by James Ponti
The captain took the handset for the intercom to address the whole ship. “This is Captain Hovland. The hijackers have left the ship. I need everyone on the main deck at your lifeguard station so that we can make sure we are all accounted for, and be ready in case we have to evacuate the ship.”
The hijackers haven’t actually left yet, Brooklyn thought.
She headed toward the back of the ship so that she could see Blix and his men leave, but a hand reached out for her. It was the captain. Up until this point the captain had been friendly, if still a little stiff. She had tried to project a “one of the girls” vibe for most of the trip. But now she was much more gruff.
“Where are you going?” she asked.
“I want to make sure that those men are actually leaving,” answered Brooklyn. “And I want to look for my friend.”
“It’s not safe,” Hovland replied curtly. “Go to the lifeboat station. Your friend will be there.”
“But I—”
“No buts,” said the captain, who signaled her second mate, Hannah Delapp. “Take her with you.”
“Aye, Captain,” said the woman who Brooklyn and Sydney thought might be an MI6 spy.
“I’m really worried about my friend,” Brooklyn said as they exited the bridge. “Can’t I just go look for her? I’ll be right back.”
“You heard the captain,” replied Delapp. “Your friend will be fine.”
Brooklyn thought it was time to appeal to her agent-to-agent. She looked to make sure no one else could hear and said, “Apple jack.”
“What?” asked the woman.
Brooklyn repeated the mission’s emergency code. “Apple jack.”
“I don’t understand,” said the woman. “Is that some American phrase?”
Either she wasn’t the spy or she was an amazing actor, because her face indicated no recognition of the phrase.
“Never mind,” Brooklyn said.
When she left Alice and Judy in the stern thruster machine room, Brooklyn told them not to leave unless she came to get them or somebody told them “apple jack.” She didn’t know if they’d follow that directive or not, but she couldn’t get away now without causing suspicion, so she went with Delapp down to the main deck where everyone was gathering by the lifeboats. Two of the scientists were giving out life jackets, and one of them handed one to Brooklyn.
“Put this on,” she instructed.
Brooklyn slipped the jacket on and continued scanning faces, looking for Sydney, Alice, and Judy. The longer she went without seeing them, the more concerned she was. On the bright side, there didn’t seem to be any serious damage to the ship. It wasn’t listing at all. There weren’t any signs of it sinking.
She wanted to slip away in the confusion, but truthfully, there wasn’t any. The crew was handling the situation with great efficiency.
“Look!” cried one of the girls as she pointed out over the water. “Helicopter.”
A red-and-white Coast Guard chopper was headed right toward them, and they all let out a cheer.
Despite everyone else’s relief at the sign of rescue, Brooklyn was still concerned. It had been at least ten minutes since the explosions, and there was still no sign of any of her cabinmates.
She was just about to make a run for the stairs when she saw them emerge from a doorway. Alice and Judy came out first, and behind them was Sydney, who’d shed her wet suit and was now wearing baggy sweats and a long-sleeve T-shirt.
Brooklyn let out a huge sigh and smiled as she headed right to them.
“Look who I found hiding out,” Sydney said with a wink.
“I was so worried about you,” answered Brooklyn as she wrapped her up in a hug.
“No need to worry,” Sydney said. Then she whispered, “Nice work by you.”
Brooklyn didn’t respond right away. She just squeezed tight. But when she finally did let go, she had a question for Sydney.
“Why’s your hair wet?”
Sydney chuckled and answered, “Funny story…”
6. Unst, Shetland Islands
SYDNEY SAT IN A BLUE plastic chair underneath a poster for Where the Wild Things Are and lied repeatedly to Detective Inspector Jennifer Glasheen of the Police Scotland’s Organised Crime and Counter Terrorism Unit.
“I was scared and hiding under the bunk in my cabin.”
“There were two explosions, but I couldn’t see anything.”
“I’ve never even heard of the stern thruster machine room. What’s that?”
It wasn’t that Sydney wanted to be unhelpful. It was just that, according to the United Kingdom Official Secrets Act, she was forbidden from disclosing her MI6 status to anyone. That included law enforcement, and there was simply no way she could say that she disassembled a limpet mine and performed two controlled explosions without getting a few impossible-to-answer follow-up questions. So the lies continued.
“I signed up for the trip because it’s my dream to one day become a marine biologist.”
The interview was taking place in a school library in the village of Baltasound on the island of Unst. Known for stunning sea cliffs, Shetland ponies, and the distinction of being the northernmost inhabited location in the United Kingdom, Unst was so quaint and remote that a police officer hadn’t been stationed there in more than three decades. Yet, somehow it found itself at the center of one of the biggest crime stories of the year.
The bungled hijacking of the Sylvia Earle had occurred just offshore, and the island was now under virtual lockdown as a team of soldiers and police officers conducted a manhunt for Emil Blix and his henchmen. Meanwhile, the ship’s passengers and crew had been brought to Baltasound Junior High, “The UK’s Most Northerly School,” which could now be better described as “The UK’s Most Northerly Temporary Emergency Response Center.”
