been ordered to and didn’t like the idea of having a big scary spider on the loose, but Troy was concerned for Mavis’ well-being and went back out after dark to search with a torch.
He was over two hundred metres into the woods behind the graveyard when he caught a blue glint in his torch beam. He thought he’d imagined it, but swung the beam back to make sure and saw Mavis’ furry body and the unmistakeable metallic blue colouring on her legs and back.
‘So that’s where you’ve been hiding,’ he said gently.
They’d been told to call an adult to capture Mavis if she was spotted, but Troy had the impression that most people wouldn’t mind if Mavis ended up getting splattered and he wanted to avoid that.
Troy had expected a chase, but Mavis didn’t shun the light. In fact, she didn’t move at all and her body trembled in a way he’d never seen before as she nestled between a rock and a clump of wild grass. Cobalt blues are native to Thailand and Malaysia where the temperature rarely drops below thirty centigrade and the cold was killing her.
‘You’re freezing, aren’t you?’ Troy said, as he slipped a canvas bag off his shoulder.
He took out a small hand-shovel and the wooden cigar box from which he’d taken Mavis’ lunch earlier in the day. With the torch tucked under his armpit, Troy held the open cigar box in one hand and the shovel in the other.
‘Come on,’ Troy whispered. ‘There’s a good girl.’
He moved the box as close to Mavis as he dared, then reached behind her with the shovel and gave her a gentle flick. He was scared that Mavis would panic and either run off or charge up the shovel handle and sink poison fangs into his hand, but she barely moved when the shovel touched her and Troy had to flick her into the cigar box before snapping the lid shut.
The torch dropped out of Troy’s armpit as Mavis found a burst of energy and began spinning around and scraping her legs against the side of her wooden prison. Troy got a rubber band and fastened it around the hinged box, before putting it back in the bag and setting off towards the house.
As he came close to the farmhouse there was a bang and a bright orange flash through the trees. His first thought was that an artillery shell had strayed from the firing range, but they rarely went off after dark and it wasn’t loud enough.
Yves and Sam stood at the back of the garden. Troy was ready to boast about the capture of Mavis, but as he walked through the back gate he was startled to inhale a strong whiff of petrol and see one of the spider cages burning in the middle of the lawn. Another was being carried out of the conservatory by Khinde and an artillery regiment soldier who usually worked on the security gate.
‘What are they doing?’ Troy asked desperately, though it didn’t take a genius to work it out.
‘Henderson gave the order,’ Sam explained, before shuddering theatrically. ‘Good job as well. It gives me the heebie-jeebies having those things crawling around next door.’
Troy was hit by a wave of misery. ‘But they can’t.’
Khinde and the soldier placed the heavy glass cage down on the lawn. As Khinde lifted the lid, another soldier approached with a metal can and sploshed in a full gallon of petrol. Troy recognised this large cage as the habitat of the giant bird-eaters and while he couldn’t see in the dark he imagined the poor things trapped in their burrows as the evil-smelling fuel ran around their hairy legs.
‘Stand clear,’ one of the soldiers shouted, as he lit a match and flicked it at arm’s length.
The instant the flaming match touched petrol vapour a mushroom of ghostly blue flame shot out of the top of the cage. Troy felt the hot blast on his skin as the glass sides blackened and started to crack.
A few of the onlookers cheered, as Yves whooped noisily and shouted, ‘Bring out the next lot.’
Troy could barely contain his anger as he tried to get the facts straight. He looked at Sam. ‘So Henderson must be conscious if he gave the order to kill the spiders?’
‘Apparently,’ Sam nodded. ‘He’s conscious, but he’s in a bad way and he’s livid at his wife. McAfferty agrees that the spiders are too dangerous and brought in the army boys to help wipe ’em