Monday, July 21, 2014

990 - "Michigan Lake"

I have a bunch of these little illustrations of people in life rings.  I've sold them as part of a larger series, so I don't believe I have the permission to show who these people really are.  So, instead, I'm making the faces anonymous and I am giving each of them a name and background story suitable for a pulp spy novel:


NAME: Michigan Lake
OCCUPATION: PILOT

"Are you sure you can fly this thing?" Grant demanded, "I thought I just saw a wing come off!"

Michigan Lake laughed and threw the little Stearman biplane into a tight barrel roll.  "Nope," she keyed her radio, "Not the wing, just part of the tail."

"You're joking."

"Of course!  Don't be such a baby, we're going to be just fine."

Grant wavered between sullen silence and speechless petrified fear.  No matter his assignment, he had never come completely to terms with open-cockpit aircraft.  It was far too easy to fall out of one, and there was never any room for parachutes. Normally he avoided flying in them unless there was no alternative.  

"So where to next?" he finally said.

"This little lady only has enough fuel to take us to Jeddah, in Saudi.  We will fly low over the Red Sea most of the way so we don't attract any unwanted attention.  Once we're there, we'll change planes and catch the A-380 to Dubai and then Seoul."

"Sounds good.  Cairo turned out be a dead end." 

"It did for Mr. Kill's crew after you finished with them, Grant." 

Grant rubbed his wrists which were still sore.  Kavi Kanem had eluded capture just as Grant had eluded death.  However, this time N.A.S.T.I.E had under-estimated Grant's will to survive, and so were unprepared for his lethal vengeance.  Grant was confident the trail of clues would take him to South Korea where he would finally run Dr. Julius Wolverine to the ground.  


 
 - excerpt from the novel "A Spy Too Far"