Murder in the Dark, page 15
Something in his voice caught everyone’s attention. He had the sound of someone who knew something, or thought he did.
‘What are you talking about, Mike?’ said the Professor.
Mike looked at me challengingly. ‘I don’t think he’s who he says he is. And neither is his girlfriend.’
The Professor glared at Mike. ‘We’ve already been through that! We have no way of checking up on them until Mr Carroll contacts us.’
‘You didn’t really think I was going to wait for that, did you?’ said Mike. ‘I did my own checking, on the computer.’
The Professor looked shocked. ‘You should have checked with me before doing anything like that! I’m in charge of this team.’
‘Only technically,’ said Mike.
‘You should have talked to me,’ said Paul. ‘I could have helped.’
‘I didn’t want anyone’s help,’ Mike said flatly. ‘The only people I could be sure of in this camp were Ellie and Robert. Now they’re dead, I don’t trust anybody.’
‘Well,’ said Paul, ‘at least now we all know where we stand.’
Penny looked thoughtfully at Mike. ‘I thought you said Black Heir controlled your access to the outside world? That you weren’t allowed to talk to unauthorized people?’
Mike smiled. ‘Oh, yes … Limited access to approved sites and people only, for security reasons. But you don’t get to be genius scientists like us without learning your way around a computer. The good stuff is always going to be off limits, so you have to go and get it. It didn’t take me ten minutes to break through the restrictions, and then I reached out to a few old friends of mine. Very smart, very well connected friends, and very knowledgeable when it comes to the more obscure security agencies.’
‘You shouldn’t have done any of this without my authorization,’ said the Professor. ‘Who did you talk to?’
‘No one you’d know,’ said Mike. ‘And you’re not in charge here! You never were, really. You were just put here to crack the whip and report on us to your bosses. But we’ve moved beyond that. Our work is over, it’s all about survival now.’
‘What do you know, Mike?’ said Paul. ‘What did your contacts tell you?’
‘According to my very knowledgeable friends, there’s no such thing as the Organization, which Ishmael claims he works for.’
‘Of course they wouldn’t have heard of us,’ I said calmly. ‘When you work at our level, none of us exist officially.’
‘How very convenient!’ said Mike. ‘I also had them check your name, and hers. And again they couldn’t find any trace of you.’
‘Of course not,’ I said. ‘You didn’t really think that “Ishmael Jones” was my real name, did you? Does it even sound real? It’s a one-time-use name, for fieldwork. And so is “Penny”.’
The Professor sniffed loudly. ‘I could have told you that, Mike. If you’d bothered to ask.’
Mike subsided, reluctantly. Not because he was convinced, but because he’d run out of ammunition. For the moment.
Of course his friends couldn’t find me. That was part of the deal I made with the Organization. For as long as I worked for them, no matter where I went or what I did, they’d make sure I left no trace in the world. Ishmael Jones is always going to be just a ghost in the machinery. Penny leaned in close to murmur to me.
‘There’s no official record of me? I don’t exist?’
‘Relax,’ I said. ‘Mike’s friends would have found you easily enough if they’d looked on the electoral roll and places like that, but that wasn’t what they were looking for.’
‘Got it,’ said Penny.
‘They’re muttering to each other again!’ Mike said loudly. ‘What are they saying that we’re not allowed to hear?’
The Professor rounded on him. ‘Mike, will you please shut up! We’re in a very dangerous situation, and you’re not helping!’ She turned to me. ‘Whether we want to admit it or not, I think it’s clear it’s become too dangerous for us to stay in the camp any longer. Can you get us out of here?’
Penny put a hand on my arm. ‘I really think we should go, Ishmael. You wanted to save as many people as you could, and this might be the only way to do it.’
I looked at her steadily. ‘You think we should just run away?’
‘We didn’t come here to solve the mystery of the hole,’ she said steadily. ‘We were supposed to protect these people. I haven’t forgotten what you said earlier, about what the Organization might do to you. But you also said that wasn’t important compared to protecting these people. Unless you’ve changed your mind.’
