THE AEROCAR

“You’re serious?” Max asked.

“A man should never joke about his car,” Logan said.

“I’ve got to see this,” Max said as a clockwork with a square body and a tiny head zipped by on belted wheels. It was carrying what looked like a submachine gun.

“What was that?” Harley asked.

“An energy weapon,” Monti said. “That particular model fires plasma bolts, but it’s been jamming up. Maybe you could take a look at it later.”

Harley lit up. “Okay.”

“Only if I can help test them,” Max said.

“I can arrange that,” Monti said.

A piercing whistle came out of a pipe, followed by a cloud of steam.

“It’s wicked hot in this place,” Logan said as he took out a handkerchief to wipe the sweat from his brow. “You can make a car fly, but you can’t install a decent air-conditioning system?”

“I’m afraid the steam is an occupational hazard, but you get used to it,” Monti said.

He entered a code into the keypad next to an oversized garage door, and it opened to reveal a sweeping view of the garage below. It was nearly as big as the workshop, with brick walls and a forest of steel beams that held up the vaulted ceiling.

There was a tank hoisted on hydraulic lifts where clockwork repairmen worked on the undercarriages, while others worked on cars and motorcycles. Monti led everyone to a vehicle sitting on four stilts. It was covered by a tarp that fell away after a quick yank.

“You’re looking at what used to be a 1948 Jaguar XK120,” he said. “It was a beautiful car, but now it’s special.”

The sleek roadster had been retrofitted with wings mounted to the body. The doors had been welded shut, and what used to be a convertible top was now a glass and chrome canopy. It looked like something out of the past, but with a nod to the future.

“So is she ready to fly?” Logan asked.

“I had one of my clockwork test pilots take it out this morning.”

Logan snatched the keys from Monti’s hand. He pressed a button on the remote, and the hatch opened. A clockwork pushed a set of portable steps over to the driver’s side.

“I only have room for one passenger at a time,” Logan said as he climbed into the cockpit. “So who’s first?”

“Go ahead,” Harley said, looking at Max.

“Are you sure?” Max asked.

“Yeah. I want to take a look at that plasma gun.”

The clockwork pushed a second set of steps to the passenger side. Max scrambled up and sat next to Logan. There was a steering wheel in front of Logan and a throttle between the seats.

“Put this on,” Logan said, handing Max a wireless headset. Then he placed the key in the ignition, and the instrument panel lit up. “Everybody clear out there?”

“You’re good to go!” Monti shouted.

“What about you?” Logan said as the hatch closed.

Max gave him a thumbs-up as the garage door on the exterior wall opened. Rain and wind swept across as clouds swirled overhead.

“Hold on.” Logan turned the ignition. Silver flames leaped from the exhaust pipes as the aerocar started to shake. When he pushed on the throttle, the Jaguar shot out the door and into the open air. The thrust from the takeoff was so powerful that it pinned Max to the back of his seat.

Logan pulled back on the steering wheel, and the nose of the Jaguar lifted. He accelerated and the aerocar burst forward, rising into the sky as rain pelted the windshield. Logan flicked a switch, turning on the wipers. Then he sent the Jaguar into a roll. It spun like a corkscrew as it continued to climb. Max felt his stomach flip, just like it did whenever he rode a roller coaster.

“Not bad,” Logan said as the aerocar shot into a bank of clouds, where there was no visibility. When they broke free of the clouds, Logan leveled out.

“What happens if we crash?” Max asked. They were going so fast that everything outside was a blur.

Logan laughed. He pulled back on the steering wheel. The aerocar rose higher, spinning again. Max closed his eyes as he felt his lunch climb up his throat. Then Logan banked hard to the left. The Jaguar rolled. If it weren’t for the seat belt, Max would have been thrown into the hatch.

“You look a little green,” Logan said. Then he smiled.

Max kept his eyes straight ahead.

“What do you say we head back into the city for a bit?” Logan said. “I told the chief constable that we’d help him with patrols until he can get a lead or two.”

“Do you really think it’s changelings from our school?”

“It’s hard to say,” Logan said as he turned the aerocar back toward New Victoria. “They’d have to get past Nipkin first, and we both know that’s no easy task.”

“It might be easier than you think.”

“Is there something you’re not telling me?”

Max wouldn’t look Logan in the eyes. Of course, thanks to Natalia, he knew that one of the tells of being guilty was the avoidance of eye contact, so he concentrated on his shoes and didn’t say anything.

“Listen to me,” Logan said with furrowed brows. “If those kids are wandering the streets of Bludgeon Town looking for trouble, they’ll find all they want and more. They’re either going to end up in a slaver’s net or dead. Do you want that on your head?”

The last thing that Max wanted was to get Ernie angrier with him, but it was better than Ernie getting kidnapped, or worse. Max sighed and his shoulders slumped, but he still didn’t look at Logan. “They found a way to turn their inhibitors off,” he finally said.

Logan clenched his jaws before he pushed the throttle to maximum speed. The engine roared as they tore through the rain, heading straight to Bludgeon Town.