And the Rest Is History(14)

Unwisely, their officer tried to make his voice heard. ‘Dr Maxwell here was caught, red-handed…’

Dr Bairstow interrupted him with ease.

‘Dr Maxwell would you be so kind as to reveal the contents of your pocket. Please do it slowly. Our colleagues in the Time Police are not noted for their rapid and accurate assessments of ongoing situations.’

I put down the icepack with which I had been attempting, unsuccessfully, to prevent another black eye and very slowly pulled out a small EMP device.

The officer’s face paled as he took in the implications. He took half a step backwards, but the Boss hadn’t finished with him yet.

‘Dr Maxwell’s instructions were to advise Ronan of my complete refusal to accept the terms he had presented, but my willingness to embark on a dialogue that would be beneficial to all. There was never, at any point, any thought of allowing him to walk away from his past crimes, but a hope that a way forward could be found. To reinforce this point, and to prevent his escape, at a moment she judged appropriate, Dr Maxwell was to disable his pod, leaving him with no choice other than to return with her to St Mary’s. Chief Farrell and Major Guthrie are here awaiting their arrival. If you please, Major.’

Guthrie made a small signal and the entire Security Section stepped out from the shadows. Armoured, armed, ready for anything.

‘At this point, having apprehended Clive Ronan, and when it was no longer possible even for the Time Police to … Well, at this point, your commander would have been informed. Once we had him safely in custody. As it is, thanks to the Time Police, the only thing we have now is an escaped and angry Clive Ronan who is, no doubt, out there now, plotting new ways to injure my unit and its personnel.’

‘By the powers vested in the Time Police…’

‘No one from my unit is under arrest. Nor will they be. You will leave now and count yourselves fortunate. You will report to your commander on your return. Please advise her I am available to discuss your professional behaviour with her at her earliest convenience.’ He gestured towards the hangar door. ‘Do not allow us to detain you.’

The Security Section escorted them to their pod. No one suffered a ‘fall’ on the way out, which I thought was particularly restrained of them, and a few seconds later, they’d gone.

I drew a deep breath and turned to Leon. We’re in trouble now, aren’t we?’

He nodded grimly. ‘We are. Listen to me, Max. From this moment on, you never set foot outside unless you have someone with you. Matthew is never to be left alone, not even for one moment. If one of us can’t be with him, then he goes to Sick Bay where he’ll be safe.’

I nodded. ‘Is that where he is now?’

He nodded and reapplied my icepack.

‘Leon, we had a chance…’

‘I know, love. But there might be others.’

‘You know there won’t be. If he didn’t hate us before, he does now.’ I shivered. ‘Especially me.’

He smiled. ‘Go and get Matthew. Have a long hot bath. I’ll see you in a minute.’



I left Leon and Guthrie talking to Dr Bairstow and made my way to Sick Bay. I would collect Matthew, get my eye looked at, swill down a couple of mugs of tea, have a bath and soak away ten tons of desert sand from all my nooks and crannies. The inside of my clothes felt like sandpaper. As did my throat.

Sick Bay was deserted so it was a good job I wasn’t spouting blood or hadn’t a limb hanging off. I had no idea where Hunter was, and Helen, I guessed, was in her office with her feet up, enjoying a peaceful cigarette.

Isaac Newton says that time is like an arrow – always moving steadily in one direction. Einstein says time is like a river, with currents and swirls and eddies, moving faster in some places and slower in others.

It was doing that now.

I let the door swing behind me and time began to slow.

I started across the reception area with its empty nurses’ station and it slowed some more.

I turned towards Helen’s office to tell her I was here, and it slowed even more.

The door to Helen’s office opened and Clive Ronan stepped out, still in the same sand-covered clothes in which I’d last seen him, and carrying Matthew in one arm and a gun in the other.

Time … stopped.

He hadn’t waited even one day to make good his threat. Always unpredictable, he had come straight from there to here. While I had been downstairs, distracted by the Time Police, he had been upstairs. With Matthew. I remembered his words.

‘No Maxwell. You’re going to live. Everyone else in your world will die but you’ll live on. You’ll look back on today and wish I had killed you.’

We stared at each other. Nothing happened. Neither of us moved.

And then, all at once, time started up again.

Another door – the one to the ladies’ toilets opened – and Helen stepped out, drying her hands on a paper towel.

Seeing me, she opened her mouth to say something. I’ll never know what it was.

A fraction of a second later, she caught sight of Clive Ronan standing in the doorway of her office, gun in one hand, Matthew in the other.

She stopped dead, staring, her mouth still open.

He swung his gun, covering first Helen, then me, then back to Helen again.

I couldn’t speak. Couldn’t think. I took one step forward. Just one.