Black Friday (CHERUB) - Robert Muchamore Page 0,57

he said firmly.

‘You’re no fun at all!’ James teased. ‘Fu Ning, meet Andre Aramov. He’s Leonid Aramov’s favourite son.’

‘Liar!’ Andre gasped, backing up further. ‘I hate my dad. I helped my grandma get rid of him.’

Ning knew the truth, but James had told her to act like it was a big revelation.

‘Oh, you’re a dead little squirt,’ Ning shouted, as she ripped the baton off her belt. ‘I’ve waited a long time to kick some Aramov butt.’

But Andre was unconvinced as he ducked behind James. ‘You said you didn’t want me to get injured on the height obstacle. So she can’t beat me up, can she?’

James smiled. ‘We can’t predict how you’d get injured if you fell off the obstacle. But Ning is highly trained, aren’t you, petal?’

Ning smiled and nodded. ‘Don’t worry, boss. I can inflict massive amounts of pain without doing any lasting damage.’

‘Right,’ James said, looking at his watch. ‘So the gates of the training compound are locked. It’s six minutes past two. I’m going to give you a two-minute start, then I’m going to send Ning out after you. You’ve got to survive for one hour. If Ning catches you, she gets three minutes to do her worst, then she has to set you free and give you another two-minute start.’

‘I didn’t agree to this,’ Andre protested. ‘I don’t want to do it. I thought you were my friend, James.’

James nodded. ‘I am your friend, Andre. I like you so much, that I’m not prepared to send you undercover until you’ve grown a pair of balls.’

‘Please,’ Andre begged.

‘Two minutes’ start … Now!’

Andre hesitated for a couple of seconds, but as soon as Ning took half a step forwards he bolted out of the training building like his arse was on fire.

‘Ninety seconds until I release Ning,’ James shouted. Then he turned to Ning and spoke in his normal voice. ‘Nice outfit. I’m almost scared of you myself.’

‘So what now?’ Ning asked.

‘I reckon Andre will spend a good thirty minutes running around in a blind panic,’ James said. ‘We’ll watch where he goes on CCTV and I’ll send you out to make some noise and give him a scare when you almost catch him. Then come back here. Ten minutes before the end, go out again and grab hold of him.’

‘What should I do?’

James shrugged. ‘Find a nice muddy puddle and throw him in. Scream a lot, but don’t do any real damage.’

‘Simples,’ Ning said, nodding.

‘Might as well put the kettle on while we’re waiting,’ James said, as he pulled a key from his pocket and headed for the instructors’ office. ‘Fancy a cuppa?’

The small office had a bank of screens, each showing the outputs from the many CCTV cameras inside the training compound.

‘Look at him go,’ Ning said, grinning, as she watched a black and white image of Andre sliding frantically down an embankment, then looking anxiously over his shoulder before sprinting off again. ‘He’s bricking it.’

James smiled, as he clicked on the kettle then opened a snowman-shaped biscuit barrel that played ‘Jingle Bells’ when he lifted the lid. ‘Oooh, Jaffa Cakes.’

27. RUN

Ten days later

The Kremlin had become eerily quiet. Take-offs and landings had dropped from four an hour to one or two per day. It was five days until Christmas. The remaining bar staff had spread purple and green tinsel trees around the public areas on the ground floor, but these somehow made the worn Seventies decor seem even more depressing.

While any aircrew who had somewhere to go to had left, Amy wanted to create the impression that the wind-down was just for the short term. The hangars by the airfield bustled with mechanics painting and overhauling elderly planes, for a resumption of operations that would never happen.

The school bus had also been mothballed because all but four kids had left, and it was easier for the ones that remained to share a taxi. And the four kids were only ever three, because Natalka hadn’t been to school since she’d heard about her mum being arrested. As far as Ryan could tell, she’d barely left her room.

‘Can I come in?’ Ryan asked, as he knocked gently.

Natalka didn’t answer, but her door wasn’t locked. The silence scared Ryan as he stepped in, half expecting to find Natalka swaying from a noose, or wrists slashed in the bathtub. The truth was less dramatic. Natalka was on her bed wearing bright orange headphones. The photo albums were out on the kitchen counter. There were scattered food tins, which