Doctor Who_ The Nightmare of Black Island - Mike Tucker [13]
‘Not sure.’ The Doctor pursed his lips, then picked up some of the drawings Ali had left on the table..
‘Beth’s not telling us something,’ Rose continued. The Doctor perched his glasses on the end of his nose and peered at the drawings. ‘Yes, you’re right, but we’re not going to find out anything more tonight.’
‘So what’s going on here, eh? And what’s with the old biddy? She’s definitely got the hump about something. . . You think that she’s right, that it’s something to do with this bloke at the rectory?’
‘Bronwyn’s another lady with secrets, that’s for certain. But retired industrialists breeding creatures and letting them loose in the woods? Doesn’t feel right to me.’
‘It’s spooked the kids here, though,’ said Rose. ‘They’re terrified.’
‘I’m not surprised with things like this roaming through the local woods!’
As if on cue, there was a guttural roar from outside. The Doctor dropped the drawings back on to the table with a deep sigh. ‘I think we should pay a visit to Nathaniel Morton at the rectory and then get out to the lighthouse. But we’re not going to be able to do much in the dark if those creatures are still active, so I’m afraid we’re going to have to wait until morning. You’d better get up to bed.’
32
The morning sun came up bright and harsh over the sea, sending tendrils of mist spiralling into the air from the wet bracken. Ali crept through the damp undergrowth, keeping to the shadows of the rectory’s long stone perimeter wall. The house itself loomed ahead of her, vast and imposing, wet slates glinting in the morning light, the windows dark and ominous.
She looked back at the gateway, where a cluster of expectant faces were watching her. She could hear Billy Palmer urging her on.
‘Go on! Just do it!’ he hissed. ‘Hiding in the shadows is no good!’
Ali turned back towards the house. The wall surrounded an untidy garden that was bordered with gravel paths. Rhododendron bushes that had been allowed to grow wild towered over walls and straggly-looking shrubs fought their way through the brambles in the flowerbeds.
She broke cover, sprinting across the wet grass, not wanting to use the gravel path in case the noise gave her away. She reached the large broken birdbath that stood in front of the house and hunched down behind it, her heart pounding.
The door was right opposite her now. The big black door with its 33
peeling paint and old-fashioned knocker. Ali took another look back at her friends. They were all urging her on. She closed her eyes, trying to control her fear. All of them had done this. She was the only one left. She had to do it.
She wanted to do it.
Taking a deep breath, she darted across the lawn crouched low, not daring to look up at those horrible black windows in case a face appeared in one of them. She ducked into the porch, grabbing the big brass knocker and letting it crash back against the door. Once. Twice. Three times. She could hear the noise echoing around the hallway of the damp old house.
Giddy with excitement, Ali whirled and hared back across the lawn to her waiting friends. She’d done it! She’d done it! She was part of the gang. When she reached the gate, most of that gang were already running, laughing and shoving at each other.
Billy Palmer had waited for her and was now grinning like a loon.
‘Didn’t think you were gonna do it!’
‘It was easy,’ lied Ali.
Giggling, the two of them ran to catch up with their mates. Nathaniel Morton watched from the first-floor window as the small girl emerged from the shadow of the house, scampering across his lawn to join her friends.
‘Do you want the children punished?’
Morton turned to the white-coated figure at his shoulder.
‘Of course not!’ he snapped. ‘They are important to us, Peyne, remember that. As long as our “guests” were not disturbed.’
‘They sleep. The medication ensures that.’
‘Last night’s test was successful?’
‘Satisfactory. Do you need help returning to the lower levels?’
‘I can manage!’
The figure gave a shrug and turned from the window. ‘Then I shall return to my duties.’
Morton watched with