Traitor (37 page)

He lit the lighter.

Rowena turned on the gas and it began to hiss. But then another sound echoed around the hall from behind her. The sound of boots running along the gantry. She looked to see half a dozen soldiers spread out on it, aiming rifles down at them.

The Russian major marched smartly from the tunnel, holding his pistol, and stood between his men, looking smug. ‘Put down your weapon!’

‘Which one?’ Stratton asked.

The officer looked confused. ‘The rifle.’

Stratton laid the rifle on the floor and stepped back, close to the vat that offered some cover from view. He was still within reach of the wire wool that quivered as the oxygen passed through it. ‘What about this one?’ Stratton held out the lighter.

The Russian couldn’t make out what Stratton had in his hand.

‘With this I can open up this,’ Stratton said, placing a hand on the side of the large vat.

The officer did not comprehend the threat. He took a rifle from one of his men and aimed it at Stratton. As soon as he did, the engineers began shouting and waving their hands as they hurried from Stratton to the officer. One of them quickly explained the significance of the oxygen cylinders beneath the vats as well as the dangers of a bullet zooming around the room. He capped off his elaborate description with a simplified ‘Boom!’ that everyone could understand.

The officer looked concerned, as did his soldiers, who began to grasp the situation. One of them was the young soldier who had guarded Stratton. He had a bump on the side of his head. He was the first to lower his rifle without receiving a command to do so and the others followed his lead.

The officer realised that he had been checked. ‘Okay,’ he said, lowering his own weapon. ‘You turn off the gas and nothing will happen to you.’

Stratton rolled his eyes. ‘Who are you trying to kid? This is it for us. We’re dead. But it’s the end for you too. We’re going to take you with us.’

The officer was unable to hide his nervousness. ‘It . . . it doesn’t have to be that way.’

‘It’s the only way. I would rather die like this than in one of your prisons.’ Stratton looked over at Rowena who nodded and looked up at the Russians.

‘Me too,’ she said.

One of the soldiers could speak enough English to understand what had been said and relayed the suicide threat to his colleagues in Russian. A ripple of fear ran through them.

Stratton ignited the lighter and lit the wire wool. It glowed as it burned as quickly as hay and when the pipe itself ignited, the steel, acting as a fuel encouraged by the oxygen, sparked furiously and glowed bright red and roared loudly as smoke and flames issued from the end of it.

The two engineers could stand it no longer and scrambled to the stairs and up them. As they passed the soldiers their panic infected them and every man immediately took flight, except the officer. He stood his ground for a few seconds before stepping back and breaking into a sprint after the others.

Stratton and Rowena looked at each other as the pipe burned swiftly towards the vat.

‘Turn it off,’ he called out.

Rowena obeyed, screwing down the valve until the gas was cut off. The roaring ceased and the flames spewing from the end of the pipe subsided. ‘What now?’ she asked.

Stratton picked up the gun. ‘Get going. Hopefully the guards’ll keep running when they get to the surface. We’ll have to take our chances.’

‘You weren’t serious about wanting to end it here rather than in a prison?’

‘Not while there’s some hope. Go!’

Rowena made her way to the stairs and jogged up them. As Stratton reached the bottom steps she was hurrying along the gantry to the connecting tunnel. When he reached the top of the steps he stopped in his tracks. Jason Mansfield stood in the tunnel, his arm firmly around Rowena’s neck, the muzzle of a pistol pressed against her temple. Binning stood beside them with the Russian officer and a couple of his men.

Stratton brought the rifle up, ready to aim it.

‘Easy, Stratton. Pretending to destroy a chemical container had these idiots fooled - for a moment.’

The Russian officer felt a mixture of embarrassment and anger as he gripped his pistol tightly by his side. He wanted to shoot Stratton for making a fool out of him but resisted taking aim while the dangerous Englishman still had a gun in his own hands.

‘Put the gun down, Stratton,’ Jason urged him. ‘This time it’s really over . . . You’ve had a good run but this is as far as you can go now.’ He pressed the weapon still harder against Rowena, who stiffened angrily in his grip.

