Point Blanc, The Graphic Novel (PDFDrive)

POINTBLANCGN_1-64_81121 1/6/07 2:50 PM Page 1
ROSCOE ELECTRONICS,
NEW YORK
Helen, did you

remember to call
L ondon?
Patch it through to
my car, would you? I’m
I spoke to Alan
on my way to lunch with
Blunt’s office
senator andrews.
yesterday af ternoon,
Mr Roscoe.
He wasn’t I’ll take
av ailable, but my priv ate
I’ve arranged a call elev ator.
f or later today.
Very good, sir.

Your chauffeur
is waiting f or you
in the lobby.
great.
Tell him I’ll be down
as f ast as I can.
POINTBLANCGN_1-64_81121 29/6/07 8:33 AM Page 3
BROOKLAND SCHOOL,
LONDON
Hey, Alex!
Hold on!
Alex, are
you ok ay? I’ve
are you doing hardly seen you
anything tonight? all week, and
you seem-
yeah.
Double french
and history.
Sorry, Sab ina.
I’m fine.
I’m s orry.
It’s not being B ored,
able to tell anyone, more like.
you know? Having all
my friends think I
was off for two
weeks with flu, that
I’m some pampered
idiot…
You can’t wait

f or your secret
agent beeper
It’s driving to go off again,
me mad. that’s your
trouble.
I told you, it’s not just you

I’m not a spy. who isn’t allowed
It would be more to talk about it,
exciting than double remember?
homework, though.
I had to sign…
Anyway…
Sabina?
What is it?
That man in
the Skoda’ s The drug dealer.
here again.
You know Lucy Stiles

was beaten up the Anyway,
other day f or her I have to go.
lunch money? I’ll see you
tomorrow,
And it went okay?
straight to Skoda.
Somebody should Hmmm…
d o something
about him.
Sure.
Yeah. Take care!
Things have
been stolen, too.
He’s poisoning
this school.
PUTNEY BRIDGE,
LONDON
N ow where’s
he going…?
Skoda lives
on a barge?
What’s he doing
in there?
Here goes
nothing…
Ew.
Somebody
should d o
something
about him.
It’s a
f loating drugs Maybe I should
f actory…! call the police.
Or better yet…
Hey, where are

you going?
My D ad…
Oh, right.
of f you go, then.
Don’t look down.

Don’t look down.
Don’t look down…
*ulp*
…A-ha.
Don’t look…
Mmmf!
Thanks again,
Smithers…
Well, this
looks easy
enough.
Wow.
So I said to ’im,
if that’s straight
I’m a D utchman…
Too right.
Perf ect.
Too f ast,
too f ast…!
Phew.
All right,
come on…
Steady, steady…
Yes!
How’d it
go today?
Sold a hundred
quid’s worth. Mugs,
the lot of ‘em.
Brilliant.
We’ll have the
whole school-
Aah!
We’re sinking!
What was that?

The door’ s
jammed!
We’re trapped!
Ha ha! It’s
working!
C rane operator, Who is that up there?

this is base! What Identify yourself!
the hell do you think
you’re doing? Over!
Hurry up, Alex…
Operator, lower
the hook! We believe
there are people
inside that boat!
You are endangering
their lives!
I repeat,
lower the hook!
Yeah, yeah. Just

let me get them to -Anywhere.
the police station,
I’m not going-
Ulp.
…We have overlooked

nothing! Thanks to my
personal involvement and
ef f orts, we have never been
more successf ul.
But we are not resting

on our laurels. Oh no!
A ny day now, we hope
to announce another
breakthrough!
RIVERSIDE
CONFERENCE CENTRE
*Kof! Kof!*
What the…?
Erm…
Hello.
I was just
working on the
Do you… c rime figures.
Do you have an y
idea what you’ve
just don e? I think there’s
been a drop.
POINT BLANC
ANTHONY HOROWITZ
Ad a p t e d b y
Antony Johnston
I l l u s t ra t e d b y
Ka n a ko D a m e r u m
& Yu z u r u Ta ka s a k i
PUTNEY
POLICE STATION
Good morning,
Alex.
Where i s everyone?
Mr Crawford… Where did all the
policemen go?
Don’t ask silly
questions, Alex.
I won dered why
This way, please.
nobody would talk to
me after they ran my
name through the
c omp uter.
What about my Don’t worry, we’ve

bike? I left it got it. And your
by the bridge… sc hoolbooks.
You can come with me,
now. We’re leavin g.
Hang on, this isn’t

the way home!
Oh, well don e. With

observation skills like So where are
that, you should be a we going?
secret agent.
LIVERPOOL STREET
The Royal &

Gen eral ban k… Only joking.
This is another
secret entrance
into MI6, isn’t it?
If I told you, Alex, Going up.

I’d have to kill you.
I hadn’t expected to
see you again so soon.
That’s just What on earth were

The men in the boat
what I was you thinking? You’ve
will be in hosp ital
going to say. done an en ormous amount
for mon ths.
of damage. You practically
destroyed a two million
pound conference And you c ould have
centre. killed the Home
Sec retary, Alex.
It’s a mirac le
no one was
killed!
They’re drug
dealers.
So we’ve *Sigh*
disc overed. But the
n ormal procedure
is to c all 999.
We were thinking
of contacting you,
anyway. We need
you again.
I couldn’t
find a phone.
N o! I’m far
enough behind
at school
as it is! Anyway,
suppose I’m not
interested?
Tell me, Alex…
How i s your
housekeeper,
Miss Starbright?
She’s fin e.
And you gave

her a permanent
visa, remember?
R eally? Are you

quite sure? Dear me,
that sounds like a Of c ourse, just one
terrible mistake. telephone call could
rectify that mistake…
All right.
What is it
this time?
Come on, Alex.

Why pretend
you’re an ordin ary
sc hoolboy
any more?
This is Michael J. Roscoe,

head of Roscoe Electronics,
one of the largest companies
in Americ a.
Computers, videos,
DVD players, mobile phones,
washing machines…
R oscoe was very rich,
very influential-
And very short-sighted,

according to the news.
He fell down a
lift shaft a few weeks
ago, didn’t he?
It certainly seems to On the day R oscoe died,

have been a c areless an engineer called at
accident. The lift Roscoe Tower to check So why don’t
malfunctioned, R oscoe a defective cable. you ask him?
didn’t look where he
was going, he fell into
the shaft and died.
Oh, we’d like to.

But he’s van ished
But the company that without trac e. It’s
But we’re not emp loyed him say there possible he was
so sure. was no defective cable killed, and someone
and they never sent else took his place
him to the tower. to set up R oscoe’s
“accident”.
Well. I’m very

sorry about Mr
R oscoe. But what’s
it got to do
with me?
The day before

he died, R oscoe made
a personal call to
this office, asking
for Mr Blunt.
I met R oscoe at
Cambridge University,
a long time ago. We
What did
became frien ds.
he want?
Unfortunately,
I wasn’t here to take
the c all. I arranged
to sp eak with him the
next day, but by then
it was too late.
And an only child.

he and R oscoe had a
difficult relationship
after Mic hael divorc ed
a few years ago.
I spoke to his
assistan t, and it
P aul chose to
seems Mr R oscoe
live with his father,
was very concerned
but they didn’t
about his son, P aul.
really get on.
P aul is fourteen.
P aul was doing

badly at sc hool.
he was playing truant,
hanging around with a
bad c rowd, getting
into trouble with
the police…
I spoke to R oscoe
from time to time, and
he was worried that
P aul was getting out of
c on trol. but there
didn’t seem much
he could d o.
So is that what
you want m e for?
To meet this boy, and
talk to him about his
father’s death?
This is General
Viktor Ivan ov,
No. ex-KGB.
Until last Dec ember
he was head of the
Foreign Intelligence
Servic e and the second
most p owerful man
in R ussia, after
the P resident.
But something
happened to him,
too.
A boating accident
on the Blac k Sea. His Was he a frien d
boat exp loded, and of R oscoe’s?
nobody knows why.
I doubt they
ever met.
But our
computers
have thrown up
one strange
coincidence. Ivanov
also had a
fourteen-year-old And Dimitry
son, Dimitry. Ivanov definitely
knew P aul R oscoe…
Bec ause they went to
the same sc hool.
They weren’t
in New York.
What was a
Russian boy Do you know what
doing at a sc hool a finishing school
in N ew York? is, Alex?
Isn’t that where

rich people used to
send their daughters,
to learn table
man n ers?
That’s right.
but this sc hool is
for boys only, and
not just ordin ary
boys.
It’s right on the

