The Eleventh Hour

by CubbiesFan1

A story from Race's past. On this particular Intelligence One assignment, Race encounters a number a questionable characters. But will he know who he can trust? And will he be able to stop a potential disaster that could launch the world's powers into war?

9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I do not own Jonny Quest. I am making no money off of this and it is purely for fun and enjoyment.

Chapter 9

"I'm saying this is just the beginning." Askar grinned as he raised the handgun again.

"No!" Phil shouted as he lunged at the Kazakhstani.

"We all must die now." Askar declared. Sticking the barrel of the pistol under his chin, Askar closed his eyes as he squeezed the trigger, the round expelled from the barrel in a heartbeat and ripped through the disgraced scientist's head, exploding out the back of his skull.

Race froze, the sight before him both shockingly unbelievable and painfully predictable at the same time. As if in slow motion, he watched as the bullet tore through Arman's brain, his life vacating his body at the exact same moment as the bullet ripped him apart.

Race gasped, realizing that Askar's suicide also doomed them all. He tried to move, but couldn't; transfixed in his spot, unable to react, only able to watch as the Kazakhstani's eyes rolled into the back of his head, the pistol falling from his hand as his life vacated his body.

"Look out!"

Race heard the shout, but it didn't register at first. He'd seen a lot in his time, but never this; never a man wearing a suicide vest and depressing a plunger that, if released, would detonate the bomb and kill them all suddenly putting the barrel of a gun under his chin and squeezing the trigger. Looking at his partner, he saw shock and pain blanketed across Corbin's face. He had tried to talk Askar down, but had failed; witnessing the result of that failure had immediately affected Phil just as it had Race.

Jade dove at the exact moment that Askar fired; having snuck up to the man's side as he was distracted by the I-1 Agents. She had seen the opportunity at the very second it happened and reacted; diving towards the man in one last attempt to save everyone that was trapped in the hotel.

Before Askar's thumb moved, Jade clamped both her hands around his and the plunger. She fell with Askar, her body hitting the floor just as his did as well. Keeping her mind focused, she kept her hands pressed firmly against the dead man's hand and thefore plunger. She averted her eyes from Askar's face which was torn apart by the bullet that he had fired in one last ditch attempt to absolve himself of his sins.

"Do something!" Jade shouted as she rolled on the ground with the dead man.

Her words managed to snap Race from his momentary daze; shaking the cloudiness from his mind he took in the situation and scrambled forward towards Jade and what was left of Doctor Arman.

"Be careful! Keep clear of his blood." A voice stated.

Race heard the statement, but he couldn't place the voice, he'd never heard the speaker before. Inhaling and exhaling, Race focused his thoughts as he examined the bomb. Looking towards Jade he said, "No matter what happens, do NOT let go of his hand."

"I hadn't planned on it." Jade replied, her voice even but Race could tell she was scared.

Looking at Phil, who stood over them taking in the scene, Race ordered, "I need to disarm this device. Move these people to safety now."

"There's nowhere for them to go," Phil countered, Race's orders shaking the other man from his dazed state. "We're locked in."

"Figure it out, Phil!" Race shouted before turning his attention to the bomb on the dead man's back. Pulling back on Arman's jacket in order to expose the device, he was at least thankful that it appeared to be victim operated versus on a timer, but that meant he had to rely on Jade to keep the plunger depressed until he could diffuse the bomb. This was one of Race's areas of expertise, however what really made him nervous was the strange canister that was attached to the bomb, a canister that he assumed contained the bio-agent that Askar would have released if he had detonated.

"Move back." Phil ordered as he turned away from Race and Jade, ordering the scared and worried onlookers to keep their distance.

Alena and the Quests came forward. Benton spoke, "Phil, from what he said, it sounds like he was infected. Do not let your man touch his blood."

Phil nodded, but he was unsure how to stop Race from doing just that.

Benton looked at the man that Doctor Arman had shot in the initial attack then back at Phil. Rachel's gaze followed her husband's before she said, "Let me help him, Agent Corbin. I'm probably the only medical doctor in here."

Phil looked back briefly at Arman's first victim then back at Rachel. He nodded and Rachel moved over to examine him. A moment later she said with remorse, "He's gone."

"Get them back, Phil." Race growled again as he studied the bomb. "I can't work with all these people around."

"Please move back." Corbin pleaded with his hands raised in an attempt to block the frightened onlookers again. He turned his gaze towards Alena, who immediately saw the desperation in his eyes. "Alena, help me move these people back, please." He request of her.

