Chapter 34

All thoughts of heading for bed had vanished.

Donnie and the four girls sat stunned by Beira's revelations of what was to come and the fact that neither she nor any of the other gods would be around to watch over them.

"What do we do now?" asked Katie.

"We prepare to fight," said a stony-faced Amira, the warrior in her coming to the fore.

"There has to be more than that," argued Donnie. "Why would the goddess put me through all that she has, why would she have us build all that we have here at Ardbrecknish just so that we could survive for a few extra months?"

"And what about the goddess' final gift?" asked Vivien. "What did she give you?"

"You heard her as well as I did," said Donnie. "She didn't explain what her gift was, a final mystery for me to solve by the sounds of things."

"And you only get to use it once," Katie reminded him.

"What we need is a war council," suggested Amira. "We should call together some key people and think about the things that we should be doing. The first priority has to be to ensure that we are safe here."

Donnie had his head bowed and he was rubbing his eyes. When he looked up the girls could see the tears streaming down his face.

"So many people," he managed to get out. "So many ... the goddess said billions would die."

"And such a cruel way to go," added Katie. "Starving and freezing or perhaps killed by a rampaging mob looking for food."

"All of our friends and those we work with," said Donnie, thinking about his work with the SNP.

"And that little shit Malloy still causing trouble!" growled Amira.

"How long do we have?" asked Vivien.

"Beira said the ice-age would hit us in two or three months," said Donnie, wiping his eyes. "Amira's idea sounds like a good one, we need to get a planning team together."

Eric Black had been following events by partly watching the news and partly watching MI5's IT system. The hacked system had been of less help during the past few days because things had been so fast moving that communications had probably been by phone rather than e-mail. He did know that Malloy had been arrested and then freed though, because Malloy had sent a message round his section heads telling them to be careful for just that reason.

There was another message that Malloy had sent that really intrigued Eric.

From: Malloy To: Iron Man Subject: Code Robin

Initiate Code Robin, maximum effect. Malloy

"Now what the hell is Code Robin and who is 'Iron Man'?" he asked himself.

As he sat in front of his computer trying to work out the cryptic message, Eric saw another message appear.

From: Malloy To: Section Heads Subject: Scottish operations

All freight heading into Scotland by either rail or road has been stopped with effect from 22:30 this evening. We have been tasked with disrupting supply lines into the country by sea or air. I want your plans of how you will achieve that in your sector by 13:00 tomorrow. I'm travelling back to Scotland tonight to take care of some personal business but will monitor messages and give approval for operations while mobile.

Malloy

"Shit," thought Eric, "they're going to try and starve us into submission. I need to let Donnie and Archie know about this."

Archie and Donnie read the last two messages that Malloy had sent.

"I've no idea what Code Robin could be," said Archie. "The reference to 'personal business' could mean trouble though."

"What do you mean?" asked Eric.

He hadn't really picked up on that part of the e-mail, but instead had focused on what clearly looked like orders to plan attacks on Scotland's ports and airports.

"Well, 'personal business' could mean that he bears a grudge against Donnie and that he's coming north to do something about it," Archie explained.

Donnie gave Archie a sharp look while he mulled over what his head of security was suggesting. It wasn't difficult to conjure up the image of Malloy's twisted face from the interview room at Govan Police Station.

"Could he be that petty as to want revenge for being beaten?" Donnie asked himself. "Of course he could. The man is unhinged mentally."

"But I thought the Border was closed," said Eric.

"Only the main highways," Archie responded. "There are plenty of minor roads that people can take if they want to enter the country. Even if that wasn't the case, crossing on foot would still be ridiculously easy."

"So what do we do?" asked Eric.

"We add it to the agenda for the planning meeting I'm organising," said Donnie tiredly. "In the meantime we should make an anonymous phone call to the police and warn them about the ports and airports."

He logged on at the scheduled time and checked to see if there were any messages. His pulse quickened and a surge of excitement swept through him when he saw (1) after the word inbox. Clicking on the tab, he opened up the inbox and then clicked on the message.

From: Malloy To: Iron Man Subject: Code Robin

Initiate Code Robin, maximum effect. Malloy

"It's not before time either. I knew he wouldn't be able to resist it. Oh well, say goodbye Mr Salmond."

