Doctor Who_ Just War - Lance Parkin [23]
She only had seconds to act. She wasn’t hurt, but she could hear boots splashing towards her. They’d be here soon. It was then that she heard the single pistol shot from the beach.
Benny wondered what she should do next.
The bullet blasted two inches past the Doctor’s right ear, temporarily deafening him. Before Wolff could react, the Doctor had hurled himself behind the wreckage.
It took Wolff a second to respond. The Doctor had used some form of suggestion on him. A dangerous opponent. A threat. Wolff dived to his left after the little man. The Doctor stood there, facing the other way, poised in wait. When he glanced back and saw Wolff he simply looked annoyed.
‘Oh, for heaven’s sake, a right-handed combat-trained human should instinctively dive to the right in a situation like this. What are they teaching you these days?’
Wolff punched him hard, straight in the kidneys.
‘There... was... no need...’ coughed the Doctor crossly.
Wolff tried to silence him with a swift kick to the stomach.
‘I would appreciate it if you’d stop hitting me,’ said the Doctor, who seemed to have recovered his breath.
Wolff held the Doctor down, his knee pressing against the little man’s ribcage. An explosion rumbled above them.
The two men looked at each other, although it was clear that neither knew precisely what had happened. Wolff didn’t loosen his grip.
‘I was going to kill you, but now you’re going to live. For a little longer. But you’ll suffer first,’ he whispered.
‘Well, there’s an original sentiment. Frankly, I’m not impressed.’
Wolff eased the pressure on the Doctor’s back, then pulled himself upright. ‘Get up.’
The Doctor struggled to his feet. He stood for a moment, dusting himself off.
Then Wolff punched him squarely in the jaw, and the little man fell back, clutching his mouth.
‘Frankly, Doktor, I don’t care whether you’re impressed or not.’
Benny kicked open the hatch of the armoured car and threw herself clear. Splashing down into a muddy puddle, she allowed herself to roll to a halt. There was a moment of calm, then a noise, like a stick clattering across a tin roof, a sound that she couldn’t quite place. A repeat of that sound. And again, followed by a more solid clunk. Metal on metal. They’d thrown something metal.
Simultaneously, all three grenades detonated. Before her eyes, the armoured car threw itself apart, its sides were thrown clear of the chassis, the remaining tyres burst explosively. As the fuel tank gave way, the armoured car was lifted five feet into the air, before crashing back to the ground.
And then, as quickly as it had happened, there was calm again, just the crackle of fires dying down and choking black fumes in the air.
Benny saw a figure materializing through the smoke as it cleared: it was Gerhard, his pistol raised. Without needing to think, she grabbed his trouser leg and yanked him down. He flailed in the mud, and Benny scrabbled for his gun. She found it and levelled it at him, her heart beating furiously. The lad looked terrified. Her face was covered in mud, her hair was a different colour, there was no way he’d be able to recognize her. He spoke.
‘Celia?’
With a dreadful clarity, Bernice realized that Gerhard would have no choice but to betray her. Gerhard knew where she lived: he lived there himself. He had to die, to save the lives of Ma Doras and her daughter. Before she had even completed that thought, Benny felt the trigger give way and her pistol pull upwards. The bullet ripped through the boy’s stomach, and he fell to his knees, gasping, coughing up blood. Gerhard slumped, his eyes open. Dead.
Suddenly shocked by what