The 4x4 roared down the twisting mountain road with the helicopter close on its tail.
‘Do you know how to use one of those?’ Raven asked Wing urgently, gesturing at the gun that lay on the centre console between them.
‘Yes,’ Wing replied, gripping on to the dashboard as Raven swung the car into a tight bend, ‘but I would rather not. I dislike them intensely.’
‘Now would be a good time to get over that,’ Raven snapped. ‘If that helicopter gets alongside, it’ll rip this car to pieces. You’ve got to keep them off us.’
Wing stared at the gun.
‘NOW, Wing!’ Raven yelled as she watched the helicopter bank around the mountain and prepare for an attack run.
Wing grabbed the gun and hit the button above him to open the sunroof. Standing up through the hole, he braced himself with his legs as best he could, pulled the gun’s stock hard into his shoulder and squeezed the trigger as the chopper dived towards them. He was surprised by how little kickback the weapon had as he opened fire, forcing the helicopter to jink to one side and break off its attack.
‘Short, controlled bursts,’ Raven yelled from inside the car. ‘Save your ammunition.’
She fought to control the car as it swept through another bend, tyres screeching.
Wing fired again, the bullets sparking as they struck the armoured nose of the helicopter. He tried not to think about the promise that he had made to his mother many years ago, that he would never take a life. He reasoned that she would probably not have anticipated him being in a situation quite like this. The helicopter dropped out of sight.
‘I can’t see them,’ Wing said as he sat back down inside the car. ‘But I think they’re going to be waiting for us somewhere below.’
Raven tightened her grip on the wheel as they tore round another corner of the road snaking down the slope. Halfway down the short straight section that led to the next bend, the helicopter popped up ahead of them, its side-mounted gun pointing at them. Raven jerked the wheel to one side as the mini-gun opened up, sending a blazing trail of tracer fire racing up the road towards them.
‘Get down!’ she yelled, pushing on Wing’s head with one hand as the bullets tore a chunk out of the roof of the 4x4. She fought to control the vehicle as it careered around the corner, keeping her left hand on the wheel, grabbing the gun with her right and pointing it across her chest and out of the driver’s side window. She fired a short burst and the gunner behind the mini-gun staggered backwards and collapsed on the floor of the helicopter. She heard the click of an empty chamber and knew that her own clip was empty. Pushing the accelerator harder to the floor she rounded the final bend and ahead of her saw the temporary sanctuary of the short tunnel through the mountainside that they had passed through earlier.
On board the helicopter, Rafael saw where Raven was heading. He unclipped himself from his safety harness and stepped over the injured gunner, grabbing the twin handles of the enormous gun.
‘Take us to the other end of that tunnel,’ he yelled to the pilot. ‘Nowhere to run, Corvo.’
In the speeding 4x4 Raven looked across at Wing.
‘Are you hit?’ she asked as they shot into the tunnel.
‘No,’ Wing replied.
‘Good, then get out.’ She reached across him and opened the passenger door, hitting the brakes with a screech.
Wing leapt out of the car and into the dimly lit tunnel. He could hear the helicopter somewhere nearby.
‘Stay here,’ Raven yelled, pulling the passenger door shut and hitting the gas. As she raced towards the daylight at the end of the tunnel she saw the helicopter drop down, blocking the road ahead. She grabbed the empty gun from the seat next to her and used it to jam the accelerator pedal down before unclipping a small black disc from her harness and tossing it into the back of the car. Opening the driver’s door, she took a deep breath and dived out. She hit the asphalt hard, rolling to a stop as the 4x4 roared away down the tunnel.
Rafael squeezed the trigger on the mini-gun, the bullets tearing through the windscreen and shredding the vehicle’s roof, but it kept on coming.
‘Pull up!’ he yelled.
