Dead of Winter - James Goss [61]
There was silence in the air. I realised the Doctor wanted Dr Bloom to tell him that everything was all right. That he’d wished his wife away and that… that he forgave him. I wondered then… what kind of man was he? What did he think people were really like?
Dr Bloom shook his head. ‘Has she gone?’ he asked, his eyes screwed shut.
The Doctor grabbed a blanket from the back of a chair, and threw it over the thing on the carpet. I tried not to hear the wet noise it made. ‘More… more or less,’ he said.
The Doctor rested a hand on Dr Bloom’s shoulder. ‘Johann, please… I had to. The psychic link. It’s broken now.’
Which is when Prince Boris cleared his throat. ‘Actually, no. You see, Doctor, I think you’ll find it’s just cleared the way for my link to the creature.’
‘What?’ The Doctor turned, gawping at him.
Prince Boris nodded. ‘I took over from Dr Bloom some time ago, but he and his wife were resisting my influence. Now he isn’t linked to it any more. I have you to thank for that.’
The Doctor just stood there.
I tugged his sleeve. ‘Monsieur,’ I said. ‘I’ve been trying to tell you!’
‘Ah,’ the Doctor nodded. ‘Always listen to children. Sorry, Maria. I’m sorry I didn’t have time for you. So… Boris. Are you evil?’
‘Not at all, my dear sir,’ chuckled Boris.
‘You just chuckled,’ groaned the Doctor. ‘Chuckling’s a dead giveaway in my books. Along with putting your hands on your hips and snogging another man’s wife.’ He stuck his hands in his pockets. ‘So…’ he said. ‘Let me get this right. I’ve just made a dreadful, terrible mistake, haven’t I?’
Prince Boris laughed. ‘Absolutely. Don’t worry about it. We all make mistakes.’
The Doctor turned to Dr Bloom and sighed. ‘I am so sorry.’ He shook his head. ‘Boris. What a shame. I liked you.’
Boris marched over, and patted the Doctor on the hair. ‘And I liked you too, Doctor. But this… this is all such a splendid opportunity. You really must agree. It’s brilliant.’
‘Is it?’ said the Doctor.
‘Oh not this, this little clinic full of sad little people. But no, it’s the thing down on the beach. It’s really ever so marvellous. It’s like a library – it’s absorbed the minds of everyone here. It really is the most intelligent thing in the world. And I’m linked to it. To think I’ve wasted so much of my life. But luckily, when they created dear Kosov to cure me, I became linked to it. I could see into it. I could guide it. I could reach an arrangement with it.’
‘What?’ said the Doctor. ‘You’re what’s been guiding The Familiar all along?’
‘Well, not exactly all along. But… I’ve had a helping hand. I’ve shaped a few decisions. And now it’s ready. It really is. It knows everything – who to trust in government, who is strong, who is feeble-minded, which are the really great armies, the natural leaders, and the weaknesses of every single country in Europe. Down there on the beach is a giant brain ready for war. And it’s going to tell me everything I need to do in order to become the most powerful man in the world.’
‘Oh,’ said the Doctor.
The door opened. And the two Elquitine sisters shuffled in, their eyes blank.
‘Aha! My army!’ laughed Boris, ‘Now then. It’s time for you to go to The Sea, Doctor. The creature would very much like to meet you at last.’
The Story of Rory
I am so weak.
The hospital once organised a Fun Run. There is, trust me, no such thing. I remember a miserable day running round and round Leadworth in the rain. Amy said she’d turn up and cheer me on, but she’d overslept. So her dad met me at the finishing line with a Tupperware box full of corned beef sandwiches and a mug of tea.
‘Two hours of running, eh?’ he said, sipping from his little plastic cup. ‘How much did you make?’
‘It’s not the amount you raise, it’s the taking part,’ I explained, sensing I was on weak ground already. That’s the thing about Amy’s dad.
‘Well, I’m sure that’s a lot of consolation to the kids waiting for that new incubator.’
‘Twelve pounds and thirteen pence,’ I muttered miserably.
We sat there for a moment, chewing on sandwiches. There was a