They used one of the Ardbrecknish meeting rooms to get together. Besides Donnie and the girls, Archie, Eric, Louise, Commander Wilcox, Professor White, Heather, Carol McStay and Donnie's father were all invited.

Donnie had thought long and hard about how he was going to explain what the goddess had told them the night before. Eventually he remembered the occasion when the goddess herself had told him that sometimes simply telling the truth was the best solution.

The only ones attending the meeting that didn't know about the goddess were his father, Professor White and Carol. Donnie therefore opened the meeting by trying to explain to them about Beira and his gifts. Douglas, Bill and Carol could see the others nodding as Donnie told about the episodes when he had been sent by the goddess to do her bidding.

When Donnie had finished, Professor White and Carol sat in stunned silence, but Douglas took it all in his stride.

"You know, that explains so many things that have puzzled me over the past few years, but why are you telling me now?" he asked.

"Because last night the goddess gave me her final message," Donnie explained.

He shared details of what Beira had told them was to come and he could see a mixture of reactions around the room.

"I knew something like this was coming," said Archie. "Right from the first time I saw this place – I knew something big was heading towards us. I just didn't realise how big."

"What do we do then?" asked Douglas. "As your goddess says, we have everything we need to survive right here."

"This can't be just about us," argued Donnie. "Don't we have a moral obligation to try and help others survive too?"

"In theory – yes," agreed Professor White, beginning to come to terms with what he was hearing. "In practical terms though there is little that we can do.

"We don't produce enough food to share with any great number of people. Even if we did, how would we transport it if the country is going to be gripped by snow and ice?

"And are we going to be a big enough group to even defend this place if we come under attack?"

"Why don't we try and organise our thinking here a little?" suggested Donnie. "Let's note down what we know and what threats we face."

There was a laptop computer on the table in front of him and it was linked to a projector that was throwing an image onto a large screen on the wall of the meeting room.

Donnie began typing and the words appeared on the screen.

• possible attacks on ports and airports

• possible attack on Donnie

• Code Robin

• Malloy himself

• English response to independence – blocking food supplies

• ice-age – travel, food, fuel, other people

• possible attacks on Ardbrecknish

• clan McGregor

The others looked at the growing list and Donnie began to explain each of them for those who weren't yet aware of Malloy's e-mails.

"Why have you put 'clan McGregor' up as a separate entry?" Heather asked as the only non-McGregor in the room.

"Sorry," apologised Donnie. "I just wonder whether, as clan chief, I have a responsibility to try and do something for other McGregors."

"You've kind of put things in order of when they might happen," observed Archie. "Let's deal with them that way.

"I've already made an anonymous call to the police about the possible attacks on the ports and airports. Is there anything else that we can do on those?"

"I could speak to the First Minister or at least Anthony Brown," suggested Donnie. "I guess if the goddess is right about what we face in a few months time; it doesn't really matter about keeping the source a secret any longer."

Archie, Eric and Louise all shook their heads.

"Never reveal a source if you can help it, even if there doesn't seem any reason to keep it secret," said Archie. "There's always the possibility that there is a good reason but you're just not aware of it yet."

Donnie shook his head at the convoluted logic.

"Okay, I could just tell them that I received an e-mail from my imaginary friend at the Home Office – like we did the last time," he suggested.

"That would be better," agreed Eric. "I could fake you up another e-mail easily enough."

"As for the possible attack on you goes," said Archie, "I'll assign Dave Lawrence and Mark Petrie to be your minders from now on."

Donnie nodded in reluctant acceptance of that.

"Does anyone have any ideas as to what Code Robin might be?" he asked next.

Ideas were bounced around.

"Maybe there's a link with the attacks on the airports?" suggested Vivien. "You know, as in flight and 'Robin' being a bird. That would fit with 'maximum effect', wouldn't it?"

"Could it be a play on the word?" asked Lizzie. "Could it actually mean 'robbing'? Maybe Malloy has set up plans to steal something?"

"Wasn't there any other information on the system to explain what it is?" asked Katie.

Eric shook his head.

"No, I looked but there was no other reference to Code Robin at all."

"Okay, let's leave that one for now," said Donnie. "What about Malloy? Is there anything else we can do to be prepared for him?"

"It's difficult considering we don't know where he is," said Louise.

