Chapter five : the doctor is in
A/N I'm sorry if this storys dragging on a bit , its actually supposed to be a novel lengh fan fic ( roughly ten to fifteen chapters) so the action will begin in this chapter. Thanks to all of those who keep on reviewing.. It really makes my day!
I'll probably get one more chapter out this week.. Then I'm going away for a week to a holiday house that has NO computer access so you'll have to wait a week for the next lot of chapters.
Artemis Fowl was in counseling again , a situation which of course aggravated our favorite boy genius. Not that Artemis would reveal his aggravation , such emotions were beneath him. Instead , he sat firmly in Doctor Po's imitation Victorian chair while the counselor consulted a news paper.
" I must say , congratulations Artemis" Doctor Po said sardonically tapping the news paper.
"Congratulations?" Artemis asked coldly and Doctor Po frowned.
" The discovery of your father of course , your family must be extremely pleased" Doctor Po replied.
" Ecstatic" Artemis replied drolly.
"No need for sarcasm Artemis , after all its usually only used to deflect attention away from a certain situation" Doctor Po pointed out.
"Another text book answer doctor , I commend you" Artemis replied a little to kindly and the doctor dropped his guard again momentarily.
" Is there something wrong Artemis , involving your father?" Doctor Po asked. Artemis's smooth white face remained as still as a porcelain plate. Of course deep down under all the layers of cold contempt and malevolence there was a small ember of light that was bothering Artemis. He felt , an almost pang of loneliness it was almost as if he missed some one or something. It felt similar to the feelings he had felt up until recently towards his father/ But his father was alive and well , recovering in the private hospital in Dublin. He no longer missed him , so the question was who did he miss?
"There is nothing wrong doctor" Artemis replied snidely he turned to the Victorian chair.
" I see that you've kept this monstrosity" Artemis sated swiftly changing the subject.
" Well yes , it does have sentimental value" Doctor Po replied and he glanced at Artemis questionably.
"Although some how I doubt that you would understand that" he said and Artemis inwardly flinched. It was true , Artemis was not prone to sentimental thoughts or notions. However his mind remembered briefly the flash of the gun , and how his hands had instinctively grabbed the fairy coin. He still had the coin , for some reason he could not fathom he had strung it on a thin silver chain which hung around his neck. Almost instinctively he reached towards the chain giving it a reassuring tug. Doctor Po eyed the movement curiously , knowing that what ever was going on in young Fowl's mind it would be impossible to understand.
"Its rather amazing isn't it Artemis? You insisted that your father was still alive then a few days later his body is found quite a coincidence isn't it" Doctor Po continued and anger flared through Artemis's veins momentarily.
"I hav'nt had time to notice , been far to busy with real estate ventures" Artemis replied and suddenly his cell phone began to vibrate. Artemis inwardly thanked what ever deity was listening and pressed the slim mobile to his ear.
"Artemis , I've just gotten more information on the McGraney estate" Butlers voice greeted him.
"Excellent , any information involving the girl?" Artemis asked turning away from doctor Po.
" She's a local , I've contacted the local hospital but nothing came up she's probably keeping quite" Butler replied and Artemis sighed.
" It wasn't to serious then , last thing I need is a whiny middle class family suing Fowl industries over a car accident" Artemis replied and he turned to Doctor Po.
" Pardon me Doctor , but I have an important business venture that really cant wait" Artemis said to Doctor Po.
" I thought we discussed this before young man , you cant leave when ever you feel like it!" Doctor Po replied how ever it was to late , Artemis had left his office. Sighing to himself Doctor Po sat back down and turned to his newspaper.
"You spoke of information Butler" were the first words Artemis said to his man servant. Butler looked up from the steering wheel of the Bentley mildly amused.
" yes , a connection of mine has a base in the village of Aine" Butler began and Artemis smiled.
" Some how I doubt its a coincidence that the village is named after the mythological fairy queen Aine?" He questioned and Butler returned a brisk smile.
" The village is mainly for tourists , they harp in all the fairy camp. Juliet was actually there a fortnight ago , she bought a fortune at one of their stores" he replied and Artemis stroked his chin thoughtfully.
" Perhaps we can use Juliet for reconnaissance later , after all she does love to shop" Artemis mused and Butler nodded.
"I've heard of this village before Butler , according to local urban legend an earl lived in an old manor which existed next to the door way into the peoples world" Artemis stated thinking out loud. Artemis had read many urban myths and legends involving the people , during that time years ago when he was attempting to capture a fairy. The legend of Aine , and the earl was one of them that he had bookmarked onto his computers favorites list.
"According to my source the earls home was apparently located a few miles away from none other then the McGraney farm" Butler told Artemis and Artemis almost chuckled slightly.
"And captain Short honestly believed I wouldn't find Tara , she underestimated me" he mused quietly and Butler coughed momentarily.
