Doctor Who_ Beyond the Sun - Matthew Jones [80]
Tameka was suddenly driving completely blind. She hit the brakes. Nothing happened.
Hoo boy!
The car shot on through the darkness.
15
JUST DO IT
Bernice called Emile’s name – no response. She couldn’t see anything through the smoke behind her. There was nothing she could do for the kid at the moment. She returned her attention to the hatch. Her arms felt as if they were on fire. She was sweating heavily in her frock. Her heavy stage make-up had run uncomfortably into her eyes, and her grip on the locking mechanism was wet and beginning to slip.
She felt the creature on the roof put its weight against her again. It was impossibly strong. This time the hatch lifted out of its frame for a moment and Bernice felt a powerful rush of clear night air against her face.
‘No . . . you . . . don’t,’ she hissed through gritted teeth as she tried to force the hatch back down. The Sunless on the other side must have released its grip for a second, because suddenly there was no resistance and the hatch clanged loudly home. Bernice felt a jarring shock run down her arm and she inadvertently let go of her grip for a moment.
The Sunless didn’t miss the opportunity. The hatch was wrenched open and the uniformed figure was revealed above it, staring down at her.
Moving quickly – too quickly – it reached down and groped for Bernice’s neck. Before she could react, its cold hands were around her throat, its fingers digging painfully into her. It began to lift her towards itself.
Throughout its attack, its face had remained completely expressionless, its dark metal eyes dead. Its facial muscles seemed relaxed beneath its thin corpse-white skin. It was as if it wasn’t really there at all.
Bernice’s feet left the floor and she kicked out helplessly.
It pulled her further towards itself as it hung half into the vehicle. It opened its mouth, revealing rows of tiny white teeth. Impossibly sharp triangles glinting against the darkness of its mouth.
She would have screamed but her throat was being crushed.
From where Emile lay on the floor, with what felt like half a ton of blaster cannon lying on top of him, he saw Benny’s feet lift off the ground and disappear upward.
The creature had got her! He’d seen it leap agilely across from the pursuing car to land on the roof. He’d tried to shoot it as it had moved towards the hatch, but he must have accidentally activated some kind of safety restraint, because the targeting mechanism wouldn’t permit him to fire upon their own vehicle.
He tried to call after Bernice but his voice only cracked painfully.
Something was burning. It was probably him. His ears were still ringing from the explosion. His right arm was twisted behind him and was stinging sharply. He moved a little so that he could see over his shoulder. An angry scarlet burn mark ran from his elbow to his wrist. Seeing the injury only made the pain worse.
He wriggled out from beneath the wreckage, sniffling. His legs, arms and shoulders were covered with tiny cuts where they hadn’t been protected by the sequined frock. The dress was a write-off.
The weapon turret had collapsed down into the narrow gangway which linked the front and the rear of the vehicle. Access to the front of the vehicle was now completely blocked. There was no way he could get near Bernice and her attacker. He was cut off.
She wasn’t going to last long in the hands of the Sunless.
The only way out of the armoured car was the door at the back. He hit the control and the ramp slid down revealing the road stretching out behind the moving vehicle.
The car was lurching from one side of the street to the other. It hit the kerb with a thump, bounced off and then hurtled on down the middle of the road. Emile had to grip the sides of the doorway to prevent himself from being thrown out on to the road.
What the hell did Tameka think she was doing? Was she driving with her eyes