Doctor Who_ Trading Futures - Lance Parkin [65]
‘Well, their use is still relatively rare. Big engineering projects, mainly. If there’s a mountain in the way of a new road, that sort of thing.’
The Doctor looked around.
‘No mountains,’ he noted quietly. ‘Perhaps they’ve all been levelled. Haven’t the CIA told the Canadian authorities about the Prophecy?’
‘They have, and they’ve had a security clampdown and run a whole set of safety checks on the device, to make sure it’s functioning normally.’
‘But they won’t tell us where it is.’
‘Nope. Because there’s a security clampdown, they aren’t telling anyone.’
The Doctor sighed. ‘I suppose there’s a logic to that.’
‘They’ve told us, not in so many words, that there’s only one nuke in the city. We also know they’re using this one to clear the harbour.’
‘That they know of,’ the Doctor said. ‘Still… the odds are it’s the one mentioned in the Prophecy. The only one we’re likely to find, anyway.’
‘The Prophecy specifically said it was a civilian device.’
The Doctor nodded. ‘Not a terrorist attack or a military blunder. Well, that settles it, it’s got to be the one. So, how do we find it?’
Malady handed over her binoculars. ‘Large warehouse, about four miles to the north.’
The Doctor peered out over the city. ‘What am I looking for… ah yes.’
‘We know the name of the building contractors working on the harbour project. That’s a local warehouse of theirs. The only one being guarded by RealWar robots.’
They were keeping out of sight of the road, but from up here, it was easy to spot them marching around the builders’ yard.
‘We’ve got enough charge for one more time jump,’ the Doctor said. ‘From here, it’s easy to pick precise co‐ordinates.’ He was already starting to fiddle with the controls on the time machine.
Malady took the binoculars back. ‘We don’t know what the security there is like.’
‘No,’ the Doctor replied patiently, ‘but we do know what the consequences will be if we don’t stop that nuclear device from going off.’
Malady thought about that. ‘Perhaps, by warning the authorities, we’ve done all we needed to do?’
‘I wish it was that easy. Put it this way: if the bomb… if the nuclear device… goes off, will you be happy you did all you could?’
Malady shook her head. ‘Baskerville’s seen the future, can we change that?’
‘We have to try. I’ll put us just inside that warehouse.’
* * *
Baskerville passed down the cabin, a bottle of champagne in hand.
Dee Gordon, Baskerville’s assistant, dozed on one of the leather seats. Anji Kapoor… the enigma… was sat opposite him, sipping at her champagne.
Of those awake, only Mather abstained. It wasn’t Cosgrove’s idea of a stiff drink, but it was a drink and that was near enough.
‘Louis Roederer Cristal,’ Cosgrove told her, after his first sip. ‘Not the best year, but most years are like each other, nowadays.’
‘Is that because you’re getting on?’ Mather joked.
Cosgrove failed to see the funny side, and if Anji was amused it was only faintly. ‘It’s because vineyards are micro‐irrigated, climate controlled and the picking is done by robots.’
Mather laughed.
The Concorde was levelling out. From the position of the sun, it looked like they were heading north‐east. Over the Black Sea, then. Into Russian territory.
Cosgrove didn’t like this at all. He grabbed Baskerville’s arm as their host made another pass with the champagne. ‘Where are we heading?’
Baskerville looked him in the eye. ‘Somewhere safe. Would you rather be in Toronto?’
Anji looked up. ‘Toronto’s all right,’ she said. ‘It’s a bit like New York built by the Swiss, but –’
‘The guide books will need updating shortly,’ Baskerville told her coldly.
She was looking at him accusingly. Cosgrove frowned. What was going on there?
Who was this girl?
‘Anji, why don’t you and Mr Cosgrove here examine the alien?’
* * *
Fitz edged out of the control gallery.
The Onihr deputy leader had warmed to his theme of revenge and organising the destruction of the Earth.
Which was a bit annoying, because Fitz now had the teleportation device to get back down there. If it was going to be