“Mr. Steed I will be okay, if I can help get Jason back I have to do it.” Scott said.
Ray and Brenda watched Scott leave with Dexter, and the three cars sped away.
Infinity’s London headquarters were below a used car lot called Cockney Carriages. They had mostly older cars on the lot that were ridiculously over priced and a salesman who acted as if he were deaf. If anyone arrived to look at a car he would ask them to repeat it over and over until they lost patience and left. It was a prefect cover; it meant they were left alone.
Having Infinity agents arrive at various times in different vehicles never aroused suspicion. Below the car showroom was Infinity’s office. During World War Two it had been a bomb shelter. Scott took everything in as he was shown into a large room with a massive world map on the wall.
The map had small green bulbs lit up over most of it. A few were orange and a couple of red. He noticed the bulb over Germany was red and came to the conclusion that it meant danger.
“So the red light on Germany is because Jason has gone missing?” Scott asked.
Dexter looked up at the map. “Yes.”
“Why does the east coast of America have a red light?”
“That doesn’t concern you Scott. You are here to help find Jason so concentrate on Germany and everything we know.” Dexter snapped. “We have had reports from Germany. By all accounts the team that killed Wong Tong and took Jason was Shaolin monks.”
Scott nodded. “I’m smart but I don’t know everything. Who are Shaolin Monks?”
“Shaolin Monks were traditionally used by Chinese Emperors to carry out missions. Typically assignation, capture, espionage and infiltration. They are skilled in martial arts. Think Ninjas and Samurai warriors on steroids, double it and you have Shaolin monks.”
“Basically bad asses then?” Scott suggested.
“They took down one of our agents, managed to knock out Jason and kill Wong Tong. By all accounts Wong Tong put up a brave fight. His body was badly beaten and cut up,” Dexter said.
Scott looked at a file Dexter passed him. A picture of Wong Tong’s battered body forced him to close it again. He paced up and down firing questions at Dexter trying to gather as much information as he could so he could put a puzzle together.
He found a white marker board and wrote random thoughts across it.
Germany.
Wong Tong.
Karate.
Boudicea.
Luke the leopard.
Jason.
Shaolin.
Carrot cake.
Buckingham Palace.
Dr Robert Kemp.
SYUI/ Infinity.
Assassination.
Dexter arrived with some sandwiches for Scott and looked at the board.
“Carrot cake? What is that up there for?”
“It’s Jason’s favorite food,” Scott said lifting the bread and looking at the filling. “Egg I hate egg.”
“This is Infinity not McDonalds; it’s all they had in the canteen. Then why put carrot cake on the board?”
“No reason. I wrote everything that came to my mind.” Scott said he took a bite of the sandwich and crunched his nose up.
“Dr Robert Kemp, who is that?” Dexter asked.
“Ah yes, my dad’s business partner. He has been abducted, probably nothing to do with this but it came into my head so there it is,” Scott said.
Over the next two days Scott worked on the ideas he had and started drawing arrows from one word to another trying to come up with a solution. Anything that would point them in the direction of Jason’s whereabouts would help. Brenda returned to SYUI offices and dug through every file they had on Boudicea. She couldn’t help feeling betrayed by Jason and angry that he had kept his connection with Infinity a secret from her and his father. Although for now, she had to try and put those thoughts aside to help Infinity.
Infinity agents in Germany along with FIS (German Federal Intelligence Service) worked in harmony. Using Scott’s theory that Boudicea took Luke the leopard from Berlin Zoo, they attempted to trace it. It wasn’t much too go on, but for now it’s all they had.
*
Chapter Eighteen
He felt a cold breeze brush across his body and shivered, moving his head to one side. He could hear himself breathing, inhaling, and then exhaling heavily and quickly. His lungs felt like they’d been pumped full of cement. There was some sort of rubber mask covering his mouth and nose. He tried moving his head around, but it hurt too much. His arms, legs, and whole body felt like they didn’t want to move.
