The Final Curtain (5 page)

Max looked to the ground as accusing eyes sought her out.

Chief Harrison nodded at Quimby before taking back the microphone.

‘I'd like to thank the Spyforce agents who agreed to help us in our demonstration. Even though it didn't quite turn out as we had planned, you can see that Quimby, Frond and their teams have once again created a truly remarkable gadget. The good thing about the paint is that it's from the Plantorium and can be removed by our all-natural paint remover.'

Frond held up a large white jar.

‘Dr Frond will be glad to help out anyone in need. Please enjoy the rest of the evening, and I'd like to wish you all a happy 50th anniversary.'

A more subdued applause now filled the dishevelled room. As agents made their way to Frond and waiters began mopping up chocolate, scooping up squished strawberries, uprighting furniture and sweeping debris into piles, Max spied the nearest exit and quietly slipped outside.

Linden looked down into the blackened pit below him and took another quick breath. His body was held inside a coffin-shaped cage called an iron maiden, with double doors lined with spikes. Manacles gripped his wrists and ankles. If the doors were slowly closed, the spikes would pierce his body as easy as a pincushion. He did all he could to stay still, to avoid the sharpened points. Max was nearby, tied upright to a stretching rack, unable to stay quiet in the face of the thugs who had captured them.

‘What's wrong?' she taunted. ‘Are you trying to remember where you last saw your brain?'

One of the men flinched and sent her a gnarled stare.

‘Ah, Max,' Linden offered. ‘Maybe getting these guys upset isn't such a good plan.'

She said nothing.

‘Max?' He tried again.

‘I haven't decided if I ever want to speak to you again,' she shot back.

‘I know you're angry with me, and I bet you're right about your dad. I bet he isn't involved in anything. I want to help you prove it.'

Max gave him a cold stare and looked away.

‘Ah Linden, you're always playing the good guy, aren't you?'

The two spies looked towards the man who was walking down the stairs.

‘Dad! You're here!' Max cried. ‘I knew you'd come. These guys kidnapped us and are working for someone who is using the studio to transmit top secrets throughout the world.' She was so happy to see him, until she realised he wasn't rushing to free them.

‘Dad?' Max's voice was small and unsure.

Linden's hair prickled on his head and stood even higher than usual. The way Max's dad was looking at them, setting them free wasn't what he had in mind.

‘So you've got yourself into a bit of trouble?' He reached the bottom of the stairs and walked towards Linden. He felt the sharpened end of one of the spikes. ‘Maybe it's because you were sticking your noses where they didn't belong.'

‘But Dad, I know you don't mean that,' Max said quietly from above.

‘Oh, I mean it. You think you know me, but it's been a long time since you and I have lived together and quite a few things have changed.'

‘But you said that you and I will always be the same.' Max's throat ached.

‘Did I?' He rubbed his hand across his chin in mock confusion.

Linden eyed Max's dad carefully.

‘Come on, Max. You're a clever girl. You know sometimes we say things because they're the right things to say and not because we believe them.'

A painful throb slammed into her chest.

‘I mean, really, it takes very special people to like each other for a long period of time, and I don't think you and I are that special.' He turned to the goons. ‘Are the distribution trucks in place?'

Max's eyes blurred with tears. ‘Why are you talking to them? They're part of Blue's …'

Max's dad offered her a syrupy smile before placing his hand under his chin and tearing the latex mask from his face to reveal his true identity.

‘Blue?'

‘Yes.' He slowly ran his hand through his blue-streaked hair. ‘Lovely, isn't it, that we're all together again?'

Max's mind unscrambled itself, trying to understand what had happened.

‘You're the one behind the smuggling operation!' Linden glared coldly. ‘We should have known.'

Max fixed Blue with a venomous gaze. ‘If you
hurt my dad in any way you'll regret it for the rest of your life.'

Blue answered her gaze with a smile dripping with victory. ‘I think you should be much more worried about your own future than that of a man you rarely even see.'

‘You shut up about my father.'

Linden tugged at his manacles. The metal spikes pricked at his skin.

Blue sighed. ‘Your loyalty to a man who left you to live overseas with his new wife is astounding.'

‘He went to Hollywood for work. He would have stayed with me if he could.'

‘Face it, your dad's a very clever man. If he wanted to stay with you he could have worked out a way to do it.'

‘Leave Max alone,' Linden said.

‘What do you care,' Max shouted. ‘You think my dad's a criminal, so don't pretend to be my friend now.'

Linden recoiled from Max's words as they echoed around the room.

‘Children, let's not fight.' Blue was enjoying every moment of their arguing.

‘Why should we listen to you?' Max cried.
‘You're a snivelling excuse for a man. You wouldn't know the first thing about loyalty or truth.'

Blue slowly lowered his head while keeping his eyes trained on Max. ‘I've warned you before about pushing me too far.' He had a barbed-wire edge to his voice and his reddened eyes glowered at Max. ‘And now you'll see why. Release him.'

One of the goons moved towards Linden and pulled a lever that opened his manacles and slowly tipped the iron maiden towards the pit.

Max stared. ‘Linden?' she whispered.

Linden didn't say a word as he gripped the cold steel of an opened manacle. His legs flayed the air as the goons sniggered like mangy hyenas.

‘Nothing to say, Maxine? Pity. I guess we'll just sit back and enjoy the show. And Linden, I hope you don't take this personally, it really is just business.'

Linden's hold slipped as the iron maiden dangled him over the pit.

‘Linden!' Max cried.

The room echoed with Blue's receding steps.

