Fonziebirds: In Enemy Hands

[Race's Girl]

Chapter One

The car pulled to a halt at the rear of the building and three men got out. One of them, his metal rimmed glasses catching the glare of the street light nearby, bent and spoke briefly to a fourth man who was sitting immobile in the car. When he had finished the fourth man, slightly stiffly, also got out of the vehicle.

To casual eyes, they were businessmen, perhaps attending a business meeting – although a casual observer might think it strange for a business meeting to be held in the small hours of the morning. The four approached the side door of the building where they were met by a policeman who blocked their way.

"Good evening, sirs. Can I help you?"

The man who had emerged last from the car stepped forward.

"It's alright, Officer Kirk. Are any of my people still here?"

The policeman leaned forward and peered into the man's face. As recognition dawned his expression changed and he stepped back.

"Professor Garrity, Sir. I didn't recognise you. Besides, the confound Journalism Department's empty. Professor Thomas was the last to leave and he went about four hours ago – with the weekend and Bank Holiday we weren't expecting to see anyone now until Tuesday morning."

Officer Kirk looked questioningly at the three silent strangers standing in the shadows behind the Dean of UWM.

"Everything's in order, Officer Kirk. These men have some urgent business to conduct. It's of the utmost importance and can't wait. I'll let you know when we're finished."

Gesturing dismissively to Officer Kirk, Professor Garrity turned to the side door operated the security locking mechanism and went inside, followed closely by his companions. Behind them Officer Kirk, after watching the door close, radioed an update to the Chief of Police and continued with his duties.

Within the College campus, the tall man with curly brown hair spoke softly to the Journalism Professor, who was now standing stiff and immobile next to the door.

"Thank you, Professor Garrity. That was well done. Now, we'll go to your office and you'll carry out the remainder of my instructions."

The older man nodded once and then moved off followed silently by his three shadows.

Half an hour later, Officer Kirk was summoned to the side door of the Journalism Department by a call on his mobile communicator. He arrived to find Professor Garrity just completing the security coding on the door. In the background, half hidden in the shadows with their coat collars pulled up against the autumn rain, were his three companions of earlier.

"Thank you, Officer, we're finished here," said Professor Garrity before the policeman could say anything. "I've locked up as normal and we’ll be on our way. Goodnight."

Without waiting for an acknowledgement, Professor Garrity turned on his heel and left with the other three men. Officer Kirk, having watched them enter Professor Garrity's car and drive away, entered another report with his controller and once more resumed his rounds.

At Garrity Manor the next morning, Professor Garrity's valet found the Professor deeply asleep when he came to wake him for breakfast. Growing alarmed at his inability to rouse his master, a doctor was called. Shortly afterwards, Professor Garrity was rushed to the nearest neurological unit and admitted to intensive care where he remained unresponsive to treatment.

On Tuesday morning when UWM opened its doors for classes, the Dean found the college funds to be missing a sum of fifty million pounds. Investigations traced the sum to an electronic movement of funds authorised by Professor Garrity during his locking up of the campus the previous evening. The funds had been transferred to a bogus offshore account from where they had since been withdrawn and the account closed.

Far away in the South Pacific, Howard Tracy sat in his office talking to the video picture of Lori Beth Creighton-Ward that was looking out of the picture frame that sat on his desk.

"So, you don't think Professor Garrity was a voluntary member of this gang, Lori Beth?"

"No, Mr Tracy, I don't. My folks've known Professor Garrity for years and I'm convinced that he's completely trustworthy – no matter how badly things look for him."

"But the Police say his behaviour that night appeared completely normal."

"Mr Tracy, the policeman on duty that night may have thought that Professor Garrity was acting completely normally but believe me, for the Dean to transmit fifty million pounds to an unknown bank account without good reason he was anything but completely normal. It'd be as normal as for one of your sons to take one of the International Rescue machines off the island without telling you about it first."

Howard grunted in acknowledgement of the simile.

"I guess. So, what do you want me to do for you, Lori Beth?"

"It’s more Al's help I need than yours, Mr Tracy. The doctors are at a loss to discover what's wrong with Professor Garrity. At first, they thought he had had a stroke but all tests for that've now indicated otherwise. This sudden malady must be related to his behaviour that night but the doctors don't know how. If I can get a copy of their report to you, would it be possible for Al to go over it to see if there's anything that occurs to him that the doctors have missed?"

"Sure thing, Lori Beth though I don't know that Al'll be much help – his strength is more in engineering than medicine," Howard thought for a moment. "Get the records sent through, Lori Beth. I'll get Al to take a look at them and if needed I'll use a couple of other contacts I've got that might be able to help."

"Thanks, Mr Tracy. I appreciate it. Lori Beth out."

Just outside the entrance of the Staimer Scientific Laboratories in Katherine, Northern Territory, Australia, Doctor Liam Brady slowed his car to a crawl as it approached the security gates, giving the security guard plenty of time to recognise it. As he neared the barrier the red and white striped bar slowly rose to allow him admittance and the guard waved his hand as the car passed by.

Mechanically, his eyes never leaving the road, Doctor Brady waved his hand in acknowledgement and drove on. Parking his car in its normal slot he passed into the building, ignoring the reception desk as was his wont and made his way to the secure research block where he had his laboratory. Once within the extensive area he made his way to the control room that was already occupied by another white-coated scientist.

"Hiya, Liam. You're on time, mate."

"'Morning, Bill. Anything new?"

"Nah, everything's fine as usual. No stress. I've had difficulty staying awake it's been so normal."

Bill loaded his books and papers back into his bag and then removed his lab coat and hung it in one of the lockers that lined one wall of the room.

"I'll leave you to it mate. I'm off to shake the soil of this place off my shoes and get some clean wilderness air in my lungs. Richardson's coming in for the next few days, I won't be back till next week."

"Fine. I've got plenty to be getting on with here anyway. Have a good break."

Turning away, Doctor Brady opened another of the lockers and took out his own lab coat from where it hung. As he did so his colleague gathered the last of his belongings and left the room. As soon as the door clicked shut behind him Liam Brady's stance changed. His arms, which had just emerged from the sleeves of the lab coat, dropped to his sides, his back stiffened and his features became impassive and flat. Crossing the room to the door with a slightly stiff gait he operated the full range of high- security locking mechanisms that were only usually used when the room was being left fully unattended for a prolonged period of time. This done he then re-crossed the room to several large banks of dials and controls. Working at a deliberate, seemingly unhurried pace he operated a series of switches on the consoles, ignoring the flashing amber lights that soon began to appear.

Having finished here he moved further to an adjoining subsidiary control room and again manipulated a number of the controls and switches in one of the security cabinets, again steadfastly ignoring the increasing number of flashing amber lights that began to blink from the control panels.

After a few minutes, apparently satisfied with his work he seated himself at one of the tables in the room that were provided for the working notes and papers of the scientists who normally occupied the laboratory. He sat rigidly upright for several minutes, his hands resting on the table top in front of him, his eyes glazed over as they stared unblinkingly into the distance. Gradually a change started to come over him. His eyes began to drift closed and his body began to relax, his shoulders slumping forwards. As his weight shifted his hands and arms moved forwards on the table until his forehead came to rest on the tabletop. His eyes were now fully closed and his breathing gradually lessened and became more and more shallow as he passed into full unconsciousness, totally oblivious to the multiple red flashing alarm lights on the consoles around him and to the alarm klaxons that had started to sound in the nearby facility.

[Race's Girl]

Chapter Two

Howard Tracy noticed the blinking red light on his desk from the corner of his eye. Clearing his throat he broke into the heated discussion that was taking place between the two scientists in San Francisco and London.

"Doctor Blain, Doctor Thomas, let me stop you there."

Silence fell as the disputing scientists heeded their benefactor’s voice and ceased their discussions.

"Much as I appreciate your comments on this matter it's clear that there's still much work to be done. May I suggest that you continue your discussions by the usual routes and let me have details of your findings as they arise. Once we can agree on the findings, we can decide how to proceed. However for the moment you must excuse me."

As the two scientists opened their mouths to object, Howard lifted his hand to stop them.

"I'm sorry, gentlemen. Another urgent matter's come up and I must attend to it immediately. I'll come back to you again as quickly as I can. Thank you for your time."

With that, Howard finished the conference call, pushed himself back from his desk and headed towards the lounge. As he entered the room the tell- tale vibrations through the floor and walls alerted him to the exit of Fonziebird One from its hanger as the high powered aircraft sped on its way to another rescue.

"Son, what's going on?"

Warren a.k.a Potsie was seated behind Howard's desk and looked up as his father entered.

"A scientific laboratory in Australia, Dad. Something's gone wrong with their manufacturing processes and the chemicals are mixing in the wrong proportions. One of their scientists has collapsed in the control room but all the security doors are locked. The plant's set to explode within the hour and the local emergency services don't have the equipment to get through the heavy security in time."

"Where are all your brothers?"

As he spoke the eyes on Potsie's portrait flashed accompanied by a matching bleeping sound.

"Go ahead, Fonzie."

As Potsie operated the vid-link the portrait changed revealing the features of his older brother.

"Fonziebird One changing to horizontal flight."

"F.O.N.Z. And oh, Fonz?"

"Yeah, Pots?"

"Make sure you don't prang my 'bird."

"F.O.N.Z."

Fonzie's smile was wide and his eyes shining as he signed off – it was not often that one of the younger siblings of the Tracy family got the chance to fly the high-powered rescue 'plane and when they did they relished it.

As Potsie turned to speak to his father, the eyes on Ralph's portrait lit up. Operating the link again the portrait changed to reveal Ralph in uniform at the controls of the large rescue machine with Richard a.k.a Richie just visible in the background.

"Fonziebird Two requesting permission to launch."

"Fonziebird Two, you're clear to launch. Good luck."

Potsie stood and joined his father at the lounge windows where he was watching the exhaust trail of Fonziebird One dwindling to a point in the distance.

"Too bad you had to miss the rescue, son."

"Yeah. Well someone had to man the desk and we weren't sure when you would be able to get away from the call. How did it go?"

"They're still debating. They agree Al's findings may be indicative but indicative of just what they can't agree on."

Both men turned as Marion entered the lounge carrying a tray that she set on a low table.

"Coffee, Mr Tracy, Warren?"

The two Tracy men smiled at the female servant and stepped towards her.

"Thank you, Marion. That'd be just great."

Potsie and Howard sat down to wait as Marion poured them each a strong black coffee.

As Arthur 'Fonzie' Tracy slowed his approach to the Staimer Scientific Laboratories he could see the car park that had been cleared for the use of International Rescue. At the entrance were three security cars and around the perimeter the area had been cleared for a number of meters beyond which a huge crowd had already gathered to see what they could of International Rescue. As he sat the scout machine down on the tarmac and killed the engines the three cars were already heading towards him.

By the time that Fonzie had left his seat and opened the access hatch one of the cars had disgorged its occupants – four burly security men – who immediately took up vigilant watching positions. One was stationed under the extreme tip of the nose cone, one under the extreme tip of the tail and one each under the tips of either wing. They stood almost to attention, their backs to each other, their faces scanning the surrounding area. At their waists were belts holding communication devices, automatic pistols and a variety of other equipment that might be useful to them. Sparing them barely a glance, Fonzie turned to the men who had left the other two cars.

"International Rescue at your service. Thanks for complying with our security requirements. If you could help me shift my gear so that I can set it up we can talk on the way. My colleagues'll be here soon, whoa."

Nodding the men from the laboratory moved forwards to give their assistance.

Ralph knocked off the gas supply to the cutting gun he held.

"That's it, Rich. We're through."

Together, the brothers each lifted one of their legs and, in tandem, struck the door. With a loud crash, it caved inwards and fell to the floor. In seconds, they were at the side of the still figure at the table. Richie removed one of his heatproof gloves and touched two fingers to the pulse point on the man's neck.

"He's still alive. Come on, Ralph, let's get out of here, this plant's due to go up any second."

Taking the inert body of Doctor Brady between them they laid him on the stretcher that they had brought with them, lifted it and began making their way towards the door. They had just reached the passageway when the floor shook beneath them throwing them temporarily off balance.

"Move it." Ralph's voice was tight with a combination of exertion and uneasy anticipation as he regained his balance and continued forwards. From within the helmets of their protective suits came the disembodied voice of Fonzie Tracy.

"Ralph, Rich, the plant's starting to blow. You've gotta get out now!"

Needing no second urging the brothers picked up their pace as much as they could, now near jogging down the corridor. Before they reached the next doorway, however, there was a second, much louder explosion as the side of the passageway exploded inwards throwing men and stretcher against the opposite wall of the passageway from where they tumbled to the floor.

[Race's Girl]

Chapter Three

Outside the main building, Fonzie called out frantically to his brothers.

"Ralph! Rich! Do you read me? Answer please!"

Silence was the only thing that came back to him from the microphones of the Mobile Control console as his throat tightened and a cold hand of fear closed around his heart.

"Ralph! Can you hear me? Are you okay?"

Against the backdrop of another explosion from one of the buildings of the laboratory and the wail of fire tenders and ambulances that were constantly arriving at the site Fonzie could hear only the silence that met his pleas for some sort of confirmation that his brothers still lived. Looking up at the complex his heart sank further as he took in the roiling clouds of smoke, laced through here and there with the red tongues of fire that now rose above the ruined research facility. Walls were crumbling and caving in around the site of the first explosion. It would not be long before the remainder of the facility was in a similar state.

Returning his gaze to Mobile Control he noticed for the first time the protective suit that Richie had dropped at his feet as he and Ralph had headed towards the building a few minutes before.

"Mobile Control to Fonziebird Five. Come in, Chach."

"Fonziebird Five to Mobile Control. Go ahead, Fonz."

"Chach, I've lost contact with Ralph and Rich. The complex is exploding but they're still in there. I'm gonna put on a hot suit, take the Fire Fly and go in after them. Carry on trying to get them while I get suited up, would you?"

"F.O.N.Z, Fonz. Let me know when you're in Firefly. I'll let Potsie know what you're gonna do."

As Fonzie turned from the console and started pulling on the protective suit he realised with a shock that he must now be experiencing what Potsie had experienced so many times before – the position of the middle man. Although not as cut off from the situation as Charles a.k.a Chachi now was, hanging above the globe in Fonziebird Five and totally unable to help, he was here, safe at Mobile control, while his two brothers were somewhere inside a burning, exploding complex, almost definitely hurt and possibly already dead.

Now he was beginning to appreciate the unenviable position Potsie held. Second oldest brother, field commander, mobile control anchor man, occasional emergency rescuer and all too often emotional support to his younger brothers. He was beginning to appreciate it – but he did not envy it at all.

As these thoughts chased themselves through Fonzie's mind, in the shadow of Fonziebird One the four security men moved. From their belts, they each took a small device capable of emitting and registering infrared light beams. The two officers stationed under the wings of the aircraft turned to face each other, in a direct line immediately under the widest part of the craft. One aimed his beam at the device held by the other. When it was registered as received the second man nodded success to his colleague.

