And then, just as suddenly as the helicopter had arrived, it lifted and heeled away into the sky. It left behind a tense silence.
‘What do we do now?’ said Kim.
‘I don’t see ‘ow zey could have found us. We were so careful-’ Jean-Claude looked almost tearful.
Delphine and Emma sat frozen, their terror clear to see on their pale faces. Kim instinctively tried to reassure them.
‘That helicopter might be nothing to do with us. They fly over all the time-’
‘Yeah, but if it is, we could be in trouble,’ Joe interrupted. ‘Jean-Claude - what’s your take on this?’
‘I think Osborne and Griffiths will be desperate to retrieve any remaining sentients. The rumour is, they have a number of big investors for their project and zey can’t afford to lose resources. If they’ve pinpointed our location, zey will probably send a team to-’
‘I can imagine,’ Joe broke in. ‘We have to move quickly then, before that happens. Xavier, are the others still at the Littlebrook site?’
Xavier touched his fingers to his head for a moment and then nodded. ‘I think so.’
‘Okay then, let’s get into the car and head there.
‘What should we take?’ The ever-practical Kim was gathering up the flower-patterned quilt from the sofa and arms full, trying to assess what else could be useful. ‘I can’t think, what might we need? Torch, rope, coats?’
‘Yes, all that. Jean-Claude - bring your tool box.’
The Frenchman hurried to collect it from the utility room.
‘And grab the cool box while you’re in there, would you?’ Joe called after him. ‘We can get provisions once we’re on the road. Thank goodness we can all fit in the car, although it’ll be a squeeze. Hurry.’
‘What about the laptop?’
‘Yes, bring that and don’t forget the charging cables. I’ve got the phone. C’mon. Quick.’
Kim pushed the duvet at Delphine to carry and took Emma with her, in search of other items that could be useful. She noticed Xavier stood stock-still in the centre of the maelstrom, his face betraying nothing of what his brain might be processing.
Add comment
Comments