Chapter 7

The Surprise Attack

Using their bodies to navigate, Jack and Max veered right from the lane and headed north. After Westmoreland Street, they hung a left. In less than five minutes, they were facing Ha’Penny Bridge.

Ha’Penny Bridge was a white-painted bridge that crossed the River Liffey, one of Ireland’s biggest rivers. Every day, tens of thousands of people used the Ha’Penny Bridge to get from one side of the river to the other.

Jack and Max hovered on the western side. They surveyed the top of the bridge and the structure underneath. As far as they could tell, there was no sign of the crook anywhere.

It was then that Max spotted a black motorbike parked on the opposite side of the river. Directly below the bike was a series of steps leading to a blue-and-white boat docked in the water. The GPF surveillance team had seen a motorbike leaving the scene.

“Do you think that’s his hideout?” asked Jack.

Max pulled out his Google Goggles.

“Let’s find out,” he said. The GPF’s Google Goggles were hi-tech binoculars that could see far distances and through walls. Max scanned the outside of the boat.

“There’s no sign of the thief on deck,” he said.

Max changed the setting to “X-Ray.” His vision zoomed to the inside of the boat. As soon as it did, he saw the crook. Just like in the surveillance video, he was dressed in black and wearing a black mask.

Normally in a situation like this, the boys would call for reinforcements. But there was no time. The thief was strapping a backpack to his back and standing up from a chair.

“He’s getting ready to leave!” said Max.

The boys flew into action. They quickly sailed over the bridge, put away their Flyboards, and pulled out their GPF Tornadoes. The GPF Tornado was a gadget capable of catching up to three villains at a time. All they had to do was push a button and a rope would come out, wrapping the thief up like a sausage. With a Tornado in each of their hands, there was no way the crook could get away. Rather than wait for the thief to come out, the brothers decided to burst inside. That way, the element of surprise would be on their side.

But as soon as they opened the door to the cabin, they were sprayed with a toxic substance that blinded them and made their eyes feel like they were on fire.

“Yoooowwwww!” said Jack as he squealed in pain.

“Noooo!” hollered Max as he tried to rub the sting out.

While Jack and Max fumbled around, the thief snatched the boys’ Tornadoes and ripped their Book Bags off their backs. Their Watch Phones were cut from their wrists and they were dragged to the upper deck. The next thing they knew, Jack and Max were shoved from behind and into the river below.

SPLASH!