The procedure was repeated between the remaining two sentries standing under the nose cone and the engines of the craft. When it too had been completed the officers returned the devices to their belts and turned back to their previous stances as vigilant guards of the International Rescue machines. Fonzie, now fully enclosed in his safety suit, jogging back towards the cordoned off car park to retrieve the Fire Fly, noticed nothing – his thoughts fully occupied with worry for his two brothers.

Richie groaned and rolled onto his back. Halfway over a solid object behind his back stopped him rolling any further or finding comfort. His decision to open his eyes to find out why his bed had suddenly become so lumpy was accompanied by an urgent voice sounding in his ears.

"Fonziebird Five calling Richie. Come in, Rich, can you hear me?"

"Chachi?" Richie was confused and disorientated. Why was his brother in his bedroom?

"Thank the stars! You're alive," the relief in his brother's voice was clear. "Are you okay? How's Ralph?"

Memory flooded back into Richie's mind. The rescue, explosions.

"Ralph!"

Richie forced himself to his feet and, ignoring the heap of rubble on which he had been lying, began to look for the two men he had been with. Right next to him lay the figure of the scientist they had rescued, now starting to stir. A few feet further away Richie caught sight of Ralph face down in the middle of the passageway. Stumbling over, Richie gained his brother's side, knelt beside him and gently turned him over.

"Ralph? Ralph, can you hear me? Come on, Ralph, wake up!"

As he watched his brother's eyelids flickered open and light blue eyes fixed slowly on the anxiously watching Richie.

"What happened?"

"The complex is going up," Richie grabbed his brother under his arms and helped him to stand. "Come on, we've got to get out."

The brothers made their way back to Doctor Brady who was now fully conscious and struggling to his feet. Richie reached out to steady him and turned on the outside microphone that would allow him to communicate through the heatproof suit.

"Doctor Brady, we've come to help you. Can you walk? We've gotta leave now."

In return, Richie received only a look of complete confusion. Seeing that explanation would take longer than they had available Ralph reached out and grasped the scientist by one arm and tried to encourage him forwards. Doctor Brady, however, pulled his arm away and backed up against the wall of the passage, stumbling over pieces of rubble and almost losing his footing in his confusion.

"What-what's going on? Who are you? What's happening?"

Ralph approached the scientist, his hands held out in front of him to show he was a friend.

"Easy, Doctor Brady, easy. There's been an accident, an explosion. The laboratory complex's damaged and we've come to help. If you'd just come with us we can...."

"An explosion?"

The man looked around him taking in the shattered corridor, the piles of rubble lying at their feet and at the rapidly thickening clouds of smoke and dust that were billowing around them. He put a hand up to his head brushing over his face and hair.

"My God, I remember now. The controls, I moved them."

Richie and Ralph shot each other a puzzled look.

"You moved the controls?" questioned Richie forgetting for a moment the need to leave in the surprise of what he had just heard. "Why did you do that?"

"I-I-I don't know. I don't remember."

"Well, we'll sort that out when we get out of here. For now, we've gotta leave."

Ralph moved towards the man and again grasped one arm and tried to encourage him to move forwards. Doctor Brady took a couple of steps and then again wrenched his arm out of Ralph's grasp.

"It's all my fault," A combination of panic and despair filled the doctor's face. "Don’t you see? It's all my fault. I did this."

His eyes were wide, the irises appearing as small islands of colour in a sea of white. He looked wildly from side to side as if seeking a way out of the panic of realisation that had caught him. "I've got to reverse it, got to fix it."

He stumbled away from his rescuers to the hole in the side of the wall. As Richie and Ralph looked on in disbelief, too dumbstruck to move, the crazed scientist began to pick up pieces of shattered masonry and tottered back to the breached wall and tried to fit them back into the gaping hole.

"Ralph! Rich! Where are you? What are you guys doing?"

The concerned voice of Chachi broke in on them.

"Chachi, we're okay," Richie pulled himself out of his abstraction to reassure his absent brother. "We've hit a small delay here but we'll be out in a minute."

"Okay, Rich, just see that you are. Fonz's heading towards you in the Firefly so make your way back to the main entrance and he'll meet you there."

"F.O.N.Z."

Ralph and Richie crossed to where Doctor Brady was still trying to pack the fallen rubble back into the shattered wall.

"Come on, man, we've gotta leave."

As Ralph once more took the scientist's arm and tried to lead him up the passageway the other man turned abruptly away from him.

"NO! I MUST FIX THIS. LEAVE ME ALONE!"

The man was red in the face now from exertion and emotion and was starting to cough from the effect of the smoke he was constantly inhaling. A fine sheen of sweat covered his skin and his eyes were fever bright, the pupils just tiny pools of black against blue. As he turned to pick up another boulder he seemed to have immediately forgotten their presence.

"Golly gee, Ralph, I don't like this. There's something weird going on here."

"We haven't got time for this, Rich," Ralph had half turned around to face his fellow redheaded brother. "It looks like we'll have to force him to leave. Come and......"

"LOOK OUT!"

At his brother's cry of alarm, the older brother turned back towards the man they had come to rescue only to be met by a large lump of concrete smashing down towards his head.

[Race's Girl]

Chapter Four

The fact that Ralph didn't have his back full on to the descending block of masonry possibly saved his life. Instead of crashing with full force upon his skull as it was intended to do, the block of ruined building missed his head by a fraction of an inch and instead spent its force on his left shoulder. Shocked by the suddenness of the attack, Ralph fell beneath its weight, landing on his knees and then dropping forwards onto all fours. An agonised cry escaped his lips as he landed and his vision started to dim and fade into black at the edges as a wave of pain enveloped his shoulder and arm.

"Listen up, Bucko, I'm gonna......."

Words failed Richie as he saw the blow fall and he leapt at his brother’s attacker, dealing him a thundering blow to the jaw that knocked him backwards and off his feet. Richie followed him up, ready to give out more punishment but the scientist’s eyes were closed and his body was still. Clear of the immediate threat, Richie turned back to his older brother who was still on his knees. Although he was also supporting himself with his right arm, the left dangled uselessly beside him.

"Ralph! Are you okay?"

Coming to kneel on one knee besides his brother, Richie reached out and touched him lightly on his back. He instantly withdrew his hand when Ralph's head snapped up with a hiss of pain.

"Don't," Ralph looked at his younger brother through pain clouded eyes. "Come round the front and give me a hand up, will you?"

Instantly, Richie complied and Ralph reached out his right hand to him. Taking the strain, the younger redhead allowed himself to be used as a climbing frame as his brother struggled to get his feet back under him. For a second, Ralph stood swaying gently, fighting the nausea and pain that swept over him then, taking a deep breath, he looked up to find Richie watching him closely.

"Ralph?" Anxiously, Richie sought reassurance from his injured brother.

"Don't worry, Rich, I'll survive. Let's get out of here. Where is he?"

Richie nodded towards the still form lying a few feet away. Ralph eyed the unconscious man for a moment then turned back to his brother.

"I don't think I'll be able to help you. Do you think you can carry him?"

Hesitating briefly, Richie nodded and stepped towards the scientist. Taking care to protect his weakened back as much as he could he grasped one of the scientist's arm, dragged him upright and then ducked under his chest. Using his well-developed leg muscles, he straightened slowly, taking the dead weight over his shoulders. Once he was vertical, he turned towards his brother who was waiting nearby, cradling his damaged left arm with his right hand.

"Come on."

Wasting no more words, the two brothers started slowly back up the corridor towards the main entrance where they had come in.

"Come on, guys. Come on. Where are you?"

Fonzie tapped his hand impatiently against the casing of the FireFly machine. He had arrived in what was left of the main entrance hall less than a minute before but to him it seemed that he had been waiting for hours.

"Chachi, where are they now?"

"You should be able to see them any second now, Fonz. The auto-locator puts them about eighty feet south west of you, approaching slowly."

Another deep rumble and shaking of the FireFly evidenced a further explosion somewhere in the research complex. More plaster and brickwork fell from the surrounding walls and ceiling as the already weakened structure deteriorated further towards a state of chaos. Fonzie did a rapid calculation.

"Chach, these buildings ain't gonna last much longer. Monitor my location will you? I'm headin' towards 'em – let me know if I go off- track or get close enough to squash 'em."

"F..O.N.Z."

Turning the FireFly slightly in it's tracks, Fonzie pointed the machine across the rubble strewn, smoke filled hall and headed towards some doors that lay in a general south west direction. Barely had the FireFly begun to move before one of the doors was pushed open from the other side to reveal a figure in a heat protected suit. The figure used it’s body to prop the door open as a second similarly clad figure emerged, carrying a third body over its shoulder. Instantly, Fonzie flashed the bright lights of the FireFly and opened the outside microphone.

"Ralph! Rich! Over here"

The two suited figures paused a moment to glance in his direction and then started forward again. Fonzie stopped the fire fighting machine as close to his brothers as he dared and then clambered out. As his feet touched the ground, he reached out to help Richie with the prone figure of the scientist. Taking the bulk of the weight from his tiring brother, he lifted the man back into the machine, deposited him on one of the seats and secured him in place with a safety harness. Turning he found Ralph already slumped in another seat, Richie standing over him, gently easing his older brother's head out of the helmet of the protective suit. Closing the door, Fonzie resumed his place in front of the controls. Within seconds, the FireFly was turning around to begin heading out of the ruined buildings.

"FireFly to Fonziebird Five and International Rescue base."

"Come in, FireFly, this is International Rescue base."

"Reading you strength four, Fonz."

"I've got 'em. All three of 'em."

"Good work, Fonz," the relief in Potsie's voice was clear to all. "Are they okay?"

"Well," Fonzie paused and looked round briefly from the controls. "Not exactly."

"What do you mean 'not exactly'?" Howard's gruff voice filled the cabin. "What's wrong?"

Before Fonzie could respond, Ralph broke in from the seat behind.

"We're okay, Dad, really. The guy we came to rescue is alive," he glanced briefly to his side where Richie was checking the man's pulse and received a small nod in confirmation. "Albeit's unconscious, Rich's okay and I've just got a sore shoulder."

"Why, what happened?"

Before Ralph could respond, Richie jumped forward, leaning over Fonzie's seat in his agitation.

"Doctor Brady attacked him!"

"What!" the exclamation came from three throats in synchony.

"The guy was crazy," Richie was agitated and angry and in no mood to mince his words. "He told us that this is all his fault as he was the one that threw the controls that caused the complex to explode in the first place. Then he started to try to rebuild the place piece by piece."

Fonzie quickly looked back over his shoulder to check with Ralph that their young brother wasn't having a joke at their expense. Sitting back in his seat and leaning his head on the rest, Ralph looked pale and sick but, catching his brother glancing at him, he gave a barely perceptible nod in confirmation of Richie's words.

"When Ralph tried to grab him to pull him away, the guy picked up a piece of wall and tried to brain him with it. I tell you the guy must be nuts."

"But that's crazy," Chachi's voice came from the space satellite. "When I picked up the call, they told me this guy was one of their best scientists. Why would he want to do a thing like that?"

"A breakdown perhaps?"

Fonzie glanced back again at the silent figure behind him. Unconscious, he was certainly harmless enough but the human psyche is a strange thing. Pushed beyond it's limits the soul of a human could unleash powerful emotional forces that may have been long held in check but which could be incredibly destructive when the long accepted barriers were broken. Who knew what forces may have been acting on this man for months only to have finally broken his resistance in such a destructive manner.

"Perhaps, Fonzie and perhaps not."

Howard's voice was quiet and thoughtful.

"Hey, Dad?"

"Richard, there's an emergency medical kit in the FireFly, isn't there?"

"Sure, Dad. Why?"

"Fonzie, how close are you to the authorities now?"

"The FireFly's just clearing the last of the complex, Dad. We should be with them within a minute."

"Good, you've got time. Richard, before the FireFly stops, I want you to take a blood sample from Doctor Brady and bring it back here for Al to analyse."

"Sure, Dad," Richie started moving towards the compartment where the kit was kept as he spoke. "But why?"

"Let's just say I've got a hunch. Ralph?"

"Yeah, Dad?"

"Make sure you get your shoulder checked thoroughly by a doctor before you head back. I don't want you flying if you're not fit."

Ralph didn't even grimace as he agreed to his father's request. Over his head, Richie exchanged a worried look with Fonzie.

An hour later, Fonziebirds One and Two took off from the danger zone, leaving behind the still burning ruins of the Staimer Laboratories that were being doused in a mixture of water and foam by the fire response vehicles. As the silhouettes of the rescue machines dwindled to tiny dots against the midday sky the four security guards who had stood vigil underneath Fonziebird One came together in a group and compared their readings. After a minute, their leader nodded in satisfaction. It would be enough.

[Race's Girl]

Chapter Five

The following afternoon, Potsie entered the lounge of his home to find Ralph sitting in one of the chairs at the back of the lounge. An open 'Teen Life' magazine lay on the floor next to him where it had landed after falling from his right hand. His head was back against the rest of the seat and his eyes were closed. Potsie bent and picked up the magazine and placed it on the nearby table.

"Pots."

Ralph's eyes were open and fixed on his older brother.

"Ralph. How're you feeling?"

"Sore, tired." Ralph said as he rubbed his shoulder as he sat up in the chair "Didn't get too much sleep last night."

Ralph's shoulder had been dislocated by the blow he had received the previous day and some of the muscles had been badly strained. Rather than going to hospital, he had opted to have the shoulder re-located under the deadening of a local anaesthetic given by one of the paramedics who attended the emergency. His arm had then been tightly bound to his side to prevent accidental movement during the return flight. Richie had had the unenviable task of flying Fonziebird Two home under the watchful eyes of his older brother who had scrutinised his every move.

"Pain?"

"Some but mainly I just couldn't get comfy lying on my back instead of my side."

"Well, you need to rest up. When another emergency call comes in, we need you fit and ready to fly."

"Don't I know it! The way Rich put Fonziebird Two down yesterday, it's a miracle she's still in one piece."

"Hey! I heard that, Bucko," Their younger brother stepped in from the balcony outside the panoramic windows. "That was a perfectly good landing considering I had a back seat driver in the cabin criticising my every move."

"I wasn't criticising. I was just offering advice."

"Advice! If that was advice then I'm an......."

But what Richie thought he was, they never found out. At that moment the eyes on the portrait of the youngest of the Tracy siblings began to flash in time to a series of soft, insistent bleeps that came from their father's desk. With a few quick strides, Potsie crossed the room and opened the communication channel with the space station.

"International Rescue to Fonziebird Five. Go ahead, Chach, what have you got?"

Chachi's dark haired youthful face replaced his portrait on the wall.

"Potsie, we've had an urgent call from Mr Williams at the weather station in Charity Springs, Northern Territory."

"Williams?" Ralph broke in. "Not Tony and Bob's dad? They came from near there, didn't they?"

"You're right, Ralph, they did," Potsie turned back to his youngest brother. "Is this the same Williams, Chach?"

"It sure is, Potsie. Bob's really sick. Williams has been in contact with the state hospital and from the symptoms they think he could have severe appendicitis. He needs to get medical attention as quickly as possible but Williams says the flying doctor won't be able to get there, pick up Bob and then get him to the hospital fast enough. He wants to know if we can help?"