" Butler , do not worry I'm not planning on exploiting the people again.. However knowing the entrance into their world will always be useful" Artemis mused.
" Its best not to be to rash Artemis" Butler advised his charge.
" Yes , we'll need to delve deeper into the historical aspects of the farm reported unusual circumstances that sort of thing" Artemis stated and he opened his personal lap top. Quickly he opened a separate document file and began to list his agenda.
"A seismographic study shall also be useful , we shall need to gather soil samples pH levels that sort of thing" Artemis stated adding to his list.
" Perhaps we should send a research team to the property?" Butler asked and Artemis smirked.
" Yes , now that sounds like a novel idea" he grinned sourly revealing one of his famous vampire smiles.
Amy suddenly realized she was deeply in like, or at least deeply in infatuation. It was a peculiar feeling one which she had never experienced before. She could not stop thinking about that boy , with his jet black hair and white skin. With absolute certainly she knew he was the one who sent her the bike. Many possibilities were traveling through her mind , was he Artemis Fowl? Or some one completely different? Amy did'nt know. All she knew was that he was becoming an obsession. The obsession became very clear during English class when Amy spent her free reading period pouring over old issues of the Irish Independent. When ever she found something relevant she would rip the article out and she would then paste it into her art sketch book.
"You do realize your committing vandalism don't you?" Siobhain Mitchell said to Amy.
" Its a project , for business studies" Amy replied and turned the page of the bulletins business section.
"That's him!" She suddenly squealed pointing at the magazine article Siobhain , an extremely over wait girl with thick black hair peered over Amy's shoulder.
"His cute , is he in a boy band?" She asked.
"NO , his Artemis Fowl!" Amy replied tiredly with the air of an expert.
" Who?"
"Son of Artemis Fowl senior duh , one of the richest men in Ireland" Amy replied tiredly.
"God , no need to go so psycho about it" Siobhain replied and she immediately turned away. Fortunately the droning school siren alerted Amy that school had ended for another day. She left the libraries newspaper on her chair and shoved the scrap book into her back pack clipping the front of the sachet.
Normally Amy rode her bike home , sometimes Caitlin followed her yelling obscenities and sometimes Seamus came with her. Today she was alone , and much to her surpass James was waiting for her outside the bike rack. He was leaning against his pick up truck casually smoking. Several older girls passed him giggling , despite his stupidity James was moderately all right looking.
" What the hell are you doing here?" Amy growled. James grabbed Amy's back pack and threw it into the car.
" Get in , mum and dad said I have to pick you up right away" James replied.
' Why? Did granny die?" Amy suddenly cried horrified.
" No , nobody died.. Well not yet dad looks like his about to kill some one" James replied as Amy unlocked her bike. Carelessly James grabbed the brand new bike by its handle bars and tossed it into the back of the pick up truck.
" Hey watch its! That bikes worth more then your stupid car!" Amy growled.
" Shut up , and get in" James ordered sternly and Amy immediately opened her mouth with out rage. Reluctantly she crawled into the car.
The first thing Amy saw on the way home was a series of trucks . They were huge trucks , gigantic trucks as white as snow that roared down the dusty road like giants. Amy counted at least three of them before her vision was completely blinded by churned up dust.
" Get out we are walking , unless you want me to crash" James replied.
" Nah ah , you can walking I'm riding" Amy replied firmly.
Amy soon realized she had made a rather unfortunate mistake. The air was filled with flying dust and it caught in her lungs and throat. To get some relief Amy urged her bike through the short cut through the Cyprus trees. After five minutes of weaving in and out through trees she reached the edge of a small hill which overlooked the McGraney farm. What she saw below forced her to bite her lip so hard she tasted blood.
"Shit!" She swore loudly glad that her parents couldn't hear her. The farm looked like a carcass on top on an ants hill , buzzing and swarming with dark and sinister activity. Trucks were roaring towards the cow sheds , where they would stop , unload then roar off again. At least a dozen people were setting up a series of huge white tents on the hillock. Figures were marching around the property menacingly , while other figures in white coats moved in an out of the tents. Amy immediately road her bike down the hill the wheels bumping dangerously against rocks and old rabbit burrows. She skidded to a stop and she saw the dumpy figure of Mrs. McGraney running towards her clutching a squirming daisy desperately in her arms.
"Oh Amy its awful!" She cried pausing for breath.
" Mum what the hells going on?" Amy asked and Mrs. McGraney gave a dry sob.
" They say their people from the governments geological society , they said that some one dumped a large dispatch of toxic waste in this area illegally forty years ago!" Her mother cried handing the cat over to Amy.
" Toxic waste? but surely that would make us sick!" Amy stated after all she was rather good at science.
" They say it will take a while for the effects to sink in.. But apparently we are all in terrible danger they want us to sell our land immediately!" Mrs. McGraney cried.
" Your fathers worked so hard on this farm , and for it all to end like this! Its awful!" Mrs. McGraney finished.
