Alex Rider was standing by the window, looking out at the view of Grenoble on the other side of the River Isere. High above him, five steel and glass bubbles moved slowly along a cable, ferrying tourists up to the Fort de la Bastille. He turned around as Mrs. Jones came in. There was a bandage around his head, but otherwise he seemed unhurt.
‚You’re lucky to be alive,' she said.
‚I thought I was dead,' Alex replied.
‚Let’s hope that Dr. Grief believes as much.' Despite herself, Mrs. Jones couldn’t keep the worry out of her eyes. ‚It really was a miracle,' she said. ‚You should have at least broken something.'
‚The ski suit protected me,' Alex said. He tried to think back to the whirling, desperate moment when he had been thrown off the train. ‚There was undergrowth. And the fence sort of caught me.' He rubbed his leg and winced. ‚Even if it was barbed wire.'
He walked back to the bed and sat down. After they had finished examining him, the French doctors had brought him fresh clothes. Military clothes, he noticed. Combat jacket and trousers. He hoped they weren’t trying to tell him something.
‚I’ve got three questions,' he said. ‚But let’s start with the big one. I called for help two days ago. Where were you?'
‚I’m very sorry, Alex,' Mrs. Jones said. ‚There were … logistical problems.'
‚Yes? Well, while you were having your logistical problems, Dr. Grief was getting ready to cut me up!'
‚We couldn’t just storm the academy. That could have gotten you killed. It could have gotten you all killed. We had to move in slowly—try to work out what was going on. How do you think we found you so quickly?'
‚That was my second question.'
Mrs. Jones shrugged. ‚We’ve had people in the mountains ever since we got your signal.
They’ve been closing in on the academy. They heard the machine-gun fire when the snowmobiles were chasing you and followed you down on skis. They saw what happened with the train and radioed for help.'
‚All right. So why all the business with the funeral? Why do you want Dr. Grief to think I’m dead?'
‚That’s simple, Alex. From what you’ve told us, he’s keeping fifteen boys prisoner in the academy. These are the boys that he plans to replace.' She shook her head. ‚I have to say, it’s the most incredible thing I’ve ever heard. And I wouldn’t have believed it if I’d heard it from anyone else except you.'
‚You’re too kind,' Alex muttered.
‚If Dr. Grief thought you’d survived last night, the first thing he would do is kill every one of those boys. Or perhaps he’d use them as hostages. We had only one hope if we were going to take him by surprise. He had to believe you were dead.'
‚You’re going to take him by surprise?'
‚We’re going in tonight. I told you. We’ve assembled an attack squad here in Grenoble.
They were up in the mountains last night. They plan to set off as soon as it’s dark. They’re armed and they’re experienced.' Mrs. Jones hesitated. ‚There’s just one thing they don’t have.'
‚And what’s that?' Alex asked, feeling a sudden sense of unease.
‚They need someone who knows the building,' Mrs. Jones said. ‚The library, the secret elevator, the placement of the guards, the passage with the cells…'
‚Oh, no!' Alex exclaimed. Now he understood the military clothes. ‚Forget it! I’m not going back up there. I almost got killed trying to get away! Do you think I’m crazy?'
‚Alex, you’ll be looked after. You’ll be completely safe.'
‚No!'
Mrs. Jones nodded. ‚All right. I can understand your feelings. But there’s someone I want you to meet.'
As if on cue, there was a knock on the door. It opened to reveal a young man, also in combat dress. The man was well built with black hair, square shoulders, and a dark, watchful face. He was in his late twenties. He saw Alex and shook his head. ‚Well, well, well. There’s a surprise,'
he said. ‚How’s it going, Cub?'
Alex recognized him at once. It was the soldier he had known as Wolf. When MI6 had sent him for eleven days’ SAS training in Wales, Wolf had been in charge of his unit. If training had been hell, Wolf had only made it worse, picking on Alex from the start and almost getting him thrown out. In the end, though, it had been Wolf who had nearly lost his place with the SAS, and Alex who had saved him. But Alex still wasn’t sure where that left him, and the other man was giving nothing away.
‚Wolf!' Alex said.
‚I heard you got busted up.' Wolf shrugged. ‚I’m sorry. I forgot the flowers and the fruit basket.'
‚What are you doing here?' Alex asked.
‚They called me in to clear up the mess you left behind.'
‚So where were you when I was being chased down the mountain?'
‚It seems you were doing fine on your own.'
Mrs. Jones took over. ‚Alex has done a very good job up to now,' she said. ‚But the fact is that there are fifteen young prisoners up at Point Blanc and our first priority must be to save them. From what Alex has told us, we know there are about thirty guards in and around the school. The only chance those boys have is for an SAS unit to break in. It’s happening tonight.'
She turned to Alex. ‚The unit will be commanded by Wolf.'
The SAS never uses rank when it is on active service. Mrs. Jones was careful only to use Wolf’s code name.
‚Where does the boy come into this?' Wolf demanded.
‚He knows the school. He knows the position of the guards and the location of the prison cells. He can lead you to the elevator.'
‚He can tell us everything we need to know here and now,' Wolf interrupted. He turned to Mrs. Jones. ‚We don’t need a kid,' he said. ‚He’s just going to be baggage. We’re going in on skis. There’ll be blood. I can’t waste one of my men holding his hand.'
‚I don’t need to have my hand held,' Alex retorted angrily. ‚She’s right. I know more about Point Blanc than any of you. I’ve been there—and I got out of there, no thanks to you. Also, I’ve met some of those boys. One of them is a friend of mine. I promised I’d help him, and I will.'
‚Not if you get killed.'
‚I can look after myself!'
‚Then it’s agreed,' Mrs. Jones said. ‚Alex will lead you in there, but then will take no further part in the operation. And as for his safety, Wolf, I will hold you personally responsible.'
‚Personally responsible. Right,' Wolf growled.
Alex couldn’t resist a smile. He’d held his ground, and he’d be going back in with the SAS.
Then he realized what had happened. A few moments ago, he’d been arguing violently against doing just that. He glanced at the head of Special Operations. She’d manipulated him, of course, bringing Wolf into the room. And she knew it.
Wolf nodded. ‚All right, Cub,' he said. ‚Looks like you’re in. Let’s go and play.'
‚Sure, Wolf,' Alex sighed. ‚Let’s go and play.'
NIGHT RAID
« ^ »
THEY CAME SKIING DOWN from the mountain. There were seven of them, Wolf in front, Alex at his side. The other five men followed behind. They had changed into white trousers, jackets, and hoods—camouflage that would help them blend into the snow. A helicopter had dropped them two miles north and two hundred yards above Point Blanc, and equipped with night-vision goggles, they had quickly made their way down. The weather had settled again.
The moon was out. Despite himself, Alex enjoyed the journey, the whisper of the skis cutting through the ice, the empty mountainside bathed in white light. And he was part of a crack SAS