through Peter’s laptop. He then forwarded the inspector’s reply from his laptop to Lucinda and within a few moments she replied.
Hi Pete,
Disappointing news but nil desperandum. We’ll just have to find some similar ore somewhere else – talking of which, any news yet from London?
Love L. XXXX
PS If we have to go somewhere nice to get the the ore we could bring the wedding forward and make the trip our honeymoon!
