The Secret Lives of Animals, a doctor who fanfic

Note: Unfortunately, the Doctor himself does not make an appearance in this story but his Tom Baker incarnation is fondly remembered. Thanks to Bluetoo for his Beta job.

The village of Moreton Harwood was still decorated with the remains of the New Years celebrations. Streamers were still wrapped around the village hall and across some of the local stores. It was the first day of the New Year and most of the stores were shut but there were still enough people around to notice the arrival of two strange cars packed with suitcases and furniture.

At one of the Manors just outside of the village, Sarah sat at her typewriter and tried to work. Her aunt's ward, Brendon, was playing chess with her robotic dog, K-9. A large German Shepherd named Jasper sat on the carpet watching them. Brendon moved his bishop and K-9's antennae swivelled observantly.

"Knight to king four," said K-9 in flat, electronic tones.
Brendon grimaced but obligingly moved the piece into place and removed his own queen from the board.
"I think you're getting too good at this game, K-9," said Brendon.
"It is a logical and efficient challenge, Master," observed K-9.
"Play nice you two or…," began Sarah, turning from her typewriter.
She sounded irritated.
"Is the book not going well, then?" asked Brendon.
"Never you mind," she told him sharply.

The phone rang and Sarah abandoned the typewriter all too eagerly to answer it.
"Hello, Moreton Harwood 778," she answered.
Brendon and K-9 returned to their game but couldn't help hearing her half of the conversation.
"Harry!" she said happily. "I thought you weren't coming until next week. No, I don't mind. Go straight past the post-office and turn left. We should be half a mile down the road. If you get lost, just ask for directions. All right… it's good to hear from you, too. See you soon."
She hung up the phone and began clearing away the type-writer.

"That your Doctor friend?" asked Brendon, fleeing the chess-game.
"The Doctor - Mistress?" asked K-9, trundling forward on his wheels and also forgetting the game for the moment.
"Not the Doctor, K-9," said Sarah, clearing away the teacups that had accumulated beside the typewriter. "Dr Harry Sullivan. We both used to travel around with the Doctor but I haven't seen Harry for… nine years by now. Gosh, it sounds a long time, doesn't it?"
Sarah smiled fondly, carrying the tea-cups out to the kitchen and trying to remember the last time she'd seen Harry.

Back in the living room, Brendon smiled to himself.
"It'll be good to have a Doctor in the village again," said Brendon. "I think he's bringing a vet with him as well."
Brendon looked down at Jasper and fondled the dog's ears, "Bet you won't be glad to see the vet, will you?"
Jasper laid his ears flat at the word 'vet' and whined.

"The game, Master Brendon," prompted K-9.
Brendon stood up and hurriedly cleared away several of the books he'd scattered around the room earlier, "I can't play now, K-9. We're expecting company."
"It is customary to tidy one's dwelling in preparation for a gathering?" asked K-9.
"Exactly, K-9," agreed Brendon, shelving the books.
"Understood, Master. I shall assist."

The doorbell rang and Sarah came hurrying out of the kitchen to answer it. Jasper perked up his ears and got to his feet, tail wagging.
"Stay," said Brendon firmly.
Jasper lowered his ears and sat on the carpet again. Brendon turned to leave the living room but stopped as he heard K-9 rolling after him.
"You stay, too, K-9," said Brendon.
K-9 made a noise of protest but obediently stopped.

When Brendon reached the hall, Sarah was already talking with a stranger at the front door. He was a thin man in his mid-forties with dark hair, sideburns and a discoloured mark on the left side of his forehead.
"You're looking well, old girl," the man was saying as Brendon walked up.
"You're not looking so bad, yourself, Harry," said Sarah, smiling.
She waved Brendon over.
"Harry, this is my aunt's ward, Brendon," she said, laying a hand on Brendon's shoulder. "Brendon, this is Dr Harry Sullivan."

"Hello, young man," said the man, turning to Brendon and holding out his hand.
"Hello, Dr Sullivan," said Brendon, shaking hands.
The man had a firm grip and a genuine smile, "Call me, Harry."
Up close, Brendon realised that the discoloured mark was a small scar. Sarah waved Harry out of the doorway and into the hall. Harry looked around at the hall while Brendon tried not to look at the scar.

Sarah turned away from the door to find Harry distracted.
"Would you like some tea?" she asked, to get his attention.
Harry turned back without missing a beat.
"Oh yes, I sure could murder a cup of tea," said Harry enthusiastically.
"Back in a minute, then," said Sarah, heading in the direction of the kitchen.
"Brendon, can you show Harry to the living room?" she called over her shoulder.

"Through this way," said Brendon.
He pointed through to the living room and Harry walked through gingerly. Brendon smirked to himself, remembering that he'd been quite impressed the first time he himself had seen the Manor a few months ago. It was an impressive looking building. Brendon had certainly never lived in a building with 'wings' before.

Jasper sprang to his feet and greeted Harry enthusiastically. The German Shepherd had never behaved as well for Brendon as he had for Sarah, and Brendon grimaced as Harry was jumped upon.
"Hello, old boy," said Harry genially, holding out his hand for Jasper to sniff. "What's your name?"
"That's Jasper," explained Brendon. "He used to belong to Commander Pollock."

"Commander Pollock?" asked Harry, looking up at Brendon from the floor.
Jasper looked annoyed that Harry had switched his attention to Brendon and licked Harry's jaw.
"Sit," said Harry sharply and Jasper promptly obeyed with a pitiful look in his eyes.
Brendon blinked and wished he was good with animals.

