Free Death Run by Jack Higgins Page A

both sides of the hall long windows reached almost to the ground. It was cloudy outside and he could definitely hear thunder. Summer was over and autumn was rolling in.
    â€œRight, now we’re going to split up into pairs and take it in turns to wash elephants,” Miss Whitfield said.
    â€œGemma?” Rich asked at once.
    â€œWhy not. Got your elephant?”
    â€œNever go anywhere without it,” Rich told her. “Keep it in my trunk.”
    â€œOh, ho ho.”
    They jumped off the stage. The thunder was louder now. It sounded very close.
    â€œStorm coming,” Gemma said as the sound rumbled on.
    Everyone had spread out in the hall, leaving him and Gemma closest to the stage, opposite the emergency exit. Rich looked out through the glass of the doors again as the sound got even closer. There was another sound mixed in with it too. It was like gunfire. He smiled to himself – what a stupid idea.
    There was someone running – heading straight for the doors. Silhouetted against the darkening sky outside. A woman. She was almost at the doors, but she showed no sign of slowing down.
    â€œLook out!” Gemma shouted, seeing her too.
    It did no good. The woman hit the double doors at full tilt, bursting them open. One door flew right round and hit the wall behind so hard the glass shattered. Everyone turned to look.
    The woman crashed to the floor, one hand stretched out – clenched in a fist. But Rich barely noticed. He was staring at her face where it was turned against the floor, at the long auburn hair spread out over her back.
    The back of the pale grey coat she was wearing was spattered with blood.
    â€œShe’s been shot!”
    The woman’s fingers relaxed and opened. Something dropped from them, falling and rolling across the hall. It bounced across the floor towards Rich, its facets catching the light like glass.
    Nothing else would be shaped like that.
    Nothing else would sparkle like that.
    It could only be a huge diamond.
    â€œOh, good God,” Miss Whitfield shrieked. “Careful now, everyone. Let me see if I can get some help. First aid.”
    â€œWho is she?” someone else asked.
    Miss Whitfield shifted from one foot to the other. “I shall have to phone for an ambulance from the school office. This is terrible… how did this…” Panic seeped into the teacher’s voice.
    â€œMaybe she’s got a mobile,” Rich said. “We can call for help.” He knelt beside the woman and was relieved to see she was still breathing. Rich reached into the pocket of her coat. There was no phone, at least not in that pocket. But he pulled out something else – something sharp and hard. A handfulof much smaller diamonds that glittered and shone.
    â€œWhat’s going on?” Rich wondered out loud.
    He was aware of Gemma beside him holding the large diamond – the size and shape of a half-lemon. Miss Whitfield leaned over, her face white. The other children clustered behind her – not wanting to see, but unable to look away.
    Rich’s mind was racing as he stood up. He took the diamond from Gemma and turned it over in his hand. “If she’s been shot, that was gunfire. Which means someone must…”
    But he didn’t get any further. At that moment, all round the room, the windows exploded into sharp flying fragments of glass. Figures in black combat clothes leaped through and crashed into the hall, machine guns ready and aimed right at Rich and the others.

9
    The sound of breaking glass was loud even up in the maths room. Jade leaped to her feet.
    â€œWhat was that?” Mr Argent said.
    â€œSomeone dropped something,” Mike suggested.
    â€œPeople doing drama, in the hall,” Rupam said. “They were mucking about with toy guns just now. I heard them.”
    â€œThat was thunder,” said Mike.
    â€œI’ll go and see,” Jade decided.
    â€œI really don’t think