F rench-Swiss border,
The fees at in the French Alps.
Point Blanc
are ten thousand The name
pounds a term. literally means
“White Point”.
It’s a remarkable
place, as you can see.
Built as the p rivate home
of some lunatic in the
nineteenth century.
When he died, Then the German s

it became an took it over in the Sec ond
asylum. World War, as a leisure
centre for their senior
staff. After that it fell
into disrep air…
… Until bought by
its current owner,
P oint Blanc takes
the enigmatic principal
in boys who have been
of Point Blanc
expelled from all
Academy.
their other schools.
Dr Hugo Grief. There are only

ever six or seven
pupils at a time.
It’s been
established twenty
Of c ourse, they’ve
years, and the client
kept the names
list is hard to
confidential.
believe.
But I can tell

you that it inc ludes
the sons of an American
Vice-President, a N obel
Prize-winning scientist
and a member of our
own royal family.
And Michael R oscoe

Because I
and General Ivanov…
don’t believe in
coincidence.
So it’s a
coincidence. Where others
So what? Why see coincidence,
are you so I see conspiracy.
interested? That’s my j ob.
Do you really
think this man Grief
had something to do
with R oscoe and
Ivanov dying? Why?
Did they forget That’s not

to pay the fees? funny, Alex.
R oscoe telephones me,

worried about his son,
and dies the next day.
According to Russian
intelligence Ivanov was also N ow do you
worried about his son, and had a see the link?
violen t argumen t with Dimitry
a week before h e died.
You want me to g o
to this sc hool, don’t
you? But how? I don’t
have parents, and
they were never ric h
an yway.
We’ve already
arranged to give
you a wealthy
father.
His name is
Sir David Friend.
As in Friend’s
Sup ermarkets?
And department
stores, art galleries,
football teams… he’s in the
same league as R osc oe. Very
little happens in this country
without Sir David being
involved in some way.
We’ve c reated
a false identity
for you.
F rom this moment

on you are Alex Friend,
the fourteen-year-old
son of Sir David.
It won’t work.
P eople must kn ow
that F riend doesn’t
have a son.
Not at all.
he’s a very
p rivate person,
and you are the sort
of son no father
would want to
talk about.
Expelled from
Eton, shoplifting,
van dalism, drugs…
Sir David simply doesn’t
know what to do
with you, Alex.
So he’s
enrolled you in
Point Blanc.
You have one week to

memoriz e your c over story
and the family details. You’ll
be picked up next saturday
And what do I
from the F riend’s country
d o when I get
estate in Lancashire.
to the sc hool?
Sorry, Alex.
they don’t allow

games in the school.
But we’ll arran ge
Simply find out
all that before you
everything you can.
go, don’t worry.
It may be that P oint
Blanc is perfectly
…
ordin ary, and in
fac t there was n o
If so, we’ll
connection between
pull you out.
these deaths.
We just want
to be sure.
How will I get In the meantime,

in touch with you? we’ll have to do
Have you made me somethin g about
another Nintendo? your appearance.
you don’t exac tly
look the p art.
…What?
I understand,
I have dec ided Doctor.
to move the Gemin i
Project into its But are you sure
last phase. we’re ready?
POINT BLANC ACADEMY,

FRANCE
With two Nevertheless,

unsatisfactory the soon er we finish
results in the last this phase, the more
few months, we have chance of remaining…
n o choice. unnoticed.
When is the final

boy arrivin g?
Alex Friend?
I’m picking him up
from England
tomorrow.
Excellent.
You will take him
to P aris on the
way here?
Besides the
expense of arran gin g If that is your
those terminations, wish, Doctor.
someone may yet
connect the deaths of
Ivanov and R oscoe…
Though I doubt it.
It is very muc h my wish,
The CIA, MI6, even Mrs Stellenbosch. We can
the KGB… Pah! They’re do the preliminary work
shadows of what they there. Now, what about
used to be. the Sprintz boy?
Hmmm… No, Sprintz

We still need a can stay with u s for
few more days. Shall a f ew more days. it
I re mov e him, so that will be all right.
he and Alex aren’t here
at the same time?
Really?
Alex Friend is Su permarkets?
an excellent catch
f or us, you know.
Very soon, we’ll

His f ather also has
have Alex here at
the Prime Minister’s
the academy. And then,
ear. I am sure his son
at last, the G emini
will meet all our
Project will be
expectations.
complete.
LANCASHIRE
What do you
think of the cov er?
Hello, Alex!
I was told to
blend in!
Hello,
M r Smithers! There’s
nothing t o
The combine harvest.
harv ester’s
great… except
it’s April.
I hadn’t thought
of that!
The trouble is,

Have you
I’m not really
got me another
a field agent!
Nintendo?
Get it?
*Groan*
No, that’s the

Anyway, I’m j olly problem. The Academy
glad to be working with doesn’t allow games
you again. Not of ten I get of any sort, or even
a teenager. M uch more compu ters. They supply
fun than the adults! M ind you, it’s all their ow n.
been a bit tricky
this time…
Now, I’m told

there’s a lot of snow
But not in a suit
up on P oint Blanc, so
like this. It’s highly
you’ll need this.
insulated, and also
Know what it is?
bullet-proof.
Wow.
I’ve been
skiing bef ore,
M r Smithers.
And these are

ski goggles.
But in case you have
to be anywhere at
night, they also have
an inf rared mode.
Just press the

switch and you’ll be
able to see f or twenty
metres, even if there’s
no moon.
Now, you’re
not allowed
compu ters…
Absolu tely.
but you are
M ay I suggest some
allowed a Sony D iscman,
Beethoven?
provided all the CDs
are classical.
It conv erts the

discman into an electric
saw. The CD is diamond-
edged. It’ll cut through
just about anything!
So while people
are shooting at me in
the middle of the night,
I can listen to music?
G reat.
There’s also a If you need help, just

panic button. press fast forward three
Thank you,
times. It will signal our
M r Smithers.
satellite, and we can come
and fast forward you out!
Why so glum?
Ah…
I know what But you can’t hav e it!

you want. No guns! Mr Blunt
is adamant.
He thinks you’re
too you ng.
Not too young

to get killed.
Yes, well…
I’ve given it some
They said you’d had your
thought and…
ear pierced, so I made
Look, this is this. Be very careful
just between you putting it in.
and m e, Alex.
Bringing the
two pieces together
I’m not sure
activ ates the
Mr Blunt would
first stage.
approv e.
First stage
of what?
The detonation.
You see, it’s a small

but powerful explosiv e.
Separating the pieces
again activates the
second stage,
a ten-second
countdown. The blast Just so long
will blow a hole in almost as it doesn’t blow
anything… or anyone. my ear off…
No, no, it’s perfectly

saf e while you’re w earing it.
Just don’t take it ou t until
you need to destroy
something.
Goodbye, Mr
Smithers.
Good luck
old chap!
Come back in one piece.