"Commander Pollock?" said Harry, standing up again to face Brendon. "Army, I suppose?"
"He used to be in the army, I think," said Brendon, uncomfortably. "He used to help Aunt Lavinia run the market gardens."
"Ah, no longer around then?"
Harry sounded disappointed but Brendon had a very good reason for being glad that the Commander no longer lived in Moreton Harwood.

Sarah's voice came from behind them, "Commander Pollock used to be a co-owner of my Aunt's market gardens."
She walked in holding a tray of teacups. She set them down on the coffee table and gestured for Harry to sit.
"He's currently standing trial for attempting to murder Brendon just before Christmas," she added. "Sort of a black magic sacrifice."
"Good grief," said Harry, doing a double-take. "And I thought life would be quieter out here in the country. Glad to see he didn't succeed."

He looked at Brendon with a new respect. Brendon, who was perching on the corner of a stool, shrugged and looked embarrassed.
"Oh, you'd be surprised what happens out here," said Sarah. "There were fourteen people arrested for that particular incident. It's why there are so many job openings at the moment."
"I see," said Harry. "I gather that's why Moreton Harwood is in need of a doctor and a vet."
"Exactly," said Sarah. "I remembered you said that you'd always wanted to set up a practice in the country so I sent you that letter..."
"Mistress," cut in K-9's robotic tones. "Jasper has entered the kitchen again."

"What on earth...," exclaimed Harry, jumping up and staring at the robot in surprise.
Brendon and Sarah leapt into the hall after the retreating Jasper. Brendon seized the dog's collar and pulled backwards but Jasper dragged him forwards a few steps. Then Jasper noticed the person attached to his collar and stopped to greet Brendon with a rough tongue and a wagging tail.
"No, Jasper, bad dog," said Sarah firmly. "You know you're not allowed in the kitchen at the moment."
Jasper's ears drooped at Sarah's reprimand.
Brendon scratched Jasper's ears, "Come on, back to the living room."

They returned to the living room with Jasper in tow.
"We have a problem with rats in the pantry," Sarah began by way of explanation. "So we put down traps but we need to keep Jasper out of the kitchen until we've finished and the door doesn't lock so…"
She stopped when she realised that Harry wasn't even remotely paying attention to her. Instead, he was staring at K-9. He noticed that she returned and raised a questioning eyebrow before turning back to look again. Sarah laughed at him.

"What's this?" asked Harry, finding his voice. "Certainly not something I expected to see."
"I am designated K-9 Mark III," said K-9 succinctly.
"He's a present the Doctor sent me," explained Sarah.
Harry looked round in surprise, "The Doctor? Looks like something he'd be involved with."
Brendon marched forward proudly and patted K-9 on the head.
"Isn't he brilliant?" he asked. "State of the art."
Harry shrugged, non-plussed.

"I guess he is quite impressive," he admitted, sitting down again.
He stared at K-9 for a while, tapping his fingers restlessly against the side of the chair.
"But the Doctor gave him to you?" he asked, turning back to Sarah. "When did you last see him?"
"Oh… 1976," said Sarah slowly. "I think. About six years ago."
"I guessed the two of you must have gotten up to more mischief after I left," said Harry thoughtfully and a little regretfully.
"Mischief?" snorted Sarah. "I don't know what you mean, Harry."
"Oh, you know all too well," countered Harry but he was smiling at her.
Brendon had the feeling he was missing some private joke that even K-9 knew.

He didn't see Harry again until the next night when their neighbours, the Bakers, threw a welcome party for some of the village newcomers. Brendon was by far the youngest at the party and was vigorously shooed away from the innocuous looking punch by Juno Baker. This only told him that the punch would be better than usual.

Sarah spent a good deal of time either introducing the new manager of her aunt's market garden, Liz Patterson, to other people in the village or being introduced to people she hadn't met yet like Rupert Casey.
"Juno Baker tells me you own the veterinary practice?" asked Sarah, twisting her punch glass in her fingers.
"Yes, bought it from my Uncle," said Rupert Casey, looking embarrassed. "Uncle Selby and his partner were arrested in all that hullabaloo just before Christmas. He needed to pay his legal fees and I wanted my own practice, so we helped each other out."

"You're not going to run the entire practice solo?" said Sarah.
"No, no," said Rupert, sighing. "My Uncle couldn't do the entire district by himself so I don't think I could. I've hired an ex-army vet to share the workload. Still not quite sure how we're going to divvy it up yet but we'll work something out."
"Well, I guess you can count on at least one patient," said Sarah. "We've just taken in a German Shepherd and I don't know when he had his last check-up."

"Glad to hear it," smiled Rupert. "I know that quite a lot of the work out here will be focusing on livestock but I do think pets are good for one's health."
"Oh, I agree," said Sarah. "I love having dogs."
Rupert grinned at her, "You have more than one?"
"Oh… I meant I love dogs in general," stammered Sarah. "Have you been to Moreton Harwood very often? Before you moved here, I mean?"

"Not really but… if I'd known Moreton Harwood was such a nice place to visit," Rupert told her. "I'd certainly have come to visit my uncle more often."
"It does have its charms, doesn't it?" agreed Sarah, smiling at him and knocking back more of the punch. "I'm certainly enjoying my stay."
"Your stay?" frowned Rupert. "Don't tell me that you'll be leaving us."

