• Choose a category
• All
• Classic-Fiction

By Root 683 0

did so to try to get a look at what was going on. There was a flurry of movement as those he sought got into a sleek black saloon car. He counted five figures, but from this distance he couldn‟t tell who their friend was. After a moment one of the men got out of the car and moved off some distance just as the vehicle burst into life. Headlights flashed across the ground in front of Denman and he hurriedly stepped back into the shadows. When he emerged again, the car had crawled on to the gravel driveway and was heading slowly for the gates. In the distance, Denman heard another vehicle heading in the opposite direction. „Damn,‟ he muttered angrily to himself.

„Where do you want me to drive to?‟ asked Trevor Winstone as he swung Hatch‟s car through the school gates and off towards the open countryside beyond.

„Anywhere,‟ said Matthew Hatch, red-faced. „Just put your foot down.‟

In the back of the car, the Doctor sat quietly, very aware of the gun Kenny Shanks was aiming at a point equidistant between his hearts. „Could you be very careful,‟ the Doctor eventually exclaimed. „Country roads tend to be rather bumpy.‟

„Oh great,‟ said Shanks. „We‟ve got a comedian here. Go on then, crack us a joke.‟ Shanks lifted the gun to the Doctor‟s face and poked it at his nose. „I‟m waiting.‟

„Shut up, Ken,‟ said Hatch, who was half turned in the front seat. He seemed to be considering his options. In the dull light of the car, the unflappability for which the politician was famous had been replaced by a high-octane nervous energy that crackled like static electricity. Hatch looked closely at the Doctor.

„I‟d advise you to be frank with us,‟ he said with a voice that had lost every trace of the West Country. „Because we certainly intend to be frank with you. We‟ll start with your name.‟

„The Doctor.‟

Shanks‟s pocketed the gun. „Turn on the light, Trev,‟ he said, looking at the Doctor closely. „Now I remember you,‟ he continued. „You‟ve aged well.‟

„So who is he, then?‟ asked Hatch.

„One of the governors. We met years ago.‟ Shanks gripped the Doctor‟s collar as though any reminder of those painful days was unwelcome. „You picked a bad night to take a stroll, Doctor.‟

„I‟m so sorry,‟ said the Doctor. „If you want to drop me off here, I can assure you that your schemes for world domination will remain our little secret.‟

There followed a lengthy silence until Hatch let out a bellow of laughter, slapping his thigh theatrically.

„What are we going to do?‟ asked Trevor as he slowed the car into a lay-by.

„Looks like a nice spot for a quiet execution,‟ said the Doctor ruefully. His own stupidity had led him to a shallow grave in a field in Wiltshire. The only consolation would be the surprise on the faces of the three men when a man with a completely different face would sit up after the shooting, asking where he was, what was going on, and could they possibly direct him to his TARDIS? „May I ask you one question?‟ said the Doctor.

„Certainly,‟ agreed Hatch.

„Why?‟ asked the Doctor.

„Why what?‟

„The gunrunning?‟ The Doctor paused. „You‟re all intelligent men, surely you could find something better to do with your time than peddle weapons of destruction?‟

„You have an alternative?‟ asked Hatch, amused.

„Many people on Earth are starving,‟ said the Doctor.

„Food makes you fat,‟ said Hatch cynically. „Weapons make you strong.‟

„Goering said something similar.‟

„One of my heroes,‟ noted Hatch before turning to Shanks.

„Aren‟t you going to add anything into this conversation? He‟s your friend, after all.‟

„Nope,‟ said Shanks.

„Well,‟ said Trevor Winstone. „Guns mean jobs in this country, which means food on the table and less men on the dole. If we don‟t supply arms, some other country will.‟ The words flowed out like a well-rehearsed mantra. „Things aren‟t as black and white as you think.‟

„Few things in life are,‟ said the Doctor, sadly. „Except Laurel and Hardy films.‟

„A philosopher, too?‟ asked Hatch.

„Don‟t start any of that pyschobabble with me, pal,‟ Shanks said, turning on the Doctor angrily. „A whole city