CHERUB: Mad Dogs (11 page)

‘Yes,’ Kyle said triumphantly. ‘Kerry, that’s it. I could
kiss
you.’

‘You wanting to kiss a girl,’ James grinned, ‘there’s a first.’

It was a cheap shot and everybody groaned.

James tutted. ‘Sorry I spoke. So what can we do to Large’s daughter?’

‘We’ve got to do something that upsets Large, but isn’t actually too harmful to his daughter,’ Lauren said.

‘Exactly,’ Kyle agreed. ‘I’ve seen Hayley Large at the bowling alley in town a few times and I don’t think she has a boyfriend.’

James nodded. ‘I highly doubt it, she’s a complete heifer.’

Kerry punched James on the arm. ‘Don’t be so sexist.’

‘Hey,’ James yelled. ‘You’re not my bird any more so if you go around hitting me I might just hit you back.’

Kerry laughed. ‘Try it and see where it gets you.’

Kerry had a point. She was miles smaller than James, but she could still kick his arse.

‘Here we go again …’ Lauren sighed. ‘I definitely preferred it when you two weren’t talking to each other.’

‘Getting back to the subject in hand,’ Kyle said firmly, ‘what we need is a boyfriend for Hayley Large. A good-looking guy who’s comfortable around girls, but who would also make Mr Large throw a fit if he thought the lad was trying to get his hands on his daughter’s goodies.’

‘That’s a sweet idea,’ Lauren grinned.

James nodded until he realised that four sets of eyes were staring at him.

‘Oh no,’ James said. ‘Not me …’

‘Totally you,’ Lauren said, as she bounced on Kyle’s bed with excitement. ‘You’re always mouthing off about what a stud you are and how girls find you irresistible. Now you’ve got a chance to prove it.’

James had slept on the plane and his body clock was stuck on mid-afternoon when everyone started going to bed. He had a restless night and when it got to 5:30 a.m. he gave up on sleep and headed for the fitness centre in the recently refurbished gym.

It was a Saturday. Following a lonely walk across campus, James found the gym deserted and drew childish delight from running his hand over banks of light switches, setting off hundreds of fluorescent tubes.

After warming up with stretches and shuttle runs, James started pumping weights. He wasn’t big on team sports, but he found pushing himself in the gym or on the athletics track satisfying, and working out was always better when the gym was empty and you didn’t have to fight over the equipment.

Fifty minutes later, James was soaked in sweat, his veins were all pumped and the exertion had kick-started his brain. A couple of staff members were on the treadmills as he headed off to soothe himself in the plunge pool, but the dining room was virtually empty when he arrived for breakfast.

James knew he needed protein to replenish his aching muscles and the chef obliged by cooking up thin strips of steak with scrambled eggs and mushrooms. Zara came up behind and tapped his shoulder while he sat at a table reading the Premiership preview in the Saturday paper.

‘You’re up early,’ Zara said.

‘Jet lag,’ James explained. ‘Couldn’t sleep so I hit the weights.’

Zara nodded. ‘You want to be careful. If you start looking too much like a bodybuilder, it restricts the kinds of missions we can send you on.’

James slapped his belly. ‘There’s not much chance I’ll ever look like a bodybuilder. I’m too fond of my food.’

To prove the point, the chef put a plate stacked up with steak and eggs on the table, along with his side of toasted muffins and jam.

‘Cheers,’ James grinned, as the chef looked towards Zara.

‘I’m afraid the buffet won’t be ready for another twenty minutes or so, but I’d be happy to cook anything you fancy.’

‘Well I wouldn’t normally …’ Zara said guiltily, as she watched James tuck into his food. ‘But I quite fancy what he’s having. I’ll have my steak well done and a pot of strong coffee.’

‘No worries. It’ll take seven minutes to fry the steak.’

‘Thanks,’ Zara nodded. Then she looked at James. ‘I need a proper meal. I’ve been back and forth between campus and Luton for the last two days and it seems like all I’ve eaten is Burger King and hospital sandwiches.’

James noticed that three little red-shirts had gathered around a notice by the door. ‘Is that an update on Gabrielle?’ he asked.

‘I just pinned it up,’ Zara nodded. ‘She’s been
incredibly
lucky. The knife went into her back this much’ – Zara held her hands twenty centimetres apart – ‘but despite that, it missed all of her major organs, and it’s the same with the injury to her side. The surgeon described it as a minor miracle.’

‘So she’s going to be OK?’

