Revenge

  Then he sat down behind a desk and looked at the two boys. They looked tiny among the high-ranking SYUI officers. All the officers had been recruited from the metropolitan police and all stood at over six foot.

  Jason started to turn red and looked at Scott with a painful expression.

  “Jase, tell them what you found out,” Scott whispered. Jason took a deep breath. He looked directly at George and tried to block out the others in the room.

  “Jim Kinver. They’ve caught him, and he will probably be dead by the morning if we don’t get him out tonight,” Jason said quietly.

  “What’d he say?” an officer at the back of the office shouted.

  “Speak up. Stand on a chair or something,” another suggested.

  Jason turned bright red and nervously started to shake.

  What’s wrong with me? Jason asked himself.

  He had never before spoken to a large group and was surprised with himself that he couldn’t do it. Scott looked at him and was surprised to notice he was so nervous. He had always seen Jason as his fearless hero. For the first time, he saw Jason in a different light. Jason had stage fright! Scott leaned forward and whispered in Jason’s ear.

  “I read that if you imagine the audience naked, it’s easy to talk.” As he listened to Scott’s advice, Jason peered around the room and then looked at George.

  “Yuck, that’s gross,” Jason said, pulling a face like he was going to be sick. He walked over to George and pulled a chair next to him. George looked at Jason, and like Scott, he was surprised to see Jason was nervous and shaking.

  “So you are human after all. Okay, son, tell me.” George smiled. As Jason spoke to George, a hum of conversation went around the room.

  After five minutes, George thanked Jason and stood up and walked to the center of the room. Scott joined Jason.

  “Jim Kinver’s been caught. He’s been bloody tortured. It sounds pretty horrific. He has lost fingers and toes. If it wasn’t for Jason, he would probably be ‘brown bread’ by now, but as far as we know, he’s still alive and kicking.”

  “He won’t be kicking much with no toes,” Scott sniggered. In return, he got a look that could kill from Jason. He immediately knew that had been in bad taste. “Sorry, Jase.” Jason shook his head disapprovingly at his friend.

  George continued and explained everything. For the next hour, Jason had to make a detailed statement. He explained everything. They could not figure out how Boudica could possibly be selling enough cereal to fund a takeover of the Chinese government.

  By three in the morning with no fresh ideas, SYUI officers started to lose interest. They doubted some of what Jason had told them. Scott took Jason to the cafeteria to get a drink. They wanted to try to stay awake. Dr. Turner and Janice were already there, sitting at a table and drinking hot chocolate.

  “Is it over? Can we go home now?” Dr. Turner asked.

  “No, Dr. Turner. Sorry.” Jason said as he sat down heavily in a chair next to Janice. Scott was at the counter. The cafeteria was open twenty-four hours for the police who came on and off duty. He collected a tray with some food and drink and joined them.

  “Will someone tell me what’s going on? Jason—if that is your real name—are you in trouble?” Janice asked.

  “Yes, my real name is Jason Steed. For now, that’s all I can say.” She was not happy with the answer. She folded her arms across her chest and turned away.

  “Here, mate, I got us a Coke and a bowl of Coco-Bites each.” Scott smiled.

  “Thanks, I’ll have the Coke, but I won’t eat Coco-Bites. They are made by Boudica’s company. I want nothing to do with that witch,” Jason said as he pulled the tab off a can of Coke.

  “I’ll have them then.” Janice said, swiftly taking the bowl. She and Scott hungrily ate the cereals.

  “Looks like they haven’t eaten in weeks,” Dr. Turner said and laughed. “He is getting through three boxes a week.”

  “That’s nothing. I have a friend at school that eats a box a day,” Janice replied with a mouthful. “She is addicted to them more than me.”

  Scott stopped eating, gazed at his bowl, and then looked at Jason. Jason looked back quite confused by Scott’s look. Scott was in deep thought. He repeated what Janice said. “Addicted to them. Is that what you said?” He kept his gaze on Jason’s eyes. His brain was working overtime. Jason blinked and tried to look away from the stare that was getting uncomfortable.