"What are you waiting for, Potsie?" Howard's voice came from the doorway where he had just entered the lounge. "Away you go."

"Yes, Sir!"

Potsie crossed quickly to the wall hiding the entrance to the hanger of Fonziebird One, operated the opening mechanism and vanished from sight as the section of wall turned on it's vertical pivot, leaving another section of identical wall, complete with lampshades but without Potsie, in its place. Barely minutes later, Ralph, Richie and Howard watched from the balcony as Fonziebird One vanished into the distance.

"What's going on, guys? Where's Potsie off to?"

The three Tracy men turned to find Fonzie standing behind them in the lounge, dressed in his usual black leather jacket, black T-shirt, blue jeans and black boots with his hair wet and dripping and a damp towel slung over his shoulder.

"Did the alarm go off while I was doin' my hair? I didn't hear it."

"No, Fonzie. There was no need. This is a simple call that Potsie can handle himself."

Quickly, Howard brought Fonzie up to date with what had happened.

"Pity, there's no need for Fonziebird Two this time. With Ralph laid up, I was hoping I'd get a chance to fly her before I have to head back up to the station. Flying One and Two on rescues in the same month – now that would be a chance not to be missed."

"Don't count on it, Bro. If a call comes in that needs Fonziebird Two, I'll be ready for it, don't you worry."

"Now, Ralph, you remember what the Doctor said," Richie chipped in quickly with his eyes full of merriment. "No flying or heavy duty for at least a week. You oldies have to take it easy and rest up a bit when you're injured. Time to step aside and let the younger generation save the world for a change."

"Why you little...........oldies! I'll give you oldies!"

As he spoke, Ralph leant down to a nearby chair, picked up a cushion and threw it at his grinning younger sibling. Unfortunately, he wasn't quite quick enough as Richie saw what was coming and ducked at the last minute. The laws of physics being what they are the cushion continued to sail through the air until something else stopped it. The something else was Fonzie's face. Taken by surprise he staggered backwards and then overbalanced as his leg caught against one of the chairs. Pitching backwards, he wound his arms like windmills to try to maintain his balance but failed miserably, losing his footing entirely and landing up on his back on the floor. As he lay at the feet of his brothers, both Ralph and Richie burst into laughter at the sight of Fonzie sprawled out before them.

"Oh, you think it's funny, do you? Well let's see how long you carry on laughing once I've finished with you."

Jumping up, Fonzie charged at Richie. At the last second, he lowered his head, ducked his shoulders and caught his younger brother about his waist, lifting him up and backwards off his feet. Although Fonzie was older yet shorter than his brothers, the clothes that he wore at home hid the powerful chest and shoulder muscles that he had built up over the months in the gym area provided in the obiting space satellite. The rest of his muscles were toned and well exercised so overall he was one of the strongest of the Tracy siblings – a fact that his brothers tended to forget in the month long stretches when he was away from home. Consequently they tended to understimate just how dangerous he was to provoke – as Richie now found again to his undoing.

The two brothers landed with a loud thump in the middle of the lounge floor and started rolling around as Richie frantically tried to dislodge his older brother from the position he had taken on top of him. Alas it was to no avail. Soon, Richie was rolling and roaring in fits of helpless laughter as Fonzie pinned him down by brute force and tormented him by tickling him in all of the highly sensitive spots that he had catalogued over the years. Nearby, Howard and Ralph stood and watched with broad grins covering their faces, relaxed and cheerful in the happy family atmosphere.

Potsie opened the viewing port and looked over towards the Williams' homestead as he approached the old wooden built home. Everything looked quiet and peaceful as it had when he had left this small family unit some months ago. He tried to banish the feeling of disquiet that had been haunting him since he had settled into the flight after leaving Tracy Island. He remembered the two cheerful boys who idol-worshipped the International Rescue organisation and who had brought a measure of pride and protectiveness out in all of the household when he had taken them home to the secret island base after the false alarm call last year.

Their wide-eyed wonder and youthful exuberance had come as a breath of fresh air to the older members of the family who, for once, had come face to face with representatives of the rest of the world and had learned from the honest mouths of two children, just how much their efforts to help the world were appreciated. The thought that one of these boys was now seriously ill and in need of urgent medical attention caused his abdomen to tighten with worry as he brought the fast jet in at a low altitude to land it as close to the house as he dared.

Within seconds of cutting the jets, he was out of the access hatch and striding towards the quiet house. Mr Williams was presumably inside getting Bob ready for the journey so they could leave almost immediately. As he reached the wooden front door and lifted his hand to knock, the door opened before him. Inside stood a man Potsie didn't recognise. Of average height, middle aged with curly brown brown hair that was almost thinning and almond shaped hazel green eyes. Potsie had no time to notice more. Even before he could speak, the stranger raised his hand, levelled a gun at Potsie and pulled the trigger.

Perplexed, Potsie stood in the doorway and looked down at the scarlet blob that had appeared in the middle of his chest.

Funny, for a chest wound, I'd have thought there would be more blood. The thought sounded absurd even as the words passed through his brain. I wonder if....

But the thought went uncompleted as his brain closed down, his eyes rolled back in his head and his body dropped to the floor and lay still.

[Race's Girl]

Chapter Six

"Hey, Dad, isn't it about time we heard from Potsie? He must've got Bob loaded up to go by now."

Howard looked up from his desk where he had been reading a magazine, a sudden frown creasing his face.

"You're right, Richard, it is." Turning to the communications desk behind him, Howard opened the communications system that would link him to Fonziebird One.

"This is International Rescue calling Fonziebird One." He waited for a few seconds, his frown deepening as no reply came. "This is International Rescue calling Fonziebird One, come in, Potsie." Again, he paused and again silence was his only reply. "Calling Fonziebird One, come in, Potsie. Do you read me?"

From behind him, Howard heard movement as his other three sons moved to gather around his desk. Swivelling to face the portraits of his sons hanging on the opposite wall, Howard switched to another channel and spoke again, his voice now curt with a sudden anxiety.

"International Rescue Base calling Fonziebird Five. Come in, Chachi."

Almost immediately, Chachi's portrait changed to a live video- feed as Howard's youngest son responded to his call.

"Fonziebird Five to International Rescue base. What's wrong, Dad?"

"Chachi, have you heard from Potsie since he landed at Charity Springs?"

"No, Dad. I was just thinking it was about time that he checked in. Why?"

"I’ve can't get a reply from Fonziebird One. Try a direct contact with Potsie on his chronometer, will you?"

"Sure thing, Dad."

Howard and his sons waited silently as Chachi turned away to carry out the instruction. At a distance, they could hear his voice as he tried to establish communication with his second oldest brother via the portable transmitter that was built into his wrist watch. Their tension mounted as Chachi tried again and then again to get a response and they already knew the result when his now clouded face appeared back in the video screen.

"No response, Dad. I've tried three times – the channel's working fine but he just doesn't answer."

"Chachi, do an automatic locator fix on his current position."

The young astronaut nodded and looked down at a panel in front of him, out of sight of those watching, as his hands flashed over the controls. Seconds later, he looked up again, his expression slightly lighter but still puzzled.

"Automatic locator puts him still at Charity Springs, Dad. Maybe he's still in the house with Mr Williams and the boys and for some reason, his watch communicator isn't working?"

"That's unlikely, ain't it, Dad?" Fonzie broke into Howard's thoughts. "We've never had one go wrong before – at least not without some sort of shock or accident. And anyway, Chach says the channel's working."

Howard sat silently for a moment, considering what had happened. He was starting to get a bad feeling in his gut about this situation. Potsie had been as taken with the Williams boys as the rest of the household when he had met them last year. Although he didn't comment on it at the time when Potsie had made the routine call to let them know he had arrived at the homestead, Howard had heard the worry that his son carried for the condition of the young boy he was going to help. Howard knew that Potsie would have been keen to get the child to hospital as quickly as possible but his last contact had been over ten minutes ago with no explanation for the delay. No – something was not right.

"Dad?"

Howard's head snapped up as Chachi's voice cut through his thoughts.

"Potsie's signal's moving – he must've taken off in Fonziebird One."

Immediately, Howard opened the channel again.

"International Rescue base calling Fonziebird One, come in, Potsie."

The knot of disquiet in Howard's gut multiplied as no reply came from the rescue ship that held his son.

"This is International Rescue calling Fonziebird One. Respond please!"

When no reply came, Howard turned back to address Chachi, his expression now bleak and severe.

"Chachi, try his chronometer again and this time use the visual alarm as well as the vibration."

"But, Dad, if he hasn't replied to......."

"Just do it, Chachi!"

Howard's voice was sharp as he cut across Chachi's protestations. Something told him that they didn't have time to waste. As he tried to silence, the alarm bell that was now clanging inside his head, Howard heard Chachi in the space satellite trying to get a response from his brother.

"This is International Rescue calling Warren Tracy. Come in, Potsie. Do you read me?"

Howard unconsciously held his breath, waiting, hoping. Then.

"International Rescue calling Warren Tracy, come in..........what the.........! Who are you? Where's Potsie, I mean, Warren?"

Howard almost jumped out of his seat at the unexpected question that carried from the space station.

"I said who are you? Where.......? What the......?"

"Chachi! Chachi, respond. What's happening?"

Chachi looked back down at his family once more, his face showing anger and worry.

"Dad, someone's using Potsie's chronometer but it wasn't Mr Williams. This guy must've seen the visual alarm and activated the two way communication by mistake – he looked just as startled to see me as I was to see him."

"Did he say anything?"

"No, Dad. I'd barely seen him before he closed the channel."

"Dad, Potsie wouldn't have given his chronometer to anyone," Ralph leaned over Howard's desk, his brows knitted in worry for his brother. "He needs help."

"I know, Ralph, I know. Chachi?"

"Yeah, Dad?"

"Check the position locator for Fonziebird One. Where is she at the moment and where is she heading?"

Chachi's eyes widened in alarm as he read the information off his monitors. Rapidly, he re-checked before speaking.

"Dad – the auto-location device on Fonziebird One isn't registering!"

"What?" Howard's voice was a bellow as he came to his feet in consternation "What do you mean not registering? It's GOT to be registering. Those devices are never turned off!"

"I don't know why, Dad but it's just not there. I've widened the search well past the area that Potsie could've reached by now but there's just nothing."

"What about his chronometer, Chachi?"

"It's moving rapidly – it must still be in Fonziebird One at the speed it's doing. The locators show it as having just crossed the Australian coastline and heading north west. No, wait! It's slowing and losing height."

The Tracy men waited anxiously as Chachi relayed the reports to them.

"Eight thousand feet.............seven thousand...........six thousand. Dad, the height's falling too rapidly and too steeply – it's going almost straight down. It's as if Fonziebird One is in free fall straight towards the ocean!"

Chachi's voice was rising in alarm now as he relayed the readings back to his family on the island retreat. The four Tracy men stood in silence watching the young astronaut's face as he watched the information on the panel in front of him.

"Four thousand......three. It's not slowing down, Dad, it's miles out to sea and there's no land around. One thousand feet, five hundred, two hundred."

Chachi's countdown fell away into silence but in the heads of all of those listening the countdown continued to its end. Four faces in the lounge were deathly white as Chachi finally raised his eyes to look at them, confusion and disbelief plain to see. His voice was little more than a whisper when he finally spoke.

"It's crashed. It just kept going, it didn't slow down 'til it hit the water, it didn't stop. Fonziebird One's crashed."

[Race's Girl]

Chapter Seven

For a moment, Howard's world stood still as his brain struggled to take in the words of his youngest son. Fonziebird One crashed. No slowing before it hit the water, no attempt to stop it.

"Fonzie! Richard! Launch Fonziebird Two. Pod four."

Nobody moved for a second, so great was their shock at the events of the last few minutes.

"Boys," Howard's voice was like a gunshot in the silent lounge. "Now!"

Mutely, his sons shook themselves, looked at their father and nodded. Richie stepped towards the painting that hid the entrance to the hanger of Fonziebird Two.

"No, Richard. Fonzie can pilot Fonziebird Two. You'll be needed in Fonziebird Four."

"Dad, I can....." Ralph leaned towards his father, his blue eyes desperate with worry for his brother.

"You can sit down, Ralph." Howard stood and moved away from the desk.

"Dad?"

"You're not fit to fly. I'm going with Fonzie and Richard. You've got the desk."

Howard moved away in the direction of the passenger lift for Fonziebird Two. His three sons stood nonplussed behind him. Sensing there was again no movement, Howard turned and stared at all of them.

"Move, boys. Your brother's life may depend on it."

Fonzie checked the instruments of the large rescue plane again – the fifth time in the last minute that he had done so.

"We're approaching the crash site now."

The atmosphere in the cabin of Fonziebird Two was tense and filled with anxiety. Only the minimum words that were necessary had been spoken since the rescue plane had taken off to get to the spot where the space satellite had recorded Potsie's transmitter as meeting the sea. Each of the occupants of the craft had been brooding and lost in their own thoughts. Howard rose from his seat and clasped his fourth son on the shoulder as he passed him.

"Come on, Richard. Let’s get ready."

Wordlessly, the normally garrulous brother stood and followed his father back to the entrance of the pod. Richie sat and watched the ocean flash by beneath them. The sea glistened and winked in the now late afternoon sunlight. He found it hard to believe that it had only been an hour and a half ago that he had been swimming in the pool with his ginger-haired brother, with the rest of the family safe nearby. Now he was here piloting Fonziebird Two off the coast of Australia, looking for the wreckage of Fonziebird One and in all probability the dead body of his second eldest brother. At the last thought his heart clenched in anguish and he closed his eyes and swallowed hard to control the emotions that threatened to overwhelm him.

"Don't think of it, don't think of it. It'll all be okay. Just concentrate and do your job. Do your job." He repeated the words to himself as a type of mantra, forcing his thoughts back to the job in hand and away from the darkness of grief that he felt like a black shadow around him, waiting to engulf him. Checking the instruments again he slowed the plane and brought it to a hover over the ocean.

"Fonziebird Two to Fonziebird Five and Fonziebird Four. Over the last recorded position now. Preparing to drop pod."

"Is there any sign, Fonz?"

Fonzie dropped his glance to the panel in front of him and then, not believing what they told him, stood to do a brief visual surveillance of the area before replying.

"Dad, there's absolutely nothing. Not a single piece of wreckage to be seen anywhere."

"But that's incredible," Richie's youthful tones were almost squeaky with disbelief. "Even if Fonziebird One went straight in, the water here's so shallow that it would have hit the bed less than a second later. The explosion would've scattered wreckage over at least a dozen square miles. There's got to be some sign."

"Never mind that now, Richard. Let's get Fonziebird Four down there and take a look. Fonzie, we're ready to go."

"F.O.N.Z. Dropping pod now."

Fonziebird Two was now hovering barely ten feet above the tops of the waves. At the flick of a switch the large green pod separated from the remainder of the massive rescue craft and dropped down to bob gently on top of the sea. Almost immediately the door of the pod started to open and in less than a minute, Fonziebird Four had disappeared into the sea.

"Fonziebird Four to Fonziebird Five."

