Redback (51 page)

'Who with?'

'
Looked like an Indonesian.
'

'What the hell are they up to?'

'
If we knew that I wouldn't have my bum wedged in a tree. Kelman's
taken a pew at the
north end of the bowling club clubhouse.
'

Gideon tapped her throat-mike to talk to the non-Redback on the day's team. 'Spud, did you get
that about Kelman?'

'
Loud and clear.
'

'Good, you ready to flip up and over?'

'
You're lucky I haven't done it already.
'

'Yeah well, beat the crap out of him if you like; but he will be more useful alive.'

Brody blew a raspberry into his mike.

Gideon spotted their target vehicles out on the road. 'Okay boys, the VP's Humvee is on its way
in. Just tearing up Miller Street. Whoa, I think the driver is a bit out of control there.'

Gideon grabbed the rope she'd secured to the commentary box, abseiled down the tower and hit the
ground, just as the Humvee turned into the park. She headed around the back of the sheds on the
north side, to the spot she'd picked out earlier; but remembering she now had to watch out for
Kelman.

Brody meanwhile went the opposite direction. He shimmied up the downpipe from the top level of
the eastern stand, gabbed the edge of the roof and flipped silently up on top, about nine metres
from his target.

The Pakistani had been sitting crossed-legged and motionless like a meditating yogi for hours.
Fifteen minutes ago, according to Gideon, he lay flat on his back stretched every muscle he could
find and then set about readying his grenade launcher.

Brody smiled to himself. This guy might be able to trance himself into a statue, but the practice
obviously affected his other senses. Brody stayed low, and got within ten feet of the bastard before
he stopped again.

Hurry up and bloody wait.

The Humvee, and the jeep that followed it, barely slowed before skidding to a stop.
Then…nothing. Nobody got out, no one approached, nothing blew up.

And then it did.

The grenade from Bashir Kali's launcher hit the Humvee dead centre. The whole vehicle lifted,
crumpled and exploded.

Bloody hell. What was in that grenade?
Gideon had thought armoured Humvees were made of
much tougher stuff; but there wasn't much left of the Titan Guards' vehicle that had been
transporting the American Vice President. And Coop.

Gideon was itching to run out there; but now she had to wait for Kelman to make his move.

'
Here you come, you bastard,
' she said, so her boys could hear as well.

Kelman and the Indonesian moved out from the tree line to inspect the damage. He then signalled
Kali on the roof to scarper.

'
Closing in behind,
' Triko said.

'Okay; go guys,' Gideon said.

The elation that Bashir Kali felt as the vehicle erupted, reflected his supreme
pleasure at a Trust carried out to the letter, and a promise kept to a friend to do better than his
best. Until…

Brody loomed up behind; not bothering to be quiet any more. Kali heard the click behind him and
began to turn - too late.

Brody belted him across the back of the head, grabbed the scruff of his shirt and yanked him down
onto his back.

Bashir Kali lay stunned, and surprised beyond belief.

'Remember me, you vicious murdering little shit? How's your boy Ashraf? Did he live?'

The unexpected dump - from delirious peak to depressive pit - was like losing his entire being
down a great hole in the world. Kali's mind now registered only failure, while his body itself
prepared for the certain death that was to come. All he got was a large fist in his face.

Nick Kelman meanwhile limped around the wreckage of the Humvee. He wondered why no
one had gotten out of the back-up jeep; yet then figured the remaining Titan Guards were worried
there'd be another grenade. But, unless the wrong guys had ended up in the wrong vehicles, they
should know that wasn't going to happen.

A strange noise from Arjuna, who was following behind, made him turn.

'G'day Nick,' Gideon said, strolling across the road, her pistol already in hand. 'And, let me
guess, you must be Dumadi Arjuna.'

'What the?' Kelman began.

'Hello again,' Triko said cheerfully, approaching from their other side.

Kelman looked from Gideon to Triko. 'What the frigging hell is going on?'

'Perhaps he doesn't remember us,' Triko said. 'Losing a lot of blood can do that.'

Gideon nodded. 'Keep an eye on Arjuna will you, he looks like he wants run for it.'