"I brought the extra canisters. Plug it in so he can go back to sleep!" A woman’s voice said.
Sleep? Yeah, that sounded like a good idea. Maybe just five more minutes, Jason told himself. I'm sure I'll wake up soon.
Twenty-four hours later he woke again. His head throbbed and felt heavy like he was wearing a metal helmet. His eyes flicked open and stared at the ceiling. That was a mistake; the lights were blinding and hurt to look at anything. A fluorescent light ran parallel with his body. The cold breeze swept across his body again.
Jason tried lifting his head it felt heavy and throbbed. His eyes focused. Next to the fluorescent light he noticed a vent. That explains the cold air Jason thought to himself and tried moving his arms to feel his face.
His wrist was strapped securely; he tried the other and that too was strapped to the bed. His tried to move his legs but both of his ankles were securely fastened. Jason forced his head up and looked down at his body. Apart from his boxers he was naked and was secured with leather straps on what looked like a hospital bed.
For a few minutes he struggled against his restraints before giving up. He took in his surroundings. The room was windowless, and lined with metal plating that gave it a silvery sheen like an industrial building. In addition to the bed, there was a table to the left of it, with a lamp on top. There was also a plastic chair, and at the end of the relatively small room was a white trolley with what looked like medical syringes in a box with a box of swabs. Save for a standing mirror and the bright lights above, there was nothing else in the room. No posters, no decorations or anything.
“Ah! I see my special guest is awake. And how are you sleepy? You slept for almost two days,” A familiar chilling voice asked.
Boudicea walked towards Jason’s bed and smiled. The right side of her face was hideous. At first Jason had to blink to make sure his eyes weren’t playing tricks on him. The right side of her face was black with dark red blisters and flaking skin. From one blister poured a creamy white puss. The other side of her face was normal. She was dressed in a fitted white blouse, matching tight skirt with long black high-heeled boots.
“Hello Jason,” She sneered. “So nice to see you and looking so healthy. Your skin is so soft and smooth.”
She ran her finger from his forehead and down his nose, gently across his lips and chin. She continued down his throat and chest and stopped at his naval. Jason cleared his throat.
“Sorry I can’t say the same about you. I’ve seen better looking zombies.” Jason said.
“This is your fault,” Boudicea screeched pointing at her face. “I was lucky to land in deep snow when you threw me off the balcony. I regained consciousness several hours later and this was the result of lying in snow. I had to crawl to the next village.”
“Then we have that in common; you make my skin crawl whenever I see you.” Jason said in a contemptuous tone.
She raised her hand to slap him but was stopped by a male voice speaking in an upper class British accent.
“No don’t hit him. His face is still bruised as it is. We need to wait at least two more days for that to go down,” he said.
She nodded and touched his face. Her finger delicately danced across his right cheek. Jason winced. his face was bruised from the kick he received in the competition.
The man came into Jason’s vision. “Hello Jason nice to see you ag
ain although I’m sure you don’t remember me.”
Jason looked at the man. He guessed early forties, clean cut wearing a white jacket with a stethoscope around his neck, but had no idea who he was.
“Let me guess. Dr. Frankenstein?” Jason mocked. He struggled again against his restraints.
“Come now Jason there’s no need for that. I’m Dr. Kemp. We met at Scott’s birthday party. I work with his father,” he said.
Jason’s eyes widened. “What? Then untie me at once.”
“He can’t do that Jason. You see I have my people watching his wife and children and if he fails to do as I say or if my people don’t hear from me,” she paused. “Well you are a smart boy I’m sure you can work out the details for yourself.”
“Sorry Jason I have no choice. I either perform the surgery or they die and no doubt I also die,” Dr. Kemp said.
“What surgery?” Jason said. His voice trailed off and he suddenly became very nervous.
“Jason you are responsible for my facial disfigurement. It’s only fair you help me put it right and let’s face it. No pun intended. You do have wonderful healthy skin. The doctor is a world-renowned plastic surgeon and can perform facial skin transplants. He will use the right side of your face to repair my face,.” Boudicea hissed with a deadly smile.
