Doctor Who_ Wetworld - Mark Michalowski [43]
‘Wait!’ Ty said suddenly, and rushed over to the side of the Doctor’s bed where his jacket was draped over a chair. She began to root about in his pockets and produced the sonic screwdriver.
‘His torch!’ she said triumphantly.
‘The sonic screwdriver?’
‘He used it to keep them back when we were attacked before.’
For a second, Martha felt a pang of jealousy. Whilst she’d been out cold, the Doctor had been running around having adventures with this woman. She pushed her silly feelings aside.
‘Good,’ Martha said, snatching it from Ty. ‘What setting did he have it on?’
‘What what?’
‘Setting,’ repeated Martha, waving the screwdriver in her face. ‘It’s got about five billion of them. Use the wrong one and we could blow up half the town. Has he used it since then? Has anyone?’
Ty frowned but shook her head.
‘Well,’ said Martha, ‘we’ll just have to hope that it’s been left on the same one.’
She advanced towards the door, the sonic screwdriver held out gingerly in front of her.
‘You can’t go out there on your own,’ Ty said.
‘I can move faster on my own,’ Martha said, seeing the nervous faces around her. ‘No offence. And I need you lot to look after the Doctor –
right?’ Ty nodded. There was no argument from the others. Martha looked at the doctor who stood with one hand on the end of the drip stand.
It rattled as the otters battered against the door, and she could hear the sounds of scratching. ‘On three,’ she said in a low voice. ‘One. . .
two. . . three!’
Martha pressed the button as she reached ‘two’, and the tip of the screwdriver lit up with its reassuring blue glow. A high-pitched, teeth-irritating whine filled the room and the sound of scrabbling at the door abruptly ceased.
And on ‘three’, the nervous young doctor slid back the stand that held the doors shut.
Nothing happened – the doors shook slightly, but the expected in-rush of otters didn’t happen. Martha stepped forward, still holding the screwdriver out in front of her, and pushed tentatively at one of the doors with her foot. It moved out a few inches before hitting something, and then it was pushed back at her. There was the sound of squeaking and pattering feet from the corridor, and Martha pushed the door again, harder this time. It moved further and swung back without hitting anything.
She glanced back at the Doctor and then at Ty.
‘Take care of him,’ she said. ‘I’m trusting you, yeah?’
‘You can,’ replied Ty as if Martha’s words had been a challenge.
‘Which one’s the zoo lab?’
‘Back to the square and then diagonally across to the right. The light’ll be on and there’s a sign by the door. The tranqs are in the white cabinet in the corner. There’ll be a tranq gun with them.’
Martha took another look at the Doctor. With a brief nod and the tightest of smiles, she held out the sonic screwdriver in front of her and stepped into the corridor.
Ty, the doctor and the receptionist, barricaded the door the moment Martha had gone, and Ty dropped heavily into the chair by the Doctor’s bed. She picked up a cloth from the table and wiped his sweaty forehead. In his sleep, he gave a guttural moan and his lips formed into a toothy sneer. ‘She’s got guts,’ Ty said. ‘I’ll give her that. I can see why you’re. . .
such good friends.’
She shook her head and squeezed the Doctor’s hand.
‘You idiot,’ she hissed. ‘You stupid, stupid idiot. What are you play-ing at, eh? What if this stuff. . . what if it kills you? What then? Then we’re all in the –’
‘Hello,’ interrupted the doctor thoughtfully, staring up at the screen over the bed. ‘Look at that.’
Ty looked.
‘What’s happening?’
‘His temperature’s dropping. And his. . . ’ the doctor frowned. ‘Well, whatever he has in his blood that are doing the job of white blood cells. The count’s falling like crazy.’
Ty’s heart raced.
She gave a little yelp as the Doctor’s hand suddenly gripped hers painfully, crushing her fingers. She looked down as his eyes flicked open. They were dark, like pools of tar. A cruel smile crossed his face again.
‘Marthaaaaaaa,’ he hissed, glaring up at her. She tried