I really do enj oy
having you around!
HAVERSTOCK HALL
G ood morning!
You must be Mr
and Mrs Friend!
I’m Mrs
Stellenbosch,
assistant director
of the Academy!
Yes, well…
He was expelled from
E ton last year, and he’s been
arrested f or shoplifting.
I… I think dru gs might
be involved.
I’m at my wit’s end.
We have a daughter, and
she’s perf ect, but Alex just
hangs around the house. He
doesn’t read or show any
interest in anything.
I understand
that Alex has been
a great source of
concern to you.
The Academy is our

last resort. We’re
desperately hoping you
can sort him out.
I’m sure you’ve

What exactly
been great
do you… do?
parents.
But these
modern children!
It’s heart- breaking,
the way some of
them behave! You’ve done the
right thing, coming
to us. The Academy has
had a remarkable
success rate over the
past eleven years.
We have our methods.

When Alex comes home,
he’ll be a completely
dif f erent boy!
Where i s Alex,
by the way?
I’m here. Who

wants to know?
You will write

to us, won’t you?
Dunno.
Maybe.
Don’t w orry,
M rs Friend. We’ll
take care of him
for you. Come along
now, Alex!
Think she
f ell for it?
Let’s hope so…

for Alex’s sake.
We must make
a refuelling
stop here.
Whatever.
PARIS
Welcome to
P aris, Alex.
This is the M arais
District.
And just up
here is where …The Hotel
we’re staying… Du Monde.
The Academy
ow ns it,
of course.
Yuck.
What was that,

Alex? I didn’t
hear you.
Nothing.
Bonsoir,
M adame Stellenbosch.
I hope you are
I hope you had
not superstitious,
a good journey
M onsieur Friend.
f rom England.
No, why?
Bonsoir, Claude.
Oui, a va.
It is room thirteen,
on the f irst f loor.
I am sure you will f ind

it most agreeable.
The hotel has its

ow n restaurant, so we
might as well eat here. We’ll eat at sev en.
We don’t want to go Why don’t you go and
out in the rain. f reshen u p af ter
the journey?
And Alex…
might I suggest Well, if you’ll f orgive
smarter clothes f or me, you take inf ormality
dinner? The French are a little f ar.
inf ormal, but…
…
Well, if they
want a naughty
boy …
…That’s what
they’ll get.
What?
Hmmm.
Dinner is in
ten minutes, Alex.
Don’t f orget to wear
smart clothes!
Ah, Alex!
Did you rest well?
Come along,
sit down.
I’ve already Erm… No. Then you must

ordered. What No, I don’t. let m e order
will you have? f or you.
G ar on!
I’m not
sure…
Oh, do you
speak French?
Une soupe
My cousin Oliv er’s
de moules, a vegetarian.
et un biftek avec
pomme f rites, Some sou p
to start, and
s’il vous pla t. Well, he doesn’t
then a steak.
know what he’s missing.
I’ve nev er met a
Would you like a drink?
boy who doesn’t
like steak.
Yeah,
a coke.
So, you went to

E ton. What hou se
were you in? I visited Eton once.
I remember a statue…
of a king, perhaps. That’s Henry VI,
The Hopgarden. It was just through who founded Eton.
the main gate… His statue’s in
college yard.
But you didn’t like

it there, did you?
Why not?
I didn’t like the

u nif orm, I didn’t like
the beaks and I didn’t
like the ru les…
always getting f ined

by the pop, and-
I’m af raid I don’t

understand a w ord
you’re saying.
Beaks are the

teachers. Yes, yes, No…
enou gh. And is that
P oppers are why you set f ire to that was just
kind of like the library? because I don’t
pref ects- like books.
7:05 PM
What’s this? Mussel soup.
I wo uld
Soupe have preferred
de moules. Heinz tomato.
What?
…Lo ve abo ut the 7:10 PM

Alps is the feeling
of solitude,
and quiet.
It’s unspo ilt by
people, especially
where the Academ y…
7:20 PM
…Co urse, I lo ve
B avaria as well, such
glorious fo rests
and m ountains.
I ski o n the
Berchtesgadener
often…
…Was in 7:30 PM
Barcelona fo r
the Festa de Gr cia.
The deco ratio ns were -
Alex, are yo u
all right? You look
very tired. Wo uld yo u
like to go to bed?
No , paintings
Mm m ? o h… Yes. We do n’t need to leave
are bo r-
Yes, I think until midday tomorrow.
I should… Yo u’ll have tim e fo r nnh!
a visit to the Louvre,
if yo u’d like that.
Would you like m e

to come up with yo u?
No …
Just tired, I’ll
be all right…
Mmm…
So tired…
Ah, here co m es o ur …Out like a light.

sleeping beauty… That sleeping drug
in his co ke seem s to
have do ne the trick.
So let’s begin.
It’s a cinch.
We’re all done. Very good, Mr Baxter.
He’s go t a go o d
Give m e yo ur opinion.
bo ne structure.
Ve ry fit.
Interesting
face.
The pierced
e ar was done
recently. Nothing
else to say, really.
We’re ready to
operate whenever
yo u give the word.
Goodbye, Doctor.
Very well. See yo u at the Academy.
Rhabillez-le!
POINT BLANC
ACADEMY, FRANCE
I’ll take yo u do wn
to m eet the director.
Yo ur luggage will be
bro ught fo r you.
We do n’t use the ski

jum p, it’s forbidden.
Com e down, now,
o ut o f the cold.
These are
classrooms.
You’ll see
them later.
Mind yo ur
step.
Thro ugh the

co urtyard.
Com e along,
Alex.
Here we are.
Ah, Alex.
Co m e in, sit do wn.
My nam e is Dr Grief.
I am very pleased
to m eet you and
to have yo u here.
You think so ?
The building was designed
by a Frenchman who was
Nice place. certainly the wo rld’s
wo rst architect.
This was his only

co m m issio n. When the
first o wners m o ved in,
they had him shot.
There is no way do wn
There are still into to wn. The skiing
quite a fe w people seaso n is over, and
here with guns. the descent is no w
too dangerous.
That’s very kind,

but I do n’t really
want to be here. So
if yo u’ll just tell m e There is o nly the
ho w I can get do wn helicopter… And that
into town, I’ll catch will take yo u fro m here
the next train ho m e. o nly when I say so .
All the bo ys here

com e from fam ilies
o f great wealth Yo u are here,
and importance, Alex, because yo u
like yo urself. have disappointed
yo ur parents.
We co uld very
You were expelled
easily beco m e a target
fro m scho o l, yo u have
fo r terrorists, so
had difficulties with
the guards are fo r
the police-
your protection.
Your attitude is
as displeasing as yo ur
appearance. It is our
jo b to turn yo u into a bo y
That wasn’t o f who m yo ur parents
my fault! can be proud.
I’m happy
as I am .
That is o f
no relevance.
Do n’t interrupt F o r the first

the Do cto r! couple of
weeks here,
you will
assimilate.
I’ll what?
Assimilate.
To conform … There are currently
to adapt… six bo ys here.
To become like.
I heard that!
Yo u will m eet and
spend tim e with them ,
with o ppo rtunities fo r
sport, socializing
and reading in our
excellent library.
Yo u will learn
our methods.
I want to call
m y m um and dad.
Yo u will be
Telepho nes are polite to the
forbidden. So are assistant directo r!
personal computers,
so yo u can’t e-mail
them either. Yo u m ay write
a letter, if yo u like. Up yo urs.
You should know, Alex,

that Mrs S tellenbo sch
has wo rked with m e no w No.
fo r twenty-six years. Weightlifting.
When I m et her,
she had been Miss
South Africa five
years in a ro w.
A beauty
contest?
Bedtim e is ten o ’clo ck

We enfo rce
sharp. We do no t to lerate
strict discipline
bad language. Yo u will
at Po int Blanc.
not co ntact the o utside wo rld
witho ut o ur permission.
Yo u will not attem pt to leave.
Yo u will do as yo u are to ld
instantly, witho ut
hesitatio n.
Finally, yo u are Go no w, and wait

permitted only in outside. So meone
certain p arts of We can arrange
will be alo ng to
the building. that too.
collect you.
Yo u will rem ain We will m ake

o n the ground and yo u into what yo ur
first floors only, parents want,
where the bedro o m s Alex.
and classro o m s
are lo cated.
The seco nd and

third flo o rs, and the
basem ent, are out of Maybe they
don’t want me
bounds. This is fo r at all.
yo ur own safety.
Unpleasant bo y…
A few days… faster
Ahem.
than usual…
Gem ini Pro ject…

Clo sing do wn…
They’ll shoot
yo u if they catch yo u
listening at do o rs.
I’m James Sprintz.

