for the camera.’
‘What camera?’
‘Come on, guys, the game’s up. Unless – oh, you are kidding ; you don’t know, either?’
Harker gave her a measured look. ‘No, I really don’t,’ he said. He started to get out of the car. ‘You can get out and look around if you want, but I’m coming with you.’
‘Fine.’
Eve waited for him to come around and help her out of the car, smiling conspiratorially at Tallulah, who smiled nervously back. Hand on gun, Harker watched Eve hop confidently over to a fragment of stone wall and peek around behind it. She seemed disappointed not to find anything there.
Poking at the rubble and weeds around the base of the wall also produced nothing. Eve hopped over to the wooden frame, her smile fading, and peered around it. She squinted off into the distance, where there were barren fields, several of which were undulated with shell holes.
Starting to hop over to one of them, Harker halted her, his hand firm on her shoulder.
‘I wouldn’t,’ he said. ‘Not unless you want to further the cause of the British Army by detecting landmines for us.’
She paused, and looked up at him uncertainly. He stared back steadily.
‘Well, maybe the camera’s on the car,’ she said, and started back towards it. She poked at the doors, at the spare tyre on the back, at the camo netting strung along the sides. She was about to go for the gun on the bonnet when Harker once more stopped her.
‘Please don’t touch that.’
‘But what if it’s–’
Harker flicked the safety catch, aimed at the empty field, and a spray of bullets kicked up mud.
‘But–’ she began, and Harker lost his patience. He leapt into the car, grabbed the submachine-gun from the seat and, raising it over Eve and Tallulah’s heads, sprayed bullets into a circle twenty feet wide around the car.
Eve went white.
‘There’s got to be a camera somewhere,’ she whispered.
‘There isn’t,’ Harker said. ‘And if there was, there isn’t any more. Now get back in the car.’
Eve, looking shocked, did so, this time without complaining.
‘Lu,’ Harker said, tucking the gun down beside him, on the opposite side to Eve, ‘back to the bridge.’
Tallulah did as she was told, and rather faster than necessary. In the back of the car, Eve sat still and quiet, her face pale and her eyes big with confusion.
‘But it doesn’t make any sense,’ she whispered at one, apparently random, point, and Harker replied, ‘War rarely does,’ and put his arm around her.
Chapter Six
‘Wheeler wants to see you,’ Charlie said as Harker tugged off his jacket and looked for somewhere to put it. But unless he started colonising Captain Turner’s desk, next to his, there wasn’t anywhere.
‘Of course she does.’
Charlie grinned and made a T with her hands. Harker nodded, in desperate need of something to take away the bad taste in his mouth that St James’s always left him with.
‘Did she say what it was about?’
‘No. But I’m guessing it’s our alien. What have you done with her, anyway?’
‘St James’s,’ Harker said. He threw his jacket on the floor and sat down, swinging his boots on to the few inches of desk that Charlie kept clear for such a purpose.
‘Shame,’ Charlie said. ‘She seemed to have spirit.’
‘Yeah.’ Harker frowned as he thought about the silent ghost curled up next to him in the car on the way back to the city. She’d had spirit, until he’d fired that gun and she’d … deflated, like someone had sucked all the fight out of her.
He’d handed her over to the halfway house at St James’s, explaining that she’d be fine there, and well-treated. It wasn’t a prison as such, more a place to put people they weren’t sure about. People they suspected of nefarious deeds, but didn’t have any proof of.
The army was big on proof.
But Eve hadn’t really seemed to listen. Stumbling, shivering, like a person in shock, she’d huddled into his greatcoat and avoided eye
‘What camera?’
‘Come on, guys, the game’s up. Unless – oh, you are kidding ; you don’t know, either?’
Harker gave her a measured look. ‘No, I really don’t,’ he said. He started to get out of the car. ‘You can get out and look around if you want, but I’m coming with you.’
‘Fine.’
Eve waited for him to come around and help her out of the car, smiling conspiratorially at Tallulah, who smiled nervously back. Hand on gun, Harker watched Eve hop confidently over to a fragment of stone wall and peek around behind it. She seemed disappointed not to find anything there.
Poking at the rubble and weeds around the base of the wall also produced nothing. Eve hopped over to the wooden frame, her smile fading, and peered around it. She squinted off into the distance, where there were barren fields, several of which were undulated with shell holes.
Starting to hop over to one of them, Harker halted her, his hand firm on her shoulder.
‘I wouldn’t,’ he said. ‘Not unless you want to further the cause of the British Army by detecting landmines for us.’
She paused, and looked up at him uncertainly. He stared back steadily.
‘Well, maybe the camera’s on the car,’ she said, and started back towards it. She poked at the doors, at the spare tyre on the back, at the camo netting strung along the sides. She was about to go for the gun on the bonnet when Harker once more stopped her.
‘Please don’t touch that.’
‘But what if it’s–’
Harker flicked the safety catch, aimed at the empty field, and a spray of bullets kicked up mud.
‘But–’ she began, and Harker lost his patience. He leapt into the car, grabbed the submachine-gun from the seat and, raising it over Eve and Tallulah’s heads, sprayed bullets into a circle twenty feet wide around the car.
Eve went white.
‘There’s got to be a camera somewhere,’ she whispered.
‘There isn’t,’ Harker said. ‘And if there was, there isn’t any more. Now get back in the car.’
Eve, looking shocked, did so, this time without complaining.
‘Lu,’ Harker said, tucking the gun down beside him, on the opposite side to Eve, ‘back to the bridge.’
Tallulah did as she was told, and rather faster than necessary. In the back of the car, Eve sat still and quiet, her face pale and her eyes big with confusion.
‘But it doesn’t make any sense,’ she whispered at one, apparently random, point, and Harker replied, ‘War rarely does,’ and put his arm around her.
Chapter Six
‘Wheeler wants to see you,’ Charlie said as Harker tugged off his jacket and looked for somewhere to put it. But unless he started colonising Captain Turner’s desk, next to his, there wasn’t anywhere.
‘Of course she does.’
Charlie grinned and made a T with her hands. Harker nodded, in desperate need of something to take away the bad taste in his mouth that St James’s always left him with.
‘Did she say what it was about?’
‘No. But I’m guessing it’s our alien. What have you done with her, anyway?’
‘St James’s,’ Harker said. He threw his jacket on the floor and sat down, swinging his boots on to the few inches of desk that Charlie kept clear for such a purpose.
‘Shame,’ Charlie said. ‘She seemed to have spirit.’
‘Yeah.’ Harker frowned as he thought about the silent ghost curled up next to him in the car on the way back to the city. She’d had spirit, until he’d fired that gun and she’d … deflated, like someone had sucked all the fight out of her.
He’d handed her over to the halfway house at St James’s, explaining that she’d be fine there, and well-treated. It wasn’t a prison as such, more a place to put people they weren’t sure about. People they suspected of nefarious deeds, but didn’t have any proof of.
The army was big on proof.
But Eve hadn’t really seemed to listen. Stumbling, shivering, like a person in shock, she’d huddled into his greatcoat and avoided eye
Similar Books