He pretended to look disappointed and Sarah giggled at him.
"I'm only here to work on my book… but at this rate I'll still be here in ten years time," she said ruefully.
"Oh good," said Rupert. "Then there's still time to entertain you with all my clever witticisms."
"Plenty of time," she giggled. "Gosh, I think I've had just a little too much punch already."
"Nonsense. No such thing as too much punch," said Rupert, slurring his words slightly. "Hang on, maybe I should get some water. Would you like some water, Miss Smith?"
"Oh yes, please," she said. "And you can call me Sarah."
"One water, coming up, Sarah," smiled Rupert and he headed towards the drinks table.

Juno and Liz weaved through the crowd to join Sarah.
"Well, you've certainly been monopolising the attention of Dr Casey," said Juno, her eyes twinkling.
"Well, I think our young vet just has good eyesight," agreed Liz.
The two smiled at each other conspiratorially and Sarah suddenly wished she was at least twenty years older. The two older women had begun to have a match-making look in their eye that she recognised from her Aunt Lavinia.

"No sign of our young Servicemen, yet?" asked Liz, looking around the room. "I'm looking forward to meeting them."
"Not yet," said Sarah. "I can't think what's keeping Harry."
Rupert returned with two glasses of water. He smiled at Juno and Liz and handed Sarah her drink.
"We were just saying, Dr Casey," said Juno. "That those Servicemen haven't shown up yet."

"Oh yes, I met one of them when he moved his belongings into the spare cottage behind the vet surgery. A Dr Evan Rodney," offered Rupert. "Ex-army I understand and a nice enough chap. Haven't met the other two yet. They've apparently both decided to live above the Doctor's surgery."

Juno frowned, "I'd have thought there was more room at the vet cottage than in that small apartment."
Rupert shrugged, "From the way this Dr Rodney described it, I got the feeling that they were such close friends that they didn't want to be separated."
"Long-term roommates?" asked Liz. "Probably don't want to see their routine interrupted."
"Well, I don't know about the other fellow but Harry – that's the new doctor – was a Navy man," said Sarah, sipping at her water. "He's probably used to living in cramped places."

The doorbell rang and Juno excused herself to answer it.
"Well, sounds like you know this Harry fellow very well," said Liz curiously.
"We travelled together for several months," explained Sarah. "He's a bit old fashioned but he's a good doctor and a good friend."
"Doctor who?" frowned Liz.
"Dr Sullivan," said Sarah.
"A lucky man to have such fine company," said Rupert glumly.
Sarah smiled at him, "He was only ever a friend."
Rupert perked up again and Liz smiled knowingly.
"Well, here come our Servicemen now," said Liz, gesturing to the door with her head.

Juno was showing three men into the living room. Harry came first, looking determined and professional, followed by two men Sarah didn't know. They all looked relatively fit and in their mid-forties. Their clothing was bland enough to convince Sarah that the three of them had lived their lives in uniforms. The tall, lanky man standing directly behind Harry looked quite amused by his view of the room. The third man looked around glumly but smiled weakly when Juno spoke to him.

Harry nodded at Sarah from across the room then turned back attentively to Juno. Brendon perked up from the couch where he had been sitting gloomily between Howard Baker and P.C. Carter. Juno took the trio's coats and offered to take their scarves but the cheerful man waved her aside and whispered something that made her laugh. Harry and the glum man handed over their scarves much to the cheerful man's mock disappointment. Juno smiled generously and led them across the room towards Sarah's party.

"May I introduce Miss Sarah Jane Smith, Dr Rupert Casey and Miss Elizabeth Patterson," said Juno pleasantly.
"Hello, Sarah. Dr Casey, Miss Patterson," nodded Harry. "I'm Dr Harry Sullivan and this is Colonel Richard Hanson and Dr Evan Rodney."
The cheerful Colonel smiled blindingly at them and the glum Dr Rodney managed a small twist of the lips that passed for a smile.

"We very nearly thought you weren't going to come," said Liz pleasantly.
The Colonel's smile dimmed a bit, "Sorry about that. Unavoidably detained."
Dr Rodney looked to Rupert, "I'm sorry to say we found an injured cat on our way here and stopped to look after it."
Rupert grimaced, "I take it that it didn't go well."
"No," sighed Dr Rodney. "It didn't. Had to put the poor thing down. That's why we were so late."
"Not a happy start to the evening," added Harry, hands in his pockets.

"Still, we did all we could for her," said the Colonel. "Mrs Baker, did you say something about drinks?"
"There's punch on the table," said Juno helpfully.
"Excellent, I'll grab three?" he said tentatively and looked to his friends.
Harry nodded with a smile but Dr Rodney shook his head.
"Three it is," said the Colonel, conveniently ignoring Dr Rodney's refusal.
He flipped the end of his scarf jauntily over his shoulder.

"Are you sure I can't take your scarf, Colonel?" asked Juno. "Only I imagine it could get quite warm inside."
"Quite sure, Mrs Baker," said the Colonel, leaning forward. "To tell you the truth, I'm hiding the odd bruise."
"Nothing serious, I hope," spoke up Sarah.
"Not by a long shot and – to add insult to injury – it's a boring story," lamented the Colonel but his eyes were twinkling. "But I tell you what, ask Harry about his head. Now, that's a good story."