They to ld m e to sho w
you around.
I go t thro wn
Tho ught it was the
Alex Friend. o ut o f a scho o l in
best thing that ever
D sseldorf.
happened to m e…
Until m y dad sent
me here.
S o what did you
do to get sent to
this dum p?
What do es
He’s a banker.
yo ur dad do ?
Plays the m o ney
m arkets. He loves
m o ney and has
lots o f it.
I got expelled
from Eton.
Hang o n…
Do es this place
really o nly have
Yeah. Co m e o n,
six bo ys in it?
Dieter Sprintz? this way.
It co uld ho use
“The Hundred Millio n
sixty.
Do llar Man”?
Yeah. Do n’t
ask m e why.
Anyway, this
is the l ibrary.
And that’s
Tom and Hugo.
Pro bably do ing
extra maths
or som ething.
Creeps.
I do n’t
Yo u kno w, when I cam e smoke.
here they said all the bo ys
had pro blem s. I tho ught it
was go ing to be wild. Do Typical.
yo u have a cigarette?
Living room.
A co uple o f days
Dining room.
ago I go t into a fight
with two o f them , just
fo r the hell o f it. They
beat the snot out of m e
and went straight back
to their studies!
Anyway, I get here

and it’s like a museum
or monastery o r…
I do n’t kno w.
Everyo ne’s quiet,

hard-wo rking, boring.
It’s like Grief sucked
their brain s out Weird.
with a straw.
Yeah.
Do n’t try playing

snooker, by the way.
The ro o m ’s o n a slant
and all the balls
ro ll to the side.
Com e on, the

bedrooms are Here you go.
up here. I’ll sho w They’ve put yo u
you yours. next to m e.
Do yo u have
the key?
No need.
The do o rs can’t
be locked.
POINTBLANCGN_65-128_81121 28/06/2007 3:38 pm Page 65
Don’t worry about not

being able to lock up,
though. We’re all stuck
here with nowhere to go,
so nobody bothers
stealing anything. Hugo Vries, the boy
in the library, used to
nick anything he could
get his hands on.
But not
any m ore? Hugo’s another
of Grief’s success
stories. He’s flying
hom e next week.
Funny, though…
his father owns
diamond mines. Why
bother s hoplifting when
you c an afford to buy
the whole shop?
You can put posters

up, if you like. They say
If you
it’s im portant that you
haven’t brought
“express yourself”.
anything with you,
Miss Stomach-bag
will take you to
Grenoble.
Miss Stomach-bag? No.

Just m e.
Does everyone
c all her that?
Alex, this is a
They said
deeply weird place.
they want us to
I’ve been to a lot of
assimilate.
schools, because I’ve
been thrown out of
a lot of schools…
but this is the pits.
That’s their word for

it, sure. But this place…
they c all it a school,
but it’s m ore like being I thought
in a prison. You saw they were here
the guards ? to protect us.
Then you’re a
bigger idiot than
I thought.
There are
I’ve been here about thirty of them !
six weeks, and hardly For seven kids!
even had any lessons.
They have music evenings,
and discussion evenings,
and they try to get m e
to read, but otherwis e
That’s not
I’ve been left on
protection, that’s
m y own.
intimidation.
S orry,
I shouldn’t lose Yeah, but for
my temper. It’d jus t be how long?
nice to think someone’s
finally arrived that
I can relate to.
M aybe you c an.
S ee you later,
Alex.
No.
Too soon.
Hmmm.
Dinner already?
Tim e flies…
What on
earth…?
Stehen
bleiben!
Halt!
Hey, don’t s hoot!
Yikes!
Yeah,
well…
I forgot.
I heard the bell go The dining room
and was on m y way to is downstairs.
the dining room. Now run along.
Alex! What are

you doing here? The
director told you the
upper floors are
forbidden!
They’re all
fourteen…
Most of them have
divorced parents…
All of them
have wealthy
parents…
From all
over the world,
all successful in
different areas…
…But so what?
What m akes them
different from other Yeah,
kids like them ? yeah…
Will you be What’s the m atter,

joining us for Latin Latin too advanc ed
after lunc h, Alex? for you? Perhaps you’d
prefer your times
tables, that s hould
be eas y enough!
Get lost. Ha ha ha!
I thought you were

supposed to be a hard Com e on, let’s go
rebel, Cassian. But look and get som e fresh
at you, sucking up to a air. I feel sick.
pathetic old man!
Don’t you talk about

the doc tor like that!
He’s a genius!
This way.
Alex! Are
you coming?
It’s gone…
What’s gone?
…I don’t k now.
Nothing.
My eyes
m ust be playing
tricks on m e.
What the…?
Why did they build Oh, the ski-jum p

this thing, anyway, was here before Grief
if we c an’t use it? bought the academ y.
S om eone planned
to turn it into a winter
sports training centre,
but they ran out of
m oney or som ething.
It’s never been us ed.
Because inside that

Alex, let m e ask building, I c an’t help
you som ething. feeling that som eone’s Yeah, I know
listening to every what you m ean.
word I s ay.
What do you think
of this place?
Why do we have
to talk out here?
I think you
were right the
first day we m et.
This place is creepy.
You c an fly the

S o how would you
helicopter?
feel about getting
out of here?
It’s freez ing!
No.
But I’m definitely

leaving.
I can trust you,

Alex, bec aus e you’ve
only just got here.
H e has n’t got
to you yet.
Are you going
to run away?
Who needs to run?

I’m going to ski.
But if you stay,

you’ll end up like the I know Grief says
others. “Model students”… it’s too dangerous.
How appropriate. It’s But he would, wouldn’t he?
like they’re all m ade Yeah, it’s all black runs
out of plasticene! all the way down, and
there’ll be tons
of moguls-
Well, I’m not going
to let him do that to m e.
Won’t the s now Only further down.

have melted? Ski I’ve been right down
season’s over. to the bottom . I did
it the firs t week
I was here.
All the slopes run

into a s ingle valley,
La Vall e De Fer.
You can’t ski as far
as the town, because But if I c an get that
there’s a train track far, I reckon I can walk
that cuts across. the res t of the way.
A train to D s s eldorf.
If father tries to s end
And then what? me back here, I’ll go to
my Mum in England. And
if she doesn’t want m e,
I’ve got friends in
Paris and Berlin.
All I know is , I’ve got

to split. If you know
what’s good for you,
you’ll com e too.
Nor do I. Grief’s M aybe. But I’ll

I don’t have
got them all locked find them . and
any skis.
up som ewhere. then I’m out
of here.
Com e with
m e, Alex.
On the third
floor?
No… I’m s orry. Well, that’s

You go, and good your lookout.
luck to you. But
I’ll stick it out
a bit longer.
I don’t want to
break m y neck.
I’ll s end you
a postcard.
Have you
ever wondered No. I suppose
There’s a basement
what goes on it’s where the
as well. And Dr Grief’s
up there? guards live.
room s… I wonder if
he sleeps with Miss
Stom ach-bag?
Im agine that,
Darth V ader and
King Kong!
T wo whole floors ,
just for them?
Ha ha! Gross!
Locked, but…?
Hmmm…
…Tim e for som e

Beethoven.
…So kalt dass einem

alles ABFRIERT…
Das Stimmt…
Unlocked.
Huh.
Brrr!
Freezing
out th- Come along.
James…?
*Kof! Kof!*
But… Where…?
That’s the
only door…
…Or i s it?
Damn.
M etal?
That’s weird.
Sind wir
bald fertig?
ja, nur noch

ein z immer.
Ich bin froh,

wenn feierabend ist.
A lex, what are you

doing ? It’s three
in the morning… Why
are you dressed?
I… I thought I
heard something.
Are you alrig ht?
Alex…?
‘ Course I am.
What’s the
matter?
But I thought… …Nothing.