‘It’s not a hundred per cent, but it looks good. She’s lucid now and they’ve moved her out of intensive care. She could be out of hospital within five days, although she might need another operation if her tubes don’t heal properly.’

‘That’s
quick
,’ James said, as he gulped a lump of steak that he hadn’t chewed enough and almost choked himself.

‘There are a lot of antibiotic-resistant bacteria around in hospitals these days,’ Zara explained, as James hacked chewed-up steak into a serviette. ‘She’s got less chance of picking up an infection on campus, so they want her off the ward as soon as possible. I’m going to have her placed in a room in the medical unit.’

‘Fantastic,’ James grinned. ‘Everyone will be able to see her and that.’

‘It certainly is,’ Zara smiled. ‘I actually need to talk something over with you regarding Gabrielle and Michael’s mission. Do you mind if I sit down?’

James shrugged. ‘I’ll probably get called
Chairwoman’s
pet if I’m seen sitting with you, but I’ll just thump ’em.’

‘Well don’t thump ’em too hard,’ Zara said as she sat opposite James, her smile turning into a huge yawn. ‘I was up until one-thirty this morning with the ethics committee.’

‘That
does
sound like fun,’ James said, as one of the kitchen staff placed Zara’s coffee on the table.

‘I’ve barely slept,’ Zara continued. ‘And when I did get home, Joshua was playing up and insisted on sleeping in our bed. He’s got his arm in plaster and he gets really frustrated when he can’t do something.’

‘Poor kid,’ James said. ‘If I get a chance I’ll pay him a visit.’

‘Oh
please
do,’ Zara grinned. ‘You’re still his hero.’

‘I’m due a week off after helping out with training, so I’ve got loads of spare time. And what’s this you said about the mission?’

‘Last night’s meeting was to determine the future of Gabrielle and Michael’s mission. We had all six ethics-committee members there, and to start with they were split down the middle: three in favour of pulling the plug because the gang war had gotten too hot; three who accepted my argument that all CHERUB missions are inherently dangerous and that you shouldn’t give up because one bad thing happens.

‘We also had the Intelligence Minister on a conference call from London. Surprisingly he sided with me, and after a couple of hours we got a five-to-one vote in favour of continuing the mission. And that’s where you come in.’

James was taken aback. ‘I’ve just got back from Malaysia.’

‘Don’t worry about your week off,’ Zara smiled. ‘It’ll take time to set everything up. But we’re trying to infiltrate a gang known as the Mad Dogs and you’re uniquely placed to pull it off.’

‘How come?’ said James, confused.

Zara pulled a black-and-white mug shot out of a cardboard file and slid it across the table. The head-and-shoulders shot showed a lad of about fifteen. He was a touch smaller than James with a stocky build and a daft goatee beard. The boy had matured since James had known him and he took a couple of seconds to catch on.

‘Is that Junior Moore?’ James gasped.

Zara nodded. ‘Son of drug baron, Keith Moore. You two got pretty friendly when we were in Luton two years back.’

‘Yeah,’ James nodded. ‘We went to Florida together and we had a total laugh – well, at least until the drug dealers started shooting at us.’

‘Junior’s had a rough couple of years. His mother sent him to boarding school, but he kept running away and was eventually expelled for smoking cannabis. He moved back in with his mother and siblings near Luton, and despite her attempts to keep him under control, he’s been in and out of trouble ever since. Last October he was caught behind the wheel of a stolen car. He was over the alcohol limit and there were two kilos of cocaine under the front passenger seat.

‘Junior got off on the more serious drugs charge because the police couldn’t disprove his claim that the drugs had been in the car when he stole it, but he still got six months’ youth custody. He was sentenced before Christmas and released on a good behaviour bond two weeks ago.’

James sucked air between his teeth. ‘Sounds like he’s turning into his old man.’

‘Anything but,’ Zara said pointedly. ‘Keith Moore was a professional criminal who ran KMG like a business. Junior Moore has drug and alcohol problems and is going the right way about spending serious time in prison.’

‘Junior’s dad stashed millions in a trust fund though,’ James said. ‘Why’s he risking his neck for a few grand’s worth of cocaine?’

‘Junior can’t access any of his dad’s money until he’s twenty-one. And like a lot of teenagers, I suppose he’s testing the limits and trying to make a name for himself by associating with the Mad Dogs.’

‘So the plan is that I go undercover, link up with Junior again and use him to get all the information I can on the Mad Dogs?’

