I wonder if these notes are really necessary. Probably not. I never read other people's notes. But I like to write them anyway. I got second place at an oratory competition. Don't feel sorry for me though, because I got a lot of money, it was really close, and I don't have to stress about going on to the next level which is really difficult. And it was fun.
Disclaimer: I do not own anything except the things I own. The things I own are the things not owned by Colfer. Colfer owns everything except the things I own. The things Colfer owns are the things I do not own. :) Try that one, all you people who think you're the next Artemis Fowl.
The men were waiting for them at the top, where they'd at last managed to get a pretense of order. They saw Zane first, and wondered how he'd gotten so far, with such a great loss of blood, and in so much pain.
Then, they saw the little girl. Really, she did look like a little girl— only about five feet tall, and with deceptively innocent eyes. Her right hand had been crushed to pulp, but she did not seem to know it.
For a moment, they paused, half wondering if their had been some mistake. There had been, but the mistake was in waiting. Madam quickly tucked the lump under her good arm, and held the end of the fuse between two of her fingers, half an inch from the flame of her lighter. "One of you— where is the stairs to the next floor?" Someone in the room would know English. It was taught often in foreign countries.
A man pointed to the right without thinking, and was instantly knifed down by someone behind him.
Madam smiled knowingly, and motioned Zane onward. "Very well. We will proceed. If any of you decides to come to close, I will touch the end of the fuse to my flame. I'm sure you know the results better than I do. They would not be good ones."
Slowly, the men began to step back, giving them room to walk, not willing to risk the explosion. The whole idea of what would happen if they got in the way was pretty obvious, even to those with no idea of what she was saying. The explosion would be huge.
To Valerie's relief, the entrance to the upper level stairway was but a few feet from the lower level entrance. They hurried into it's shelter, and Zane hastily sealed the doors.
"Alright, now what?" He stared at her tiredly. "Now what do we do?"
"Keep going." Madam turned, listening intently. "There aren't many people we will have to deal with here. Trust me, Zane! I will get us out of here alive. We have work to do!"
"What work?"
Madam shook her head in annoyance. "Have you forgotten why you were sent to Russia in the first place?"
Zane stared at her in open horror. "You cannot seriously be thinking that we should do anything other than leave the country with all speed! This is ridiculous! Absurd!"
"Which is why we will do it," said Madam pettishly. "I like doing ridiculous things, Zane. You should know this by now!"
Slowly, Zane turned, shook the tiredness out of himself, and hurried upwards, Madam close behind him. He would have to trust her. He had, and he was alive, after all.
The guards on the upper floor had not anticipated them, that was obvious. They were slow in reacting, and some were not ever aware that they were there until they came around a corner.
Finally, they stopped, now certain that everyone of any threat on their floor was dead. Below, though, they could hear the men, working on the doors. They would not hold for much longer. Madam frowned at this. Surely The Tyrant would have opened the doors for his men! Unless—
He was a coward, this Tyrant. She was sure of it. No doubt he had already left the building, afraid that she would carry through with her idle threat to destroy it.
Perhaps he was waiting for them— waiting to follow them, just in case they went to get the diamond that he so desperately wanted to own for himself. If so, problems could arise.
Madam shook her head and looked up, knowing their best course of action would be to get out of the building. Once they were on the roof, they could map out a way of escape. And the men would not know where they were for a while. They could see the men coming. It was a good idea. She motioned to Zane to follow, and led the way on.
They went to one of the outer rooms, one full of boxes of weapons and such, and she peered out. The guards were gone from their posts, no doubt called into the building to help overcome the escaped prisoners. She was certain that no one in The Fortress would ever live this day down.
When they spoke of being a man of The Fortress, people would snicker behind their backs. Oh yes— The Fortress— supposedly the most secure place in the world. Its security had been breached by a little girl, and a man tortured for days. Ha!
Madam opened the window suddenly, and looked up. The roof was so close! If they could just reach that…
She looked towards the transportation storage area. She smiled. On top, were three helicopters. These were slightly farther away, but they were very convenient. Perfect.
"Zane? Those helicopters— can you operate one?"
He sighed, and shut his eyes a moment. "Yes, but… I don't think I can get over there. I hurt like hell! And I'm so damn tired!"
"I'm sorry. We have to though."
"How?" It wasn't just a question, it was a challenge. Madam accepted the challenge.
"Climb down to the hallway between this building and that. Then, walk across, climb up, break in, hotwire it, and fly away. Easy. In theory. But we can do it, Zane. I know we can! We're so close!" She almost sounded angry here. A little desperate.
Zane nodded tiredly. "Alright. Fine. You go first, and I'll follow you. I'm too tired to lead, and I'm make a mistake."
"You can sleep soon, Zane. I promise." Valerie studied the roof of the hallway. It was almost six feet below her. A jump might be heard, and if they were heard— She shook her head.
"You go first, and I'll help lower you so you don't make a loud thud. Then, you can pull me out, and I'll shut the window behind me."
"That's—" He broke off.
"Ridiculous?" She smiled. "Of course. Absurd? I know. Good, better, best, Zane. That is what we want. Surely you've learned this by now? It works almost every time!"