"We do know he has a habit of working out of Govan Police Station," said Archie. "Perhaps we should assign someone to keep an eye on the place to see if he turns up?"

That was agreed and Archie undertook to arrange it.

"Okay, now we come to the much bigger issues," said Donnie, looking at his list.

"I can switch resources over to canning and drying all of the surplus food we're producing," suggested Commander Wilcox. "It's not much, but at least the stuff won't go to waste and it gives you more time to work on what you might do with it."

Everyone agreed that made sense.

"We also have a number of pilots remember," Wilcox added, "including Louise and I here in this room. Would it be possible to get our hands on some airplanes or helicopters? That might help you distribute food."

"We don't have anywhere to land a plane," said Donnie.

"If the goddess is right, then we have a very large loch on our doorstep that is soon going to be frozen over," Katie pointed out.

Donnie smiled at her thinking.

"Do we have time to by a plane or a helicopter?" asked Carol.

"I hate to say it, but if we wait a few months we might just be able to walk on to an air force base and take what we want," suggested Archie.

That brought people up short.

"But if everyone is already dead, the time to try and share our food will have passed," observed Katie.

"I think we have to be realistic," said Commander Wilcox. "We need to focus on keeping the group we currently have here safe and well. I mean, what criteria would we use to decide who to help and who is to be left to starve?"

"And what if people come here seeking refuge?" asked Donnie. "What if the people from the village just down the road come asking for food? Do we turn them away? And what about the other members of our clan?"

"Can we take a break?" asked Carol. "My head is starting to hurt. There's so many things to think of."

Donnie called a comfort break and they each grabbed a drink of juice or coffee. Several took the opportunity of using the toilets.

When they reconvened, Archie made an interesting point.

"Your comment about the village, Donnie. I've been meaning to talk to you about that," he said. "The village is all but deserted, people have already been struggling to find food and they've been gravitating towards the bigger towns and cities. So, I'm not sure that the village is going to be an issue."

"As for the other clan members," said Wilcox, "how would they get here? Remember that they're spread all round the world. Logistically it would be difficult."

"I still think we have to offer them the opportunity," said Donnie. "I think Eric needs to send them a message extending the invitation to come to Ardbrecknish. Given the amount of food we produce, how many more could we comfortably feed?"

"Well, if that's what you want to do – I suppose it solves the problem of picking and choosing which groups to distribute food to," said Douglas. "If the other clan members come here, there won't be any surplus food. We could probably cope with four or five times as many as we currently have."

"But we don't have the accommodation for that many," complained Wilcox.

"We could cope," said Donnie firmly. "If it comes to it, if it's the difference between them being alive or dead, we can all put up with a little overcrowding."

That seemed to finish the discussion on what to try and do with the surplus food and the clan.

"You haven't put the riddle of the goddess' final gift up on the screen," Katie observed.

That led to Donnie having to explain to the others about Beira's final riddle.

"Have you tried to use the gift?" Heather asked.

"No, the goddess made it clear that I will only be able to use it once," Donnie answered.

"Didn't your Mojo give you any clues?" asked Archie.

"The past few years have been littered with clues apparently," scoffed Donnie. "That's the way Beira works. She did say that she was sure I would work it out."

All of them had their own ideas as to what the gift could be, but none of them struck Donnie as being accurate.

Donnie made the journey into Edinburgh again, braving the wintry conditions. Eric had faked another e-mail from the Home Office and Donnie was on his way to see Alex Salmond in an attempt to underline the importance of the warning about possible attacks on the ports and airports.

The First Minister was at Bute House, preparing for a cabinet meeting. Donnie hated trying to get to the official residence, as parking in Edinburgh City Centre was always problematic. He eventually opted to park in one of the large multi-storey car parks and walked the half-mile or so back to Bute House.

He managed to catch Alex Salmond before the cabinet meeting began. The FM was with Anthony Brown, a number of civil servants and other advisors having a last-minute check on the agenda for the meeting.

"Is it possible to have a brief word, Alex?" Donnie asked.

"Of course, just give me a minute to finish this," the FM replied.

He watched the First Minister surrounded by his advisors. It would be so easy to do it now. He could even take out the upstart prodigy McGregor at the same time, now that would be sweet.