Bionic Agent by Malcolm Rose Read Free Book Online Page A

things as well. Anyway,” she said, dropping down into fourth gear, “I heard
you’re going to get your own car if things go well.”
    “A car? But...”
    She glanced sideways at him. “You’ve got false ID. It wouldn’t take much to tweak your date of birth so you’re old enough. You’re big enough to pass for a
seventeen-year-old. Just.”
    Jordan smiled to himself. His own car. Maybe a Ferrari or Porsche. He’d be the only fourteen-year-old on the road. Things weren’t all bad.
    He looked across at her and said, “Are you enhanced in any way?”
    “That’s an impertinent question to ask a woman!”
    “I didn’t mean... I just wondered if all agents...”
    Winter laughed. “I know what you meant. And, no, I’m all flesh and blood. You’re unique – in Unit Red or anywhere else.”
    As Winter drove, Jordan used his wireless connection to run through the police file on the case. But Amy Goss kept appearing in his mind. Had his imagination conjured up her likeness or had he
logged on to a Unit Red file that contained her photo? He wasn’t sure, but she was certainly on his mind.
    Perhaps she was linked to the case. The local police had looked into the possibility that a rival gang had muscled in on her father’s patch and announced itself with a spectacular show of
strength. They weren’t sure. They knew only that, after the big bang, Mr. Goss was no longer controlling the streets. Some of the same thugs were out there, but they weren’t working for
Mr. Goss any more. All of the usual police informants were too scared to whisper the name of the new gangland boss and Mr. Goss was keeping a low profile.
    Then there was the motive of terrorism. But who or what was the target? Who had come off worst – apart from the Smith family and many other unlucky victims? The police decided that the oil
and gas industry had suffered most. That suggested sabotage by an extreme environmental group. Most suspicion fell on an outfit called the Protectors Of Planet Earth – or POPE – headed
by Henry Quickfall. Then there was the destruction of Sheerness Animal Breeding Station, possibly by animal rights activists. That was another of Henry Quickfall’s activities.
    If the police file on possible terrorism had been printed on paper, it would have filled Winter’s car and more. It might have filled a lorry. Jordan hadn’t got a hope of absorbing it
all. He concentrated on the summaries that Angel had provided.
    The Audi lurched as Winter pulled out to overtake. An April shower began to splatter the windscreen, blurring the view. The car detected the moisture and the wipers turned on automatically.
    Five protest groups had claimed responsibility for the blast. One was an animal rights outfit, another campaigned against the arms trade, two were radical green movements, and the last was a
bunch of political extremists. After examining each claim thoroughly, the police concluded that there was no convincing evidence to back up any of the claims.
    Realizing he was out of his depth, Jordan wondered what he had talked himself into. He didn’t know what to make of the case. He wasn’t an expert. He was just a boy with a strong arm.
He’d been taught all about intelligence work by Unit Red, but that didn’t make him a professional. Even so, his idea of terrorism didn’t match the events of a year earlier.
    Surely a terrorist would have rammed a boat at full speed into the wreck of the Richard Montgomery , or downed a plane on it, in a spectacular suicide mission. A fanatic would have gone
out in a blaze of glory. Literally. But, according to the police file, Red Devil planted an underwater time bomb or a remote-controlled device on the wreck to provide the opportunity of escape. To
Jordan, that seemed too subtle for an act of terrorism. But what did he know about terror campaigns, sabotage and bombs?
    One particular lead grabbed Jordan’s attention. Red Devil had left the site of the wreck and powered towards