'Okay Boss, but if you're planning to shoot Kelman in the other leg, can I help?'

'Who the fuck
are
you people?' Kelman shouted. 'Goddamn fucking Australians; you keep
screwing everything three ways from frigging Sunday.'

'Too right mate,' Triko said, sounding more like his brother Mudge than himself.

Approaching sirens heralded the imminent arrival of the forces of law and order but before that
happened three 4WDs swooped to a stop beyond the jeep.

Triko ignored them. 'I tell you what though,
Nick
, if my best mate Coop was still in that
Humvee I am gonna shoot you where you stand.'

'Nah, I'm over here mate,' Coop said climbing out of the lead vehicle that had just arrived.

Arjuna chose that moment to turn and run. He was fast and he'd reached the first tree before
Triko, who was even faster, grabbed his arm and flung him into the trunk.

Kelman took off in the other direction; but he was never going to get far.

Gideon jogged after him. 'Are you mental? I've got a gun. You can barely walk.'

Kelman turned and swung his cane. Gideon caught it, pushed him backwards with it, tripped him
over her foot. She pinned him to the ground with his own walking aid.

'Where were you going?'

'Well I wasn't just going to stand there, and wait for you to shoot or arrest me.'

'What the hell is your deal here?' Gideon demanded. 'You're a soldier, Kelman, you're supposed to
kill these bastards not do their bidding. They're terrorists for fuck's sake.'

He shrugged, or tried to. '
They
think they're soldiers.'

'Oh bloody hell, that's a stupid argument. What could you possibly get out of whatever this
is?'

'War is profit, sweetheart. Pure and simple. It's profit and power. Without it the human race
would just wither and friggin die.'

Gideon couldn't help herself - she punched him in the nose.

'Now get up you prick.' She hauled Kelman to his feet and dragged him over to where the New South
Wales Police Force was now converging on what had, in her absence, turned into an international
summit around a burning Humvee.

The extra 4WDs that had arrived with Coop had been emptied of passengers. Triko and Coop were
dealing with Arjuna, but had been joined by the US Secret Service Agents known as John and Terry, as
well as Marco, Wade, Mudge, Bamm-Bamm and Kennedy. They were followed by Jana bloody Rossi, and
Scott Dreher. Even Oliver, who never ventured out of Back Door, was standing out in the open still
holding the gizmo he'd devised to remote-control the empty Humvee and the other Titan Guard jeep
into the park. No wonder it looked like a drunk was at the wheel.

'What on earth are you lot all doing here?' Gideon demanded.

'We came to see you work dear.' It was Ruth Jardine, on the arm of the Vice President of the
United States of America. Arlen Conte gave her a wave.

You've got to be kidding me.
'That's it,' Gideon said, throwing up her hands. 'You're all
grounded.'

Honolulu, Hawaii
Friday 7 pm

The legendary Jamal Zahkri al Khudri was feeling less than spectacular. He and
Samir had just received a room service order of club sandwiches in their Penthouse suite at the
famous Ilikai Hotel, when the sorry news came on the television.

There had been an attempt - a failed attempt - on the life of the American Vice President while
on his visit to Sydney Australia. The incident had happened barely two hours before and it was
already all over the news, all over the world.

'Now, who do you think would do such a dreadful thing?' Samir asked.

'My question, Samir, is how on earth they could have failed such a thing.'

'You have a point Jamal. The Bringer of the Future is not going to be happy.'

'
I
am not happy Samir. We've been planning the funeral procession here in Honolulu for
months. Now what are we going to do?'

'Plan B?' Samir suggested.

Zahkri laughed and reached for his champagne. 'Why not? Or Plan C or D perhaps.' He was feeling
better already. He loved it that there were always more plans than idiots who failed at them.

His No. 2 mobile began ringing. 'Dárayavaus, it is I,' he said, trying not to laugh.

'Would that thing in Sydney be described as a cock-up, Jamal?'

'It would indeed, my brother.'

'Be a good fellow then and round up the agas and associates and see who is still of use to
us.'

'Of course Dárayavaus. And then, I believe Samir and I will travel to San Francisco.'

'Good idea. Atarsa Kára, Jamal.'
The line went dead.

