Doctor Who_ The Stone Rose - Jacqueline Rayner [12]
‘Ursus wants to do a sculpture of me,’ she told them.
Marcia looked surprised for a second, though she quickly hid it. ‘But that is charming!’ she said. ‘I know my husband has given him permission to work in the studio here for as long as he wishes.’ She smiled indulgently. ‘I believe he fancies himself a patron of the arts. Anyway, you must stay as our guest until the work is complete.’
‘I don’t want to put you out…’ said Rose, but Marcia was already doing the good hostess bit and shushing her protests.
‘It will be a delight to have a young person around while my son –’ her poised manner faltered for a moment – ‘while my son is missing. I shall appreciate the company.’
‘We’re gonna get him back,’ said Rose awkwardly. ‘The Doctor and me – and Vanessa,’ she added hurriedly. ‘You know, with her predictions and that.’
The young girl flushed.
Rose remembered what the Doctor had said about getting her talking, but it was awkward with Marcia there. So she said, ‘Actually, I think we could do with her help right now. While the Doctor’s tracing Optatus’s movements, Vanessa could be… picking up vibes, that sort of thing.’
Marcia nodded knowledgeably. ‘Yes of course.’ She waved a hand to dismiss Vanessa and the girl followed Rose out of the room.
They wandered into the courtyard. Slaves passed them, carrying baskets of fruit or freshly baked bread.
‘Ooh, love that smell,’ said Rose, as a tray of loaves wafted past.
‘I… I believe Optatus walked through this courtyard,’ said Vanessa nervously.
Rose gave a laugh. ‘You don’t say! Look, it’s all right. I’m not after any hocus‐pocus stuff. I just thought you could do with a break. Come on.’ She led Vanessa back to the grove where Optatus’s statue stood and they sat down together on the grass.
‘He looks so young,’ Rose murmured, gazing at the statue. ‘Sweet sixteen. Same age as you.’
Vanessa nodded. ‘I think so.’
Rose darted a look at her. ‘You’re not sure?’
‘It’s… hard to keep track sometimes.’
‘So, what star sign are you?’.
‘Scorpio,’ said Vanessa. ‘Determined and forceful.’
Rose laughed. ‘Well, now I’m convinced! You don’t believe in that stuff, do you.’
It was a statement, not a question.
The girl looked scared, so Rose hurried to reassure her. ‘It’s all right. I know it’s a load of rubbish, but I bet you were forced into it somehow. Am I right?’
Hesitantly, Vanessa nodded.
‘So, here’s what’s gonna happen. The Doctor and I will find Optatus. That’s what we do, sort things out. You can stick with us. We’ll tell everyone we need you. Hopefully no one’ll ask you about aspects or Saturn or anything, but you obviously know how to talk the talk if you have to. Then, when it’s all sorted, we’ll get you home somehow. Get you out of all this.’
Rose thought of her own life at sixteen. GCSEs, falling in love, dropping out of school, leaving home. All ended up in disaster and heartbreak, of course, and she’d never want to go back – but whatever else it was, it was living. What Vanessa had been going through – well, she didn’t know the details, but she’d be prepared to bet it didn’t really come under that category.
Rose had thought Vanessa would be pleased. But when she looked at the girl, she saw that she had begun to cry.
‘Hey, what is it?’ she said, folding her into a hug.
‘I don’t have a home,’ said the girl. ‘Not any more.’
* * *
FOUR
Vanessa was still crying softly when the Doctor hounded into the grove. It didn’t seem to bother him though. He plonked himself down on the grass beside them.
‘OK, here’s what we’ve got. Optatus visits Ursus in his workshop every day for a couple of weeks. The general impression the boy gave was that the sculpture was still at the planning stages, but as no one was allowed in to see what was going on we’ve got no evidence to back that up. Then a few days ago, he gets up early, breakfasts on a couple of wheat biscuits, yum yum, and heads off to