Post by Fitz Kreiner on Jun 12, 2011 7:10:11 GMT
Sir Daniel Ashfield sat in the office at the top of the UNIT storage facility. Blackout curtains had been installed and were down. The fluorescent lighting illuminated the area where he was sat, monitoring CCVT monitors showing the immediate vicinity. Black uniformed soldiers scurried about as they set up observation posts in preparation for the meeting between Tom and the still unknown UNIT source.
The ten foot high perimeter fences were normally patrolled by armed guards with Alsatians, except today; Ashfield had called them all in. Each warehouse in the facility had had new and up-to-date security systems installed at great speed that morning. In fact, since Sergeant Lovatt had approached him with the information last night, Ashfield had been getting the place organised. He was adamant that Rowan was not going to escape a second time.
Looking from the monitors, Ashfield checked the wall clock. It read 14:30 hours. Less than an hour and a half until Rowan arrived. He would arrive early, Ashfield was sure of that. He’d want to scope out the area, make sure that. The note to Rowan hadn’t been signed with a name; therefore his contact wanted to remain anonymous. If Ashfield were in Rowan’s shoes, he’d want to make sure that he was there before his contact, in case they weren’t all they claimed to be.
Ashfield reached out and picked up the radio which sat on his desk. “All units prepare to take cover. All eyes on lookout for approaching, I want this to go off without a hitch,” he said into the microphone.
Each man out in the storage depot had headset radios, enabling them to be in constant touch with each other. That way, when Rowan appeared, they could co-ordinate closing the trap and catch both Rowan and the UNIT leak.
Ashfield looked up as there was a rap at the office door and Sergeant Lovatt stepped in, escorted by a red-capped corporal. The two soldiers saluted before Ashfield nodded to them to stand at ease.
“You sent for me, sir?” she asked.
“Indeed I did, Sergeant,” Ashfield said, placing a heavy emphasis on the word ‘sergeant’. “I want you to facilitate the raid on the main warehouse. I think it’s perfectly feasible that will be the meeting place. I needn’t tell you to be careful, you’ve worked with Rowan; you know how dangerous he can be.”
Lovatt shifted uncomfortably. “I don’t know if dangerous is the right word,” she said, wincing at the look Ashfield gave her.
“The man is not only an associate of the Doctor and Master, but one of their race,” Ashfield said slowly. “He is, in every sense of the word, an illegal alien. I want him caught before these aliens are responsible for more deaths.”
“Sir,” Lovatt said, resignation heavy in her voice.
“And as I said last night, Sergeant,” Ashfield continued, “if you can pull this off, and you may find yourself moving up in the world, Warrant Officer Lovatt.”
“Sir,” Lovatt repeated before saluting and leaving the room.
Ashfield watched her go before turning to face the corporal. “In case she doesn’t, I want you to be ready to take over, understood?”
“Sir,” the corporal replied, snapping to attention.
“That’ll be all,” Ashfield said, turning back to the monitors.
“I’ve seen this place before,” Kelly said, looking at the non-descript warehouse faculty. “I mean, I’ve been past this way before. This isn’t a military thing, it’s a superstore depot. You sure this is the right place.”
“Positive,” Tom replied, looking up and down the street. “What makes you say it’s a superstore depot?”
Kelly pointed up to the large illuminated ‘Henrick’s’ sign on the side of the large central warehouse. Looking down at her, Tom gave a smile and wink and pulled the collar up of his coat.
“Alright,” Kelly decided. “How’re the clothes? I’d have thought under cover clothing would have been different to your normal clothes.”
Tom looked down at himself and the clothes Kelly had lent him from her brother-in-law’s wardrobe. He was wearing dark boot cut jeans over his black cowboy boots, a high necked grey wool jumper and black leather trench coat, which reached down almost to the floor, which was no mean feat considering his height. He still wore his leather bush hat to finish the ensemble.
“Yeah, thanks for these,” Tom said brushing down his jumper. “And what’s wrong with it?”
“Y’know,” Kelly said. “It’s like you’ve only just put a jumper on and added a little length to the coat.”
“Why change a classic design?” Tom replied. “I do like the coat though, nice and warm. Your brother-in-law has good taste.”
“Alright,” Kelly said, thrusting her gloved hands in her pockets. “Look, we’re here early like you wanted, can we go in now? I’m freezing here. That is, if you’ve got the right place.”