‘No,’ I said. ‘I haven’t. All right, then. If we’re going to leave, that means walking down the hillside in the dark to where we parked the car. Is everyone OK with that?’
The three scientists looked at the darkness pressing close to the perimeter. They didn’t look too happy, but it wasn’t enough to dissuade them.
‘Phone the Colonel first, Ishmael,’ said Penny. ‘Tell him we’re leaving, and why. Don’t give him a chance to argue, just tell him to send in enough armed men to surround the area, and once we’re safely out they can move in and seal off the campsite.’
‘Sounds like a plan to me,’ I said. I smiled at her. ‘You always were the brains in this outfit.’
‘I know,’ said Penny. She smiled dazzlingly.
‘So,’ said Paul, as I took my phone out of my pocket, ‘we’re not waiting for Mr Carroll?’
‘You really want to stay here that long?’ said Mike.
‘At least Carroll works for a Government department,’ Paul said patiently. ‘As you already pointed out, we don’t really know anything about Ishmael, or the Colonel or his Organization.’
‘I know the Colonel,’ said the Professor. ‘I vouch for him.’
Paul shook his head. ‘No offence, Professor, but right now that’s not enough.’
‘The Colonel can send in a small army of armed men right now,’ said Penny. ‘Long before Black Heir could arrange anything similar.’
‘Call your Colonel,’ said Mike.
I started to dial the number. Then stopped and looked at my phone.
‘What?’ Mike said immediately. ‘What is it? What’s wrong?’
‘Have you let your battery go flat again?’ said Penny.
‘There’s no signal,’ I said.
I got up and walked around, even holding the phone above my head, but couldn’t get a single bar. I shook the phone hard and tried again.
‘You know that never works …’ said Penny.
I nodded, put the phone away, and sat down. ‘Either there’s no coverage in this area, or the hole is interfering with the signal.’
The scientists looked at each other, and then up the hill at the hole. As though it might be listening.
‘We never thought to check whether the hole might be interfering with our communications,’ said the Professor.
‘Why would we?’ said Paul. ‘That isn’t what we came here for.’
‘Why would the hole do that?’ said Mike.
‘Why does it do anything?’ said Paul.
He’d made a bigger point than he realized. I’d accepted that the hole had been affecting my senses, but now I had to wonder what else the hole might be doing to us, and possibly to our surroundings, that we hadn’t noticed.
‘Have you ever wondered,’ Mike said suddenly, ‘whether the hole might have been put here specifically to mess with us? To present us with problems to solve, just to see how we cope? All the time we thought we were investigating the hole, it might have been investigating us.’
‘You mean, we’re its lab rats?’ said the Professor. ‘That the hole has had us running through a maze we can’t even see?’
‘That’s a horrid thought!’ said Penny.
‘If the hole is running tests on us,’ said Paul, ‘I wonder how we’re doing …’
‘I’ll try my phone,’ said Penny.
She started to reach for it, but I put a hand on her arm. ‘You couldn’t contact the Colonel, even if I gave you his number. My phone comes with built-in security clearances. Without them, you couldn’t even get his phone to ring.’
Penny looked at me. ‘You never told me that before.’
‘You never asked.’
‘We will talk about this later,’ Penny said coldly.
‘Of course we will,’ I said.
‘So,’ Mike said heavily, ‘no reinforcements, after all. Well, that’s just great! You get all our hopes up and …’
‘Mike!’ the Professor said sharply. ‘Not now!’
‘I’m not allowed to speak my mind anymore?’ said Mike.
‘No,’ said the Professor.
Mike looked at her. ‘Why not?’
‘Because you’re being really annoying,’ said the Professor.
‘I wonder why,’ said Mike.
‘You mustn’t take everything out on Ishmael,’ Penny said gently. ‘He’s not responsible for Ellie’s death.’
‘He didn’t save her,’ said Mike.
