Doctor Who: The Self-Made Man by Mark Griffiths

Author:Mark Griffiths [Griffiths, Mark]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Juvenile Fiction, Science Fiction, Time Travel, Space Exploration, Technology, Inventions, Historical, Europe, General
ISBN: 9781405956994
Google: 9PmyEAAAQBAJ
Barnesnoble:
Goodreads: 123215575
Publisher: Random House
Published: 2023-10-25T23:00:00+00:00

Romana strode to the counter, fishing in the rear pocket of her cut-off jeans for a square of paper. The huddle of youths parted silently to let her through. She unfolded the paper and lowered the sunglasses on her nose, studying Hazel’s notes. Her eyes flicked up to the young man behind the counter, who stared back at her with a mixture of curiosity and trepidation.

‘Are you Vinit Kundra?’

The young man nodded. ‘Mat’s thee.’ He screwed his eyes shut and shook his head. ‘I mean that’s me, yes. Sorry. Yes.’

‘Is there somewhere private we could go?’

A low snigger erupted from somewhere. Vinit looked confused and not a little embarrassed. ‘Excuse me?’

‘It’s to discuss the murder of this shop’s previous manager. I’m with Special Branch.’

The room went suddenly very quiet.

After a brief argument about who was most qualified for the task, one of the youths was deputed to mind the shop while Romana and Vinit went into the cramped storeroom-cum-office at the back of the premises. Cardboard boxes and piles of invoices lay strewn in haphazard piles.

‘Sorry about the mess,’ said Vinit. ‘I’m not as tidy as Gordon was. It’s been hard to concentrate on work after … after what happened.’

‘Of course. I quite understand,’ said Romana. She removed her sunglasses and hooked them through the neck of her T-shirt. ‘It must have been the most terrible shock for you.’

Vinit nodded. ‘We’re all reeling from it. He was a lovely guy, you know.’ He paused, wincing very slightly. ‘I went over everything I could think of that might be relevant to the case with the other officer – WDC Harper, is it? So I don’t know what more I can tell you.’

‘I just wanted to ask you about Matthew Pickles,’ said Romana.

‘Matthew?’ Vinit’s face brightened. ‘That guy’s my hero. An undisputed programming genius. He’ll change the world, I don’t doubt it. But he’s down to earth with it too! That’s what so great. He and his sister still live in the council house they grew up in on the estate. He’s done so much for people around here. And he’s been coming to this shop for years,’ he added proudly. ‘Without a doubt our best customer. We have a Vidslab box signed by him somewhere. You know he invented the thing?’ He opened a filing cabinet and rummaged inside excitedly, eventually producing a slim cardboard box bearing a picture of a Vidslab, with a squiggle of thick black marker pen – presumably Matthew’s signature – down one side. He passed it to Romana, handling the box as if it were a holy relic. ‘I keep meaning to put it in some kind of display case, but I never seem to get around to it.’

Romana smiled politely before handing the box back to him. ‘How good of him. Did Gordon and Matthew get on?’

Vinit nodded emphatically. ‘Like father and son. Gordon told me Matthew was in here constantly when he was little. Asking about everything to do with electronics and computer programming. He was always building his own computers and gadgets but he never had any money.

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