‘But we’ve already been over that, what about the risk of discovery?’
‘I agree with you. But in your case, Jo, even if it is some form of experimentation, you’ll be out of here before they can try it on you.’
‘What about poor Denny?’
‘Well, unpleasant though it is for her, the only woman to have actually come to any harm was Mrs Murrell, and we know why.’
‘It’s still horrible.’
‘Oh, I agree. There’s one other thing. Fulbourn has checked through his own records and noticed that all the women, with the sole exception of Denny, who figured in the fifteen per cent have subsequently turned up in the other eighty-five per cent, after just one experimental treatment. Assuming that’s what it is.’
‘As though they’re experimented on once, then put on to conventional treatment?’ I said slowly. ‘Except Denny…because the experiment was a partial success?’
‘Exactly. Look’—he shuffled through the sheets of paper—‘these are copies of what we photographed, and here we have Wendy Dacie,’ he pointed, ‘and here, Alison Purton—that’s the other couple staying at the moment. Both were in the Nuclear DNA file last time, neither of them became pregnant, and neither are in the file this time.’
‘But they might have been added, after Denny and me.’
‘Nope. They’re not having laparoscopies.’
‘How do you know that?’
‘I found out yesterday. Used my charm.’
‘So the crucial question is,’ I said after a pause, ‘what is actually being done to the fifteen per cent, the women in the folders?’
‘We’re not going to find that out without getting into Carla’s room.’
I groaned. ‘I don’t see how we can.’
‘Well, we certainly can’t at night, but that doesn’t mean we can’t try during the day.’
I stared at him. ‘But they’ll be there.’
‘Not when they go to lunch.’
‘But they might not go together. Besides, even if they did, they’d reactivate the alarm.’
‘They don’t go together.’
‘How do you know?’
‘I watched them, yesterday and today, before I came up to you. Carla goes at twelve and comes back at a quarter to one. Chrystal goes at one, so the alarm won’t be reactivated, since there’s always one of them there. All we have to do is make sure Chrystal’s attention is engaged while I break into Carla’s room.’
‘Oh, that’s all is it? And I don’t like the sound of we.’
‘There is a way, and it’s quite simple. Can you draw?’
‘Draw? What’s that got to do with anything?’
‘Can you?’
‘A bit, but—’
‘Come into the garden, Jo, and I’ll show you.’
*
‘No.’
‘Jo, there isn’t any other way, I’ve looked.’ His face was pinched and there was the slightest edge of desperation in his voice. ‘We’re not going to get anywhere by doing nothing.’
‘I’m sorry, I won’t do it.’
‘Why not? We could be out of here by tomorrow afternoon.’
‘It’s too risky. What if you were caught?’
‘I won’t be…’ He tailed off as I went into a spasm of coughing.
We were behind the rhododendron bushes, and I was smoking one of his cheroots. I hadn’t brought my cigarettes with me and it was the first tobacco I’d had for nearly forty hours. It had even crossed my mind to try and give it up—until he’d told me what he wanted me to do.
‘I won’t be caught,’ he said.
‘There’s no guarantee of that.’
‘There never is a guarantee, but it’s very unlikely.’
His idea was for me to bring a chair out on to the lawn and sketch the back of the manor. From that position, Chrystal was clearly visible so long as she remained in the partitioned section of the lab where she seemed to carry out most of her work. I was to start sketching before twelve. When Carla left for lunch, Tom would glance through the back door at me. If I was sitting, it meant Chrystal was inside the partition. If she left it, I was to stand up. He’d unlock Carla’s door, immediately lock the connecting door to the lab, then search for and photograph the relevant files.
‘I could be out in less than three minutes,’ he said. ‘All I have to do is glance out at you occasionally. So long as you’re sitting, fine. If you stand up, I get out quick.’
‘How are you going to see me if you’re down on the floor photographing files?’
‘I’ll keep glancing up at you, as I said. If Chrystal does move, it’ll still take her at least a couple of minutes to de-gown and get to the connecting door, even if that’s where she’s going. If the worst came to the worst, she’d find it locked and I’d still have time to get out.’