  “Are you two going to kiss or what?” Janice questioned. Scott continued to stare blankly into Jason’s eyes. Eventually he got up and went back to the counter and picked up a box of Coco-Bites and studied it. He looked up at Jason, who was watching him.

  “Got it!” he shouted. “Come on.” Jason followed Scott back up the stairs to the SYUI office.

  “Are you sure you have worked it out, Scott? They made me look pretty stupid,” Jason said, walking behind with his hands in his pockets.

  “They are the stupid ones.”

  George and the others were talking, trying to decide if they should rescue Kinver and blow the case. They had given up on Jason. Scott burst into the room.

  “Mr. Young, Jason’s right. I know how Boudica will get the money.” Jason sat next to George while Scott stood at the front of the room and held the box of Coco-Bites.

  “How many boxes per week are sold in Britain?” Scott asked.

  The officers sighed. Was this a boy’s game? They were now being treated like schoolchildren. George groaned until Jason kicked him under the table.

  “I thought SYUI stood for Scotland Yard Undercover Intelligence. Then show me some intelligence. Come on…how many?” Scott repeated. Jason watched Scott full of admiration. He had no idea what Scott was about to say but had full confidence in him.

  “Maybe one hundred thousand,” George replied.

  “No. Wrong. Try ten million and growing,” Scott said.

  “What the bloody hell has this to do with anything?” George shouted.

  “Who owns the company?” Scott asked.

  “Yes, we know. Boudica,” a female officer interrupted.

  “So, when she doubles the price or even triples it, that’s an extra twenty or thirty million per week. That is just the UK. Jason has already told us that she is opening a plant in America. Once the Americans start eating them—and let’s not forget there are over two hundred million Americans—we can add another six hundred million per day. In a week, that’s enough money to buy some corrupt politicians, feed an army, and have some change. She will be the richest woman in China. She will control everything she wants. She will be able to overthrow the Mao government.” Scott rolled his sleeves up and pushed his hair back over his head.

  “What are you saying, Scott?” George asked.

  “Have you tried these?” Scott asked.

  “No, but my son eats them. Actually, he eats a lot of them—bloody addicted to the stuff.”

  “Exactly. And no doubt if the price was to double or triple, you would still buy them to keep him happy,” Scott said with his arms folded. He looked at Jason and smiled. George put his arms up, looking for an explanation.

  “So, you think she is just going to sell a few boxes of cereal? But that’s not illegal!” George shouted.

  “But the secret ingredient in Coco-Bites is what? It’s nothing new really. When they started making Coca-Cola back in 1895—when you were still a boy—they actually put a few milligrams of cocaine in the ingredients. That and the caffeine made it slightly addictive—but nothing like whatever they are putting in Coco-Bites. It’s must be a new secret ingredient that keeps people addicted. This way, people won’t be able to stop buying them at any price.”

  “They can’t put bloody secret ingredients in kid’s cereal.” He got up, took the box off Scott, and threw it to a man sitting beh
ind him. “Take it to the lab and test it,” George demanded. He stood up and shouted orders. They were going to raid Boudica’s yard as soon as they got the test results. “Scott!” he shouted. “What the bloody hell did you mean? In 1895, when I was a boy? To you, I may seem old, but I am not that old.” He grinned and winked at the boys.

  Chapter 10

  As the sun broke, the gray London sky slowly appeared above the rooftops of row upon row of houses. TV antennas pointed south, attached to smokeless chimneys that lined up in a never-ending row of disorganized modern architecture. George nudged Jason to wake up. They were outside Boudica’s compound. SYUI wanted Jason to join the raid, as he knew where Kinver was being held. Although George had a secret agenda, he wanted to witness for himself Jason in action.

  Jason yawned and slowly opened an eye. He snuggled under what he thought was a blanket. He looked down. It was George’s jacket. He must have placed it on him after Jason had gone to sleep.

  He does have a heart after all.

  “What time is it?” Jason yawned, stretching his arms and shivering.

