Doctor Who: The Crawling Terror (12th Doctor novel) (Dr Who) by Mike Tucker

Author:Mike Tucker [Tucker, Mike]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi, pdf
ISBN: 9781448142347
Publisher: Ebury Publishing
Published: 2014-09-10T23:00:00+00:00

Chapter

Twelve

Private Robin Sanford of the 14th Wiltshire (Ringstone) Battalion Home Guard took one final look over his shoulder to check that no one was watching him, then leaned forward and struck a match on the rough dry-stone wall.

As the match head flared into sputtering life, and he raised it to the tip of his hastily constructed roll-up, a gruff, gravelly voice boomed from the darkness behind him.

‘Those things are going to be the death of you, Private Sanford. That’s assuming that I don’t kill you first, of course.’

Cursing his luck, Sanford let the cigarette drop into the mud, crushing it under the heel of his boot and snapping to attention as Sergeant Desmond Hughes stepped into the stone circle.

‘Just what do you think that you are doing, Private?’ The sergeant’s voice growled like distant thunder.

‘Thought I heard something, sir!’

‘Oh, really?’ The sergeant thrust his face close to Sanford’s, until their noses were practically touching. ‘And just what was it that you thought you heard, you horrible little man?’

‘A wheezing, groaning noise, sir!’

‘A wheezing, groaning noise?’

‘Yes, sir! And I think I saw a flashing light. Thought that I should check.’ He gave the sergeant a cheeky grin. ‘Might be that spaceship that Mr Churchill is always telling us to look out for.’

The sergeant took a long look around the moonlit fields. ‘Well, I don’t see any spaceships or flashing lights, Private. And the only wheezing and groaning that I want to hear is from you helping the rest of the men unload our top-secret government experiment from the truck! Do I make myself clear?’

‘Yes, sir!’

‘Well then, hurry along! At the double!’

As Sanford turned away, Sergeant Hughes stopped him.

‘Private Sanford…’

‘Sir?’

‘Stay alert. There’s something a bit queer about all this. Doesn’t smell right to me. Just… Just keep your eyes open.’

Puzzled, Sanford just nodded, and then hurried away to where the rest of his battalion were struggling to unstrap the huge metal bell from the back of a Scammell truck.

Sergeant Hughes took one last look around the field. Apart from the restless shuffling of the cows it was as quiet as the grave. He gave a scornful sniff. ‘Wheezing, groaning noise, my hat.’

Turning the collar of his coat up against the strengthening wind, the sergeant went to re-join his men.

Crouched amongst the cows in the field, the Doctor watched as the sergeant vanished into the inky blackness. Hunched in the grass alongside him, Charlie Bevan was still trying to come to grips with what had just happened to him.

‘It really worked,’ he said, more to himself than anyone else. ‘We really have gone back in time, haven’t we?’

‘It’s 21 March 1944,’ said the Doctor calmly. ‘I told you that I needed to find out exactly what happened here on that day.’

‘And I thought you meant finding a decent library or something.’ Charlie’s voice was starting to become slightly hysterical. The Doctor turned to face him, placing a hand firmly on his shoulder.

‘Constable. I realise that you have been through a lot over the last couple of hours, but I need you to stay calm and stay focused.

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