I mean, you haven’t…?
Good night,
James.
What?
See you in
the morning.
Morning, Alex. You tell

me! I…
So what was all that
about last night?
…I don’t know.
I must have had Have you thought
a bad dream. any more about your
plan to go skiing?
We’re not
allowed
to ski, A lex. No, I mean…
You know that. escaping.
If I ran away, my dad would

Oh, that.
What? only send me back. I might
I’ve changed
as well g rin and bear it.
my mind.
Anyway, the snow’s too thin
to get all the way down the
mountain.
Good morning, M rs Stellenbosch!
Good morning, boys.

Today’s lessons start with Yes, M rs Stellenbosch.
history, in the T ower
R oom in ten minutes.
Today we’re looking

at the life of a very
interesting man…
A dolf Hitler.
You’re actually
going to lessons?
James, I hope you’re

going to join us?
Why not?
I’m stuck here,
and there isn’t much
else to do. M aybe
I should have gone
to lessons
before.
You shouldn’t be so
negative, A lex. You’re
wasting your time.
…There might be other

fireplaces further up.
M mf!
A nd if there’s
a chimney…
A-h a.
I thought so.
*Kof! Kof*
Hello, third floor.

Now let’s get a good-
-Look at you.
But…
This is the
g round floor!
How can I be
here if I just left
that floor?!
A window
where there should
be doors! So I a m
on the third floor
after all…
No, wait…
This is different.
…But it’s an exact

replica of the
ground floor!
So Why keep it
secret? It doesn’t
make any sense.
downstairs,
Now, then… this would be
the library.
Oh!
Even the books

are the same…
Is it all
like this?
Wait, this So you can

is new. sit in one
and watch
the other.
It can’t be this
library, because I ’m
not in the picture…
It must be the one
But why?
downstairs.
What’s the
point?
James’ room…
exactly
the same.
What about
mine?
Oh, no.
No, wait…
The discman,
my suitcase…
Why not?
What are they
waiting for?
They’re not here.

There’s nothing
personal.
…You have
completed the work.
I am g rateful to
you, M r Baxter.
Thank you,
Dr Grief.
So, I hope you’re Entirely.

pleased with the I saw him as soon
last operation. as the bandag es
came off.
You have done

extremely well.
I always was
the best. But that’s
what yo u paid fo r.
Fo r m y wo rk, yes.
My silence is
ano ther m atter.
And while we’re on

that subject, m aybe we
sho uld talk abo ut m y
final payment?
Yo u have already Of course,

been paid one million Dr Grief. But I
Am erican do llars, tho ught yo u m ight
Mr Baxter. like to co nsider a
little … bonus.
I was thinking
ano ther quarter
million. Given the size
o f yo ur Gemini Project,
it’s no t so m uch to ask.
Then I’ll retire to

Spain and yo u’ll never
hear fro m m e again,
We had an
I promise.
agreement.
I will never hear

from you ag ain…
Yes.
Yes, I think that

is a good idea.
This is Grief.
I have so m e
g arbag e in the
o perating theatre
that needs to be
rem o ved. Info rm the
disposal team.
What the…?
I know
that bed…
Oh, m y Go d.
Paris! She
drugged me!
Hier! Ja, in der

w scherei!
kannst du dir das
nicht denken?
Was hat der

da Gem acht?
Gro und flo o r,

ground floor…
o f co urse,
it’s “rez-de-
chauss e”.
Hier ist der m ll.
“R”!
The library?
Co m e o n, But where…
hurry up…
Very clever.
This entire
Well, well.
building is a
bo x o f tricks…
I sho uld have

guessed.
…But I’ve go t
a few o f m y own.
LIVERPOOL STREET
We’ve heard
from Alex. He sent the panic
signal fro m his
po rtable satellite
transm itter this
m o rning, at 1027
hours his tim e.
We have to
pull him out.
He sent the
I wonder. Al ex has been signal, Alan!
at Po int Blanc fo r just
one week, yes? And we
kno w he didn’t want to
go in the first place. That m eans
he’s either found
so m ething o r he’s
in danger. Either
way, we can’t just
sit back and do
nothing!
I wasn’t
That’s no t
suggesting that.
the po int. Alex
is special.
Alex m ay no Yo u seem to be
lo nger be 100% fo rm ing quite an
reliable. attachment to Alex,
Mrs Jo nes. Yo u have
children o f yo ur
own, do n’t yo u?
We can’t go
blundering into
Po int Blanc witho ut
firm info rm atio n. Alex m ay have the
proof yo u need
to connect Grief
This is Franc e we’re with the deaths o f
talking abo ut. If we’re Roscoe and
seen to be invading their Ivano v.
territory they’ll kick
up o ne hell o f a fuss.
Besides, Grief
has bo ys fro m so m e o f
the wealthiest fam ilies in
the world. We go storming
in and the who le thing co uld
blo w up into a major
international And he m ay not.
incident.
And if Alex
co ntacts us
again?
…
Then we’ll
go in.
Assum ing he’s

no t already dead.
A twenty-four
hour delay sho uldn’t
m ake m uch difference.
And it co uld
We’ll put an SAS unit
play to o ur
o n standby. If Alex i s
favour if he’s
in tro uble, we’ll find
m anaged to stir
o ut so o n eno ugh.
things up.
Fo rce Grief to
sho w his hand.
POINT BLANC ACADEMY

24 HOURS LATER
Hey, Alex! Co m ing to

Latin this m o rning?
Latin’s a waste
o f tim e.
Is that what
yo u think?
You’re the o ne
who ’s wasting
his time, Alex.
Whatever.
Yo u enjo y it.
Co m e o n, there
must be a way to
o pen it fro m this
side, to o …
Hmmm.
A raised butto n…
Wo ah.
S for “sous-sol”…
the basem ent.
What the-?
S o what’s
in here…?
That’s Tom!
But I just saw him
at breakfast…
James!
Co m e o n,
come on…
Alex! What are

you doing here?
Shhh, keep yo ur
vo ice down! We haven’t
go t m uch tim e… What
happened to you?
They cam e the

night befo re l ast.
Dragged m e o ut o f bed
and into the l ibrary.
There’s a lift-
Behind the
armour, I kno w.
What did they say? Nothing. No o ne
would tell m e what
was go ing o n, they just
threw m e in here!
Yo u’ve been here fo r

All o f us. I do n’t
two days? But I just
kno w how or why,
saw yo u upstairs,
but that’s what’s go ing
having breakfast!
do wn. I’ve been here
fo r months.
They’ve m ade I’m Paul,

duplicates o f us, by the way.
dude. Paul Roscoe.
Roscoe?
Are yo u Michael
Roscoe’s son?
Ho w did yo u get
down here, Alex?
What’s go ing on?
Yeah, why?
…No thing.
All right,
My nam e isn’t
listen carefully.
Alex Friend, it’s Alex
Rider. I was sent here
by MI6. And everything’s
go ing to be o k. They’re
sending peo ple in
to free you all.
Yo u’re… Dude, what are we

a spy? waiting fo r? Let’s No!
get outta here!
So rt o f.
I suppo se.
Yo u’ve go t to
wait. There’s
no way do wn
the mountain.
I’ll com e
bac k, I-
S tay here fo r no w -prom ise.

and I’ll co m e back
with help, I promise.
It’s the only way.
But I can’t-
You have to . Trust me,

Paul. I’m go ing to lo ck
yo u back in, so no bo dy will
kno w I’ve been here. But
it wo n’t be fo r long.
Alex, wake up.