Nodding she turned and stood next to him. With a firm, but also sympathetic tone she announced, "Everyone, move back, please. Give these people room to work. I promise you'll be safe, but they need you to cooperate so they can do what needs to be done."

Her words must have gotten through to the group as the wave of onlookers swarmed backwards. Phil gave the Czech woman a smile which she returned in kind. "Thanks."

"Of course," Alena nodded as she placed her hands on his forearm and gave him a hopeful squeeze, "Now just make sure we get out of this alive, Phil."

Nodding, Phil turned back towards Race and asked, "What do you need?"

"I need to be able to see." Race grumbled. "This is a victim-activated device. If the plunger is released we all die."

"I guarantee that won't happen, Bannon." Jade stated with such determination that Race believed the woman would die before she let go.

"Arman's blood may be infected as well." Phil said as he removed his personal belongings from the inside pockets of his jacket and shoved them into his pants pockets. Removing the jacket, Phil draped it over Askar's face, both as a means to soak up the blood, but also give a small amount of dignity to the dead man.

Pulling his bowtie off, tossing it aside then unbuttoning the top of his shirt, Phil stated, "I hate tuxedoes."

Race laughed grimly as his friend restated his own proclamation from earlier in the evening; earlier that suddenly felt like a lifetime ago. "I need more light." Race stated. "Help me get him up." Looking over at Jade, Race instructed. "Keep holding his hand down as we move him. No matter what, do not let that plunger move."

Jade nodded, "Got it."

"Let's move him onto that table." Race pointed at a nearby table that was located under one of the overhead lights.

"Clear that table off." Phil shouted then heard the rustling of the items being strewn aside.

"We have to move quickly." Race said as he removed his own jacket and bowtie. Rolling up his sleeves with a quickness, he then hooked his arms under Askar's shoulders, trying his best to keep from touching the dead man's bodily fluids.

Phil crouched down and grabbed the corpse's legs then looked at Race. "On your mark."

Race nodded as he turned to Jade. "We're going to lift him on the count of three. Like I said, do not let that plunger slip."

Jade kept a firm grip around the plunger and Askar's hand. Nodding she said, "Just get a move on, handsome."

Race looked Phil in the eyes and said, "On three. One...two...three." As he said the last number, the two men lifted Askar's prone body and moved him over to the table, placing the corpse face down upon it.

"Now what?" Phil asked once they had placed Arman's body under the light.

"I need a tool. A Gerber...Leatherman...pliers...something." Race stated.

Jade jerked her head, "My purse. My tools are in there."

Phil couldn't help but smirk at Jade's reply, but he kept his comments to himself. Hearing the other woman's statement, Alena rushed over and retrieved Jade's purse from where she had dropped it. Handing it over to Phil, the I-1 Agent opened it, rummaged through its contents, then withdrew a Leatherman from inside. Opening the multi-tool, he handed it over to Race who nodded his thanks.

"Can't we just remove the bomb from his body and disarm it outside once we figure out how to get the doors open? " Phil asked as he watched Race trace the wires.

Shaking his head, Race pointed at a pair of wires that ran along the shoulder straps of the device. "You see those wires? He's been booby-trapped."

"What for?" Phil asked.

"If we try to remove the vest a secondary circuit will activate. It's like a failsafe they must have worked in to prevent him from removing the bomb and going to the authorities. Sick bastards." Race responded. Wiping the perspiration from his brow he explained. "If I can deactivate the primary device, which includes the trigger that activates the release of the bio-agent, then the secondary trip wire is no problem. Just give me some breathing room."

Phil nodded, "Got it."

"How you doing, Jade?" Race asked, keeping his voice even to remain calm.

"I'm okay for now, just hurry up, alright?"

Race nodded as he focused on the bomb, his mind running a number of possible scenarios at once in order to determine just exactly how he needed to proceed.

Phil stood by and watched, as did everyone else in the hall; knowing that Bannon was their only hope of survival. Reaching into his pocket he withdrew his cell phone and saw there was no signal. Turning towards Alena, who once again was at his side, he asked. "Do you have a cell signal?"

As she checked her cell, Phil could tell by her confused expression that she did not. "Stay here." He instructed and moved over towards the doors that Arman had chained shut. Rummaging in the gym bag, Phil found what he was looking for. Arman had used a signal jammer to block the people inside from calling for aid. He had to assume that no help was on the way.

Out of the corner of his eye, Race saw his partner moving towards the door. "Don't turn that off!" Race ordered as soon as he saw the small box in Corbin's hand. "It could be a trick."

"I thought you said it was victim-activated." Phil said as he came up next to Race.