"A story from your time in the Navy?" asked Rupert. "Let's hear it."
"Richard," objected Harry but there was no real edge to his tone. "It's not that good and Sarah was there anyway."
"Not when it actually happened," said Sarah slyly, ignoring Harry's betrayed look. "I only heard about it later."
"If you're going to live in the village, you'll have to tell it sometime," said Liz.
"Yes, you might as well get it over with," agreed Juno.
"Go on, Harry," said Sarah.

Brendon extricated himself from the couch to join the group. The Colonel grinned at him as he saw him coming and wrapped an arm around his shoulders.
"You must be Brendon," said the Colonel. "Harry mentioned you."
"Did he?" said Brendon nervously, finding himself the centre of attention.
"Yes, he did. He probably forgot to mention me, he usually does," said the Colonel, tilting his head towards Brendon's as if imparting some great secret. "Colonel Richard Hanson, at your service, recently retired and currently off to the drinks table. But you're in luck - Harry was just about to entertain everyone with a story."

"With friends like these…," muttered Harry.
"Oh, shush," said Sarah, grinning at him over her water.
Dr Rodney actually smiled at her from Harry's side.
"Was Sarah there?" asked Brendon hopefully.
"He just said she was," said the Colonel, turning to Harry. "Come on, Harry, you can't disappoint the boy now."

The Colonel gave Brendon a gentle push towards the group and turned determinedly in the direction of the drinks table. Brendon looked hopefully at Harry who relented with a sigh.
"Well, for security reasons I can't tell you the details but we were up in Scotland investigating some mysterious deaths," began Harry. "I'd just dropped Sarah off in the village and was on my way to the sickbay to examine some of the corpses…"

Back at the Manor, Jasper perked up his ears at an unfamiliar sound. The German Shepherd stood up from his basket in the hall and stretched sleepily. He wandered down the hall to the closed kitchen door. He sniffed around the door jamb curiously. A scuffling sound came from behind the door. Jasper tensed and butted his head against the door. The door stayed firmly shut.

Jasper whined plaintively and then reared back to push against the door with his front legs. He pushed again and the chair that had been propped against the door toppled over. Tail wagging in anticipation, the dog disappeared into the kitchen.

K-9 activated from his dormant state as the kitchen door swung shut. His sensors swung back and forth, scanning. Observing that Jasper's basket was empty, K-9 motored forward. A pained yelping sounded from the kitchen and K-9 sped up, pushing awkwardly against the kitchen door.

The kitchen was dark but K-9 headed for the pantry where the rat traps had been set. Jasper wasn't there but a pitiful whining sounded from the other side of the kitchen bench.
"Jasper?" asked K-9, reversing and moving around the bench.
The German Shepherd lay on the tiles, unmoving. As he heard K-9 approaching, he whined again. K-9 advanced but stopped as he heard a scuffling sound above him.

He titled his head up to note three indistinct shapes crouching on the kitchen bench above him. They were each roughly the size of an extremely fat and round terrier dog. Silhouetted by the moonlight streaming in through the window behind them, their features were difficult to see in any detail. One moved and K-9 could clearly see the clawed fingers which gripped the edge of the bench top.

Jasper whined again and one of the creatures gave an answering hiss. The creatures began to inch towards K-9 and Jasper.
"Desist immediately," K-9 warned.
The creatures ignored him. K-9 detected the shine of fangs as one opened its mouth to hiss at him again. One of the creatures launched itself at K-9, the impact of its full weight rocking him on his wheels. Claws scored down K-9's side, lightly scratching but unable to do any real damage. A huge wide mouth opened and tried to bite K-9's head.

K-9 fired his blaster. There was a high-pitched yowl and several of the glasses on the bench top shattered. The creature attacking K-9 leapt backwards and dragged itself up the kitchen bench. Then the three of them stampeded out the window. K-9 remained motionless for a minute, his scanners moving restlessly. Satisfied the creatures were gone, he moved forward to examine Jasper.

The Colonel returned to the group listening to the story, handing glasses of punch to Harry, Dr Rodney and Brendon. Sarah promptly confiscated Brendon's and, for lack of other options, began drinking it herself. The Colonel shrugged apologetically at Brendon but Brendon was impressed by the offer.

"…well, the poor fellow was in a bad way. He was trying to tell me something when there was a gunshot. He was killed where he lay. I jumped up, trying to see who it was and all too aware that I was alone in the middle of these blasted sand dunes," continued Harry. "A good thing that I was looking about because the next thing I knew, there was another shot. I happened to turn my head at the right moment because the bullet just grazed me. Knocked me for six, though and I woke up later in hospital."
"Yes," said Sarah. "You gave us quite a scare, Harry."
"I can assure you it wasn't on purpose," said Harry wryly.

"Goodness," said Liz, looking impressed. "A real life James Bond."
"Just in the wrong place at the wrong time," shrugged Harry but he looked flattered.
"Ah but, did they catch the fellow?" asked Rupert.
Harry paused but Sarah spoke up.
"They did but it's a military operation we're not really supposed to talk about," said Sarah.
"Secrets, then?" asked Rupert. "Secrets not even a journalist is willing to tell? I'm surprised at you, Sarah. Where's that ruthless journalistic instinct?"
Sarah smiled, "Well, you wouldn't believe me anyway and I like my credibility, thank you very much."

