The Final Curtain (6 page)

Max and Linden disappeared from the comfort of the hotel lounge area in present-day London to a small farm in Mindawarra, Australia, seven years earlier. They reappeared in a flash of bright light with tiny sparks flickering around them. They hung suspended in the air for a few seconds before floating to the ground. When the sparks cleared it was as if they were caught in a dense fog.

Linden's normally unruly hair was plastered upwards, and his shirt and pants were twisted round his body. ‘That's pretty much how I remember travelling back in time.'

‘I don't remember the part about being used as a spinning top.' Max's dazed face sat beneath her hair, which was standing on its ends and swaying from side to side in the breeze.

Transporting from one place to another in the present felt like taking a short afternoon walk compared to the G-force-loaded, twisting tunnel ride that was travelling through time.

Until the sudden stop.

Small bubbles of disconnected images began floating in the fog in front of them, reforming bit by bit, until a picture of where they were started to form around them. The ground appeared first. A dry and dusty patch of earth followed by the green
sprawl of a paddock beneath a blue sky brushed with clouds.

Linden was trying to focus on the object forming in the distance beyond the paddock fence.

‘There it is,' he said.

A small wooden farmhouse materialised, along with a scramble of bright red, yellow and white roses bustling in front of a set of steps leading to a screen door. ‘I'd forgotten about the garden. Everything just seemed to die after –'

Linden stopped.

A hose was running into a small blow-up pool in the yard, not far from a swinging garden seat and a clothesline.

‘I loved that pool.' He smiled.

From out of the screen door ran a young boy. He flew down the stairs two at a time holding a plastic sword, in a pair of bright green shorts and a cape made out of an old red dressing gown.

‘That's me.'

‘I guessed. Same hair.' Max smiled. ‘And fashion sense. Remember, we can see them but they can't see us …'

The screen door opened. A rounded woman in a flowing, summer-coloured dress stepped into the sunlight. Her hair fell around her face in bouncing
waves, and she held a bright yellow sunhat.

‘Mum,' Linden said quietly.

‘She's beautiful,' Max said.

‘What did I tell you about running down those stairs?' Linden's mum asked the boy.

‘You'll end up on your head one day if you're not careful,' Linden answered with a cheeky grin.

‘I'll end up on my head one day if I'm not careful,' the young boy sang from the pool.

Linden's mum put on the sunhat and walked down the stairs. She sat beside the pool and dipped her feet in the water.

‘But I'm the Caped Captain.' The young boy held his sword up high. ‘I'm invincible.'

‘Caped Captain?' Max asked.

Linden shrugged. ‘I made him up. He flew through the skies with his red cape, saving the world from bad guys.'

‘So you were fighting crime when you were five.'

‘I was an early starter.' Linden smiled. ‘I want to go a bit closer.'

Linden approached his mum and sat on the grass beside her.

‘Is that what you'd like to be when you're older?' his mum asked.

‘Yep, I think I'd be good at being a hero,' the young Linden answered.

‘I think so too. You've got the brains, the cape and the essential quality of a crime fighter.'

‘What's that?'

‘Good looks.' She tapped his nose. ‘And if you had to fight crime when the weather got cold, you'd look irresistible in tights.'

Linden moved closer to his mother, who laughed at his younger self's swordplay. He reached out.

His fingers partially sunk into his mother's dark hair. It was like touching someone in a dream. And when he closed his eyes, he could smell the shampoo she used when he was young.

Linden's mum closed her eyes and leant her head back. ‘That's a nice breeze.'

‘Mum! Watch this.' The boy swung his sword.

‘You're my little hero, you know that? And you always will be.'

The younger and older Linden nodded. ‘I know,' they both said.

‘Now, even superheroes need lunch.' She stood up and softly pinched his cheek. ‘And I think I know just where to find a giant ham and salad sandwich.'

The young Linden thought about it. ‘Could you find two?'

His mother laughed and kissed him on top of his wild hair. ‘Maybe. If you can beat me to the kitchen.'

‘Excellent!' The young boy jumped out of the pool and raced her inside.

Linden was about to follow when Max grabbed his arm from behind. ‘It's time to go.'

Linden stared at the back door of the farmhouse that slammed closed. ‘She's nice, isn't she?' he said.

‘Yes, she is.'

He sniffed. ‘She was always calm. I don't remember her ever losing her temper or being angry with me. She made everything feel safe when she was around.'