‘Leaving a locked door to explain.’
He shrugged. ‘If I’d got what I wanted, we could ske-daddle.’
‘But what if Carla came back and found you photographing her files?’
He sighed. ‘That is a risk, albeit a small one. If it did happen, I’d have to hold her up and we’d get out.’
‘I’m sorry, Tom,’ I said again, ‘but it’s too risky. No.’
He sighed. ‘That leaves us with two alternatives. One, we leave empty-handed. Two, we subdue Cal again tomorrow night, then take the files before we leave.’
I know. I could have opted for leaving empty-handed, but would I have still got the ten thousand? So I allowed him to talk me round. I started sketching that afternoon (the bastard had already bought pad and pencils) to get them used to the idea. To my surprise, I rather enjoyed it.
18
I couldn’t sleep again that night. Tom was snoring, which was unusual for him. Or maybe I’d just been asleep when he’d done it before. I wondered for a moment whether it might have been better to have taken the sedative pill that evening rather than spitting it out when Nurse Sophi had gone. No, I still didn’t know what was in them.
At last, I got up, took one of my own sleeping pills and went into the bathroom for a smoke while I waited for it to work.
Viewed rationally, I had to admit that Tom’s scheme didn’t seem quite so insane in that it carried no more risk than our previous escapade and there were no better alternatives. I was still dreading it, though.
God, it’ll be marvellous to be out of here, I thought. Denny and Geoff had been ‘demob happy’, as Tom had called it, at dinner. Well, in twenty-four hours at the latest, we’d be on our way. Just the small matter of Carla’s experimental data to find and photograph first. If it existed.
Tom was still snoring when I went back in. I gave him a shove and he turned over and stopped. Mumbled something in his sleep. I stood, looking down at him for a few moments. How did I really feel about him? He’d certainly been his own bloody self, but I knew I’d miss him once this was over. A lump came to my throat; I went back to bed and tried to swallow it. Mercifully, sleep came quite quickly.
Morning…Tom going for his run…Nurse Jenni giving me the pill and me pretending to take it. Denny and Geoff at breakfast…
‘This is it then, Denny,’ I said to her.
‘Sure is.’ Her smile mellowed out. ‘Let me have your address before we go, and I’ll let you know how I get on. You must let me know, as well.’
‘Of course.’ Smiling back at her was one of the hardest things I’d ever done, knowing how unlikely it was that she was pregnant with their baby.
After breakfast, I went outside and sketched the manor from the front a couple of times to keep up the image, before moving to the back again, where it was more sheltered. Oddly enough, the cleaner lines of the back of the building (without the wisteria) were more satisfying to draw.
‘Not bad, Mrs Jones.’
‘Dr Kent—you startled me.’ I hadn’t sensed her approach at all.
‘I’m sorry. I came out to say I’d like to examine you again later this afternoon—shall we say five?’
>
‘Yes, fine.’
‘Good. I’ll see you then.’ She made her way to the back door.
An hour or so later, Tom came out with Denny and Geoff, who were leaving and wanted to say goodbye.
‘That’s lovely, Jo,’ said Denny, looking at my pad. ‘Didn’t I see you earlier doing one of the front?’
I showed her, then on impulse, tore it out and gave it to her. ‘Something to remember me by.’
‘Thank you, Jo.’ She put her hands on my shoulders and kissed my cheek. ‘You will let us know how you get on, won’t you? Tom’s got our address.’
‘Of course. Good luck, Denny.’
After they’d gone, I shook my head to try and clear away the sadness, then started on a new sheet.
Twelve o’clock…
I continued sketching, or tried to. Chrystal was working in the partition. I saw Carla stand up, take off her white coat and hang it up before leaving her room. A couple of minutes later, Tom appeared momentarily at the back door before disappearing again. A minute later, Carla’s door opened and he reappeared briefly before ducking out of sight.