"Fonziebird Five to Fonziebird Four. Go ahead, Rich."

"Chach, do you still have a signal coming in from Potsie's transmitter?"

"Yeah, Rich. I've got it at a depth of three hundred metres at a reading of 76.04 magnetic from your present position."

"F.O.N.Z, I'm on my way."

Silence reigned in the small aquatic craft as Richie, his face impassive, the boyish light-hearted look replaced by the serious focussed concentration of a trained aquanaut guided the craft to the target area. His eyes strained to see into the gathering gloom of ocean ahead of him.

"Fonziebird Four to Fonziebird Five."

"I read you, Rich. What can you see?"

"Nothing, Chachi. I don't get it, I'm at the co-ordinates you gave me but I've scoured the seabed in the area and there's not a sign of Fonziebird One anywhere."

"But according to my readings you're right on top of Potsie's transmitter. There's got to be something there."

Howard came forward from where he had been changing into a diving suit and stood behind Richie.

"Right, I'm ready. Let's go."

"F.O.N.Z. Chachi, we're going to take a look outside."

"We? Dad as well?"

"Yes, Chachi. Whatever's happened to Potsie, I'm not about to let Richard go and find out all by himself."

Grim faced, the two men helped each other put on the air tanks and face masks, checked each other's equipment and then entered the airlock. As the tiny room flooded with water they stood in silence, each silently contemplating what may await them outside.

Some distance above them in Fonziebird Two, Fonzie sat doing the same. The three way channel was open and he had heard all of the transmissions between Fonziebirds Four and Five. With nothing else to do other than wait he turned the problem over in his mind.

There's no way that Potsie would take off in Fonziebird One without telling us – not voluntarily anyway. So maybe it wasn't voluntary? Fonzie sat and bit his lower lip. Not voluntary – so was he hijacked? Forced to take off? Fonzie thought of his brother, of his stubbornness and determination to achieve things – and of his strength of character and refusal to be intimidated by anyone. No, not forced to take off – no-one could force Potsie to do something he didn't want to do. Okay, so maybe Potsie was unconscious and carried into Fonziebird One then it was taken by his attackers? Again, Fonzie paused in his ruminations. No, that won't work – what about the security system? Potsie would've to disable that for them to be able to get into One in the first place. And anyway, Potsie'd have to be conscious to fly Fonziebird One – no-one else could fly that bird without practice. A thought suddenly occurred to him.

"Yo, Chach – before Potsie's transmitter started losing height, what speed was it doing?"

"I'm not sure, Fonz, I didn't make a note of it. Why?"

"Are you sure it was Fonziebird One? Could it have been another plane instead?"

There was a pause before Chachi replied and when he did so, his voice was hesitant.

"It could've been. It was accelerating but was still going slow enough that it could have been a normal jet. What does it matter? It still hit the water."

"No, kid. Potsie's chronometer hit the water. It doesn't mean the plane did."

Fonzie's voice was flat and depressed and as Chachi slowly understood what his oldest brother was saying his eyes clouded in outrage.

"You mean someone jumped Potsie, put him on a plane and then dumped him into the sea? But.......but.... that means......."

"I know, kid, I know."

Neither brother spoke again as they waited to hear from the divers below. The seconds dragged to minutes but for Fonzie and Chachi, the wait was more like eternity.

"Fonziebird Four to Fonziebird Two."

Richie's voice cut through the stillness and jerked Fonzie to attention.

"Fonziebird Two to Fonziebird Four. Come in, Rich. What've you found?"

"We found Potsie's chronometer but there's no sign of Potsie, Fonziebird One or anything else. We're heading back to the surface."

Ten minutes later, Fonziebird Two slowly circled the homestead of the Williams family and any hope that had remained that Fonziebird One might still be where Potsie had landed her was lost. A short distance from the house the ground was scorched by burn marks, giving mute testimony to the landing and take-off of the fast rescue plane. The house and surrounding landscape was empty of any evidence of human or animal life. Cutting the jets, Fonzie set Fonziebird Two down gently next to the marks left by its sister craft. After checking their guns were fitted with the narcotic filled darts rather than the killing explosive alternatives, the three Tracy men left the huge rescue craft, securing it behind them as they stepped out into the Australian evening.

Cautiously, the three men approached the building. Fonzie circled to the right, approaching the building from the rear. Finding the back door closed but unlocked, with no other obvious means of exit he quietly reported to Chachi in Fonziebird Five, who then sent a vibration alarm to the chronometers worn by all three to confirm he was in position. Turning the handle he quietly entered the house. The kitchen was still and empty of anyone else and moving silently he proceeded to move from room to room of the old homestead, searching as he went for any sign of his brother or of the father and two children who lived there.

Approaching a doorway he heard a soft footfall beyond. Ducking back behind the door trim, he raised his gun and, taking care to show as little of himself as possible, poked his head around the frame. Standing in front of him in the hallway, both guns pointing towards him, were Richie and Howard.

"Anything?"

The whisper sounded like a shout in the silence. Mutely, they shook their heads. Howard motioned with his gun to the stairwell ascending from his left and nodded at Richie. Quickly, the younger brother slipped past his father and mounted the stairs. As he disappeared upwards Howard and Fonzie turned to the last remaining unsearched room on the ground floor. Pushing the door open with a quick shove, Fonzie entered the room, his father a step behind him. The room was sparsely furnished with a plain wooden table and chairs, a sofa and a couple of high back armchairs. No-one was there but part of the far wall of the room was hinged open, allowing them to see through to what was obviously normally a further concealed room. Sitting against the far wall of the secret room, arms behind them, their legs out in front of them secured with strong tape and their mouths taped shut, were Tony and Bob Williams.

"Tony! Bob!"

Fonzie and Howard hurried forward into the room and knelt at the side of the two boys, who were wriggling frantically to try to escape their bonds. Resting one hand on top of the boy's head, Fonzie carefully stripped back the tape holding Tony's mouth shut.

"Dad! Look after Dad!"

The young boy's eyes were large and frightened in his dirty, tear-stained face as he nodded his head frantically over Fonzie's shoulder and tried to push him away with his shoulders. Startled, Fonzie looked over his shoulder and for the first time saw a still figure slumped at the large electronic desk. Leaving his father to free the boys, Fonzie crossed to the desk and bent over the inert form of Mr Williams. Although he was still breathing his pulse was slow and weaker than Fonzie liked. Gently he raised the man from the desk and lowered him to the floor. As he began to examine him, Richie appeared in the doorway.

"There's no-one upstairs or anywhere else in the house." He crossed to where Howard was removing the last of the tape from around Bob's wrists and started removing the tapes from Tony's ankles.

"What happened here?"

"Oh, Mr Tracy, it wasn't Dad's fault. Please don't be mad at him."

"Calm down, Tony," Richie gently bent the young boy forwards to get access to his hands where they were taped behind his back. "We're not mad at any of you. Just tell us what happened."

As Tony opened his mouth to speak, Bob, free at last of the restraints that had held him, jumped to his feet, sped past Howard and threw himself on the still form of his father.

"Dad, dad, wake up, Dad. International Rescue's here. Everything's gonna be okay, Dad."

Fonzie reached across and put his arm around the boy gently trying to remove him from his father.

"He's out cold, Bob, he can't hear you. Come on, one side and let me help 'im."

But the small boy clung desperately to his father's body.

"What's the matter with him? Why doesn't he wake up? He was awake before."

His eyes were wide and frightened as they looked up into Fonzie's face, desperately seeking reassurance from the man. Tony, now free from his bonds, arrived on his knees beside his brother and put his arms around him.

"Come on, Bob, let Fonzie help Dad. Maybe we can go and look at Fonziebird One," Turning his face he looked up at Howard who had come across and joined them. "Could we, Mr Tracy. Would Potsie mind if we went to look at Fonziebird One? He did come back with you, didn't he?"

"Fonziebird One?" Immediately, the boys had the attention of all of the adults. "Have you boys seen Warren?"

"No, we didn't see him. We heard Fonziebird One and then he went out and left us alone. Then, Fonziebird One went off again. We didn't see anyone else until you all arrived."

"He left you alone? Who did?" Howard reached down and encouraged the two boys to stand. "You two come over here and tell me what's been going on around here while Richard and Arthur help your father," With his arms around their shoulders, he led Tony and Bob back through the revolving part of the wall into the sitting room beyond and sat them down on the sofa. "Now, start at the beginning, Boys."

[Race's Girl]

Chapter Eight

"So Bob wasn't sick after all, Mr Tracy?"

"No, Joanie, he wasn't. It looks like it was a bogus call to get Fonziebird One out there so this man could kidnap Potsie and steal Fonziebird One."

Howard, Fonzie and Richie had returned to the island base of International Rescue after leaving Tony and Bob with their father at the state hospital. Mr Williams was deeply unconscious and the boys had begged to be allowed to stay with him as he was their only blood relative. The hospital authorities would ensure that they were cared for until their father recovered...........or until other arrangements needed to be made.

"Williams should have let us know something was wrong when he called. After getting the boys out of that mine last year and saving his precious photographs for him he should have warned us."

Chachi's eyes blazed as he looked down from the vid-portrait on the wall, his face creased with anger.

"Now hold on, Chachi. I'm as worried about Potsie as you are but maligning the innocent won't help. From the looks of things, Williams wasn't responsible for his own actions when he called and we still don't know if he's even going to recover."

"What do you think was in that injection the guy gave him, Dad?"

"I don't know for sure, Richard, I'm hoping Al'll be able to tell us more once he's analysed the blood sample. My guess is it was some form of mind-control drug. Tony and Bob said he made that call to us a few minutes after the injection – that must have been enough time for the drug to work and turn him into a tool of his attacker."

"He must've used the drug on Potsie as well," The lounge fell silent. Ralph stood in front of the desk with his two brothers and Joanie, his face betraying the anger he felt against his brother's abductor. "That would be the only way that he'd get Potsie to take off in Fonziebird One without letting us know first. That must've been the guy that Chachi saw using Potsie's chronometer – he must have seen the visual alert flashing and wondered what it meant and then activated the comms link by mistake."

"Does it matter how he got him to take off or how he used the chronometer?" Richie's voice was impatient as he broke in. "Both Potsie and Fonziebird One are missing. We've got to find them fast before this creep hurts Potsie any more or discovers all our secrets and finds out who we are. International Rescue'll be finished if our identities leak out. How are we gonna find them, Dad?"

"We've already got all of the listening stations around the world looking for any trace of Fonziebird One, Richard. A plane like that will be difficult to hide for long," Howard looked up at his youngest son. "Has there been any response from them yet, Chachi?"

"No, Dad. I've told them all to contact us as soon as they find something that might help."

"Good, keep listening, Son. Now the rest of you – we've got to find these people fast – and more importantly find Potsie. I want all of our agents alerted immediately, wherever they are. We need any information they can give us about anyone that has been showing any prolonged interest in International Rescue lately or anything that they hear that might help. Meanwhile, I'm going to contact the World President."

The protests were immediate and loud, the brothers crowded around Howard's desk all talking at the same time. Howard brought his hand down onto his desk and there was instant silence.

"Now listen, Boys. Your brother's missing and International Rescue's facing a major breach in security. But as vitally important as those two things are there is something else important here that we can't lose sight of."

He looked grimly from one to the other, holding their gaze for a brief moment before moving onto the next person.

"We don't know the motivation of the person who has done this but we can't presume that it is anything other than malevolent. One of International Rescue's machines and operatives has fallen into what we can only presume are enemy hands. I've got no doubt that he'll now do whatever it takes to make Potsie reveal everything he knows about this organisation including the Fonziebird machines. That information's dangerous. The technology in those machines would be an extremely potent weapon in the hands of anyone who chooses to use it."

Howard held up his hand as his sons strove to interrupt.

"I know Fonziebird One's only one machine – but one is enough – more than enough. We must let the World President know what is happening so they can be prepared. We've no way of knowing what this criminal's planning but after what happened with those two spies who masqueraded as International Rescue to steal secret plans, I’m not taking any chances. I don't want innocent people to suffer at the hands of technology stolen from International Rescue – not if I can do anything about it. Besides, they may be able to help us."

"Help us, Dad?" Fonzie frowned as he looked at Howard. "How?"

"Their forces cover a fair bit of this globe, Fonzie, in many of the inhospitable terrains where our agents simply don't go. Fonziebird One'll have to be kept somewhere and somewhere inhospitable and remote would be likely as a hiding place. The World Army may well be our best chance of finding Fonziebird One, and with it, Potsie."

Howard looked down at his desk and picked up the chronometer that sat there. As if to draw his second eldest son back to him from wherever he had been taken, Howard closed his fist over it and brought it up to his chest. Swallowing once, he looked back at his remaining sons.

"Now get to it, Boys, your brother's depending on you."

The next hours passed slowly for the occupants of the Tracy villa. Although all of the International Rescue agents had been alerted, none knew of anything that might help and could only promise to call in as soon as they did. Lori Beth set Tom to contacting all of his old 'colleagues' from his life of crime to see what the criminal underworld knew of the abduction of Warren 'Potsie' Tracy and Fonziebird One. The World President was shocked to learn that an International Rescue machine had been captured and promised the help of the World Army in checking for places where the machine could be hidden.

Re-calibrating the sensors of Fonziebird Five to try to detect any of the components of the rescue ship yielded no help – there was nothing that was specific enough that could be tracked. Waiting was now the only course open to them.

Fonzie raised his head from his arm as the sound of a soft footstep reached his ears. The lounge was in semi-darkness, lit only by two small table lamps, one next to the sofa at the back of the room where Fonzie himself was stretched out, the other at his father's desk where Ralph sat with his head resting in the heel of one hand, eyes closed. His night vision affected by the proximity of the lamp Fonzie could see only darkness beyond the circle of light cast by the lamp.

"That you, Red?"

"No, it's not. Why are you two still up, don't you know it's nearly 3:00 in the morning?"

Fonzie sat up and swung his feet to the floor as Howard stepped further into the lounge, frowning at his two sons.

"I thought you both went to bed hours ago?"

"We did but we can't sleep, Dad, not with Potsie out there by himself with who knows what happening to him," Ralph raised his head and looked at his father through bloodshot, weary eyes. "What if he manages to call in? Someone's got to be here – he might not have much time to talk."

"If Potsie manages to call, Chachi'll tell us," Howard looked across to where Fonzie was still sitting on the sofa, his mouth opening to object further. "I know you're worried about your brother but when we get a line on him, I need you both at your best, not so tired you can't stay awake. Now, off to bed with you."

With a reluctant nod, Fonzie slowly stood up and moved towards the sleeping area. As he drew alongside his father, he stopped and looked at Ralph who hadn't moved.

"Both of you."

Ralph hesitated a moment longer then rose from the desk. As he drew level with Fonzie, Howard placed a hand on each of his son's shoulders. Blue and brown eyes looked back into the brown eyes that regarded them fondly.

"Don't worry, Boys, we'll find him," The hand on each shoulder tightened comfortingly to impart strength and hope. "We'll find him and we'll bring him home."

