Chapter Four of The Invitation
Day Three – Part Two
John sat looking out of the Monorail window at the dreary, grey landscape. It had not stopped raining since his journey began and it seemed heavier the further south he got. He was in the final stages of his journey and had just left London to travel the short distance back to Foxleyheath. He was thinking about what plans might have been made for tomorrow when the sound of his cell phone ringing jolted him back to the present. He was surprised to see it was Lady Penelope calling him.
"Hi, Penny, what's up?" he asked. "I'm almost back to your place."
"Good, John, whereabouts are you now? We'll come and meet you,"
John remembered the last station the train had passed through. "I've just left Salfords," he told her. "I was just going to get a cab to save Parker turning out in this weather."
"Just wait at Foxleyheath Station, John, by the time we get there you should have arrived. We've had a spot of trouble, I'll tell you about it when I see you." She didn't want to worry him just yet and immediately hung up the telephone and went to the car.
John thought it was strange she should end the call so abruptly but knew he would not get to know what the trouble was until she saw him. He shrugged his shoulders and replaced his cell-phone in his pocket, thinking it couldn't be that serious, otherwise his father or somebody else at home would contact him by his watch. So he settled down again for the rest of the journey. …………………………………………………………………………………….
It was early in the morning on Tracy Island and as Thunderbird Five's orbit was synchronized to the same time pattern, Alan Tracy was fast asleep in the small bedroom on the satellite. He was quickly awoken by the sound of an alarm going off and jumped out of bed hastening to the communications console. It wasn't the usual emergency call coming from the radio, however. It was the bleeping sound of an edible transmitter carried by one of the family or their associates at all times.
He quickly checked to make sure and watched the screen as the small green light flickered on and off at a steady pace. He noted the co-ordinates and put on the tracking system before contacting his father, who, he guessed, would still be asleep.
The sound of the alarm above his bed soon awoke Jeff. He put on his robe and went to the lounge to see what emergency Alan had to report. Sitting down at his desk, he opened the video link with Alan at the same time as pressing another button to alert the rest of his sons.
"Go ahead, Alan," Jeff said routinely as his youngest son's picture changed to a live action version displaying a very concerned face.
"Dad, I'm getting a signal from an edible transmitter. Have you heard from John or Grandma lately?" he asked.
"Last time I heard from them everything was fine," Jeff answered. "Whose transmitter is it?"
"Hold on, I'll check," Alan looked at the instrument panel that linked the signal to the bio system of the person that had swallowed it and exclaimed, "It's Grandma, Dad, she must be in trouble!"
"Now hold on, Alan, there may be a simple reason for this, she may have swallowed it by mistake," Jeff told him. "Keep a check on it, son, and I'll contact Penny and see what's going on and get back to you."
"FAB, Dad," Alan answered and broke off the communication.
Just as he was about to open the link to Lady Penelope, Jeff was joined by Scott and Virgil. "What's up, Dad?" Scott asked.
"Looks like Grandma has somehow swallowed her edible transmitter. I'm about to call Penny to see what's happened," Jeff told him.
Before he had the chance to do that, Lady Penelope contacted him from FAB 1. "Hi, Penny, I was just about to call you. What's going on? Is my mother okay?"
"Bad news, I'm afraid, Jeff. It appears I've been the victim of a burglary and the thieves have got away and taken your mother with them," she told him. "My antiques are fitted with a tracking device so I can trace them. I'm on my way now to collect John from the station and then we'll be on their trail. The police have been informed. Try not to worry, Jeff, I'm sure we'll find her."
Jeff was momentarily stunned at this news. "You bet we'll find her," he eventually said, "She's managed to swallow her edible transmitter. We'll track her from that, too. I've got the boys here ready to go. Stay in contact Penny, we'll be right over as soon as we can."
"I will, Jeff. I'm so pleased she has managed to do that, it will be a big help," she replied before closing the link.
"Right, boys, you heard what she said. We'd better get going. Where's Gordon?" he suddenly noticed the absence of his fourth son.
"Probably swimming," Scott replied as he walked over to the window that looked down on to the beach to see if there was any sign of his younger brother.
"You get going, Scott, and I'll contact him," Virgil said. "We can't afford to waste time and you can get on the trail quicker."