‘If you’re willing to accept the mission,’ Zara nodded. ‘It would all be routine but for the gang war and the risk of further violence. Michael will be on the same mission, but he’ll be inside a rival gang so you’ll have to keep apart. And to be on the safe side, we want you accompanied by another agent who can cover your back.’

James nodded. ‘If anyone’s going to be covering my back, I’d ask for Bruce Norris.’

Zara hummed uncertainly. ‘We’re careful about the missions we use Bruce on. He isn’t the most mature fourteen-year-old.’

‘No disrespect,’ James said warily, ‘I know you’re the boss, but I think Bruce gets a bum rap. He used to act babyish sometimes, but he’s really changed over the last year or so. He’s filled out, he’s less moody and I think going out with Kerry has really made him grow up.’

‘And there’s no friction because he’s seeing your ex-girlfriend?’

‘Me and Kerry fancied each other like mad, but it never really worked between us. She’s still upset because I dumped her, but she seems happier with Bruce than she ever was with me and I’m a million times happier with Dana.’

‘Your self-defence skills aren’t bad,’ Zara said thoughtfully. ‘But I can see the benefits of having someone with Bruce’s combat ability on a mission where some kind of physical confrontation is likely. And despite a few people saying he’s immature, he earned his navy shirt and I don’t ever recall him doing much wrong on any of his missions.’

James grinned. ‘So, do you want me to tell him, or what?’

‘Not yet,’ Zara said. ‘I’d better run it by Chloe and Maureen to make sure they’re happy, but I’m inclined to agree that Bruce is a good choice.’

James wasn’t the only one who’d got up early. Lauren crept into Rat’s room and leaned over his bed until her lips almost touched his ear.

‘COCK-A-DOODLE-DOO!’

Rat jolted so hard that he thumped his skull on the headboard. He rubbed the injury as he sat up and glowered at Lauren.

‘What was that in aid of?’

Lauren was killing herself laughing. ‘I wish I’d videoed that on my mobile. The look on your face …’

‘What time is it?’

‘Almost seven,’ Lauren said. ‘You’d better start getting ready. I’ve got a lesson at eight-thirty and we’ve got to have breakfast.’

‘I hate getting up,’ Rat groaned, picking a lump of sleep off his eyelid as he swung out of bed dressed in boxers and socks. It took him thirty seconds to pull on his trousers and a grey CHERUB T-shirt and slide his feet into his boots.

‘Ready,’ he announced, slapping his thighs as he stood up.

Lauren was stunned. She’d spent longer than that doing her hair. ‘Don’t you want to comb your hair, or clean your teeth?’

‘Can’t be arsed at this time,’ Rat said, as he grabbed a watch off the window ledge and slid it over his hand. ‘Let’s go.’

‘Is that all you ever do when you get up in the morning?’ Lauren said, as they set off down the corridor towards the lift.

‘Sometimes I’ll take a shower, but I’ve got combat training at half nine. I’ll be all sweaty afterwards so what’s the point?’

‘Mr Hygiene rides again. You’re
such
a boy.’

Rat tutted. ‘Do you want me to help you? If I’m not clean enough for you, I’d be happy to crawl back under my doona.’

‘You were all in favour of getting Large back last night,’ Lauren pointed out, as the lift doors parted.

‘Still am,’ Rat yawned. ‘But you know I hate getting up early.’

Two other kids made a dash along the corridor and stepped into the car behind them, so they couldn’t say any more as they rode from the eighth floor all the way down to the basement archives.

Agents rarely used the archives and this was the first time Rat had seen them. The main building on campus was thirty years old, and while the offices and accommodation above had been refurbished, the basement was still decked out in its original 1970s furniture, with avocado-green fittings and threadbare carpet tiles.

The lift opened into a corridor with double doors at either end. To the left was the library, but Rat was attracted to the large space on the right which contained a mainframe computer the size of two dozen fridge-freezers. It was surrounded by racks of giant data tapes and looked like something out of an old sci-fi movie.

‘Old skool,’ Rat grinned, giving a double thumbs-up as he peered through the glass door. ‘Do you reckon they still use it?’

‘Doubt it,’ Lauren said as she pulled a plastic pass out of her trousers. ‘Now stop lusting after the big computer, you geek. I need you to keep your eyes open.’

She swiped the pass through a magnetic reader and the door clicked open.

‘Nice one,’ Rat nodded, as Lauren held the door open for him. ‘I wonder where Kyle got the pass.’