Rat-Catcher (9 page)

F
OURTEEN

'That's a cocaine factory?' cried Amber, staring down at the black and white satellite photograph in disbelief. She was looking at two tiny, battered, prefabricated huts, which were clinging to a large flat rock on the edge of a glacier. 'It's pathetic!'

'What were you expecting, Amber?' asked Hex. 'A big, bright industrial unit with a neon
COCAINE FACTORY
sign on the front?'

Amber made a face at Hex, then turned to look out of the front windscreen of the van. She glanced down at the map on her lap. 'Next left,' she called, and John Middleton turned the van off the main road onto a rutted, dirt track.

''Fraid it's gonna be like this the rest of the way,' said Amber, as the van bounced and shook, making slow progress up the lower slopes of the mountain. 'We can take the van along to the end of this track, but we have to walk from there.'

It was mid-afternoon. They had been on the road for nearly an hour and most of that time had been spent sorting, stowing or getting into the piles of gear that they had picked up in the climbing supplies shop. They were all kitted out in climbing boots and socks and they were wearing thermal tops and bottoms beneath breathable waterproof jackets and trousers. One hundred per cent UV-proof, wraparound glacier glasses hung from their necks and their faces and hands were smeared with high-factor sun cream. At this altitude, so near the equator, the ultraviolet light was extraordinarily strong, even on overcast days. Once they were above the snow line the risk of severe sunburn would be even greater. The power of the equatorial sun reflecting off snow could burn unprotected skin under the chin, behind the ears and even inside the nostrils. The glacier glasses were essential. Without their protection, it would take as little as fifteen minutes for the ultraviolet light to fry their retinas, causing severe snow-blindness to set in.

There were four rucksacks resting against the back wall of the van, packed with fleece jackets, balaclavas and thick waterproof gloves for the higher slopes, including spares of everything for Paulo and Eliza. Each rucksack was festooned with equipment. There were ice axes, coils of rope and pairs of twelve-point crampons to attach to the soles of their boots once they reached the glacier. A thick sleeping bag, rolled up in a waterproof bivvy bag, was tied to the bottom of each rucksack frame.

The cost of all the equipment had come to thousands of dollars, but John Middleton had paid the overjoyed shop owner without batting an eye. Li had been anxious to get going right away, but the others had insisted on wolfing down a quick pasta meal before they left Quito, to give them energy for the climb. Li had agreed only because she knew Amber had to eat regular meals in order to keep her diabetes under control. Now they were so close to reaching Paulo, Li was nearly bursting with impatience. Ignoring the bone-shaking bumps as the van careered along the rutted track, she frowned down at the satellite photograph, planning their route over and over again.

Alex watched her anxiously. They were all very worried about Paulo, but Li was the closest of them all to the big, gentle Argentinian boy, and Alex was beginning to get concerned about her state of mind. 'How are you doing, Li?' he asked.

'Fine,' muttered Li, flipping him away with an impatient hand. She leafed through a book of climbing routes until she found the right page, then she laid the open book on top of the satellite photograph. 'General Manteca chose his site well,' she said. 'The factory can't be seen from the air except from directly overhead, because it's hidden away at the base of that rock spur, see? And no-one's going to bother to climb up to that particular spot.'

'Why not?' asked Alex.

'There's nothing to attract an experienced mountain-climber. The route up to the glacier is too easy. It's only classed as a Grade One climb. More of a tough walk, really. And any tourists wanting an easy climb-up-to-a-glacier experience are going to head for the bigger, well-known ones, where you get spectacular views and a cup of coffee once you reach the top. There are no views at all from this glacier, because it's hemmed in by bigger mountains on all sides. It's not worth the climb, basically.'

'What about our route, Li?' asked Alex. 'Any danger of us being spotted?'

Li shook her head as she studied the route book and the satellite photograph. 'I don't think so. See how the glacier splits into two forks near the top to pass round each side of that big spur of rock? The cocaine factory is at the base of the rock just there, at the top of the right-hand glacier fork. If we head up the left-hand fork, we'll be hidden by the rock spur. They won't be able to see us.'

'How the hell did the general get those huts up there?' asked Hex, peering over Li's shoulder.