The pilot panicked as he saw the car racing towards them and pulled hard on his control stick, sending the helicopter soaring upwards. Rafael was caught off balance as the deck tipped beneath him, losing his grip on the handles at the rear of the heavy machine gun as he tumbled out of the helicopter’s side hatch and on to the road below. The roaring 4x4 missed him by centimetres as it shot out of the end of the tunnel and under the climbing helicopter. At the same instant Raven’s thumb pressed down on the small radio trigger in her hand and the black disc in the back of the car detonated. Both 4x4 and helicopter were enveloped in a huge explosion, the helicopter swatted out of the sky and tumbling down the side of the mountain, a flaming ball of debris.
Rafael lifted his head groggily from the tarmac. He staggered to his feet as he saw Raven walking out of the mouth of the tunnel, twin swords drawn. He was badly burnt, but there was no way he was going to let her get away.
‘Come on, cadela,’ Rafael spat, drawing his own twin machetes from their scabbards on his belt, as Raven walked up to him. ‘Let’s dance.’
‘No,’ Raven said, her blades singing as they flashed through the air in a blur, ‘let’s not.’
The twin machetes fell to the ground with a rattle as Rafael dropped to his knees, clutching his throat and toppling forward, dead before he hit the ground.
‘Amateurs,’ Raven said with a sigh, sliding her swords back into their sheaths.
Wing walked up behind her and looked down at the body at her feet.
‘I assume that merely incapacitating him was out of the question?’ he said, raising an eyebrow.
‘Not really my style,’ Raven replied. A moment later a musical ringtone started to come from somewhere and she bent down and pulled a mobile from Rafael’s pocket. Raven looked at the display and smiled before putting the phone to her ear.
‘Is it done?’ a familiar voice on the other end of the line asked.
‘Hello, Carlos,’ Raven replied. ‘I’m afraid that your men ran into some . . . difficulties. I’ll tell you all about it when I see you. Don’t worry, I won’t be long.’
She hit the disconnect button and dropped the phone to the ground. In the distance they could both hear the wail of sirens.
‘Let’s get going,’ Raven said. ‘It’s a long walk back to town.’
Chavez put his phone down on the desk, his face pale. He realised with a sudden sense of horror that he had miscalculated badly. He had always supposed that the legends he had heard about Raven were nothing more than ghost stories. He was starting to realise, too late, that they were not. His mind raced. He knew what would happen if Raven found him, but there was no way he was simply going to give up everything he had built just because of this.
An idea flickered across his mind and he latched on to it. There was only one way to solve this. It was not perfect, and it would undoubtedly bring him into conflict with Nero, but at the moment that was the least of his concerns. He began to draft a bulletin for distribution by G.L.O.V.E.net. After a few minutes’ work he finished writing and reviewed the message.
M
Urgent bulletin for all G.L.O.V.E. stations
Termination Order
Operative codename RAVEN has gone rogue. Operative has carried out hostile operations against G.L.O.V.E. facility in Rio de Janeiro. Urgent assistance requested. Rogue agent to be terminated on sight.
M
He nodded and smiled to himself. It would be her word against his, and any retaliatory action she took now would simply serve to reinforce the impression that she had turned traitor. In the meantime he could simply disappear for a few days and wait until the all-clear was given. Raven might be good, but she was not good enough to survive if the combined resources of G.L.O.V.E. were turned against her. Certainly he would have to deal with Nero, but that would be easier now that Darkdoom wa
s out of the picture, especially if someone had taken care of Raven.
Chavez called his assistant into the room and handed the drafted communiqué to him.
‘Put this on G.L.O.V.E.net immediately,’ he said, trying not to smile. ‘Priority One.’
Nero looked up from the plan that Colonel Francisco had given him as the face of H.I.V.E.mind appeared on the display on his desk.
‘I am sorry to interrupt, Doctor Nero, but I have received a text communication of which I believe you should be made aware,’ H.I.V.E.mind said.
‘Put it on screen,’ Nero replied.
He quickly read the urgent bulletin that had just been posted to G.L.O.V.E.net.
‘What on earth does Chavez think he’s doing?’ Nero asked angrily.