Stratton went over his options as he looked into Jason’s eyes.

‘Always contemplating options, Stratton. You are insufferable. Shall I try to take the mad fool with me with a quick shot, and hope he doesn’t kill the girl? Or do I concede this phase and hope there will be another opportunity?’

‘There’s another,’ Stratton said.

Jason’s smirk wavered.What other options could the man possibly have?

As she looked into Stratton’s eyes Rowena suddenly realised what he was considering. ‘Do it,’ she said.

Jason remained at a loss to figure out their plan but instinctively tensed himself for something.

Stratton continued to stare into her eyes as he imagined the potential consequences of his next action. And what they needed to do to survive.

Rowena swallowed and did the same.

Stratton turned and aimed the gun at the oxygen bottle beneath the container. He fired.

The rocky cavern magnified the deafening explosion. Chunks of the oxygen cylinder flew in every direction. Stratton, exposed where he stood, fell back to the floor, the weapon clattering away. The expanding blast caught Binning and the Russian officer and his men as they dropped to cover themselves.

Rowena had braced herself for the detonation and as Jason tensed in reaction to it she grabbed his gun hand and slammed him hard with her elbow. He dropped the gun and she followed up with a palm thrust to his heart that threw him back against the rock wall and onto one knee where he fought to catch his breath. He reached beyond his momentary haze and snatched hold of her arm, his grip vicelike, flashing a look up at her. She saw the terrible threat in his eyes but could not get free.

The full force of the exploding gas cylinder had punched through the belly of the huge vat and ripped it open. Tons of bright green sludge gushed out and a heavy gas issued from it, rapidly expanding to cover the floor like a smoky liquid as it rose up the walls of the hall.

Stratton looked through the grille floor of the gantry to see the gas rising up towards him. He sprang to his feet and ran fast towards the tunnel, hurdling over Binning and the Russians.

Jason was about to strike Rowena when Stratton steamrollered into him, delivering a crunching blow to the side of his head that sent him sprawling. At the same time the operative grabbed Rowena and tumbled into the next hall with her.

The green gas began to bubble up through the gantry as Binning got to his feet and ran from it like a man possessed. The Russian officer and one of his men were hot on his heels but the remaining soldier stayed dazed on his hands and knees, a cut across his forehead. The gas seeped through the gridded metal and over his hands. He felt immediate excruciating pain and instinctively pulled his hands away from the terrible vapour. It had already exposed his finger bones, had simply melted the flesh from his hands. The gas rose up his body and he screamed as the flesh literally fell from him and he collapsed beneath the devouring mist.

Jason looked around to see the gas heading into the tunnel towards him and he was up and running faster and more recklessly than he had ever run in his life.

Stratton and Rowena also ran for all they were worth along the corridor.

Binning and the two Russians were not far behind.

The gas accelerated through the connecting tunnel and flowed like a living liquid into the next hall.

Sensors picked up the deadly vapour and klaxons began to sound throughout the complex, accompanied by red flashing strobe lights above all the doors.

The electric motors beside the heavy steel barriers burst into life and large hydraulic arms began stretching out to close them. The doors shuddered as the old hinges cracked and complained as they were brought into use after so many years. The massive doors began to move.

Rowena led the way to a corridor junction and without hesitation selected a turn. They passed through a closing steel door and ran on.

A few seconds later Binning and the Russians jumped through the same narrowing gap.

Jason ran hard around the corner and caught sight of the men up ahead. He leaped through the door with some room to spare and sprinted on.

Stratton and Rowena hurtled down the corridor. As they passed a door an engineer hurried out from it just in time for Binning and the major to slam into him. They all went sprawling except for the young soldier just behind them who jumped over the pile-up and carried on.

Binning got to his feet as Jason arrived and together the scientists ran on. The officer stood up and looked back. The gas had reached the corner. Eyes wide, he ran for his life.

