Big Brother (3 page)

A door on the side of the campervan slid open as EJ quickly climbed down the tree.

‘I see you have found IJ12's kookaburra-cam,' said A1, the head of
SHINE
, standing in the open door. ‘What do you think?'

‘Very lifelike,' said EJ as she went up the steps and through the door. She looked around the inside of the campervan. She'd always wanted to go on a holiday in one but her parents had said no because her mum preferred her toilets to stay in one spot. The campervan seemed a lot bigger inside than it looked from the outside. There was a long centre
section with three black chairs along a long narrow bench. On one wall was a map of the world and on the other was a bank of TV screens, all flashing different images. There were no windows. At the end of the campervan was a cubicle, a toilet EJ guessed, and a small kitchen. In the kitchen was a microwave oven set into the wall and a glass-door fridge with a keypad to one side next to a water dispenser. EJ could see that the fridge was stocked with yellow tubs like lunchboxes and wondered what was inside them.

‘Welcome to
SHINE
MOVE 1,' said A1. ‘That stands for Mobile Operations Vehicle in Emergency Unit 1.'

‘What's the emergency?' asked EJ. ‘Why can't we use the normal Operations Room?'

‘It's too risky at the moment,' explained A1. ‘Something very worrying has happened, something that could jeopardise the entire
SHINE
Agency. We have temporarily relocated to MOVEs while we give
HQ
a thorough security check. While that's
happening, I am running things from this mobile unit. We are constantly moving, making it difficult for anyone to pin down our location.'

‘What has happened?' asked EJ. This was the most serious she had ever seen A1.

‘Something, someone,' said A1 gravely, ‘has breached
SHINE
security.'

EJ's mouth went dry.
How did A1 find out so quickly?
she wondered.

‘A1, I didn't know Bob was listening. I'm not even sure he does know anything … Even if he did it couldn't possibly cause so much trouble, could it?'

‘EJ12,' said A1, ‘what are you talking about?'

‘I think my brother, Bob …' began EJ.

‘No, no, it's nothing to do with you,' interrupted A1. ‘For the last couple of days I have suspected that
SHADOW
has had access to some top-level agency information, hence our relocation to the MOVEs. This message, intercepted this morning, confirms my suspicions.'

‘So there are new horse CHARMs,' said EJ,
reminded of the message.

‘Yes,' confirmed A1. ‘And I think the cat part of the message means C-A-T, one of our Centres for Animal Training. We have a number of them, each training different types of animal agents for mission work.' She turned to the map on the wall. ‘Activate live mapping,' she commanded. ‘Show CATs.' The large map on the wall lit up with yellow globes flashing in different locations. ‘Show CAT videos,' instructed A1. Video of dolphins, tigers, puppies, horses, birds and rabbits now appeared on the screen bank.

‘Each flashing light shows the location of a CAT,' explained A1. ‘As you can see from the videos, we have different centres for different kinds of work. We even have agents such as HT12 working with rabbits. They are excellent diggers! Our marine unit is, obviously, located under the water, off a small island in the Pacific and our
SHINE
Wildlife Refuges are over in Africa. You know that one of course, from your outstanding mission there.'

EJ blushed with pride.

‘Now,' said A1, turning back to look at the map. ‘As you can see, we also have a number of CATs locally. Our cat CAT is here, the dog CAT here and our horse CAT is here. It is at the horse centre that we think there might be a security leak. The only agents outside the Science and Invention Division who knew about the new horse care CHARMs were the head trainers at the horse CAT because they helped test them but even they don't know everything about them. Still, whoever sent that message must have been either at our horse CAT or in our Science and Invention Division.'

‘Which is why you have evacuated into MOVE?' EJ understood now. ‘Who at
SHADOW
could be behind the plot to find out our secrets?' wondered EJ. ‘Aren't most of the known
SHADOW
masterminds in
SHINE
detention?'

‘Certainly a lot of them are thanks to you, EJ,' said A1. ‘Caterina Hill and her cousin Amber Tekcor are in one of our detention centres, the same one as
Adriana.' A1 paused for a moment and sighed sadly. EJ knew why. Adriana X was one of
SHADOW
's most brilliant agents but she was also A1's sister.

‘Brothers and sisters can be a real pain, can't they?' said EJ. For once, it was as if she could read A1's mind.

A1 smiled. ‘They can certainly cause a few problems, but Adriana has kept out of trouble lately. In fact, all reports are that she has been on very good behaviour. She's even taken up drawing.'

‘Hmmm,' said EJ suspiciously.

‘My thoughts exactly,' said A1. ‘But whatever Adriana is doing, she certainly isn't at the horse CAT and yet that's where the information is being leaked from. I need you to go there, EJ, and find out what's going on. We are doing a lot of top-secret work with our animal agents at our CATs, work we don't want
SHADOW
to know about.'

‘Are we doing something at the horse CAT?' asked EJ.

‘Yes, EJ,' replied A1. ‘Horses are a very important
part of our search and rescue work. Through a top-secret combination of diet and training, our agent horses are becoming both faster and more agile in even the most difficult conditions.'

‘And the new horse CHARMs help with that?' asked EJ.

‘Exactly.'

‘And the foals?'