"He's right, son," Jeff told Scott, "Get going and contact Alan to give you the co-ordinates and let him know what's happened. Tell him to keep his eye on that signal for as long as it lasts."
Gordon wrapped his robe around him after his usual early morning swim across the bay of the island. He began his route back to the villa and planned to begin making breakfast for the family as usual. He hadn't got very far when a buzz from his watch alerted him and Virgil's face came into view on the screen.
"What's up Virg, another emergency already?" he asked him.
"Make your way to the hangar, Gordon, as quickly as possible. Grandma's in trouble," Virgil replied.
Gordon had the same reaction as his father when he heard this and was momentarily speechless then answered, "FAB Virgil, I'm on my way." He began running fast to the hangar and couldn't help noticing Thunderbird One soaring high up into the sky as he got closer to the villa.
When he reached Thunderbird Two, he found Virgil and his father in the flight deck waiting for him. "What's happened to Grandma?" he asked, as he sat down beside his father.
Jeff proceeded to tell him the news and Gordon went pale with worry. Knowing his sons would all be frantic with worry as he himself was, he hugged Gordon to him. "We'll find her, son, she's been wise enough to alert us to her whereabouts and she's got the full team on her trail. Penny's got a head start."
"Are we going as International Rescue, Dad?" Virgil asked as he began launching the huge craft. "Should we put our uniforms on?"
"Right now, I couldn't care less as long as we get her back safe. Where was John anyway that he had to be picked up from the station?" Jeff replied half to himself. Then he thought for a while and added, "Yes, you'd best put your uniforms on. Gordon's still wearing his bathers anyway. Seeing as we're using Thunderbirds One and Two, we'll have to go as International Rescue."
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FAB 1 pulled up at the small country station at Foxleyheath and John got in. "What's wrong, Penny, where's Grandma?" he asked as soon as he noticed the absence of his grandmother in the car.
Lady Penelope filled John in with the details as Parker concentrated on the tracking system in the car linked to the stolen antiques. "They h'are 'eading south h'on the main road," he informed the two passengers.
"Good, Parker," Lady Penelope told him. "That road is nice and straight and leads to the coast, we can quickly catch them up."
John sat back in the seat of the car, his head a turmoil of emotions. The elation of this morning in Cheshire was now replaced by feelings of guilt and fear for his grandmother's safety. His mind then went to Alan up in Thunderbird Five. The kid would be frantic with worry, too. He knew what it was like to be stuck up there feeling helpless when one of the family members was in danger during a rescue. He also knew Alan would want to talk so he decided to contact him by watch, if only to let him know what Parker and Lady Penelope had just said. John clicked his watch and saw Alan's pale worried face. "Hi, Alan, any news on Grandma's transmitter signal?" he asked.
"It's still working good and strong. I've just updated Scott on the coordinates so he shouldn't be long getting there. She seems to be moving mighty fast, so she's in some sort of vehicle," Alan answered, still watching the blinking green light on the console.
"We're right behind her, Alan," John reassured him. We'll soon get her back."
"Those people, John, they could be dangerous, they might …." Alan broke off as his emotions got the better of him.
"Do the best you can for her, and keep tracking Alan. She's relying on you to lead us to her," John told his brother in an attempt to get him to stay strong and focused. "Keep Scott on the trail. If we surround them they might not attempt to do anything more stupid to land a longer prison stretch."
"FAB, John, I will," Alan answered with renewed determination in his voice to do his utmost to save his grandmother's life.
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Alexander Pennington was not happy with the call he'd received from his fellow criminals. He began to think as he threw a few clothes and toiletries together in a large holdall, before getting back into his car in pursuit of his associates. 'So they only managed one room?' he thought, 'Better than nothing but the old lady might be a problem. What to do with her? Dump her or see if more money could be got for her release. Depends who she is.'
He had been slightly tempted at first when planning all this to have another go at that under-floor safe in that house but changed his mind. It was too much trouble after what happened to Joe Selsdon and Harry Malloy. Those jewels had been tantalizingly close. He concentrated on the road ahead following the getaway car. They had a head start so they would be a few miles down the road and would all meet up at his boat. He began to relax a little, at least they had all got away, and that was all that mattered for now.
