"Not half." Birch grabbed the woman's fallen gun, and half-dragged Ben towards the stairs. "Come on, we're leaving."
The teenager seemed to be stunned after his brush with death, but he recovered quickly. "She was going to shoot me!" he said, sounding hurt.
"Of course she bloody was," said Birch. "Come on, up the stairs with you." He waited until they got moving, then turned and headed for the front office. "Bernie, rearguard action. Alice is here, we've got to hold this lot off until the ship's ready to go."
There were upwards of a dozen attackers outside, crouching in the road with their weapons levelled. Several were helping the wounded away while the rest covered the building, but Birch knew it was only a matter of time before they attacked again. "Come on," he told Bernie, "fall back to the stairs."
The big robot backed up, still scanning the enemy, and Birch used her for cover. Once they were through the inner door he saw the enemy advancing, and he turned and ran up the stairs, his legs protesting as he took the steps two at a time.
The fighter was sitting on the roof, with Alice already at the controls. Ben was peering through the hatch, and as Birch appeared on the rooftop, the teenager beckoned. "Run!" shouted Ben.
"I'd like so see you run at my age," puffed Birch, as he made his way across the roof. To add to the fun, a barrage of shots rained down from the apartment buildings above.
He reached the ladder and climbed quickly, pausing at the top to look back towards the stairwell. Bernie was just emerging, and as she stepped onto the roof she slammed the rusty old door and twisted the handle round several times, destroying the mechanism. Then she strolled towards the ship, while the door shook with blows from the other side.
Birch took the last few rungs, passing his crossbow to Ben. The teenager laid it on the deck and raised his own bow, aiming it at the door.
Bernie reached the ladder, just as the door burst open and the enemy poured out. Three of them crouched, levelling their weapons, firing repeatedly at the robot. The fourth aimed his gun directly at Ben.
Chack!
The crossbow went off, and the shooter crumpled on the roof. At the same time, Bernie took hold of the ladder, and Dave shouted out to Alice, letting her know they were set.
The ship took off with a roar from the thrusters, the enemy shooting at them with everything they had. Bernie dangled from the ladder, shots all around, but then they were clear and the firing stopped.
Several of the enemy ran to their fallen comrade, and Dave saw the expression on Ben's face as the ship flew further and further from the rooftop battle. He reached out and squeezed Ben's shoulder, trying to reassure him. "You did well, son."
"That guy … do you think he's dead?"
"Maybe, but I doubt it." Birch sighed. "Look, it was him or you. Personally, I'm glad it was him."
They flew on in silence, and Dave wondered what they were going to find when he finally came face to face with Anita Darting.
Chapter 26
Harriet ran along the street towards the warehouse, using parked cars for cover. She'd yet to see any sign of the enemy, but she wasn't about to stick her neck out. Once she was opposite the building, she stood behind a car and raised her head slowly for a good look.
The building was indeed a warehouse, and the faded sign above the door identified it as the business premises of one Mike Dantriss, handyman and general repairs. Originally, though, it must have been a shopping mall, long since converted from its original use. Some of the windows still had faded advertising for the long-since-departed stores.
Harriet turned and beckoned to the others. They arrived out of breath, and while they were recovering Harriet sought out Worthy. "Can you walk past the front and scan the place?"
"I am a butler, madam. I am not fitted with espionage equipment."
"Just walk by and check the place out. Try not to draw attention to yourself."
Worthy looked down at his gleaming silver body, which shone like burnished steel in the morning sunshine. "If you say so," he murmured doubtfully.
"I'll go with you," said Moira. She passed her crossbow to her husband, and before anyone could stop her she stepped into the road with the robot. The pair of them crossed the street, and casually walked past the warehouse. It was only a modest building, with maybe room for a dozen specialty shops in its day. Now the brick facade was crumbling, and there were no lights behind the glass doors. Harriet wondered whether it was Darting's only base, or whether the woman had more places around the city. No, this was her nephew's business, and Darting hadn't been in Chirless long enough to establish a whole network of hideouts. This had to be the one.
Harriet watched Moira and the robot walking casually past the mall's entrance, then swore as someone appeared behind the glass doors. The doors parted, and a man in a black T-shirt and old jeans emerged, leaning on the door frame to watch.
Moira didn't falter, she just kept walking, chatting to her robot all the while. The man kept an eye on them but didn't leave the doorway, and Harriet strained her eyes to stare into the darkened interior of the mall, trying to spot more of the enemy.
Chack!
A crossbow went off right beside her, making her jump. She turned to see Flint reloading, and when she glanced back at the mall, looking for the enemy, she saw the man lying on the ground.
"Nice shot," murmured Caldavir.
"What happened to waiting for my signal?" demanded Harriet.
Flint shrugged. "I had a shot and I took it."
"He might have raised the alarm!"
"He's not going to raise anything until he wakes up," remarked Flint.
Harriet realised there