Howard Baker approached the group.
"This is my husband, Howard," spoke up Juno briskly. "This is Dr Sullivan, Colonel Hanson and Dr Rodney."
"Hello, welcome to Moreton Harwood," said Howard politely, nodding at them.
"Glad to be here," said Harry, apparently the chosen spokesperson for the group.
Howard turned to Sarah, "There's a phone call for you, my dear."
"Oh, really?" asked Sarah, passing her punch to Rupert.
She followed Howard in the direction of the telephone.

K-9 sat by the telephone receiver in the Manor, his sensors still scanning in case the intruders returned. Sarah's voice came over the phone line.
"Hello? Sarah Jane Smith, here."
"Mistress, intruders at the Manor."
There was a pause and Sarah's voice dropped to a whisper, "K-9? Is that you?"

"So, Colonel, aren't you a bit young to retire?" asked Liz.
"Well, I didn't retire because I was too old for the job," explained the Colonel. "Sadly, my Grandmother passed away and left me a not insignificant inheritance. Enough to live on without working. The three of us had been sharing a house already. Harry and Evan had always wanted to set up practices in the country and had been saving up for some time. It seemed a good time for us all to make the change."

"You'll like it here," offered Brendon.
The Colonel beamed at him, "You know, I think I will."
"You'll have to find something to do," spoke up Evan. "If only for the sake of your sanity… and everybody else's, come to think of it."
The Colonel looked offended, "Are you saying that I can be annoying, Evan?"
"Yes," grinned Evan.
"Oh," said the Colonel and he grinned back.

"Do you know anything about horticulture?" asked Brendon.
"I had a cousin who was into horticulture," said the Colonel thoughtfully. "I think I absorbed something through sheer repetition."
"Do you know anything about horticulture?" Evan asked Brendon.
"I… ah, just what I read in books," said Brendon blushing. "My aunt runs a market garden."
"Oh really?" asked the Colonel. "Plants are nice."

Evan rolled his eyes, "Plants are nice?"
"Miss Patterson?" appealed the Colonel.
"I'm a vegetarian and the manager of Lavinia Smith's market garden," said Liz. "I definitely think plants are nice."
The Colonel beamed and turned to Juno.
"What about you, Mrs Baker?" he asked.
Juno smiled, "My husband also runs a market garden. Plants are good business around here."
"Ah, friendly competition," said Evan. "What about you, Dr Casey?"
"Well," shrugged Rupert. "Plants are ok but as a vet, I confess that I'm rather more fond of animals."

Sarah and Howard rejoined the group.
"Rupert, I think there's been an accident at the Manor," said Sarah, pulling on her coat. "Could you come, just to check on the dogs?"
"Of course," said Rupert, putting down the punch glasses in his hands. "But I thought you only had one?"
"Ah, I do," said Sarah nervously.
"Do you want me to come, too?" asked Evan.
"I can handle it," said Rupert quickly.
"Actually, I wouldn't mind if Dr Rodney came too," said Sarah. "Sounds like there might have been a break-in."

"Do you want us to come?" offered Harry.
"No, it should be all right," said Sarah. "I'm just worried about the dogs… the dog. Thanks for the offer, though."
"Are you sure?" asked Howard.
Sarah nodded.
"Who was on the phone?" asked Juno.
"Ah…," Sarah faltered. "My editor apparently rang the Manor and the phone must have gotten knocked off the hook because she heard strange noises."
"Ring if you need any help," said Liz.
"I will," nodded Sarah. "Come on, Brendon."
Sarah, Brendon, Rupert and Dr Evan left hurriedly, grabbing their coats on the way out. Howard and Juno walked them to the door.

"So," said the Colonel, turning to Liz. "How's this market garden business going?"
She shrugged, "Not very well but they've had a run of bad luck. I'm going to do my best to change it."
"Sarah's business is in trouble?" asked Harry, frowning.
"Actually, the business belongs to her aunt," said Liz. "Her aunt's been lecturing in America so she's the real boss and I haven't met her yet. Miss Smith hired me when both the previous manager and the co-owner were arrested. She needed someone to run the business."

"Really?" said the Colonel. "She lost the co-owner as well? The business must be very strapped for cash, then…"
"Richard, what are you thinking?" frowned Harry, looking at the Colonel suspiciously.
"Oh, nothing, really," shrugged the Colonel. "I'm sure it's nothing."

Sarah opened the front door of the Manor, switching on the lights. Rupert put a hand on her arm and moved in front of her.
"Careful," he said. "We don't know if anybody's still here."
"I think they've run off," said Sarah. "From what I was told on the phone it sounded like they got in through the kitchen window."
The four of them moved slowly into the Manor, Rupert and Dr Rodney cautiously leading the way.

"What kind of dog do you have?" asked Dr Rodney.
"German Shepherd," said Brendon. "Called Jasper."
"The kitchen's that way," said Sarah, pointing.
While Rupert opened the kitchen door, Brendon slipped into the living room.

Dr Rodney followed Rupert into the darkened kitchen. Sarah stood in the doorway and flicked the light on. Just behind the kitchen door, a chair had been knocked to the ground. The bench top was littered with broken glass and one of the kitchen windows above the sink had been shattered.
"Careful of the rat traps," warned Sarah, pointing at the traps clustered by the pantry door.

Rupert moved around the bench top and quickly knelt down.
"The dog's over here," he called.
Dr Rodney and Sarah moved to join him. Rupert was kneeling beside the large German Shepherd.
"Good boy, Jasper, good boy," said Rupert softly, gently touching the dog.
The dog whined and lifted its head.
"He's been mauled by something," said Dr Rodney, kneeling on the other side.
"Poor boy," said Sarah, crouching by Jasper and stroking his head.