Dr Grief wishes
to speak to you.
You have caused

us a gr eat deal
of inconvenience…
Alex Rider.
Oh,
there are
microphones
concealed in the
cells. We hear d
everything.
You have wasted our

tim e and m oney. For that
you will be punished.
It is not a
punishm ent you
will survive.
You can’t
do anything
to m e.
I know everything.
I know about the Gemini
Project, and I’ve alr eady
told MI6 what I know.
They’r e on their way
here right now.
If MI6 does com e,

Your friends m ay be
they will f ind nothing
on their way, but I do not
wr ong. And you will
think you told them anything.
have disappear ed.
We sear ched your luggage
and f ound the Discman
transmitter.
It can only
send a signal,
not a m essage. “I am s o sorry,
Mister British
Agent, but Alex
ran away.
My m en are looking for him , of

cour se, but I f ear he has died a
cold and lingering death on the
m ountainside. Such a tragedy.”
Even if they d o
kill m e, it will m ake
no difference.
N obody will guess

what I have done her e.
The Gem ini Project will
succeed. It has alr eady
succeeded. The wor ld
now belongs to m e.
Hmmm.
Heh
You m ean it
belongs to the heh heh.
kids you’ve hir ed to
act as doubles.
“Hir ed”?
You have no
i dea what you’ve
seen, do you?
Your little m ind

cannot begi n to
encom pass what I
have achieved!
When you go scr eam ing

Listen carefully,
to your death, you will
Alex, and I shall
under stand that you
descr ibe to you the
could never hope to
Gemini Project.
beat a m an such as I.
P er haps that will m ake
dying easier for you.
In f act, I was one of its When you said

I am from
foremost biochemists. wer e going
South Africa.
to ki ll m e, I
didn’t r ealise
you m eant by
boring me
to death.
The anim als in

this building ar e
souvenirs of m y
tim e ther e, all
shot on safari.
From the University
I still m iss m y of Johannesbur g, via
countr y. It is the the Cyclops Institute
m ost beautiful in P r etor ia, I eventually
on the planet. becam e Minister
for Science.
Enough.
Let him have his

little joke. Ther e
will be plenty of pai n
for him later.
Once, Alex,
Under the laws the r est of the
the white people
wor ld called Apartheid, black
of South Afr ica r uled
people could not live near white
everything.
people. They could not marry white
people. They had separ ate toi lets,
restaurants, bar s… They had
to carry passes, and wer e
tr eated like animals.
Yeah. It was
disgusting.
N o!
It was perfect!
But as tim e
passed, I saw
it would be
short-lived.
The r est of the wor ld

was ganging up on us.
I f or esaw the day that a
criminal like N elson
M andela could
take power !
How weak and pathetic

the wor ld was becom ing…
determined to give away
a great countr y like m ine
to people who had no
i dea how to r un it.
Oh, gr eat.
Another
wannabe Wor ld
conqueror.
I looked ar ound and saw

that the people of Am er ica
and Eur ope had becom e stupid On the contrary,
and weak. The f all of the Berlin it has been the am bition
Wall only m ade things wor se. of very few m en to r ule
Soon, even Russia was inf ected the entir e wor ld. Hitler ,
with the sam e disease. Napoleon, Stalin… G r eat
m en, remarkable m en!
And I thought to m yself ,

how m uch stronger the
wor ld would be if I r uled it.
How m uch better.
Men like me!

What do you know about

nuclear transplantation, Mere child’s play!
Alex? Or “cloni ng”, to Ten year s bef or e Dolly,
I per fected the dr eam But who did you
use the laym an’s ter m .
of every biochem ist clone? Not Mrs
on Ear th… Stellenbosch,
I hope…
You m ean
like Dolly
the Sheep? Human cloning!
You f ool. I cloned myself!
The stupid
r ules hampering As minister for science
other scientists I was able to use political
did not apply in prisoners as hum an gui nea
South Af r ica! pi gs for m y experim ents!
After twenty years,

I was f inally r eady.
I stole a ver y lar ge

am ount of m oney
from the governm ent
and m oved here.
And soon af ter ,

I cloned m yself - Sixteen exact
not just once, but copi es of m e, with
sixteen times! my br ains, my am bition,
my determ ination!
Wer e they all as

m ad as you, too-
I waited fourteen
year s f or the babies
to becom e boys.
Eva her e was an

interrogator for the
South Af r ican Secr et P olice.
She cam e with m e, to look
after m y children.
You’ve met
som e of them .
Childr en of par ents

Tom , Hugo, with great wealth or
Cassian… power ar e of ten… tr oubled.
and James! Father s with no time for their
But why? sons, sons who despi se their
par ents… These wer e
m y tar gets.
I wanted what they

had… Or will have.
Hugo Vries will

inherit a fifty per cent
stake in the G lobal
Diam ond m arket.
Tom McMorin’s
m other owns
Joe Canterbury’s
newspaper s all
f ather is at the
over the wor ld.
P entagon, his m other
a senator.
What better star t

for a life in politics?
P er haps even President
of the USA?
Fif teen of the wor ld’s

m ost promising childr en
cam e her e to P oint Blanc, From their arrival,
and wer e r eplaced the boys wer e kept
with sur gically alter ed under obser vati on.
clones of m yself.
You r eally have

been busy, Alex.
Baxter was a
Har ley Str eet plasti c M y doubles
sur geon with gam bling watched their
debts. It was his job tar gets to lear n
to oper ate on m y their m annerism s
Sur gically alter ed? fam ily. To alter their and habits, even
That m an, Baxter… skin colour, f aces, their voi ces.
even their bodi es.
But any par ent

would know it Wrong!
wasn’t their son,
even if he looked
the sam e! These ar e busy people,
with no time for their
childr en. They sent their
boys her e because they
wanted them to change!
Nature is also on our He m ay return hom e

side. Dur ing an absence taller, fatter, thinner…
of six weeks, a f our teen- even his voi ce will have
year -old boy can change changed. And par ents
remarkably. will sim ply say:
M y, how you’ve
grown!
R oscoe did not believe

what he saw. Neither did
that idiot R ussian, General
Ivanov. They did not guess
what r eally happened, but
they knew something
was wr ong.
But R oscoe
noticed, didn’t he? Still, two out of
That’s why you sixteen is not such
had him killed. a catastr ophe.
Gemini has been an

outstanding success. Tom orrow’s first lesson
The last of the childr en is double bi ology. My childr en
will return to their r ecently asked to se a human
fam ilies in a few dissection. Tom orrow,
day’s tim e. I will grant their wish.
Of cour se,
I m ust di spose of the
originals. They will
die pai nlessly.
Throw him in
one of the high
security cells!
But not you,
Alex R ider.
We shall not
use anaestheti c. I
expect it will be very
painful for you.
Yeah, r ight.
Not unless I could
take him with me.
Take his belt,

shoelaces and
ever ything in his
pockets. Herr Grief
suspects the boy m ay
attem pt suicide.
This is all
poi ntless, you
know! MI6 will be
here any minute!
1100 HOURS Any m inute…

1300 HOURS
1500 HOURS
1700 HOURS
2000 HOURS
2300 HOURS
…
…So m uch for MI6.
0200 HOURS
3… 2… 1…
C ool.
Don’t wor r y,
boys, I’ll be back
for you…
The laundry.
Hmmm…
That gives m e
First floor…
an i dea.
wher e am I?
All still her e,