" Mum , go inside and make some tea" Amy said firmly and her mother nodded her knees shaking. Although the immediate future was uncertain , Mrs. McGraney was willing to face it with a strong cup of tea sloshing around in her stomach.
"Daddy !" Amy cried finally spotting her father , her father was practically screaming at an imposing man in an expensive suite.
" Listen to me lad I know me rights! Your supposed to get a warrant aren't you? Besides I've lived on this farm my entire life and I know for a fact that there's never been any waste dumped here!" Her father cried and the man handed over several legal documents.
" We believe the waste was dumped between June the third and July the fourth in the year nineteen sixty two" he replied sourly.
"That was the month mam sent me away to visit my uncle Stanley" John McGraney said his skin paling slightly.
" My parents still would have know about it though!" He protested.
" They were most probably lied to Mr. McGraney , the government tended to turn a blind eye against that sort of thing in those days" he replied.
"Who are you?" Amy asked rudely.
"I'm a government solicitor and I'm attempting to get you daddy to agree to selling this dwelling" he replied snidely.
" Hold on a second , if you let this happen then shouldn't I be suing you?" Mr. McGraney suddenly asked and the lawyers eye brow shot up with surprise.
" As of yet we do not know whether there is an actual cause of alarm , if you like we could discuss legal matters after our research team displays their findings" the lawyer replied.
"If your testing for toxic waste then why haven't you evacuated the village?" Amy suddenly asked.
" What do you know about nuclear testing little girl?" he asked snidely and Amy matched him with a stare you could crack rocks on.
"More then you obviously , first you said it was toxic waste and now its nuclear waste what next? Sulfuric acid raining from the sky?" Amy asked snidely.
"I'd advise you to teach your daughter some manners Mr. McGraney" the lawyer replied.
"Go inside Amy" her father began.
"But dad!" Amy cried .
" Just do it!" Her father said coldly , it was a day when every one in the world seemed to be snapping at her.
The phone rang while Amy was spying on the activity at the hillock using her brothers binoculars. Amy reached towards the phone and pressed it against her ear.
" McGraney farm , the only farm that's mad cow free" she stated solemnly and she heard the sound of some one laugh.
" Amy its Seamus , why did'nt you come over today? We were supposed to be playing Harry Potter and the Chamber of secrets on play station two" Seamus stated and Amy frowned.
" Couldn't come , turns out the governments invaded my farm. They say their testing for nuclear waste but they keep changing their story" Amy replied.
"Wait a minute , did you just say the government?" Seamus asked.
" Well they claim to be the government , but they seem more concerned with trying to buy the farm off dad rather then evacuating us which seems pretty weird to me" Amy replied and Seamus made a thoughtful sound.
"What are they doing exactly?" He asked and Amy snorted.
" They've built a big white tent around the hillock and scientist types keep coming in and out.. But the thing is if they were really testing for waste wouldn't they be wearing tickle me pink jump suites?" Amy asked.
" There actually more neon orange Amy" Seamus pointed out.
" Its totally weird Seamus , I mean its like they want something in the hillock" Amy began . Then a memory bubble surfaced in her mind. The hillock opening up , and the figures disappearing in the silver egg.
"Their trying to find the silver egg!" Amy squealed.
" Is that one of those priceless antiques your brothers always digging up?" Seamus asked.
" No , its more like an elevator a small one" Amy replied.
"And why is there an elevator in your hillock?" Seamus asked patiently.
"How the hell am I supposed to know? Just because I got an A on my last science test it doesn't mean I'm a fricken genius!" Amy cried.
" Amy don't say the f word!" Her mother called from the counter.
" Sorry!" Amy shot back.
"Amy , you still there ? " Seamus asked.
" Yeah I am , listen tell your dad you need to come over and tutor me for our next English test" Amy whispered urgently into the receiver.
" We don't have an English exam!" Seamus pointed out.
" We are not going to study for English , we are going to get into that tent" Amy whispered.
" Why?" Seamus asked.
" So like duh , we can steal stuff and break things!" Amy replied rolling her eyes.
" Yes , but why would we want to do that?" Seamus asked.
" Look Seamus , these people are really starting to Pi.. Er annoy me off! I have to do something to vent my feelings" Amy replied.
" We could get in trouble" Seamus replied.
For what? Breaking and entering? I live here!" Amy pointed out.
" All right but I'll tell dad I'm staying over for the night , we'll probably have to sneak out pretty late" he pointed out.
" Thanks Seamus , you always think of everything" Amy replied hanging up.
Seamus arrived nervously , at around seven clutching a sleeping bag to his chest.
"Calm down , my parents know your going to be here.. At the moment they don't really care" Amy replied grabbing him by the shoulder .
"We'll set up in the cow shed , its warm there and its a lot closer to the hillock" Amy whispered.