"Another dog?" suggested Rupert.
"Maybe," said Dr Rodney, sounding unconvinced.
"Will he be all right?" asked Sarah.
"Hopefully," said Dr Rodney.
"We'll do whatever we can," promised Rupert. "But we'd better get him back to the surgery. Do you have a towel or something?"

Sarah fetched them a towel and the two vets wrapped the dog up. Dr Rodney carried the dog to the car where Rupert opened the door.
"Do you want to come, Sarah?" asked Rupert.
Sarah hesitated, "I'd better stay here with Brendon and check that nothing's been stolen."
"It's all right," said Dr Rodney from the back seat of the car. "We'll take care of Jasper and ring you later. Will you be up or do you want us to ring in the morning?"
"As soon as you know, please," said Sarah.
"Very well," said Rupert. "Don't worry too much."

Rupert climbed into the driver's seat and the car disappeared down the Manor's driveway. Sarah returned to the living room to find Brendon talking with K-9. K-9's metal side was scored with light scratches and a small pattern of dents across the top of his metal head.
"Will Jasper be all right?" asked Brendon.
"Hopefully, Brendon," said Sarah. "The vets have taken him to the surgery."

She turned to the robot, "K-9, what happened?"
"Animal intruders, Mistress," said K-9. "Species unknown. Likely that they are not native to this area."
"Have you seen what they did to K-9?" asked Brendon, pointing out the scratches indignantly. "What kind of animal could do this to metal?"

"Start from the beginning, K-9," ordered Sarah, pulling up a stool.
"Jasper's curious nature led to him gaining entry to the kitchen. I advanced with the intent of retrieving him when he was attacked," explained K-9. "Three creatures that entered through the kitchen window. They were medium size and hairless with teeth and claws suggesting a carnivorous diet."
"Medium size and hairless?" frowned Sarah. "What kind of animal is that?"
"Unknown, Mistress," said K-9. "They are not in my memory banks, for current terrestrial life"

"What did they do after attacking Jasper?" asked Brendon.
"They attempted to attack K-9 but I fired a stun blast," continued K-9. "The creatures proved partially resistant to the blast but they escaped through the window. Evidence suggests they are capable of emitting noises at a high enough frequency to shatter glass."
"That explains the glass in the kitchen, then," said Sarah.
"Glass?" frowned Brendon.
"Yes, come and look," said Sarah. "More importantly, come and help clean up."

"Now you have returned, Mistress. I will investigate the grounds for further signs of the intruders," said K-9.
Waving Brendon in the direction of the kitchen, Sarah walked K-9 to the front door. She opened the door, pulling her coat tighter around her.
"You do that, K-9 but stay out of sight if the vets come back," Sarah warned him, peering down the darkened driveway. "The last thing I need is to explain where you came from."
"Understood, Mistress," said K-9, trundling out the front door.

Sarah shivered but propped the door open for K-9 and retreated back into the kitchen. Brendon was surveying the kitchen dismally.
"To add insult to injury, we didn't even catch any of the rats," he observed dryly, picking up the bin in one hand and advancing on the bench top.
"Good," said Sarah primly, dragging a dustpan and brush out of the cupboard. "I don't really feel in the mood for cleaning up the end result of a game of rat versus trap."
"Pity we don't have a cat," said Brendon, gingerly picking up the larger shards of glass from the bench and tossing them in the bin.

Sarah paused in the act of sweeping up the glass in front of the window.
"I wonder…," she muttered.
"Sarah?" asked Brendon, pulling glass out of the sink.
"Dr Rodney said he found an injured cat earlier tonight," said Sarah thoughtfully, one hand on her chin. "If whatever broke in here could maul a German Shepherd, it'd be more than capable of killing a cat."
Brendon snorted, "Only if you could catch the cat in the first place."
She sighed and shook her head, "I'll ask Dr Rodney next time I speak to him. He never said what killed the cat."

"Mistress?" came K-9's robotic voice.
"K-9?" asked Sarah, standing up and looking to the kitchen door.
"Here, Mistress."
The doorway was empty but Brendon leant across to look out the broken window.
"He's outside," he called.
Sarah joined him at the window, careful not to touch the glass still on the sill.

It took her eyes a moment to adjust to the darkness. Then she could make out K-9 where he sat in the flowerbeds beneath the kitchen window.
"What have you found?" she asked.
"Tracks, Mistress," said K-9. "They lead from the direction of the cottage to the Manor kitchen window and then across the lawn."
"See how far you can follow them, K-9," said Sarah. "I'll get a torch and come with you."
"What about…," began Brendon.
"Stay here and finish cleaning up," Sarah told him irritably, rushing out into the hall.

She snatched a thicker overcoat and a heavy duty torch from the hall closet and ran out onto the grass. When she reached K-9, he turned and led the way down the gravel. Sarah shone the torch just in front of him, able to see the dragging claw marks that stretched down the length of the driveway. The trail almost stretched to the bottom of the driveway where they veered off suddenly onto the grass.

"Further tracking is not possible, Mistress," said K-9 apologetically.
"Oh well, K-9," said Sarah, unimpressed to see that her breath was frosty. "We don't know where they went but you said they came from the cottage?"
"They came from that direction, Mistress," confirmed K-9.
"Let's go have a look then, shall we?" said Sarah. "Maybe we should check in on the cottage while we're over there. They might have broken in there too."
They trudged back up the driveway.

