Chapter Eleven

In the Tank

Edward Hall knew he was being followed the moment he left the freeway. This road did not lead anywhere as such; he just liked to appreciate the countryside.

The other car, a red Land Rover, had turned off soon after, and was making an obvious decision not to get seen. It kept slowing when Edward was looking, in a vain attempt to get out of sight.

He decided to trick the following vehicle, by turning off into an old house he knew was in the area. It had not been boarded up, and was only a couple of miles down the road. If he pulled in, and entered the house, the car tailing him could not follow, for then he would know. But, if there was a sinister motive, they would have to follow him.

He rounded a corner and slipped slightly on the icy road. He brought his car under control, but it was very muddy, and he had to be very careful what he did.

But suddenly, he saw something that made his blood run cold. The person in the car behind had a weapon. He didn't know what it was, but it was cold and steel and deadly.

He sped up, and the Land Rover sped up too, but suddenly it met the muddy part of the country lane, and skidded. The driver's attention had been focused on Edward Hall, and suddenly the Land Rover had smashed into the back of the convertible, practically slicing Hall in half. He was lucky, and managed to grab the backseat, pulling himself out of the wreck.

But now, he was in the middle of the road. Hunter saw his chance, and advanced. But, not from the Land Rover, as Hall had suspected. Hunter came from the other end of the road, speeding towards the helpless Businessman.

Edward Hall reached forward with one arm, trying to free his other.

"Stop!" he screamed, but, due to pain, it only came out as a hoarse whisper.

He tried to work his hand free from beneath the wheel, and saw the other driver. His head had protruded through the windscreen. The weapon he had been wielding was a can of coke. He was not at all dangerous, and Edward Hall felt stupid for a moment.

Suddenly his hand was free, and he stood up. The car was only about four feet away, and Hall jumped away at the last second. But Hunter wasn't about to let him escape. Suddenly, a crash of bullets fired from the car window, and Hall dropped to the floor. Blood dripped from his wounds.

Hunter drove on, and threw away the gun. One businessman left.

Alex opened the door to the lab. He winced slightly as it creaked, but then relaxed. There was no one about, and it was the dead of night. Everyone would have gone home.
He had caught the bus to a shopping centre, and bought himself a thick woollen polo neck jumper, a black knitted hat, and pair of black jeans. He needed something looser, but there was nothing. He was lucky to get what he did, with it being so close to Christmas.

He had also bought some rather strange items. Smithers had given him nothing, as MI6 had found some budget restrictions, and so Alex had made his own.

They were specific to what he needed, and he knew when he would need them.

First, he had sharpened the edges of a two-euro coin, creating a form of throwing dagger. It wouldn't kill you, but it would graze the skin.

For his other gadget, he had bought an ordinary biro, and some wire. He'd connected the wire to the microphone device he had used at the interview. He wrapped it around the ink feeder, and placed the biro in his pocket. He now had a way of communicating with Vicky. She was on watch outside.

He had also brought a kitchen knife, as he knew it would be useful.

Getting past the security was simple. He managed to manoeuvre away from the security cameras, and the lock system was simply a padlock.

Now, he was entering the lab. His immediate reaction was that he had entered outerspace. It looked like the inside of a space ship, where aliens do experiments on kidnapped humans. The whole room was gleaming and shiny. His reflection was everywhere, and the light from his torch illuminated the whole room. It was like a hall of mirrors at a theme park.

Alex approached the tank. He couldn't see what was in it, but he already knew. He tried lifting the tank, but couldn't. He knew that he couldn't move it at all, and he knew. He would have to reach inside. He reached in, and felt something mushy. He pulled, and it came free of the chargers. Slowly, as the water trickled away, Alex saw what was really inside the tank.