" We're going to sleep with cows?" Seamus asked scarcely able to believe it.
" No , once we get into the camp we'll go back to the living room and you can sleep their" Amy replied dragging her own sleeping bag across the wet grass.
"You know , while were out there we may as well study" Seamus replied and Amy growled.
"Spoil all my fun" Amy muttered.
Several hours had passed , the shed looked like a bomb had hit it. Amy was sprawled out on a sleeping bag vaguely listening to Seamus lecture her on Hamlet.
"Are you listening Amy?" He asked.
" Yeah , Hamlet , ghosts and daggers whoohoo" Amy replied yawning.
"Lets try a different approach , you see Hamlets like the lion king" Seamus began.
" Really?" Amy asked startled by this new theory. However she stopped , when she realized something was amiss.
"Listen , the farms gone quite.. The scientists must have packed up for the day" Amy whispered. Immediately she grabbed her brothers binoculars and jammed them to her nose.
" The trucks have gone , and the lights gone off in the tent" she whispered.
" Lets go then" Seamus replied and he reached into his sleeping bag pulling out a crow bar.
" When you spend career day ripping crates open with one of these things , you tend to find out how to break into buildings" Seamus whispered to Amy and she nodded. Amy reached into her back pack and Jammed her brothers black balaclava onto her head. She handed another one to Seamus.
" This has Manchester united written on it!" He pointed out.
" Shut up , and lets go!" She whispered.
The two children , half stumbling half whispering excitingly dashed across the slick wet grass towards the tent. They paused against the tents smooth white surface and Amy gazed at her bright blue wrist watch. She lit up the screen and it read roughly two a.m.
"All right , we've got around two hours before dad gets up" she whispered.
" Will it really take that long?" Seamus asked.
" Doubt it , but we need to be out of the cow shed before he sees us" Amy replied. They approached the tent flap cautiously.
"For a government organization they have pretty crappy security" Seamus whispered gesturing towards a cheap padlock. Amy reached into her shoulder bag and pulled out a fair of kitchen scissors. The quietly , she cut around the fabric surrounding the lock until it fell on the floor with a vague " clanking noise".
" How did you come up with that?" Seamus asked.
" It seemed logical at the time" Amy replied stepping into the tent.
The inside of the tent was filled with twilight gloom , the officials had actually set up desks and working area's around the hillock. Amy gasped , next to the hillock some one had dug an incredibly deep shaft.
" Their digging in the wrong place" Amy muttered . She dragged her eyes away from the shaft and turned to the working areas.
" Open those draws!" Amy ordered Seamus and almost joyfully he wrenched the draw apart with the crow bar with a splintering of wood. Amy stooped down and began rifling through the contents. Feeling very secret angenish she turned on the tinker bell shape torch her daddy had got her last Christmas and examined the documents.
" These show geological testing , not chemical" Amy muttered.
" How can you tell?" Seamus asked and Amy rolled her eyes.
" There's a huge difference between rocks and chemicals Seamus" she pointed out. She shuffled through her papers and handed them to Seamus.
" Hey , this is the logo of Fowl Industries!" Seamus cried pointed at a picture of a chicken on a black back round.
" Pretty crappy logo" Amy whispered.
" That's not the point Amy , Fowl industries is a private organization.. They don't go around testing for chemicals" Seamus whispered with excitement.
" So?" Amy asked.
" So , you can completely take them down what their doing is probably illegal" he replied and Amy bit her lip furiously. She remembered what her father had told her , about the Fowls being a shady lot and how they were quite possibly connected with the criminal underworld.
"Quick , do you still have that Hamlet lion king stuff on you?" Amy whispered pulling the geographical reports out of the manilla binder.
" Yes you didn't give me a chance to put them down!" Seamus pointed out. He handled her a bundle of lined writing paper. Smirking , Amy pushed the scientific report into her back pack. Then , she placed the bundle of paper into the manilla folder and placed it back in the draw.
" I'm going to take these to our science teacher Miss Green" Amy whispered.
"Good idea , she'll be able to tell what's going on" Seamus replied sarcastically.
" Just because you don't like her" Amy began , however she shut up when she heard the low sound of a formidable growl.
"Oh god , they have dogs" Amy whispered slowly she turned around. A rotweiler was standing a few feet away chained to the tent flap. It had obviously just woken up.
"Seamus , Run!" Amy whispered her eyes fearfully on the dogs foaming gnashing teeth.
' Good idea" Seamus replied and fearfully , the two children dashed out of the tent and into the early summer night.
"That was so cool" Amy whispered with excitement Seamus rolled his eyes backwards and silently fainted. Amy looked up wondering what had caused her friend to suddenly convulse in a very girlie fainting spell. The silver barrel of a hunting gun reached her nose. Slowly her eyes dragged beyond it , into the cloudy idiotic eyes of her brother James.
" Well well , you two are in a lot of trouble aren't you?" He grinned.