‘The work we are doing with the foals is the most important and secret of all,' said A1. ‘These foals are in our FAST program, Foal Agent Speed Training and they are the first specially bred for mission work. They will give us a huge advantage over
SHADOW
. They will be faster, quieter and more highly trained than any other horse agent.'

‘
SHADOW
already suspects something about them,' said EJ. ‘But what about the rest of the message? “No flies on me but plenty at CAT.”'

‘I don't know but I don't like the sound of it,' said A1. ‘
SHADOW
is clearly planning something. We must hurry. Your
SHINE
-issue riding gear is in the
cubicle at the end of the van,' she continued. ‘Please go and change while I prepare your CHARMs.'

EJ went into the cubicle, quickly changed and came out wearing black riding boots, brown jodhpurs and a pink and black shirt with the
SHINE
logo on one sleeve. She also had a standard-issue
SHINE
backpack with a torch and binoculars. A riding helmet, equipped with a
SHINE
spy-talker, a radio device for agents to communicate with each other, had been added. The riding helmet worried EJ.

‘Um, A1,' said EJ. ‘I can't ride. I haven't done horse training and I'm not so …'

‘You'll be fine, EJ,' A1 reassured her. ‘We need you to look like everyone else training at the centre. Now, let's take a look at your CHARMs.'

Laid out on the bench were four silver CHARMs: a rosette, a horseshoe, a brush and a heart with a horse's head engraved on it.

‘Are these the new horse CHARMs?' asked EJ.

‘Yes,' replied A1. ‘You are the first agent outside the Science and Invention Division to see the
finished products. Now, this is rosette-cam,' said A1, picking up the first CHARM. ‘The cameras also have motion sensors so an agent can be alerted when someone enters an area.'

‘I've used something like that before,' said EJ, thinking of her intruder-alert sensor at home.

‘Very good,' continued A1. ‘Simply twist and the rosettes will appear. It's a multi-CHARM and you can use as many rosettes as you need and they won't look out of place on a stable door. If we are right and something is going on at the horse CAT, these might be useful.'

‘The brush is a horse-care CHARM?' guessed EJ.

‘Plus a little more,' said A1. ‘Twist and you have a standard horse body brush but inside is also a powerful scanning device that will allow you to search and collect even the most microscopic foreign object. It can be used on any surface. We have modified it from equipment used by airport security staff. After using the scanning device, you can attach the brush end to your phone to send us the samples for testing.'

‘Okay,' said EJ, impressed. She looked at the next CHARM. ‘So the horseshoe is a horseshoe?'

‘Yes and no again,' answered A1. ‘SJ45 has been working on this one.'

EJ beamed proudly. SJ45 was her mum who, although retired from active missions, continued to do some work for the agency. She was a vet so a lot of it was in animal research.

‘This CHARM produces special horseshoes that will allow our horses to run even faster without risk of slipping even on rocky terrain. SJ45 cleverly based them on mountain goat hooves. The shoes have soft, slightly hollow pads in the centre that act like suction caps when pushed down. They can be put on in seconds and will make our horses more surefooted and safer—and even more useful in our search and rescue operations.'

‘Go head, LP30,' said A1.

‘Five minutes until drop-off, A1,' said LP30 over
the campervan intercom. ‘We can stop for only five seconds, we really need to keep moving to prevent risking detection.'

‘Very good,' replied A1. ‘Okay, EJ, it's time to go. Put this mission lunchbox in your pack, it should keep you going while OM and when the door opens, we will stop for just five seconds.'

‘But where will I be?' asked EJ.

‘We are dropping you just down the road from the horse CAT. Agent GG22, our head horse trainer and one of our most trusted agents, is expecting you but she thinks you are coming for basic horse training. I think it's best if no one knows the real reason you are there.'

EJ gulped. ‘I'm going to ride?'

‘You'll be fine, EJ,' repeated A1. ‘And, until we know more, the less people who know about this mission the better. Now, walk north along the dirt road for one kilometre and you will come to a white gate with a sign that says Glowing Gum Farm. That's the CAT. Walk through and down the long,
winding drive, lined with gum trees and when the road straightens up, you will see large paddocks on either side. On the left is the paddock where the retired horse agents spend the day. Approach the bay, that's dark brown, horse with white socks …'

‘Horses wear socks?' asked EJ.

‘No, when they have a different colour at the bottom of their legs, these sections are called socks.'

Gee whizz, lemonfizz!
thought EJ.
Horse language is almost like a secret code!

‘It's a code you'll soon crack, EJ,' said A1. ‘Now, the bay is called Lucinda. She'll let Agent GG know you are there.'

‘She will?'

‘Oh yes. Lucinda was our best horse agent before she retired. She continues to serve by alerting GG to any new arrival. You'll see. Once Agent GG approaches, proceed with the secret password exchange for agent identity confirmation,' said A1. ‘We can't be too careful at the moment.'

A1 handed EJ a card.

‘Memorise this quickly. It has a built-in Eco-Deco facility and will begin to decompose in thirty seconds.'

EJ looked at the words on the card. She smiled but then concentrated, committing them to memory. She was repeating them in her head as the card began to steam and feel warm in EJ's hand. Then there was a belch and in seconds there were just a few flecks of rather smelly dust on her hand. She blew them away.