Silently, Ralph and Fonzie nodded once then moved off towards their rooms. Left to himself, Howard crossed the lounge and stood looking out at the quiet ocean laid out before him. The words were more a prayer than anything else.

"We'll find you, Potsie – wherever you are, we'll find you. I promise."

Several hours later, Howard sat at the kitchen table with his sons, nursing a cup of strong, black coffee. He almost dropped it in surprise as a voice broke into his thoughts.

"Excuse me, Mr Tracy?"

Howard turned in his chair, his sons looking up from their plates, to find the overweight, dark haired, middle-aged, pickle nosed scientist of the group standing in the doorway, looking pale and tired and holding a sheaf of papers.

"Al, come on in. Have you eaten?"

"No, Mr Tracy. I've got some news for you," As he saw the hopeful expressions that appeared on the faces around the table, he hastily added "It's not very good news I'm afraid."

Howard's face fell and then hardened as he prepared himself to listen.

"Okay, Al, come and get some food and tell us what you've found."

Richie cleared a patch of table next to him while Fonzie loaded a clean plate with toast and a muffin and then got up to prepare a cup of tea – Al's preferred drink in the mornings. Al smiled his thanks as he seated himself next to the aquanaut.

"Thanks, Richie, you too, Fonz," He shuffled his papers, cleared his throat and then looked across at Howard. "As you know, Mr Tracy, Professor Garrity's doctors found traces of a foreign substance in his blood but Doctor Blain and Doctor Thomas could not agree on what that substance was. However, the blood sample that Richie took from Doctor Brady also held a foreign substance as did that of Mister Williams."

The middle-aged scientist paused to take a drink from the cup that Fonzie had placed in front of him. Richie continued to eat, giving the impression that he was only partially listening to Al but Howard, Ralph and Fonzie all sat as still as stone, waiting for him to continue. Slowly, Al put down his cup and returned to his sheets of paper, reluctant to met the eyes of his employer.

"As the the blood samples of Doctor Brady and Mister Williams were taken much closer to the time when the injections were carried out, the samples were much easier to analyse and we, how can I say this? We think that we've managed to identify what they were injected with."

The Tracy men waited for Al to continue but the overweight man just sat and looked at his papers, as if desperately trying to find something different in them. His fingers shook slightly and he frowned deeply, desperately seeking the words to convey his news. Puzzled, and increasingly concerned, Ralph, Richie and Fonzie exchanged worried glances before turning back to their friend. Howard's gaze hadn't left Al's face and as he observed the older man's discomfort his heartbeat increased and a knot of dread began to form in his stomach.

"Okay, Al, let's have it. What is this substance?"

When Al looked up, he didn't meet Howard's eyes but instead looked nervously over Howard's shoulder, seeming to focus about five feet behind him.

"Doctor Thomas's already working on finding an antidote that that may be able to counteract the effects of the drug. He's got a great deal of expertise in the area as you know, Mr Tracy. Doctor Blain has greed to give him whatever help he can and they are hopeful that....."

"Al," Howard's voice was gruff and strained as he sought to stop the flow of words coming from the scientist. "Al...............I need to know. What is this substance?"

Drawing a deep breath, Al focussed on the eyes of his employer. Howard drew in a sharp breath as he saw the mixture of dismay and fear displayed on the face of the scientist.

"The the exact scientific name doesn't really matter. It's a combination of a derivative of a so-called truth serum widely used during interrogations in the last century and of a mind-control drug, devised by an Australian scientist, an Ian Master. It's got the ability to enable someone to control the physical actions of the subject in much the same way as hypnotism does. However, it's side-effects led to it being outlawed and banned from use twenty years ago."

Howard's blood felt as if it had been turned to ice in his veins.

"What side effects?"

"The drug was used experimentally on life-term prisoners in Britain, Finland and Australia as the World Justice System was trying to find some alternative to the death penalty. As a result, only very few examples of its use have been documented and studied," Al paused and shuffled his papers again, dropping his eyes down to them once more. "Of the fifty people on whom this was previously known to have been used, only twenty recovered fully after the first administration of the drug."

"Recovered fully? What of the others?" Howard's voice was grim as he asked the question, sure that he did not really want to know the answer.

"Of the remaining thirty subjects, twenty suffered mental traumas and lapsed into prolonged periods of unconsciousness. When they awoke they had suffered some physical or mental impairment as a result of brain damage caused by the drug."

"What sort of 'impairment', Al?"

Al turned towards the blond beside him, his face grave.

"The damage inflicted varied from individual to individual. Basically the drug appeared to damage the transmission of signals along the neural pathways in the brain but which pathways were affected appeared to be somewhat random. A few were affected in their sight, having it severely damaged or even destroyed altogether."

"They were blinded?" Fonzie's shocked voice was barely a whisper.

Al nodded sadly. "Yep, yep, yep, yep, yep, yep, yep, yep. In others, the damage left the subjects partially or completely paralysed as the motor neurones were damaged."

Richie, on the other side of Al, sucked in his breath sharply, his own memories of lying stricken in a hospital bed, unable to move resurfacing in his brain. Shifting uncomfortably, Al continued, his words becoming more uncertain and reluctant as he observed the effects of his revelations on his listeners.

"However, it wasn't only voluntary movements that were affected. In the last ten cases, the autonomic nerve pathways were damaged. As these control the many automatic processes that occur in the body to keep it functioning the effects of the disruption caused was somewhat more severe."

The eyes of his listeners widened with shock as they listened to the dreadful damage inflicted by this noxious drug and as Al hesitated yet again in his revelations their faces started to drain of colour in dread at what remained unsaid. Richie, his voice little more than a whisper, asked the question.

"What about the last ten, Al? What happened to them?"

Al swallowed hard before raising his eyes to meet Howard's eyes once more.

"They didn't survive, Richie. They all died after being given the drug."

[Race's Girl]

Chapter Nine

There was silence in the dining room as Howard and his sons took in the implications of what they had been told. Finally, Howard spoke.

"How long, Al?"

"Mr Tracy?"

"How long after being given the drug did they die?"

"The drug worked for about five hours during which the subjects acted normally and followed the instructions given them. All fifty subjects then lost consciousness for a period of time. Those who recovered fully woke up after several hours. The subjects who only partially recovered were unconscious for up to a week. Those who died....."

Al's voice trailed off and he dropped his eyes to his papers again.

"Go on, Al. Let's have it all."

Al nodded and swallowed once more before continuing in a low voice.

"Those who died never regained consciousness. Some died within a few hours, some a few days. In a couple of cases, their life-support machines were switched off after a couple of months after all attempts to wake them had failed and the doctors were certain they were brain – dead."

"So Potsie may already be dead?" Howard's voice was flat and unemotional, only the anguish in his eyes betrayed the pain that was tearing his heart in two.

"We don't know that Potsie was even given that drug, Dad," Richie's voice was vehement in its assertion. "Someone else may have flown Fonziebird One, Potsie might have been unconscious, knocked out in some way!"

"No, Richard, we don't," his father responded. "But Ralph's right, Potsie'd never voluntarily hand Fonziebird One over to anyone outside the organisation to fly. We all know that craft can't be flown by anyone without any training. No, Potsie flew off in Fonziebird One and that means he must have been given some of that drug for him to go along with it. That being the case we're left with the possibility that Potsie's already dead – isn't that right, Al?"

All attention was turned back to the scientist who was looking very uncomfortable.

"Well, that's unfortunately possible, Mr Tracy," As the faces around him fell, Al hurried on. "However, Doctor Thomas's fairly confident that he can produce a serum that can counteract the effects of the drug so once we've found Potsie, if he is still under the influence of the drug we can help him."

"What about any damage already caused, Al? Would the antidote be able to do anything about that?"

"Well, that's possible, Ralph. It it depends on the exact effect the drug has had on Potsie."

Howard pushed back his chair from the table and stood up.

"Any other news, Al?"

The scientist dropped his gaze to the table.

"No, Mr Tracy. That's everything for now."

"Good. Well, finish your breakfast..and Al?"

"Yes, Sir?" The scientist's eyes came back up to fix on his employer to meet eyes that, although clouded by grief, looked back at him with warmth.

"Make sure you get some sleep when you've finished eating. You look exhausted."

Nodding to his sons, Howard turned and left the kitchen.

"Ralph! Quit with the scales, will you?"

Fonzie looked up from the book he was struggling to read as the voice of his second younger brother broke through the continuous flow of up and down notes that came from the piano. It was now late evening, more than twenty four hours after Potsie had disappeared and still nothing had been heard. Howard had disappeared to his study in the afternoon and had not been seen since, leaving Potsie's brothers to their own devices. All had haunted the lounge ever since. Now the continued inactivity and helplessness were weighing heavily and tempers were starting to fray.

"You know what the Doctor said," Ralph continued without pause as he glared down at the fingers of his left hand as they attacked the keys. "Daily regular exercise to strengthen the muscles so this 'oldie' doesn't degenerate further."

At any other time, the words might have been taken as a gently prod at his brother for his words the day before but the frustration and anger clearly showing on Ralph's face was mirrored in the bitten off words thrown out at Richie.

"I remember him saying 'daily, regular, gentle exercise' – he said nothing about murdering a baby-grand with hours of musical scales."

"They're not scales," Ralph grounded out between clenched teeth. "They're arpeggios and I haven't been doing this for more than forty-five minutes."

"Scales, arpeggios, same difference. Just quit it, will you? It's driving me crazy."

"If you don't like it, Rich, you know what you can do about it. You've got the rest of the house to lounge around in – you don't have to sit on your butt in here."

And with that, the volume increased as Ralph dropped his right hand onto the keyboard and began a second set of musical exercises at the same time that his left hand continued with the original set.

"Why you stubborn, mule-headed-"

Richie jumped up from his chair and advanced on his brother, his helplessness and anger redirected against the only target it could find.

"Rich-hard! That is enough," Fonzie got up from his seat and advanced towards his siblings. Ralph glowered at Richie over the top of the piano, the music momentarily forgotten. "Ralph's right. If you don't like him practising then go somewhere else." He held his brother's eyes, not flinching at the look that his hot-blooded, copper haired brother threw at him. "You know we'll let you know the minute we hear anything."

Richie opened his mouth to reply but before he could speak an insistent bleeping cut the atmosphere in the lounge, claiming the attention of all three men. Richie whirled around to the portraits on the wall behind him but all were unchanged. It was not until he heard his brother's voice that he realised his mistake.

"This is International Rescue. Come in, Lori Beth."

The portrait of the dark haired Seattle-born young lady hanging on one of the side walls changed to a live satellite picture of International Rescue's Milwaukee Agent.

"Morning, Guys – or good evening. Great to see you all again." Despite the apparent lightness of her greeting the expression on the young brunette's face made it clear that she was the carrier of serious tidings.

"Lori Beth, you got any news? Should we get Dad?"

"Sure, Fonz. I've got some news that he needs to hear."

"Let's have it then, Lori Beth."

Howard's gruff tones sounded from the doorway where he had just entered the room. Quickly, he crossed and joined his three sons in front of the satellite feed.

"Mr Tracy, the situation's more serious than we thought. Tom's been in contact with a number of his old, er, pals overnight and they've all told him about a rumour going around the higher echelons of the criminal underworld."

The four men stood in silence, their expressions grim as their colleague continued.

"A mysterious character's contacted the leading figures of all of the criminal fraternities in Milwaukee giving them a personal invitation to a private auction to be held at a secret location in two days time. The location'll be disclosed upon payment of a fee that'll be disclosed upon application."

"Go on, Lori Beth, I've got a bad feeling about this. What's for sale?"

"You're right to do so, Mr Tracy. This mysterious guy known only as Mestari's offering to sell an International Rescue machine and its pilot together with all of the secrets they hold. The prize'll go to the highest bidder."

The grounds of the house were quiet, the near complete silence broken only occasionally by the twit of an owl and the sudden scurrying of small feet startled out of cover. The glinting reflections on the damp driveway faded into darkness as the glow of the moon disappeared behind a bank of cloud and a watchful alertness seemed to spread over the landscape. Gradually a faint vibration in the air, that at first seemed nothing more than the dim rumble of traffic far away, began to grow in intensity. After a couple of minutes the air was vibrating and the ground began to tremble slightly. Bushes shook as their inhabitants dived for cover or took flight.

An immense black shape, illuminated only by one strip of light at the front and two dull glowing tubes at the rear, approached from the west, hovered over the large country mansion for a brief moment and then, emitting large clouds of white smoke from its underbelly, sank gradually to the ground behind the building. Almost as soon as it had touched the ground the engines were cut and the gigantic craft fell silent. Two brilliant white orbs of light sprang to life close to the house and a car pulled out of the shadows where it had been waiting and approached the massive machine. An opening appeared in the side of the machine, close to the nearest end of the strip of light but at ground level and the figure of a man was silhouetted against the bright light beaming out into the darkness. As the man stepped outside the light was shut off and two more dark figures followed him out, the last turning and closing the hatch before following his colleagues to the waiting car.

"Lori Beth, it's good to see you again," The greeting was quiet and subdued as the leading figure reached the 1957 pink cadillac. "Thanks for your help."

"It's my pleasure, Fonz. I'm only too eager to do what I can to help Potsie. Now, if you guys'll join me, we'll be on our way."

Bending their heads to avoid the roof, Fonzie, Richie and Ralph entered the luxurious car and settled themselves on the cushions, Ralph shifting slightly to find a comfortable position as the car moved off.

"Now, before I forget, I've got one of these for each of you," Reaching into the pocket of the door, Lori Beth extracted three articles, each shaped like a thick pen. "Doctor Thomas has calculated what he thinks'll be the correct dosage for someone with Potsie's frame and says that the antidote doesn't need to be injected directly into a vein. Injecting it into muscle tissue within a few inches of a major blood vessel'll be sufficient."

Cautiously, the three men took the proffered items and inspected them carefully, checking to ensure they understood how to use them.

"Has there been any change in Professor Garrity's condition, Lori Beth?" Ralph asked as he sealed the hypodermic away in a zipped pocket.

The young brunette sighed and shook her head.

"No, Ralph. He's still unconscious although the specialists think that he's probably gained a slightly higher level of consciousness since they administered the antidote. However, that was four hours ago and he's already been unconscious for over a week so maybe it's still too early to tell." She paused before asking "Has there been any change in the other two poor men?"

"No, not yet." Ralph shifted in his seat again as he answered her. "But then it's probably too soon yet. Al had difficulty getting the hospital to believe him so there was a delay in getting the antidote made up. It was only given to them about two hours ago."

The remainder of the journey passed in silence, each of the occupants consumed by their own thoughts. Fonzie was brought out of his reverie by Tom's voice drifting back from the driver’s seat.

"The tower's ahead, Lori."

Fonzie spun in his seat and peered out through the windscreen. The cadillac was in a built up area of Milwaukee. Around them were many commercial buildings and office blocks. Directly ahead was their destination – a very wide, tall, office block topped by a curious dome shaped roof, somewhat out of keeping with the surrounding buildings.

"Thanks, Tom. Drive straight past it and then park the car a little distance away where it won't easily be seen – we won't want to attract any attention to ourselves, would we now?"

"Okay."

