Doctor Who_ The Hollow Men - Keith Topping [48]
„Ah, the wonders of modern technology,‟ said the Doctor, kneeling. He looked closely at the machine, wondering if Shanks were devious enough to booby-trap the terminal, knowing that the Doctor would be drawn to it. He dismissed the thought with an irritated shake of the head. He was like a fish out of water, and it was making him paranoid.
Working as quietly as he could, the Doctor reconnected the computer, and switched it on. It wouldn‟t contain any information itself, but perhaps there was a way of looking at communications sent or received from within other rooms in the apartment, the electronic equivalent of picking up an extension phone to listen in on a private conversation.
The television‟s remote control would also operate the Internet terminal, but the Doctor couldn‟t find the device anywhere. A swift search of the cupboards revealed the computer‟s small keyboard, still in its original wrapping. The Doctor tore at the cellophane with his teeth, then plugged the device in.
He closed down the garish user interface and began tinkering with the underlying text-based operating system. In ten minutes he had written a stealth program from scratch. It was like using a clockwork toy to launch a space shuttle, but he hoped it would work.
Data from a science lab somewhere in the building was flowing over the screen. A sequence of formulae, followed by a starburst of unintelligible information.
The Doctor was searching his pockets for his notebook when the elevator began its noisy climb up the building towards the penthouse. He hastily switched off the terminal, and pulled the lead from the telephone socket. He turned, expecting to see his host returning, but instead he found himself facing Trevor Winstone and six men carrying wooden crates.
„Put them down,‟ said Trevor to his companions. „And be careful.‟ He turned to the Doctor, and inclined his head to one side, curiously. „You really must be his friend. Not many people hang around Kenny Shanks for long and live to tell the tale.‟
„I obviously have a lucky face,‟ said the Doctor, sitting on the leather sofa, and then standing again quickly as something sharp stuck into his rump. „Ah,‟ he said brightly.
„The remote control. We‟ve been looking for that...‟
„Great,‟ said Trevor sarcastically. „If Match of the Day’s on later, I‟ll get the beers in. We‟d better hang on for Kenny, though: his party trick is naming Holland‟s 1974 World Cup squad.‟
The Doctor ignored Winstone and moved towards the pile of crates, now neatly stacked by the lift. „A consignment of arms for Shanks‟s private army of thugs and drug-pushers, no doubt?‟
„Hey, man, what can I say? It‟s my job.‟
„He‟s a bully, and a rogue. A third-division crook with inflated ideas of his own importance.‟
„Possibly,‟ replied Winstone, indicating that the men should leave. „But in this life, it‟s sometimes difficult to choose your friends.‟
„You‟re an intelligent man -‟ began the Doctor.
„Damn right I am!‟ exploded Winstone. „And in Hexen Bridge that‟s a curse worse than meeting the hollow men.‟
The Doctor gave Trevor a quizzical look.
„A stupid West Country legend,‟ he continued, looking almost embarrassed. „The point is, I don‟t have to justify myself to you, or anybody.‟
„Except, perhaps, yourself,‟ said the Doctor sitting and casually turning on the television. „Ah, Men Behaving Badly.’
„What exactly is that supposed to mean?‟ asked Winstone angrily, moving to the television and switching it off.
The Doctor ignored Winstone‟s question. „How does Hatch fit into all of this?‟
„Why didn‟t you ask him last night when you had the chance?‟
„He‟s a complicated individual, isn‟t he?‟
„Deep as the Earth‟s core is our Matt,‟ said Trevor, his anger subsiding. „Listen, if he wants you in on the deal then that‟s fine, but you‟ll get nothing out of me. I‟m just the poor bloody errand boy, all right?‟
„“Do not all charms fly, at the mere touch