Brendon was attempting to fit some of the glass pieces back together again when the telephone rang. He stuck his head out the kitchen window but Sarah was a dim shape at the end of the driveway. He left the kitchen to answer the phone in the living room.

"Hello, Moreton Harwood 778," he said.
"Hello? That Brendon, is it?" asked a voice.
"Yes, that's right," said Brendon. "Who's this?"
"It's Rupert... Dr Casey," said the voice. "Is Sarah there?"
"She's just checking outside," said Brendon. "How's Jasper?"
"He'll take time to recover," said Rupert. "But I'm glad to say that he's okay."

"Oh, good," said Brendon. "Wait a minute… there was something Sarah wanted to ask Dr Rodney."
"Dr Rodney?" said Rupert, sounding a little puzzled.
"Yes," said Brendon. "Dr Rodney said he found a cat that had been attacked and Sarah wondered if it might have been the same animal that attacked Jasper."

Rupert paused, "I don't remember Dr Rodney saying the cat had been attacked, just that it had been hurt. I assumed he meant it had been run over but I'll ask him."
"Thanks," said Brendon. "Was there anything else?"
"No…," said Rupert. "Just let Sarah know she can ring me any time. And I do mean any time, ok?"
"Sure," said Brendon. "Goodnight then."
"Goodnight," said Rupert, sounding disappointed.
Brendon hung up and returned to the kitchen. He stuck his head out the window but Sarah was nowhere in sight.

The tracks led intermittently from the kitchen window in a rambling trail all the way through the gravel-lined paths of the market garden to the cottage at the edge of the Manor grounds. K-9 didn't notice the temperature but Sarah was shivering. She shone her torch into the small garage but the space was empty.

"Liz must still be at the party," said Sarah regretfully. "I'd really appreciate one of her fresh herbal teas right about now."
"Mistress?" said K-9. "The creatures have been in the cottage."
Sarah swung her torch around to see where K-9 was looking.

The cottage's wooden door contained a small cat door. The snapped remains of the latch dangled just above the ground. Long scratch marks and dents in the metal frame spoke of the door's brief resistance.
"Damn," said Sarah. "Liz keeps her tabby indoors at night."
"Tabby, Mistress?" asked K-9. "I am unfamiliar with this term."
"A cat, K-9," explained Sarah. "A female cat with more than one colour in its fur."
"Then the creatures have gained entry through the door designed for this tabby," said K-9 decisively.
"Looks that way," said Sarah. "Come on, I want to see if the tabby's still inside. I hope it wasn't the cat that Dr Rodney found."

She marched up to the cottage door and fumbled around in her coat pocket.
"How will we gain entry, Mistress?" asked K-9.
"Liz keeps a set of spare keys under that flower pot." answered Sarah, lifting up the pot near the door. "Hope I remember which is the front door key… I think it's that one."
She tried one of the keys in the lock but it refused to turn.
"Okay, how about this one?" she asked herself, trying a second key.
The lock clicked and she pushed the door open.

"Mistress, creatures may still be present," said K-9. "I must precede."
Sarah stepped back to let K-9 lead the way into the dark cottage. She felt around for the light switch and found it on her third try. She blinked as light filled the small stone cottage.
"I think it was warmer outside," she said wryly.
"Mistress?" asked K-9, pausing on his way across the room.
"Never mind, K-9," she said, clicking off her torch.

She looked around the cottage, noting the changes that Liz had made to the place since the previous owner, George Tracey, had moved out. Most of the furniture was still the same but there were new tablecloths and knick-knacks everywhere. A line of pleasant smelling pine-cones stretched across the mantle above the fireplace.

K-9 moved out into the next room while Sarah continued to peruse the contents of Liz's shelves. She noticed ironically that George's former liquor cabinet had been filled with books on horticulture. There were books on plants in general and books about herbal medicine.
"She really does think plants are nice," she said out loud.
"Mistress?" interrupted K-9.
"Coming," she answered, leaving the shelves to join him.

"All other doors in the cottage are closed," K-9 informed her.
He was sitting in the corridor. Sarah looked up and down at the row of doors.
"Maybe we should see if her tabby's still here," said Sarah.
She turned the doorknob of the first door on her left and was greeted by the scent of lavender when she walked in. The light from the hallway told her that the room wasn't very big. She fumbled around on the wall for the light switch.

The light globe flickered to life and Sarah gaped. The room had previously been a storage closet so the only window was small and set high into the back wall. There wasn't room for more than two people to be in it at any one time. Partly because of the small size but also because of the altar that had been set up against the opposite wall. The centre of the altar featured two large, thick candles – one gold and one silver. Around them were arrayed much smaller candles, an incense burner, a bowl of water, a bowl of salt and a short, bronze-tinted knife.

Sarah jumped back out into the hallway and shut the door.
"Mistress?" questioned K-9.
"Just a minute, K-9," snapped Sarah irritably. "I need to think."
At that point a car drove into the garage. Sarah hurried back into the main room.
"K-9, hide," she hissed over her shoulder.
K-9 set off down the corridor and tucked himself out of sight behind a desk.