“I told you we have.” Tom said, striding off to the gate. “UNIT storage facility in Thamesmead; that’s where we are.”
“Tom, this is a Hendrick’s storage depot,” Kelly said, glancing up at the illuminated sign again.
“UNIT is a secret organisation,” Tom said, spinning on his heel causing the frock pleats of the coat to spin our around him, “at least, they’re meant to be. It’s called security and cover. You can’t advertise that these places have secret alien tech and whatnot in them.”
“Alien?!” Kelly asked, suddenly feeling more conspicuous than she already was on the deserted street. “You mean this is like a British Area 51?”
“No crashed space ships as far as I know,” Tom replied with a smiled before turning back to the gate.
“Whoa, hang on,” Kelly said grabbing Tom’s arm and stopping him. “This place has alien stuff in it, and it belongs to a secret military group. Where are all the guards? Where are all the guns? I mean, I’ve never been to Area 51, but everyone knows you don’t go near it because of all the restrictions and stuff. Not to mention the armed guards and dogs. I can’t help but notice there isn’t any of that here.”
Tom paused briefly, thought evident in his expression. “Don’t you think that may well arouse suspicion if there were armed guards and what have you in the middle of London? It’s pretty well hidden here; industrial estate, it looks like any shop warehouse. Perfect security don’t you think?”
“No,” Kelly said. “If you say it’s got all this stuff in it, where’s all the security?”
“There are security systems inside,” Tom replied. “But don’t worry,” he added holding his hand up as Kelly opened her mouth to argue, “I know the security systems. I helped put all the stuff from the Klil-Raath in here after that brew-ha-ha with them back in October.”
“Yeah, but,” Kelly started.
“Trust me,” Tom said, gently cupping her cheek with his hand. “I know what I’m doing. Look, if you don’t want to come in with me, you can stay here. You brought me here, you took me in last night, you’ve done enough if you feel you have. I won’t feel abandoned if you decide you want to leave.”
With a smile, Kelly put her hand over Toms. “No, it’s alright, I trust you,” she replied.
Tom smiled back and clapped Kelly on the shoulder gently. “Thanks,” he said before turning and hopping up the curb towards one of the gates.
Ashfield leant back and rubbed his eyes. Staring at the monitors for so long was starting to make him so tired. He was sure that he looked bedraggled at the moment. Rubbing his chin, he felt the stubble there where he hadn’t shaved the past two days.
A cold cup of coffee sat discarded at his elbow. He’d had more than he could count today whilst waiting for the security measures to be put in place and for Rowan to show. Again, he felt the twinge and tried to push the thoughts of having to go to the toilet out of his head. He knew that as soon as he left his post, the man would show and he’d miss him. So far there hadn’t been any movement on any of the cameras, and none of the Eyes, troops positioned in key areas, had spotted anything and neither had any of the snipers.
“This is Eyespy four here, sir,” a voice crackled over the radio.
“Ashfield, go ahead,” Ashfield replied.
“We’ve got movement down here, sir, west gate,” the voice responded. “It looks like Rowan and an unidentified female. Orders?”
“Allow them to enter unobstructed,” Ashfield replied, flicking to the west gate camera. “We need them and the leak to be here before we move.”
Ashfield looked at the image on the security scanner. One of the figures was definitely Rowan; the girl matched the description given by Morris of the female accomplice he’d brought into UNIT HQ.
“What’s going on with you two then,” Ashfield mused as he watched them cross the concrete grounds towards the largest storehouse. “And who are you going to meet?”
Kelly followed Tom through the grounds of the depot until they reached the doors of the main warehouse. “Well, how do we get in?” she asked, looking at the heavy padlock and chain on the doors.
Tom fished in one of his pockets before pulling out a white plastic tube, about four inches long and slightly thicker than a toothpick. “Draconian picklock,” he said with a wink. “The Doctor gave it to me a while back. You put it in the lock and it moulds itself to the shape of the key. Much easier than trying to pick a lock, and a lot more successful.”
“Proper sci-fi stuff,” Kelly said, watching as the padlock sprung open. “Can I have one of those?”
“Only if you use it responsibly,” Tom winked.
“Like you and breaking into a warehouse?” Kelly asked with a wry smile.
“Exactly,” Tom replied pushing the doors open and leading Kelly into the warehouse.
