Juggernaut

‘Jumped by a cripple.’

Amanda and Jabril had been stacking gold. They hefted boxes from the vault shelves and piled them on the flagstone floor of the temple, ready to be driven to the choppers.

Amanda had found a polymer trunk hidden at the back of the vault. Army green. Four foot long. She dragged it from behind a stack of boxes.

‘Give that to me,’ said Jabril

‘What is it?’

She tugged at the padlock.

‘Don’t touch it.’

He pulled her away from the case. They fought. They threw each other against shelves. Boxes fell, split and spilled gold.

Jabril punched Amanda in the face. She thumped him in the gut and kicked him to the floor. She stood over him, knife in hand.

Jabril lay doubled up.

‘Get up,’ said Amanda. ‘Get up, you fuck.’

Jabril rolled on his back. He had removed his prosthetic hook and extracted the grenade hidden inside. He gripped the ring between clenched teeth and pulled the pin. He held up the little green cylinder like it was a crucifix warding off a vampire. Stand-off.

‘Let’s just chill the fuck out, shall we?’ said Amanda.

Jabril scrambled to his feet.

‘Keep back.’

Jabril pulled the vault door closed, careful not to lose grip on the grenade.

‘Give me your knife.’

‘Fuck you,’ said Amanda.

He held up the grenade.

‘Really want to fight?’

Amanda reluctantly dropped her knife and kicked it towards Jabril.

The vault door had an internal handle in case a guard got shut inside. Jabril awkwardly tucked the grenade in his left armpit while he jammed the knife through the ring-latch, wedging the handle shut.

They sat facing each other. Jabril nursed his bruised belly. Amanda dabbed her nose.

‘Give me the case,’ said Jabril.

‘Kiss my ass.’

Jabril’s radio lay smashed in the corner of the vault. Amanda’s TASC bundle lay on the plate floor. He snagged it with his foot and drew it close.

He held the grenade between his knees. He attached the earpiece and pressed transmit.

‘Lucy? Lucy can you hear me?’

Lucy tugged on the vault door. Locked. Wedged shut from inside.

Faint voice from the earpiece hanging loose at her chest. Jabril.

‘Lucy? Lucy can you hear me?’

Hiss and feedback. The radio signal degraded by the steel hull of the cash truck.

She hooked the receiver to her earlobe.

‘What the fuck is going on?’

‘I didn’t want this to happen.’

‘Where’s Mandy? Is she in there?’

‘I need to talk to you.’

‘Open the fucking door, Jabril.’

‘You need to listen.’

Lucy stood on the rear step-plate of the truck and tried to wrench the door open.

‘Let me talk to Mandy.’

Brief pause. Amanda’s voice:

‘Hey, babe.’

‘Are you all right?’

‘He’s got a grenade.’

‘What does he want?’

‘No idea. You better talk to him.’

Brief rustle as the radio was handed back to Jabril.

‘Look,’ said Lucy. ‘I don’t know what you want but I’m sure we can work it through. Just come on out. We can talk.’

‘Your friend. The oriental.’

‘His name is Huang.’

‘You must kill him. Kill him and burn the body.’

Voss had half-carried the injured man up the processional avenue to the cavernous temple interior and sat him against one of the massive granite columns that supported the roof.

Lucy crouched next to Huang and checked him out. His eyes were closed. He appeared to be sleeping. She walked out of earshot.

‘What the hell are you talking about?’

‘This valley is home to a pathogen so lethal, so virulent, it could wipe out entire cities. That’s why I came back. To stamp out every last vestige of this virus. Your friend is infected. There is no treatment, no cure. He will slide slowly into dementia, then turn on you. He will attack. He will be driven by a feverish desire to bite, to penetrate, to invade. You’ve seen those soldiers out there. Those men used to be my friends. Now they are monsters. Better for Huang if he dies before the transformation is complete. Let him say his goodbyes then be at peace.’

‘I’ll risk it.’