084-Revenge of the Desert Phantom by Franklin W. Dixon

Author:Franklin W. Dixon [Dixon, Franklin W.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2011-08-07T15:12:16+00:00

Chapter 8

Rhino Power

Chet fired the cannon, wiping out a couple of palm trees at the edge of the open field.

"I told you I couldn't aim this thing. It's bouncing around all over the place!" he yelled.

"What do you want me to do? Stop?" Joe retorted frantically. "Just keep shooting! If you can't hit anything, you can at least scare 'em a little!"

Chet reloaded the miniature cannon as Joe zig-zagged across the open area to keep the rebel tanks from getting a good shot at them. The jeeps were already beginning to drop back, but the tanks were right on the Rhino's tail.

BOOM!!

Chet's cannon went off again, missing them by a mile. But the tanks returned the fire with better accuracy.

BOOM!! BOOOOOMMMM!

Two shells exploded in succession, one tearing a hole in the ground the size of a small crater not twenty feet from the Rhino.

"Use the smoke screen!" Frank yelled, ducking shell fragments.

Joe flipped a switch on the control panel. A second later, thick black smoke spewed from the exhaust pipe.

"I can't see anything!" Chet cried as the Rhino was enveloped by a dense cloud.

"Good!" Joe responded. "That means they can't see us either!"

With smoke still gushing from the exhaust pipe, Joe maneuvered the Rhino in crazy patterns around the grassy field, totally obscuring the vehicle in the cloud as well as throwing the rebels into a state of confusion. Exploding tank shells still flashed all around like lightning in a fog, but none were as close as the first two.

"All right, you've dazzled them enough!" Frank commanded. "Now let's get out of here before we're surrounded!"

"How does it look on the radar?" Joe called down to Niki's station before picking a direction.

"They're closing in on all sides except the north!" The African girl called back, "I see about twelve more coming from the east and west!"

"Then we go north!" Joe stated, realizing their only option was to head for the mountains. "Hold on to your hats, kids!"

He switched off the smoke screen and gunned the engines, aiming straight for a wall of jungle foliage at the north end of the field. The Rhino's steel horn penetrated the wall of brambles, and for a moment everyone held their breath, fearing they would get stuck. But the vehicle didn't stop. It plowed right through the jungle wall and soon was bulldozing its way over bushes, vines, and small trees.

Frank abandoned the machine gun and climbed down into the cockpit to check the radar screen.

"We'd better pray we make it to the mountains before the Totas catch up," he murmured to Niki, as they both stared at the little dots of light marking the encircling rebel forces.

The bleeps on the screen were closing in from three sides, but the young detective was mostly concerned about the tanks they'd left behind in the field. While the troop-loaded jeeps were no longer a threat, the tanks would be hot on their trail and gaining fast since the Rhino had already cleared a path into the jungle.

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