Kelly looked around at the large space as they entered. The afternoon light was fading, making the gloom of the warehouse even darker. The walls were lined with metal shelving and wooden packing crates. Piles of cardboard boxes were stacked on the shelves and others forming corridors around the large space. All the boxes and crates seemed perfectly normal, as though they were from any shop warehouse. She contemplated mentioning this to Tom as he led her through to the back of the warehouse. Eventually they reached a back wall and Tom pulled open a door, revealing a large cupboard.
“Ok, that’s a cupboard,” Kelly said, stating the obvious.
“It might look like it,” Tom replied, stepping in. “But appearances aren’t everything, if you get me.”
Shifting her feet, Kelly decided to follow Tom into the cupboard, closing the door behind her. “Now what?” she asked.
Tom smiled and turned to the red fire alarm point and lifted the front up. “Going down,” he said as he pressed the button.
Kelly turned to see a metal shutter slide over the door before the floor jerked and she felt the distinct motion of a lift.
“It’s a lift?” she asked, astounded.
“Even if there is a burglary, this is only something you’ll find if you’re looking for it,” Tom replied. “All the alien tech is underground.”
With a jolt, Kelly felt the lift stop moving and the door slid open. Cautiously, she peered out before Tom confidently strode past her, the sound of his boots on the floor echoing down the concrete tunnel before her. There were several metal studded doors set into the walls at various points, electronic keypads beside them. A couple of the doors had sliding hatches set at head height in them. They reminded her heavily of the doors to cells she’d seen in police dramas.
“What are these? Cells?” she asked, looking at them.
“Not quite,” Tom replied, “but they do may contain a few nasties, don’t get too close.”
“Ok,” Kelly said, stepping back from the door and making a point to walk down the middle of the corridor. “So where are we going?”
“Main store,” Tom replied. End of the corridor, basically a big underground warehouse.”
Kelly looked round again. All the lights in the corridor were on. “Why are the lights still on?”
“Automatic,” Tom replied. “Activated when we came down in the lift. It’s only the lights in the main store we’ll have to turn on.”
“And wait goodness knows how long until your contact turns up?” Kelly asked
Tom paused and looked at his watch. “Only about another half hour,” Tom replied before flicking a switch on the wall. The lights flickered on, illuminating rows of wooden packing crates, each different sizes, each with stencilled UNIT markings.
“Wow,” Kelly breathed. “The size of this place.”
“You should see the American store,” Tom said. “I’ve not seen it myself, but you knows these Americans, everything’s bigger over there.”
Kelly opened her mouth to reply before a whirring cut her off. “What’s that?” she asked.
“The lift,” Tom said, looking round. “Whoever my contact is, they’re early. Quick,behind these crates.”
Ashfield sat back in his chair and folded his hands. Whoever the leak in UNIT was, they’d arrived. He couldn’t tell who they were, cap pulled down over their eyes, greatcoat with collar turned up. Reaching across, he picked up his radio.
“Stand by all units; Rowan and contact are both in the warehouse. Move on my signal,” he said, getting affirmative responses from all the troops.
“Who is it?” Kelly whispered.
“I can’t tell yet,” Tom replied, peering round the corner. “I can hear them, military boots.” Tom ducked back behind the crate and reached into his coat before pulling out the pistol he had taken from Morris the day before and handed it over to Kelly. “Here, take this, just in case,” he said.
Kelly gingerly took the gun from Tom, feeling the weight of it and the coolness of the metal in her hands. “What the hell am I supposed to do with this?” she whispered tersely. “I’m not a soldier. The only pistol I’ve ever held is a water pistol.”
“It’s pretty much the same, instead of shooting out water, it shoots bits of metal,” Tom replied sardonically.
“Tom?” came a female voice from the corridor. “Are you in here?”
Standing up, Tom stepped round from behind the crate. “Yep, I’m here. Hello Suzanne.”
Stepping out of the corridor, Corporal Loding walked into the store. “You’re here early,” she said.
“I could say the same for you,” Tom replied.
“Are you alone?” Loding asked.
“Yes and no,” Tom replied. “I’ve not told anyone, but I’ve brought a little insurance.”
Loding raised her eyebrow.
“Kelly,” Tom called. “I’m sorry about this, but I have to be sure, I’m a little on the fugitive side of things at the moment.”