'I think we need a new toast,' Samir said.

Jamal Zahkri al Khudri, the Emissary of Atarsa Kára, deliberated on that for a moment,
then raised a finger.

'I have it, my friend. Here's to perpetual war.'

'Oh yes, Jamal. To perpetual war.'

Houston, Texas
Saturday 5pm

George Gantry, the Lieutenant-Governor of Texas, entered his study to be met by an
unexpected but always-welcome guest. Abigail van Louden West was standing, hands behind her back, as
she bent slightly over the glass case to peruse his collection of Civil War memorabilia.

'My dear Abigail, what a pleasant surprise,' he said. 'What brings to you my humble home on this
fine day?'

'George,' she said, looking up with a thin smile.

'My housekeeper tells me you have something for me. How intriguing.'

'Yes, I rather thought so,' Abigail said. 'But first George, I'd like you to tell me about the
Texas Star Brigade.'

'The what?' Gantry stroked his goatee to cover his shock.

'The Texas Star Brigade, George dear. You mentioned it the other day. You know, the kind of boy's
club of which you are the sponsor.'

'Oh yes, of course. What would you like to know?'

'Well firstly,' Abigail said thoughtfully, 'I'm wondering if you let these boys play a game, one
of those computer game things, George, called
WarTek
.'

George Gantry felt sick to his stomach. A noise behind him reminded him that they were not alone
in the house. He expected to see his housekeeper in the doorway but it was his young houseguest
instead.

'Oh here he is, one of your Star Brigade boys. Jesse isn't it?'

'Yes ma'am,' Jesse-Jay said. 'Colonel sir, is everything okay?'

'Of course, of course, go wait in the den Jesse.'

Jesse nodded and left the room.

'So, your Star Brigade boys play this
WarTek
game…'

Gantry noticed it wasn't a question anymore.

'Do they also have international summer camps with the other brigades, like the Boy Scouts
do?'

'What other brigades, Abigail?'

'The Brigade d'Etoile d'Euro in France. No? How about Groh Sitaarah in India and Pakistan?'

Gantry was truly at a loss. 'I honestly do not know what you are talking about Abigail.'

'You remember, George; after all it was
you
who told me about the Brigade d'Etoile
d'Euro,' Abigail said, as if she was trying to prompt a fond memory. 'Or didn't you know that the
English translation for that terrorist group in Europe - the one that blew up the train and my
darling grandson - is Euro Star Brigade.'

'What?'

'And it gets even more strange. It was Groh Sitaarah, the Star Brigade on the Subcontinent, that
just killed all those poor people in Pakistan. It seems they're all connected, George; all
connected.'

'I truly don't understand, my dear.'

Abigail gave a frustrated sigh. 'As well as the Star Brigade name that connects them, they've all
been playing the same game, that
Global WarTek
game that was made special for the nice folks
at Blue Atlantico.'

'Oh my,' Gantry said, although he still seemed genuinely confused.

'Oh my?' Abigail repeated. 'Does your young protégé out there play this
WarTek
thing too, George? Did
your
Texas Star Brigade boys' club have something to do
with Fort Hood?'

'Now now, my dear, how can you even suggest,' Gantry blustered. 'I mean that's too ridiculous for
words. You are clearly upset dear lady, but…'

Abigail van Louden West wondered for a moment if perhaps her old friend was telling the truth,
and then decided she did not care either way. She showed him her present; and then she shot him with
it.

The Lieutenant-Governor of Texas pitched forward, head first, into the glass-topped case that
held his Civil War memorabilia. He didn't feel a thing.

It took Abigail a moment to register the odd screaming noise that accompanied the fall of George
Gantry, Lieutenant-Governor of Texas.

It was that horrible little Jesse person. And he was screeching as he ran full pelt at her across
the room.

Jesse-Jay launched himself at Abigail West and tackled her to the floor.

The gun went off again.

The White House, Washington
Saturday 6.30 pm

Garner Brock paced the carpet in the Oval Office while various department heads
gave their latest updates on every damn disaster besetting his country and his people at the moment.
It really was too much.

'Goddamnit,' he said suddenly. 'What is the world coming to when an American isn't even safe in
Australia?'