The Water Wars - Cameron Stracher [41]
“Driesen has a special talent,” said Tinker.
“Kai told us.”
Dr. Tinker looked at me with a puzzled expression, as if he didn’t understand what I had said. But his mouth was a thin, grim line, like a man who knew exactly what I meant. “What did he tell you?” he asked.
“A secret river with plenty of water, and no one has to get sick or fight anymore.”
“Is it true?” asked Will.
But the doctor was silent and wouldn’t say anything else. The hover-carrier sped over the ground, leaving the environmentalists behind. Will was getting the hang of driving now, and the ride was smooth and quick. Outside, the desert zipped past in a blur of sand and rock, with no green to be seen. Whatever water the Canadians owned, they had diverted it from this rocky and forlorn area.
“Do you have a plan to cross the border?” asked Dr. Tinker.
“Of course we do,” I said. I looked at Will, wondering if he did. The hover-carrier was fast, but I doubted it could outrace border interceptors. For the first time, I also noted the fuel gauge was dangerously close to empty. This explained why the environmentalists had stopped before reaching their destination. But Will drove like it didn’t matter.
“Those environmentalists were going to kill you,” I said to Dr. Tinker.
“Yes,” he said.
“You’re lucky we found you.”
“If we get across the border, I will see to it that you are adequately compensated.”
“We’ll get across,” Will interjected.
Dr. Tinker did not sound like a man who was grateful his life had been saved. He seemed weary and slightly peeved, as if he had been interrupted in the middle of a game or favorite wi-cast.
“Did you work at the dam?” I asked.
“I worked at the laboratory powered by the dam.” He explained that the research lab was in a different location than the turbines. It reduced the chances of sabotage.
“A lot of good that did,” said Will.
The doctor nodded. “We knew it was vulnerable. But we thought security was adequate.”
“Is that where you met Kai?” I asked.
“I’ve known Driesen for years, as I’ve explained.”
“Were they visiting you?”
Dr. Tinker allowed himself a smile. He looked a little bit like a gnome, his hooked nose splitting his grin in half. “You’ll not get any more information from me. These days even children are spies.”
“Uh-oh,” said Will. “Trouble.”
“What?”
“We’re out of fuel.”
Indeed the carrier was slowing, and the ride was getting bumpier. One of the engines had quit, and the carrier listed to the right.
“Was this part of your plan too?” asked Dr. Tinker.
Will fought for control as we veered off the road. “Hold on,” he said.
The carrier hit the ground with a bone-rattling thump. It threw me hard against the seat, then snapped my head back against the headrest. But it was nothing next to the earsplitting shriek as the carrier’s bottom raked against the rocks.
“Wheels down, Will!” I shouted.
“They are down!”
We spun in a grinding arc, the shredding, screeching sound of metal against rock like a cacophonous symphony. Finally we came to a halt. There was a ragged gash where a side panel had been ripped open. Dust motes danced in the shards of sunlight that streamed through the gap.
“Well, I don’t think we’ll be doing much more driving,” Dr. Tinker muttered.
Will looked at him sourly, then unbuckled his seat belt.
“Where do you think we can find some fuel?” I asked.
“I don’t know!” Will snapped angrily. “What do I look like, a hydrogen diviner?”
“Now children,” said Dr. Tinker.
Will slammed shut the carrier door, leaving me behind with Dr. Tinker.
“He’s not really angry,” I explained. “We’ve been through a lot.”
“Remarkable. Did your parents recruit you?”
I wasn’t going to waste breath trying to convince Dr. Tinker we weren’t spies. He didn’t intend to give us more information anyway, and I liked thinking of myself as a spy.
The door banged open, and Will jumped backed into the driver’s seat. “They’re coming!”
“Who?”
“PELA!”
Sure enough, through the cracked viewscreen I could see the dust kicked up from three hover-carriers about five kilometers down the road.
Will pressed