Stepping out from cover, Kelly appeared. “Hi,” she said meekly.
“What’s this?” Loding asked.
“Keep her covered,” Tom said as he stepped round Loding. “Just checking Suze,” he said as he patted her down. Reaching into Loding’s coat, he removed her pistol and hefted it in his hand. “Like I said, I’m a fugitive at the moment, I can’t take any risks.”
“And I’m not?” Loding asked rhetorically. “I’m risking my career here, what I’m doing is tantamount to treason. I’m disobeying strict orders to arrest you on sight.”
“I know, but I can’t take any risks,” Tom said. “Like I said, I’m sorry. You asked me here for a reason, what was it?”
“I’m just as concerned about what’s going on here as you,” Loding said. “I think you’re on the right lines with all this and I want to help. I can supply you all the inside info that we’ve got from UNIT. I’ve managed to get into some of the secured files at HQ.”
“I managed that myself,” Tom said.
“I noticed,” Loding said. “I’ve been able to make records of your access, and if I can, then anyone else can. But I can slip into the records seamlessly leaving no trace.” Loding reached into her inside greatcoat pocket and brought out a sheaf of papers and handed them over. “I don’t think you got this information, did you?”
Tom took the papers and flicked through them. “Quite concise,” he mused. “Got a fair bit of this myself from other sources mind,” he winked.
“The Master and Lethbridge-Stewart?” Loding asked. “You might not know this, but you can’t rely on either of them anymore.”
“What do you mean?” Tom asked.
“The Master was apprehended this morning, at Lethbridge-Stewart’s address,” Loding replied. “They’ve both been taken to the Tower. I imagine the Master is banged up somewhere even more secure now, although what Duncan wants with Lethbridge-Stewart I don’t know.”
“He knows the Master,” Tom replied. “Better than I do, better than anyone else on the planet. I should have seen that. So should the Master,” Tom paused. “I don’t like this.”
“What do you mean?” Loding asked.
“Kelly, get to the lift,” Tom said over his shoulder.
“What is it?” Kelly asked.
“Suze, wait here for a good fifteen minutes before leaving,” Tom replied handing Loding back her gun before skirting round her and heading for the corridor. “I’ve got a really bad feeling about this.”
“Tom, what do you mean?” Loding shouted after him.
“I think we’ve been set up,” Tom shouted back.
Ashfield sat forward in his chair as he watched the monitor. On it, he could see the lift moving up from the basement stores to the main warehouse. With a smile he picked up his radio.
“All units, we’ve got movement, prepare to move,” he said. “Rowan, female accomplice and Corporal Loding; all to be apprehended, the latter is still in the stores."
On the screens he could still see Loding in the stores, her face visible clearly on the screen. She had briefly met with Rowan and was now stood waiting in the stores checking her watch.
Loding looked up as the whirring of the lift started again; it was descending. Putting her pistol back in its holster, she walked down the corridor to the lift. Tom must have set it to go back down to pick her up. She looked up as the door opened and four black uniformed soldiers, wearing red caps stepped out and surrounded her, guns raised.
“Ah,” Loding said, somewhat feebly.
“Your weapon, please, Corporal,” one of the troops said, holding his hand out. “You’re under arrest.”
Keeping low, Tom led Kelly through the corridors of boxes in the warehouse. They had ducked behind a pile of crates as four soldiers crashed through the main doors and headed straight for the lift at the back. Keeping quiet, they had snuck through the warehouse and out of the doors.
“What’s going on?” Kelly whispered.
“We’ve been set up,” Tom replied. “Someone knew about our meeting.”
“You mean that soldier betrayed you?”
“No, no,” Tom replied. “Not Suzanne, she’s straight down the line, a woman of principals. I trust her. No, someone found out about our meeting and tried to trap us.”
“What now?” Kelly asked.
“We get the hell out of here,” Tom replied. “But keep low.”
Kelly ducked down, following Tom’s example, just seconds before the door window above Toms head spider-webbed and then showered the two of them with broken glass.
“What was that?” Kelly cried, forgetting to whisper.
“A sniper,” Tom said. “Sod the care, just run.”
Grabbing Kelly’s hand, Tom ran, dragging the terrified girl behind him. Zig-zagging across the ground, the skirted round the smaller buildings in the facility before running straight into a group of red-capped soldiers, clad in black with the exception of Sergeant Lovatt.
