My phone became hot, causing me to drop it as it melted into a molten blob of plastic and metal.
I was at the door when I glanced back at the dummy.
A golden sphere seemed to surround it, but I heard the click as an electric circuit was connected in the small drum. I noticed the compass needle on my wrist was spinning crazily.
The pitch altered and I clamped my hands over my ears as I tried to get out. There was an almighty flash and I lost consciousness.
I was lying on the floor when I came round. I heard voices, so knew not to give my status away. A boot was driven violently into my side. It was painful, but I made no sound.
“The fire’s out, sir. It seems that this room was the only one affected, and the sprinkler system kicked in on time to prevent serious harm. Just the one casualty, the intruder!” said a male voice. It was brusque and business-like, not dissimilar to many NCO’s I’d met in the army.
“Who the hell is he?” asked another voice. I think it was Roger.
“He’s a fucking snooper, that’s what he is,” said the first voice.
“How on earth did he get past you, Harrison?” said a voice I knew, that of Hugh Standing.
“I don’t know, sir.”
“Well, is he dead?”
I felt some fingers touch my neck.
“No. Oh shit! What the fuck?”
The fingers left my neck rapidly.
“My God, what’s happening? What did you do, Harrison?”
“Me? Nothing, it’s your fucking experiment, his skin’s melting.”
“Melting? The fire wasn’t even over here, but at the control box.”
“This isn’t burn or fire damage, professor; this is something to do with your experiment.”
“Was there a pulse?” Roger asked.
“I don’t know, I couldn’t find one, much good it’ll do him, look at him; it’s disgusting. His face is falling off!”
I felt very strange. No pain, but curiously numb; it was as if I had no feeling from my skin at all.
“Who was he? Check his pockets.”
I felt hands go into my pockets and pouches. I knew enough to have nothing identifiable on my person. I was grateful my phone was a big lump of melted plastic.
“Some snooper tools and stuff, no identification. Judging by his kit, I’d say he’s a pro.”
“What do you mean by that, a professional burglar?”
“No, a spook - MI5 or SAS. Night goggles and the knife in the boot are like the ones I trained with.”
There was silence.
“What’s that smell?”
“Him. Look at his face, it’s melting clean away!”
“My God! Look at his hands, they’re melting too. Get him into a bag. We’ll have to dump him!” said Hugh.
“We can’t, we should call the police,” said Roger. Good man, Roger.
“We can’t, they’ll shut us down. No, we’ll have to dump the body a long way away from here. If he’s not meant to be here, then no one will be any the wiser.”
“I’ll not be a party to this,” said Roger.
“Roger, think man, he could be a terrorist of foreign spy. We don’t want the MOD to know we’re vulnerable, as this would be enough to close us down and we’re too close to risk that just now. If he’s British, then there is no way that anyone will know he ever got in here. He’ll just disappear.”
“I suppose so. I still think we should call someone.”
“I’ll call the MOD in the morning. I promise.”
“All right. This is too much for me, I’m going home!”
I heard someone leave. I assumed it was Roger.
“God, what a mess!” said Hugh.
“You want me to get rid of him like the last one?”
“Yes please, Harrison, but this time, get it off the facility. The last one clogged the sewage plant up. Oh, and Harrison, get his clothes off and burn them. I don’t want the forensic boys getting any fibres they can trace.”
There was some movement and then I was rolled into a black plastic sheet.
“Is he dead?” Hugh asked as I was dropped into the back of a van.
“If he isn’t yet, he soon will be.”
“Just make sure no one sees you.”
“They won’t!”
I was in pitch darkness and the smell they referred to hit me. I passed out; unaware of what exactly was happening to me.
Chapter Three
My eyes opened. I was having a dream - more a nightmare, really. I was back in the desert and the man who shot me was coming back to finish the job. I think I screamed, but it sounded like someone else.
A face swam into focus above me. I was lying on my back. I was comfortable and I could see the person was female and a nurse. I was in a bed.
“Hello, can you hear me?” she asked.
I frowned and nodded. Why shouldn’t I?
She pulled the curtain round my bed. As she did so, I took stock of my surroundings. I was in hospital; that was obvious. I had IV drips going into my left arm and I felt uncomfortable down in the waterworks department. I guessed, therefore, they’d catheterised me. I could hear muffled bleeps of a monitoring system.
Why?
I struggled to remember.
It was all so hard.
I remembered the desert, but knew that was old news. Why had I been there? Why had he shot me?
“What’s your name?” the nurse asked, checking my heart rate. I noted she had a northern accent and was quite pretty.
My mind was blank.
This was bloody silly, but try as I might, nothing came.
“I can’t remember!” I said, with tears of frustration.
“It’s okay, dear, you’re fine and safe. Don’t worry, I’m sure it will all come back.”
“Why am I here?” I asked. My voice sounded very odd to me.
“You were found in some woodland close to the bridge.”
“Found? Bridge?”
“Yes, love, the Humber Bridge. You’re in the Hull Royal Infirmary.”
Hull?
I’d never been to Hull in my life.
Or had I?
“Hull?”
She smiled. “Can you remember anything?”
I shook my head.
“Then try to get some rest. You’ve been here for a week. The doctor is on his way, so don’t worry.”
A week?
I felt like a spectator in my own nightmare. That’s what it was - a nightmare. I just had to wake up, so then everything would be fine.
I drifted off to sleep, knowing that I would wake up in my own bed, wherever that might be.
I became aware of the voices again. No, not again, as these were different voices. I lay still; trying not to let on I was awake. For some reason, I found it easy to regulate my breathing and restrict my eye movements behind my closed lids.
“So, where was she found?”
“Twelve miles outside the town, not far from the northern end of the bridge.”
“What’s wrong with her?”
“I’m not sure, Inspector, certainly nothing physically, as she appears in the best of health, apart from slight hypothermia. But she was unconscious and has been in a coma for eight days.”
“You said that she came round earlier?”
“I wasn’t here, but the staff nurse on duty said she screamed and came out of it. They had a brief discussion and she went back to sleep.”
“This discussion, did she say anything of value?”
“It seems she couldn’t remember her name. She even asked why she was in hospital.”
“You said she was in good health, has she been assaulted?”