by Darrell Pitt
‘Where is he?’ Jack asked.
‘Back at the hotel.’
Jack glanced back at the factory. No-one was following. He cast a look at Scarlet’s hair. ‘It doesn’t look too bad,’ he said, tactfully.
‘I’m sure it looks awful. Shame I couldn’t take my hair with me to stick back on.’
Jack thought back to that terrible room, remembering Fleming appearing in the doorway. He should have felt elated—they were safe—but an odd sensation was slithering about in the pit of his stomach.
‘What did those men want to know?’ Fleming asked.
‘They were asking us about something called X-29,’ Scarlet replied.
‘X-29? What is it?
‘We don’t know. They wouldn’t believe us.’
‘You must have some idea or Carlos wouldn’t have kidnapped you.’
Scarlet shrugged. ‘We’ve never heard of it, but he mentioned a lab,’ she said. ‘Maybe it’s some kind of potion.’
Fleming was weaving through the darkened streets. This dilapidated part of town seemed to be going on forever. ‘Has Mr Doyle mentioned it to you?’ he asked. ‘He must have said something.’
‘He hasn’t,’ Jack said. ‘Who were those men? Why did they kidnap us?’
‘I believe they are part of an organisation called Domina, an illegal crime syndicate that specialises in buying new technologies and selling them to the highest bidder.’
‘And X-29 is one of these new technologies?’
‘It would seem so.’ He paused. ‘If you know something about it, you must tell me now.’
Jack’s stomach twisted. Scarlet was already repeating that she knew nothing, but her voice was fading to silence.
‘I believe you,’ Fleming said, at last.
‘You knew his name was Carlos,’ Jack murmured.
Fleming turned the vehicle down another darkened alley with old factories lining both sides. ‘What?’ he said.
‘How did you know his name was Carlos?’
‘You told me his name.’
‘No, we didn’t.’
John Fleming nodded. ‘That’s very quick of you,’ he said. ‘Carlos is known to MI5. I suspected he was responsible for your kidnapping.’
‘How did you know where to find the key to the handcuffs?’ Jack asked.
Fleming said nothing. He accelerated towards a group of men assembled under a streetlight. Scarlet cried out. They were the same men Fleming had supposedly shot back at the factory.
‘Those were blanks,’ Fleming said, producing his weapon. ‘But these are not. Now we know that you and Ignatius Doyle know nothing about X-29, I believe we can dispose of you. Some kind of accident will do.’
Jack threw himself across the seat, grabbing the gun.
Bang!
The windscreen shattered as the car veered across the road, sideswiping a building. The car careened into the three men at the corner, knocking them into the air like they were rag dolls.
Fleming swore, reaching into his jacket as they skidded to a halt.
Scarlet screamed, grabbing her leg. Fleming had jammed a needle into her.
‘Run!’ she told Jack, her eyes rolling up into her head. ‘You’ve got to…’
But Fleming had now stuck the syringe into Jack’s arm. Within seconds the world had turned grey and then black.
CHAPTER TEN
Jack dreamt he was on a ship, the deck moving under him, gently rolling to one side and then the other. The ocean was calm, but in the distance he saw black, bulbous clouds. He needed to turn the ship away, but the steering wheel did nothing: the ship continued towards the oncoming storm, the waves building. One broke over the deck, drenching his face.
He had to get off this ship. But where was Scarlet? She had been here too. He frantically searched the deck. She can’t have fallen overboard. Where was she? Where—
Another burst of spray struck his face. Choking, he blinked his eyes and jolted upright to see Scarlet peering down at him. She held a bucket of water.
‘Wake up!’ she yelled. ‘We’re going to crash!’
‘What? Is it a reef? An island—’
‘An island?’ She dragged him to his feet. ‘We’re on an airship! And we’re out of control!’
What?
He took in his surroundings. They were on an airship, high above the ground. It was a small vessel, some sort of taxi. Outside, the sky was dark. Lightning flashed at the windows.
‘How did we get here?’ Jack asked.
‘Don’t you remember? Fleming knocked us out with some kind of drug.’
It all came flooding back.
Jack pushed past Scarlet. A kerosene lamp illuminated the interior, a passenger area the same size as a rowboat. The bridge was smaller, the engine and coal skip taking up half the space. The control panel at the front was smashed beyond repair, the steering wheel missing.
‘Why didn’t they just kill us?’ Jack asked.
‘An accident in a foreign country would make us look like two foolish kids on a lark.’
‘I wish.’
Jack peered into the gap in the panel where the steering wheel used to connect. ‘If only we could stick something in there,’ he said.
‘There was a Brinkie Buckeridge book where she used the heel of her shoe to steer a car.’ Scarlet peered at her flat heel in dismay. ‘Brinkie must have worn stilettos.’