A/N I'm sorry if this storys dragging on a bit , its actually supposed to be a novel lengh fan fic ( roughly ten to fifteen chapters) so the action will begin in this chapter. Thanks to all of those who keep on reviewing.. It really makes my day!
I'll probably get one more chapter out this week.. Then I'm going away for a week to a holiday house that has NO computer access so you'll have to wait a week for the next lot of chapters.
Artemis Fowl was in counseling again , a situation which of course aggravated our favorite boy genius. Not that Artemis would reveal his aggravation , such emotions were beneath him. Instead , he sat firmly in Doctor Po's imitation Victorian chair while the counselor consulted a news paper.
" I must say , congratulations Artemis" Doctor Po said sardonically tapping the news paper.
"Congratulations?" Artemis asked coldly and Doctor Po frowned.
" The discovery of your father of course , your family must be extremely pleased" Doctor Po replied.
" Ecstatic" Artemis replied drolly.
"No need for sarcasm Artemis , after all its usually only used to deflect attention away from a certain situation" Doctor Po pointed out.
"Another text book answer doctor , I commend you" Artemis replied a little to kindly and the doctor dropped his guard again momentarily.
" Is there something wrong Artemis , involving your father?" Doctor Po asked. Artemis's smooth white face remained as still as a porcelain plate. Of course deep down under all the layers of cold contempt and malevolence there was a small ember of light that was bothering Artemis. He felt , an almost pang of loneliness it was almost as if he missed some one or something. It felt similar to the feelings he had felt up until recently towards his father/ But his father was alive and well , recovering in the private hospital in Dublin. He no longer missed him , so the question was who did he miss?
"There is nothing wrong doctor" Artemis replied snidely he turned to the Victorian chair.
" I see that you've kept this monstrosity" Artemis sated swiftly changing the subject.
" Well yes , it does have sentimental value" Doctor Po replied and he glanced at Artemis questionably.
"Although some how I doubt that you would understand that" he said and Artemis inwardly flinched. It was true , Artemis was not prone to sentimental thoughts or notions. However his mind remembered briefly the flash of the gun , and how his hands had instinctively grabbed the fairy coin. He still had the coin , for some reason he could not fathom he had strung it on a thin silver chain which hung around his neck. Almost instinctively he reached towards the chain giving it a reassuring tug. Doctor Po eyed the movement curiously , knowing that what ever was going on in young Fowl's mind it would be impossible to understand.
"Its rather amazing isn't it Artemis? You insisted that your father was still alive then a few days later his body is found quite a coincidence isn't it" Doctor Po continued and anger flared through Artemis's veins momentarily.
"I hav'nt had time to notice , been far to busy with real estate ventures" Artemis replied and suddenly his cell phone began to vibrate. Artemis inwardly thanked what ever deity was listening and pressed the slim mobile to his ear.
"Artemis , I've just gotten more information on the McGraney estate" Butlers voice greeted him.
"Excellent , any information involving the girl?" Artemis asked turning away from doctor Po.
" She's a local , I've contacted the local hospital but nothing came up she's probably keeping quite" Butler replied and Artemis sighed.
" It wasn't to serious then , last thing I need is a whiny middle class family suing Fowl industries over a car accident" Artemis replied and he turned to Doctor Po.
" Pardon me Doctor , but I have an important business venture that really cant wait" Artemis said to Doctor Po.
" I thought we discussed this before young man , you cant leave when ever you feel like it!" Doctor Po replied how ever it was to late , Artemis had left his office. Sighing to himself Doctor Po sat back down and turned to his newspaper.
"You spoke of information Butler" were the first words Artemis said to his man servant. Butler looked up from the steering wheel of the Bentley mildly amused.
" yes , a connection of mine has a base in the village of Aine" Butler began and Artemis smiled.
" Some how I doubt its a coincidence that the village is named after the mythological fairy queen Aine?" He questioned and Butler returned a brisk smile.
" The village is mainly for tourists , they harp in all the fairy camp. Juliet was actually there a fortnight ago , she bought a fortune at one of their stores" he replied and Artemis stroked his chin thoughtfully.
" Perhaps we can use Juliet for reconnaissance later , after all she does love to shop" Artemis mused and Butler nodded.
"I've heard of this village before Butler , according to local urban legend an earl lived in an old manor which existed next to the door way into the peoples world" Artemis stated thinking out loud. Artemis had read many urban myths and legends involving the people , during that time years ago when he was attempting to capture a fairy. The legend of Aine , and the earl was one of them that he had bookmarked onto his computers favorites list.
"According to my source the earls home was apparently located a few miles away from none other then the McGraney farm" Butler told Artemis and Artemis almost chuckled slightly.
"And captain Short honestly believed I wouldn't find Tara , she underestimated me" he mused quietly and Butler coughed momentarily.