"Whoever made this bomb is good, like really good. I wouldn't be surprised if he wired in a tertiary trigger as well, one that's remotely activated. You turn that off, call for help, and boom. We're dead."

"So we're on our own." Phil remarked with a scowl. "It's up to you, Race."

"Yeah," Race turned his attention back to the bomb. "No pressure, right?"

"Just let me know what you need me to do."

"Keep these people calm and wish me luck, man."

With a nod, Phil moved back to stand with the others, hoping that Race's expertise and knowledge in explosives was about to pay off.

With a glance and a nod to Jade, Race picked up the multi-tool in one hand, while tracing the wires that wound through the device with the other. Cursing whoever made the bomb for using all the same color wires, Race breathed evenly as his fingers came upon three blocks of C4; more than enough to destroy the hotel and kill everyone inside, not to mention spreading the contents of the canister across the entire block.

Race turned his attention to the canister and studied that portion of the bomb as well. He'd disarmed enough explosives, both in training and real world missions, but never one that had a biological agent attached to it. Tracing the path of the wires, he saw that the canister had been hardwired in with the C4, the explosion being enough to set it off. And even if that failed, Vostok had infected Arman directly as well, the man's blood already carrying the deadly concoction. Race assumed that the bio-agent was resilient enough to survive the blast, as well as infectious enough to spread through bodily fluid contact. Vostok wanted to ensure the agent spread, both through the explosion of the device and Arman's body.

"Sick fucker." Race mumbled as his fingers glided over the wires.

"Hurry up, Bannon." Jade muttered; he had been so focused on the bomb that he had momentarily forgotten about the woman.

Moving to her side, Race examined the plunger and the wires that let to it. "It'd be too simple to just severe the trigger from the bomb." He said then looked at her with both admiration and worry. "You'll have to keep holding on."

"Then stop pussyfooting around," Jade said with a forced laugh. "My fingers are starting to cramp."

Looking towards his partner, Race said, "Phil, find a flashlight and get over here."

With a nod, the other man grabbed Jade's purse again and found a small flashlight. Clicking it on he came over to Race's side. "Just tell me where to shine it."

Pointing at the path of wires going from the C4 to the canister, Race explained. "I think I need to cut those wires first, disable the circuit leading from the explosives to the bio-agent. "

"You think?" Phil raised an eyebrow towards him.

"It's the best I can surmise with the way this device is rigged. At least then the canister will be disabled."

"Then we only have the bomb itself to worry about." Phil said with tired amusement.

"One step at a time, partner." Race replied.

"Well get to it then." Jade threw in. "Like I said, my fingers are starting to cramp and I'd like to get out of here sometime soon as would everyone else for that matter. I actually have plans for the rest of the evening."

Race gave the woman a smile then turned back to the bomb. Pointing he said, "Hold the light there so I can see."

Phil nodded and did as told. Bending down, Race once again traced the wires with his thumb and index finger. Finding the right spot, he saddled closer and slid the clamps of the multi-tool over the wire. Taking a deep breath, Race hoped that he was right; if not in about half a second it wouldn't matter.

Holding the wire with his fingers of one hand, he slowly squeezed the multi-tool so it clamped down on the wire. Then with just enough pressure he squeezed again and the wire snipped in half.

Nothing happened. He exhaled and heard Phil standing over him do the same.

Working quickly, Race severed the wires from the two remaining blocks of C4. Once complete, he retraced the paths of the wires to ensure the canister was no longer connected to the bomb. Satisfied he had succeeded, he readjusted the tool and opened up the small screwdriver on the device.

"What are you doing?" Phil asked as he moved the light to assist Race's visibility.

"Removing the canister." Race replied, then added, "Just in case."

Corbin didn't need Race to say the rest, he knew what the white-haired man meant. Holding the light with one hand, he placed his other on the canister to support it.

Working the screws from the four points on the bracket, Race released the canister as Phil pulled it back away from the rest of the bomb. Both men breathed sighs of relief as the bio-agent was separated.

Race focused his attention back onto the booby-trapped portion of the vest. Coming over to Phil's side, Doctor Quest said, "Give it to me. I'll keep it safe until you two are finished."

Corbin nodded his thanks to the American scientist as he handed the canister over to the bearded man. He watched for a few seconds as Benton took the canister over towards one of the far corners of the room then waited with it, not letting anyone, even his wife, come close.

"I need to disconnect the trip wires then ensure the C4 is no longer wired in with the plunger. You doing alright, Jade?" Race said.

Nodding, Jade replied, "Just stop talking about it and do it."