Linden looked into the house through the kitchen window and saw the two of them singing as they buttered bread and sliced ham.

He wiped his sleeve across his face. ‘Okay.' He nodded. ‘I'm ready to go now.'

Max lifted the Time and Space Machine from the belt. She set the coordinates to return them to her hotel room in London. She tucked the machine back in the belt, took Linden's hand and said
‘Return.' Max's voice activated the machine, transporting them away from Mindawarra and leaving behind nothing more than a small plume of dust.

Once their feet had settled onto the floor of the hotel room, Linden sat on the edge of Max's bed in the glow of the bedside lamp, his hands clenched between his knees, his body hunched forward.

‘Can I get you anything?' Max asked.

Linden shook his head.

‘Would you like me to sit with you for a bit?'

He nodded. Max sat beside him.

After a long silence, Linden said, ‘That's it, isn't it.'

‘What is?'

‘She's not coming back.' Linden sniffed. ‘I mean, I know she isn't, but I guess now I
know
it's true.' He laughed a shaky, fragile laugh. ‘I guess I didn't think it'd take me this long to understand that.'

Linden began to cry.

Max moved closer and curled her arm around him. He collapsed into her hug and cried harder. ‘I miss her.'

‘I know.' Max's eyes filled with tears.

She held him even tighter as the room echoed with Linden's sobs. Max watched her tears drip
onto his jumper until he laid back exhausted and fell into an immediate sleep. She took a blanket from the end of the bed and spread it over him. He looked so small underneath it. Curled up into a ball.

She took another blanket from the cupboard and draped it over her shoulders. She removed an envelope from her bag and nestled onto a lounge chair. She looked through a series of photos, slowly studying each one to the last.

She slipped them back into the envelope and into her pack. She wiped her eyes against her pyjamas and glanced one last time at Linden before switching off the lamp and burying herself in the warmth of the blanket.

The Wall of Goodness allowed entry to the high security areas of the Force. What seemed like an impenetrable wall of stone was, in fact, constructed out of a super malleable substance that wrapped itself around visitors in a gurgling, squelchy blob. It was programmed to read bodily reactions to establish a person's current state of goodness, and only when it recognised a person as good would it gently suck those seeking entry through to the other side.

At least that's what mostly happened.

‘Aaah!' Max flew out of the other side of the Wall of Goodness, stumbled for a few arm-flailing steps before landing splat on her face. She looked up to see three perfectly placed and upright pairs of shoes on the polished lab floor in front of her.

‘Oh dear.' Steinberger's hand flew to his mouth. ‘You've been doing so well with the wall lately. I don't know what went wrong.'

Max cradled her head in her hands. ‘What went
wrong
is that wall is a ridiculous, bullying, piece of …' Max looked up to see Steinberger's hurt expression. ‘Sorry, Steinberger. I didn't get much sleep last night.'

‘Maybe the wall has a problem with you trying to single-handedly wipe out everyone at the party last night.' Toby smiled.

‘And maybe I'll …' Max went to stand up but stopped.

‘Concentrate on trying to stand up first?' Toby said with a lifted eyebrow.

Max got shakily to her feet. ‘I just wish I could walk through a simple door like other high-security places.'

‘We got through fine,' Toby gloated. ‘And Ella told me it's one of her favourite parts of the Force.'

‘She would,' Max mumbled. ‘And where is the delightful Ella?'

‘Unfortunately, she isn't able to join us today due to previous family commitments,' Steinberger answered.

‘Now there's a bit of bad news I may never recover from,' Max said.

‘It is unfortunate,' Steinberger said. ‘I know how much she enjoys working with you, Max. She told me so last night.'

‘Ella said that?' Max asked.

‘And more.'

Linden yawned.

‘Are you okay, Linden?' Steinberger moved closer to the young agent. ‘Your eyes are very red.'

‘I'm fine,' he said. ‘I found it hard to sleep when I got back to my room last night. I think it was all
the food and excitement of the party.'

Toby eyed Max then Linden.

‘Will you be okay for the exercise today?' Steinberger asked.

‘Oh yeah,' Linden straightened himself out. ‘A day of training is exactly what I need.'

‘Excellent.' Steinberger looked at his watch. ‘For now we need to move if we're going to get you to your training session on time. Follow me.'

Steinberger led the way to Quimby's main workbench. Toby stepped up behind Linden and held him back. ‘What did you and Max do last night?' He whispered.

‘Nothing.' Linden shrugged and kept walking.