" Butler , do not worry I'm not planning on exploiting the people again.. However knowing the entrance into their world will always be useful" Artemis mused.
" Its best not to be to rash Artemis" Butler advised his charge.
" Yes , we'll need to delve deeper into the historical aspects of the farm reported unusual circumstances that sort of thing" Artemis stated and he opened his personal lap top. Quickly he opened a separate document file and began to list his agenda.
"A seismographic study shall also be useful , we shall need to gather soil samples pH levels that sort of thing" Artemis stated adding to his list.
" Perhaps we should send a research team to the property?" Butler asked and Artemis smirked.
" Yes , now that sounds like a novel idea" he grinned sourly revealing one of his famous vampire smiles.
Amy suddenly realized she was deeply in like, or at least deeply in infatuation. It was a peculiar feeling one which she had never experienced before. She could not stop thinking about that boy , with his jet black hair and white skin. With absolute certainly she knew he was the one who sent her the bike. Many possibilities were traveling through her mind , was he Artemis Fowl? Or some one completely different? Amy did'nt know. All she knew was that he was becoming an obsession. The obsession became very clear during English class when Amy spent her free reading period pouring over old issues of the Irish Independent. When ever she found something relevant she would rip the article out and she would then paste it into her art sketch book.
"You do realize your committing vandalism don't you?" Siobhain Mitchell said to Amy.
" Its a project , for business studies" Amy replied and turned the page of the bulletins business section.
"That's him!" She suddenly squealed pointing at the magazine article Siobhain , an extremely over wait girl with thick black hair peered over Amy's shoulder.
"His cute , is he in a boy band?" She asked.
"NO , his Artemis Fowl!" Amy replied tiredly with the air of an expert.
" Who?"
"Son of Artemis Fowl senior duh , one of the richest men in Ireland" Amy replied tiredly.
"God , no need to go so psycho about it" Siobhain replied and she immediately turned away. Fortunately the droning school siren alerted Amy that school had ended for another day. She left the libraries newspaper on her chair and shoved the scrap book into her back pack clipping the front of the sachet.
Normally Amy rode her bike home , sometimes Caitlin followed her yelling obscenities and sometimes Seamus came with her. Today she was alone , and much to her surpass James was waiting for her outside the bike rack. He was leaning against his pick up truck casually smoking. Several older girls passed him giggling , despite his stupidity James was moderately all right looking.
" What the hell are you doing here?" Amy growled. James grabbed Amy's back pack and threw it into the car.
" Get in , mum and dad said I have to pick you up right away" James replied.
' Why? Did granny die?" Amy suddenly cried horrified.
" No , nobody died.. Well not yet dad looks like his about to kill some one" James replied as Amy unlocked her bike. Carelessly James grabbed the brand new bike by its handle bars and tossed it into the back of the pick up truck.
" Hey watch its! That bikes worth more then your stupid car!" Amy growled.
" Shut up , and get in" James ordered sternly and Amy immediately opened her mouth with out rage. Reluctantly she crawled into the car.
The first thing Amy saw on the way home was a series of trucks . They were huge trucks , gigantic trucks as white as snow that roared down the dusty road like giants. Amy counted at least three of them before her vision was completely blinded by churned up dust.
" Get out we are walking , unless you want me to crash" James replied.
" Nah ah , you can walking I'm riding" Amy replied firmly.
Amy soon realized she had made a rather unfortunate mistake. The air was filled with flying dust and it caught in her lungs and throat. To get some relief Amy urged her bike through the short cut through the Cyprus trees. After five minutes of weaving in and out through trees she reached the edge of a small hill which overlooked the McGraney farm. What she saw below forced her to bite her lip so hard she tasted blood.
"Shit!" She swore loudly glad that her parents couldn't hear her. The farm looked like a carcass on top on an ants hill , buzzing and swarming with dark and sinister activity. Trucks were roaring towards the cow sheds , where they would stop , unload then roar off again. At least a dozen people were setting up a series of huge white tents on the hillock. Figures were marching around the property menacingly , while other figures in white coats moved in an out of the tents. Amy immediately road her bike down the hill the wheels bumping dangerously against rocks and old rabbit burrows. She skidded to a stop and she saw the dumpy figure of Mrs. McGraney running towards her clutching a squirming daisy desperately in her arms.
"Oh Amy its awful!" She cried pausing for breath.
" Mum what the hells going on?" Amy asked and Mrs. McGraney gave a dry sob.
" They say their people from the governments geological society , they said that some one dumped a large dispatch of toxic waste in this area illegally forty years ago!" Her mother cried handing the cat over to Amy.
" Toxic waste? but surely that would make us sick!" Amy stated after all she was rather good at science.
" They say it will take a while for the effects to sink in.. But apparently we are all in terrible danger they want us to sell our land immediately!" Mrs. McGraney cried.
" Your fathers worked so hard on this farm , and for it all to end like this! Its awful!" Mrs. McGraney finished.