“No. You can’t do that. Dr. Kemp you know me, you know Scott and it won’t work,” Jason said his voice in a nervous higher pitch.
“I’m afraid it will, Jason. You match blood groups, your skin is young and as soon as your bruising goes down I have to. Hopefully her body will accept it and she won’t have any problems. You are too young to shave so the hair follicles won’t grow without male testosterone. You are a perfect donor,” Dr. Kemp said.
Jason fought against his restraints once more, his body jerked and thrashed as he fought to free himself. Boudicea laughed. Jason suddenly stopped when he heard a deep growl.
He looked to his left and staring at him was Luke the leopard. His nose sniffed the air, his eyes stared directly into Jason’s.
“I think he remembers you Jason, as the cruel boy who stabbed him. When we have finished with your body you will make a wonderful meal for Luke. He enjoys fresh healthy meat.”
Jason threw some of the strongest curse words he had in his arsenal at her he felt his temper raise but no matter how much he tried he was unable to free himself.
“Jason I never suspected you of being stupid. Foolish yes but not stupid. You can’t get away no matter how hard you try. Now aren’t you curious and want to know what I intend to do, my new plan to make the Western world suffer for what it has done to my people?” Boudicea sneered.
“You’ve already said you were going to kill me," Jason said, "but I didn’t think that meant you were going to bore me to death.”
Boudicea scowled. Her lips quivered thinking of a response. She stopped herself and smiled. “You want to try me Jason? Your stupid school boy remarks will bring you so much pain when we remove your skin; you will beg us to kill you.”
Jason thumped the back of his head back in temper on the bed. Defeated he turned his head and looked away from Boudicea. On the floor he noticed a red garment. He strained his eyes and looked closer.
“My gi,” He said softly.
Boudicea followed his eyes; a large grin ran across her face.
“Your what is it you call it? A gi. Yes of course you were in a karate competition. You were doing quite well from what I heard. Such a pity you were disqualified for not turning up for your next fight.”
“Why is it red?” Jason asked his eyes widened.
“Oh I almost forgot. That little man, what was he called Wong Tong? Yes that was it Wong Tong, put up quite a fight he did. Unarmed he defeated several Shaolin monks armed with Chinese Jian Swords. Even after he lost a hand he fought on to the death trying to defend you. Awful shame I doubt the blood will ever wash out of your precious gi.”
Jason slowly turned his head and glared at Boudicea. His eyes welled up and lower lip quivered. He could feel himself brimming over with emotion. Despite his best efforts he couldn’t hold it back. He let out a small whimper and closed his eyes.
“Boudicea,” he said through gritted teeth and tears.
She looked down at him and seemed be delighted in seeing his pain. “What is it dear boy, are you upset?”
“I promise you that you will wish you had died when you fell from the castle wall,” Jason croaked.
She laughed at him. “Look at you. You are just a boy, a small pathetic little boy. There is nothing you can do Jason.”
She walked away before stopping and approached his bed again. Luke followed closely by her side and purred.
“Apparently you no longer work for SYUI but for Infinity. I have to say that’s a very novel idea. Are you working for them now? Did they send you after me?”
Jason said nothing as he fought hard to hold back his tears.
Scott drew more arrows on his diagram trying to come up with suggestions. Nothing made enough sense until he noticed Dr Robert Kemp’s name had no arrows. He started again and worked from the name and connected it to Boudicea and Luke. Nothing he could do would help work out where Jason was. He was exhausted, but refused to sleep until he could figure it out.
Brenda and the entire SYUI team worked on any lead they could come up with that would lead them to Boudicea. Agents interviewed Triad members and anyone who had previous connections, but nothing seemed to bring them any closer.
Jason woke up. He was shivering. He looked around the room he was locked in. It looked like a hospital operating room.