Lucky they didn’t

bother repairing
the wi ndow…
…Ther e. Not bad f or

an ironing board.
Black runs all

the way down, eh?
Well, first tim e

for everything…
TWO MINUTES LATER
He’s improvised I want two m en

som e kind of sleigh on snowm obi les
or toboggan. Perhaps to f ollow him down.
he’s not such an N ow!
idiot af ter all.
What about the unit

at the f oot of the
mountain? Whatever
he’s using, he’ll be
unable to cr oss the
railway line into the
La V all e De Fer.
True. Ver y well,

have our m en in
the van r eady the
machine gun.
Alex R ider will

be a sitting duck.
And I will see

both of you in m y
office tom orrow
m orning.
I would have liked

to watch him die, but
never m ind. Let us
r etur n to bed.
Wooooo- hoo!
What the…?
Uh oh…
Woooah!
Feuer!
folge
Ihm!
Jawohl!
Wooooah…
Mmmf!
Yeah! Ha ha!
Woah!
Warte… nicht
schie ssen bis er
n her ist!
hier Ko mmt
der junge.
La Val l e De Fer…
…And there are

the train tracks
James mentio ned.
Feuer!
Woah!
Verflucht!
Here goes
nothing!
Wooo-hoo!
Ha ha! So long-
-Oh, no .
GRENOBLE HOSPITAL
0500 HOURS
Frau Stellenbosch?
Ich ha be gute
nachrichten
f r sie…
I a m Eva Stellenbosch,
assistant directo r o f
Point Blanc Academy.
I understand o ne o f
o ur students, Alex
Friend, was bro ught
here this mo rning.
Ah, yes. Take a seat,

Mrs Stellenbo sch.
The do cto r will be
o ut in a mo me nt.
*Sniff*
Madame
Stellenbosch?
Please remain He bro ke bo th arms,

seated, Madame. his collarbone and o ne
o f his legs. His skull was
fractured. we operated as
so o n as we co uld, but there
was massive internal
bleeding and he
went into shock.
Yo u must under sta nd,

Alex tried to snowboard
do wn the mo untain at night.
He co llided with a train
at high speed… I’m sorry, Madame.
Alex Friend is dead.
I… I must
inform his family.
Is he Swiss?
No … no , he is
English. His father,
Sir David… I’ll have
to tell him.
Thank yo u, Do cto r.
I’m sure yo u did
everything yo u co uld.
SAINT-GEOIRS AIRPORT,
GRENOBLE
GRENOBLE HOSPITAL
You know, you’re

lucky to be alive.
Yo u sho uld have at least
broken something.
Smithers’ ski suit

pro tected me. And the
fence sort of caught me
o n the way do wn, even if
it was barbed wire…
Let’s sta rt with

the big questio n.
I called for help
two days ago.
Where were you?
I’m sorry, Alex. But

sto rming the Academy co uld
have got you and all the other
bo ys killed. We had to mo ve
in slowly, wo rk o ut what
was go ing o n.
Tha t wa s my
Ho w do yo u think we next questio n.
found yo u so quickly?
So why do you
want Grief to think
I’m dead?
Fro m what yo u’ve

to ld us he plans to
replace fifteen boys,
yes? And all tho se bo ys
are prisoners at
the academy.
If Dr Grief tho ught

yo u’d survived, he wo uld
immediately kill every one
o f tho se bo ys. If we’re go ing
Since we got your to take him by surprise,
signal we’ve had people our only hope is to make
in the mo unta ins. When believe you’re dead.
the snowmobiles
chased yo u, they heard
and followed you
do wn o n skis.
“Take him by
When yo u fell
surprise”?
off the train, they
radioed for help.
And wha t’s- oh.
no. No way.
Yo u kno w the building. Forget it! I’m no t

The library, the secret going back up there,
lift, the guard po sitio ns, I almost got killed
the priso n cells- trying to get away!
We’ve assembled
an attack squad.
tha t’s who followed
yo u last night. They’ll set
o ff to night, as so o n
a s it’s dark.
Are you mad?
They’re armed,
experienced and ready.
there’s just o ne thing
they don’t have.
You’ll be looked
after. You’ll be
completely safe-
No!
All right. I can

understand your
feelings. But there’s
so meo ne I want
Hello, C ub.
you to meet.
Ho w’s it go ing?
Wolf! What are

you doing here?
Alex has do ne a
very good job so far.
But there are still fifteen
young prisoners at Po int
Blanc, and our priority
is to save them.
They called me in to
clear up the mess
you left behind.
So rry I didn’t
bring yo u flowers
and grapes.
So where were
you when I was
being chased do wn the
mo untain by homicidal
snowmobile riders?
Alex says there
are about thirty guards
in and aro und the scho o l.
The only chance tho se

Yo u seemed to boys have is for an SAS
be do ing fine o n unit to break in.
your own.
And tha t unit will Where do es Alex knows the scho o l,

be co mmanded the boy come the po sitio n o f the guards
by Wolf. into this? and the lo catio n o f the
prison cells. He ca n
lead yo u to the lift-
No.
He can tell
us everything we
need to kno w right
here and now.
We’re going in on
skis, and there might
be bl ood. I can’t
waste one of my men
holding his hand!
I don’t need to
have my hand held!
She’s right,
I know Point Blanc
better than any of
you. I’ve been there…
Besides,
and got out again,
one of the
no thanks to you.
boys up there
is my friend.
I promis ed I’d
help him.
How? By I can look

getting killed? after myself!
Enough!
Alex is right, he can

look after himself Wolf, I hold
perfectly well. you personally
responsible
for his safety.
So he’s going with you,

tonight. He’ll lead you
in to the Academy, but
take no further part
in the operation.
Y eah,
I-
No, hang on…

TWO KILOMETRES
NORTH OF POINT BLANC
Guards?
Two patrolling.
One on the roof. Then let’s take
him out firs t.
Sweet dreams.
One down. Sure. Onl y about

twenty-nine to go…
Move out.
Unh!
Where’s this lift?
The l ibrary.
Follow me.
Quite a pl ace.
Right, let’s go
and get the kids -
No, wait!
All right. Y ou,

What? Why? get down there and
s ecure that corridor.
If we’re found, it’s the
firs t place Grief
will look.
There’s a guard
down there, too.
You’ll have to
knock him out.
I jus t remembered…
The cells are

w ired for s ound.
If you break the kids out, Sir!
Grief will know.
We should In Grief’s private

deactivate the rooms. They’re on
al arm. Any idea the other s ide-
where it is?
Eindringlinge!
Al arm!
Get down!
Uhh…
Look out!
There goes the
More guards!
element of surprise…
Switch to
standard
*Kof*
weapons!
*Kof*
Find somewhere Wait, give

to hide! You got us me a gun!
in, now leave the
rest to us!
No! I’ve got

orders ! Now find
somewhere s afe,
*Kof! Kof!*
and we’ll come get
you later!
Wol f…!
halt!
Wer ist das?
Only me.
Oof!
Was…?
Ein junge?
…Just a boy.
That’s right…
*Kof*
Ugh, I hope thes e
windows open…
Someone’s in
the chopper…
What the…?
It’s Grief!
Wolf, come quick!

Dr Grief’s-
-Escaping.
Um.
Hello again.
You didn’t die!
Y ou brought them here!

You ruined everything! And this is mine.
That’s…
My j ob…
Is that the best

you can do?
Pathetic little boy.
Alex!
Unh!
Aaah!
Wolf!
I’m… Ok…
Kevlar vest…
Came looking… For you…

Gl ad I found you…
Grief! He’s
getting away!
I’m not letting

him get away!
Alex, no!
You can’t-
Sorry, Wolf!
He’s not escaping
after all this!
You can’t… Fire it.

It’s jammed…
No, no, no, no!
Unless…
‘Scuse me!
End of the
line, Grief!
Cons ider
yours el f…
…Sleighed!
It seems we
owe you a debt You don’t owe
of thanks. me anything.
LIVERPOOL STREET
TWO DAYS LATER
Rubbish. You have

changed the very future
of this planet. Grief’s…
offspring… could have
caused man y problems.
But we have all

fifteen of them under
lock and key, now. They were
traced and arrested by the
intelligence services of each
country where they lived.
Of course, we’ve
hushed it u p. Cloning
sh eep is one thing, but
human beings…!
How’s W olf?
Still in hospital,
but the doctors
say he’ll make a
complete recovery
The families don’t in a few week s.
want publicity, they’re
just glad to have their We had on e fatality,
sons back. And you’ve the man you saw shot
already signed the by Dr Grief. Wolf and
Official Secrets Act, another man were injured.
so I’m sure we can trust Otherwise, it was a
you to be discreet. complete success.
You left me there.