‘You've both got bags under your eyes, and you weren't in our room all night.'

‘I told you, I couldn't sleep so I went down to the foyer to read and fell asleep on a lounge. We better catch up.'

Linden hurried after Max and Steinberger, weaving his way through Quimby's newly upgraded lab featuring gleaming chrome benches lined with microscopes, lasers and computers, neatly packed glass cabinets and tall, quietly whirring machines. They found Quimby with an eyepiece bending over her main workbench.

‘Professor Quimby, your special agents have arrived.'

Quimby spun round. Max shrank from what she thought was an eye patch covering her eye socket. ‘I'm sorry about your eye,' she said. ‘I've been a bit jumpy because of these dreams about Blue, and when I saw the waiter with the gun I thought …'

Quimby took a cylindrical contraption from her eye. ‘This is a super magnifier so I can do final checks on your tracer bugs. My eye, and the rest of me, is fine.'

‘Luckily,' Toby muttered.

‘But I ruined your –'

‘The demonstration didn't go quite as I expected.' Quimby smiled. ‘But not much
does
, working in this business.'

‘Especially with Max around.'

Max threw her hands on her hips. ‘Why don't you –'

Steinberger stepped between Toby and Max. ‘All get fitted into your suits so we can explain the task ahead?'

‘Excellent suggestion, Steinby.' Quimby wheeled a covered rack closer to them and pulled off a large sheet. ‘These are the Super Suits for today's training exercise.'

Quimby handed each of the agents a green camouflage-pattern suit.

‘Last night Toby paraded the “Formal” version of the suit, but these are called our “Forest Special”. You can change over there.'

The three spies disappeared into the change cubicles Quimby pointed to. Toby was out first, bursting through the curtain in his most practised action pose. The cargo-style pants, equipped with pockets and zip-off legs, fit perfectly beneath a button-up, long-sleeve shirt and cap.

‘Okay nature, come and get me.'

Linden was next with an equally well-fitting suit, but without the action pose.

They waited for Max's curtain to slide open.

And they waited …

Max?' Steinberger crept closer to her cubicle. ‘Are you okay in there?'

The curtain was flung aside and Max shuffled out. ‘Good fit,' Toby sniggered.

‘Sorry, Max,' Quimby apologised. ‘I did ask to have one made in your size, but it looks like they've added a little extra material.'

‘A little?' Max's suit was made for a person twice her size. Possibly more.

‘If you roll up the sleeves and the cuffs of your pants, it'll fit perfectly,' Steinberger offered.

Max stared at him as she put on her cap and it fell over her eyes and ears.

‘Almost,' he added.

Quimby reached into her pocket and pulled out some hairclips. ‘These should help keep it in place.'

The suit dripped off Max from every angle. It drooped from her shoulders, pooled past her ankles and slid down her waist. She squatted to the floor to roll up her pants before standing and pulling up the waist.

Steinberger continued with the training instructions.

‘In a short while, we will be dropping you at different points in a forest near London. The forest is off limits to the public and used exclusively by Spyforce, sometimes for office picnics but mostly for training. Your task today is to reach the centre of the forest and be the first to claim the Spyforce flag. The position of the flag is marked on a map I've sent to your palm computers. The map also comes with a compass to give you your bearings. The real task, however, will be to evade each other and specially chosen Spyforce agents, who will be
trying their best to stop you reaching the flag.' He smiled. ‘Your Super Suits and a few select gadgets should help you achieve your task. Quimby?'

‘For today's training exercise, we have included super-slim laser guns that will shoot out a bright red beam of light. When the laser strikes your suit it will set off an alarm, which means you are out of the race for the flag. Any agent struck with a laser must fall to the ground and remain there until we have a winner.'

She handed them three leather belts with the laser guns sitting in narrow holsters.

‘Finally, something to keep my pants up.' Max grabbed the belt and immediately slipped it on.

‘As you saw Toby demonstrate last night, there is the fine web-like material in the cuff of your left hand. In the right wrist, we have added our plant-based Knock-Out Spray that will render your enemy immobile for about half an hour before it wears off. By turning the top button on your shirts, you will activate the force-field that protects you from attack but makes movement difficult. I suggest only using it when you are certain you are being targeted.'

Quimby picked up three boxes from the
bottom of the clothes rack. ‘We would also like you to have these.'

Each of the agents opened the lid, and a pair of boots rose out unaided, hovering a few centimetres above the box.

‘Floating shoes?' Max asked.