" Mum , go inside and make some tea" Amy said firmly and her mother nodded her knees shaking. Although the immediate future was uncertain , Mrs. McGraney was willing to face it with a strong cup of tea sloshing around in her stomach.
"Daddy !" Amy cried finally spotting her father , her father was practically screaming at an imposing man in an expensive suite.
" Listen to me lad I know me rights! Your supposed to get a warrant aren't you? Besides I've lived on this farm my entire life and I know for a fact that there's never been any waste dumped here!" Her father cried and the man handed over several legal documents.
" We believe the waste was dumped between June the third and July the fourth in the year nineteen sixty two" he replied sourly.
"That was the month mam sent me away to visit my uncle Stanley" John McGraney said his skin paling slightly.
" My parents still would have know about it though!" He protested.
" They were most probably lied to Mr. McGraney , the government tended to turn a blind eye against that sort of thing in those days" he replied.
"Who are you?" Amy asked rudely.
"I'm a government solicitor and I'm attempting to get you daddy to agree to selling this dwelling" he replied snidely.
" Hold on a second , if you let this happen then shouldn't I be suing you?" Mr. McGraney suddenly asked and the lawyers eye brow shot up with surprise.
" As of yet we do not know whether there is an actual cause of alarm , if you like we could discuss legal matters after our research team displays their findings" the lawyer replied.
"If your testing for toxic waste then why haven't you evacuated the village?" Amy suddenly asked.
" What do you know about nuclear testing little girl?" he asked snidely and Amy matched him with a stare you could crack rocks on.
"More then you obviously , first you said it was toxic waste and now its nuclear waste what next? Sulfuric acid raining from the sky?" Amy asked snidely.
"I'd advise you to teach your daughter some manners Mr. McGraney" the lawyer replied.
"Go inside Amy" her father began.
"But dad!" Amy cried .
" Just do it!" Her father said coldly , it was a day when every one in the world seemed to be snapping at her.
The phone rang while Amy was spying on the activity at the hillock using her brothers binoculars. Amy reached towards the phone and pressed it against her ear.
" McGraney farm , the only farm that's mad cow free" she stated solemnly and she heard the sound of some one laugh.
" Amy its Seamus , why did'nt you come over today? We were supposed to be playing Harry Potter and the Chamber of secrets on play station two" Seamus stated and Amy frowned.
" Couldn't come , turns out the governments invaded my farm. They say their testing for nuclear waste but they keep changing their story" Amy replied.
"Wait a minute , did you just say the government?" Seamus asked.
" Well they claim to be the government , but they seem more concerned with trying to buy the farm off dad rather then evacuating us which seems pretty weird to me" Amy replied and Seamus made a thoughtful sound.
"What are they doing exactly?" He asked and Amy snorted.
" They've built a big white tent around the hillock and scientist types keep coming in and out.. But the thing is if they were really testing for waste wouldn't they be wearing tickle me pink jump suites?" Amy asked.
" There actually more neon orange Amy" Seamus pointed out.
" Its totally weird Seamus , I mean its like they want something in the hillock" Amy began . Then a memory bubble surfaced in her mind. The hillock opening up , and the figures disappearing in the silver egg.
"Their trying to find the silver egg!" Amy squealed.
" Is that one of those priceless antiques your brothers always digging up?" Seamus asked.
" No , its more like an elevator a small one" Amy replied.
"And why is there an elevator in your hillock?" Seamus asked patiently.
"How the hell am I supposed to know? Just because I got an A on my last science test it doesn't mean I'm a fricken genius!" Amy cried.
" Amy don't say the f word!" Her mother called from the counter.
" Sorry!" Amy shot back.
"Amy , you still there ? " Seamus asked.
" Yeah I am , listen tell your dad you need to come over and tutor me for our next English test" Amy whispered urgently into the receiver.
" We don't have an English exam!" Seamus pointed out.
" We are not going to study for English , we are going to get into that tent" Amy whispered.
" Why?" Seamus asked.
" So like duh , we can steal stuff and break things!" Amy replied rolling her eyes.
" Yes , but why would we want to do that?" Seamus asked.
" Look Seamus , these people are really starting to Pi.. Er annoy me off! I have to do something to vent my feelings" Amy replied.
" We could get in trouble" Seamus replied.
For what? Breaking and entering? I live here!" Amy pointed out.
" All right but I'll tell dad I'm staying over for the night , we'll probably have to sneak out pretty late" he pointed out.
" Thanks Seamus , you always think of everything" Amy replied hanging up.
Seamus arrived nervously , at around seven clutching a sleeping bag to his chest.
"Calm down , my parents know your going to be here.. At the moment they don't really care" Amy replied grabbing him by the shoulder .
"We'll set up in the cow shed , its warm there and its a lot closer to the hillock" Amy whispered.
