Bernie was ready for his hero moment. He held his breath, looked in both directions and then sprinted for the first of the transport helicopters. For a change, Ivy was following him instead of the other way around. After all, this was his plan! Not that it made things any less scary. His heart was pounding overtime and his legs felt unstable.

The poachers had finished loading another dinosaur, and were now near the other transport helicopter on the far side of the clearing. One of the drones hovered along with them, while the other had zoomed off into the jungle, presumably looking for other animals to capture.

Ivy had suggested that they split up, with one of them taking the smaller helicopter, but Bernie insisted that they would be safer together. The two of them jumped up through the open double doors into the belly of the transport helicopter.

Bernie’s mouth dropped open. The cargo hold was stacked, floor to ceiling, full of cages. The cages were all strapped down to the floor or to the walls with restraints. More than half of them were full. And it wasn’t just dinosaurs. The poachers seemed to be collecting pretty much anything that moved. A few of the creatures were awake, others groggily waking up, while some were unconscious.

Once they got over the shock, Bernie and Ivy nodded grimly to each other and set about their appointed tasks. Ivy headed for the cockpit to check that it was empty, before attempting to sabotage it. Bernie went for the cages. First, he checked to see if they were locked, hoping that they weren’t. Of course . . . they were! Each cage was fitted with a numerical keypad. He started searching about for anything he could use to force them open.

A duffel bag was on the floor containing tranquilliser rifles and a supply of darts. He searched through it anyway and found a pocketknife wedged into one corner. He carefully inserted the blade into the cage door beside the keypad and tried to jemmy it open. The blade snapped and Bernie skinned a knuckle on the bars.

He threw the broken knife aside in frustration and sucked on his hurt finger. How was he going to get the animals out?

‘All clear,’ said Ivy, behind him. Bernie turned to see her approaching with a large pair of pliers held aloft. ‘Found these and used them to cut through every wire I could get a hold of on the dashboard. This chopper’s not going anywhere anytime soon.’ She indicted the cages. ‘Might also work on the cages.’

‘Electronic locks,’ said Bernie. ‘But worth a try. I was hoping to find a crowbar, but no luck.’

A mournful chirruping made them look across the hold. Bernie’s heart sank. In the shadows at the far end, Lea-Lea stared at them through the bars of her cage. They both rushed over. She had been crammed into a cage that wasn’t even big enough for her to stand up in. She was sitting awkwardly in a pile of straw, looking miserable.

‘Oh, you poor thing,’ said Ivy, squeezing a hand through the bars, placing it comfortingly on the side of her head.

‘Give me the pliers and I’ll try to open it,’ said Bernie. He held the tool up to the cage and frowned. The bars were too thick for the mouth of the pliers. And the locking bolt sat behind the keypad, which was a solid rectangle of metal. He banged the cage in frustration with the pliers.

‘Watch it!’ snapped Ivy, pulling her hand back out from the bars.

‘Urgh.’ Bernie now smashed the pliers into the keypad. There was an electric fizzing sound, but the lock held.

‘I’ve got an idea,’ ventured Ivy. ‘These are electronic locks, so a good burst of electricity might be enough to burn them out.’ She reached over her shoulder and unhitched her cattle prod. She adjusted the dial on its base then positioned the prongs against the keypad. ‘Fingers crossed!’ She stabbed at the red button.

ZAP!

Sparks few from the lock and the cage door sprang open. Lea-Lea staggered out and then stood up, flexing each of her legs. After stretching, she headed for the door.

‘No!’ Bernie whispered harshly. Lea-Lea stopped and turned to face him. ‘Don’t go out there. It’s not safe. Stay here.’

‘I know she’s smart,’ said Ivy. ‘But I’m not sure she’s that smart.’

But Lea-Lea chirruped quietly and stepped away from the door.

Bernie shrugged and Ivy moved to the next cage. It contained a sleeping thylacine.

‘Woah,’ breathed Bernie. ‘I didn’t know the island had a Tasmanian tiger.’

‘You don’t know the half of it.’ Ivy positioned the cattle prod.

ZAP!

Another cage was open. Another animal free.

‘Wait!’ said Bernie, as Ivy moved to the next cage. ‘Not all the animals are asleep. What if they go running off and the poachers spot them. They’ll come and investigate. Not all of them are going to be as smart as Lea-Lea.’

‘We don’t really have much choice,’ said Ivy. ‘We’ll start with the ones that are asleep or still groggy, then do the awake ones last.’ Ivy positioned the cattle prod on the next cage.

ZAP!