Race set his attention back to his task. With the bio-agent gone, Race felt a surge of confidence return to his body as he got back to the situation at hand. He traced and cut the wires for the booby-trap then did the same once again for the wires running from the plunger to the explosives.

What had felt like an eternity had only been a matter of minutes. Stepping back, Race looked between the device and Jade; he could only hope that he'd cut the correct wires.

Phil clicked the flashlight off and looked at his partner. "Now what?"

Race gave the other man a look and leaned in close in order to whisper in his ear, "The moment of truth. Move these people as far back as possible."

Phil studied Race for a moment, "If things go wrong that's not going to matter, you know."

"It's just for their peace of mind. Get them behind the tables or something."

Nodding, Phil moved out and with Alena's assistance corralled the group of frightened people back to the far corner of the room, opposite where Benton sat with the canister. Giving Alena a smile, Phil spoke softly to her, "Stay with them, okay?"

Alena smiled back, astonished by the calm and tenderness in his voice. "Where are you going?"

Phil jerked his head towards Benton, "If we're about to die, I'm not letting him die alone."

"Let me go to him." Rachel said from Alena's side.

Phil shook his head, "No, Rachel. You two have to be apart, just in case. For your son's sake."

Rachel understood the Agent's meaning and even though she didn't like it, she agreed.

When he saw the agreement in Rachel's facial features he attempted to put on his most confident smile and said, "But you know something, Bannon's our best bomb tech, so I wouldn't fret too much."

As he moved to go, Alena placed a hand on his arm, grabbing his attention. As he looked into her eyes, she gave him a comforting smile, then leaned forward and kissed him quickly and softly on the lips. Smiling back at her, he winked then moved off towards Benton.

Alena and Rachel watched as the Agent sat down next to the scientist then said something to him which caused Benton to look over at the women and smile. "Just in case." Alena whispered as she watched the American Agent that she had previously spent the night with, having thrown all her reservations and inhabitations out the window and being spontaneous with Phil, just like her best friend, Rachel Quest, had always pushed her to be. She just hoped that the other I-1 Agent succeeded in his morbid task.

"We sure know how to pick 'em, don't we, Alena?" Rachel laughed nervously.

"That we do, hon." Alena agreed, her voice barely above a whisper.

Once the crowd was moved back and Race saw Phil go towards the isolated man in the corner, he moved over to Jade's side and wrapped his hands around hers. Looking up at him, Jade gave him a weary, but sexy smile. "This is it then, huh, Bannon?"

"Yep and I'm not leaving your side, so don't even say it, babe."

"Babe?" Jade laughed. "So it's like that now?"

"Let's just hope I was successful and we'll see where it goes."

"Race, if we don't die in the next five seconds I'm going to reward you handsomely for this later tonight."

Race grinned, "Well, let's hope we don't die then."

A silence fell over the pair as their gazes met and locked. Race leaned his head down and kissed Jade's lips with such passion that she almost let go of the plunger, only his own strong hands wrapped around hers kept her from doing so. Returning the kiss with just as much eagerness and passion as he had given her, all of Jade's fears and anxieties melted away; if they were about to die she would die content, embraced by a man she barely knew, but suddenly loved more than any man she'd ever known before.

Even though she never wanted the moment to end, their lips parted. Holding each other's stares, the couple breathed three deep breaths in unison, then Race said, "You ready?"

"Yes." Jade replied.

"Let go." Race kept his eyes open and continued to start into Jade's dazzling green orbs.

"Alright." Jade breathed and opened her hand at the exact same moment that Race let go as well. She felt the dead man's hand fall from the plunger and heard the distinct click of the button popping back up.

Jade was frozen in the moment, unable to tear her eyes away from Bannon. If they were in the mists of death she didn't know nor did she care. She let out a breath.

A breath that indicated she was alive.

Nothing happened.

Watching her lover's face, she saw the realization hit him as well as their eyes turned as one towards the dead man and the bomb that was strapped to his body; the bomb that Race had successfully made inert.

"You did it!" Jade exclaimed, jumping into his arms and wrapping her hands around his neck once again before planting a kiss on his lips.

Pulling away from the kiss, Race let out a sigh of relief. "Yeah, I sure did. In fact, we both did."

Jade pulled him in close again and as the two embraced they heard the sighs and cries of relief from the crowd of symposium guests whose lives they had just saved. They kissed again, this time with a passion that released all the tension and fear from the last few minutes of their lives.

"Damn, Bannon, as if I needed any more reasons to find you sexy as hell." Jade giggled as their lips parted.

Blushing, Race gave her another brief kiss before letting go and turning towards Corbin who had just come up to join them. "I expect a bonus for this one, Corbin." Race stated.

