Doctor Who_ Return of the Living Dad - Kate Orman [70]
The years seared past at blipvert speed.
He tried to protest as the bird dragged him onwards, into his future.
It was five minutes before it let him go, with a terrible
!eating sound. He found himself on the floor of his room, breathing hard. The bees whirled away from his window with a lazy sound, tracing patterns of dots in the air.
Joel held onto his bed and kept breathing, taking slow, deep lungfuls, until the dizziness and the iron grip in his chest subsided. He pulled himself to his feet.
He plucked the cigarette from his mouth with both shaking hands and stubbed it out in the ashtray. Then he went downstairs.
They pulled chairs from under the tables, arranged them in a tight circle at the back of the shop. Isaac and Ms Randrianasolo, Joel and Chris, Jason and Benny, Roz and the Doctor.
Graeme hopped up onto the counter. Chris held out a hand, and the spatula jumped down to join the circle. ‘My hero,’ said the Adjudicator.
The Time Lord said, ‘I’m afraid that our problems haven’t ended with stopping Woodworth’s operation. I’m sorry to tell you this, Admiral, but I’m afraid Albinex is up to something.
Something nuclear.’
Isaac nodded slowly. ‘He’s been gone since last night,’
he said.
‘He kidnapped me because he wants a set of government codes he believes will enable him to launch a nuclear missile.’
‘Those Caxtarids,’ said Benny. She was still hanging onto Jason, one hand on his shoulder and another on his arm, as though a beam of light might come through the roof and snatch him away.
‘Indeed,’ said the Doctor. ‘He’s holding the TARDIS
hostage. He can’t do anything to hurt her, though, not with the level of technology he has access to.’
‘But why take Jason hostage and then not make any demands?’ said Benny.
‘I was just along for the ride,’ said Jason. ‘I was in the TARDIS having a think when Albinex took it. He probably just beamed it up into his ship, or something. The next time I looked out the door I was on board his yacht.’
‘Why is it a yacht?’ Ms Randrianasolo wanted to know.
‘It’s a conversion job,’ said the Doctor. Navarino tourist spacecraft are always disguised. I expect he stole it.’
‘Well, he’s not running a travel agency,’ said Isaac dryly.
‘Do you know what he plans to do?’
Not exactly,’ said the Doctor. ‘But if it involves throwing nuclear missiles about —’
‘Greenham Common,’ gasped Ms Randrianasolo.
‘Exactly,’ said the Doctor.
‘Are you the only one who knows these codes?’ said Joel’
The Doctor said, ‘My guess is that he’s tried to get them from more mundane sources than the back of my mind. And then I arrived. Just at the right time.’
There was a moment’s silence.
‘What do we do?’ said Benny.
‘Wait for him to give himself away,’ said the Doctor. ‘The only bargaining chip he has is the TARDIS. He’ll contact us and offer a swap.’
‘Do you think he and Woodworth had anything to do with one another?’ said Jason.
‘I doubt it,’ said the Doctor. ‘Though I wonder if Albinex didn’t do something that attracted her attention, contacted the wrong person or peeked into the wrong file...’
‘And then there’s the ghost,’ said Roz stiffly.
‘Ah yes,’ said the Doctor. ‘She’s looking for someone to help her.’ He suddenly ran both hands through his hair, as though exasperated. ‘I can’t do anything for her until I get the TARDIS back.’
Half an hour later Benny was still wrapped around her husband. He was snoring and he needed a shave. She hugged him tighter, prompting a series of comfortable muttering noises.
‘I never had a chance to miss you before,’ she whispered.
She hoped Dad and the Doctor were okay. Oh, the Doctor looked fine — he could breeze through almost anything. And Roz and Chris would look after him. She felt an odd pang of jealousy. She didn’t occupy the privileged position of companion any more.
Or perhaps you never stopped being a companion.
She closed her eyes.
The flames had jumped into the night, searing colours against the blackness. The Doctor had insisted on staying, even after the