The getaway car drew in to the marina at Hove. The area was deserted due to the weather which had now changed to a slight drizzle. Ruth was quickly hustled out of the car and on to the nearby boat by the man that had been holding her since her ordeal began, whose name she had learnt was Ken. The two of them went immediately below deck. The other three members of the gang unloaded the boxes of antiques from Lady Penelope's house onto the boat, putting them with the rest of the stolen property from the previous break-ins.
"Now we just have to wait for Alex," Jane said, "I hope he makes it okay. I don't like this sitting around and waiting. It sets my nerves on edge."
"He'll be fine, he knows how to cover his tracks. The police can't trace this boat to him. For a start he's got her registered in another name," Bill Coates said.
"Watch this old girl 'ere and I'll make us all a cup of coffee while we're waiting," Ken said. Then he added, "Up to now she's been no trouble, never said a word."
They all looked at Ruth who was sitting opposite them on a cushioned chair. "Good, I hope she stays that way," Jane remarked. "Make her a cup, too. I expect she could do with it."
Pennington finalised the last stage of his getaway. Just in case the police were on to him he had Ken's car parked in the little village of Roynings just off the A23 road. He switched cars and drove the short distance to Hove down the quiet country lanes. He parked next to the other car on the marina and fled to the boat. Bill had been on deck and looking out for him. "Get her started, Bill. Once we get to Dieppe we're in the clear. Tom should be waiting to get us to the plane. I'll go and call him now."
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FAB 1 pulled up at the marina at Hove, they had missed the gang's boat by fifteen minutes. "The signal h'is still coming from the south M'Lady. Looks like they h'is 'eading for France," Parker said. He then asked, "Do you want me to put the 'ydrofoils on an' follow em?"
"No, Parker, there's too much shipping here. Drive to Newhaven. We are going to have to go over by the evening ferry. It's a bit slower but we're not beaten yet," Lady Penelope told him.
"What's the plan, Penny?" John asked. He was feeling cold tight knots inside his stomach with worry at this new development.
"Your father is using International Rescue as a cover to rescue your grandmother, John. So we are going to have to contact Agent 11, otherwise known as my good friend Charles Leroux. He lives in Rouen and can be in Dieppe in no time. He'll contact the French police, too. Scott should be here soon, you contact him and let him know and I'll contact Charles."
John passed the information on to Scott while Lady Penelope was on the radio, "Okay, John, I'm almost there now. I can watch out for them. Grandma's signal is still strong so Alan will let me know when she is close to me. I'll meet up with Agent 11 and we'll work together."
"Just get her back safe, Scott, I'm scared what they might do to her if things go wrong," John answered. His voice began to crack with emotion as he continued. "It's all my fault, Scott, I shouldn't have left her."
Scott had known of John's plan to go to Cheshire and had been pleased his younger brother had taken this opportunity to see his friend again. Now he had to listen to his feelings of guilt for going there. "Johnny it's not your fault, none of us could have known that this was going to happen or we wouldn't have let her go in the first place," he told him.
Lady Penelope had heard the last part of the conversation between the two brothers. "That's right, John, if anybody is to blame it is me," she told them. "Firstly I should not have allowed myself to be distracted by that man and secondly I should have had that tunnel bricked up years ago. I thought it would be useful for me in my line of work. I'll see that it is bricked up when all of this is over."
"H'if h'it's anybody's fault, h'it's mine," Parker suddenly said. "When Mr John first 'eard those noises that we thought were mice, h'I should 'ave checked 'h'it h'out then, h'and then we would 'ave caught 'em."
The radio links were open between Thunderbirds One, Two and Five and Jeff sitting in the flight deck of Thunderbird Two heard the conversation between his sons, Lady Penelope and Parker. He immediately went over to the radio and spoke to John and Lady Penelope, "Now hear this, none of you are to blame for what's happened, it's those criminals to blame and nobody else. I know it's a worrying situation but we have to stay focused on what we're doing and get her back to us. Is that understood?"
"Yes, Dad," John answered.
"Alright Jeff, I have contacted Charles and he's on his way to Dieppe now," Lady Penelope told him.
Jeff sat down beside Gordon again. His normally easy-going fourth son was still pale with worry. Jeff knew what a strain it was for all of them and at present Gordon was not doing anything constructive to take his mind off his grandmother's plight. He knew what his mother meant to his boys and he was beside himself with worry, too.
After thinking a while he told Gordon. "Get me the maps of the Dieppe area please, son, then we can study them to see where they may be heading."
