CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE

“How’s it coming, Shanti?” a nervous Mary Lou asked six minutes later.

Shanti concentrated on the laptop. “Almost there.”

Tiara looked over her shoulder. “Ooh, put in the picture with the mountains. That one was so pretty.”

“Fifty-nine. Fifty-eight. Fifty-seven …”

“Less than a minute to go, Bollywood,” Nicole said.

“Hello! Well aware, thank you. ’Kay. Uploading now …”

Shanti pressed PLAY, and the PowerPoint presentation was in motion. It was an image of Ladybird Hope waving from a Corporation private plane.

Fun Facts About Ladybird Hope & The Corporation!

• Tried to kill us
• Kept rescuers from finding us
• Made secret arms deal with Republic of ChaCha
• Assassinated world leader
• Her pageant-wear line poorly made
• Again, tried to kill us

“Go to second screen!” Nicole said.

“Give it a second,” Shanti said. “I put it on slide show. That’s how we do it in IP.”

Two seconds later, an island scene came up.

“I picked that shot,” Tiara said, clapping. “Isn’t it pretty?”

There Is a Secret Corporation Compound!

• Polluting environment
• Harming animals
• Making weapons
• Avoiding taxes
• Forming secret alliances

“Twenty-eight. Twenty-seven. Twenty-six …”

“Come on, come on,” Adina pleaded softly.

A shot of Ladybird Hope and MoMo B. ChaCha in the heart-shaped hot tub appeared onscreen. Ladybird Hope had been caught midspeech. Her mouth was twisted and her eyes were half closed.

“Not her best,” Sinjin said. “Still. Total MILF. Paranoid and very wrong, but MILF.”

Ladybird Hope and The Peacock!

• Secret alliances = treason
• Illegal weapons sales = also treason
• Illegal campaign contributions = bad
• Human rights violations = super bad
• Killing defenseless Bambi = just plain mean
• Totally having sex in that hot tub = conflict of interest, unethical, unsanitary

“Nineteen. Eighteen. Seventeen. Sixteen …”

“It’s a whole new world of pretty …” Agent Jones sang, rocking softly on the table.

Shanti glanced at him, then looked to the ceiling. “Please don’t let this be the way I die.”

The fourth and final panel was of Ladybird Hope smiling and waving between The Corporation’s logo and the White House.

America’s Presidency: Reality TV Show or Commodity?

The screen faded to black and the words The End.

“Did it work?” Adina asked.

“Five. Four. Three. Two …”

They held their breath.

“Awesome PowerPoint! System override successful. Thank you. Have a productive day.”

The metal doors and shutters rolled open. They were free. The girls and pirates collapsed onto the floor in relief. Agent Jones hugged one of the ergonomically correct chairs. “I think you’re special. Do you think I’m special?”

A powerful rumble shook the room.

“What’s happening?” Tiara said, grabbing hold of George, who didn’t seem to mind.

Adina sat up, panicked. “I thought we overrode the system!”

“We did!” Shanti shouted.

“Then what’s that scary sound? Earthquake?” Miss Ohio asked.

Tane’s face was grim. “It’s the volcano.”

“The dead volcano?” Mary Lou’s eyes opened wide.

“Maybe the system override activated something?” Tane pointed to the monitor. On the screen, the volcano’s opening spewed smoke and ash.

Jennifer gaped at the image. “Whoa.”

“Holy shit!” Sosie said.

“Beautiful,” Agent Jones murmured.

“OMG,” Shanti gasped.

“Totally phallic,” Tiara said. “Oh. That means like a penis.”

“That means trouble,” Petra said. “The volcano, not the penis.”

“Thank God, luv,” Sinjin said.

“Give it a rest,” Adina muttered.

“What do we do now?” Nicole asked.

The ground shook, knocking Corporation graph charts from walls.

“Run!” Mary Lou shouted just as the alarm flared red and everything began to crumble.