'Easy,' said Alex. 'He has the hardware of the Ecuadorian army at his disposal. My guess is he had the huts flown up there, on cradles, hanging from army helicopters. And look there. See that?' Alex pointed to the side of one of the huts. 'Those five drums? I think that's the consignment of sulphuric acid the general was supposed to be tracking. He probably had them flown in the same way.' Alex shook his head at the sheer nerve of the man.

'That must be the plane that took off from Quito airport with Paulo and Eliza,' said Hex, pointing to a small Dakota at the top edge of the glacier. 'Isn't that dangerous?' he asked. 'Trying to land on ice?'

Amber shook her head. 'No -- see, I know about that. I landed on a glacier once, with my mom and dad. We were on vacation in New Zealand. What they do is they bring the plane in to land pointing up the glacier slope and they take off down the glacier slope. See those marks in the snow on the satellite photograph? They're splashes of red-rhodamine dye, put down to mark out the landing strip. There's even a little caterpillar snowplough parked between the huts, see? That's to keep the landing strip clear of soft snow.'

They reached the end of the track a few minutes later and Li slid the side door open while the van was still slowing to a stop. She jumped out and stared up at the mountain. Directly ahead of them were the rich, green pastures of the lower slopes. They gradually changed to the bleak, high-altitude grasslands known as the paramo. The snow line cut horizontally across the top edge of the paramo slopes as though someone had drawn a line with a ruler, and above the snow line was the glacier and rock landscape of the summit. Li stared up at the stark, black rock outcrop which stood out against the white of the glacier. Paulo was in a hut on the other side of that rock outcrop, and she was going to rescue him, whatever it took.

Li shouldered her rucksack and set off up the mountain at a blistering pace, leaving the others scrambling to catch up with her.

'Wait!' called John Middleton.

Amber sighed. 'I knew it. When it comes down to it, he's scared to let us go off alone.'

Reluctantly, Li stopped and Amber hurried back down the slope to her uncle, followed by Hex.

'Sweetheart,' said John Middleton. 'I'm really not sure about this--'

'Listen to me, Uncle,' said Amber, firmly. 'We have to go get Paulo. You can't stop us now.'

'Then I should've stopped it earlier,' said John Middleton.

'You couldn't've stopped us,' said Hex, flatly. 'Alpha Force would've happened whether you wanted it to or not.'

'Maybe I should come with you--'

Amber giggled and poked the middle-aged paunch around her uncle's belly. 'You? Mountain-climbing? No way! Stick to what you're good at. You make a really great anchor man. Things would've been a lot tougher without you.'

'But, to let a bunch of kids go into danger--'

'You want to talk about danger?' said Amber, suddenly serious. 'If it wasn't for Alpha Force, I wouldn't be here now. In the year after Mom and Dad died, I was admitted to hospital four times with hypos and suchlike. You know why? Because I didn't care. I didn't care about my life enough to manage my diabetes. Since we started Alpha Force, I've been fine. I have a reason to care now - and I feel closer to Mom and Dad. We can do this, Uncle. Really, we can.'

John Middleton sighed, then reached out and cupped Amber's face in his hands. 'OK,' he said.

Amber grinned and gave her uncle a quick kiss on the cheek, then she and Hex hurried back up the slope to join Li and Alex.

'Be careful,' called John Middleton. 'Remember everything you've learned in training! And keep in touch!'

Amber waved her cellphone at him. 'Every six hours,' she promised. 'See you back here, Uncle.'

'I'll be waiting,' said John Middleton gruffly, folding his arms and blinking rather more than was necessary.

For the first few hours the going was easy. They trekked up the lower slopes, past terraced fields full of flowers. Hummingbirds darted everywhere in a bright blur of feathers, dipping their long beaks into the flower heads. The sun was warm and the grass in the paddocks was a rich green. There were flocks of sheep there, and an occasional belching llama, standing head and shoulders above the milling flock and watching them with big, soulful eyes. As they walked, Alex picked up dry twigs and sticks along the way and pushed them into the side pocket of his rucksack.

'Force of habit,' he grinned, when the others looked at him in bewilderment.

Gradually the slopes steepened as they climbed further up the mountain, and the sprinkling of tiny thatched houses where the mountain farmers lived began to thin out. The flocks of sheep were replaced by goats, roaming freely on the mountainside and tearing hungrily at the spiky, tough grass. Clouds moved in to cover the sun. A cold wind began to blow and the temperature gradually dropped from T-shirt mild to teeth-chattering cold. They had reached the start of the paramo.