‘He knows that,’ said Penny. ‘Ishmael takes his job very seriously. But even he can’t save everyone.’
‘Then what use is he?’ said Mike.
Penny’s eyes narrowed, but when she answered Mike her voice was cool and composed. ‘He’s your only hope of getting out of here alive.’
She turned to me. ‘We’re going to the car. Right now.’
I nodded. ‘Because keeping these people safe is why we’re here.’
‘Exactly,’ said Penny.
We all got to our feet. The scientists looked out at the dark, and I could see a mixture of feelings in their faces. They were ready enough to leave the camp, but the thought of what might be waiting for them out in the dark still made them hesitate. Penny moved in beside me.
‘If the Organization does take back its protection and you have to go on the run, I’m going with you.’
‘I can’t ask that of you,’ I said.
‘You don’t have to,’ she said.
‘They’re smiling!’ said Mike. ‘What have they got to smile about?’
‘Shut up, Mike,’ I said.
Everyone looked at me expectantly. I think they were hoping for an encouraging speech, telling them they had nothing to worry about. But I prefer not to lie to people if I don’t have to, so when in doubt focus on practical things. I looked at the Professor.
‘Do you have a flashlight?’
She frowned. ‘There should be one somewhere. I studied Black Heir’s inventory pretty carefully, because I had to sign for everything. I’m sure it mentioned flashlights.’
‘Probably under To be supplied later,’ growled Mike.
‘I will hit you in a minute, Mike,’ said the Professor. ‘And it will hurt.’
He looked at her to see if she meant it, and shut up. The Professor sniffed loudly, and turned back to me.
‘If there are any flashlights, they’ll be somewhere in the equipment centre. I’ll go and look.’
‘No one goes anywhere on their own,’ I said. ‘We’ll go with you.’
They were all eager to get moving, but I made them wait a moment while I took a good look round the campsite first. The open space seemed perfectly still and quiet, the steep grassy hillside starkly illuminated by the perimeter lights. Nothing was moving anywhere, and everything seemed as it should be.
I didn’t trust any of it.
‘We go straight to the equipment centre,’ I said. ‘No falling behind, no side trips, no one going off on their own for any reason.’
‘Or what?’ said Mike, rising as always to anything he could take as a challenge.
‘Or I’ll let the Professor deal with you,’ I said.
Mike looked at the Professor, and didn’t say anything.
I led the way up the hill to the equipment centre. I didn’t need to tell them to stick close together; the silence in the camp and the darkness outside it were enough to convince everyone not to fall behind. There was a certain sense of relief in the group now they were finally doing something. It didn’t take long to reach the open structure, and Penny and I stood guard as the three scientists searched through the bits and pieces stacked haphazardly on the shelves. Spare parts, backup pieces, useful items … Basically whatever Black Heir thought would come in handy. All of it just dumped on the shelves, for whenever the scientists got around to sorting through them.
The Professor muttered crossly to herself as she picked things up and put them down again. Mike rummaged through the shelves with both hands, swearing quietly and throwing things to the floor when they got in his way. Paul was quiet and methodical, his face as calm and disinterested as ever. I was beginning to wonder what it would take to break a composure like that. Because in my experience when that kind of self-control finally breaks, it’s usually sudden and violent. I could feel tension growing in the centre. None of the scientists wanted to walk down the hill in the dark without any light. They shot quick looks through the clear-plastic walls as they worked; as though afraid something might suddenly appear out of nowhere to stop them, now they were so close to escaping. And then the Professor cried out triumphantly, and brandished a heavy military-style flashlight.
‘I knew this was here somewhere!’
‘Just the one?’ said Mike.
‘So it would seem,’ said the Professor. ‘Though I’m sure I saw more than one on the inventory …’
‘Turn it on,’ said Mike. ‘Let’s make sure the damn thing works before we start celebrating.’
‘You don’t trust anything, do you?’ said Paul.
‘Do you?’ said Mike.
