Tunnels 06 - Terminal

always renege on them. No, if anyone’s going outside, it should be me,’ Drake argued. ‘I don’t have that long. If they waste me, it’s purely a timing difference.’
    ‘No, you don’t understand,’ Elliott said, examining the glowing sceptre, then locking eyes with Drake. She was only beginning to understand it herself. ‘I need to go out there. It’s the only way to stop this madness. I really think I can stop it.’
    Jiggs suddenly sat bolt upright. ‘Listen to this,’ he said, indicating a speaker by his head and then leaning over to turn the volume up. ‘It’s being sent over to the tank’s shortwave radio.’
    The radio signal wasn’t that strong and there were occasional drop-outs, but the message was clear enough: ‘ … speaking to the occupants of the Challenger inside St Paul’s. I don’t know who you are, but you’ve got one of my VLF beacons with you. Be aware that the commander has received confirmation that the US military are intending to hit London and the South East with nuclear warheads in a matter of minutes. If it’s in your power to influence the situation, then you need to act, and act now.’
    ‘That’s Danforth,’ Drake said, frowning at Jiggs.
    ‘You won’t be able to respond to this. I’m transmit-only from a nearby location. I repeat, I am speaking to the occupants of the Challenger …’
    ‘But whose side is he on now?’ Drake posed. ‘Didn’t he jump ship to the Styx?’
    ‘In which case he’s trying to trick us to go outside,’ Jiggs reasoned.
    ‘But he isn’t, is he?’ Drake said. ‘He’s not telling us to do anything other than help, if we can. He’s not telling us to leave the tank so the Styx get us. He’s telling us that there’s a nuclear strike coming. Why would he do that?’
    Drake’s mind was working overtime. ‘And the reference to “the commander” is in the message because he believes there’s someone in this tank who knows Parry. It’s meant for us.’
    ‘And Parry has connections at that level in the Pentagon,’ Jiggs put in.
    Drake took a breath. ‘Okay, sounds like the tock is clicking and we haven’t got anything to lose … any of us.’
    ‘You mean the clock is ticking,’ Jiggs corrected him.
    ‘Whatever. And I’d really rather not ruin this wonderful suntan with more radiation. I’ve already had more than my fair share for this year,’ Drake muttered, placing his hand on the locking handle of the main hatch. He turned to Elliott, fixing her with a stare. ‘Do you mean what you say about going out there? You’re prepared to meet them?’
    She nodded grimly. ‘I have to go out – not just because of Will, but because I need to stop this.’
    ‘Right, let’s you and me join the dance,’ he said to Elliott.
    The Limiters had hauled Will back to the Bentley. They threw him on the bonnet, flipping him over onto his back. He wasmoving dazedly, and trying to speak but not making any sound.
    ‘Leave him. I’ll take it from here,’ Hermione told the Limiters. She extended one of her insect limbs, pinning Will down on the bonnet with her pincers against his chest, although he was in no state to go anywhere.
    As soon as Drake and Elliott had jumped from the tank, the Armagi stepped back so that there was a passage all the way down the nave to the main entrance. Keeping very close to each other, the two of them edged along it, the Armagi keeping their distance. It was more than just Elliott’s blood protecting Drake this time.
    And as the two of them emerged from the cathedral and out onto the top of the steps, the Armagi on the forecourt also parted so that there was a corridor all the way to the car. Drake and Elliott could see who was waiting for them at the Bentley … and see Will spreadeagled on its bonnet.
    ‘My son,’ Parry said, as he’d watched Drake emerge from the cathedral and step into the daylight. ‘He’s still alive!’
    ‘And my daughter too,’ Eddie said, as he spotted Elliott at his side.
    ‘He doesn’t look good,’ Parry observed as he increased the magnification on his binoculars to see his son more clearly.
    ‘They must know Will’s as good as dead? So why are they both putting themselves in the firing line like this?’ Eddie said. ‘Unless they know the situation is desperate.’
    ‘Danforth must have done his stuff,’ Parry said. Changing to a separate frequency on his radio headset, he asked, ‘You managed it, then? Where are you?’
    Danforth was halfway up the