Doctor Who_ Grave Matter Part 16

'Of course.' Hilly Painswick laughed at Peri's consternation. 'Your accent,' she explained. 'We're not completely naive about the outside world here, you know. We may not have televisions, but we do know Americans when we hear them. Rare though that is.'

'Of course.' Peri laughed as her nerves dissipated. 'I'm sorry.'

'Oh, no problem. Now would you like some tea? I don't have any coffee, I'm afraid. Or a cold drink? There are some biscuits somewhere. I was baking just the other day.' She started to look through a cluttered cupboard. 'Or was it last week? Time simply flies by these days, don't you find?' She emerged brandis.h.i.+ng a faded tin.

'You know,' Peri said, 'seeing the cows just now...What I'd really like is a gla.s.s of cold fresh -'

'Milk?' Hilly smiled as if she had just been paid the greatest compliment imaginable. 'Of course. I'll get some - we keep a churn cool in the pantry. It's difficult in the summer of course, with no real refrigeration.'

She returned a few moments later with a gla.s.s filled almost to the brim with creamy milk. 'There you are. You won't get it much fresher than that.'

Peri sipped at the cold liquid. It was surprising how much more flavour the milk had when it was so fresh. 'That's lovely,' she said. 'I can just tell it's doing me good.'

Chapter Nine.

Material Evidence Some time later than Peri was having her milk, the Doctor was drinking tea. He held the cup between thumb and forefinger, his little finger crooked out to the side as he sipped appreciatively.

'Earl Grey,' he said as he set down the cracked cup on a chipped saucer.

'I don't know,' Sir Edward confessed. 'Never could tell the difference.'

The Doctor nodded. They had spent a pleasant few hours walking across the moorland, mainly in silence, enjoying the views and the fresh air. They had skipped lunch by unspoken consent, and the Doctor was slightly upset by what he now had to do. But he did have to do it. 'It's not just tea you have problems identifying properly, is it, Sir Anthony?' he said lightly.

'Isn't it?' The other man sipped his tea without apparent worry. Then he seemed to notice the Doctor's serious expression and he too set down his cup. 'What is it, Doctor?

What are you getting at?' he asked, frowning. Then the frown faded and he cleared his throat. 'Oh, I see. Yes, very clever.

So you know.'

'You want to tell me about it?' the Doctor asked. 'You're obviously more comfortable as Sir Anthony Kelso than you are as Sir Edward Baddesley.'

'I'm not very good at this cloak and dagger stuff,' Sir Anthony confessed. 'Never have been. Never will be now, I suppose. How did you find out? Recognise me?'

'Only from your pa.s.sport.' The Doctor nodded towards the desk where he had found the pa.s.sport.

'You've been through my things?' Sir Anthony was obviously more annoyed at this than he was that his alias had been uncovered. But after a moment he mellowed again. 'I suppose you had a good reason for it, knowing you, Doctor.'

'Evidently,' the Doctor said. 'The tea really is excellent, by the way. And it really is Earl Grey.'

'Thank you.' Sir Anthony sipped at his own tea. Then he set it down again and steepled his fingers as he settled back into the armchair. 'Suppose you deserve an explanation.'

'That depends on the explanation,' the Doctor said. 'If you're fleeing from creditors or persistent lovers then I don't want to know, thank you very much.'

Sir Anthony snorted. 'Wish I'd led that interesting a life,'

he said. 'No, the explanation will probably sound as boring and silly as the so-called strange events we were discussing last night. At least, until - you know.'

'We'll see, shall we?' the Doctor said. As he spoke the door behind him swung open slowly. Footsteps crossed the room towards where the Doctor was sitting.

'Ah, there you are,' Sir Anthony said, rising and smiling.

'You're just in time for tea.'

'And for an interesting discussion, I think, Peri,' the Doctor said without turning.

Peri declined the tea, explaining how she had been to Heather Hill Farmhouse for milk and home-made biscuits.

'Good sort, Hilly Painswick,' said Sir Anthony, as the Doctor told Peri they should now address him.

'Hilly?' the Doctor asked in astonishment.

'Don't ask,' Peri told him.

'How are the sniffles, my dear?' Sir Anthony inquired.

'Much better,' Peri said. 'I think the fresh air has helped. I feel fine now.'

'I'm glad to hear that,' the Doctor said. 'And I shall be glad to hear what Sir Anthony has to tell us as well, I'm sure.'

'Ah,' Sir Anthony said. 'Yes. Well. You see.'

The Doctor and Peri both leaned forward encouragingly as he told his story.

'I changed my name in case Christopher Sheldon heard I was here,' he began. 'Probably silly - I mean he'd know me if he saw me. But I reckoned I could keep my face out of his sight more easily than control who knew I was here at all.'

'You know the elusive Mr Sheldon?' the Doctor asked.

'Oh yes. I was his superior at the Ministry of Science until earlier this year.'

'So he does actually exist then.' The Doctor smiled and sipped his tea. 'I was beginning to wonder.'

'What happened?' Peri asked. 'Did he leave?'

