Doctor Who_ The Sea-Devils - Malcolm Hulke [44]
‘That’s about the first sensible thing you’ve done!’ said Jo.
The Doctor signalled for Jo to keep quiet. ‘Let the captain finish what he has to say, Jo.’
‘It hasn’t reported back,’ Captain Hart continued. ‘But it’s just been spotted by radar heading for the château.’
‘How can your people tell that it’s the submarine?’ Jo asked. ‘One spot on a radar screen looks very like another.’
‘A very bright observation, Miss Grant,’ said the captain. ‘But you can tell that a blip is a submarine if it suddenly appears on the radar screen. It means that it’s just come to the surface.’
‘That’s clever,’ said Jo.
‘Thank you,’ said Captain Hart. ‘You see, we aren’t all stupid in the Navy.’ Having made his point he turned back to the Doctor. ‘As I said, it’s heading for the château. How would you like to accompany me there?’
The Doctor got to his feet. ‘Does this mean you’re starting to believe us, Captain Hart?’
Captain Hart put on his cap. ‘Let’s see what George Trenchard has to say. Then I’ll make up my mind as to whom I believe, Are you ready, Miss Grant?’
Jo put on her shoes again and followed the captain and the Doctor as they left the office.
The Doctor, Jo and Captain Hart waited at the big gates to the grounds of the chateau. There had been no answer to the bell and the captain had sent his driver back to the Naval Base to get an explosive charge.
‘We could get in,’ said the Doctor, ‘by way of the shore.’
‘If the captain doesn’t mind going through a minefield,’ Jo added.
Captain Hart was grim-faced and in no mood for jokes. All the lights in the château were blazing, something he had never seen before, and even from this distance he could see that the great front door was standing wide open. It was unbelieveable that no prison officers had come from the gatehouse to answer the bell on the front gate. ‘We shall go in this way,’ he said. ‘Even at the risk of damaging Government property.’
The captain’s Jeep came racing back from the Naval Base. As well as the driver, there were now two petty officers, both explosives experts; they had primers and charges with them.
‘Those gates,’ said the captain. ‘Blow them open.’
The two P.O.s fixed charges to the lock on the gates, then attached wires and uncoiled them from big drums. Everyone stood well back, sheltering behind the Jeep, as the charges were blown. The gates swung open.
A minute later they were all inside the château and Captain Hart was contemplating Trenchard’s body. The Doctor had immediately rushed to the Master’s room, and now returned to report that it was empty. The jeep’s driver and the two petty officers reported finding dead prison officers in many parts of the château.
Captain Hart turned to the Doctor. ‘If what you say is true, why did George Trenchard help the Master?’
‘What would you say was Trenchard’s strongest characteristic?’ the Doctor replied.
Hart shrugged. ‘I don’t know. Perhaps patriotism, love of country.’
‘Exactly,’ agreed the Doctor. ‘My guess is that the Master utilised that in some way.’ He kneeled down to examine Trenchard’s body, to see if he had been killed the same way as the man on the oil-rig.
‘Anyway,’ said Hart, ‘he’s gone now. But he’s still got his gun in his hand. At least he went down fighting.’
The Doctor looked at the revolver clutched in Trenchard’s hand, and noticed that the safety catch was still in position. Unseen by Captain Hart, the Doctor turned the safety catch so that no one would ever know about Trenchard’s last fatal mistake. ‘Yes,’ he said, ‘he was a brave man.’
Captain Hart went into Trenchard’s office, lifted the ’phone and realised that the dial was padlocked. ‘Find some tools,’ he called to his driver, ‘and get this padlock broken.’
‘Allow me,’ said the Doctor. He produced his sonic screwdriver and destroyed the little padlock.
‘What on earth is that gadget?’ asked Hart, as he started to dial.
‘It isn’t from Earth,’ said the Doctor.
Jo asked, ‘Why didn’t you use it when you wanted to ’phone before?’
The Doctor answered her quietly,