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Jane offered Ruth one of the sandwiches that had been prepared for the journey. It had been hours since any of them had eaten anything. "Here have this. You must be hungry as we are."
Ruth took the sandwich and thanked her. She began to eat as much as she could, but she was feeling a little seasick and worried too about her situation. It was the bathroom she needed anyway and she knew she couldn't hold out for much longer. She still hadn't spoken to her captors much, but knew she was going to have to. "Excuse me," she asked Jane, "Can I go to the bathroom please, I really need to go?"
Jane looked at her and then at Pennington, "Will it be okay to let her go?" she asked him.
"I don't suppose she can be any harm to us while we are at sea, besides we don't want a mess in here. Take her and wait for her to come back," he told her.
After they had gone out of the seating area, Ken asked Pennington, "Any ideas what we're going to do with her once we get to France?"
"She sounds American. Don't know who she is but if she's in with likes of her who owned the place she could be worth a ransom. It's risky though. On the other hand we could have just taken her back with us to her own country and dumped her there somewhere but there aren't enough seats on the plane. No, we'll just stick to our original plan and dump her somewhere. Or she can just stay on here after we get off and meet Tom. Then she can find her own way back to where she came from, that's the best idea."
"She's seen us all though," the other gang member called Ted answered.
"I wouldn't be too worried if I were you," Pennington laughed. "She looks blind as a bat, and besides what if she has? We'll be well away from here and she doesn't know who we are."
They were interrupted by the sound of Pennington's cell phone ringing. "Steer for St Pierre-en-port," the voice on the other end said. "Dieppe is full of police. I can get closer to you by car there and we'll have to make a run for the plane. Bring the boxes up on deck so we can get them off quicker."
Pennington sighed, "Okay I'll tell Bill. Thanks Tom," he said as he switched off the phone. "You heard what he said, get those boxes up on deck, and get Jane to lend a hand, too."
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Scott flew high over the waters of the English Channel. "Okay, Alan, give me a fix on the transmitter signal now. I must be close to her," he radioed to his youngest brother.
"You are, Scott," Alan said with a little more hope. "You must be flying right above her!"
"There's thick clouds here, spoiling the view. I'll fly lower and circle around," Scott replied.
Alan continued looking at the screen in front of him. The slow moving green light was still strong and showed itself to be directly beneath Thunderbird One.
"Scott, can you see anything yet?" he asked impatiently.
His eldest brother answered immediately, "Don't worry, I can see a small boat below, she must be on it, if she's anywhere. It's heading for the French coast now and not far from it. I'm going to keep an eye on it, they can't escape now. Let the others on the base know, they are bound to be just as worried as we are."
"FAB," Alan said as he opened the connection up to Tracy Island.
The three other members of the Tracy family on board Thunderbird Two listened to the message and looked at each other with some hope at last. Gordon and Jeff studied the map of the French coast to see just where the boat was about to come in to land. .…………………………………………………………………………………………..
There hadn't been too many cars waiting to use the evening ferry to France on that day of the week, so the delay was mercifully short. John sat with Lady Penelope and Parker in the passenger lounge during the crossing. Parker had removed the tracking device from FAB 1 and was watching it intently. "H'It's showing movement to the south-west h'of where we h'are now. We h'are going to 'ave to move quick to catch up with 'em once we get 'hof 'ere."
"This thing is going to take for ever to cross compared with their boat," John complained. He got up and walked around with sheer frustration at not being able to do anything to help save his grandmother. It was almost as bad as being stuck in Thunderbird Five but at least he had somebody to speak to. He sat down again and put his head in his hands in despair.
"Just be thankful they don't go as slow as in the old days, John, dear," Lady Penelope gently squeezed his arm, knowing how worried he must be. "The others will be on the other side to catch up with them, remember?"
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Scott put Thunderbird One in hover mode above the coast and watched the tiny vessel make its way towards a small coastal harbour. He had contacted Charles Leroux and he was on his way from Dieppe with some of the police that had been there.
Once he was able to keep an eye on the position of the boat Scott contacted Virgil in Thunderbird Two.
"Thunderbird One to Thunderbird Two, I'm right over the suspect boat. I'm sure Grandma's still aboard, she just has to be. How far you off, Virgil?"
Virgil checked the instrument panel that gave him the answer to the question. "About nineteen and three quarter minutes, Scott," he answered and braced himself for the usual reply.
