Agent 21: Codebreaker: Book 3 by Chris Ryan

of turbulence. But the nurses looked as scared as the patients. Nobody knew what was going on. They just knew it was serious.
    Fraser looked to his right. The area around the lift doors was congested – three hospital beds, clattering against each other like dodgem cars, pushed by hospital porters whose faces were sweating and whose eyes were slightly wild.
    The crying continued. The air seemed stuffy. Fraser thought about his own son, no doubt just setting off for school.
    He looked at his right hand and noticed it was shaking.
    0756hrs
    The wailing of the children had reached the reception area of the ground floor. Along with a little boy whose leg was in a cast, Fraser had emerged from the lift to a scene of chaos. He quickly counted up the number of beds down here. Forty-three. There was no room for any more. They were going to have to let the patients out onto the hospital forecourt. Fraser’s mouth went dry. If he joined the children outside the hospital, where it was safe, would it be noticed? Would it be a dereliction of duty?
    One of the anti-terrorist officers pushed past him. He was talking into his lapel. ‘This is team Alpha Five. We’ve reached saturation point at the assembly area. We’ll start bringing them out in sixty, six zero, seconds.’
    Fraser looked towards the glass frontage. The crowd outside could see what was happening. It had tripled in size – maybe forty people now. If the bomber was watching, he or she would know something was going on.
    He started edging through the sea of hospital beds and drip stands towards the exit.
    ‘Willis!’ A voice barked over the crying and the clattering. Fraser spun round. The officer in the leather jacket was beckoning to him, with a steely glint in his eye. ‘Going somewhere?’ he demanded.
    Fraser shook his head.
    ‘We’re about to open up. It’s going to get noisy outside. Emergency vehicles, bomb disposal.’ He looked towards the ceiling. ‘I need you on the upper floors, make sure everyone’s evacuated. We’ve got a kid in the isolation ward on the fifth floor.’
    ‘Ruby MacGregor.’
    ‘Whatever. Mother won’t leave her. Nor will the doctor. I’ve put a call out for a protective suit. Just so you know.’
    Fraser swallowed hard. ‘But if the bomber sees—’ he started to say.
    ‘We can only keep this cover for so long,’ the officer interrupted.
    ‘But what if he . . . what if he detonates ?’
    The officer blinked at him. ‘Then we’ll go to our graves knowing we did our best to save some sick kids from a sick terrorist. Right?’
    Fraser swallowed hard again. His eyes flickered towards the exit, and then towards the lift. ‘Right,’ he said.
    0757hrs
    The CR-V containing Zak, Gabs and Raf approached the hospital at a steady speed. All the way here, Raf had been burning up the roads, running red lights, cutting up angry commuters, holding the steering wheel lightly but with a look of intense concentration on his face and beads of sweat on his forehead.
    ‘What’s happening?’ Zak had demanded as soon as they’d sped off. Raf had spoken to Michael for no more than thirty seconds, and had been silent as he hit the accelerator. Zak had appealed to Gabs, who still hadn’t regained her composure. ‘What’s happening ?’
    ‘Evacuation,’ she’d said curtly. ‘It’s the only thing they can do.’ She’d cursed under her breath. ‘What sort of monster targets a children’s hospital?’
    It was a good question, but it wasn’t the only one in Zak’s sickened mind. What sort of monster targets a children’s hospital, and advertises it using some coded message?
    ‘When we get there,’ Raf had said finally, ‘no heroics, OK?’
    ‘What do you mean?’
    ‘The guys evacuating the building will be professionals. Same goes for whoever’s locating the device. They won’t thank you for getting in their way.’
    ‘What about you two?’ Zak had demanded.
    Raf and Gabs exchanged a glance. ‘We’re older, sweetie,’