'Oh no. I did. Retired in March. Bit earlier than I antic.i.p.ated or would have liked, but there you are. But up till then I was responsible for a research department within the ministry.'

'What sort of research?' the Doctor asked.

'DNA computers.' Peri said.

The Doctor spluttered on his tea.

Sir Anthony looked astonished. 'Good Lord,' he said, his voice husky. 'I really am not very good at this secrecy lark, am I? Yes, the DNA computer was a part of my department's research remit. Now how on earth did you know that?'

'From Janet Spillsbury.' Peri said. 'I met her at the pub.'

'Really?' Sir Anthony's expression was grave. 'I didn't know she was here.' He shook his head. 'This could be more serious than I thought. I've never met her, but Janet used to be my department's technical liaison with the European s.p.a.ce Agency.'

'If I may use a jigsaw a.n.a.logy,' the Doctor said sternly, 'and I think I may, could we perhaps finish doing the edge pieces before we start to fill in the fiddly detail in the middle?'

'What?' Sir Anthony said. 'Oh, I see. Yes. Right.' He settled himself into the chair, tapping the ends of his fingers together.

'Could I ask just one thing?' Peri said. 'What exactly is is a DNA computer?' a DNA computer?'

'You want us to explain to you your own single impressive contribution to this conversation?' the Doctor asked sarcastically. He sighed, checked his cup was empty, and then explained. 'A DNA computer works out the solutions to complex equations basically by spinning off strands of DNA for each part of the equation.'

'Oh,' said Peri. 'I see.'

'These strands form chains that represent every possible solution to each part of the equation until the correct formula is found out of the millions of possibilities.'

'Provided there are bounds to the problem,' Sir Anthony put in, 'it's possible to solve the equation even if it takes millions of DNA strands and billions of chains.'

'Useful then,' Peri decided.

The Doctor nodded. 'Potentially. I imagine it's in its early stages of development right now?'

Sir Anthony nodded. 'That was Sheldon's project when I was in charge. Going well, actually. Lots of promise.'

'It's not a good way to solve everything, but it is a way of working out certain otherwise insoluble mathematical problems,' the Doctor conceded. 'Since millions of DNA chains form simultaneously, it is like linking millions of conventional silicon-based processors in parallel, you see. The question is, what has this got to do with what's going on here?'

'Beats me,' Sir Anthony admitted, to the Doctor's vocal disappointment. 'But,' he went on when the noise had died down again, 'I was in charge of all the government's genetic research. And that included Sheldon's DNA computer stuff. I didn't mind that - as I said, it showed promise.'

'But you did mind some of the other research your department was doing?'

Sir Anthony nodded. 'I got in a bit of trouble the other year when I voiced my concerns about genetically modified crops. Remember that fuss? There were a couple of other things I objected to and suggested they shelve. Various people were not very happy about the application of ethics to science.'

'I can imagine,' the Doctor agreed.

'Result, the offer of early retirement. Good package, actually. They didn't want me to refuse.'

'So you took it,' Peri said. 'That's why you left.'

'No, actually. I accepted it, of course. Due to kick in, or rather to kick me out, early next year. But having taken the medicine, as it were, I suppose they decided I wasn't cured.'

'You continued to object?' the Doctor asked.

'When I thought it important, yes. But I don't think that was why they brought the date forward and got rid of me.'

'So why do you think it was?'

'I don't know exactly. That's why I came here. To find out. You see, I got the impression that they were shuffling me off because of one particular project. I don't know what. But there was something coming up that they knew I'd kick up a fuss about. Something sensitive. Something big.'

'But you don't know what?' Peri asked.

'No.'

'So why come here?' the Doctor asked. 'Because of Sheldon?'

Sir Anthony nodded. 'Just so. A couple of days before I left I was handing over some papers to my replacement. Junior yes-man, didn't care for him at all, I might say. Anyway, on his desk was a memo. He covered it up pretty quick when I came in. But not quick enough. I managed to get the gist of it.

Basically, it recommending granting Sheldon funding for his project.'

'Was that unusual?' the Doctor wanted to know.

'It was unusual to go to my replacement before I'd even left, given the sums of money it was talking about, yes. But what caught my attention was the breakdown of how the money was to be spent. I didn't see the detail, you understand.

Just the main line item. A huge sum of money, as I say.'

Peri and the Doctor were both leaning forwards as they listened. 'To pay for what?' Peri asked.

'This.' He waved his hand in the air.

'This?' The Doctor imitated the gesture.'What do you mean, this this!'

'I mean this island. Dorsill. Sheldon was given the money to buy the place out from under the developers and give it back to the islanders.'

'But why on earth would a government department do that?' Peri said.

'Good question,' Sir Anthony agreed. 'So given that I had a rather nice little nest egg and plenty of time on my hands, not to say a welter of curiosity and the hint of a conscience, I thought I'd come down here and find out.'

The Doctor was nodding enthusiastically. 'And have you?'

he asked.

'Have I what?'

'Found out?'

'Oh,' Sir Anthony said. 'Well, no actually. No, I haven't.'

'Pity,' said the Doctor. 'More tea, anyone?'