‘I think I used to,’ said Paul. ‘But recent events have changed my mind.’
The flashlight worked first time, casting a reassuringly bright light. The Professor turned it off again.
‘Just preserving the batteries,’ she said briskly.
‘You really think one flashlight’s going to be enough?’ said Mike. ‘Out there in the night, with no moon or stars? Anything could happen once we leave the camp.’
‘Changed your mind about going?’ said Paul.
‘Not even a little bit,’ said Mike. ‘I just want us to be safe while we do it.’
‘I’m not sure that’s an option any more,’ said Paul.
‘Do you have a better idea?’ I asked him.
‘No he doesn’t and even if he does we’re still going,’ Mike said flatly. ‘And the sooner the better. This isn’t a research site any more. It’s a killing ground.’
Paul just shrugged, then looked at me. ‘How far is it to your car?’
‘Just a short walk down the hill,’ I said. ‘We parked below the archaeological dig.’
‘It might be just a short walk in the daylight,’ said Mike. ‘But in the dark …’
‘It’s not like we’re going to get lost along the way,’ said Penny. ‘All we have to do is keep going down until we reach the dig, and our car is just over the rise beyond that.’
‘What if someone’s stolen it?’ said Mike.
‘Mike!’ said the Professor.
‘What?’
‘Mouth is open, should be shut,’ said the Professor.
‘Couldn’t have put it better myself,’ I said. ‘Let’s go.’
‘Right now?’ said Paul.
‘Yes, right now!’ said the Professor. ‘Can you name one thing here we’ll be sorry to leave behind?’
‘Give me a moment,’ said Paul.
‘No more moments,’ said the Professor. She hefted the flashlight. ‘Lead the way please, Ishmael.’
‘Stick behind me, Professor,’ I said. ‘And shine the light so I can see where we’re going. Penny, watch the rear. Mike and Paul, make sure you stay inside the light. It would be only too easy to get lost in a dark like that.’
‘Finally,’ Mike growled. ‘Something we can agree on.’
We strode back down through the camp, heading for the perimeter and the dark. Everyone stuck so close behind me they were practically treading on my heels. I didn’t mind, it meant they’d been paying attention for once. Penny hesitated as we passed the fire.
‘Should we put that out? We don’t want to risk it spreading to the rest of the site. All it would take is a breath of wind and the flames …’
‘There hasn’t been a breath of wind since we got here,’ I said. ‘Leave the fire. We might need it if we have to come back.’
‘Come back?’ Mike said immediately. ‘Why the hell would we want to do that? What could possibly go wrong with a short walk down the hill?’
‘You’ve changed your tune!’ said the Professor, amused. ‘You’re usually the pessimist, you tell us.’
‘I’m just considering the possibilities,’ said Mike.
‘Well, don’t,’ said the Professor.
I led them past the perimeter lights and out of the camp, plunging into the dark without hesitating. Because I didn’t want to give the scientists time to think about what they were doing. Leaving the brightly lit camp was like diving into a dark ocean, with no idea whether there might be sharks in the neighbourhood. The Professor’s flashlight produced a powerful beam of light, but it didn’t penetrate nearly as far into the darkness as I thought it should. Surprisingly for a military flashlight, it was even having trouble producing enough light for all of us to move in.
The darkness pressed in around us, as though trying to force its way in, and the night was disturbingly quiet. The only sound was the crunching of our feet on the grass. It carried loudly on the night, as though warning we were coming.
I couldn’t see anything outside the small pool of light we were walking in. There could have been anything at all in the darkness surrounding us. It felt like we were moving through infinite space; an endless dark universe with no light or life anywhere. I glanced back once at the camp, at the circle of light falling away behind us. It made me feel better to know it was still there.
We trudged on down the steep hill, careful to watch our footing. The grass was slick with dew, and the ground rose and fell with worrying unpredictability. But soon enough the archaeological dig appeared before us in the flashlight’s beam, and I heard sighs of relief behind me that at least we hadn’t lost our way.