‘I assume that you doubt the veracity of his account of events,’ H.I.V.E.mind said.
‘Yes, absolutely,’ Nero said, struggling to make any sense of the message. ‘There’s no way that Natalya would move against a G.L.O.V.E. facility without explicit authorisation. I take it that the other members of the council will have seen this.’
‘It is a Priority One communication,’ H.I.V.E.mind replied. ‘It is highly likely they will have been informed as soon as it was received. Do you wish me to arrange for you to speak with the rest of the council?’
Nero considered his options. He knew that using G.L.O.V.E.net was dangerous at the moment, a fact that Chavez had clearly chosen to ignore. If it was indeed how H.O.P.E. was isolating their locations, it would be extremely risky to use it to contact the other members of the council. Even if he took that risk, what would he tell them? That he was unable to contact Raven for unknown reasons, but that, yes, she was in South America, and by the way he’d just let one of G.L.O.V.E.’s most dangerous enemies escape from H.I.V.E., someone he had told them over a year ago was dead. He could already imagine their reaction. On the other hand, if he said nothing, many of the other council members would assume that he had known about – or, worse than that, ordered – the attack on Chavez.
‘No,’ Nero said quietly, ‘do not contact the council. I need to speak to Raven first. Have you had any success contacting her?’
‘There has still been no response from her Blackbox.’
‘What about the Shroud she took – can we communicate with that?’ Nero asked.
‘Yes, but as yet there has been no response via that connection either,’ H.I.V.E.mind replied.
‘Have Colonel Francisco inform me the moment that his tactical team reaches Rio,’ Nero said impatiently. ‘I want answers.’ He’d had no choice but to send the Colonel after Cypher, as he still did not know Raven’s status.
Nero had a sudden uncomfortable feeling that everything was spinning out of control.
Otto’s eyes flickered open and he sat upright in his chair. He had just intercepted the first communication via G.L.O.V.E.net in twenty-four hours, and its content was extremely valuable. He reached out with his senses and activated the bank of monitors in front of him, switching impossibly quickly between a huge number of television news channels until he found one that appeared to be relevant. An immaculately groomed woman was standing in front of a police roadblock. In the background was Mount Corcovado.
‘Details are still sketchy at the moment,’ the reporter said, ‘but it appears that a terrorist attack has taken place at the statue of Christ the Redeemer. Eyewitnesses report that there was a pitched gun battle between several well-armed individuals less than an hour ago. The police have been unable to provide much more detail so far, but they have given us this picture of an individual they are keen to talk to.’
The screen switched to an image of a woman with short dark hair running across a car park. Otto immediately recognised her face; she was a priority target. It merely served to confirm what the intercepted G.L.O.V.E. communication had suggested. Otto got up and walked quickly to Trent’s office. He knocked on the door and a voice called him in.
‘What is it?’ Trent asked as Otto walked into the room. Ghost was also there, standing beside Trent’s desk.
‘I believe I have located the operative codenamed Raven,’ Otto said calmly. ‘She is in Rio de Janeiro.’
Trent looked surprised.
‘That’s less than an hour’s flight from here,’ he said. It was excellent news, but at the same time worrying. It might just be coincidence that she was in Brazil, but Trent had learnt long ago that there was rarely such a thing in their business.
‘Indeed,’ Otto replied. ‘I suggest that we mobilise a tactical team immediately. If I can get within range of any computerised G.L.O.V.E. equipment, I should be able to isolate and track its signature.’
‘Get to the pad,’ Trent said quickly. ‘We may not get a chance like this again.’
Otto nodded and left the office. Ghost went to follow him.
‘Wait,’ Trent said as she walked towards the door. ‘I want her taken alive.’
‘Why?’ Ghost asked. ‘You promised me I would be allowed to finish her.’
‘And so you will,’ Trent said, ‘but all in good time. Right now we have to consider the bigger picture.’
‘Which is?’
‘Darkdoom and Nero,’ Trent replied. ‘Raven knows where H.I.V.E. is, which means that she knows where they are.’