‘Sort of.' Quimby smiled as the agents pulled on their boots. ‘They are Counter-Gravity Boots. The soles have been filled with helium so that you don't actually float above the ground like you can with your Flea-Powered Hover Shoes, but your weight will be offset against gravity so that you will be very light when you walk and make very little noise. Perfect for jumping from small heights, where the boots will take the impact, or making quiet treks through leaf-and twig-strewn forests.'

Toby replicated his fashion walk from the night before. ‘It feels like I'm hardly touching the ground. These would be perfect for breaking into the school kitchen at night.'

‘If you were allowed to take them to your school,' Quimby reminded him.

‘Maybe you could make an exception for the agents who were nearly killed during your gadget demonstration.'

‘You weren't nearly killed,' Max objected.

‘Official Spyforce business only, I'm afraid.' Quimby shrugged. ‘They're also great for doing acrobatics. Anyone want to try a flip?'

‘I will.' Toby stepped forward. ‘Anything to add to how impressive I already am.'

‘Do you find it's hard having such low self-esteem?' Max asked.

‘I try to deal with it as best I can.' Toby faked a sad look.

‘Imagine you are on a diving board and about to somersault into a pool,' Quimby advised. ‘And your boots will do the rest.'

Toby bent his knees, leant forward and jumped. The boots vaulted him into the air, where he tumbled forward and landed on the ground with a casual flick of his head. ‘I knew I'd be good at that.'

Quimby handed them the last of their gadgets.

‘We wanted to keep the equipment to a minimum to test your individual skills, but we have included a pair of tinted Heat-Sensitive Glasses that, like the Night Vision Glasses you used during your mission in Paris,
⁸
will reveal the presence of any living creature by displaying a red blur.'

Toby and Max slipped their glasses into their shirt pockets, while Linden stared at them in his hands.

‘Linden?' Max whispered.

He shook his head as if he snapped out of a dream.

‘Ready?' she asked.

‘Yeah.' His face lifted into a slow smile. He put away his glasses. ‘I'm ready.'

Toby watched them and frowned.

‘Even with your gadgets,' Steinberger said, ‘you will have to practise all that you have learnt in the art of stealth. Any questions?'

‘Do I look better in the Forest Special or the Formal Suit?' Toby held his hands out.

‘I think you'd look better at the bottom of a locked trunk, preferably on its way to a galaxy far, far away.' Max frowned.

Linden smirked.

‘Now, Max,' Toby put his arm around her shoulders, ‘you don't have to pretend. We all know your nastiness is a flimsy cover for how much you really like me.'

‘Or it could be … that I just don't like you.'

‘Impossible.' Toby ran his hand through his hair and put on his camouflage cap.

Steinberger's palm computer beeped. ‘Looks like Sleek is ready for us.'

Steinberger thanked the Professor and led his agents back through the Wall of Goodness, which allowed Max through with only a slightly improved slurp. Apart from the noise made by Steinberger's polished shoes, they silently trod down the long corridors to the Vehicular All-Response Tower, or the VART, which held Spyforce's extensive and highly advanced selection of vehicles.

‘Which one are we going in this time?' Toby rubbed his hands.

‘The RX650.' Steinberger pointed to a glass helicopter with blackened windows at the end of a platform where Sleek, Spyforce's extreme pilot, was waiting in the cockpit.

‘I am going to look so good flying in that.' Toby took out his Heat-Sensitive Glasses, slipped them on with a flick of his wrist and strode to the chopper.

‘Good luck!' Steinberger cried after them. ‘Remember, the first to reach the flag wins – and no one is your ally.'

Max stopped and turned back. ‘I'm sorry about what happened at the anniversary party.'

‘You did what you thought was in the best interests of the Force,' said Steinberger.

‘If only that involved less melted chocolate and gunfire and more grace.'

Steinberger laughed. ‘You are who you are, Max Remy, and that is a very good thing.' Steinberger lifted his arm before cradling it against his chest. ‘Ow!'

‘What's wrong?'

‘I hurt my shoulder when I hit the ground last night.'

Max frowned.

‘And as soon as I gain full use of my arms again, you are in for one very firm hug.'

‘I'll look forward to that.'

‘Come on, let's get this baby in the air,' Toby called from the front seat of the chopper.

The blades of the helicopter flicked into life. Max joined Linden in the back and, when the three spies were buckled in, Sleek lifted the aircraft into a sharp right-hand turn before swooping out of the hangar and into the skies over London.