"Fine," he muttered. He gave up. The woman had been right, and she was no doubt right again. "Let's go."
Slowly, he climbed up on the window sill, studying the roof below. It was farther down than it looked. With a sigh, he turned, and grabbed her good arm with one hand, and the window sill with the other. "Are you sure you can hold my weight?"
"Of course. Now hurry up!" She leaned over, lowering him more. "How close are you?"
"Two more feet."
Madam gritted her teeth in impatience, and leaned almost all the way out of the window, letting go off him as his weight lessened. "Has anyone spotted you, Zane?"
Zane paused, looking around cautiously. There were no guards in sight. He could hear them though. They were going wild inside the building. "We're good. Swing down; I'll catch you."
"You'd better," muttered Madam threateningly. She turned around, and was out of sight for a moment.
"Hurry up!"
Madam reappeared, glaring at him. "I'm coming!" She swung herself out of the window on her left hand, pushed it most of the way closed, and did a rather clumsy drop, broken by his waiting arms. "Right. I think they've broken through the door."
Zane swore under his breath, but turned and ran after her. He could hardly believe it! It was incredible! It had officially been accepted as fact that it was impossible to break into The Fortress eight years ago, when a world renowned thief had failed. And she— she was only eighteen! And look how far they'd come! They'd gone in, and come out!
Elation welled up inside him. They would make the big news, that was for sure.
Madam glanced back, shaking her head. "It'll take them a while, I imagine— to figure out where we are. I left out door open, and locked another on the opposite side."
"Where'd you learn this stuff?" He slowed to a stop beside her, and looked up towards the roof. "Who taught you?"
For an instant, she looked at him, almost angrily. Then, she glanced down at her watch. "Come on. We've got to go faster! How can we get up there? Is there any way you can lift me up?"
"Probably." Zane shook his head. Trust him to hit her one touchy subject without trying. Still, he wondered though. He'd never heard a professional criminal with her philosophy. It was an interesting one. Become like a little child. The absurd, ridiculous, and impossible things are often the most likely to work, because no one expects them.
Madam nodded, and turned around. "Then hurry up! When don't have all day!"
"I thought you said you'd detained them." Zane wrapped his hands around her waist, and hoisted her up over his head, surprised by how light and tiny she was to hold.
"I did." Madam grunted, and pulled herself up on her one good arm with painful slowness. "Unfortunately, it's not going to last for forever. One of them will look out a window, and see us over here. Then, they'll come after us, shooting on the way, because The Tyrant left the building. But then again, perhaps they don't know that yet."
Zane tested the wall with his boots, and decided it would be so bad. "Then how do you know?"
"He didn't unlock the doors for them and let them out." She lay down on her stomach and reached over the edge far enough for him to grab on. "Please hurry up, Zane!"
Grumbling at her impatience, Zane grabbed her arm, and walked up the side of the wall onto the roof. If she was bothered by the crushed hand at all, it still wasn't much of a handicap. She'd done pretty well with her left hand. Unless that was her dominant hand. "Can I ask a really odd question for the moment? Are you left-handed?"
Madam stopped, half way to her feet, giving him a look that told him exactly what she thought of 'really odd questions for the moment. "No, I'm not. I'm right-handed."
"You do… very well with your left hand." Zane looked away, angry with himself for feeling guilty. It was ridiculous! He felt like a small child who'd done something wrong.
Madam turned, and hurried to the nearest helicopter, checking to see if it was locked.
It was.
Zane sighed. "Now what?"
"Shut up!" Madam bent, and squinted at the lock a moment. "Three tumblers. Is there anything around here that I can pick it with?"
"No."
This close! Madam wanted to scream. We're this close, damn it! The men would figure it out any minute. There had to be something they could do! She looked around the roof franticly, wishing more than anything now, that she had her keys. Even something to pick it with! It wasn't as if it was an extremely difficult lock.
She turned in a slow circle. Nothing.
"What do you want me to do?" Zane leaned against the copter, waiting. This was her job. He was going to worry about it. She'd gotten them this far, after all. He was sure she'd figure it out.
"I want you to start thinking!" She pounded a fist against the copter window in frustration. "Only keep your mouth shut while you do it!"
Zane shrugged, and looked back towards the building. What were they supposed to do? It was amazing they'd come this far, even. He'd have never thought—
Madam let out a cry of anger: almost a sob, and ran across the roof to the trapdoor leading down into the main building, checking her watch as she did so. "Hurry up, Zane!"
"Why?"
"We don't have much more time!" She beckoned him towards her urgently, watching the building behind him with worried eyes.
Zane jogged to her, and followed her down the steps. "What's the hurry?"
"Oh— It's just that room was full of explosives, and I attached as many fuses as I could to a timer, and set it for five minutes."
He froze. "A roomful?"
"Yes."
"And how long has it been?"
"About four minutes and forty-two seconds."
BOOM! Hee hee… I had to scare you. They can't blow up yet, of course, so it'll be okay.
You who do not review: Your evils will condemn you on the day of judgment. :)
