Twenty-two: Doom of a Discomfiter part fifteen

The Discomfiter laughed, as the 'phone was dragged from Ms. Madison's fingers. For her part, the lovely blonde could only look in mute horror at the 'phone.

'Well?' Raoul demanded.

'He won't do it!' she screamed, trembling from head to toe tears sprang, unbidden, to her blue eyes. 'He wants to see Washington destroyed!'

'Then tomorrow,' the Discomfiter chuckled wickedly, 'millions of people are going to die!!'

'For pity's sake!' Ms. Madison begged, 'let me call someone else!'

'So you can contact your friend in green?' the Discomfiter shook his head. 'No, Ms. Madison. Tomorrow, Washington DC will be erased from the map. And the next demand I make will be taken very seriously. Take her away!' He dismissed her with a wave of the hand.

Protesting, Ms. Madison was dragged away and thrown into her cell. There was nothing she could do save get down on her knees, clasp her hands and prayed as she had never prayed before, asking for just a sign. She fell asleep in this position. When she awoke, the first rays of the sun were filtering into her cell. She groaned, her knees and back hurting.

'Well,' a familiar voice broke in on her reverie. 'I never had you pegged for a devout person, Madison.'

There, framed by the open door of her cell, was the Green Man. In a moment, she was in his arms, sobbing gratefully.

'He's got a bomb!' she told him at last. 'He's going to destroy Washington!'

'With me,' the Green Man took her hand, leading his secretary. Ducking through a ventilation grille, he led Ms. Madison into to infrastructure of the building. At last they could stand once more, in a long concrete tunnel. They followed the tunel upwards, until they came to a large steel door.

While the Green Man saw to the door, Ms. Madison looked around. The tunnel had small scorch marks on the walls, as if someone had been using a blow-torch on it.

Then it hit her. But too late. At the same time the great steel door opened, revealing the base of the missile. Ms. Madison screamed. They were in the tunnel where the blast from the missile exhaust would be channeled. As she heard the humm of the rocket engines she could not help but scream...

Don't miss tomorrow's thrilling conclusion of The Green Man: Doom of a Discomfiter!