'I think I need to stop for a while,' gasped Amber, after they had been climbing through the high-altitude grasslands for two hours. The air had been growing steadily thinner as the altitude increased and they were all having to breathe faster in order to force enough oxygen into their blood, but Amber seemed to be suffering more than the rest of them.

'Just a bit further,' said Li, without turning round.

'Hang on a minute,' said Hex. He stood in front of Amber, lifted her chin with his fingers and studied her face. There were beads of sweat on her forehead and the skin around her mouth was a sickly-looking grey. 'We're stopping,' he insisted.

'But Paulo is up there,' said Li sharply.

'Five minutes,' said Hex. His voice was calm, but his green eyes were worried as he studied Amber. 'We all need a break.'

Li sighed and headed for a large rock where they could shelter from the freezing wind which was howling down from the higher mountain passes. The spongy, wet ground squelched under them as they sat huddled together and they were glad of the protection of their waterproof trousers.

'Bit of a change from the lower slopes,' said Alex with a shiver, looking around at the grey, brittle landscape. 'I think it's time to put another layer on.'

They all struggled into their fleece jackets, gloves and balaclavas, except Amber. She took out her phone first, and sent a text message to her uncle. Then she pulled her diabetes kit from her belt pouch and did a blood-sugar test.

'Is it OK?' asked Hex, as Amber pulled out her insulin pen.

'It's fine,' said Amber, peeling layers of clothing away from the top of her thigh and administering her second injection of the day.

'Are you sure?' persisted Hex. 'You're not looking too good.'

'I don't feel great,' admitted Amber, shivering as she pulled on her fleece jacket. 'But I'm not having a hypo. The blood sugar's fine.'

'It's mild altitude sickness,' said Li. 'That's all. We're all suffering a bit because we're climbing so fast.'

'What are the symptoms?' asked Hex, still studying Amber.

'Breathlessness, fast pulse, headaches. Oh, and dehydration. We lose more moisture because we're breathing faster.'

'Time for a drink, then,' said Alex, pulling a bottle of water from his rucksack and handing it round.

'Can we do anything about it?' asked Hex.

'Nope,' said Li, doling out high-calorie snack bars for everyone to chew on. 'The longer we stay this high, the worse the symptoms get. That's why we should push on.'

'OK,' said Amber, struggling to her feet and trying to ignore the wave of dizziness that overtook her. She gazed up at the mountain and her mouth dropped open. 'Would you look at that?'

They all looked up and stared in amazement. A thick grey fog was racing down the mountain towards them, carried on the freezing wind. It moved like a torrent of water, pouring through gullies and swirling over rocks. Within seconds they were enveloped in a bitterly cold, grey blanket and visibility dropped to virtually nothing.

'Well, that's just great,' sighed Amber, reaching into her rucksack and pulling out her compass and a map in a waterproof covering. She studied them for a moment, getting her bearings, then she hung the map and compass around her neck. 'That way,' she said, pointing into the fog.

An hour later, the strengthening wind suddenly tore the fog apart like tissue paper and blasted it away down the slope behind them. They were left standing on the exposed shoulder of the mountain, with clear skies above them and the start of the snow line only a few metres away. The sun had already dipped behind the other side of the mountain and the left fork of the glacier stretched ahead of them like a white highway in the dim late-afternoon light. Over to the right, the dark bulk of the rock outcrop towered over them.

'Good compass work, Amber!' yelled Alex, over the howling wind. 'Spot on!'

Amber nodded and grinned weakly from where she stood, clinging to Hex's arm and gasping for breath.

'Fix the crampons onto your boots now!' shouted Li, once they were out on the face of the glacier. 'And then we need to rope ourselves together before we go any further!'

They nodded, turned their backs to the wind and sat down to fasten the twelve-spiked crampons onto the soles of their boots. Li secured the rope around her waist, then moved from Hex, to Amber, to Alex, knotting the rope around their waists and leaving ten metres of line between each of them. They huddled together while Li gave last-minute instructions. 'Keep the line strung out, OK? It's safer that way. If one of us falls down a crevasse, we don't want the rest of us getting dragged in as well.'