Doctor Who_ The Hollow Men - Keith Topping [98]
They walked to the side door. The village was eerily quiet, the screaming from the green seeming to have stopped. „Can‟t see any scarecrows,‟ said Ace.
Two men walked down the lane towards the restaurant, carrying sputtering torches despite the brightness of mid-morning. The larger, bearded figure Steven recognised as Chief Constable Ian Denman; from Rebecca‟s reaction, the other, younger man could only have been her infamous childhood sweetheart.
„We‟ve seen them off,‟ said Denman briskly as he made his way into the kitchen.
Ace raised her eyes heavenward. „And they won‟t be coming back, right?‟
„Well...‟ began Denman.
„Cobblers, matey,‟ said Ace. „They‟re evil, and they‟ll be back. Haven‟t you read any H.P. Lovecraft?‟
„And you have?‟ asked Trevor.
„I‟ve been around,‟ said Ace. „The Doctor says that ancient evil can be found everywhere. It exists because it is ancient, and it is evil. There‟s no other reason.‟
„Which reminds me,‟ said Trevor. „The Doctor‟s gone off after Jack.‟
Ace couldn‟t suppress a grin. „He‟s back?‟ she queried.
„Yeah,‟ said Trevor. „He‟s at the Green Man.‟
„Then I‟d better get after him,‟ said Ace. „He‟ll need my help.‟
„No,‟ said Trevor. „He said he wanted you to leave the “big picture” to him.‟ Trevor made no attempt to conceal his puzzlement. „He said you‟d know what he meant.‟
Ace grabbed a torch from Denman, her eyes bright. „Yeah, I think I know.‟ She turned to look at the others. „We need to make some torches, split up, and sort these scarecrows out.
They‟ll be making for the boundary. The edge of the stain.‟
„How do you figure that one, then?‟ asked Steven, watching as Trevor completed fashioning a makeshift torch from a piece of wood with a rag soaked in petrol.
„Jack is the main picture, right?‟ explained Ace. „The scarecrows are just his bootboys. It looks like most of them have gone back to their sentry posts. And, if the church photographs showed anything, it‟s that the edge of the stain is important.‟
„Have you seen my father?‟ queried Rebecca, picking up on what Ace had said.
„No,‟ answered Ace, before anyone else could reply.
Steven glared at the young woman, but said nothing.
„I‟m up for that,‟ said Denman with a dramatic thump on the table.
Ace nodded at the man‟s enthusiasm. „I suppose someone ought to check the Professor‟s OK,‟ she said. „I‟d do it myself, but I reckon I‟m going to be a bit busy killing scarecrows for the next few hours.‟
„We‟ll find the Doctor for you,‟ said Rebecca, although, in truth, Trevor looked less than thrilled at the prospect of meeting Jack i‟ the Green. „All my life I‟ve been terrified of Jack,‟ continued Rebecca. „Now it‟s time to find out what he is.‟
„Steven? Joanna?‟ asked Ace.
„I‟m with you,‟ said Joanna immediately.
Steven couldn‟t hide his surprise. „Since when have you been brave?‟
„I‟m not,‟ said Joanna, as if surprised at the strength of her exclamation. „But we can‟t just wait here and do nothing.‟
„That‟s the spirit,‟ said Ace. She turned to Steven. „What about your parents?‟
Mrs Chen put a calming hand on Steven‟s arm. „We‟ll be safe here,‟ she said in a tired whisper. „The spirits of this place have always been good to us. Just be careful.‟
Steven hugged her. „We‟ll be back before dusk,‟ he said.
„Make yourself torches, try to lock the doors, and don‟t let anybody in, no matter how plausible they sound.‟
„Right,‟ said Ace as she headed for the door. „I think I‟m going to enjoy this.‟
The black soil was expanding all the time, like an ink blot flowing over the fields. The ground shook as the alien creature pushed its tendrils far out into the countryside.
What had once taken decades or centuries was now visible to the naked eye.
Ace, Denman, Steven and Joanna watched the dark stain from their vantage point behind a clump of trees. Numerous scarecrows trod resolutely just in front of the ever-growing alien mass, each one no more than five yards from its companion. The protective cordon of abused humanity stretched over the arcing hills and out of sight.
„I‟d like a closer look,