“I’m sorry, Tom,” she said stepping forwards, her eye’s heavy with sadness, “but I’m afraid you’re under arrest.”
The ten foot high perimeter fences were normally patrolled by armed guards with Alsatians, except today; Ashfield had called them all in. Each warehouse in the facility had had new and up-to-date security systems installed at great speed that morning. In fact, since Sergeant Lovatt had approached him with the information last night, Ashfield had been getting the place organised. He was adamant that Rowan was not going to escape a second time.
Looking from the monitors, Ashfield checked the wall clock. It read 14:30 hours. Less than an hour and a half until Rowan arrived. He would arrive early, Ashfield was sure of that. He’d want to scope out the area, make sure that. The note to Rowan hadn’t been signed with a name; therefore his contact wanted to remain anonymous. If Ashfield were in Rowan’s shoes, he’d want to make sure that he was there before his contact, in case they weren’t all they claimed to be.
Ashfield reached out and picked up the radio which sat on his desk. “All units prepare to take cover. All eyes on lookout for approaching, I want this to go off without a hitch,” he said into the microphone.
Each man out in the storage depot had headset radios, enabling them to be in constant touch with each other. That way, when Rowan appeared, they could co-ordinate closing the trap and catch both Rowan and the UNIT leak.
Ashfield looked up as there was a rap at the office door and Sergeant Lovatt stepped in, escorted by a red-capped corporal. The two soldiers saluted before Ashfield nodded to them to stand at ease.
“You sent for me, sir?” she asked.
“Indeed I did, Sergeant,” Ashfield said, placing a heavy emphasis on the word ‘sergeant’. “I want you to facilitate the raid on the main warehouse. I think it’s perfectly feasible that will be the meeting place. I needn’t tell you to be careful, you’ve worked with Rowan; you know how dangerous he can be.”
Lovatt shifted uncomfortably. “I don’t know if dangerous is the right word,” she said, wincing at the look Ashfield gave her.
“The man is not only an associate of the Doctor and Master, but one of their race,” Ashfield said slowly. “He is, in every sense of the word, an illegal alien. I want him caught before these aliens are responsible for more deaths.”
“Sir,” Lovatt said, resignation heavy in her voice.
“And as I said last night, Sergeant,” Ashfield continued, “if you can pull this off, and you may find yourself moving up in the world, Warrant Officer Lovatt.”
“Sir,” Lovatt repeated before saluting and leaving the room.
Ashfield watched her go before turning to face the corporal. “In case she doesn’t, I want you to be ready to take over, understood?”
“Sir,” the corporal replied, snapping to attention.
“That’ll be all,” Ashfield said, turning back to the monitors.
*
“I’ve seen this place before,” Kelly said, looking at the non-descript warehouse faculty. “I mean, I’ve been past this way before. This isn’t a military thing, it’s a superstore depot. You sure this is the right place.”
“Positive,” Tom replied, looking up and down the street. “What makes you say it’s a superstore depot?”
Kelly pointed up to the large illuminated ‘Henrick’s’ sign on the side of the large central warehouse. Looking down at her, Tom gave a smile and wink and pulled the collar up of his coat.
“Alright,” Kelly decided. “How’re the clothes? I’d have thought under cover clothing would have been different to your normal clothes.”
Tom looked down at himself and the clothes Kelly had lent him from her brother-in-law’s wardrobe. He was wearing dark boot cut jeans over his black cowboy boots, a high necked grey wool jumper and black leather trench coat, which reached down almost to the floor, which was no mean feat considering his height. He still wore his leather bush hat to finish the ensemble.
“Yeah, thanks for these,” Tom said brushing down his jumper. “And what’s wrong with it?”
“Y’know,” Kelly said. “It’s like you’ve only just put a jumper on and added a little length to the coat.”
“Why change a classic design?” Tom replied. “I do like the coat though, nice and warm. Your brother-in-law has good taste.”
“Alright,” Kelly said, thrusting her gloved hands in her pockets. “Look, we’re here early like you wanted, can we go in now? I’m freezing here. That is, if you’ve got the right place.”
“I told you we have.” Tom said, striding off to the gate. “UNIT storage facility in Thamesmead; that’s where we are.”
“Tom, this is a Hendrick’s storage depot,” Kelly said, glancing up at the illuminated sign again.
