Part 3 (2/2)

Rose leaned forward, whispering conspiratorially. 'What was all that about?'

'Not sure.' The Doctor pursed his lips, then picked up some of the drawings Ali had left on the table..

'Beth's not telling us something,' Rose continued. The Doctor perched his gla.s.ses on the end of his nose and peered at the drawings. 'Yes, you're right, but we're not going to find out anything more tonight.'

'So what's going on here, eh? And what's with the old biddy? She's definitely got the hump about something. . . You think that she's right, that it's something to do with this bloke at the rectory?'

'Bronwyn's another lady with secrets, that's for certain. But retired industrialists breeding creatures and letting them loose in the woods? Doesn't feel right to me.'

'It's spooked the kids here, though,' said Rose. 'They're terrified.'

'I'm not surprised with things like this roaming through the local woods!'

As if on cue, there was a guttural roar from outside. The Doctor dropped the drawings back on to the table with a deep sigh. 'I think we should pay a visit to Nathaniel Morton at the rectory and then get out to the lighthouse. But we're not going to be able to do much in the dark if those creatures are still active, so I'm afraid we're going to have to wait until morning. You'd better get up to bed.'

32.

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The morning sun came up bright and harsh over the sea, sending tendrils of mist spiralling into the air from the wet bracken. Ali crept through the damp undergrowth, keeping to the shadows of the rectory's long stone perimeter wall. The house itself loomed ahead of her, vast and imposing, wet slates glinting in the morning light, the windows dark and ominous.

She looked back at the gateway, where a cl.u.s.ter of expectant faces were watching her. She could hear Billy Palmer urging her on.

'Go on! Just do it!' he hissed. 'Hiding in the shadows is no good!'

Ali turned back towards the house. The wall surrounded an untidy garden that was bordered with gravel paths. Rhododendron bushes that had been allowed to grow wild towered over walls and straggly-looking shrubs fought their way through the brambles in the flowerbeds.

She broke cover, sprinting across the wet gra.s.s, not wanting to use the gravel path in case the noise gave her away. She reached the large broken birdbath that stood in front of the house and hunched down behind it, her heart pounding.

The door was right opposite her now. The big black door with its 33 peeling paint and old-fas.h.i.+oned knocker. Ali took another look back at her friends. They were all urging her on. She closed her eyes, trying to control her fear. All of them had done this. She was the only one left. She had to do it.

She wanted wanted to do it. to do it.

Taking a deep breath, she darted across the lawn crouched low, not daring to look up at those horrible black windows in case a face appeared in one of them. She ducked into the porch, grabbing the big bra.s.s knocker and letting it crash back against the door. Once. Twice. Three times. She could hear the noise echoing around the hallway of the damp old house.

Giddy with excitement, Ali whirled and hared back across the lawn to her waiting friends. She'd done it! She'd done it! She was part of the gang. When she reached the gate, most of that gang were already running, laughing and shoving at each other.

Billy Palmer had waited for her and was now grinning like a loon.

'Didn't think you were gonna do it!'

'It was easy,' lied Ali.

Giggling, the two of them ran to catch up with their mates. Nathaniel Morton watched from the first-floor window as the small girl emerged from the shadow of the house, scampering across his lawn to join her friends.

'Do you want the children punished?'

Morton turned to the white-coated figure at his shoulder.

'Of course not!' he snapped. 'They are important to us, Peyne, remember that. As long as our ”guests” were not disturbed.'

'They sleep. The medication ensures that.'

'Last night's test was successful?'

'Satisfactory. Do you need help returning to the lower levels?'

'I can manage!'

The figure gave a shrug and turned from the window. 'Then I shall return to my duties.'

Morton watched with distaste as the figure left, the white coat gleaming in the dark of the room. It was like watching a ghost. Dust 34 swirled from the floorboards, leaving footprints clearly visible in a trail to the door. Morton sighed. It had been a long time since anyone had cared about the appearance of the house. Certainly his 'colleagues'

had no interest in its upkeep. It was a place in which to work, a place for them to finish what had been started so long ago. Morton gripped the arms of his ancient wheelchair. A place for them to finish it. And he so desperately wanted it to be finished. He pushed himself away from the window, wheels squealing on the wooden floor, and moved away from the light and into the gloom of the house.

Rose and the Doctor strode up the hill towards the rectory, the Doctor munching on a slice of toast. He'd already had a gargantuan breakfast and Rose couldn't believe he was still eating.

Her night had been an unsettled one, though the room was comfortable enough. The Hardys were obviously used to making their guests feel at home and Rose had been given a small, cosy attic room, with low beams supporting the ceiling and soft pillows on the bed. But the night had been full of strange noises: a girl crying in her sleep Rose had a.s.sumed that was Ali and deeper, more unfamiliar sounds carried on the wind. Creatures stalking the woods and cliff tops. She had lain there, listening to the roars. It was unbelievable really, monsters prowling a seaside town and the locals accepting it as if it was something normal. But then, so much of her life these days was unbelievable.

She had eventually fallen into a troubled sleep in the early hours of the morning, only to be woken what seemed like minutes later by the Doctor hammering energetically on her door and shouting for her to stir her stumps.

Groaning, Rose had dragged herself out of bed and trudged downstairs a little later to find the Doctor in the restaurant. He was tucking into a huge cooked breakfast, bright-eyed and eager, the morning papers spread out on the table in front of him. Rose had slumped down opposite him, pouring herself a huge mug of coffee from the jug on the table.

35.'You're one of those annoying people who actually like mornings, aren't you?' she said accusingly, helping herself to some toast from the rack.

The Doctor had grinned at her. 'The creatures only seem to turn up after dark, so we need to make the most of the available daylight!

Besides, young Ali and her friends were up and out hours ago, and I want to see if we can catch up with them.'

Rose had been surprised. 'They let her go out on her own?'

The Doctor had just shrugged.

'They know the days are safe.

They've started to build these creatures into their normal routine. Humans are adaptable like that.'

'Looks like you had a productive night.' Rose nodded at the dismantled phone that was spread out across one of the pub tables.

'Trying to get a fix on that interference. Haven't traced it yet, but give me time.'

The Doctor had continued to eat until Rose was certain that he was going to burst. Then he jumped to his feet, wiped the egg yolk from his plate with another piece of toast and announced that it was time to pay Nathaniel Morton a visit. Beth had told them the best way to get up to the rectory and the two of them had set off in bright morning sunlight.

Daylight made the village look completely different. Shops were open, locals were out in the street buying groceries, boats bobbed in the little harbour. A normal Welsh fis.h.i.+ng village. They made their way up the hill, past the estate they had pa.s.sed through the previous night. The rectory was just visible now on a jutting strip of headland, bordered by a long, high wall and towering beech trees.

Rose turned and looked back at the view. Out in the bay the lighthouse loomed from its tangle of black rock, seagulls swirling around it. It made her s.h.i.+ver. While daylight made everything else look cheerier, it somehow accentuated the lighthouse's brooding presence.

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