I called for help and you
didn’t come. Grief was
going to kill me, but I used to think
you didn’t care. being a spy would be
exciting and speci al.
But you just used me.
In a way, you’re as bad
as Gri ef. You’ll do
anything to get
what you want.
It doesn’t matter.
I’ve had enough.
I don’t want to
be a spy any more.
If you ask me again,
I’ll refuse.
That’s not true!

There were
I know you think
difficulties…
you can black mai l
me, but that won’t
work any more.
I know too much.
Well, I want to go back

to school. Next time, you
can do it without me.
He’ll be back.
He’s too g ood at the job.

It’s in his blood.
You really
Most schoolboys
think so?
dream of being a spy.
Alex is a spy who dreams
of being a sch oolboy.
CHELSEA
Jack? I’m back…

What’s for lunch?
Oh, Alex!
I thought you’d
only just gone
out again.
The sch ool called

a few minutes ago.
S omeone called Mr Bray
wants to see you at
three o’clock.
Bray’s the
h eadmaster. he probably wants
to see me about my No, I’ll have
absen ces again. something when
I get back.
S ee you later!
It’s twenty to What about your

three now. I’d lunch? S hall I make
better get going. you a sandwich?
BROOKLAND SCHOOL
You again!
Hello, Bernie.
On your way to
see Mr Bray?
I’ll be back at fi ve
Yeah.
to lock up. Make sure
you’re out by then.
Ok.
S ee you, Bernie!
He never told m e
he was going to be
here today.
But then, he never

tells me anything!
Come in!
You wanted
to see me?
Oh, yes. S it down,

Very much. Alex.
…Not just once,

but sixteen times…
…We have all

fifteen of them
under lock
and key…
…You again…
…Thought you’d only

just gone out…
I’ve been looking What are you doing

forward to this. here? It’s all over.
The Gemini Project
is finished. You might as
well turn yourself in,
you need h elp.
There’s only on e thing Your father was a test-tube!

I need, and that’s to You’re a freak, handmade in the
see you dead. Alps like a cuck oo clock !
You killed What are you going to do,

my fath er! take my place? You wouldn’t
last a week. You’ve got
“fake” written all over you!
We could have
had everything!
We could have I don’t care what
had the wh ole happens to me now… As
world! long as you’re dead!
Come back here!

The gas pipes…

Stop! Stop
shooting!
You’ll-
Unh…
Where are you

going, Alex?
Ha ha ha!
Oh, no… There’s

nowhere left to
run, Alex!
Come out
here and die
like a man !
Didn’t they
tell you?
I’m too young
to die!
Nnngh…
*Kof*
*Kof*
Up here!
*Kof*
Quickly!
Hang on!
We’re coming!
Come on,
quickly!
Get in!
I’ve g ot you,
I’ve got you!
What’s your
n ame, son?
*Kof*
Alex Rider…
…Who else?
THE END
Collect all the Alex Rider books
978-1-84428-092-6 978-1-84428-093-3 978-1-84428-094-0
978-1-84428-095-7 978-0-7445-7051-9 978-0-7445-8324-3
978-1-4063-1039-9 978-1-4063-1698-8
Check out www.alexrider.com!
POINTBLANC_GN_©page_81121.indd 176 5/3/10 14:41:39

ANTHONY HOROWITZ (BA/Neilsen Author of the

Year 2007) is one of the most popular children’s writers working
today. His hugely successful Alex Rider series has sold over ten million
copies worldwide and won numerous awards, including the Children’s
Book of the Year Award for ARK ANGEL at the 2006 British Book
Awards and the Red House Children’s Book Award for SKELETON KEY.
He scripted the blockbuster movie STORMBREAKER from his own
novel, and also writes extensively for TV, with programmes including
MIDSOMER MURDERS, POIROT and FOYLE’S WAR.
He is married to television producer Jill Green and lives
in London with his two sons, Nicholas and Cassian,
and their dog, Loser.
www.anthonyhorowitz.com
ANTONY JOHNSTON,
who wrote the script for this book,
has written more than a dozen other
graphic novels, including THE LONG
HAUL, JULIUS, and ROSEMARY’S
BACKPACK, and two monthly comics
series,WASTELAND and TEXAS
STRANGERS. He’s also penned several
miniseries, and more short stories than
he can remember. In addition to his
comics work, he writes novels, such as
FRIGHTENING CURVES (which won
the 2002 IPPY award for Best Horror)
and STEALING LIFE. Antony lives in
north-west England with the loves of
The artwork in this graphic novel his life: his partner Marcia, his dogs
is the work of two artists, KANAKO Connor and Rosie, and his iMac.
DAMERUM and YUZURU TAKASAKI, The iMac doesn’t have a name.
who collaborate on every illustration. www.antonyjohnston.com
Although living on opposite sides of the globe,
these Japanese sisters work seamlessly together
via the Internet.
Living and working in Tokyo, YUZURU
produced all the line work for these illustrations
using traditional means.The quality of her
draughtsmanship comes from years of honing her
skills in the highly competitive world of manga.
KANAKO lives and works out of her studio
in London. She managed and directed the project
as well as colouring and rendering the artwork
digitally using her wealth of knowledge in
graphic design.
www.manga-media.com
www.thorogood.net
POINTBLANCGN_1-64_81121:POINTBLANCGN_1-64_81121 31/1/11 14:04 Page 20
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters,

places and incidents are either the product of the
author’s imagination or, if real, are used fictitiously.
First published 2007 by Walker Books Ltd
87 Vauxhall Walk, London SE11 5HJ
Text and illustrations © 2007 Walker Books Ltd

Based on the original novel Point Blanc © 2001 Anthony Horowitz
Anthony Horowitz has asserted his moral rights.
Trademarks 2007 Stormbreaker Productions Ltd
Alex Rider™, Boy with torch Logo™, AR Logo™
All rights reserved
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data:
a catalogue record for this book is available
from the British Library
ISBN 978-1-4063-3668-9 (ePDF)
www.walkerbooks.co.uk

Point Blanc, The Graphic Novel (PDFDrive)

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

You might also like

Point Blanc, The Graphic Novel (PDFDrive)

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Point Blanc, The Graphic Novel (PDFDrive)

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

POINTBLANCGN_1-64_81121 1/6/07 2:50 PM Page 1

Helen, did you

Very good, sir.

You can’t wait

I told you, it’s not just you

You know Lucy Stiles

Hey, where are

Don’t look down.

What was that?

C rane operator, Who is that up there?

Hurry up, Alex…

Yeah, yeah. Just

…We have overlooked

But we are not resting

What about my Don’t worry, we’ve

Hang on, this isn’t

Oh, well don e. With

The Royal &

If I told you, Alex, Going up.

That’s just What on earth were

And you gave

R eally? Are you

Come on, Alex.

This is Michael J. Roscoe,

And very short-sighted,

It certainly seems to On the day R oscoe died,

Oh, we’d like to.

Well. I’m very

The day before

And an only child.

P aul was doing

Isn’t that where

It’s right on the

When he died, Then the German s

Dr Hugo Grief. There are only

But I can tell

And Michael R oscoe

Did they forget That’s not

R oscoe telephones me,

F rom this moment

You have one week to

they don’t allow

How will I get In the meantime,

POINT BLANC ACADEMY,

With two Nevertheless,

When is the final

Hmmm… No, Sprintz

Very soon, we’ll

The trouble is,

No, that’s the

Now, I’m told

And these are

Just press the

It conv erts the

There’s also a If you need help, just

I know what But you can’t hav e it!

Not too young

You see, it’s a small