As Tom slowly drove past the main entrance to the building, Fonzie counted at least thirty men in dark overcoats, usually in groups of five of six at a time, heading towards the building or huddled nearby in little groups. In the streets nearby there were a large number of vehicles, most with one way windows, cruising slowly, parked by the kerbs or sheltered around corners off the main street.

"Looks like there's quite a few interested parties attending this auction," observed Richie quietly. "We're gonna have our work cut out getting in there without being seen, L.B."

"Don't worry about that, Rich. I've got every confidence in Tom's abilities to get us in there unobserved. I think our guy's main problem's going to be in getting Potsie out of there once we've located him."

"We don't even know he's gonna be in there," Ralph looked agitated and uneasy. "This Mestari guy'd be nuts to bring Potsie here, right into the middle of all these hoods. Most of those guys look like bodyguards and you can bet your life they're wearing more than just their clothes under those coats."

"I think we can assume the Mr Mestari must be fairly secure that he can control the situation or he won't risk such a venture," said Lori Beth smoothly. "However, I think we'd better go and join the party before we miss any of the fun."

Swiftly, the group left the car. All were dressed in black clothing and soft soled shoes and all five carried a gun in their belt. Doubling back on the last part of the route taken by the cadillac, Tom led them into a high fenced yard at the rear of the building adjoining that for which they were heading. Against one wall was a pile of boxes, arranged in such a way as to provide the appearance of a two-dimensional stepped pyramid. Tom hoisted himself up onto the lowest box then used the following boxes as a staircase to reach the highest point, some eight feet off the ground. Here, he extracted a small tool from a black pouch on his belt and knelt down close to a metal plate that was attached to the wall. Puzzled, Richie climbed up and joined him.

"Hey, Tom, I'm sure you know what you're doing but could you tell me why we're at the back of the wrong building?"

"With all these guys about, Rich, there ain't no way we're gettin' into that building direct. They're too wily to allow anyone a chance of slipping by 'em, so," Tom grimaced and paused a moment as he concentrated on the task in hand. After a few seconds of concentrated effort the screw, he had been trying to loosen gave way with a sudden flurry of rust slivers, dirt and grime. "We're goin' around 'em."

As he finished, Tom pulled the loosened metal cover away from the wall, revealing a black hole in the brickwork, lined with a metal tube and just about wide enough to admit passage of a human body. Turning to Richie, Tom grinned and thrust the plate at him.

"There you are, Rich, hold this, will you while I get Lori."

Resting his hands on the top of the boxes, Tom dropped to the ground, landing with far more grace and poise than Richie had thought possible or likely for a man of his appearance. Settling the metal grid down on the boxes beside him, Richie moved over to the spot vacated by Tom and thrust his head and shoulders into the hole. Inside, it was cool and pitch black. Feeling the crates under his feet shake he backed out and turned to find, Tom approaching him with Lori Beth close behind, one hand trailing along the wall to steady her balance. Richie inched sideways away from the opening in the wall to allow them access.

"Oh, Tom, when I said I had every confidence that you would get us into the building unobserved, I thought that you'd find something just a little bit more convenient. Do I really have to crawl through a wall?"

Despite the seriousness of the situation, the Tracy brothers grinned widely. Lori Beth wore her persona as a rich billionare's daughter to perfection and it was a perfect disguise for her position as the Milwaukee agent of the International Rescue organisation. However on occasions such as this, when the young heiress was, in truth, keen and eager to join in and get involved with the more practical side of an operation, the juxtaposition of the down to earth requirements of the job with her maintenance of the façade of an heiress was somewhat amusing. Even more amusing was the crest-fallen expression of her partner.

"I tried my best, Lori. Brad assured me this was the only way in if we didn’t want to be seen."

"Brad, Tom?" Lori Beth's eyebrows rose as she levelled an astonished gaze at the former safe-breaker. "You've been talking to a guy called Brad?"

An interesting shade of pink crept into the cheeks of the older man.

"My old pal, Brad Donnelly, Lori – one of the best house-breakers in the trade. He used to knock of buildings around here regularly – knew where all the best stuff was kept and all the ways in and out of 'em. Ses if we want to get into that there building without bein' seen, this is the only way. Now, mind your head, Lori and follow me."

So saying, Tom ducked and crawled into the opening. Lori Beth watched his feet disappear into the darkness and then flashed a smile across at Richie, where he sat against the wall.

"Oh, well, needs must I suppose. I suppose I'm gonna have to wash my hair again when I get home. How tiresome."

Swiftly, the young woman bent and crawled into the dark opening in the wall. Richie moved back in front of the entranceway and then glanced down at his brothers.

"Coming, Guys?"

Still grinning, Fonzie and Ralph moved to the lowest of the stacked crates. Fonzie boosted Ralph by using his linked hands as a boosting step to spare his still weakened shoulder. Soon, all five of them were standing inside a large, echoing, boiler room after dropping out of the other side of the access pipe. Silently, Tom led them through the room to a locked door.

"We've gotta be careful now. The two buildings share the boiler room. This door leads to the building that those guys are meetin'. There's a staircase leadin' to the hallway behind the front door. That's our way in."

Turning to the door, he again used his lock picking equipment and within seconds they stood at the bottom of a short flight of steps. Silently, they ascended and at the top clustered around a doorway the edges of which betrayed the presence of a lighted area beyond it. Tom opened the door a crack while Lori Beth and Richie arranged themselves to be able to see. The door was at the back edge of a large, open, well-lit, foyer located behind a set of doors. A table was set in the middle of the hallway immediately in front of the doors, behind which three men stood. All were shouldering automatic weapons. A fourth, heavy-set man stood at the doors and, as they watched, a rapping sound came from the main doors. The heavy opened a small eyehole in the door, gazed out for a second and then opened the main door. A group of four men entered, all dressed in heavy, black overcoats and looking every inch criminals. They presented themselves at the table and allowed themselves to be searched by the heavy while the other three watched them closely. Their expressions, however, registered clear outrage at the procedure. After passing the search the visitors were directed to the far side of the foyer to a waiting lift, complete with another heavy, into which they vanished.

Silently, Tom closed the door. They had seen enough. Quietly they retreated down to the area at the bottom of the stairs where, in low voices, Lori Beth and Richie told the others what they had seen.

"So we can't get over that hallway without bein' seen?" Fonzie questioned.

"No," Richie shook his head. "Those guys'd pick us up as soon as we stepped through the door. But we've got to get into that meeting. What are we gonna do?"

They stood in puzzled, frustrated thought for a moment. Then suddenly, Fonzie's head snapped up.

"Wait a secondo," his tone indicating that a light bulb had just sprung to life in his head. Stepping back to the stairwell, he ascended the first few steps, his gaze concentrated on the roof. "I thought so."

"Fonz, what is it?"

The others stood at the bottom of the stair watching him, impatient to know what he had discovered.

"Hold on a sec, I'll be right back."

Leaping up the remaining steps, Fonzie returned to the doorway where he cautiously opened the door a little and stared out across the guarded foyer. He was there only a few seconds before he nodded his head in satisfaction and returned to where the others waited below.

"Well?" Ralph demanded before he had even left the staircase. "What is it?"

"This staircase don't go any further than the ground floor." Fonzie said with a grin on his face.

"So? It doesn't need to – there's an elevator."

Fonzie rolled his eyes.

"Think about it, Ralphie. What about when the elevators are out of action? What do people use then?"

"The stairs," Richie grinned in delight. "There's got to to be another stairwell somewhere."

"And there is. It's next to the elevator. You can see it from the doorway."

"But that's no good either," Lori Beth frowned in confusion. "If we can't cross the foyer to take the elevator then we can't cross the foyer to use the stairs either."

"Sorry, Lori but Fonzie's right," Tom had been hovering on the fringe of the circle, listening silently but now he stepped forward to join the group fully. "This space's got a corridor leading from it. That'll lead to the bottom of the other stairs and we can get up to the meetin' without bein' seen that way."

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!"

Ralph took two steps away from the huddled group, anxious to find the meeting at which his brother was to be auctioned off like a slave but then froze to the spot as an only too well-known sound began to rumble through the floor and walls of the building in which they stood. Ralph, Fonzie and Richie stared up at the ceiling as if willing themselves to gain superhuman sight and be able to penetrate through the layers of metal and stone that lay above them and then looked at each other with a mixture of relief and disbelief.

"What?" Lori Beth and Tom looked from one to the other of them in consternation. "What is it? What've you heard?"

Ralph set off at a run down the corridor, not waiting to answer her, Fonzie hot on his heels.

"Fonziebird One," Richie grabbed her arm and dragged her along after the others leaving Tom to follow. "That's Fonziebird One."

[Race's Girl]

Chapter Ten

When Richie, Tom and Lori Beth caught up with Ralph and Fonzie, they were standing near to the door leading out onto the eighth floor of the building. Fonzie was talking quietly into his watch while Ralph was carefully looking through the glass of the door.

“Yeah, that’s what we thought too. So I’m going to go up to the roof to see if I can find him while Ralph and the others check out the auction.” There was a pause for a moment, the reply too soft for the others to catch “Yeah me too, little brother, me too. Tell dad we’ll call in again as soon as we get the chance to tell him what’s happened.” With that he closed the channel and looked up as the other three mounted the last of the steps to join them.

“What’s happening? Are they here?”

Lori Beth was a little breathless, her dark brown hair now starting to escape the bands that held it back, disturbed by crawling through the access channel and then by the fast jog up the stairs. Ralph stepped back from his post by the door.

“They seem to be meeting in a room down the hall from the elevator. We’ve seen several people leave the car and head that way since we got here.”

“Any sign of Potsie?” Richie slipped past Tom and Lori Beth and cautiously peeped through the glass as Ralph had been doing, careful not to expose too much of his head to view from the other side of the door.

“No.” Fonzie’s voice was quiet and calm and belied the anxiousness that was coursing through his veins at the thought that they might be so close to their eldest brother once again. “From the vibrations and noise, we think Fonziebird One must have landed on the roof. It’s possible he’s still up there and only his captors have come down to conduct this charade. I’m going to look while the rest of you check out the show.”

“Is that great, Fonz? Maybe we should stay together? We don’t know how many of them are up there. By yourself, you could get into trouble.”

“Don’t worry, L.B, I’ll be fine – they’re the ones that need to watch out. If Potsie's up there then this is our opportunity to get to him and Fonziebird One at the same time. Without either of them in his clutches, this Mestari’s game goes all to pot. You four be careful though. As well as Mestari there’s a whole bunch of other hoodlums in there. They may not be armed but don’t take any chances.”

Ralph and Richie nodded silently and moved to open the door, checking that Tom and Lori Beth were close behind them. After checking his gun was fitted with the knockout darts that would render a man unconscious before he hit the ground, Fonzie turned and disappeared up the stairwell.

Once out in the hallway the four moved quickly away from the stairwell towards a set of double doors from where they could hear the mumble of low voices. Richie split off from the others before they reached the doors to investigate a small passageway off to the left, Tom and Lori Beth drifting after him. Peeking around the edge of the nearest door, Ralph looked into a large room carpeted and curtained and about half-filled with groups of chairs arranged around randomly scattered circular tables. Most of the chairs were empty as groups of men stood around the room, looking suspiciously at those around them and quickly returning to their own conversations. At the far end of the room was a raised stage, the wings obscured from view by curtains. The whole place had the appearance of a room set aside for casual entertainment and conversation.

As Ralph watched, a middle-aged man with curly brown hair and hazel green eyes made his way to the middle of the stage from the right hand side. Almost immediately silence fell as the men stopped their conversations and turned to face the stage.

“Gentlemen, I'm Mestari. Thank you for coming here tonight.”

Ralph jumped at a light tap on his shoulder.

“Rich's found another way in.”

Tearing his eyes away from the room, Ralph followed the blond and retreated around the corner of the room and up the small side corridor. There he found a door almost hidden in the shadows cast in the enclosed area. Inside was a much smaller room, on the opposite side of which was another door. Richie and Lori Beth were already standing by the door, watching through the slight crack. Ralph stepped up behind them and positioned himself so that he could also see out.

“...of the unique offer open to you tonight I'm sure that you understand the reason for the security precautions in place downstairs.”

At this an angry murmuring went up from the crowd. From about halfway back a cultured voice rang out.

“So you say.” The crowd pulled back slightly to reveal an elegantly dressed, red-haired man, with a well cut, expensive suit. “However I see neither an International Rescue craft nor any International Rescue personnel. It's well known that they have the best security in the world – even the World President doesn’t know who they are or where they come from. Do forgive us if we seem a little..” He paused, considering his words “...doubting. Perhaps you would be so good as to provide us with some evidence?”

Assenting voices and the nodding of several heads showed the same thoughts were widely held.

“A reasonable request, Mister Price.”

The man looked taken aback at the use of his name.

“Oh yeah, Mister Price, I know your name – as I know the names of you all.” Mestari opened his hands to encompass all within the room, “and knowing you, I knew that you would be wise enough not to take my word for this. That is why I have brought the pilot of the Fonziebird machine here with me tonight.” Without taking his eyes off his audience, Mestari stretched out his left hand to the side. “Come on, Kid. It's time to let these good gentlemen see you.”

Utter silence fell in the main room and all eyes followed the gesture. Looking across the stage, Ralph noticed for the first time a curtain of material separating off the far end of the stage from his view. The curtain shivered for a moment before being pushed aside as a figure stepped out from behind it and, somewhat stiffly and mechanically, walked onto the stage. The soft cries of dismay that came simultaneously from Ralph, Richie and Lori Beth were thankfully masked by the gasps of astonishment that came from the audience.

His face was pale and tired; an appearance emphasised by the five o’clock shadow that covered his neck and jaw. His eyes were flat and devoid of expression, two pale pools of blue, the pupils only pinpricks in the centre, staring straight-ahead and acknowledging nothing. His uniform, the eye-catching off white of International Rescue with a dark blue trim, was an immediate identifier for the crowd but Ralph didn't need it. There, in front of him, unmistakably, was his brother - Warren a.k.a Potsie.

Potsie reached Mestari and stood passively by his side, his eyes staring out over the hall. For a moment nobody spoke. Then

“Well, you appear to have a man in the uniform of International Rescue” The cultured voice of Mister Price was speaking again “but I still see no International Rescue machine.”

“But you will, Mister Price. Lights!”

At Mestari’s order, the room went dark and a lighted screen appeared on the wall behind his head. A buzz of excited conversation filled the hall as the projection revealed a camera shot of a large room, in the centre of which stood the silver blue scout craft of International Rescue. From around its stilts appeared the form of a well-built man carrying an automatic weapon. Movement from the back of the machine revealed the presence of another guard. Richie instantly ducked back into the main body of the room, raising his chronometer to his lips.

“Fonz, it’s Richie, do you read me?”

Almost immediately, Fonzie appeared, his face a little flushed and his voice a little breathless.

“Go ahead, Rich, what’s the problemo?”

“Where are you?”

“Just getting to the top of the stairwell. There’s about thirty floors, it’s taken me a while to get here.”

“Fonz, Fonziebird One’s up there but there are at least two armed guards with automatic weapons.”