Chrystal continued working. I continued pretending to, although my hand was shaking far too much to draw.
Hurry up, damn you, I thought. My jaw ached because my teeth were clenched so tight. Tom’s head bobbed up and down again.
Chrystal still continued working.
‘That’s nice,’ a voice said behind me and I let out a shriek.
‘I’m sorry, madam. I didn’t mean to scare you.’ It was the gardener-cum-heavy.
‘I—it’s all right. I—I was absorbed, that’s all.’ Surely, he’d hear the tremor in my voice.
‘Would you do one for me? I’d pay you.’ He was standing quite close, I could smell the physical work on him, see the bleeper device clipped on to his belt and his name badge, which said he was called Brian.
‘Oh, I couldn’t’—Chrystal shut the door of the incubator, walked quickly into the gowning lobby and stripped off her gown and mask—‘I couldn’t take any money.’ Remembering what I was there for, I shot to my feet, holding my pencil vertically at arm’s length as though measuring the building.
Tom, where are you?
‘But I’d like to,’ Brian said.
Brian would see Tom when he next popped up. I turned, faced him and smiled, willing him to look at me. ‘Besides, I’m afraid we might be leaving tomorrow, so there wouldn’t really be time.’
‘Oh. All right, then.’ His disappointment was palpable.
‘I suppose I could try and do one this afternoon for you.’
‘Would you?’
‘I’ll try. Would you prefer the view from the back or front?’
‘Oh, the front, please. And you must let me pay you.’
My face cracked in a smile. ‘Well, if you insist…’
‘I do.’
‘Will you be here this afternoon?’
‘I’ll be around till about five.’
‘Then I’ll look for you out here before that.’
‘Thank you, madam.’ He actually touched his forelock, and went back to his work.
Had he seen anything? I was as sure as I could be he hadn’t. I glanced back up at the window.
Dr Kent and Carla were now standing together in Carla’s room, looking out at me. I forced myself to smile and wave, and after a moment. Dr Kent waved back. I sat down again. Chrystal was back in the partition.
I swallowed, pretending to draw. Where was Tom?
I looked up again to measure a perspective with my pencil. Dr Kent and Carla were now in the lab, Carla talking on what looked like an intercom to Chrystal.
Where was Tom?
As though in answer, he appeared in the doorway and sauntered over to me, peering over my shoulder.
‘How’s it going?’
I smiled up at him. ‘What happened, Tom?’
‘Keep drawing for another quarter of an hour, then come up to the suite.’ He bent and kissed my cheek and was gone.
The minutes crawled by. Dr Kent and Carla went back to Carla’s room and talked. Carla bent down, to the safe, I assumed. Chrystal degowned, put her head round the door, then left, for her lunch, probably. I looked at my watch again.
At last, the fifteen minutes were up, I packed my things away and went to our room. Tom was lying on his bed, listening to the radio.
‘What happened?’ I asked.
‘I’m not quite sure myself,’ he said. ‘I’d got the safe open and the folders were there, I saw them. I pulled out the one marked Nuclear DNA, opened it, then took a quick look at you before getting the camera out, and saw you standing with the gardener.’
‘His name’s Brian.’
‘Brian. Well, I wondered at first whether Brian was the reason you were standing, so I shoved the folder back anyway and relocked the safe. Just as well I did. I’d unlocked the connecting door and was on my way to the other door when I heard a key rattling in it and Carla’s and Kent’s voices outside. I knew it would take them a few seconds to work out why the key wouldn’t unlock the door, so I went through the connecting door, planning to tell Chrystal I was looking for Carla. Well, Chrystal was in the partition and didn’t see me, so I ducked down and went out of the lab door and into the corridor. Fortunately, by this time, Kent and Carla had gone into her room, so I quickly scarpered.’ He let out a sigh. ‘Close, eh?’
‘Too close.’ I told him how they’d stared out at me and then questioned Chrystal. ‘Tom, I’ve had enough.’
‘But the files are there, Jo. I saw them. We’re that far away.’ He held his fingers up a quarter of an inch apart.
