Chapter 11
Alix stood on the roof of the tall modern building, a look of frustration and anger on his face. Behind stood Lola, both shocked into silence. Below them the landscape of London that had been changed forever by the small but deadly nuclear device that had been detonated inside Scorpion HQ.
“I can’t believe what happened here,” said Alix softly. He reached into his jacket pocket, pulled free a cigar and lit up. Smoke plumed around his face, swirling in the cold air. He took a deep and heavy draw.
“Those bastards,” said Lola, her expression malevolent. “Yeah,” drawled Alix. “But which bastards, exactly?” They moved off the roof-top and used the service stairs all the way down to ground level. The bustle of activity following the immediate blast had subsided; no longer did emergency service vehicles line the area where Scorpion HQ used to occupy. At least seventy people wearing hard-hats and hi-visibility jackets picking slowly through the rubble and debris, machines lifting blasted concrete slabs and massive H sections of steel reinforcement had already been cleared from around the cavernous hole; all of the bodies had been recovered and taken to mortuaries all over the city. They walked across the park, away from the blast zone, away from the devastation and total destruction, away from the lost lives and smashed worlds. They got into the Mercedes van; driving away in silence.
The cliff top road was deserted; rain beat against the Mercedes windscreen, the black of night turning grey as dawn started to break over a tumultuous ocean. The battered van hissed its way through the deluge, headlights carving slices of yellow from the murky gloom. Lola leaned back in the passenger seat, looking out from somewhere inside of the fur-lined hood of her parka coat, at the coastal landscape unfolding before them. “You sure it’s at the end of this road, Alix?” Said Lola, miserably.
“Positive. I’ve only been here once before, but I remember where it is, and what a fucking desolate and lonely place it is.”
Alix guided the van with care; along a narrow unmade lane as they drew nearer to their destination, through a tall gated entrance, and still the rain pounded down and Lola began to wonder if agreeing to this meeting had been the best decision she had ever made.
The Mercedes van slid to a muddy halt on the grass verge.
Rain and sleet danced in the beams of the headlights.
Alix stared at the Sat-Nav screen. “Well according to this, it should be just on the other side of that wood. On the right.” He selected first gear, and they moved forward with a jerk and the backend of the vehicle swung to the left and then the right as they picked up speed; Alix was right, they found the small granite stone chapel. He parked discreetly away from the chapel entrance. Steam hissed from the cracked radiator as Alix killed the engine.
“Do you think he’s in there?” Asked Lola casually.
“I doubt it, but you never know with the Priest.”
The rain had eased off and Alix stepped out of the van, an automatic pistol in his gloved hand. He stared around; scanning the countryside in all directions, then saw headlights and a car creeping up the lane towards him. Inside the van, Lola had slotted a fresh magazine into a Heckler & Koch MP5 carbine and she held the muzzle low, unseen; a precaution.
The car halted, steam immediately rising off of its muddy tyres. It was a silver Aston Martin DB5, identical to the one that a wellknown big-screen secret agent of the 1960’s used to drive.
“Everything okay?” Shouted Alix.
The Priest climbed out of the vintage sports car.
“Oh yes, my son,” he said. He looked around, and, with his Bible clasped in his right hand, walked slowly towards Alix.
“I hate this place,” said Alix miserably. The rain was falling again and soaking through his protective clothing to the skin; his face a sheen of water.
“God sends the rain to nourish the land, my son. So that seeds may be sown and life can flourish.” The Priest beamed, moss green eyes shining.
Alix frowned.
“That might, or might not, be true Priest. I assume you got the secure email I sent to you?”
“I did. The infidels have been busy. They seek to destroy everything in their path.”
“I thought — think — that I can trust you, because I know you are one of the main Tactical Planning Officers at Ferran & Cardini — one of the main men, the partners’ ears and eyes, yeah?”
“By your trust, I assume you mean the MP5 rained on me from your van, by your very pretty friend Lola?”
Alix shrugged, grinning. “You can’t blame us for taking precautions — you know how it is.”
“Indeed I do,” said the Priest calmly. “What is it you seek, my son?”
“As you know, things have gone from bad to worse; we’ve just driven up from London.”
“Scorpion HQ?”
“Yes,” said Alix sombrely.
“We must pray for their souls,” said the Priest, great sadness in his voice. “And yet, before prayer, I cannot help but feel that this crime must not go unpunished.”
“We need your help,” said Alix softly. “You have the highest clearance level at Ferran & Cardini, and to be honest, you probably know more about what’s going on at Scorpion than we do…”
The Priest’s eyes glittered. “There is no Scorpion, well not in an operational sense, anyway. There have, shall we say, been… complications. What is it you have in mind?”
“Find out who is responsible — gather together all remaining Scorpion units and go after them. Terminate every single one of them.”
“First you will need to find the source; then you will need to find the target.”
“That’s why we’re here,” said Alix. “There’s nobody else we can trust — and believe me, it was hard deciding even to contact you.”
The Priest stood, both his hands deep in the pockets of the black overcoat he was wearing, rain dripping from the brim of the black fedora hat. He thought, long and hard, brow furrowed; finally, looking skywards, he smiled at Alix, then reached out and patted him gently on the shoulder. “I have been given guidance, my son.”
“Really, so quickly?” Alix looked up, nervously, at the heavens.
The Priest nodded. He placed his hands together, as if he were going to prey. A frown appearing across his forehead as he concentrated. “The Lord works in mysterious ways, Alix. But he will lead us and protect us, and the Lord will guide us.”
“You sure about that, Priest?”
“My faith in my Lord is unwavering, Alix. I am merely his physical medium on earth, and the one chosen to carry out his will. Yes I am sure. But I am going to need help on this journey. Under normal circumstances I would call my old friend, Jake Dillon. But, he had a visit from a unit of these Assassins, got them all except one. He used one of his pay-as-you-go mobile phones to contact me. Told me that he was shipping out with Tatiana.”
“Bloody hell.” said Alix, and immediately added. “Sorry, didn’t mean to say that.”
“No need to apologise, Alix. But… as you are now here, my friend. Sent, I think, by the Almighty. You can be of assistance to me.”
“What kind of journey?” Alix’s voice was suspicious.
“As TPO’s at Ferran & Cardini, we have always worked closely with our equivalent rank at Scorpion. Between us we keep tabs on a variety of people and locations around the world; keep an eye on them, shall we say. There has been an increase in hostile activity at various locations and we sent Scorpion units to investigate and in some cases, baby-sit some of Scorpions key personnel — just before Scorpion HQ was destroyed in London. The partners had instructed me to look into a matter of grave importance concerning a Scorpion unit. I was on my way to the assignment when I received your transmission.”