Part 17 (1/2)

'So what are you going to do?'

'What any decent, upright security man would do I'm going to bug his peace conference.'

Chapter Twelve.

Listening Surrounded by a complicated lash-up of electronic equipment, the Doctor and Commander Hawken were sitting in the windowless communications room of Hawken's security HQ.

It had been, Hawken explained, a simple matter to bug the conference.

'They're holding it in the small conference room in the barracks section. The place is bugged already, so it was only a matter of checking over the equipment. We did that yesterday.'

He turned to the com-tech at the controls. 'Everything ready?'

'Ready, sir.'

'Then why can't we hear anything?'

'They're not actually due to start for another hour, sir. I thought we'd better be ready early.'

'Good thinking,' said Hawken. 'What do you want to do, Smith, hang on or come back later?'

'I may as well stay. I imagine the General will arrive last, and there may well be some preliminary talk while the others are waiting. That can often be more revealing than the formal proceedings.'

They settled down to wait.

'By the way,' asked the Doctor casually. 'Are we free to leave yet?'

'Tomorrow,' said Hawken. 'I'll get the Governor to sign your pa.s.ses. You can even take your precious blue box with you.'

'I shall certainly do that,' said the Doctor.

'How will you travel?' asked Hawken. 'There are s.h.i.+ps coming and going constantly, but a lot of them are military. I might be able to arrange a lift for you if you tell me where you want to go.'

'Don't trouble yourself,' said the Doctor hurriedly. 'I'm sure I can make some suitable arrangement...'

Peri strolled across the great stone-flagged courtyard on her way to the commissary. She was wearing a plain white linen day dress, one of her recent purchases. She thought she looked rather well in it. Now, armed with a bundle of credits thrust on her by the Doctor, she was on her way to do yet more shopping.

Despite this happy situation, she was feeling faintly aggrieved. The Doctor, who had joined her for breakfast, had flatly refused to let her attend the bugging session.

'I just don't think Hawken would stand for it, Peri. I had a job to persuade him to let me me come, and he's got a rather old-fas.h.i.+oned att.i.tude to women.' come, and he's got a rather old-fas.h.i.+oned att.i.tude to women.'

'He's not the only one,' grumbled Peri.

The Doctor took a bundle of notes from his pocket. 'Here, take these. I drew some local credits when I paid for your last purchases. There should be enough there for anything you didn't buy first time round!'

'In other words, go away and play and don't bother the menfolk,' thought Peri as she walked across the courtyard.

There was a fountain in the middle of the courtyard and a stone bench beside it. Peri sat down for a moment, enjoying the crisp, cool air and the morning suns.h.i.+ne.

She began thinking about last night's reception and, inevitably, about the General. The Doctor, she thought, had been rather hard on him. What if he was a renegade Time Lord?

So was the Doctor, by his own admission, and he'd never used his undoubted powers for evil.

For all they knew, the General's reasons for rejecting the Time Lords might be as honourable as the Doctor's had been.

Was there, she wondered, an element of jealousy in the Doctor's judgement? A resentment of a personality so much more powerful than his own?

She found herself picturing the General, the lithe, compact body, the cat-like grace with which he'd moved across the crowded room, effortlessly dominating those around him. She saw the n.o.ble head with its cla.s.sically handsome features, the fierce black eyes that had softened when they gazed into her own. And the voice! That deep mellow voice which sent s.h.i.+vers through a girl's body.

As if conjured up by her own imaginings, she heard that voice ringing across the courtyard. 'Miss Brown! What an unexpected pleasure.'

She looked up and saw the General crossing the courtyard towards her. He wore a uniform of scarlet and gold, only slightly less ornate than the one he'd worn last night. There was a tough-looking, grey-uniformed officer at his heels.

He came over and stood looking down at her, giving her that same warm smile. 'I very much wanted to see you again, Miss Brown. I dared not hope that it would be so soon. May I trespa.s.s upon your time for a few minutes?'

'I've got plenty of time,' said Peri. 'But surely you haven't?

Your peace conference '

'The conference the Doctor is waiting to bug,' she thought guiltily.

'The conference can wait,' said the General simply. He turned to the officer. 'Tell the others I shall be late.'

It was obvious that the officer would have liked to object. It was equally obvious that he didn't dare. He clicked his heels and marched away.

'It's not every girl who's had a peace conference postponed for her,' thought Peri. Out loud she said, 'General, you mustn't ...' The General waved away her objections and sat down beside her. 'Miss Brown ' He broke off. 'Must I call you that?

Commander Hawken didn't give your forename when he introduced us.'

Peri smiled. 'That's because he can't p.r.o.nounce it! It's Perpugilliam Peri for short.'

'Peri,' said the General softly. 'A name for a flower.' He took her hand.

('A fast worker,' thought Peri, but she didn't withdraw her hand.) 'I am sorry we didn't have time to talk last night,' said the General. 'I very much wanted to, but the pressures of the occasion... It was important that I make a good impression here.'

'You certainly did that,' said Peri. 'Swept them all off their feet.'