Read Online Hostage by Chris Ryan - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Chris Ryan
Tags: General, Juvenile Nonfiction, Action & Adventure, Juvenile Fiction, Environmental Conservation & Protection, Mysteries & Detective Stories, Science & Nature
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incriminate Daniel Usher,' interrupted Li. 'He'll say something like, "Oh, that's just a guy who happened to work at the mine. He loved Papaluk, went crazy when she rejected him. Nothing to do with me . .."'
Hex nodded reluctantly. 'And the text messages are too vague. They could have any number of meanings. You're right. We need more.'
'You're forgetting one thing,' said Alex. 'Daniel Usher's hired killer is lying under a spruce tree in several pieces. What happens when he doesn't report in?'
Hex pulled the man's mobile phone from his pocket and stared at it thoughtfully. 'Perhaps he should send his boss a text message. Something like, "Tracking leaks. May take a few days to arrange containment." That should buy us some time.'
He looked around at the others, raising his eyebrows questioningly. Li and Amber nodded immediately. Paulo looked at Li's brightening face and nodded too. Alex hesitated, then bowed to the majority verdict. 'OK,' he said. 'We go in on our own.'
They each spent the rest of the evening preparing in their own way for the mission ahead. Hex stayed by the blazing fire, hunched over his palmtop. He was searching the Net to find out as much as he could about the layout of the mine.
Amber strapped on her snowshoes, gathered a bundle of thin, straight branches from the woodpile, and walked out into the darkness. Standing with her back to the fire, she waited until her night vision was sharp and strong. She had to work out their route, and for that she needed to see the stars. She reckoned that the mine was roughly thirty miles west of their present position. The simplest way to find the mine would be to travel inland along the frozen river where the cyanide had been dumped. The river would lead them to the mine, but first she had to find the river. She knew it was to the south, and unless they had veered further north than she thought on their escape inland, it should not be too far away. Amber was betting that if they headed south the next morning they would come across the river within an hour.
Amber had a compass, but she did not entirely trust it. Compasses could be unreliable this close to the North Pole, but the stars never changed. The night sky was clear and full of stars. Quickly, she picked out two constellations, the Plough and Cassiopeia. Once she had these, she could find the Pole Star by imagining a straight line between them. The Pole Star was in the middle of that line and it shone directly above the North Pole.
'Gotcha,' muttered Amber, gazing up at the Pole Star. Now it was a simple matter to figure out their direction for the morning. Amber took her bundle of sticks and stuck them into the snow in a straight line, with an arrowhead at the end pointing the way south.
Paulo, Li and Alex worked on the snowmobiles. Li and Alex took care of the simpler stuff, checking oil and topping up fuel on the other four snowmobiles, while Paulo checked out Alex's machine. It had been sounding rougher and rougher on the journey inland and Paulo suspected that there was a major problem. His suspicions were confirmed when the engine would not start.
' Dios ,' he muttered, lifting the cowling to look at the engine. He stripped off his outer mittens but kept the thin under-gloves on. The night-time temperature was touching thirty below zero and he did not want to leave his fingertips stuck to the engine. Paulo always carried a basic toolkit in his belt pouch. He opened it now and began working his way methodically around the engine by the light of his torch. Finally, he slammed the cowling back into place with a curse, packed away his tools and stamped back to the warmth of the fire.
'That doesn't sound good,' said Amber, coming to join the others.
Paulo sighed, holding his hands out to the fire to warm them before replacing his mittens. 'It is not good. It is shooted.'
'Shot,' laughed Amber, unstrapping her snow-shoes. 'You mean it's shot.'
'What's wrong with it?' asked Alex.
'It is the fuel pump,'
Hex nodded reluctantly. 'And the text messages are too vague. They could have any number of meanings. You're right. We need more.'
'You're forgetting one thing,' said Alex. 'Daniel Usher's hired killer is lying under a spruce tree in several pieces. What happens when he doesn't report in?'
Hex pulled the man's mobile phone from his pocket and stared at it thoughtfully. 'Perhaps he should send his boss a text message. Something like, "Tracking leaks. May take a few days to arrange containment." That should buy us some time.'
He looked around at the others, raising his eyebrows questioningly. Li and Amber nodded immediately. Paulo looked at Li's brightening face and nodded too. Alex hesitated, then bowed to the majority verdict. 'OK,' he said. 'We go in on our own.'
They each spent the rest of the evening preparing in their own way for the mission ahead. Hex stayed by the blazing fire, hunched over his palmtop. He was searching the Net to find out as much as he could about the layout of the mine.
Amber strapped on her snowshoes, gathered a bundle of thin, straight branches from the woodpile, and walked out into the darkness. Standing with her back to the fire, she waited until her night vision was sharp and strong. She had to work out their route, and for that she needed to see the stars. She reckoned that the mine was roughly thirty miles west of their present position. The simplest way to find the mine would be to travel inland along the frozen river where the cyanide had been dumped. The river would lead them to the mine, but first she had to find the river. She knew it was to the south, and unless they had veered further north than she thought on their escape inland, it should not be too far away. Amber was betting that if they headed south the next morning they would come across the river within an hour.
Amber had a compass, but she did not entirely trust it. Compasses could be unreliable this close to the North Pole, but the stars never changed. The night sky was clear and full of stars. Quickly, she picked out two constellations, the Plough and Cassiopeia. Once she had these, she could find the Pole Star by imagining a straight line between them. The Pole Star was in the middle of that line and it shone directly above the North Pole.
'Gotcha,' muttered Amber, gazing up at the Pole Star. Now it was a simple matter to figure out their direction for the morning. Amber took her bundle of sticks and stuck them into the snow in a straight line, with an arrowhead at the end pointing the way south.
Paulo, Li and Alex worked on the snowmobiles. Li and Alex took care of the simpler stuff, checking oil and topping up fuel on the other four snowmobiles, while Paulo checked out Alex's machine. It had been sounding rougher and rougher on the journey inland and Paulo suspected that there was a major problem. His suspicions were confirmed when the engine would not start.
' Dios ,' he muttered, lifting the cowling to look at the engine. He stripped off his outer mittens but kept the thin under-gloves on. The night-time temperature was touching thirty below zero and he did not want to leave his fingertips stuck to the engine. Paulo always carried a basic toolkit in his belt pouch. He opened it now and began working his way methodically around the engine by the light of his torch. Finally, he slammed the cowling back into place with a curse, packed away his tools and stamped back to the warmth of the fire.
'That doesn't sound good,' said Amber, coming to join the others.
Paulo sighed, holding his hands out to the fire to warm them before replacing his mittens. 'It is not good. It is shooted.'
'Shot,' laughed Amber, unstrapping her snow-shoes. 'You mean it's shot.'
'What's wrong with it?' asked Alex.
'It is the fuel pump,'
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