" We're going to sleep with cows?" Seamus asked scarcely able to believe it.
" No , once we get into the camp we'll go back to the living room and you can sleep their" Amy replied dragging her own sleeping bag across the wet grass.
"You know , while were out there we may as well study" Seamus replied and Amy growled.
"Spoil all my fun" Amy muttered.
Several hours had passed , the shed looked like a bomb had hit it. Amy was sprawled out on a sleeping bag vaguely listening to Seamus lecture her on Hamlet.
"Are you listening Amy?" He asked.
" Yeah , Hamlet , ghosts and daggers whoohoo" Amy replied yawning.
"Lets try a different approach , you see Hamlets like the lion king" Seamus began.
" Really?" Amy asked startled by this new theory. However she stopped , when she realized something was amiss.
"Listen , the farms gone quite.. The scientists must have packed up for the day" Amy whispered. Immediately she grabbed her brothers binoculars and jammed them to her nose.
" The trucks have gone , and the lights gone off in the tent" she whispered.
" Lets go then" Seamus replied and he reached into his sleeping bag pulling out a crow bar.
" When you spend career day ripping crates open with one of these things , you tend to find out how to break into buildings" Seamus whispered to Amy and she nodded. Amy reached into her back pack and Jammed her brothers black balaclava onto her head. She handed another one to Seamus.
" This has Manchester united written on it!" He pointed out.
" Shut up , and lets go!" She whispered.
The two children , half stumbling half whispering excitingly dashed across the slick wet grass towards the tent. They paused against the tents smooth white surface and Amy gazed at her bright blue wrist watch. She lit up the screen and it read roughly two a.m.
"All right , we've got around two hours before dad gets up" she whispered.
" Will it really take that long?" Seamus asked.
" Doubt it , but we need to be out of the cow shed before he sees us" Amy replied. They approached the tent flap cautiously.
"For a government organization they have pretty crappy security" Seamus whispered gesturing towards a cheap padlock. Amy reached into her shoulder bag and pulled out a fair of kitchen scissors. The quietly , she cut around the fabric surrounding the lock until it fell on the floor with a vague " clanking noise".
" How did you come up with that?" Seamus asked.
" It seemed logical at the time" Amy replied stepping into the tent.
The inside of the tent was filled with twilight gloom , the officials had actually set up desks and working area's around the hillock. Amy gasped , next to the hillock some one had dug an incredibly deep shaft.
" Their digging in the wrong place" Amy muttered . She dragged her eyes away from the shaft and turned to the working areas.
" Open those draws!" Amy ordered Seamus and almost joyfully he wrenched the draw apart with the crow bar with a splintering of wood. Amy stooped down and began rifling through the contents. Feeling very secret angenish she turned on the tinker bell shape torch her daddy had got her last Christmas and examined the documents.
" These show geological testing , not chemical" Amy muttered.
" How can you tell?" Seamus asked and Amy rolled her eyes.
" There's a huge difference between rocks and chemicals Seamus" she pointed out. She shuffled through her papers and handed them to Seamus.
" Hey , this is the logo of Fowl Industries!" Seamus cried pointed at a picture of a chicken on a black back round.
" Pretty crappy logo" Amy whispered.
" That's not the point Amy , Fowl industries is a private organization.. They don't go around testing for chemicals" Seamus whispered with excitement.
" So?" Amy asked.
" So , you can completely take them down what their doing is probably illegal" he replied and Amy bit her lip furiously. She remembered what her father had told her , about the Fowls being a shady lot and how they were quite possibly connected with the criminal underworld.
"Quick , do you still have that Hamlet lion king stuff on you?" Amy whispered pulling the geographical reports out of the manilla binder.
" Yes you didn't give me a chance to put them down!" Seamus pointed out. He handled her a bundle of lined writing paper. Smirking , Amy pushed the scientific report into her back pack. Then , she placed the bundle of paper into the manilla folder and placed it back in the draw.
" I'm going to take these to our science teacher Miss Green" Amy whispered.
"Good idea , she'll be able to tell what's going on" Seamus replied sarcastically.
" Just because you don't like her" Amy began , however she shut up when she heard the low sound of a formidable growl.
"Oh god , they have dogs" Amy whispered slowly she turned around. A rotweiler was standing a few feet away chained to the tent flap. It had obviously just woken up.
"Seamus , Run!" Amy whispered her eyes fearfully on the dogs foaming gnashing teeth.
' Good idea" Seamus replied and fearfully , the two children dashed out of the tent and into the early summer night.
"That was so cool" Amy whispered with excitement Seamus rolled his eyes backwards and silently fainted. Amy looked up wondering what had caused her friend to suddenly convulse in a very girlie fainting spell. The silver barrel of a hunting gun reached her nose. Slowly her eyes dragged beyond it , into the cloudy idiotic eyes of her brother James.
" Well well , you two are in a lot of trouble aren't you?" He grinned.