“UNIT is a secret organisation,” Tom said, spinning on his heel causing the frock pleats of the coat to spin our around him, “at least, they’re meant to be. It’s called security and cover. You can’t advertise that these places have secret alien tech and whatnot in them.”
“Alien?!” Kelly asked, suddenly feeling more conspicuous than she already was on the deserted street. “You mean this is like a British Area 51?”
“No crashed space ships as far as I know,” Tom replied with a smiled before turning back to the gate.
“Whoa, hang on,” Kelly said grabbing Tom’s arm and stopping him. “This place has alien stuff in it, and it belongs to a secret military group. Where are all the guards? Where are all the guns? I mean, I’ve never been to Area 51, but everyone knows you don’t go near it because of all the restrictions and stuff. Not to mention the armed guards and dogs. I can’t help but notice there isn’t any of that here.”
Tom paused briefly, thought evident in his expression. “Don’t you think that may well arouse suspicion if there were armed guards and what have you in the middle of London? It’s pretty well hidden here; industrial estate, it looks like any shop warehouse. Perfect security don’t you think?”
“No,” Kelly said. “If you say it’s got all this stuff in it, where’s all the security?”
“There are security systems inside,” Tom replied. “But don’t worry,” he added holding his hand up as Kelly opened her mouth to argue, “I know the security systems. I helped put all the stuff from the Klil-Raath in here after that brew-ha-ha with them back in October.”
“Yeah, but,” Kelly started.
“Trust me,” Tom said, gently cupping her cheek with his hand. “I know what I’m doing. Look, if you don’t want to come in with me, you can stay here. You brought me here, you took me in last night, you’ve done enough if you feel you have. I won’t feel abandoned if you decide you want to leave.”
With a smile, Kelly put her hand over Toms. “No, it’s alright, I trust you,” she replied.
Tom smiled back and clapped Kelly on the shoulder gently. “Thanks,” he said before turning and hopping up the curb towards one of the gates.
*
Ashfield leant back and rubbed his eyes. Staring at the monitors for so long was starting to make him so tired. He was sure that he looked bedraggled at the moment. Rubbing his chin, he felt the stubble there where he hadn’t shaved the past two days.
A cold cup of coffee sat discarded at his elbow. He’d had more than he could count today whilst waiting for the security measures to be put in place and for Rowan to show. Again, he felt the twinge and tried to push the thoughts of having to go to the toilet out of his head. He knew that as soon as he left his post, the man would show and he’d miss him. So far there hadn’t been any movement on any of the cameras, and none of the Eyes, troops positioned in key areas, had spotted anything and neither had any of the snipers.
“This is Eyespy four here, sir,” a voice crackled over the radio.
“Ashfield, go ahead,” Ashfield replied.
“We’ve got movement down here, sir, west gate,” the voice responded. “It looks like Rowan and an unidentified female. Orders?”
“Allow them to enter unobstructed,” Ashfield replied, flicking to the west gate camera. “We need them and the leak to be here before we move.”
Ashfield looked at the image on the security scanner. One of the figures was definitely Rowan; the girl matched the description given by Morris of the female accomplice he’d brought into UNIT HQ.
“What’s going on with you two then,” Ashfield mused as he watched them cross the concrete grounds towards the largest storehouse. “And who are you going to meet?”
*
Kelly followed Tom through the grounds of the depot until they reached the doors of the main warehouse. “Well, how do we get in?” she asked, looking at the heavy padlock and chain on the doors.
Tom fished in one of his pockets before pulling out a white plastic tube, about four inches long and slightly thicker than a toothpick. “Draconian picklock,” he said with a wink. “The Doctor gave it to me a while back. You put it in the lock and it moulds itself to the shape of the key. Much easier than trying to pick a lock, and a lot more successful.”
“Proper sci-fi stuff,” Kelly said, watching as the padlock sprung open. “Can I have one of those?”
“Only if you use it responsibly,” Tom winked.
“Like you and breaking into a warehouse?” Kelly asked with a wry smile.
“Exactly,” Tom replied pushing the doors open and leading Kelly into the warehouse.
