Doctor Who_ Attack of the Cybermen - Eric Saward [6]
Being a connoisseur of such antiques, and in need of a little cheer, Charlie shuffled over to take a closer look, whilst Lytton disappeared into a small room off the workshop area.
Russell followed, keen to see what he was doing.
‘Anything I can do to help, Mr Lytton?’
But before he could reach the office door, Lytton reappeared, carrying two large canvas holdalls, and dumped them at Russell’s feet. ‘Unpack these,’ he said, returning to the room.
Ignoring the command, Russell moved cautiously nearer the office door, but was disturbed by the sudden re-emergence of Lytton with two more bags. ‘Griffiths!’
Charlie turned from the art gallery and gazed at the holdalls. Although his spirits had risen slightly, he now felt confused. ‘I thought we were doing a diamond job, Mr Lytton.’
‘That’s right, Griffiths.’
‘Then what are we doing here?’
Lytton crossed to the sleepers covering the inspection pit and pushed one aside with his foot. ‘It may come as a great disappointment to you, Griffiths, but I do not intend we enter the Diamond Exchange, guns blazing, faces covered with nylon stockings.’
That’s good, thought Charlie, as he was allergic to nylon.
‘This is how we will enter,’ continued Lytton, indicating the pit. ‘At the bottom is an abandoned sewer pipe. All we need do is break through its wall and we will have the perfect path to our goal.’
Charlie smiled. He liked the idea. It was simple. Yet one thing still concerned him. ‘How do we get at the diamonds?’
‘By blowing a hole in the basement wall of the Diamond Exchange. It runs alongside a nearby sewer.’
‘You do that and you’ll have the old bill down on us!’
Lytton shook his head. ‘The vibration will activate every alarm for miles. The police won’t know where to look first.’
Now Russell knew the destination of the seven kilos of plastic he had supplied. The ‘Man of Mystery’, he decided, was fast turning into an old-fashioned villain.
While Russell and Griffiths unpacked boilersuits, boots and hard hats from the canvas holdalls, Lytton returned to the office and closed the door. A moment later a soft, electrical hum was heard. Russell hurried to the door and listened.
‘Mr Lytton won’t like you prying,’ muttered Charlie.
‘Can’t you hear that noise?’
Charlie didn’t look up from unpacking his bag. ‘I’ve found it best not to interfere in Mr Lytton’s business.’
Russell considered entering the room and confronting him, but his instinct said it was too soon. Although he now knew Lytton’s intention, he still didn’t know whether there was anyone else involved, or who Lytton was using to fence the diamonds. To act now would not only blow his over, but without proper back-up could also cost him his life. Lytton was tough, not a man who would accept arrest with quiet equanimity and the muttered cliché: ‘It’s a fair cop, guv.’
Reluctantly Russell returned to unpacking his holdall.
He would wait for Lytton’s next move.
2
The Perfect Crime
By the time Joe Payne had returned from parking the car, Russell and Charlie had changed into the overalls and boots.
While Joe scrambled out of his street clothes, Charlie opened the third canvas bag. In it he found rope, a couple of sledge hammers and an assortment of stone-cutting tools. In the fourth bag were empty backpacks, water bottles, a supply of emergency rations and a number of heavy-duty torches.
Playfully, Charlie switched one on and shone it at Joe as he struggled, half hidden in a cloud of cigarette smoke, to pull on a boot. The joke was not appreciated, as the muttered obscenities made clear.
Suddenly the door of the office was thrown open and Lytton emerged carrying a backpack and something wrapped in an old blanket. He too had changed into a black boilersuit and was also wearing a hard hat with a miner’s lamp attached. He crossed to one of the benches at the end of the workshop, put down his pack and started to unwrap the blanket.
Russell watched, wondering if there were time to inspect the office, but paused when the