“Hungry Jason?” Dr. Kemp asked.
“Yes and thirsty,” Jason said.
“You shouldn’t be thirsty; maybe your throat is dry. I fitted a drip to you when you were sleeping. I need to keep you hydrated to keep your skin moist and healthy.”
Jason looked down at his left hand; he had a clear plastic tube taped to the back of his hand. He followed it up to a bag of intravenous saline hanging from a metal pole above his head.
“What’s in it?” Jason asked.
“Just saline, nothing to be concerned with,” Dr Kemp smiled reassuring. Jason noticed a change in his voice. He seemed much friendlier than he did before.
“You know she will kill you anyway when you have done this,” Jason reasoned.
“That has crossed my mind but my family will be alive and they will know I did it for them.”
“I feel sorry for them. Imagine how they will feel knowing they are only alive because you killed a boy and operated on a known murderer and villain. They will feel guilty for the rest of their lives,” Jason said.
“Shut your mouth Jason; you have now idea how difficult this is for me.”
“They will wonder why their dad never did all he could to save himself and the boy. They will wonder why he took the coward’s way out,” Jason badgered.
Dr Kemp clamped his hand over Jason’s mouth. “I told you to shut it. Maybe it would be better if I just gave you something to sleep.”
Jason nodded no and blinked his eyes.
“You shouldn’t be here Jason. I have no idea why you are mixed up in this. Dr. Turner mentioned to me once that he had to work on your leg after you were shot to cover a bullet wound.” He released his hand from Jason’s mouth and he looked over Jason’s legs. “Seems he did a good job, but what kind of world do you live in to get shot at and now this?”
“I’m working for the good guys, Doctor. When you fly too close to the sun sometimes you will get burnt. The secret is to be faster and smarter,” Jason said.
“Jason this is far too big for you. Boudicea doesn’t just want your skin. She has dastardly plans afoot. You have no idea what’s behind that door. Maybe you will be better off dead for what she has planned for will change the world forever,” Doctor Kemp sighed.
“What is she planning?” Jason asked.
“This is an old Germa
n laboratory and hangar used for German airships. It was closed down at the end of the Second World War. The Nazis originally used this facility to produce a new secret weapon called a Rheintochter.—Afancy missile that never got past the trial stage because the war ended.
“Apparently Boudicea has not only abducted me, but also some American and Russian Nuclear scientists. Of course neither America nor Russia would admit they lost some of their top scientists. They blame each other and think the other country has abducted them. She boasts that her EMP will shut down every electronic device in America, Great Britain and Germany.”
“What does she want to do that for?” Jason asked.
“A gift to China in exchange for favors. Apparently after a certain boy thwarted her last scheme she lost face. No pun intended. She hopes to go back to China as a hero and with America and others out of action, China will be able to invade and will be the world’s new superpower. So I guess she has a couple of reasons to repair her frostbitten face with your skin.”
“You have to cut me free now. I need to report this immediately and prevent it,” Jason said.
Doctor Kemp shook his head. “No Jason I won’t put my family at risk. Besides there are guards outside and she has a group of Shaolin Monks patrolling outside.”
“Even if you do this for her, she will kill you. And if what you say is correct it’s not just your family’s life at stake it’s a whole country. You have to release me,” Jason pleaded.
“Jason it’s too risky; you will get caught. It’s not safe.”
“I agree. A high-powered motorbike is safe in a garage, but that’s not what motorbikes are made for. You can die doing nothing or die trying what’s worse? Don’t give up sir we can do this. Release me and I will have a chance at stopping this. Do nothing and many people will die,” Jason said, his voice pleading and sounding far more mature than his young years.
The door flew open and Boudicea strutted in closely followed by Luke.
“How is our little donor?” She asked Doctor Kemp.
“He needs another twenty-four hours. His skin is healing fast but it’s still bruised. I want it in perfect healthy shape before I carry out the transplant,” Dr. Kemp said nervously gently stroking Jason’s face.