  “Just after six. They just called us on the radio. Scott was right. Coco-Bites is loaded with special sugars and chemicals that attach themselves to our bodies’ nervous systems. That’s why you kids are addicted to it. The stuff works like a super dose of caffeine and illegal drugs. If you stopped eating the cereal, you would go through withdraw. It would give headaches and cause depression.”

  “Don’t look at me. I don’t touch it, but I bet that’s what killed a friend of mine. Colin Wilkes, he must have been eating it before they gave him a drug test. He ended up killing himself after being thrown off the Manchester United second team. Boudica is responsible for that too. That witch has a lot to answer for.”

  When Jason climbed out of the car and removed George’s jacket, the cold air flushed over his stiff body and he tried to flex his muscle to get some warm blood pumping around. George gave orders on the radio. Everyone was to stand and wait for his signal.

  “Okay, Jason, where is he?”

  “That building on the right. We need to get to him before this lot comes crushing through the gates.” Jason pointed with his finger.

  “Easier said than done. That building is the farthest away from the gates. How do we get that far before the guards come out?”

  “Drive in and leave the rest to me. I will sit in the back.” Jason climbed in the back of George’s black Rover, which was unmarked. There was no reason to suspect it was a police vehicle.

  When they approached the gate, Jason rolled down his window. The guard, a small Chinese man, approached. Another much older guard looked down at them through the glass windows of the gatehouse.

  “I’m Jason Steed. I work for Lin Cho. I have some urgent news for Boudica.”

  “Who’s this man?” asked the guard pointing a nicotine-stained finger.

  “Oh, that’s just George. He’s my driver.”

  “Boudica is not here. You will have to come back later.”

  “No, it’s urgent,” Jason said as he stepped out of the car. “We will have to call her from the guardhouse.” He walked into the guardhouse to ensure the guard inside didn’t raised the alarm. Jason strolled in and spoke to the guard, who was drinking a mug of tea and working on a newspaper crossword puzzle. Jason was not proud of what he was about to do, but thinking about Kinver and how he was suffering made it easier.

  “I need to call Boudica. It’s urgent,” Jason said. The old guard smiled at Jason—so young and innocent looking. He briefly took his eyes off the boy while he lifted the phone receiver. Jason hopped on his right foot and gave a hard kick with his left foot, hitting the guard in the chest and knocking him back against the wall. The guard fell to the floor, winded. Jason threw a second kick that landed across the guard’s face. The guard’s head smashed back against the wall. He slowly slid down the wall into an unconscious heap.

  George appeared with the second guard in a headlock. He used his other hand to call on the radio. Within a few seconds, two uniformed police officers took the man. George ran to his car with Jason in tow. He sped through the gates to the warehouse where Kinver was being held.

  The morning silence was broken by the sound of police sirens as blue-and-white police cars sped into the compound. The guards with the dogs patrolling the perimeter released them in a bid to escape.

  George and Jason simultaneously jumped out of his Rover and tried the door on the factory. It was locked. George took a step back and ran at it, hitting it hard with his shoulder. The door lock gave, and the door flew open. George ran inside, quickly followed by Jason, who ran passed him down a corridor. As he turned a corner, they came into a large open area. Two guards shouted at Jason and ran toward him. A third guard shouted from behind them and also gave chase.

  Jason felt adrenaline rush through his body. His first karate instructor, Wong Tong, had shown him how to use an adrenaline rush as a powerful weapon. He had explained that when a mother saw her child run over by a car, she had the strength to lift the car or how a man in a field being chased by a bull had enough adrenaline to leap and clear a fence. Jason could force it through his body, triggering full alertness. The only disadvantage was that afterward, he would be very tired. Adrenaline burned the body’s sugar levels.

  The closest guard tried to grab Jason. Jason ducked and dove to the floor in a push-up position and swung his legs around, knocking the man’s own legs away and bringing him down to the floor. Jason sprang to his feet and threw a full roundhouse kick at the second guard, catching him in the chest. Jason leapt in the air and landed with full force on his right foot against the man’s knee. The result, as intended, shattered the man’s kneecap. He screamed in pain and rolled around on the floor, holding his knee. The first guard was now back up on his feet. He dove at Jason with outstretched arms. Jason jumped back and then kicked out with his right foot—directly into the guard’s face. The impact made a crack as the guard’s nose broke, and pain shot through his body. He fell to the ground, blood gushing from his nose.

