Doctor Who_ The Stone Rose - Jacqueline Rayner [55]
‘It is my function,’ said the GENIE unhelpfully. ‘I have to comply with any wishes within my hearing, provided I have the power to do so. Aha!’
The clap of thunder left Rose in no doubt as to the meaning of the GENIE’s exclamation. She looked around hurriedly, trying to discern what wish it had granted now.
It took her a moment to spot. The young man Crispus’s clothes had suddenly become brilliant purple and a laurel wreath had appeared on his head. But of course, that’s how he should be dressed. He was the emperor, after all. Imperator Caesar Quintus Junius Crispus Augustus, princeps of Rome, and she, Rose… she was his… concubine?
People in the room were bowing down, some prostrating themselves on the floor. Rose almost joined them.
But then she stopped. She was a twenty‐first‐century girl. Bowing and scraping didn’t come naturally to her. Anyway, this wasn’t how things should be. Something was wrong…
And hang on a minute, she was certainly no one’s concubine. The cheek of the lad! And she’d thought him so nice when she’d first met him… Rose began to remember.
She looked down at the box she was holding.
Inside was a monkey. No – the GENIE. The granter of wishes. This wasn’t real. ‘You’re not the emperor!’ she said out loud.
Big mistake. There were shocked gasps from all round the room.
Crispus jumped to his feet. ‘What? I’ll have your head for this! Grab her,’ he shouted imperiously.
Rose grabbed hold of the genuflecting Vanessa, dragging her towards the doorway.
‘Let me go!’ Vanessa yelled, struggling, but Rose couldn’t just abandon her to the madness.
The drunken men got to their feet and several burly slaves were already heading towards the two girls. Rose picked up the pace, hurtling towards the exit, Vanessa stumbling behind her, but the slaves were gaining on them.
‘Come on!’ she shouted at Vanessa.
‘The emperor will have us killed for running away!’ Vanessa moaned.
‘He’s not the emperor!’ Rose threw back breathlessly.
Vanessa moaned louder. ‘He’ll have you killed for saying that!’
‘So, I die twice. Typical imperial overkill. Come on!’
Vanessa screamed as a slave grabbed hold of her tunic. Rose turned to help her but was grabbed herself for her pains, another slave gripping her arms tightly. She dropped the box holding the GENIE as the slave began to drag her back towards Crispus. It was now or never. Wishing might well be out of the frying pan into the fire, but she’d just have to hope, because the frying pan was getting pretty hot right now…
She couldn’t think what to say, of a safe phrase that couldn’t be misinterpreted. Safe… that was the main thing, the only thing at the moment.
‘I wish Vanessa and I were safe!’ Rose yelled.
Crash!
And everything disappeared.
* * *
SIXTEEN
Rose was nowhere. All around, as far as the eye could see, was whiteness, like being buried in a warm, dry snowdrift. She could see Vanessa there too, but the blankness made distances deceptive; she might have been ten yards or ten miles away. Rose felt giddy as her eyes tried to adjust to the nothingness. She wanted to sit down but as she couldn’t even see what her feet were standing on, she decided that might not be the best of moves. All she could think of were children’s illustrations of heaven, and she wondered if an angel with a harp might wander past any moment.
Was she dead?
She’d wished to be safe and, in a strange sort of way, there was nothing safer than being dead. After all, nothing could hurt you.
But she still felt scared, still had the adrenalin rush of the chase, could still feel the pain of the cuts and scratches she’d gained over the last few hours. Surely all that sort of thing would go away after death?
Struggling with vertigo, Rose tried to take a step towards Vanessa – or at least, where Vanessa appeared to be. Her head spinning, she couldn’t work out if she’d actually moved or not, but she attempted another step anyway. Suddenly Vanessa was only an arm’s length away. Startled, Rose stumbled