Tunnels 06 - Terminal

down to the pavement, their bodies were twisted and broken.
    Danforth had his hands up around his head. ‘That was unnecessary,’ he said, his voice even despite what had just happened. ‘And I see you are using Brights. I was wondering what saved me from those Limiters when GCHQ was hit.’
    ‘You’re next, Danforth!’ Chester said. His eyes were mad,his face contorted with his hunger for revenge.
    ‘No!’ Stephanie cried, not able to take her eyes from the two dead men. ‘What are you doing? You didn’t need to …’ She didn’t know what to think about Chester’s crusade against Danforth, but to kill two men who had happened to get in the way was more than she could live with. Stephanie’s eldest brother had joined the army in the months before all the troubles started, and she couldn’t help but picture him slumped there, his blood smeared down the wall. She took a shallow breath as waves of nausea hit her. ‘This has to stop,’ she said.
    Martha simply ignored her, her crossbow still raised.
    Chester moved closer to Danforth, jabbing the barrel of the shotgun at him. ‘You were saying something about removing us, you creep? Like you removed my mum and dad?’
    Danforth still had his hands up, but never once flinched as Chester brandished the weapon at him. ‘Chester, whether I was wrong or right to do what I did … in a few minutes it’s all going to be immaterial,’ Danforth said. ‘Why don’t you listen to what I’m telling you? – we’ve been targeted for a missile strike!’
    ‘I couldn’t care less,’ Chester said, his voice a low rumble. But Stephanie did care. She had no reason to disbelieve Danforth – the urgency in his voice sounded genuine enough, and it certainly didn’t appear that he was still in cahoots with the Styx or he wouldn’t be skulking around and hiding from the Armagi. And, besides all this, she did care very much about the two dead soldiers.
    She did the only thing she could think of.
    She slipped the huge hunting knife from Martha’s belt and, grabbing hold of the woman’s filthy hair, yanked her head back with the blade at her throat.
    As Martha swore, Stephanie tried to get the boy’s attention.
    ‘Chester,’ she called out. ‘You’ve gone too far. You’re not going to hurt anyone else.’
    ‘Keep out of it!’ he barked, not even turning to look at her. ‘Let me enjoy this moment. The moment I kill this stinking traitor.’
    ‘No, Chester, you’re not going to do that,’ Stephanie said, trying to keep her voice calm, despite the thumping of her heart. ‘Let him go, or I’ll stick this knife into Martha.’
    Only now did Chester tear his eyes from Danforth for a quick glance behind him. But his insane, unblinking gaze was back on Danforth almost immediately, and he began to guffaw. It was loud and disturbing and made his whole body shake. ‘Go ahead, Stepho,’ he said. ‘Kill her then. Do your worst.’
    ‘Chester?’ Martha asked quietly. ‘You don’t mean th—’
    ‘Oh, shut up, you smelly old bag,’ Chester interrupted her.
    ‘Chester,’ Martha gulped. ‘It’s me – it’s your ma speaking.’
    Chester’s bloodlust was up. He wasn’t thinking when he spoke. ‘You’re bloody joking? My mum? You’re about as much like her as a bucket of dead slugs.’
    Chester began to speak to Danforth in a furious whisper, the barrel of the shotgun rammed against the man’s temple.
    Stephanie felt Martha’s body tense.
    ‘I’m sorry you feel like that, dearie.’
    Martha pulled the trigger.
    The bolt from the crossbow struck Chester in the back. He didn’t cry out in pain or surprise, but an involuntary spasm made him fling his arms out to each side.
    Danforth seized hold of the shotgun, pulling it from the boy’s grip as he folded to the ground. ‘Phew. Thank God,’Danforth whispered, not because he was safe from Chester now, but because if the weapon had discharged the Armagi would have come flocking. ‘I have to go. You’ve got things under control here?’ he said to Stephanie, speaking so rapidly the words were barely comprehensible. He didn’t wait for an answer as he rushed to the corner and slipped out of sight.
    Stephanie swallowed hard.
    She remained in the same position, with the knife pressed to Martha’s throat. ‘Chester,’ she whispered, trying to deal with what had just happened as she stared at the motionless boy. The blood drained from her head and her vision swam as she thought that she might pass