‘That is not information that she will give up willingly,’ said Ghost with a slight shake of her head.
‘I know,’ Trent said with a vicious smile, ‘and so I thought that extracting it from her might be something you’d rather enjoy, my dear.’
.
Chapter Nine
Raven watched the reflection of the police cars howling past in the shop window. There was no doubt about it – the events on Mount Corcovado had stirred up a hornets’ nest.
‘Let’s get moving,’ she said to Wing. ‘We must return to the Shroud.’
‘So we’re just giving up?’ Wing sounded irritated.
‘No, we’re not,’ Raven replied with a sigh, ‘but at the moment we don’t have any other leads on Otto’s location. I need time to think about our next step.’ She also needed to use the Shroud’s communication equipment to check in with Nero. Her Blackbox had been damaged during the events earlier in the day, and she knew that he would be worried about what had happened.
‘I meant what I said earlier,’ Wing said. ‘I’m not going back to H.I.V.E. until we’ve found him.’
‘You may not have a choice,’ Raven replied impatiently. ‘Look, Wing, I understand your frustration and I admire your loyalty to Otto, but we have no idea where he is. It might take me months to track him down in a country this size and that’s too long for you to stay here. You saw what happened today. That’s what life is like on these kinds of missions, and it’s not something that Doctor Nero will allow you to be part of. I’m sorry.’
‘You cannot force me to leave,’ Wing said defiantly. ‘I will continue the search on my own if I have to.’
Raven turned and looked at him.
‘I can force you to go, and I will if I have to. Don’t make me do that.’
‘Do not threaten me,’ Wing said, sounding genuinely angry now. She had known him for long enough to realise that was extremely unusual. He was not given to unnecessary displays of emotion.
‘Do you trust me?’ Raven asked him.
‘Why?’
‘Answer the question,’ Raven said.
‘No,’ Wing said quietly.
‘Why not?’ Raven asked, frowning slightly.
‘Because I heard what Nero said to you back at H.I.V.E.,’ Wing said. ‘He told you that you were to kill Otto if you could not retrieve him. How can I trust you when I know that is what you have been ordered to do?’
Raven suddenly understood why Wing did not want to return to H.I.V.E. It was not just out of loyalty to his friend. It was because he was afraid of what she might be forced to do when she found him.
‘You have to believe that I would exhaust every possibility before it came to that,’ Raven sa
id. ‘But you also have to accept that it is a possibility.’
‘Has he really become that dangerous?’ Wing asked.
‘Yes, he has,’ Raven said gravely. ‘If whatever has happened to him cannot be reversed, he could destroy us all – G.L.O.V.E., H.I.V.E., everything.’
‘You must know how hard that is for me to accept,’ Wing said sadly. ‘He is my friend.’
‘I know that, Wing,’ Raven replied gently, putting a hand on his shoulder, ‘and I will bring him back if it is at all possible. I promise you.’
Wing said nothing, just nodded.
‘Come on, let’s keep moving,’ Raven said as she heard more sirens in the distance. ‘We’re not going to be able do anything if we get arrested.’
The trio of black helicopters swooped low over the city. Their specially suppressed engines were so quiet that the noise they made was barely audible over the background noise of the city at street level. Otto stood behind the pilot in the cockpit of the lead chopper, his eyes closed. He extended his senses as far as he could, brushing against the myriad electronic systems that passed by below them. It was difficult to block out all the background digital static, but he focused on the specific signatures that he was searching for. Suddenly something caught his attention, a faint echo in all the noise.
‘There,’ he said, pointing north-east of their current position. ‘Bearing oh-three-seven.’
The pilot adjusted his course, banking in the direction indicated, and the other helicopters dropped into line behind. Otto could sense the signal getting stronger. They were close. Ghost entered the cargo bay of the helicopter and faced the dozen H.O.P.E. troops in black body armour and respirators who filled it. There were as many men on each of the other choppers; they were taking no chances.