8 The electrical storm

Chapter 8 The electrical storm Sarah pulled on the rubber boots. Luke pulled on the second pair and took Tesla's umbrella from Sarah. "Ready?" said Luke. He put his hand on the door that would take them onto the platform. "I guess so..." said Sarah.

"Trust me," said Luke. "I've got this." There wasn't much space on the open

platform surrounding the great copper torch. The wind raced around them. DeLay stood with his back to the railings, holding tightly to a coil of metal which Luke guessed was Tesla's missing piece of X-ray equipment. His bowler hat had disappeared, and his long white hair whipped around his head. There was a boom of thunder and the rain began to fall.

"Hey, DeLay!" shouted Luke. He lifted Tesla's umbrella above his head with one hand. "You went to a lot of trouble to put together that outfit in the department store." DeLay stroked the green fabric of his jacket. He looked very happy with himself. "There's no harm in looking good. A lesson you have yet to learn." He smiled tauntingly.

"Well, that green dye runs like a faucet if it gets wet," said Luke. "And you don't want that, do you?" He threw the umbrella at the time villain. Caught by surprise, DeLay seized the umbrella with his free hand, still holding tight to the missing piece of X-ray machinery with the other. He shook the umbrella out. Its black silk wings unfurled on their sturdy steel frame, sheltering him from the pouring rain. "You take your fashion more seriously than I thought," he said, twirling the umbrella in his long fingers. "Although I don't know what you hope to achieve by it."

Lightning blazed in the sky. The steel ribs of the umbrella glinted in the rain. "You know how lightning strikes the tallest thing in the area?" said Luke. Sarah grinned. She had guessed where this conversation was going. "What's the tallest thing in the area, Luke?" she asked. "I believe it's the Statue of Liberty," said Luke. "And I hear steel is an excellent lightning conductor." FLASH! FLASH! went the lightning over the bay. DeLay stared at the bright zigzags splitting the sky above their