Kelly looked around at the large space as they entered. The afternoon light was fading, making the gloom of the warehouse even darker. The walls were lined with metal shelving and wooden packing crates. Piles of cardboard boxes were stacked on the shelves and others forming corridors around the large space. All the boxes and crates seemed perfectly normal, as though they were from any shop warehouse. She contemplated mentioning this to Tom as he led her through to the back of the warehouse. Eventually they reached a back wall and Tom pulled open a door, revealing a large cupboard.
“Ok, that’s a cupboard,” Kelly said, stating the obvious.
“It might look like it,” Tom replied, stepping in. “But appearances aren’t everything, if you get me.”
Shifting her feet, Kelly decided to follow Tom into the cupboard, closing the door behind her. “Now what?” she asked.
Tom smiled and turned to the red fire alarm point and lifted the front up. “Going down,” he said as he pressed the button.
Kelly turned to see a metal shutter slide over the door before the floor jerked and she felt the distinct motion of a lift.
“It’s a lift?” she asked, astounded.
“Even if there is a burglary, this is only something you’ll find if you’re looking for it,” Tom replied. “All the alien tech is underground.”
With a jolt, Kelly felt the lift stop moving and the door slid open. Cautiously, she peered out before Tom confidently strode past her, the sound of his boots on the floor echoing down the concrete tunnel before her. There were several metal studded doors set into the walls at various points, electronic keypads beside them. A couple of the doors had sliding hatches set at head height in them. They reminded her heavily of the doors to cells she’d seen in police dramas.
“What are these? Cells?” she asked, looking at them.
“Not quite,” Tom replied, “but they do may contain a few nasties, don’t get too close.”
“Ok,” Kelly said, stepping back from the door and making a point to walk down the middle of the corridor. “So where are we going?”
“Main store,” Tom replied. End of the corridor, basically a big underground warehouse.”
Kelly looked round again. All the lights in the corridor were on. “Why are the lights still on?”
“Automatic,” Tom replied. “Activated when we came down in the lift. It’s only the lights in the main store we’ll have to turn on.”
“And wait goodness knows how long until your contact turns up?” Kelly asked
Tom paused and looked at his watch. “Only about another half hour,” Tom replied before flicking a switch on the wall. The lights flickered on, illuminating rows of wooden packing crates, each different sizes, each with stencilled UNIT markings.
“Wow,” Kelly breathed. “The size of this place.”
“You should see the American store,” Tom said. “I’ve not seen it myself, but you knows these Americans, everything’s bigger over there.”
Kelly opened her mouth to reply before a whirring cut her off. “What’s that?” she asked.
“The lift,” Tom said, looking round. “Whoever my contact is, they’re early. Quick,behind these crates.”
*
Ashfield sat back in his chair and folded his hands. Whoever the leak in UNIT was, they’d arrived. He couldn’t tell who they were, cap pulled down over their eyes, greatcoat with collar turned up. Reaching across, he picked up his radio.
“Stand by all units; Rowan and contact are both in the warehouse. Move on my signal,” he said, getting affirmative responses from all the troops.
*
“Who is it?” Kelly whispered.
“I can’t tell yet,” Tom replied, peering round the corner. “I can hear them, military boots.” Tom ducked back behind the crate and reached into his coat before pulling out the pistol he had taken from Morris the day before and handed it over to Kelly. “Here, take this, just in case,” he said.
Kelly gingerly took the gun from Tom, feeling the weight of it and the coolness of the metal in her hands. “What the hell am I supposed to do with this?” she whispered tersely. “I’m not a soldier. The only pistol I’ve ever held is a water pistol.”
“It’s pretty much the same, instead of shooting out water, it shoots bits of metal,” Tom replied sardonically.
“Tom?” came a female voice from the corridor. “Are you in here?”
Standing up, Tom stepped round from behind the crate. “Yep, I’m here. Hello Suzanne.”
Stepping out of the corridor, Corporal Loding walked into the store. “You’re here early,” she said.
“I could say the same for you,” Tom replied.
“Are you alone?” Loding asked.
“Yes and no,” Tom replied. “I’ve not told anyone, but I’ve brought a little insurance.”
Loding raised her eyebrow.
“Kelly,” Tom called. “I’m sorry about this, but I have to be sure, I’m a little on the fugitive side of things at the moment.”
Stepping out from cover, Kelly appeared. “Hi,” she said meekly.
“What’s this?” Loding asked.
