Hunted (24 page)

That was a start. I punched again. And again. The vent was only made of thin aluminium. Another punch and it cracked at the top . . . another punch . . . another crack . . .

I took a quick breath. It made my head spin. I summoned the force field again, and slammed my fist, hard, right into the heart of the biggest crack. With a snap the piping came apart. I gripped the sharp aluminium sides, forcing them far enough back so that I had room to crawl through.

‘Harry!’ I yelled. ‘I’ve found a way out.’

‘You go on.’ His voice sounded really weak. ‘I . . . I can’t . . .’

I hesitated for a second. Should I go back?

No. Harry’s best chance was for me to get out of here and make my way back downstairs as fast as I could.

Force field fully charged, I hauled myself into the vent. The walls were tight against my body. I crawled, commando style, as fast as I could. The pipe sloped upwards. Totally dark.

And then I felt a blast of cooler air coming from up ahead. It was lighter there, too. I must be coming to another room. I risked a breath.

The air was much cleaner.

Straight ahead of me was an aluminium grille, like the one the gas was coming through in our room below.

Force field engaged, I punched at the bars with all my might. One. Two.

I broke through on the third punch. Grabbing the outside of the grille, I hurled myself through, slithering onto the floor of the room on the other side.

I got to my feet and raced to the door. I ran left. Dead end. I turned right. Stairs.

I pounded down to the basement level again, hoping the room Harry and Nico were still trapped in would be easy to spot.

It was. As I leaped off the bottom step, I saw the fire extinguisher Geri had jammed against our door handle.

I raced over and hurled it out of the way. I flung open the door. The powerful smell of the poison gas hit me straight away. Harry was on the floor beside Nico, his head hanging between his knees. He looked up as I ran over to them.

‘Hey, Red.’ He forced a smile, then slumped into unconsciousness at my feet.

27: Protection

‘Harry!’ I yelled his name in his ear. ‘Wake up!’

But Harry was out cold.

Holding my breath, I turned from him to Nico. Which one should I move first?

I hesitated for a split second, then grabbed Nico round the legs and dragged him outside. He’d been unconscious for what seemed like ages, now. At least Harry had only just passed out. Hopefully, he’d be okay for a few moments.

I was desperate for air by the time I reached the corridor. I gasped in a breath. The bleach-smelling gas was out here now, acrid in the back of my throat, but not anywhere near as strong as it was inside the room. I deposited Nico halfway down the corridor where the air seemed clearer, then raced back for Harry.

As I entered the room again, my top clinging sweatily to my back, Ed pushed his way into my head.

Dylan, what’s happening?

Not now.

Ketty’s fine and the police should be there . . .

They’re not. Geri must have got to them. Please, Ed, let me go.

We’re on our way.

Ed broke the connection as I reached Harry.

I gripped him under the arms and heaved him outside. He was about the same height as Nico, but stockier and heavier. My arms felt like they were being pulled out of their sockets by the time I reached the door. I stopped for a second to shut it behind me, then lugged him down the corridor.

I reached Nico, deposited Harry beside him then slumped to the ground myself. I sat on the cold floor in the silent corridor, my head in my hands.

‘Dylan?’ Nico croaked. I turned my flashlight on his face. He screwed up his eyes against the glare. ‘What happened?’ he gasped.

I shook my head, too exhausted to speak.

Nico turned his head and saw Harry lying beside him, eyes tight shut. He struggled onto his side.

‘Where are we?’ he said, still sounding hoarse. ‘What’s the matter with Harry?’

I leaned over, touching Harry’s face. His eyes were still shut. I bent lower, so my cheek was just above his mouth and nose.

My heart skipped a beat. ‘I don’t think he’s breathing.’

‘What?’ Nico sat up, wincing, his forehead clutched in his hand. ‘What happened?’

Adrenaline surged through me. ‘Geri gassed us. I thought you had it worse, but maybe Harry was taking deeper breaths.’

Nico stared at me, bewildered. I bent closer over Harry. I couldn’t work out if he was breathing or not. My head was still spinning – I wasn’t sure whether it was from the gas or all my efforts to save the three of us.

Still, one thing was certain. Harry was deathly pale.

Laura’s anxious face swam in front of my mind’s eye. Then Harry’s own smile.

My heart twisted into a knot.

I
had to
save him. Nothing mattered more.

My mind raced back to the resuscitation class Alex had given us. Desperately trying to remember what she’d told us, I took Harry’s nose between the finger and thumb of one hand. I stared at his face. There was something you were supposed to do with the chin, too, wasn’t there? Why hadn’t I paid more attention?

Keep the airway clear, that was it, wasn’t it? Grabbing Harry’s chin, I tilted his head slightly back. Then I leaned over him, took a deep breath and breathed the air into his mouth. Again. Again.

Harry spluttered. I jerked back, giving him space.

He coughed again, his eyes opening.

He blinked at me, his eyes crinkling into a smile. ‘We made it,’ he croaked.

I smiled back.

Harry shifted onto his elbows, closer to my face. ‘Hey, were you kissing me just then, Red?’

I could feel my smile deepening. I felt like crying with relief.

‘In your dreams,’ I said.

‘Excuse me,’ Nico said pointedly. ‘But the gas smell out here’s getting worse. I think we should move.’

I nodded, my face reddening slightly.

The three of us scrambled to our feet. The two boys still looked pale and a little unsteady. We made our way along the corridor and up the stairs to the ground floor. As we walked, I filled the others in on exactly what had happened. Harry was clearly impressed by everything I’d done. Nico was thoughtful . . . silent.

