Disco Bomb

Chapter 1

May 10th, 2017. 10:00 PM

Bailey Sykes slowed to a stop outside the AutoExplore car dealer, looking around the empty parking lot. His grey Mercedes was completely inconspicuous parked on the side of the empty building, the perfect getaway vehicle. He watched as a blue minivan pulled up extremely close to the building, and Andrew Delaney and Bruce Dane got out.

Sykes frowned. The two were wearing expensive suits, matching Dane's preference and not at all suitable for their work. But he didn't dare voice his opinion. "Did you bring the stuff?"

Delaney grinned and zipped open a black bag, tilting it to show several bars of C4. In another pocket was a silver Motorola that had been refurbished into a detonator -- all they had to do was press OK. "I'll set it up. Give me a moment."

Ten minutes later, the idiot came running out with the bag. "I heard cops! We gotta run!"

Dane cursed and leaped in the passenger seat of Sykes' car while Delaney practically dived in the back. Bailey growled and sped off, checking the rearview mirror every so often, hearing the sirens but seeing no cars. "I think we lost them." He pulled to a stop. "Quick, let's blow it up."

Andrew turned beet-red. "Uh, I lost it. I didn't want incriminating evidence, so I threw it out."


Ross Fairfax was a six-year-old kid who had gotten very used to his parents not always being around. They were usually at work or, as was the case January, in the hospital. They were going away to celebrate their anniversary for the next three days, so he had to stay with his aunt in "West-sure" Village.

At least Aunt Carmen was a heavy sleeper. Ross had used the opportunity to sneak into the backyard and construct a makeshift tent. He liked camping and found it hard to stay in his own bed, being an only child who liked attention. He was just about to fall asleep when something fell from the sky and hit his head.

Grumbling, Ross looked at the thing. It was a black bag, and not too heavy. Unzipping it led to the discovery of a gold bar with "C4" stamped on it and a shiny phone. He had no clue what C4 was, but it looked fun. Maybe it was a robot that could be controlled by the phone.

What the adults didn't know, the adults didn't have to find out.

He giggled and set up the robot a few feet away in case it had any hidden features. He flipped open the phone. The screen prompted "Activate? OK."

He pressed OK.