Lightning flashed again and Jack caught sight of an enormous bulk on the landscape.
‘What’s that?’ he asked.
‘What’s what?’
Lightning illuminated the scene again, like the flash of a photographer’s lamp, and they recoiled.
‘It’s a mountain,’ Scarlet said. ‘And we’re heading straight for it!’
‘We’ve got to turn around.’
They searched, but found nothing that could help to steer. By accident or design, there were no tools onboard. If they had water, they could try putting out the fire, but it looked like Scarlet had used the meagre amount to wake him.
Jack looked through the rear window. The airship’s propulsion jets jutted from under the cabin.
‘Hand me that lamp,’ he said.
‘What are you going to do?’
Jack pulled back the carpet, revealing a panel beneath. He opened it to find two propulsion pipes. ‘Piercing one of these would release pressure from one side, giving the other side more power.’
‘Meaning we could turn the ship?’
‘In a rough fashion. There’s only one problem.’ Jack tapped the hot pipe. ‘There’s no way to break through this.’
Lightning flashed again. ‘Jack!’ Scarlet said, staring out the window. ‘That mountain’s right in front of us. We’ll be on it in a minute!’
‘We need to turn to portside.’
‘Wouldn’t turning left be more sensible?’
‘Portside is left!’
The mounta
in filled the front window. Jack looked around desperately. They couldn’t turn the ship, but if they could increase the drag on one side…
‘Wait!’ he said. ‘The windows. Breaking the windows should swing us around.’
He looked about for something to smash the glass. The seats in the back were set into the floor. There was nothing to use as a weapon. Except—
The bucket!
Snatching it up, he slammed it against the glass. Once. Twice. It cracked, and air poured into the cabin. The airship swung wildly, throwing Jack and Scarlet off balance.
Bazookas! Jack thought. That’s done it!
They had missed the mountain, but another was now looming on their left.
‘We need to land,’ Scarlet said.
‘Really? I thought we might have a little party—’
‘Don’t be silly!’ Scarlet peered upwards. ‘If we could pierce the balloon, we would slowly descend.’
‘Or drop like a rock.’
‘I’m not suggesting we pulverise the bag, just punch a small hole in it.’
Jack felt his pockets. ‘I don’t have anything I can use,’ he said. ‘If only Mr Doyle would have let me carry that knife—’
‘Then you would have cut your hand off,’ she said. ‘I have an idea. This worked in one of the Brinkie Buckeridge books.’
‘Not Bubblehead now!’ Jack cried.
‘This will work! Now turn and avert your eyes.’
‘What?’
‘Turn around!’
Jack did as he was told. He heard some ripping and a satisfied grunt from Scarlet.
‘You may turn back around.’
She now had a long white bone in her hand. ‘It’s from my corset,’ she said. ‘The end should be sharp enough to pierce the balloon.’
‘As long as we can reach it.’
A wild wind was still driving through the broken window. Jack knocked away the jagged glass around the edges. Then he climbed up on the console and stuck his head out. Stray drops of rain whipped against his face. The winds were gale force. He wasn’t looking forward to this. ‘Hang on to my feet.’
Climbing through the gap, he gripped the frame and steadied himself on the outside of the gondola. The balloon was only a few feet above his head. Reaching up with the corset bone, he stabbed at the balloon. Missed. Stabbed again. The bone bounced harmlessly off the fabric.
Come on, he thought. Break! Break!
The next time he struck, it cut through the fabric and hydrogen started to escape.
Yes!
The airship bucked as another blast of wind struck its starboard side. Jack carefully reached for the window. The rain was falling harder now. At least the gas would slowly leak from the balloon, causing them to gradually drop from the sky. As long as they didn’t crash into anything in the meantime—
Jack slipped, skidding down on one knee. Scarlet screamed.
He tried grabbing the window frame, but missed, now slipping sideways. His head crashed into another window, and cracked it. His hands raked the outside of the ship, trying to grab hold of something.
Scarlet, holding onto his legs, dragged him back through the window and they fell in a heap on the floor.
‘Well done,’ Scarlet congratulated him. ‘Next time I’ll tell you how Brinkie did it in The Adventure of the Flying Steamtruck.’
‘I can hardly wait.’
Scarlet’s eyes widened. ‘Look out!’
Jack turned as lightning illuminated the landscape. They were in a valley, filled with rock and sand. A desert. They had descended rapidly and were about to—
Crash!
They were thrown sideways. The airship lifted off again, the wind pulling it along the ground. The firebox flew open, sending burning coals everywhere.
‘We need to abandon ship!’ Jack yelled.
Hydrogen continued to leak from the balloon. The airship could still explode.