The dazed engineer, unable fully to comprehend what was happening, looked in the direction of the fleeing men. He heard something behind him, a growing sizzling sound. As he turned, the gas, which filled every inch of the corridor from floor to ceiling, enveloped him, disintegrating his body inside his clothing in seconds.

Jason and Binning reached a junction and took the right turn without hesitation.

The officer arrived a second behind them and paused, looking in both directions. He made a decision, choosing the left corridor, which he ran along as fast as he could. Up ahead the young soldier reached a heavy steel door as the hydraulic arm was reducing the gap and dived through. But his rifle got caught and he fought to pull it free. The officer saw the closing gap and screamed, his arms outstretched towards it. The soldier let go of the weapon as he saw the gas and fell back into a brightly lit stairwell that spiralled up before him.

The officer lunged for the door but he couldn’t get through the dwindling gap. He grabbed the barrel of the gun and frantically tried to lever the door open. But it was useless. The hydraulics moaned as the door crushed the weapon’s wooden stock and it came to a hissing halt.

The Russian turned to look back along the corridor as the green gas rolled towards him. He reached for his holster only to find it empty, remembering that he had dropped the gun when the gas cylinder exploded. He looked at the rifle jammed in the door, placed his heart against the muzzle, reached for the trigger and pushed it. The gun fired, killing him instantly as the gas engulfed him.

The green mist seeped through the door that was now wedged slightly open by the gun. It slowly filled the bottom of the stairwell. Several spirals up, the young soldier saw the gathering green death. He hauled himself up the stairs.

Rowena and Stratton reached the laboratory door, flung it open and ran into the room, pausing only to slam the door behind them and locate the lift before racing to the far side of the lab and ripping open the sliding door of the lift cage.

The lift, like everything else in the complex, was old and basic. Large enough to fit a grand piano inside, the ceiling and floor were made of gridded metal connected by struts and wire-mesh walls.

Binning, a little ahead of Jason, reached the lab door but as he slowed to open it Jason ran into him and callously propelled his colleague further along the floor of the corridor. It had become a race for personal survival.

As Jason barged open the lab door and sprinted across the room towards the lift Binning rose to his feet. He saw the approaching gas, scrambled back to the door and threw himself inside before the gas could touch him.

Stratton and Rowena closed the door of the lift cage but not before Jason managed to jam an arm inside.

In his desperation Binning fell over chairs and tables as he tried to get to the lift, spilling the encryption tile to the floor as the green gas rolled into the room.

‘It won’t move unless the door’s closed!’ Jason shouted.

Stratton had no choice and slid aside the lift-cage door. Jason leaped into the lift and looked back at Binning pulling himself across the room, the gas right behind him. Jason slammed the cage shut, pulled the lever and the lift jerked as it began to ascend.

‘No!’ Binning yelled. He leaped for the rising lift and tugged at the cage. He grabbed the cable attached to its underside and stuck his fingers up through the grille of the floor. As he went up, the poisonous gas crept into the opening and down into the shaft.

Stratton and Rowena stood on the side of the creaking lift opposite to Jason as it rose slowly. They looked down at Binning through the floor, his life entirely dependent on the strength in his fingers.

‘Help me!’ he screamed.

Stratton stared at Jason across the small space, unsure how to handle the man. The scientist’s game plan could only continue if Stratton and Rowena were silenced. Jason was a dangerous man and could not be given another opportunity.

But Stratton wasn’t the only person in the lift with a grievance against Jason. In fact Rowena arguably had a greater one. Mansfield had duped her, used her, lied to her and tried to kill her. Worse still, as far as she was concerned, he had taken her as his lover purely to further his traitorous ambitions.

Staring at him, face to face for the first time since discovering how evil and low he was, she could not contain herself. ‘You piece of shit!’ she screamed, throwing herself at him.

But Jason was fully prepared for an attack from either of them, and he was far too strong and skilful for her. He sidestepped her punch and struck her savagely on the side of her neck, a blow that sent her near unconscious as she dropped to the floor.