Doctor Who_ The Hollow Men - Keith Topping [74]
he laughed. „You ain‟t seen nothin‟ yet.‟
He walked down the slope towards the conservatory at the back of the Chinese restaurant. Somewhere a dog barked, and a car accelerated away from the Green Man. He just hoped Don Tyley was looking after the pub properly.
Obscured by bushes, Matson stood watching the waiters as they flitted around the diners, who were making inconsequential, silent conversation. He recognised some of them, but he was far beyond caring. He pulled the old Zippo from his pocket, flicking it open and lighting it with a single flourish, as he‟d seen people in the movies do. Then he ignited the dripping rag, paused, and hurled it with all his strength at the pristine glass.
The bottle smashed through, spraying liquid that instantly caught fire. The room was suddenly full of screams and smoke, people overturning plates of finely made food in their enthusiasm for the exit. The starched linen on one table was already burning, and an elderly woman shrieked, holding up an arm consumed by flame.
„That‟s one in the eye for Johnny Foreigner,‟ said Bob Matson as he turned away, his laughter drowned by the cries of terror from within the restaurant.
„Don‟t move.‟
The voice was soft, but filled with menace. The Doctor instantly raised his hands and spun around as a table lamp was flicked on, momentarily blinding him.
„You‟re quite a scallywag, aren‟t you, Doctor?‟ The Doctor blinked the pain from his eyes and focused on Trevor Winstone, who sat at Hatch‟s desk. He was holding a gun.
„I didn‟t think anybody was at home,‟ said the Doctor.
„Evidently. Thieves seldom do. And you on the school‟s board of governors, too... Think of the shame.‟
The Doctor laughed out loud.
„What are you so happy about?‟ asked Winstone.
„I‟m just thinking that on the last two occasions we‟ve met, you thought I was about to die. I‟m still here. That should tell you something about me.‟
„Lucky?‟
„Difficult to get rid of,‟ said the Doctor. „Where‟s Hatch?‟
„Haven‟t got a clue,‟ said Winstone. „Up to some nefarious skullduggery, no doubt,‟ he said with an ironic chuckle. „I got someone to ring him from Liverpool when I heard about Kenny. I bet Matt was really cut up about that. Then I got the train down.‟
„First class?‟ asked the Doctor, as though interested in such trivialities.
„Of course,‟ said Winstone. „By the time I got here, Matt was gone. His wife‟s leaving him, you know. And there‟s some scandal brewing, too. A couple of the papers have got hold of it. He‟s lied to the House. Bad times ahead for cousin Matthew, I reckon.‟
„And you?‟
„Oh, I‟ll survive,‟ said Winstone casually. „I always do.‟
„Do you know what we found up in Liverpool?‟ asked the Doctor angrily.
„Terrible housing, mass unemployment and rampant crime?‟ said Winstone. „I blame the government, myself.‟
„Shanks was contaminating the water supply,‟ continued the Doctor. „I‟m sure now that the genetic material unleashes mental powers - turns people into psychic batteries. Not everyone can cope with it.‟ The Doctor‟s eyes were dark and unblinking. „As we speak, hundreds of people in Liverpool are being slaughtered. Men, women and children. Innocent lives lost. What‟s made the whole thing worse is that the area has just been flooded with weaponry. Tell me, where do you think this superfluity of arms originates?‟
„I can‟t imagine,‟ said Trevor.
The Doctor sighed. „Shanks wasn‟t clever enough to come up with the scheme to pollute the water supply all on his own.‟
„No, indeed,‟ said Trevor. „Bright lad, our Ken, but a very linear mind.‟
„Hatch, on the other hand?‟
„Remember what I told you in Giroland? Deep as the Earth‟s core.‟
„The obscenity of what you people are doing staggers me,‟
said the Doctor with a furious anger in his voice. He leaned on the desk, almost shouting at Winstone, despite the gun still trained on him. „Do you understand?‟
„Nothing to do with me,‟ said Winstone, without blinking.
„I‟m just a legitimate businessman.‟