‘Ready, Jake?’ asked Lauren.
And she gave him a smile. It was the smile that did it. Jake nodded.
‘Ready,’ he said.
Chapter 13
Jake and Lauren left the cover of the small copse and hurried across the narrow road towards the high wire fence. A ditch ran between the road and the fence.
‘D’you reckon this’ll take us to the culvert?’ asked Lauren.
‘Only one way to find out,’ said Jake.
He pulled the balaclava over his head, and then slid down into the ditch. Lauren followed him. The ditch was full of brambles, and Jake was glad they were completely encased in clothes, with thick gloves and the balaclava helmets, or the brambles would have torn their skin to ribbons. The heavy rain was starting to fill the ditch now, though, making the weeds and mud in it slippery underfoot. They moved off. All the while Jake’s senses were on alert for the sound of an alarm from the base, or a shout that showed they’d been spotted.
Aware of the time limit on them, they moved swiftly along the ditch. Finally Jake spotted the concrete of the culvert, partly overgrown by weeds and nettles. They followed the culvert until they came to the drain outlet.
‘It’s good!’ whispered Lauren, relief in her voice.
Jake saw what she meant: there was just a grille made of wire, partly hidden behind nettles. Obviously no one bothered to check the drain was cleared.
Lauren hurried to the wire grille, took hold of it, and pulled at it. It moved slightly, but held.
‘Bolt cutters?’ whispered Lauren.
Jake passed her the cutters. She set to work, cutting through the wires of the grille.
Jake sneaked a look at his watch. 11.17. They had thirteen minutes. He tried to recall the plan of the drain on Jo’s computer screen, and how it related to the base, and particularly Block C. Block C was near the third manhole from the drain entrance; he was fairly sure of that.
Lauren cut through the last of the wires and heaved on the grille, bending it down. The entrance to the drain was open!
She turned to him and gave him a thumbs-up. He couldn’t see her face beneath the balaclava, but he guessed she was smiling. So far so good.
Lauren slid into the drain. Once inside, she produced a small torch and shone it along it. As Jake joined her inside the drain entrance he looked past her and saw that the drain ahead was clear. A trickle of water ran down in their direction, but not enough to stop them. He checked his watch again. 11.22. Eight minutes.
Lauren was already sliding further in and upwards through the narrow drain, hauling herself along with her clawed gloved fingers and her knees. Jake followed close behind her, his face almost touching the backs of her legs. Every now and then he was aware of the torch beam being aimed at the top of the drain-tunnel, and then Lauren moved on again. Finally, she stopped. She gestured upwards.
Jake looked at where the beam of torchlight was pointing at a manhole cover. Lauren rolled on to her back and reached up, and began pushing at the metal cover. For a second Jake thought it was stuck fast, but then he saw it move slightly, and suddenly it was clear. Heavy rain began to pour down over them, and on down the tunnel past them.
Lauren pushed herself up, and then out of the drain. Jake followed her, wriggling himself into a position from where he could stand, and then he used the sides of the open manhole to lever himself up.
The rain was certainly heavier now. He slid the manhole cover almost back into place, taking care to leave an edge sticking up. The last thing they’d need would be to be running from fast-closing pursuers and finding the manhole cover stuck.
They’d come up just behind a wooden hut. Lauren sidled carefully towards the edge of the hut, and peered round. She gave Jake a thumbs-up again, and then headed across a patch of open ground towards a single-storey concrete building. As Jake hurried after her, he could see the words ‘Block C’ in huge letters painted on the building’s wall. He slipped on the wet grass as he ran and nearly lost his balance, but managed to recover himself. Thank heaven for this rain, he thought. It would reduce visibility, help them avoid being spotted.
He joined Lauren at the door to the building. Fortunately, it was in shadow, away from the harsh lights of the fence. Here we go, he thought.
Lauren reached for the door handle and looked at Jake, questioningly. Was he ready?
He nodded and gave her a thumbs-up. Let’s do it.
Lauren tried to push the handle down, but nothing happened. The handle stayed locked straight in the same position. Lauren tried again, but once more the door handle stayed firmly locked.
‘She said she’d have it open!’ burst out Jake, horrified.
Lauren checked her watch.
‘It’s eleven twenty-nine,’ she said. ‘Jo said eleven thirty.’