Taking the Chequered Flag by Pam Harvey Page A

groaned, turning and rushing into the monstrous concrete cave. ‘Guys!’ he yelled, ‘they’re coming!’
    E.D. heard Angus’ faint cry from the depths of the tunnel.
    ‘I’ll be back in a tick,’ he said to the girls. He turned and ran back to the opening.
    ‘I heard bikes,’ Angus said, pointing at some dust clouds that were getting closer.
    ‘God, you’re right,’ E.D. said, running back to the lever on the wall and pulling on it. Angus followed.
    ‘What about the others?’ Angus yelled, pointing at the wall, which was now slowly descending.
    ‘We’ll come back in a minute. C’mon!’ E.D. started sprinting for the exit.
    ‘But Hannah and Gabby are trapped! What if these dudes decide to go in?’
    ‘We ring the police. But they might not go in. Hurry!’
    They ran outside. E.D. swung left, heading for a run-down office.
    ‘Now what?’ Angus gasped, turning to look along the road. The motorbikes were gettingcloser. He had his phone out but Gabby wasn’t answering. Maybe there was no reception inside the building.
    E.D. picked up an old cushion and pushed it against the window. The glass shattered. He punched away the remaining pieces, tossed the cushion aside and clambered into the office.
    ‘You coming?’ he called. Angus followed him into the dingy room. It stank. They crouched down beneath the window and waited. The noise of the bikes gradually increased. Carefully, E.D. raised his eyes to the level of the window and peered out.
    ‘What?’ Angus hissed.
    ‘It’s the same two guys who were unpacking boxes at Proctor’s,’ E.D. muttered, watching as the two bikies cruised into the main opening.
    ‘And it’s the same two guys that I met in the laneway—Teagan and Jack’s Uncle Peter and his mate.’
    E.D. swore softly.
    ‘What?’
    ‘They’re heading for the back wall.’
    Angus groaned. ‘Now what?’
    ‘Before this gets out of hand, it’s time to ring the cops,’ E.D. said.

Chapter 13
Into the Tunnel
Monday, 17 January
    ‘Hannah, the big door’s closing!’ Gabby shrieked, turning at the sound of the enormous cement wall slowly sliding back down. By the time she’d raced back it had fully closed. ‘E.D.! Angus! Let us out!’
    ‘It’s okay, Gabby,’ Hannah said, joining her a few seconds later. She hoped her voice was calmer than she felt. ‘They know we’re in here. They would have closed it for a reason. They’ll be back in a minute.’
    ‘If it was them who closed it.’ Hannah watched Gabby punching the keys on her mobile.
    ‘I can’t reach them on my phone.’ Gabby banged the phone against her leg. ‘There’s no signal down here.’
    Together they searched the walls and surrounding area for some sort of device that would open the wall. All they found was a light switch.
    ‘Well, at least we can see now,’ said Gabby, gazing around the dimly lit area.
    ‘This is hopeless,’ Hannah said. ‘I think we should head back to that room. Sit it out. The police will arrive; I’m sure E.D. and Angus will ring them.’
    Gabby followed Hannah back into the room. Hannah picked up the box E.D. had opened and pulled out a plastic bag.
    ‘I read about these in Electronics Weekly. NASA made the first ones. Someone in Japan bought the patent. They are really expensive.’
    ‘Hannah, you really ought to read some better magazines,’ Gabby said, shaking her head at her friend. ‘How about I loan you some of my fashion mags?’
    Hannah looked up to see whether Gabby was joking. She wasn’t. Hannah waved a hand impatiently. ‘But don’t you see, Gab? People in Australia don’t have this type of system yet. It’s too advanced and they haven’t been put on the open market.’ She looked around at the dusty shelves lined with boxes.
    Gabby shivered. ‘Han, that means we’re in big trouble. If those guys turn up and we’re trapped in here, they aren’t going to like it.’ She tried her phone again. ‘No signal! And this was expensive, too. I’ll have to get