Outside the sky had lightened slightly. Almost dawn. The air was cold and clear. I took several deep breaths, not minding the goosebumps that covered my arms as the breeze blew around us.

The guard was lying outside where we’d left him. His eyes were closed, but he was stirring. As we stood over him, Nico turned to me.

‘This isn’t good,’ he said in a low voice. ‘Geri has done everything she can to cover her tracks. She wants us dead and, as things stand, she’ll know we’re alive.’

‘What are you saying?’ I said. ‘D’you think she’s going to come after us? Try to kill us again?’

‘I think it’s highly likely,’ Nico said. ‘Geri doesn’t like loose ends.’

The guard at our feet gave a low moan.

‘So what are you going to do?’ Harry asked.

Nico looked at me. He raised his eyebrows.

I nodded, slowly, realising what he was suggesting. ‘We need to cover our tracks,’ I said. ‘Make it look like we died here.’

‘That’s crazy,’ Harry said.

‘I don’t mean make out
you
died, just me and Nico.’ I said. ‘Geri doesn’t even know we’re in touch with you.’

‘I know. I mean, it’s crazy for you all to cut yourself off from the rest of the world like that,’ Harry said.

‘The rest of the world thinks we’re dead anyway,’ Nico said.

‘What?’ Harry said.

‘It’s true,’ I said. ‘We’re not on any databases. It’s only Geri and our families who know we’re alive.’

‘The only question is how,’ Nico said.

I glanced at the guard again, an idea popping into my head.

‘Just give me a sec,’ I said.

I rushed into the guard’s hut. Was it really only a short while ago that Ketty and I had stood in here, talking about how she felt about Nico? How I felt about Harry?

I scanned the shelf, looking past the magazines for the cigarette lighter I remembered seeing here before.

There.

I grabbed the lighter and raced outside. I thrust it at Nico.

‘Take off your jacket,’ I said. ‘We need to set light to it, then you need to teleport it into the building,’ I said.

‘Why?’ Nico frowned. ‘What’s that going to do?’

‘That’s insane, Red,’ Harry said – a note of admiration in his voice.

‘I don’t understand,’ Nico said.

‘When the fire meets the gas, there’ll be an explosion,’ I explained. ‘In the mess that’s created no one will know if we were inside the building or not.’

Nico’s eyes widened. For the first time since he’d come round he looked properly awake.

‘Brilliant.’ He took the lighter and flicked it on.

‘What about him?’ Harry pointed to the guard who was moaning more loudly now, his eyelids fluttering.

I put my hand on Nico’s arm. ‘Teleport him away from here first.’

Nico raised his hand. With a twist, the guard was lifted into the air. Nico zoomed him up and through the night air. He deposited him about two hundred metres from the building, near the place where he had left Ketty earlier.

The sight of that spot clearly reminded Nico of Ketty, too. He turned to me anxiously. ‘Have you heard from Ed?’ he said. ‘Is Ketty, okay?’

‘Yes,’ I said. ‘They’re fine and they’re on their way here now.’

‘Good.’ Nico turned back to the lighter and held it under his jacket.

‘We should stand further back,’ Harry said.

We ran back about fifty metres, to the edge of the trees. Nico tied his jacket into a knot and set it ablaze. He held up both hands and sent the jacket zooming back towards the building. It flew over the two fences and in through the front door which we’d left open.

I waited, every muscle tensed, waiting for the blast.

Nothing happened. Long seconds passed.

Nico took a step forward. ‘It’s not going off,’ he said. ‘Maybe I didn’t send it far enough.’

‘Maybe the fire burned itself out,’ Harry suggested.

‘Damn.’ Nico took another step forward. Then another.

Harry and I followed. We were only thirty metres or so from the house, now.

‘Be careful,’ I said. ‘It could go off any—’

A series of loud booms sounded from the building. I froze as a ball of fire ballooned out the front door.

Beside me, Nico’s mouth dropped open. ‘That’s massive,’ he gasped. ‘That’s
really
—’

Another huge blast rocked the whole building. Black smoke appeared at the first-floor windows.

‘It’s going to—!’

BOOM!

The building exploded. A massive fireball erupted out of the roof and windows. It hurtled towards us like a rocket. All fire and smoke and heat.

Right at us in less than a second. There was no time to run. It was coming too fast.

‘No!’ I reached out and grabbed the others by the wrists. With every cell in my body I directed my force field across my own skin and from there to Nico and Harry.

Protect us all
, I willed the energy that flowed from inside me.

Protect us. Please.

28: The future

I steeled myself for the impact of the fire, totally focused on the energy I was creating around me and Nico and Harry.

A second later the flames surrounded us. I kept every nerve focused on my force field, pushing away the fire.

The flames licked at our faces . . . smoke billowed . . . pieces of wood and brick flew in front of our eyes . . .

And then everything was gone, the fire sucking past us and into the air and the bits of the building slamming down on the ground all around us.

I released the force field and stood, feeling the energy still ricocheting around my body.

‘Is everyone okay?’ Nico asked.

Harry nodded. He looked at me, totally stunned. ‘How did you do that?’

‘I don’t know,’ I said. ‘I just let go of everything . . . it was almost like I was doing it on instinct. Not trying . . .’

‘That was unbelievable, Dylan,’ Nico said shakily. ‘And way beyond cool.’

I looked around. The scene around us was one of complete devastation. The top of the building was blown clean off and the rest a burning shell.