Doctor Who_ Sleepy - Kate Orman [46]
Are there any more aliens here?’
‘None,’ said the Doctor. ‘You know that already. Surely you’ll have had the other telepaths check.’
White nodded. ‘Tell me what you’re doing here.’
‘I just dropped in for a visit, and then I realized that these people were in trouble. I stayed to help.’ He leaned forward, grinning conspiratorially. ‘We can take on any shape we like, you know.’
‘Why did Summerfield call you “Uncle”?’
‘I’m not completely sure. She knows I’m an extraterrestrial — a handful of them do. I imagine she was trying to protect me from you.’ He shrugged. ‘She’s a very kind human. I wish I knew her better.’
‘I meant what I said about torturing you.’
‘It would have to be improvised, wouldn’t it? Nothing sophisticated. There’s no need for torture when you can just pluck information out of people’s heads.’
‘Gaining information,’ said White, ‘is a very minor reason for torturing people. In any case, of course, I can’t read your mind.’ The Doctor nodded thoughtfully. ‘I’ll make you a deal,’
he said.
There was a brilliant light in Chris’s face. At last.
He didn’t want to open his eyes.
The light turned into a noise, a vast sound that ate up all the other sounds. He had been listening for a while, for hours, to the wind in the trees, through the grass, the distant calls of some small creature. There were no sounds inside him. He was empty. Hollow. Silent.
Hands grabbed him. He kept his eyes shut, let his head hang down loosely as they dragged him from the steps of the temple. His mouth felt as though it were glued shut. He was sure his heart wasn’t beating properly. He’d been waiting for so long.
Someone held on to him while someone else pushed his loose breastplate aside, pressed something cold against his chest. He didn’t tense up, just let it happen.
‘Dehydration,’ shouted a voice. ‘Exposure. He’ll be just fine. Stash him in the hoverskimmer.’
Hands dragged him heavily across the ground. The noise changed, closed in around him. There was a lurching movement.
Chris opened his eyes. He was in an ornithopter. There were two people with guns, ignoring him.
He started to cry.
Yellow carefully ignored White as he strode into the infirmary. Her message had been brief. We found two of them.
St John was standing to one side, arms folded tightly across his chest, while two blue-suited medics looked over the newcomers. Yellow had flashed him pictures, captions.
RAMOTSHABI Farmer, CWEJ Medical Assistant. The black woman was unconscious, on a gurney, a drip in her arm. The bag of fluid bore the DKC logo.
Turquoise had made the two archaeologists sit on the floor. White saw Summerfield put her hand on the deaf-and-dumb woman’s arm, so that she looked up. That was all right, so long as they didn’t use those hand signals.
‘All right,’ said White. ‘The Doctor’s going to be in charge of this area, under the supervision of the lieutenant.’ He didn’t look at Turquoise. ‘Do whatever he tells you.’
They were looking at the Doctor in surprise. Probably they’d got used to thinking of him as a friend, wouldn’t have expected him to change sides so easily. It was always good to put someone local in charge. It distracted hatred away from you.
‘We’ll be doing our tests here. Anyone who isn’t part of the medical staff goes back to the common area with the others.’
‘SmithSmith should stay here,’ said the Doctor.
White didn’t look at the deaf woman. ‘Why?’
‘She’s not well,’ protested Summerfield.
‘She’s mentally unstable,’ said the Doctor. ‘She assaulted me.’
True. ‘Keep her quiet,’ said White.
A trooper hauled Summerfield to her feet. She glanced at the Doctor. Her expression could have meant anything. She was probably wondering why he’d betrayed her, after she’d tried to hide him.
Yellow, the troopers and Summerfield made their exit.
Right. There was a lot to organize.
‘Don’t I get a weapon?’ said the Doctor.
White waved his hand. ‘The lieutenant will shoot anyone you