only have one Communicator,’ he said.
‘Er … that’s OK,’ said Beth, mystified. ‘I guess.’ She thought for a moment. ‘What tariff is that thing on?’ she asked.
‘It isn’t on any tariff,’ said Mr Lazarus. ‘Calls are free.’
‘Yeah? Wow, where can I get one?’
‘Never mind that,’ Kip told her. ‘We need to concentrate. And we’re wasting time. We have to go after Rose.’
‘Absolutely,’ said Mr Lazarus, lifting a gloved hand to point at the ceiling. ‘Time is of the essence.’ He looked through the hatch at the screen. Rose’s boat was just about to come ashore on a deserted stretch of beach. ‘If we can get you in right beside her, you may be able to grab her and come straight back with her . But, of course, what we can never allow for in these films are the edits.’
‘What do you mean?’ asked Beth.
‘A film jumps along in time because of all the edits,’ said Mr Lazarus. ‘Rose can be in one place one moment and the very next, she could be ten miles away in a different location entirely. But when you’re in the film, everything runs in real time, so it’s possible, you might have a little catching up to do.’
‘Oh, that’s great,’ said Kip. ‘You never mentioned this before.’
‘I didn’t think I needed to. But think of all the cuts and dissolves and flashbacks there are in a modern film. You’d go crazy trying to deal with that! The Lazarus Enigma makes everything run just as it does in real life. But if you’re unlucky and come in just as a cut takes place, your quarry could be a hundred miles away, two years later.’
‘That would be a disaster,’ said Kip.
‘Hopefully it won’t come to that. Anyway, enough talk. We’d better stop wasting time and get you onto Terror Island.’ Mr Lazarus reached in his pocket and pulled out the Retriever.
‘What’s that thing?’ asked Beth.
‘The piece of equipment that will bring you back safe and sound,’ said Mr Lazarus. ‘But I must warn you. When the button is pressed, you must all be hanging tightly onto each other. If one person breaks contact , they’ll be left behind.’ He handed the device to Kip, who slung it around his neck and slipped it safely beneath his T-shirt.
‘OK, let’s do this,’ he said. He looked at Beth. ‘It’s not too late to change your mind,’ he told her.
‘No way,’ said Beth. ‘I’m going with you. What kind of a girlfriend would I be if I left you to it?’
‘There you go again,’ said Kip. ‘Girlfriend.’
‘It’s just an expression,’ Beth assured him.
‘Very well,’ said Mr Lazarus. ‘We’re all ready. Step up onto the platform.’
Kip climbed on and Beth came to stand beside him. They found that standing face to face, they could just about manage it. Mr Lazarus made a final check on the equipment. ‘Hold on tight to each other,’ he warned them and they held hands. ‘Here we go,’ he said; and he put a foot onto the side of the platform. ‘Good luck,’ he added and pushed it forward into the light.
‘Will it hurt?’ asked Beth anxiously.
‘Not really,’ said Kip. ‘It just feels a little weir—’
And then the light was blazing in his eyes and he realised he had no need to tell her what it felt like because that freaky melting feeling was coming over him again and he was falling, falling into a blinding white light.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
KIP’S FEET THUDDED onto sand and he stood for a moment, letting his breathing settle back to normal. He could still feel other hands clutched in both of his and when he opened his eyes, there was Beth. She was staring around as though she could hardly believe what had happened.
‘Oh my God!’ whispered Beth. ‘We’re here. We’re really here!’
And it
was
amazing. Even in the midst of all his worries about Rose, Kip had to take a moment to just marvel at his surroundings, which were perfect in every detail. He was standing on a long stretch of beach. To his left, the ocean rushed back
‘Er … that’s OK,’ said Beth, mystified. ‘I guess.’ She thought for a moment. ‘What tariff is that thing on?’ she asked.
‘It isn’t on any tariff,’ said Mr Lazarus. ‘Calls are free.’
‘Yeah? Wow, where can I get one?’
‘Never mind that,’ Kip told her. ‘We need to concentrate. And we’re wasting time. We have to go after Rose.’
‘Absolutely,’ said Mr Lazarus, lifting a gloved hand to point at the ceiling. ‘Time is of the essence.’ He looked through the hatch at the screen. Rose’s boat was just about to come ashore on a deserted stretch of beach. ‘If we can get you in right beside her, you may be able to grab her and come straight back with her . But, of course, what we can never allow for in these films are the edits.’
‘What do you mean?’ asked Beth.
‘A film jumps along in time because of all the edits,’ said Mr Lazarus. ‘Rose can be in one place one moment and the very next, she could be ten miles away in a different location entirely. But when you’re in the film, everything runs in real time, so it’s possible, you might have a little catching up to do.’
‘Oh, that’s great,’ said Kip. ‘You never mentioned this before.’
‘I didn’t think I needed to. But think of all the cuts and dissolves and flashbacks there are in a modern film. You’d go crazy trying to deal with that! The Lazarus Enigma makes everything run just as it does in real life. But if you’re unlucky and come in just as a cut takes place, your quarry could be a hundred miles away, two years later.’
‘That would be a disaster,’ said Kip.
‘Hopefully it won’t come to that. Anyway, enough talk. We’d better stop wasting time and get you onto Terror Island.’ Mr Lazarus reached in his pocket and pulled out the Retriever.
‘What’s that thing?’ asked Beth.
‘The piece of equipment that will bring you back safe and sound,’ said Mr Lazarus. ‘But I must warn you. When the button is pressed, you must all be hanging tightly onto each other. If one person breaks contact , they’ll be left behind.’ He handed the device to Kip, who slung it around his neck and slipped it safely beneath his T-shirt.
‘OK, let’s do this,’ he said. He looked at Beth. ‘It’s not too late to change your mind,’ he told her.
‘No way,’ said Beth. ‘I’m going with you. What kind of a girlfriend would I be if I left you to it?’
‘There you go again,’ said Kip. ‘Girlfriend.’
‘It’s just an expression,’ Beth assured him.
‘Very well,’ said Mr Lazarus. ‘We’re all ready. Step up onto the platform.’
Kip climbed on and Beth came to stand beside him. They found that standing face to face, they could just about manage it. Mr Lazarus made a final check on the equipment. ‘Hold on tight to each other,’ he warned them and they held hands. ‘Here we go,’ he said; and he put a foot onto the side of the platform. ‘Good luck,’ he added and pushed it forward into the light.
‘Will it hurt?’ asked Beth anxiously.
‘Not really,’ said Kip. ‘It just feels a little weir—’
And then the light was blazing in his eyes and he realised he had no need to tell her what it felt like because that freaky melting feeling was coming over him again and he was falling, falling into a blinding white light.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
KIP’S FEET THUDDED onto sand and he stood for a moment, letting his breathing settle back to normal. He could still feel other hands clutched in both of his and when he opened his eyes, there was Beth. She was staring around as though she could hardly believe what had happened.
‘Oh my God!’ whispered Beth. ‘We’re here. We’re really here!’
And it
was
amazing. Even in the midst of all his worries about Rose, Kip had to take a moment to just marvel at his surroundings, which were perfect in every detail. He was standing on a long stretch of beach. To his left, the ocean rushed back
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