"Well hurry it along Virg, this boat is coming in to land soon. I think there's a car waiting for them." Scott replied as he watched the activity below.
"FAB, Scott, Thunderbird Two out," Virgil said as he cut off the communication. He thought to himself, 'I'm travelling at maximum speed, Scott, I can't go any faster.'
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Ruth leaned back on the chair on which she sat feeling utterly despondent. She hadn't a clue what was happening with her family, she couldn't see properly without her spectacles and the sea sickness was not helping her either. She was worried that she may lose the only means she had of being located if the nausea lasted much longer. Her captors were in a state of nervous tension as they paced about and ran up and down to the deck all the time. Suddenly Jane came rushing downstairs and said. "We're about to dock here, Bill said. Come on let's get off this thing and away."
Pennington stayed on the boat while the boxes were being unloaded into the car. There were two more to unload when the police and Charles Leroux arrived on the scene. "Get in the car!" Pennington yelled at the gang members. He ran below deck and pulled Ruth up by her arm and half carried, half pushed her up the steps saying, "Come on Granny you're our ticket to freedom."
Everything seemed to happen at once. Thunderbird Two came into view and hovered above the scene while Scott landed Thunderbird One beside the harbour near where the small boat had docked.
Pennington stood on the deck of the boat with Ruth in front of him, and to Scott's horror he pulled out a knife and held it to his grandmother's throat. "Just let me get in the car and go and I promise she won't get hurt!" the cornered criminal yelled at the nearby police.
Scott moved forward quickly and spoke quietly to a senior policeman, "Do as he says, we've had orders from her son to get her out of this alive. We can still trace them, they won't escape." His eyes caught the terrified look on his grandmother's face and he yearned to pull her away from that brute and kill him. Ruth though was unable to see her eldest grandson just yards from her.
The police officer stepped forward and asked Pennington in broken English, "If we let you go, how do we know you will keep your promise not to harm her? Where do you intend leaving the woman you are holding so we can get her back safely to her family?"
"I'll keep my word, I swear," Pennington said. "We'll leave her in a safe place after we drive away from here, as long as we're not followed, that is. Allow us to leave here in our waiting plane and you can have her back safe and sound."
"We've got to trust him," Scott whispered to the police sergeant urgently. "Let them go, they won't get far without us knowing."
The policeman weighed up the situation for a few seconds. He wondered who this little old lady was that International Rescue had been called out by her son to save her. He must be someone important. Not being able to come up with an alternate solution to save the life of the hostage he said, "Very well, we will do as you ask. Please do nothing to harm her."
Scott watched his beloved grandmother being dragged from the boat at knifepoint, and into the car nearby that was big enough to carry the entire gang. Her hair, normally tidy and pinned back was falling loosely about her shoulders. She looked ill, tired and above all terrified and she was not wearing her spectacles. She appeared unhurt physically as far as he could see. That was something he was thankful for at least.
As the car quickly sped away Scott turned to Charles Leroux, "They said they were leaving in a plane so there must be a small airfield around here. You follow them discreetly with the police in about fifteen minutes. We'll follow in the air and I'll contact you with the map reference as soon as I get it."
"What about Lady Penelope, shall I inform her?" he asked.
"Yes, fill her in with the details. She should be in France soon." Scott ran to get back on board Thunderbird One and inform the others what had happened though careful enough to spare the full extent of the details. He omitted the part about the knife and just said his grandmother had been taken as a hostage. He knew his father and younger brothers could only stand so much worry.
"We've got to let them think they can get away, Dad," Scott told him. "It's our only chance to get Grandma back safely. If we follow too soon they might do something to harm her. Alan is still tracking her and Penny will be able to link her tracking device to Thunderbird Five once the gang gets airborne. She's been told what's happened and should be over here with John soon."
Jeff sat silently thinking. He rubbed his eyes and neck then said, "Right, here's what we'll do. You follow your grandmother, Scott, to where ever they take her en route to their plane. Virgil, go to Dieppe. We are going to meet Penny and John from the ferry and pick them and the car up. Then we'll follow you, Scott. That way we can all get re-united quicker."
"FAB," Scott and Virgil both said in unison as they began to carry out their instructions, each hoping their grandmother's ordeal would soon be over. The worry was now if they would find her safe and well.
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