Doctor Who_ The Green Death - Malcolm Hulke [20]
‘Believe me, Doctor,’ said Dr Stevens, as he now walked the Doctor away from the empty shed, ‘Panorama Chemicals always tries to be a good neighbour. Our plant in Ethiopia has distributed thousands of tons of grain to the starving. In Persia and Saudi Arabia all local employees have free classes to learn to read and write their own languages.’
‘Most impressive,’ said the Doctor politely, even though he was being gently escorted off the premises.
‘If we had anything that could help the people of Llanfairfach,’ Dr Stevens went on, ‘we’d be only too glad to give it.’
From where Mark Elgin stood he could hear Dr Stevens’s voice fading away as he, the Doctor and Hinks went out of sight. Elgin crossed to the now open equipment shed and looked inside. He had passed this way only yesterday and had caught sight of masses of equipment in the shed. Where had it all gone? And why?
The Brigadier felt pleased with himself. Halfway to Newport he and Dave Griffiths had passed through a small town with an extraordinarily long Welsh name where the Brigadier had spotted the words ‘Crash Repairs’ over a local garage. He stopped the jeep immediately and called in to see the proprietor. They used oxyacetylene equipment to cut away damaged parts of cars. The owner of the garage, an ex-miner, was only too pleased to lend the Brigadier everything that was needed.
When the Brigadier got back to the pit head office he found the Doctor and Professor Jones, and a number of ex-miners who had turned up to help, had everything well organised. The donkey engine was in position; a new cable now led from the drum driven by the engine to the ‘up’ lift. All that remained was for the old cable to be cut and the lift would work independently.
‘You seem to have done well, Doctor,’ remarked the Brigadier. ‘Are there some old overalls I can borrow from someone?’
‘Why, tired of your uniform?’ asked the Doctor.
‘To go down the mine,’ said the Brigadier. ‘To rescue Miss Grant and her companion.’
‘Mines are for miners,’ interrupted Dave Griffiths, ‘not for soldier boys. It’s me and my mates will be going down there.’
‘The man in charge of a situation,’ said the Brigadier, ‘should always be willing to do the most risky job.’
‘Then that settles it,’ said Dave, ‘because where pit rescue is concerned, I’m in charge.’
The Brigadier went red in the face. ‘Look here—‘
But Professor Jones cut in. He spoke calmly. ‘If I may suggest, Brigadier, as a soldier your place is at the top here, to see there is no more sabotage. Then Dave and his friends will feel safe to go down.’
‘That does sound a very good idea,’ said the Doctor before the Brigadier had a chance to answer. He turned to Dave. ‘I admit that I’m not a miner, Mr Griffiths, but since a very dear friend of mine is trapped down there, would you allow me to accompany you and your colleagues?’
Dave thought about it for a moment. ‘All right, Doctor. But understand it’s another world you’re going down into, our world. So you do what we tell you.’
From outside a miner called that the cable had been cut. The lift was ready to be used. The Doctor was hurried over to the locker room to get fitted out with overalls and a helmet.
Jo felt exhausted. ‘Can we rest a bit?’
It wasn’t so much the distance that tired her but the foul air and the fact that for the past twenty minutes they had been walking bent over because the roof was low at this point.
‘I’m sorry, miss,’ said Bert, ‘but we should keep going. If my reckoning is right, we’re near that old shaft now.’
‘Really, I must stop.’ She sagged down to her knees, her head reeling.
Bert looked at her sympathetically. ‘All right. Catch your breath for the next five minutes.’ He sat down on the floor. ‘Anyway, you’ll need plenty of strength to go up that shaft if we find it.’
‘Up?’
‘Of course. It climbs at about forty-five degrees and comes out on the hillside.’ He switched off his helmet light. ‘Better turn yours off too, miss,’ he said, ‘to save the battery.’
Jo settled herself on the floor, reached up to her helmet, found the switch and turned it. She