‘OK, tell Marcus that and get him to arrange a raid on the place—surely we’ve got enough for that?’
‘Yes, we have.’
‘So arrange it and let’s get out, now.’
‘No.’
I stared at him.
‘Because we couldn’t arrange it in time. We’d have to get a warrant for an official search, and the very earliest that could be done would be for tomorrow afternoon. By which time you might well have had eggs replaced.’
‘But why can’t we just—Oh, I see. If we clear out before then…’
‘Kent will guess why and either destroy or hide the evidence before the search takes place.’ Tom finished for me.
‘But I thought you said we already have enough evidence.’
‘Fulbourn has worked out enough to justify a search, and probably enough to show malpractice and deception as well, but he hasn’t unravelled the whole thing yet. They could only be prosecuted on comparatively minor charges, and a good counsel might even get them off. We must have Carla’s files.’
‘But how are we going to get them?’
‘We’ll take them on our way out tonight.’
‘How?’
‘We immobilise Cal, take them and go.’
‘Oh no, not the dart gun again.’
‘No, I’ll simply tell him to stick ‘em up.’
‘But he’ll know who we are.’
‘They’ll know that anyway when they find us missing.’
‘Supposing the files don’t contain enough to—’
‘They will, I’m sure of it.’
‘But suppose they don’t,’ I persisted. ‘We could he charged with assault and goodness knows what.’
‘Almost certainly not. Marcus says that since there’s already enough to warrant an official search, he could justify this, so long as we don’t harm anybody.’
‘Is almost good enough?’
‘Marcus has authorised it and that’s good enough for me. There’s no way I’m going to leave this job unfinished.’
So that was that.
The rest of the day was pure bell. I picked at my lunch (he ate with gusto), then we adjourned to the bushes. I took one of my sketches to give to Brian, but there was no sign of him.
I gobbled down some smoke. ‘If they catch us,’ I said, blowing it out, ‘they’d have nothing to lose from kil
ling us.’
‘They would, actually.’
‘They’ve already killed once.’
‘A killing which, unfortunately, we’ll probably never be able to prove. If they killed us, they would be nailed, and they’d know it. Were they to catch us, which they won’t, they’d simply destroy the evidence and then say prove it.’
‘Or use us as hostages.’
‘Why should they? It’s not in that league. Besides, very few villains get away with that, and they’ll know it.’
He always had to know best.
We found Brian working in the garden on the way back and I presented him with the sketch.
‘It’s one I did earlier today,’ I said. ‘I hope that’s all right.’
‘Just what I wanted,’ he said, looking at it. ‘Now you must let me—’ he put his hand in his pocket.
‘No.’ I said. ‘A gift. I insist.’
He glanced at Tom. ‘OK. Thank you, madam.’
By the time we got back to our room, it was almost time for me to see Dr Kent. I brushed my teeth, showered and changed (thank God I won’t have to do this every time I have a smoke any more) and made my way down.
Her examination was much more thorough than usual, in more ways than one. She took my blood pressure, pulse rate and temperature, then listened to my heart and lungs.
‘Is drawing something that’s always interested you?’ she asked suddenly.
‘I—er—yes, when I was younger, very much so. I even thought about art as a career at one stage.’ You’re gabbling. I told myself. ‘I still sometimes wonder whether I made the right decision…’
‘Hmm. Your blood pressure and pulse rate are higher than they should be,’ she said. ‘You have been taking the tablets I prescribed?’
‘Oh, yes.’ I paused. ‘I have felt rather nervous about being here, as you know. Perhaps that’s why…’
‘Perhaps it is.’ Her piercing grey eyes seemed to be probing my mind. ‘Now, I’m going to give you a scan.’
‘A scan?’
‘Yes. I want to see how your ovaries have settled down. It could influence when I replace your eggs.’
I couldn’t see how, but I went through to the scanning room and slowly undressed. I hadn’t liked the tone of the conversation at all.
Deliver Them From Evil Page 14
