The Cosmic Crime: Part Eleven

The Speedboat, Ms. Madison on board, powered towards the island fortress. As it neared a cliff, a hidden door opened, allowing the big white speedboat to slip inside. Before her was a long tunnel, its walls lined with concrete. On either side, doors led into a great humming core. Ahead, pipes snaked away into the distance. Men in the black robes of the Order of Cain waited for the speedboat, with fuel and other things. Others kept Ms. Madison covered with semi-automatic weapons, looking somewhat incongrous in their medieval garb

As the boat docked, a couple of these men hurried forward, looking angry and pointing their guns at the bathing-suited blonde. Her arms were seized, and she was dragged out of the boat.

"Careful!" she warned them, smiling, "you don't want pictures of this turning up in the papers later!"

One of the men thumped Ms. Madison for that spark of wit, so she resolved to try no more, as she was led deeper and deeper into the depths of the secret base. At last, she was led into what had to be the control room of the entire operation. She knew it had to be this, as it was massive, with a huge map of the United States on one wasll, red lights blinking at the points where the map had indicated earthquake hotspots.

And, there too, flanked by armed guards, was the leader of the Order of Cain. His hood was thrown back, revealing the face of a venerable old man, a face contorted by a look of unholy triumph.

"Ah," he turned to face the blond. "if it isn't the Green Man's lady companion. Welcome to the end of the world as you know it."

"Oh, I don't know," Ms. Madison yawned, stretching. "As long as there's a Savoy and a Selfridges, my life will be quite unchanged."

"The world will be plunged into darkness for months!" the leader went on.

"More time for dancing," Ms. Madison remained unconcerned. "How long has it got?"

Until the bombs explode?" the leader pointed at the countdown. "In just over five hours time, there will be a small earthquake in the Midwest. At that time, my bombs will explode. The United States will be literally torn apart. Not a building will be left standing, and the few pitiful survivors reduced to the level of stone-age savages. The most advanced nation on the planet will cease to exist."

*********

As Ms. Madison was forced to listen to the leader's rant, so Andrea made her own landfall, on the other side of the island, quite undetected. She hid her equipment and quickly made her way inland. Soon, she saw the first armed guard. Clad in the black robe of the order of Cain, he was clear proof that something was going on.

Andrea dropped to the ground and crept up on him. A little way from him, close enough to be able to touch him, she rose to her feet.

"Well, hiya!" She declared in an exaggerated drawl, ""fancy getting out of the habit?"

"In time, my dear." The man turned, and Andrea saw the mask of the Green Man beneath the cowl.