In addition to the detectives conducting interviews in the library, a trio of doctors was checking on everyone’s physical and emotional well-beings in the gym, and the school’s kitchen staff was serving a hot meal in the cafeteria. That’s where Sydney came after she was done with Glasheen. And that’s where she found Brooklyn devouring a late lunch.
“This bread is amazing,” Brooklyn said, dipping a piece of it into a bowl of stew. “What’s it called again?”
“Bannock,” Sydney answered as she sat down next to her.
Brooklyn swallowed, smiled, and punctuated it with a satisfied “Well let me just say… yum!” She pointed at the remaining piece on a plate in the middle of the table. “You want that?”
“All yours,” Sydney responded.
“You sure? Aren’t you hungry?”
“No. I’m still too worked up about everything.”
“Understandable,” Brooklyn said as she scooped up the bread and slathered it with blackberry jam. “How was the interview?”
“Pretty straightforward,” answered Sydney. “I was so terrified that I hid in our cabin for the duration of the hijacking and therefore have no useful information to pass along.”
“Well, aren’t you the scaredy-cat?” joked Brooklyn. “And the part about you saving lives and keeping the ship from sinking?”
“You know, I totally forgot to mention that,” Sydney said as she gave her forehead a comical tap. “I’ve got such a shoddy memory.”
“It’s too bad, because what you did out there was amazing,” Brooklyn said. Then her mood got a bit more serious and she added, “Of course, it would’ve been better if you’d told me about it beforehand.”
“Told you about what?” asked Sydney. “That I was going to defuse a bomb underwater while holding my breath because my scuba tank had run out of air? That wasn’t actually something I planned in advance.”
“No, it wasn’t,” Brooklyn said pointedly. “The plan was for the two of us to meet in the cabin and work together. And when you didn’t show up, I was worried. And then when one of the hijackers did show up, he almost got Alice and Judy.”
Sydney shook her head in disbelief. “Are you actually
giving me a hard time about what happened? After what I just did? Do you know how difficult and dangerous that was?”
“More difficult and dangerous than I can imagine,” Brooklyn said.
“I know you’re Miss Superstar on the rise,” replied Sydney, “but don’t forget who was the alpha on this mission.”
“I know exactly who was supposed to be the alpha,” Brooklyn replied, matching Sydney’s attitude. She let out a deep breath and added, “And I know who saved the day. I don’t want to argue with you. I’m just saying that you should’ve told me that you were leaving the ship to go diving.”
Sydney knew Brooklyn was right, but rather than admit that, she just said, “Well, I guess we can’t all be perfect like you.”
Just then a police officer came up behind them and asked, “Can you two come with me, please?”
Even though he was using a Scottish accent, both girls instantly recognized the voice. They turned to see Mother, in full undercover mode, dressed like a constable. He gave them a wink, but other than that, they kept to their roles.
“Yes, officer,” answered Brooklyn.
Mother led them to a nearby classroom, and once they were alone, he slipped out of character into his own self—complete with his usual English accent. “It’s so good to see you,” he said with a deep sigh. “I was deathly worried. Are you okay? Are you hurt? Have the doctors checked you out yet?”
“Yes, no, yes,” Brooklyn answered with a chuckle. “We’re fine. So are Alice and Judy.”
“And the explosions?” he asked. “I heard two bombs went off.”
“Controlled detonations,” Sydney said, the hint of a proud smile sneaking in.
“That was you?”
Sydney nodded.
“She was absolutely brilliant,” Brooklyn said with no hint of the tension from the cafeteria. “She totally saved the day.”
“Well, we got the right result,” Sydney said modestly.
“And the SSAS alert?” asked Mother. “Was that one of the crew?”
Brooklyn raised a finger and said, “Actually…”
Mother beamed with pride. “Great job. Both of you.”
Sydney felt uncomfortable with the praise and quickly changed the subject. “Have they had any luck finding the hijackers?”
Mother shook his head. “No, and I doubt they’ll find them on the island. Rescue got here right away, but it took a while for the search team. The hijackers had plenty of time to escape. My guess is that they rendezvoused with a fishing boat or a tanker and are halfway to Norway or Iceland by now.”
Mother pulled out a folded sheet of paper from his pocket and opened it to reveal a police sketch of Emil Blix. “This is what they’re working from,” he said, handing it to them. “Does he look like the main guy?”
Brooklyn studied it for a second. “It’s okay, except his hair was shorter and his beard was bushier. He also had a blue-and-red tattoo of a wolf right here.” She pointed at a spot on his neck. “And a tattoo of three stars on the back of his left hand.”
“Those are nice details,” he said. He turned to Sydney and asked, “What about you? Do you have anything else to add?”
“No,” she said. Then she added in a near whisper, “I never saw him.”
This struck Mother as odd, but he didn’t say anything about it. Instead, he turned back to Brooklyn and said, “You should probably go to the gym and find the lead detective. Glasheen is her name. Tell her you have a few more details, and she’ll put you together with the sketch artist so they can update the picture.”
“Got it,” Brooklyn said, heading for the door.
“And come back as soon you’re done,” he told her. “I want to get you both off the island and back home as soon as I can. So far the press hasn’t been able to get here because the island’s too remote. I want you gone before they arrive.”
