The Rather less than Secret Agent's Ball
Part 2 : The Men After Mother Affair : Episode 1
Napoleon and Illya split off from the rest of the group as they left the training room. No one wanted to return to the library, but its contents had to be dealt with.
"One of us will have to tell Mr Waverley.", stated Illya, as they moved through the neon lit passage back to the main section of the house.
"Yes, their friendship goes back a long way. Don't worry Illya, I'll tell him as soon as this is all over and I go back stateside.", replied Solo, resting his hand on Illya's shoulder as he pressed the green button that would open the electronic door back into the library.
The door smoothly opened to reveal the agitated figure of Angelo.
"Mr Solo, Mr Kuryakin, I don't know how it happened, but Mother is gone!", with these words the normally resolute butler put his head in his hands and wept.
"Oh, Sir I feel as though I've failed him, after everything he's done for me and now he's disappeared into the hands of who knows what fiends."
"This is no time for hysterics, man, tell us what happened!", Solo's stern voice shatters Angelo's state of hysteria.
"Oh, Sir I just left the library for a few minutes, and when I returned he was gone."
Napoleon pushes the butler out of the way as he heads for the now vacant hearthrug.
"Illya check the window, any sign of recent entry or exit?", Solo's voice commanded with a tense precision.
"The layer of undisturbed dust would indicate no one got out this way.", said Illya as he checked the large bay window.
"Sir, I was only in the hallway, no one could pass through without me noticing them.", Angelo added.
"Well he didn't fly up the damn chimney did he!", Solo quickly glanced at the hearth, but realised that the fire had been heartily blazing away for the whole evening.
"Angelo, is this room one of those under close house monitoring?", Queried Illya.
"Yes Sir, here, the main hallway the dining room and the master bedroom are all constantly monitored.", replied Angelo.
"Well what are we waiting for let's get to Security Control.", with these words Solo was opening the hidden door into the operational section, and within moments all were pacing down the corridor towards the main control room.
The control room was of considerable size in comparison to most of the rooms in the house. A grand hemisphere consisting of a multitude of electrical equipment and a number of bays containing display screens. A number of the group were sat at the screens but Steed was stood centrally talking to Emma.
"Ah, Napoleon, Illya, I thought you may be arriving soon. Please take a seat.", Steed gestured to two of the empty control room chairs.
"Steed, you don't understand, Mother has disappeared.", Illya quickly broached the subject at hand.
"Actually we monitored your concern from here,", answered Steed, "and we've come up with something rather surprising."
Steed walked over to Emma's terminal and beckoned Solo and Kuryakin to join him.
"Play it again, Emma.", Steed's instruction provoked a slight smirk from Emma Peel as she rotated one of the controls ninety degrees anticlockwise and held it for a few seconds.
All four gazed intently at the screen as the library was displayed in monochrome, complete with a motionless Mother.
Suddenly the screen was filled with random snow patterns and the occasional tick of the library grandmother clock was replaced by a constant hissing.
"Right, fast forward Emma.", at Steeds instruction, Emma Peel rotated the control knob clockwise and after a few moments, the snow disappeared from the monitor to be replaced by a view of the library as before, except missing the motionless corpse.
"It can't be a fault in the system, it's just too convenient.", Kuryakin stared intently at the screen as he clarified what everyone else had surmised.
"That's not all, is it Emma ?"
"Precisely Steed, the first snow storm was a surprise, but by the time the third one cropped up, it was obvious that the security system wasn't entirely under our control. I've programmed an algorithm to search all the security tapes for the snowstorms, it's come up with seven examples so far."
"But what use is this, if all we can see is noise?", Solo asked.
"It may not be much but it provides us with a number of clues. Firstly as the snowstorm effect is only used to hide behind, significant events must have occurred, hence we know exactly where and when they have happened, if not exactly what we are looking for."
"It's even a little bit more helpful than that, ", interceded Emma, "if we analyse the images from the monitors before and after the noise burst we can check for any differences."
"Such as the disappearance of a corpse, for example!", Solo's obvious irritation at the long winded explanation was beginning to show.
"or maybe a clue that you missed?", Steed calmly replied, pointing to a blue highlighted area on the image of the library.
Solo and Kuryakin both looked closely at the screen, as Emma Peel zoomed in on the highlighted area of the hearth rug.
"It looks like some sort of electronic component, but I don't recognise precisely what it is.", said Emma.
"That's impossible I searched the rug thoroughly.", Kuryakin face gained a puzzled look .
"Well I think gentlemen as the clue has now been placed in our laps, I feel it is our duty to investigate further, don't you.", Steed gave a slightly contemptuous stare before turning back towards the main bank of monitors.
Illya started to speak, but realised that it would be pointless to protest, and was quickly lead out of the room by Napoleon Solo, with a comforting tap on the shoulder.
"But I couldn't have missed it", Illya stares intently at his open hands as they walk down the neon lit corridor back to the library.
"I don't think you did, and neither does Steed. There's definitely something odd here.", pondered Solo, "I get the feeling that every move we make is being watched and controlled."
"but how, and why ?", Kuryakin's puzzled look was returned by Solo with a shrug of the shoulders as they walked into the library.
"Well first things first I think we need to get this examined thoroughly", Solo picked up the small component with a pair of plastic tipped tweezers and placed it into a small ziplock plastic bag.
"What about the labs here ? They're pretty well equipped", Kuryakin suggested.
"No, I don't really feel safe here, I'm pretty sure Steed feels the same, which is probably why he's splitting us up. No, I think it's time we paid a visit to an old friend."
Solo placed the ziplock bag in an inner jacket pocket and walked out of the library , followed closely by Kuryakin.
As they left the old manor house and walked across the gravel driveway towards the converted stables, Kuryakin directs his attention to a neatly parked Audi saloon, "Shall we take my car ?", queried Kuryakin.
"No I don't think so, Illya, let's give mine a bit of a try", Solo says as he deactivates the alarm on a nearby Ferrari F355, "after all in cases like this speed is of the essence."
The Ferrari sped up the driveway containing a rather smug looking Napoleon Solo and a rather nervous looking Illya Kuryakin.
Copyright 2001-2002 Chris Cowan