“That's uncool.” Fonzie bit his lip. “How do you know?”

“They’ve got a live feed down here. We can see the guards as well as Fonziebird One.”

“Any sign of Potsie?”

“He’s down here too but it looks like he’s still being controlled by Mestari.”

“Still? He was taken three days ago, how come it’s not worn off yet?”

“I don’t know. For now I’m just grateful he’s still alive.”

“Any way of getting to him?”

“Not at the moment. He’s in full public view. We’d have to take on the whole room to get him out of there”

“Then I guess it’s down to me.”

“What are you going to do?”

“Get rid of those guards and get to Fonziebird One. If I can at least get that out of here then Mestari’s got one less card to play with.”

“Fonz, don’t be stupid!” Richie hissed. “Those are full battle weapons they’re toting. You’ll be cut to pieces as soon as they see you.”

“Then I’ll just have to make sure that they don’t see me.” Fonzie moved as if to cut off the communication.

“Fonz, wait!” Richie was desperate to stop his oldest brother doing something foolish. “Don’t forget the feed. As soon as you set foot in that room everyone here will see you and then you’ll have all the rest of the crooks in this place to deal with – we won’t be able to stop them all.”

“You’ve got a point, Red.” Fonzie paused and thought for a moment “I presume he’s using the live feed to prove that he’s really got Fonziebird One?”

“Too right. They didn’t believe him even when he brought out Potsie.”

“Then I guess as soon as they’re convinced he’ll shut it off while he gets down to business. I’ll leave it for five minutes. Let me know if the feed stops. If it’s still going I’ll go in anyway – I’ll just have to be as careful as I can.”

Richie looked sceptical but could tell by the glint in his oldest brother’s eye that he was not going to be put off from his course.

“F.O.N.Z but hold off for a while.”

Richie turned back to the door. He didn't have long to wait. Mestari was still speaking.

“No, my friend won't tell you his name or any of the secrets of his organisation until I tell him to. After all, that’s what one of you will be paying for – I’m sure you wouldn’t want your competitors to know for free what you will be paying good money to get.”

Again there were general murmurings and nodding of heads to show assent.

“However, what I can say is that once our business here's concluded, it'll be my pleasure to take the successful bidder to see this magnificent aircraft ‘in the flesh’ so to speak. But for now, it is time to open the bidding.”

With that he clapped his hands twice, the live feed snapped off and the lights came on. Richie ducked back into the body of the room.

“Fonz, go! He’s turned it off.”

“F.O.N.Z.” The drak haired man’s face was taut with intent but his eyes looked back steadily at his younger brother. “See you later, whoa.”

“Fonz, just take care. We don’t want anything to happen to you.”

“Don’t worry, it won’t.”

The line was cut and Richie again turned back to watch through the crack. The bidding was going surprisingly slowly. Each of the groups of men seemed to be unsure of how to proceed in such an open affair. No-one but Mestari and his men downstairs were armed and acts of intimidation and violence were out of the question. After a few minutes of lack lustre bidding and response Mestari raised a hand.

“Gentlemen, please. I can't help but think that you aren't taking this matter seriously.” The crowd turned its attention to the kidnapper. “Out of respect to your country, to what I may call my ‘Alma Mater’ I've brought before you, the cream of the criminal establishment in this land, an unparalleled opportunity to obtain the secrets desired by the entire world. And yet, here we are and you can't offer me more than a measly pittance for the secrets that your counterparts in the rest of the world would be falling over themselves to obtain.” He fixed the audience with a glare. “I have to tell you gentlemen, that unless your offers improve radically I'll exercise the sellers prerogative to take his goods elsewhere and you will have lost the opportunity of a lifetime. Now, shall we continue?”

Once again the bidding began and this time the pace was fast and furious. Behind the door, Lori Beth signed to Ralph and Richie and the three of them withdrew into the room to confer.

“Well, it seems that we had better act now before poor Potsie becomes the property of a Sotuhern bad guy. Shall we begin, guys?”

Before they could reply a clamour went up from the auction room. Tom, who had replaced them at the door when they had retreated to confer, called back to them.

“Lori......somethin’s happenin’.”

Hurrying back to the butler’s side he opened the door a little wider. Mr Price, while still on the main floor of the room, had moved to the right hand, opposite side of the stage from where the uninvited attendees were watching. In his hand was a gun that he must have managed to smuggle past the guards at the door. The gun was trained on Mestari and Potsie. At various points around the edges of the room a half dozen men had appeared, carrying automatic weapons that were trained on the other occupants of the room.

“Unfortunately, Mr Mestari.” Price was speaking. “I’m afraid that we must bring your little gathering to a premature end.”

“I don’t know why you’re doing this, Price but you’re making a major mistake.” Mestari was glaring at his opponent “Don’t think that you’re going to get your hands on my prize by brute violence.”

“I'm afraid that Mister Price sends his apologies as he was unable to be here this evening.”

The room’s occupants watched in astonishment as “Mr Price” reached down to the right hand side of his neck with his left hand and then literally ripped off his face. The features of another man were revealed beneath the latex mask, a man with short dark brown hair and brown eyes.

“He's been ‘unavoidably detained’ by the World Police.” The previously cultured English tones of ‘Mr Price’ had been replaced by a noticeable American drawl. “You might as well surrender now, Mestari – we’ve already taken out your men downstairs and the building is surrounded by cars and police aerial forces – you’ve nowhere to run.”

“Oh, but I think I have.”

Mestari’s quiet comment reached Ralph’s ears just as chaos broke loose. All eyes had been watching the exchange between Mestari and the policeman, none had been observing Potsie. At his last words, the kidnapper stepped back behind Potsie and clapped his hand on his captive’s back.

Instantly, Potsie pulled his gun from his belt and fired at the policeman and then turned and ran with Mestari towards the door where his friends were standing. Around the policeman, a cloud of white gas and smoke erupted. Many of the occupants turned and tried to flee from the room, falling over chairs, tables and each other in their haste to escape. Those in the vicinity of the smoke collapsed first to their knees and then to their faces and lay still. The armed men around the room fired rounds into the ceiling to try to get order but the fleeing criminals only moved more quickly to escape the room and their own arrests.

Mestari thrust open the door to the small room and then came to an abrupt stop, non-plussed at finding four people standing before him. Potsie, arriving an instant later, pulled to a halt beside him, his gun pointing at the small group. His face was blank, showing no sign of recognition. For a moment there was silence as each side regarded the other in shock. Ralph recovered first, his gun in his hand as he stepped towards the two men.

“That’s far enough Mestari, stop right there. Pots, it’s okay, we’ve come to take you home.”

The blank expression that covered Potsie’s face slipped as he shifted his gaze to Ralph and a flicker of recognition appeared briefly in his eyes. Then it was gone and the blank mask of indifference that had previously covered his face returned. His eyes were as cold as stone as he released another gas pellet from his gun. This one bounced off ’s shoulder and the almost instant cloud of gas enveloped Ralph, Lori Beth and Tom. As Richie saw the other three crumple to the ground and felt the gas begin to act on his senses, he jumped at Potsie and tried to wrest the gun from his grasp. His mind shrieked in disbelief as his brother drove a fist into his abdomen, knocking the wind out of him. As he fell to his hands and knees two joined fists came down on the back of his neck and the red haired sibling of the Tracy family knew no more.

From his vantage point behind the door to the stairwell, Fonzie looked through the glass into the large open area where Fonziebird One stood. Only one of the guards was in sight, his back to the door as he paced away across the floor. Extracting an item from the belt at his waist, Fonzie clasped it securely in his left hand and then, holding his gun before him, silently opened the door and slipped inside. To his right, by the wall, he could see the doors to the elevator that served this floor. To the left, a bank of controls that presumably operated the moveable, domed roof that presently covered the building and hid Fonziebird One from external view.

His boots giving no sound, Fonzie ran quickly towards the guard, aimed and fired. The silencer built into the gun ensured the noise was no more than a slight popping sound. As soon as the darts struck, the powerful drug within them took effect and the guard crumpled and folded to the floor. Fonzie scooted forward and caught him but unfortunately was not quick enough to stop the guard’s weapon from clattering against the concrete floor. From behind Fonziebird One came a voice.

“Bill, is that you? Is everything Okay?”

Cursing softly, Fonzie laid the supine form down on the ground and frantically looked around for a hiding place but he was out of time.

“Put your gun on the floor and raise your hands. Now!”

A hard-faced guard was coming towards him, his weapon levelled and ready to fire. Dropping his gun, Fonzie raised his hands above his head, quickly moving the item in his left hand to hold it behind his fingers and hide it from view.

“Hold your fire.”

“Back off, slowly.”

Carefully, Fonzie took a few steps until he was far enough away from the unconscious man that his friend was satisfied. Watching him carefully the man approached and knelt on one knee by his comrade, checking his pulse with one hand.

“He’s only unconscious,” Fonzie offered. “He’ll be fine in an hour or so.”

“It’s as well for you that he is. I’d have ignored orders and killed you right here if he was dead. Now, turn around and head for....”

He broke off and glanced down as a low moan came from the man on the floor. Recognising his chance, Fonzie whipped his hand down, hurled the contents at the ground in front of the guard and then did a rolling dive to the side, bounding to his feet and running for the cover of Fonziebird One. Taken by surprise the gunman had no time to avoid the capsule that had exploded on contact with the ground, releasing a cloud of white gas that enveloped the two men. He gave one choking cough as he tried to rise to his feet, and then fell to the ground.

Fonzie skidded to a halt underneath the body of Fonziebird One. Looking back, he saw that his ruse had worked and nodded in satisfaction. Taking a deep breath he ran back to the nearest guard, caught him up in a tight grip and dragged him back into the stairwell. Pausing only long enough to take another lungful of clear air, he returned to the main room and retrieved the second guard. Extracting some pieces of strong, thin wire from another pouch on his belt he tied them to the stairwell handrail by their wrists and ankles and then returned to the rooftop where the narcotic cloud had now fully dispersed. Quickly, he assessed the controls that operated the retractable roof and within seconds the dome was folding itself backwards, revealing a clear, starlit night.

At the access hatch to the scout craft, Fonzie pressed his hand against the identity plate and keyed in the security numbers. Nothing happened. Frowning he keyed them in again, more slowly this time, ensuring he made no mistake. Again nothing happened.

“Arthur Tracy to Fonziebird Five.”

“Come in, Fonz. What’s happening?”

“Chach, Potsie’s changed the security key on the access door to Fonziebird One – I can’t get in.”

“What? Why would he do that? Is he there? Have....?”

“Chach, I ain’t got time for all this.” Fonzie’s words were hurried as he turned away from the access hatch. ”I can’t fly Fonziebird One out of here if I can’t get in and Potsie’s downstairs with Mestari. I’m guessing he hasn’t changed the code on the equipment hatch so I’m going to get the auto-locator working again and then go back to the others. Tell Dad what’s happening and I’ll call again as soon as I can.”

“F.O.N.Z. Take care.”

Chachi cut the line and Fonzie reached up to the security device for the equipment hatch under which he now stood, placed his hand on the identity plate and then keyed in the code. This time a hatch on the underside of the craft opened and dropped down to the ground, revealing a short flight of steps moulded into its inside surface. Quickly, he entered the craft, closing the steps behind him as the automatic motion detector operated the lighting system. Most of the portable equipment from the craft was still present, although it had presumably been inspected as some of it was no longer stored in its normal position.

The auto-locator device was on the opposite wall. Not only had it been turned off but it had also been partially dismantled. Groaning in exasperation he turned to a nearby locker and extracted the tools required to carry out the necessary repairs – this would take longer than he expected.

So caught up in his task was he that he registered neither the sound of heliplanes circling the building above him and the wail of sirens drifting up from the street below, nor the sound of running feet and of the pilot's access hatch being opened. The first indication he had that he was not alone was the thunderous roar of the VTOL rockets bursting into life.

“What the hell! What's going on?”

As Fonziebird One lifted from the platform, Fonzie struggled to keep his balance. A loud explosion nearby resulted in the rescue craft being thrown into a steep, vertical climb. Thrown from his feet, Fonzie landed awkwardly against one of the portable pieces of equipment. His head struck against an edge and he fell into darkness.

[Race's Girl]

Chapter Eleven

As Richie regained consciousness, he became aware of muted voices nearby. At first the words were jumbled, making no sense. He could only tell that although most of the voices seemed to be male, one was female. Even as the thought occurred recognition came. The refined, cultured tones of the dark haired young woman who was part of International Rescue, and the lower, crazy voice of one of his older brothers that brought with it a wash of comfort and familiarity – Ralph. Good, he was fine then. Richie relaxed momentarily in relief and then was shocked back to full awareness as total clarity returned and he remembered what had happened in the room at the side of the stage.

“Potsie!”

Richie opened his eyes and sat bolt upright – or at least he would have done so if his body had not rebelled against him. As soon as he lifted his head more than a few inches the back of his neck gave out a bolt of fire that caused him to moan in pain and stop moving. There was the sound of movement nearby as someone came to his side and wrapped an arm around his shoulders, helping him to sit up and lean back against a wall.

“Rich, thank god! I thought you were never going to wake up. Are you okay?”

“Ralph, where is he?” Richie looked up at his brother. “Where's Potsie? Is he here?”

Ralph shifted his position so that he was fully in front of his brother, rested his hands on his shoulders and stared directly into his eyes.

“Potsie's not here, Rich, remember?” Ralph's eyes darted to the side and there was a tiny movement of his head backwards. “It's just you and me and Lori Beth and Tom, remember?”

Richie paused for a moment, confused, and then glanced over his brother's shoulder. At the other side of the room he saw Lori Beth talking to the blond haired man who, while giving her part of his attention, was watching the two of them with clear, blue eyes.

“Yeah, yeah, I guess so. I forgot. So what happened?”

“Don't you remember?” Ralph's face was clouded with concern now, uncertain how much of what his brother was saying was for the benefit of the stranger and how much was true. “Mestari and his 'friend' came through here and used gas against us to get away.”

“He used gas against you, but he slugged me over the back of the neck.” Ruefully, Richie put a hand to his neck and massaged it, reminded now of the ache which had replaced the first bolt of pain he had felt on waking. “Brother or not, next time I see him, I'm going to make him sorry.”

“He slugged you?”

Ralph was stunned. He only remembered a cloud of gas erupting around him and then his senses reeling as he fell to the floor. When he had awoken along with Lori Beth and Tom some time later and found Richie still unconscious and showing no sign of waking he had been concerned that the gas might have adversely affected him. He had not thought there might be another reason for his brother's continued unconsciousness.

“Yeah, he slugged me – after he punched me in the stomach – boy, is he for it when I catch up with him.”

“Think yourself lucky, that's all he did to you.”

A quiet voice broke in on them and caused them to look up. The blond haired officer from the World Police had left Lori Beth and come to join them.

"Mestari usually makes a habit of killing those who oppose him. His buddy was mighty lenient, letting you live when you stood between his Master and freedom." he paused, assessing them keenly before continuing. "Though if he's your brother that might explain why you got away with your lives."