"I'll write the recommendation myself." Corbin laughed as he slapped Race on the shoulder. "Now we just have to get out of here. I need some air."

"We all do." Race agreed. "Let's get those doors unlocked."

"Right," Phil agreed as Race moved off to look for a means to break the lock.

Reaching over, Corbin placed a hand on Jade's upper arm, drawing the woman's attention to him. "Good work there, Jade. That was quick thinking on your part and pretty damn brave if you ask me."

Jade hesitated, surprised at the man's compliment. Perhaps she had figured Corbin wrong, perhaps he didn't despise her to the point that he couldn't stand to be around her. "Thanks, Phil. I just reacted that's all."

Phil nodded and said, "Well, you saved the lives of these people and everyone else in the entire hotel as well. So I just wanted to say thank you."

Jade gave him a genuine smile and replied, "You're welcome, Phil."

With a nod, the veteran I-1 Agent moved to the body of the man that Arman had shot. Jade watched Corbin kneel down next to the man to close his eyelids. The act filled Jade with sorrow; they hadn't been able to save everyone. Looking away, Jade headed over to where Race stood next to the chained doors.

"Can you pick this lock?" Race asked as Jade joined him.

"Bannon, there isn't a lock I can't pick." Jade replied before retrieving her purse and rejoining him at the door.

"Good because you mentioned something about a reward earlier." Race grinned.

"Calm down, tiger." Jade purred. "Let's get out of this room first. Then, well, then we can talk about that reward."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"What has happened now?" Vostok slammed his fist on the wooden table, rattling it and its contents, making Peter flinch.

Colonel Yasimov had just reported that Doctor Arman had failed in his mission. Nikolai shifted nervously at the General's outburst, afraid Vostok could take his anger out on him, even though he was only the messenger.

"Our lookout wasn't sure until the doors were finally opened." He reported. "From what he could tell amidst the confusion, it looked like Arman shot himself and someone disarmed the bomb."

"Those damn Intelligence Agents from America I'm sure." Vostok growled. "I am tired of these Americans interfering in our affairs! How do they always know where we will strike?"

Yasimov had no answer, so he remained silent.

Vostok balled one of his hands into a fist then slammed it into his other palm, "I want those men dead."

"What about the attack?" Peter asked.

Vostok scowled at the bomb maker, "The main attack will proceed on schedule. Perhaps you can ensure that your work is not so easily defeated for this one, yes?"

Peter's eyes darted wildly at the General's words. "My design was perfect."

"Obviously it was not!" Vostok screamed as he lashed out and struck the bomb maker across the face with the back of his hand. "Do it right this time."

Stumbling from the blow, Peter lifted a hand to his wounded face and felt blood upon his lips. "Yes, General. I'm sorry, I did not mean to speak out of turn."

"Do not let it happen again, comrade." Vostok muttered.

A knock on the door drew the attention of the General and the Colonel, much to the bomb maker's relief. A moment later the door opened and a soldier entered, giving the General a sharp salute.

"What is it?" Vostok asked, not pleased by the interruption.

"Sir, we've caught an intruder lurking about in the woods." The soldier reported.

"Really? Bring him here." Vostok demanded.

"Yes, Sir." The soldier saluted and left. A few moments later he returned with the prisoner in tow.

The old man stood defiant in the presence of Vostok, which both pleased and angered the Soviet General. He detested weakness, so when his enemies stood rebelliously before him, Vostok felt the need to acknowledge it. "You are brave, old man."

The man glared at Vostok for a moment then said, "I am an old man. I remember how things were before and I will do anything to ensure those times remain in the past."

The pigeon man's words brought a dark cloud over the General. "You do not appreciate what you've lost. I regret that you will not live long enough to see your city restored to its former glory under Soviet rule."

The man spat at the floor, "I care not for my life, you Soviet pigs. You will be stopped."

Vostok's anger rose, but then he leaned back and laughed, "By, you old man? I think not."

"The Americans will stop you. They've already disrupted your plans. You're losing, Vostok. Once again you are losing to the Americans." The old man grinned with satisfaction as he watched the bald man's face react to his statement.

"I will never lose to those American dogs. I will learn the truth from them before I destroy them and their allies here in Prague." Vostok shot back. "And you, my old gnarled friend, will lead them straight to me."

The old man cringed in response to Vostok's proclamation. "I'll never help you."

"Oh you will, comrade. In fact, all I need you to do is relax." A low evil, chuckle rose forth from Vostok's throat. "Or do not. It does not matter, either way you will not leave this farm alive."

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To Be Continued...