“Keep her covered,” Tom said as he stepped round Loding. “Just checking Suze,” he said as he patted her down. Reaching into Loding’s coat, he removed her pistol and hefted it in his hand. “Like I said, I’m a fugitive at the moment, I can’t take any risks.”
“And I’m not?” Loding asked rhetorically. “I’m risking my career here, what I’m doing is tantamount to treason. I’m disobeying strict orders to arrest you on sight.”
“I know, but I can’t take any risks,” Tom said. “Like I said, I’m sorry. You asked me here for a reason, what was it?”
“I’m just as concerned about what’s going on here as you,” Loding said. “I think you’re on the right lines with all this and I want to help. I can supply you all the inside info that we’ve got from UNIT. I’ve managed to get into some of the secured files at HQ.”
“I managed that myself,” Tom said.
“I noticed,” Loding said. “I’ve been able to make records of your access, and if I can, then anyone else can. But I can slip into the records seamlessly leaving no trace.” Loding reached into her inside greatcoat pocket and brought out a sheaf of papers and handed them over. “I don’t think you got this information, did you?”
Tom took the papers and flicked through them. “Quite concise,” he mused. “Got a fair bit of this myself from other sources mind,” he winked.
“The Master and Lethbridge-Stewart?” Loding asked. “You might not know this, but you can’t rely on either of them anymore.”
“What do you mean?” Tom asked.
“The Master was apprehended this morning, at Lethbridge-Stewart’s address,” Loding replied. “They’ve both been taken to the Tower. I imagine the Master is banged up somewhere even more secure now, although what Duncan wants with Lethbridge-Stewart I don’t know.”
“He knows the Master,” Tom replied. “Better than I do, better than anyone else on the planet. I should have seen that. So should the Master,” Tom paused. “I don’t like this.”
“What do you mean?” Loding asked.
“Kelly, get to the lift,” Tom said over his shoulder.
“What is it?” Kelly asked.
“Suze, wait here for a good fifteen minutes before leaving,” Tom replied handing Loding back her gun before skirting round her and heading for the corridor. “I’ve got a really bad feeling about this.”
“Tom, what do you mean?” Loding shouted after him.
“I think we’ve been set up,” Tom shouted back.
*
Ashfield sat forward in his chair as he watched the monitor. On it, he could see the lift moving up from the basement stores to the main warehouse. With a smile he picked up his radio.
“All units, we’ve got movement, prepare to move,” he said. “Rowan, female accomplice and Corporal Loding; all to be apprehended, the latter is still in the stores."
On the screens he could still see Loding in the stores, her face visible clearly on the screen. She had briefly met with Rowan and was now stood waiting in the stores checking her watch.
*
Loding looked up as the whirring of the lift started again; it was descending. Putting her pistol back in its holster, she walked down the corridor to the lift. Tom must have set it to go back down to pick her up. She looked up as the door opened and four black uniformed soldiers, wearing red caps stepped out and surrounded her, guns raised.
“Ah,” Loding said, somewhat feebly.
“Your weapon, please, Corporal,” one of the troops said, holding his hand out. “You’re under arrest.”
*
Keeping low, Tom led Kelly through the corridors of boxes in the warehouse. They had ducked behind a pile of crates as four soldiers crashed through the main doors and headed straight for the lift at the back. Keeping quiet, they had snuck through the warehouse and out of the doors.
“What’s going on?” Kelly whispered.
“We’ve been set up,” Tom replied. “Someone knew about our meeting.”
“You mean that soldier betrayed you?”
“No, no,” Tom replied. “Not Suzanne, she’s straight down the line, a woman of principals. I trust her. No, someone found out about our meeting and tried to trap us.”
“What now?” Kelly asked.
“We get the hell out of here,” Tom replied. “But keep low.”
Kelly ducked down, following Tom’s example, just seconds before the door window above Toms head spider-webbed and then showered the two of them with broken glass.
“What was that?” Kelly cried, forgetting to whisper.
“A sniper,” Tom said. “Sod the care, just run.”
Grabbing Kelly’s hand, Tom ran, dragging the terrified girl behind him. Zig-zagging across the ground, the skirted round the smaller buildings in the facility before running straight into a group of red-capped soldiers, clad in black with the exception of Sergeant Lovatt.
“I’m sorry, Tom,” she said stepping forwards, her eye’s heavy with sadness, “but I’m afraid you’re under arrest.”
