the deserted driveway. The lazy buggers, can't even hang around an extra half hour.?
Te should still head up to the protest site,?Zara said. T called my contact with the local cops. Theret always a fair crowd up there on the weekends and I want the kids getting stuck in amongst the protestors as soon as possible.?
Eure we're going up there,?Ryan nodded as he pushed home the last piece of a sandwich Lauren had made for him. Tre already arranged to meet Madeline Laing.?
Ehet the one whot running the Alliance now, isn't she??Lauren asked.
Ryan nodded. Toung, fiery and utterly bloody hopeless.?
The kids had read a ton of flattering press reports on Laing and were surprised to hear that Ryan held her in contempt.
T didn't realise you had a problem with her,?Zara said.
Sice hair, looks good in a photograph,?Ryan sneered. Thatt why the press is in love with her. But she doesn't understand how to focus a campaign, or keep the momentum going. Ire spoken to a few people and it looks like weEl have to go root and branch and rebuild this whole fight against Malarek from scratch.?
Toure got to get back on the Zebra Alliance committee before you can take over,?Kyle reminded him.
Ryan wagged his finger confidently. Don't you worry, laddie. I was playing politics when you weren't even a glint in your mothert eye. IEl be back running the show before you know it.?
As Ryan said this, he grabbed his army surplus jacket off the sofa and headed for the front door. Are yous all coming or not??he asked excitedly.
The shortcut to the Malarek laboratory took Ryan, Zara and the three youngsters across a field of long grass. They crossed the deserted road near the roundabout on the edge of the village, then walked a couple of hundred metres along the verge beside the graffiti-strewn wall. Along the way they passed a gang of protestors?little kids chasing around and screaming at each other.
The group behind the police barriers was more impressive than it had been the previous afternoon, but it was still barely thirty strong.
Dressed in smart black leggings and sporting a figure to die for, Madeline Laing stood out amidst the drab bodies in walking boots and fleeces.
Nello there,?Quinn said brightly.
A weak round of applause broke out when the protestors realised that Ryan Quinn was on the scene. Madeline and Ryan exchanged a brief hug and cooed as they kissed on opposite cheeks.
Etill going strong,?Ryan grinned. T'll told youre been
doing a fantastic job.?
Madeline was flattered by the lie. Ttt been a tough few years,?she smiled, But we're still fighting. And I see youre come out to a ready-made family.?
While Ryan, Zara and Madeline exchanged pleasantries, James, Kyle and Laurent espionage training kicked in. They didn't expect a member of the Animal Freedom Militia to leap out and announce themselves from the gaggle of protestors and their bored kids, but this was the perfect time and place to start chumming up with the Zebra Alliance activists.
11. HELPER
Sunday always drew the largest number of protestors to the barricades around Malarek Research, and the combo of fine weather and articles about Ryan Quinn in the morning papers had brought the crowd up to more than a hundred. Zara wanted the kids in the centre of the action, but kept out of the way herself because a new adult ?even one with three kids ?would be treated with suspicion.
Lauren played the role of a helpful and slightly overexcited kid. She wasn't naturally the keen type, but running errands was a great way of putting names to faces. It was two in the afternoon and sher spent most of the day going back and forth between the protest site and the cottage. Her many good deeds included refilling Thermos flasks with tea and coffee, donating a packet of tissues to a man suffering from hayfever and buying sticky tape and a stapler in the village shop to help fix a broken placard.
Tou're a godsend,?a chubby woman in a lumberjack shirt said, as Lauren held out two vegetable pasties sher microwaved back at the house.
Be careful, they're probably pretty hot in the middle.?
The woman smiled down at her. Thank you very much for doing that.?
Thatt OK.?Lauren smiled back brightly.
But her smile dimmed as she turned away. Lauren was supposed to be on the lookout for the Zebra Alliancet hardcore members, but sher realised that these weekend warriors with their wellies and 4x4s parked up on the grass verges of the surrounding fields were about