"I didn't say he was my brother." As Richie moved to stand up, Ralph caught him under one elbow and helped him to balance. "Ralph's my brother and doesn't like me getting into fights - but this time I've a score to settle."

"You'd be better off taking your brother's advice." the man's face was grim and serious "Mestari's bad news. Leave him to the authorities."

"If you don't mind me saying so, Officer," Lori Beth's soft voice came from behind him, "the authorities don't seem to be doing a very good job of dealing with Mr Mestari. Do you think he's been eluding you for some time?"

"We've been chasing him for a while, yes," the man turned to face Lori Beth. "but influencial as you're Lori Beth Crieghton-Ward." and here he inclined his head politely to the young heiress. "I don't think even you have the resources to be of any help in this affair – unless you've got more powerful friends than it seems." he finished, fixing the Tracy brothers with a hard stare.

"As I have already told you, Lieutenant," Lori Beth smiled sweetly. "Ralph and Richie are friends of mine. They're visiting Wisconsin for a short period and when they learned that I was determined to come here, they insisted on accompanying me to keep me out of trouble. I really think that..."

Lori Beth was interrupted by a tap on the door. It opened to reveal one of the men who had appeared in the auction room with a machine gun.

"Lieutenant, we've found two more of Mestari's men on the roof."

"The roof!"

Ralph and Richie's heads snapped around and their questions came at the same time.

"What about Fonziebird One?"

"Was there anyone else there?"

The lieutenant looked at them quizically.

"Why? Were you expecting someone else?"

The brother's mouths snapped shut and they looked at each other in indecision. Seeing he wasn't going to get a reply the lieutenant turned back to the man at the door.

"Well? You heard them. Was there anyone else?"

"No, sir, not exactly."

"Not exactly? What does that mean?"

"Well, someone must have been there. They were tied up in the stairwell. But there's no-one there now."

"You're sure? You searched the whole roof?"

"We've searched the whole building sir. There's no-one here now except for our own people and these four."

"What happened to all the men at the auction?" Richie was confused - how long had he been out? And where was Fonzie?

"We caught them as they tried to leave the building. We've got a number of questions we'd like to ask them. What about the International Rescue craft?" The lieutenant turned back to his subordinate, "I presume Mestari and his buddy used it to get away?"

"Yes, sir. The heliplanes tried to shoot it down....."

"Shoot it down!"

"They tried to do what?"

Ralph and Richie looked aghast and Lori Beth paled as she heard the words. The man shot them a startled look and continued

"But they missed and it got away. It took off so fast they couldn't get a fix on it - air control haven't been able to trace it."

"So he got away." The blond lieutenant turned back to the waiting foursome and looked at them silently for a minute before turning back to his subordinate. "Alright, officer, return to your post."

The man saluted and withdrew from the room, leaving the five alone.

"I'm sorry. It looks like your brother managed to take care of two of Mestari's men before getting caught himself. If he's lucky, Mestari might find out who he is and decide to ask your father for ransom before he kills him." The face of the policeman was softened by genuine regret as he addressed the brothers. “Let me know if he does - I'll do what I can to help.”

"Really, Lieutenant, we don't know what you're talking about." Lori Beth stepped astutely into the stunned silence before either Ralph or Richie could reply. "As I've already told you, there's only the four of us here and . . . . "

"We saw you entering the building next door, Miss Allen. We know there were five of you." The four exchanged uncertain glances and then stood silently, waiting for his next words. "You are a well-known figure, Miss Allen," explained the lieutenant "and your car's pretty . . .eye catching. Next time you go somewhere and don't want to be noticed, use something else. We wondered who your companions were when we saw them. When you told me about your 'friends' dad Howard Tracy, it all made sense. Old man Tracy's one of the wealthiest people on this planet. We'd wondered if Mestari would offer anyone honest the chance of buying the International Rescue machine. With you hearing about the auction from your partner's former associates, it made sense for Tracy Enterprises to send along some representatives for back room negotiations." The lieutenant turned back to the Tracy brothers who were wearing dumbfounded expressions "That is what you're here for right? You and your other brother - Potsie, was it? The blond one who was with you?"

Ralph found his tongue at last.

"You . . . er . . . .you could say my dad's got an interest in the machine, yes. But he'd never agree to paying money to a criminal. We were going to try to 'persuade' Mestari to give up peacefully and Potsie's real name's Warren."

"Peacefully!" The lieutenant gave a snort of laughter. "You certainly don't know much about the criminal mind do you, Mr Tracy? Giving up peacefully is certainly not what Mestari or any of his kind would do. Like any rat caught in a hole, he'll fight to escape - remember that - it might save your life one day. And your father might need to re-think his ideas about paying money to criminals - or at least offering to. If Mestari does try for ransom, the minute your father refuses then your brother'll be dead for sure. At least if he's willing to play along for a while it would give us a little time to do what we can."

"What can you do?" Richie had been silent so far but now he could hold back no longer. "You said you've been after Mestari for some time but you've not caught him yet. What makes you think you would be any more successful if he was holding one of my brothers hostage? If you couldn't catch him tonight when you knew he was here and had the building 'surrounded' how the hell do you plan to catch him when he's got the whole world to hide in?"

"Mr Tracy, please, this is not helping. If you'd just . . . ."

"I won't just anything!" Richie's face was red with fury and his eyes flashed dangerously. "I've had enough of this. I'm leaving and I'm leaving now and you hadn't better try to stop me. You might think my brother's as good as dead but I don't and I'll be damned if I'm going to wait around here any longer. If I've got to search the whole damned world to find him I will and no-one's going to stop me, Bucko."

With that, Richie pushed past the officer and stormed to the door, followed closely by Ralph.

“Howard Tracy's got five sons. Three of them I know were here tonight. I wonder if I would be too far wrong in guessing that a fourth one was here as well.”

At these words, Richie and Ralph stopped in their tracks and whirled to face the officer who held up his hands apologetically and dropped his voice as he continued talking.

“As brothers, you've all got a fairly close physical resemblance to your father. When I saw it and remembered the face of Mestari's 'friend', I couldn't help wondering if maybe you had another interest in the business being carried out here tonight? One a little closer to home perhaps?”

Their faces darkening in consternation, Ralph and Richie moved back towards the officer but before they could say anything he quickly continued talking.

“What you don't tell me, I don't know and my bosses aren't interested in guessing games so I've nothing to tell them. However, assuming you have the right resources, if you were to going looking for your brother...” he paused and left the word hanging for a moment. “I don't think you'd need to search the whole world. Just part of it."

Richie marched back to the officer until they stood nearly toe to toe and glared into his face.

"And what's that meant to mean?"

"As an officer of the World Police, I can't agree with you going to look for him yourself of course but once you leave this room, you're a free agent."

He looked at Richie with a question in his eyes. Richie's eyes narrowed and he gave a brief nod in acknowledgement.

"For your own good therefore, I can only advise you to give up any plans you may have of looking for your brother as 'private individuals' and to let those 'with the right resources' do the work instead."

Richie's face, which had calmed somewhat at the lieutenant's earlier words, flashed back to fury and he looked for one second as if he was about to hit the man. Ralph, however, stepped up beside his brother to lay a restraining hand on his shoulder.

"Thanks for your advice. What would you advise us to do in the meantime?"

"I'd recommend that you take a holiday and try to relax. Some place where you can avoid any more trouble. Make sure to steer away from any of the places where the more dangerous criminals hang out.”

“Such as?”

“Well, I’d avoid Canada right now. It’s definitely not a healthy place to visit.”

"Canada's known as America Jr and it might be a shame to miss." answered Ralph neutrally. "Can you be more specific?"

"All of it in general but above all else, I’d warn you away from Finland – that’s definitely a no go area right now."

Ralph nodded and stepped back, dragging Richie with him.

"Thanks for the advice. We might just take it."

Tom, who all this time had been standing silently in the background, listening but never interfering, opened the door and stood aside to allow his employer to pass. As she reached the doorway, she turned and graced the policeman with a smile.

"Thanks, Lieutenant, you've been so helpful. Good luck in your endeavours."

"Thank you, Miss Allen."

"Yeah." Richie stepped up behind the heiress and held out his hand. “Thanks.”

Smiling, the Lieutenant took the proffered hand and shook it.

“My pleasure. Good luck.”

Richi nodded in acknowledgement and stepped through the doorway. Ralph and Tom followed him out and the four headed towards the elevator car. Suddenly, Richie stopped and turned in his tracks to face the officer who was just turning away.

"Say, what's your name anyway?"

The man turned and grinned briefly at the young man.

"Svenson, Lieutenant Adam Svenson."

“Fonz! Come in, Fonz. Answer please!”

Ralph stared helplessly at the face of his chronometer, willing it to change to show him the features of his oldest dark haired brother but there was no response.

“Where is he?” Richie paced beside his older brother, “Why doesn't he answer?”

The four of them had left the building as quickly as possible and were heading back towards Lori Beth's car. As soon as he deemed it safe, Ralph had begun trying to contact Fonzie, desperate to know if his brother was safe.

“I am afraid Lieutenant Svenson may have been right.” Lori Beth's soft tones came from behind them as they rounded the corner of the block where they had left the cadillac. “It looks as if Mr Mestari may indeed have captured the Fonz and taken him away with Potsie in Fonziebird One. Shame that tracking device no longer works.”

The two brothers exchanged a glance then Ralph raised his wrist back towards his mouth.

“Ralph Tracy calling Fonziebird Five. Come in, Chach.”

“Ralph! Finally! Any longer and I was gonna call you myself.” Their youngest brother's worried voice carried to them clearly on the early morning air. “Have you got Potsie?”

“Chach, I need you to locate the Fonz for me. Where does his chronometer signal say he is?”

“Isn't he back with you?”

“No. I don't have time to explain, Chach. Just tell me where he is.”

“F.ON.Z. Standby.”

There was a few seconds silence as the youngest Tracy sibling initiated the search as requested. Then, Chachi's alarmed face appeared back on Ralph's chronometer.

“Ralph, I don't get a reading for him at all.”

“He's not in the vicinity?”

“He's not in the vicinity, he's not in Milwaukee, he's not even in Wisconsin!”

Ralph and Richie looked at each other as their brother confirmed Lori Beth's suspicion. Now they had two brothers missing. Still, at least this time they would have a means of tracing them. However, even this hope was shattered at Chachi's next words.

“I've widened the search to cover the whole world. Ralph, there's no signal from the Fonz's chronometer at all. What's going on down there? Where's the Fonz?”

By now, the four had reached the car. Tom held the rear door open and Lori Beth stepped elegantly into the machine, followed closely by Richie and Ralph. Tom took his place behind the wheel and started the car.

“Chach, I need to speak to Dad. Put me through to base.”

“What about the Fonz and Potsie? Where are they?” Chachi's voice rose in alarm at his brother's evasions.

“Chach, we don't have time for this. I need to talk to Dad now. Stay on the line and listen in but for pete's sake put me through!”

Chachi's jaw set mulishly and Ralph saw the rebellion in his brother's eyes at his curt tone, but thankfully, Ralph nodded tightly and silently made the connection. After a delay of some seconds, Howard's face replaced that of Chachi in the chronometer.

“Ralph, what the devil’s going on there? Where are Potsie and Fonzie?”

Taking a deep breath, Ralph recounted the night’s events to his father. As his tale progressed and Ralph covered the encounter with Potsie, his father’s expression grew more and more grim. When he admitted that the World Police had been unable to find either Mestari, Potsie or Fonzie, could hold back his agitation no longer.

“Gone! Gone where? Chachi!”

“Yeah, Dad?”

“There’s no trace of Fonzie’s chronometer?”

“No, Dad, he seems to have just vanished.”

“He can’t have vanished! Wherever he is, he’s with his brother. He’s our only trace to Potsie and we can’t fail them. I want you to keep that trace for Fonzie going around the clock understood? He’s got to appear somewhere!”

“Okay, Dad, I understand.”

“Dad?”

“Yes, Ralph?”

“The World Police believe Mestari may be hiding in Finland.”

“Finland?” Howard’s face changed instantly, a sudden sparkle of hope appearing in his eyes. “What makes them think so?”

Ralph completed his telling of the night’s events, carefully detailing the nuances of the final exchange with Lieutenant Svenson.

“And you think he was serious?”

“Yeah, Dad. I’m sure he was trying to help. I trust him.”

“I hope you're right, Ralph. His guesses about Potsie's identity make a breach of International Rescue's security almost a certainty if you're wrong. For now, we're just going to have to trust him. Our priority at the moment is finding Potsie, Fonzie and Fonziebird One.” Howard activated the internal house telecom that would allow him to communicate with the scientist in his lab. “Al.”

“Yes, Mr Tracy?”

Those in the cadillac exchanged puzzled looks, wondering what had sparked the change in Howard’s demeanor.

“Those medical trials twenty years ago. Where did you say they were held?”

“Australia, Milwaukee, Wisconsin and Finland, Mr Tracy.”

“Finland! And the scientist who invented the drug.”

“Ian Master, Mr Tracy.”

“Yes, Ian Master. He was an Australian, you said?”

“Yes, sir.”

“He wasn't educated in Britain by any chance was he, Al?”

“Well, I couldn't be sure, Mr Tracy, not without checking.”

“Do that would you, Al? Find out everything you can about him. Particularly everything you can about any links he had with Finland and any details about his present whereabouts.”

“Right away, Mr Tracy.”

“Ralph?”

“Yeah, Dad?”

“Where are you now?”

“We're leaving Milwaukee and driving back to my apartment, Mr Tracy.” Lori Beth answered before Ralph could reply. “I think we should visit Finland.”

“Not without me, you don't.”

“Dad?”

“Ralph, Richard, bring Fonziebird Two home as fast as you can. By the time you get here, I’m hoping either Al or our agents in Canada should have come up with something more concrete for us to go back with.”

“But, Dad, Potsie and Fonzie need help now!” Richie looked mutinous at the delay.

“That's an order, Richard! I know Potsie and Fonzie need help but the two of you can't take on Mestari and his hoods by yourselves.”

“They won't be alone, Mr Tracy.”

“Thanks, Lori Beth – your help'll be much appreciated. However, you'll still return to base first.” Howard's voice rose as Richie again started to object. “Ralph's still not fully fit to fly Fonziebird Two. Knowing him, I guess he did some flying on the way over there.” Ralph coloured as his father's guess hit home. “So now he's already tired and once we've got Potsie and Fonzie back, there'll be Fonziebird One to bring home as well. We can't guarantee that either Potsie or Fonzie are going to be fit to fly when we reach them. With Ralph already tired, it's out of the question for him to fly all the way home and good as he is, I'm sure even Richard would admit he couldn't fly both craft at the same time.”

The silence in the car confirmed that the logic was irrefutable.

“Chachi?”

“Yes, sir.”

“I want you to concentrate on the World Army channels. Let me know about anything and everything that emanates from or mentions Finland, Mestari or anything else that may be relevant. Understood?”

“Sure, Dad.”

“I also want you to keep a track of all of our signals for as long as this goes on, Lori Beth and Tom included. I've lost contact with two of my sons already. I'm losing track of no-one else.”

“F.O.N.Z.”

The communication links were cut and each turned to their allotted task.