Chapters (88)
- Cover
- Title Page
- Dear Reader …
- Also by Robert Muchamore
- PART ONE
- Walter J Freeman Adolescent Mental Health Unit – East Grinstead, UK
- ONE
- TWO
- THREE
- FOUR
- FIVE
- SIX
- SEVEN
- EIGHT
- NINE
- TEN
- ELEVEN
- PART TWO
- TWELVE
- THIRTEEN
- FOURTEEN
- FIFTEEN
- SIXTEEN
- SEVENTEEN
- EIGHTEEN
- NINETEEN
- TWENTY
- TWENTY-ONE
- TWENTY-TWO
- TWENTY-THREE
- TWENTY-FOUR
- TWENTY-FIVE
- TWENTY-SIX
- TWENTY-SEVEN
- TWENTY-EIGHT
- TWENTY-NINE
- THIRTY
- THIRTY-ONE
- THIRTY-TWO
- THIRTY-THREE
- THIRTY-FOUR
- THIRTY-FIVE
- THIRTY-SIX
- THIRTY-SEVEN
- THIRTY-EIGHT
- PART THREE
- Walter J. Freeman Adolescent Mental Health Unit – East Grinstead, UK
- THIRTY-NINE
- FORTY
- FORTY-ONE
- FORTY-TWO
- FORTY-THREE
- FORTY-FOUR
- FORTY-FIVE
- FORTY-SIX
- FORTY-SEVEN
- FORTY-EIGHT
- FORTY-NINE
- FIFTY
- FIFTY-ONE
- FIFTY-TWO
- FIFTY-THREE
- FIFTY-FOUR
- PART FOUR
- FIFTY-FIVE
- FIFTY-SIX
- FIFTY-SEVEN
- FIFTY-EIGHT
- FIFTY-NINE
- SIXTY
- SIXTY-ONE
- SIXTY-TWO
- SIXTY-THREE
- SIXTY-FOUR
- SIXTY-FIVE
- SIXTY-SIX
- SIXTY-SEVEN
- SIXTY-EIGHT
- SIXTY-NINE
- SEVENTY
- SEVENTY-ONE
- SEVENTY-TWO
- SEVENTY-THREE
- EPILOGUE
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- Have you read KILLER T?
- 1 SLASHED RUBBER
- 2 NOT HARRY POTTER
Most of Akure’s population were curious, but few could afford Arctic Zoo’s entry fee. Penguins died of heat stroke, muskox caught bovine malaria and when the food budget ran low, underfed white tigers scoffed a couple of zookeepers.
The only people who did well out of Arctic Zoo were General Edochie’s son-in-law, who embezzled several million dollars from the construction budget, and the Danish architect, who won a World Architecture Association gold medal for the zoo’s ‘outstanding and innovative’ design.
‘How come there are still animals here?’ Julius asked.
‘Not many job opportunities for out-of-work zookeepers, so a few staff stuck around after the state stopped paying their salaries,’ Duke explained, as he started a brisk walk, occasionally using his board to swipe a big plant out of the way. ‘The original animals are dead or on their last legs, but leopards breed easily and there are plenty of fools who’ll buy a big furry cat as a pet. They also take animals into schools or kids’ parties and locals donate food or money, because the zookeepers are all that’s stopping this land from turning into a giant squatter camp.’
‘It’s close to the city centre,’ Julius said thoughtfully. ‘Some rich property developer must buy it eventually.’
‘Which one?’ Duke teased. ‘A shopping mall for your uncle, or a new church for your mother?’
‘That’s not even a joke …’ Julius sighed, but his mood brightened as the boys reached a fork in the path.
A vista had opened over an empty penguin pool, more than eighty metres long. The surroundings were shabby, but the toughened concrete that formed the basin remained eggshell smooth. And while penguin feet had struggled on slippery ramps leading to hexagonal platforms, they looked like a skateboarder’s dream.
‘I came here sketching cages and wrecked buildings,’ Duke explained as he led the way through an empty doorframe marked staff only. ‘When I discovered this place, there was a lot of debris in the bottom. I found an old rake and scraped most of it into one pile. But you have to ride with your eyes open.’
Julius smiled ear to ear as he stood with the sun on his neck and toes over the edge of a six-metre drop.
‘Start at the shallow end,’ Duke suggested.
FOUR
The quickest possible start was a full-throttle climb from the launch line and a skim over the lowest part of the first gate. But if all eight pilots aimed their quadcopters at the same spot, the result would be a holocaust of flashing lights and broken props. Georgia had seen plenty of starts like that, but she’d also seen ones where everyone played safe, except the guy who won the game of chicken and stormed into a massive lead.