Doctor Who_ Rip Tide - Louise Cooper [58]
The world seemed suddenly and bizarrely calm. The swell was still heavy, but no waves were breaking inside the cave and the mouth faced away from the wind. Something like silence held for a moment — then Steve shattered the bubble explosively.
'What the hell do you think you're doing?' He swung towards the helm again — then the tirade cut off as he realised that the Doctor was holding the boat hove-to with an expertise that at least matched his own.
'Sorry,' the Doctor said with a small smile. 'I don't like using force. But, as I said, this is an emergency. Oh, and don't worry; I know how to handle one of these: He made a minor adjustment to the tiller as the swell tried to carry the boat sideways. 'Is it possible to anchor here? I think we'll need to, if we're to find Ruth. You do have an anchor on board, I presume?'
Steve's mouth worked like a stranded fish, and Adam could only stare, half convinced that this was a bad dream. Then Steve said, 'Where is she? What's going on?'
'If Nina's calculation is correct,' the Doctor said, 'she's in a mine adit that leads into this cave. And what's going on is that she's seriously ill; possibly injured into the bargain.'
'Steve, there was a roof fall!' Nina put in urgently. 'I was there, and I —'
'We'll tell you the details later,' the Doctor interrupted. 'Now, we've got to get to her, and fast. Will you help?'
'I ...' Steve struggled with confusion and disbelief. This was too sudden and too crazy for him to make any sense of it — this man could be a liar or a lunatic or both. But what if he wasn't? And Nina — she said she was there. She had tried to tell him, and whatever else she might be, she wasn't insane.
And Ruth ...
He heard himself say tersely, 'Yes.'
REVELATION
The adit was there as Nina had predicted. The cave was a deep one, and at the back of it was a spit of sand that would remain above water level until the tide was more than half way in. Beyond the spit was a narrow tunnel mouth, and when Steve shone his flashlight into it they saw a rocky floor sloping sharply upwards.
They took what rescue equipment they could carry, and Steve brought the first aid kit. The Doctor made no comment; to try to explain, now, why Ruth could have no use for first aid would be a waste of valuable time. Adam remained with the lifeboat, which was beached on the sand spit and doubly secured with ropes. As the tide rose the boat would float again, and if the rescue took much more than an hour the water would be high enough to make getting out of the cave hazardous. By then though, as Steve pointed out, there would be no exit from the adit. They'd be back in time. They'd have to be.
No one wasted breath in talking as they left Adam and the boat behind and set off up the tunnel. Steve led, with Nina behind him and the Doctor bringing up the rear. Steve had wanted his sister to stay behind, but Nina would have none of it and the Doctor had backed her up. Steve gave way, but reluctantly and with a growing conviction that something was going on between these two that they were keeping from him. He would demand some answers, but later. For now, getting to Ruth was all that mattered.
The flashlight danced and flickered on endless walls of dripping rock and it was impossible to judge how fast they were moving, or how much distance they had covered. Then, gradually, they all became aware of a sound. It was faint, almost subliminal, and none of them could say whether it had only just begun or had been present, unnoticed, from the start.
Steve stopped and whispered uneasily, 'What's that?'
'I've heard it before,' Nina hissed. 'When I was in the workings with Ruth.' She glanced at the Doctor. 'Is it something to do with ... you know, her world?'
Steve flicked them both a sharp look but the Doctor ignored it. 'My guess,' he said in an undertone to Nina, 'is that it's the gateway. And it sounds