Doctor Who_ Trading Futures - Lance Parkin [30]
Baskerville still hadn’t shown up anywhere in this mass of data. Cosgrove was worried that his own actions – the exploding Manta, the public search for the case, the use of the royal jet – might start to arouse suspicion. He had to assume the CIA were at least aware that something important was happening. And there was some third party – some organisation that could get on board a military boat in the middle of the sea, and could operate on a world scale, one that had initiative. Both the man who’d stolen his case and blown up the Manta and the man who’d taken his photograph had English accents. Neither had military training. Both had run rings around him. This was worrying.
There was also his feeling that there was something more going on, something beyond the human.
Cosgrove sat back, resolved to take control of the situation.
* * *
The Doctor’s eyes snapped open.
‘A CIA safehouse,’ he said.
Malady was standing beside a small video camera, adjusting some of the settings. This was a small room, windowless, like a police interview room.
He was handcuffed to the chair, his arms behind his back.
‘What time is it?’ the Doctor asked, slipping out of the handcuffs, dropping them in his pocket, then returning his hands behind his back.
‘Does it matter?’
The Doctor laughed. ‘I know it’s before midday. But what time is it?’
‘Do you really want me to say that it’s me that asks the questions, because I will.’
‘If you’re going to ask me something, ask me why I’m so confident it’s before midday. We’re still in Athens, right? So it’s before midday. So go on, ask me how I know.’
‘We are still in Athens.’ Malady turned her attention away from the camera and on to the Doctor.
‘Tell me the time, and I’ll tell you everything I know about Baskerville’s time machine. Does that sound fair?’
‘Whose what?’
‘Have you been briefed on this mission at all?’ the Doctor asked irritably.
‘I know there’s some hi‐tech being offered to the Eurozone Government. I know that the EZ are in contact with someone making that offer, someone who appeared out of nowhere two months ago.’
‘His name is Baskerville. What he’s offering is a working time machine. I’ll tell you all about him – but only after you tell me the time.’
Malady watched him carefully. ‘It’s five to twelve,’ she told him suspiciously.
‘We’re below ground.’ It wasn’t a question. ‘How far below ground?’
‘Doctor, you were going to tell me about Baskerville.’
‘Is this floor watertight? Are we in a bunker, or just an ordinary building?’
‘Doctor –’
‘There’s no time to warn anyone,’ the Doctor blurted. ‘But we can save ourselves.’
‘What’s going on?’
He broke into a grin. ‘I’m glad you asked. At midday, Athens is going to be hit by a tidal wave. There’s going to be massive loss of life. Now, you don’t know that, but the leaders of the Eurozone do. Baskerville told them. He’s from the future, he’s read about the tidal wave in his history hooks, and he’s proved he’s from the future by making a series of predictions, all of which have come true.’
‘Baskerville’s from the future?’
‘Malady, that really wasn’t the bit I wanted you to concentrate on. For the moment, can we stick to the tidal wave? We’ve got – what, four minutes? – to get out of Athens, or at the very least find somewhere waterproof. Does this safehouse have a safe?’
‘Not one that’s big enough for two people.’
‘One person? You can get in, I’ll make my own way to safety.’
Malady laughed out loud. ‘God, you’re good. I almost fell for it. Can you imagine what would happen when they found me? If they found me? “Hey Malady, who locked you in the safe?”, “Oh, I locked myself in the damn safe, because my prisoner said I’d drown if I didn’t”.’
‘Did you feel that?’
‘Oh come on, Doctor, what next? “There’s someone behind you”? OK, I’ll bite: what was I supposed to feel, Doctor?’
‘An earthquake, I think. Some distance away, but quite concentrated and powerful. Enough