Doctor Who_ Foreign Devils - Andrew Cartmel [19]
As they approached the north wall they found one other person who also wanted to get nearer to the phenomenon. Carnacki. The Doctor smiled and nodded at him, like one connoisseur to another. 'Fascinating, isn't it?' he said. The young man nodded, his face tense. The dresser had continued to float upwards and it was now about three feet off the floor. But its rate of rise seemed to be faster at one end than the other and the dresser was now slowly tilting, at an angle of about 15 degrees.
'All that silverware and crystal's going to come off with a horrible crash,' said Zoe, who was half wondering if she'd be the one delegated to clear up the ensuing mess.
'I doubt it,' said the Doctor. And indeed none of the objects on the dresser were showing any inclination to shift, not even the big silver plate. 'And notice the candle flames.'
'Ah yes,' breathed Carnacki, a sudden savage grin appearing on his
face.
'What do you mean?' demanded Zoe.
The Doctor nodded at the dresser. 'As the candles tilt the flames should remain upright, pointing directly towards the ceiling. But as you can see instead they are tilting along with the candles, perpendicular to the top of the dresser and burning outwards at the same angle.'
'Good God, it's amazing,' said Carnacki. He had a look of triumph, as if Celandine's success was his own.
'It's as if an image of the dresser is being tilted, rather than the dresser itself.'
'Or the laws of physics are in abeyance,' said Zoe. 'Let's get a closer look,' said the Doctor.
'We're already getting a closer look,' complained Zoe. But the Doctor was already moving forward, ducking under the dresser. This was easy enough to do now since the heavy slab of furniture was a good four feet in the air. The Doctor hardly had to crouch to get under it. 'Yes, it's certainly floating,' he reported. 'No doubt about that.'
Zoe remained standing well back but Carnacki ducked under the dresser with the Doctor and took his elbow. 'Best get out from under this thing,' he said. 'It might come down with a crash.' He drew the Doctor out, rather like a parent gently attending to a child, and smiled at him. 'I've seen these demonstrations by Celandine before.' They turned back to look at the medium, who still stood by the piano, eyes closed, a tranquil expression on her face. Led by Carnacki, they made their way through the crowd towards her. Zoe noticed that the red faced Colonel was standing near Celandine, staring at her; only he wasn't so red faced now. In fact he was looking decidedly pale.
The Doctor had also noticed the man's new demeanour. 'Well, Colonel,' he said. 'Do you think squirrels are also responsible for levitating that dresser?'
The man glanced at them, a look of genuine fear in his eyes, then turned and hurried out through the door on the east side of the fireplace. As he closed the door behind him there a sudden heavy thud on the far side of the room and everyone turned to see that the dresser had returned to earth. 'Extraordinary,' said the Doctor. 'There's not so much a quiver from a single piece of crystal on it.'
Pemberton Upcott came pressing through the crowd to stand beside Carnacki. He was wearing the oddest expression, as though he couldn't decide whether to be terrified by the irrational events he was witnessing or triumphant at the success of his social event. 'Do you think she's finished?' he asked Carnacki. 'Or is there more to come?' Carnacki shrugged but the