Stumbling to the rear of the vessel, they opened the door as the airship bounced off the ground again. It tilted as the wind dragged it across the desert. Lightning flashed. Scarlet grabbed Jack’s arm, pointing. The ground ahead was level.
‘Now!’ she yelled. ‘Jump!’
They leapt, hit the ground and went sprawling. Scarlet’s elbow connected with Jack’s face and he saw stars. Groaning, he sat up to see Scarlet already on her feet. The airship was still being dragged across the desert by the wind. Then the gondola snagged on something, broke in two and the balloon exploded, casting wreckage to the wind.
Spot fires dotted the desert. The rain fell more heavily, a drenching downpour.
‘Well,’ Scarlet said, collapsing next to Jack. ‘We’re landed.’
‘We’re landed,’ he agreed. ‘But where are we?’
CHAPTER ELEVEN
The rain fell steadily. The dark landscape flashed with lightning and the wind howled like a mighty beast. Jack felt like he’d been through a washing machine—and it wasn’t over yet. He pointed to the remains of the airship. ‘Over there,’ he yelled. ‘We’ll find some shelter.’
They navigated the uneven ground to the shattered vessel. It had been torn apart by the explosion, but still offered some refuge from the storm as they tucked into a corner of what had been the roof. Jack wrapped his arms around Scarlet.
‘What would Blockie do at a time like this?’ Jack asked.
‘Probably point out that her name is not Blockie,’ Scarlet said, shivering. ‘Then suggest sleeping till dawn.’
Jack closed his eyes with Scarlet’s butchered hair pressed against his face. He doubted he would sleep, but when he next opened his eyes, Scarlet was gone.
Easing himself from the wreckage, Jack slowly stood. The sky was bright and clear. He felt like he’d aged a hundred years. His back hurt. Both legs were sore, as was his arm where Fleming had stabbed him with the needle. He had an enormous bump on his head.
They had landed in the middle of a rocky desert. Desert grass and dry rock stretched away in all directions to pastel-coloured hills. There was no sign of civilisation: no houses, roads or airships.
‘You’re awake.’
Jack turned to find Scarlet standing a few feet away. Her clothing was a mess and it looked like a hedge trimmer had attacked her hair—but Jack couldn’t help grinning.
‘I think I’m awake,’ Jack said. ‘Unless I’ve joined the zombie hordes.’
‘You’re not a zombie.’
‘No zombie would feel this bad.’
‘We need to get back to Alhambra. Do you still have your compass?’
Good question. Jack patted his pockets. Yes, his parents’ locket and the compass were still intact. The needle swung around to North.
‘We must be in the desert south of Granada,’ Scarlet said.
‘I didn’t know Spain had any deserts.’
‘You should read your guidebooks more carefully,’ she said. ‘It’s not sandy like the Sahara, but it’s still hot and dry.’ She peered at the coloured hills. ‘I’d guess that this
is the Tabernas Desert.’
‘That’s really wonderful,’ Jack said. ‘Knowing where you’re going to die is a whole lot nicer than dying in an unknown place.’
‘We’re not going to die. At least,’ she added, ‘I hope we’re not.’
They sat back in their shelter for a few minutes to decide a course of action. Each had a small stash of beef jerky on them. It wasn’t pleasant to eat, but it was better than nothing. Water was going to be the biggest problem. ‘We’re lucky it rained last night.’ Jack pointed to some small rock pools remaining on the ground. ‘Otherwise we’d have nothing.’
‘Those will probably dry up within hours,’ Scarlet said. ‘We should drink from them while we can.’
They spent the next few minutes lapping from the pools. The water had an earthy taste, but was otherwise fine.
‘Now we’ll need hats,’ Scarlet said.
‘This is no time to worry about fashion,’ Jack said.
‘You are so silly. You remember the lesson we had with Miss Bloxley?’
Miss Bloxley, their tutor, was a woman who looked disturbingly reptilian and could speak for hours without seeming to draw breath. ‘I remember her mouth opening and closing,’ Jack said, ‘but I don’t recall anything she said.’
Scarlet sighed. ‘Most evaporation is lost through the head. Makeshift hats will help keep us hydrated.’
‘Plus we can use them for food when we get extra hungry.’
‘An added bonus.’
They retrieved a few scraps of the airship’s balloon, found some twine and constructed two hats. They look more like baby bonnets, Jack thought. ‘Thank goodness there’s no one around to take a picture,’ he said.
The airship had crashed on the top of a ridge, which explained why the storm had tossed it about like a toy. Pastel hills stretched away in all directions.
‘What way should we go?’ Jack asked.
‘South towards the coast,’ Scarlet said. ‘We’re sure to meet up with a road. From there we’ll hitch a lift back to Granada.’