“Sounds good to me,” Brooklyn said as she left the library. “I’ll be right back.”
Mother sat down at a table and signaled for Sydney to sit across from him.
There was a prolonged silence before he asked, “What’s wrong, Syd?”
“Nothing,” she said unconvincingly.
“Really?”
She nodded. “Everything’s great. The mission’s complete. It was a success.”
Mother tried to read her eyes. “I’ve got to say that you don’t seem like everything’s great.”
“I’m just tired,” she said. “It’s been a long and rather eventful day.”
“How come you don’t know what he looks like?” he asked. “Brooklyn sure got a lot of specifics.”
“Of course she did,” Sydney mumbled. “She’s perfect.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” he asked.
“It means exactly what it sounds like,” she said, her voice rising slightly. “Brooklyn’s perfect. She does everything right. She doesn’t make any mistakes.”
They sat silently for a moment until he asked again, “Why didn’t you see him, Sydney?”
She couldn’t look him in the eye when she finally answered, “Because I wasn’t on the ship.”
“What do you mean? How’s that even possible?”
“I was goofing off,” she said. “I went scuba diving.”
“With whom?”
“By myself.”
“That’s incredibly dangerous, Sydney. What time was it?”
“A little before five o’clock this morning,” she said. “It turns out Alice and Judy are world-class snorers. They woke me up, I couldn’t go back to sleep, and besides, I really wanted to see the bioluminescent phytoplankton. Which you can only see in the dark.”
“I don’t know where to begin. You went on an exceptionally risky dive, and you left two protectees in the middle of a mission,” he said, his temper growing. “What were you thinking?”
“It’s not like I left them alone,” she snapped. “They still had Queen B looking after them.”
“Queen B? You mean Brooklyn?”
“Of course I mean Brooklyn,” she replied, the jealousy in her voice completely unmasked. “What was that you called her on our last mission? A natural spy. The best you’d ever seen?”
“That was taken out of context,” he replied.
“No, it wasn’t,” said Sydney. “And it wasn’t wrong. You were absolutely right. She’s utterly amazing. But how do you think that makes the rest of us feel? To know that even though she just got here, we’re already second-rate?”
“That’s rubbish,” he said. “No one has ever said or even implied that you are second anything.”
“Really?” she answered. “Then why are the two of you secretly working on a mission without us?”
“What are you talking about?” he asked. “There’s no secret mission.”
“Ever since we got back from Paris, the two of you have been working on something,” she said. “We’ve all seen you have little meetings, and Brooklyn’s been writing ridiculously complex algorithms. They aren’t for school, so what are they for?”
Mother let out a sigh and rested his forehead against his clasped hands. He hadn’t realized that he and Brooklyn had been so obvious. She had been helping him, but not with a mission. It was something personal about his family. Something he couldn’t open up about in the middle of another crisis.
“You see,” said Sydney. “You don’t even deny it.”
“It’s complicated,” he said.
“Of course it is,” answered Sydney. “I get it. But you asked me what I was thinking and that’s what I was thinking. I was sitting in my bunk in the middle of the night. I couldn’t sleep, and I decided that I wanted to be away from those two loud, snoring girls who we were supposed to be protecting.” And then she realized something and added, “And I decided I needed to be away from Brooklyn too. I was sick and tired of being cooped up in a room with Little Miss Perfect!”
They sat there for a long moment looking at each other. Neither said a word. In fact, the next voice came from ove
r by the doorway. It was Brooklyn, and she’d come back into the room in the middle of the exchange.
“Well, it’s a good thing,” she said, trying to hide the hurt feelings. “If you hadn’t been in the water, you wouldn’t have found the bomb. Good result. That’s all that matters.”
Sydney turned to the door and looked at her friend. “Brooklyn, I didn’t mean—”
“I really don’t want to hear it,” Brooklyn said, devastation on her face. “The detective’s left the building, but I’ll go look for the sketch artist on my own.”
Brooklyn disappeared through the doorway before either Sydney or Mother could say a thing.
7. The FARM
EARLIER THAT DAY, RIO HAD stood triumphant, spread his arms out in victory, and started singing “We Are the Champions.” Although, in his version, there was no “we.” It was just about him.
“I am the champion, my friends. And I’ll keep on winning till the end.”
“Get over yourself, mate,” Paris said with a laugh. “You just got lucky.”
“Total fluke,” added Kat.
“Luck had nothing to do with it,” Rio replied proudly as he dangled a stopwatch in front of them. “Read it and weep. One minute and forty-two seconds. That’s not a fluke; that’s an all-time record.” He did a little victory dance and resumed singing.
They’d just been racing. But unlike other kids who raced to see who could run or ride their bikes the fastest, they were trying to see who was the fastest at cracking a safe while blindfolded. That’s what life was like on the FARM, where being a kid and being a spy went hand in hand.
The FARM got its name from the Foundation for Atmospheric Research and Monitoring, the phony organization MI6 created as a cover story in 1953, when it converted a centuries-old Scottish manor house into a state-of-the-art spy center. To the outside world it was a weather station, but to the City Spies it was home.