  “Stitch that!” George shouted as he head-butted the guard that approached from behind. Jason looked up to see the guard falling backward, blood already streaming from his nose. Jason gave George a smile and nod of approval before he headed off down a corridor. He found the room where he had last seen Kinver and burst through the doors. Kinver was still on the bed. Jason went over to him to wake him and grabbed his arm. It was cold and stiff. He pulled away and cringed. Kinver was dead.

  “Is he okay?” George asked, panting as he entered the room.

  “No, we’re too late. Look, they have burned his chest with something.” Jason grimaced as he pointed at fresh burn marks on Jim’s chest. Another guard had come up behind George and put his arm around his throat and pulled George back. They fell on the ground, with George desperately trying to get a hand on his attacker. Jason started to run over to help; however, a side door opened and two identical men in white coats appeared.

  Wing and Wong. I wondered where you would be, Jason said to himself. One of them ran at Jason, screaming as he approached. He leapt in the air and aimed a high kick toward Jason’s face. Jason jumped aside and retaliated with a kick of his own. It was blocked by the man’s forearm. He spun around to kick Jason.

  So we know karate, do we? What style? I wonder. Jason said to himself.

  Jason defended himself, blocking blow after blow from his attacker. He didn’t attempt to attack back. He was trying to size up his opponent. George was still struggling with the guard on the floor.

  Tae kwon do—good style and fast.

  Now that Jason knew what he was up against, he launched an attack on Wing, kicking out in succession, jumping from foot to foot. Wong joined in. The fight began in earnest. Grunts of pain and effort, showers of sweat, and smears of blood covered Jason. No doubt Jason was fast—his punche
s and kicks powerful and precise. He delivered as good as he got, but he was facing two very determined martial arts experts. When Jason drove Wong to his knees, Wing took his place so there was always one of them fighting him while the other got a breath.

  They clearly hoped to wear Jason down. Bloody and bruised, they continued their relentless assault until Jason drove his fingers into the windpipe of one of his assailants and crushed the man’s trachea. As Wong staggered back and fell to the ground, gasping and snorting like a pig, Wing’s attention slipped for a second. Jason was high on adrenaline. His gift of quick reflexes, along with years of training, made a lethal combination, and he recoiled his right leg. The savage kick caught Wing off-guard—the blow breaking his jaw in two places. Doctors would later have to fit three titanium plates to get his jaw back together.

  Jason leapt over Wing and threw a roundhouse kick at the other twin, who was trying to get to his feet. Wong fell and landed on his back. Jason pounced on him with his knee in the man’s chest, followed by more than a dozen punches into Wong’s blood-covered face. He heard George gasping for air from his attacker, who still had his arms around his throat.

  Jason cursed and ran to George’s aid. He kicked out at the man’s face, breaking the man’s nose and rendering him unconscious. Jason stepped over George, who was rubbing his throat and trying to get to his feet. Jason attacked the unconscious man again. George watched as Jason dived at the man, who was already not moving. Jason turned him over and pounded the man’s face with an onslaught of fast, well-aimed punches. Blood splattered back into Jason’s face and mixed with his own blood and sweat. He panted heavily as he tried to gasp for oxygen to supply his lungs.

  “Jason, stop. He isn’t going anywhere,” George said.

  The pounding continued.

  “Jason, stop,” George shouted. “I think you bloody killed him—stop!” Jason, who seemed to lose control, becoming a brutal and savage predator, shocked George.

  Jason then stopped and sat on the floor next to his blood-covered prey. He panted heavily. Sweat and blood rained down his face. He wiped his face with his trembling hands. Several police officers ran into the room. George took control. They called an ambulance to collect the wounded. They were visibly stunned by the sight of Jason’s victims.