‘Nah, this’ll do it.’
‘So what’s the deal with this bomb?’
‘It’s huge, at least three metres long with three warheads. It’s like the Godzilla of explosive devices. I’ve never seen anything like it.’
‘And who are these people? Why are they doing this?’
‘I met the main guy, this handsome prick, said something about trying to motivate people to use renewable energy. . ‘ Judd trails off as he focuses the telescope again. ‘The chopper’s descending. Take us down.’
The Loach follows the Air-Crane down through the smoke haze. They watch the giant chopper land in the middle of a small, tree-lined park, opposite a large building with a tall beige tower.
Judd scans the area. ‘Is there anything important round here? A reason to detonate a bomb?’
Lola shakes her head. ‘Not really. It’s just West Pico. Nothing out of the ordinary.’
Judd turns to Corey. ‘We need to land close by — but not too close. They can’t know we’re here.’
Corey nods and plays the Loach’s controls.
Bunsen pushes open the Tyrannosaur’s cockpit and turns to Enrico. ‘Be ready to leave in five.’ The pilot nods and Bunsen slides out.
From the rear cabin Kilroy passes him the long grey bag. Bunsen takes it with a nod and moves off. As he goes he glances over at the Item. The trio of BLU-116 bunker busters have been combined to create an explosive device with more destructive power than any non-nuclear weapon in the history of the world, or at least since people have been dropping bombs on each other. To Bunsen, the Item is even more useful than a nuclear weapon because it doesn’t spread radiation — just the Swarm.
Corey searches for a spot to put down. ‘There.’
In a swirl of dust and ash the Loach settles on a quiet street, about a hundred and fifty metres away from the park. They quickly step out of the cabin. Corey forks his fingers into a V, points them at his eyes, then the dog’s, then the chopper. Spike gets the message, barks once and takes up a guard position in front of the Loach. The park is about a hundred metres away.
‘This way.’ Judd points them towards it and they run hard, though the bullet wound definitely slows Judd down a little.
‘Is that one of them?’ Corey indicates a figure who walks briskly out of the park.
Judd pulls out the brass telescope and focuses it. It’s difficult to see through the haze — and then it isn’t. ‘Yep, that’s the guy in charge. Mister Handsome.’ Judd follows him with the telescope until he disappears into the beige building with the tower. ‘What is that?’
Lola doesn’t know. ‘Could be a synagogue. This is a Jewish area.’
Corey glances at Judd. ‘Should we follow him?’
‘No, we have to prioritise.’ Judd looks over at the giant chopper.
Corey watches him study the Air-Crane. ‘Are you thinking what I think you’re thinking?’
Judd pulls the telescope from his eye. ‘We take the chopper and ditch the weapon in the ocean.’
‘Yep.’
Lola is stunned. ‘So — you just decided that?
They both nod.
‘You aren’t serious? Are you?’
Judd glances at her. ‘We have to get that thing as far from the city as possible.’
‘But what if they —’ She lowers her voice to a whisper. ‘ — you know, detonate it —’ Her voice returns to normal.’— while you’re, you know, nearby?’
Neither of them have an answer for her.
‘So that’s an acceptable risk?’
Judd shrugs. ‘You haven’t seen that thing close up. It’s enormous. We have to get it out of here.’ He turns to Corey. ‘You can fly that chopper, right?’
‘Sure.’
‘You’ve flown one before?’
‘Nuh, but I’m a quick learner.’
Judd doesn’t doubt it.
Lola studies these two crazy people for a moment, then: ‘So, what can I do?’
‘Nothing.’ Corey probably says it too quickly.
She gestures towards the building with the beige tower. ‘What about that guy, Handsome-man-or-whatever-he’s-called? Why don’t I follow him, check out what he’s up to?’
Corey shakes his head. ‘It’s not worth putting you in harm’s way.’
‘Hello, have we met? I’m already in harm’s way. I’ve been in harm’s way all day. And if he comes out before you’ve stolen his chopper you’re going to need a heads up ‘cause I’m sure he’ll be pretty pissed.’
‘It’s too dangerous. You should head back to the Loach.’
She stares at the Australian. ‘You know I’m not asking permission, right?’
Corey turns to her. ‘This isn’t a movie, Lola. If he catches you spying on him he will try to kill you.’
He sees that gives her a moment’s pause — then he sees her push the fear away and steel herself. ‘I know, but I’m going to help anyway.’
Corey exhales, realises this is not an argument he can win. ‘Just keep your distance, okay? Stay out of sight. Don’t let him know you’re there under any circumstances.’
She nods.
They run on, approach a burned-out van and crouch behind it, the Air-Crane now thirty metres away. Corey addresses the two others: ‘You guys need to swap numbers.’ They pass over their phones, tap in their respective numbers, then pass them back.
Corey turns to Lola. ‘If something goes wrong just head for the Loach, okay? Whatever you do, don’t engage these people. Please. Do. Not. Engage.’
‘I’ll be fine. You be careful. I’ll call when he comes out.’
He studies her for a moment, then takes the telescope from Judd’s hand, collapses it, and passes it to her. ‘In case you need to hit something with a heavy piece of brass.’
She takes it with a grateful smile. ‘Why, you shouldn’t have.’
They move off. Judd and Corey towards the park, Lola towards the building with the beige tower. Corey watches her go and realises he’s more concerned for her safety than his own.
Corey and Judd stay low and move fast, take cover behind a large tree at the edge of the park, just twenty metres from the chopper. The park is not that big, maybe fifty metres square, and is cloaked in a drifting haze.
They can see both the cockpit and rear cabin from where they are. Judd looks closer: ‘Two men. One in the cockpit, one in the rear who looks suspiciously like a Mister P. Tail, Esquire. So how are we going to do this?’
Corey turns to him. ‘I got an idea.’
Lola searches for a way into the building but there is no obvious spot from the road. She moves down a narrow side alley and finds an entrance. The lock has been shot through and the door is ajar. She steps inside.
As soon as she enters she knows what it is and it’s not a synagogue. It’s the hidden world of Los Angeles she’d heard about but never seen before, a sprawling oil-drilling island of forty wells, cleverly disguised within a soundproof building. She knew these structures were located all over town, hidden from the world as they exploited LA’s vast oil reserves, the second largest in the continental USA.
Lola surveys the football field-sized platform five metres below her. It’s filled with wellheads and pipes and reservoir tanks. The building doesn’t have any windows so it’s gloomy, lit only by the glow of the odd yellow light bulb. Forty metres away she sees the handsome guy walk quickly through the machinery then stop in front of a two-metre-high structure that looks like a Christmas tree constructed from metal pipes.
Handsome crouches and unzips the long bag he carries. He pulls out a four-inch-wide, metre-long strap and wraps it around the base of the metal Christmas tree. He then takes cover behind a reservoir tank ten metres away, draws out a small black box the size of a cigarette pack and thumbs the button on top.