In a soundless, desperate moment, Linden caught Max's eye. One by one his fingers came away from the steel until, silently, he fell with nothing more than a quiet, sickening

Max's eyes flung open. Her breath heaved in and out of her chest, and her brow was mopped with sweat. She lay still for a few seconds in her hotel room before she threw off her blankets and switched on the lamp. The clock beside her bed said 2.30 am. She sat up and sighed, letting her head fall into her hands.

A dull thud sounded from outside her door. Max switched off the lamp and crept out of bed. She grabbed her room key and a small pot plant from the dresser and inched towards the strip of light seeping in beneath her door. She looked through the peephole but saw no one. Clutching the handle, she swung the door open and leapt into the corridor, brandishing the pot plant above her head.

‘Don't hit me,' Linden crouched with his hands shielding his head, his backpack sprawled beside him.

‘Linden? What are you doing?'

He straightened up and pulled his bag onto his shoulders. He was dressed in a floppy jumper and jeans. ‘I dropped my pack. Sorry.'

‘I thought someone was breaking into my room.' Max lowered the pot plant. ‘What are you doing up so late?'

‘I couldn't sleep and I didn't want to wake up
Toby, so I thought I'd go for a walk.' Linden smiled. ‘Only it was close to being the last thing I ever did.'

‘It's a little late for a walk. Are you okay?'

‘Yeah, I think I need to work off all that food I ate at the party.'

‘It's unlike you to eat too much.' Max lifted an eyebrow.

‘Yeah, I thought so too.' Linden nodded. ‘We missed you after you left.'

‘I figured it was safer for everyone if I asked the driver to bring me back here.'

‘Max, you were doing what you thought was right. It's not your fault you didn't recognise the paintball guns.'

‘But I ended up ruining everything.'

‘Not everything. Frond and her team managed to clean up most of the outfits, and the party got back into swing pretty fast.'

‘What about Quimby? Is she mad at me?'

‘When I left she was dancing on the tables, so I think she's fine. She tried to find you to make sure you were okay, but you had gone.'

‘Actually, I could use a walk too. I'll get changed and come with you.'

‘No, that's okay.' Linden yawned. ‘I'm feeling tired now. Thanks. The chat helped.'

‘Oh, okay. Goodnight then.' Max opened her door.

‘Goodnight.' Linden waved.

Max placed the pot plant on the dresser and slumped back into bed. She pulled the blankets up and waited for the click of Linden's door. Except, it never came.

She tiptoed out of bed and peeked outside just in time to see Linden slip down the stairs at the end of the corridor. Sneaking down the hall after him, she reached the top of the stairway and looked down into its labyrinthine twists and turns to the foyer far below. Linden quietly made his way down. Max kept close to the wall and circled after him.

In the foyer, Linden stole furtive glances and snuck towards the dining area. He pushed open a large swing door and disappeared inside. Max quickly followed and burst in after him.

‘What are you doing?'

Linden spun round and threw his hands behind his back.

‘Nothing.'

Max frowned. ‘You're a lousy liar.'

‘I'm not lying, I just …'

‘You told me you were going to bed.'

‘I know.'

‘What's behind your back?'

‘It's private, okay?' Linden said angrily.

Max recoiled.

Linden sank onto a deep leather lounge beside him. ‘Sorry, Max.' His whole body slumped. ‘I didn't want you to be here.'

Max's chest caved inwards as if she'd been struck.

‘I don't mean that.' Linden shook his head. ‘I mean, there's something I need to do, and I have to do it on my own.'

Max bit down on her lip. ‘Is it because of what happened at the party?'

‘No,' Linden said. ‘Definitely not.'

‘Then why don't you want me here?' Max's voice quivered.

Linden gathered a deep breath and took the Time and Space Machine from behind his back. ‘I'm going to see Mum.'

‘You're going back in time?'

Linden nodded.

‘But Ben said the machine's time function isn't working properly.'

‘I know,' Linden said. ‘I was there when it happened, but it all worked out okay.'

‘Eventually, but they had trouble bringing Francis back.'

Linden looked at the machine in his hands. ‘I need to see her again, Max. Just one more time,' he said quietly.

Max saw one small tear fall onto the leg of Linden's jeans.

‘Then I'm coming with you,' she said.

‘No, you're not. I don't want you to get hurt.'

‘But it's okay if
you
get hurt?' Max's hands flew to her hips.

‘It's
my
plan and
my
problem if anything goes wrong.'

‘Since when? We're a team, which means we do everything together. It was you who started the pact, remember? To always look out for each other no matter what. At first I thought it was corny and went along with it so we could get started on our missions, but after saying it a few times I got used to it.' She raised her eyebrows. ‘I think I might even like it. Besides, I've decided to come with you, and there's pretty much nothing you can do to change that.'

A soft smile lifted Linden's lips then fell away. ‘But I don't know how I'll be. When I see her, I mean. It's been nearly three years since she died.'

Max sat beside him on the lounge. ‘You don't have to be anything,' she said. ‘Just be Linden. You're good at that.'

‘Okay.'

Max took the machine from Linden's hands. ‘Where and what time do you want to travel back to?'

‘I want to go to our farm in Mindawarra when I was five.'

‘Five it is,' Max said. ‘But remember what Ben said when we first travelled. We can't stay longer than five minutes.'

Max entered the details of the destination. ‘Are you sure about this?'

‘I've been sure ever since Ben first told me about the machine. It's just taken me a long time to get brave enough to do it.'

‘Have you brought the belt too?'

Linden pulled the specially made titanium-lined belt from his backpack. Max put it on and nestled the Machine snugly inside. She held out her hand and Linden took it.

‘Thanks, Max,' he whispered.

‘Let's go and visit your mum.'

Max gave Linden's hand a gentle squeeze and said, ‘Transport.'