Liz came in the front door just as Sarah turned back.
"Sarah," sighed Liz, relaxing. "When I saw the lights on, I was worried. Thought it might be burglars. What are you doing here? How's Jasper?"
"Rupert and Dr Rodney are looking after Jasper," said Sarah nervously. "We followed a trail from our kitchen back to the cottage. Seems that whatever got into our place got in here, first."
"We?" asked Liz. "Is Brendon here?"
She stepped forward, intending to go past Sarah into the hallway.

"They got in through the cat door," said Sarah quickly.
"They did?" asked Liz, stopping and forgetting about Brendon. "They must have been very small burglars."
She turned back to the front door and turned on the outside light so that she could inspect the damage.

"By the G… Goodness," said Liz, running her fingers down the metal cat door. "They must have been very determined. Where's Sellene?"
"Sellene?" frowned Sarah, edging around to the front door.
"My cat," said Liz, looking worried. "I never let her out at night. If she's wandering around … You don't think Dr Rodney's dead cat could be Sellene, do you?"
Sarah shrugged, "You tell me."
"Pardon?" asked Liz.
"Nothing," said Sarah. "You can always ring him and ask."
"Do you think it's too late at night?" asked Liz, biting her lip. "I know she's just a cat but…"
"He's probably still up, seeing to Jasper," said Sarah. "I'm sure he won't mind if you ring him."
"I think I will ring," said Liz, shutting the front door and heading towards the telephone.
"Well, I don't think I should leave Brendon up at the Manor all by himself," said Sarah. "So, I'll just be getting back."
Liz nodded distractedly and Sarah slipped out the front door, returning the set of keys to the flowerpot.

Grumbling to herself, she crossed the grounds back to the Manor and tried not to jump at every little sound in the darkness. K-9 would just have to wait until Liz was out before making his get-away.

Juno walked into the hallway to fetch P.C. Carter's coat. The murmur of low voices caught her attention and she noticed Harry and the Colonel talking in the entranceway. They were obviously on the point of leaving as they were wearing coats, scarves and hats. She was about to say something but the Colonel's next comment made her pause.

"Do you think she knows?" he asked.
Harry shrugged, "I wouldn't have thought so but she is a journalist, Richard. No secret is ever safe around Sarah Jane Smith and that's a fact. She uncovered a witches coven just before Christmas."
"What do you think she'll do if she does find out?"
Harry shifted uncomfortably, "I really don't know. I'd like to think…"

The Colonel caught sight of Juno, "Hello, Mrs Baker."
Harry looked around guiltily.
"Sorry, didn't mean to eavesdrop," she apologised. "I thought you'd already gone home."
"Quite all right, Mrs Baker," smiled the Colonel. "But we really should be off."
The Colonel turned to Harry, "Why don't we finish this discussion at home?"
"Good idea," said Harry. "And while we're at it, we can ring Evan and find out how Sarah's dogs are."
"I thought she only had one?" frowned the Colonel.
"Ahh… yes, that's right," said Harry nervously and he walked out the door.

The Colonel looked surprised for a moment and then he turned to Juno.
"I don't know about you, Mrs Baker," he said. "But I'm intrigued."
"Good night, Colonel," said Juno. "I'll see you around the village I expect."
"To be sure, Mrs Baker," he said, tipping his hat off and bowing low. "Goodnight."
With that the Colonel straightened and walked determinedly out the door to join Harry.

Sarah sighed with relief as she made it in the Manor's front door. She put the torch back into the closet.
"Sarah, that you?" called Brendon, coming out into the hall from the living room.
"Yes," she said, shrugging off her coat. "I'm back."
"Where's K-9?" frowned Brendon.
"He's at the cottage with Liz," said Sarah. "We were looking around when she got home so K-9's hiding until he can sneak out again."

"Hmm," said Brendon, retreating back into the living room and huddling in front of the fireplace. "I sure could drink one of her teas right about now."
Sarah swallowed hesitantly and joined him by the fireplace.
"Brendon?" she said. "I'm not sure that Liz is what she seems."
"What do you mean by that?" asked Brendon, yawning.
"While I was looking around the cottage, I found an altar."

Brendon blinked and rubbed his arms to keep warm.
"I think she might be a witch," continued Sarah.
"Another one? What's going on?" protested Brendon. "We just arrested our own local coven last month, we don't need new ones coming from out of town."
"I don't know that she's done anything wrong but we need to keep an eye on her," said Sarah.
"No argument here," said Brendon glumly. "I'm in no hurry to be sacrificed again…"
There was a knock at the door.

Yawning, Brendon looked at the clock to find that it was almost midnight.
"You should think about going to bed," Sarah told him, leaving to answer the door.
"Might be Dr Casey," Brendon called after her. "Oh, he rang and said Jasper was ok."
"Why didn't you tell me?" Sarah called from the hall.
"I just did," said Brendon grumpily, huddling closer to the fire.

He heard the murmur of low voices in the hallway and then Sarah returned to the living room with Liz in tow. Liz's eyes were red but she still held herself rigidly straight. Brendon shifted uncomfortably as Sarah asked her to sit. Liz settled herself into an armchair and wiped her nose with a creased tissue. Sarah shot a warning look at Brendon before sitting down as well.

"What is it, Liz?" asked Sarah. "What's wrong?"
"I rang Dr Rodney…," said Liz, her voice cracking.
She swallowed and the strength returned to her voice.
"I rang Dr Rodney," she repeated. "And it sounds like Sellene was the cat that…"
She shrugged and wiped her nose again.

"I'm sorry," said Sarah. "Any idea what it could have been?"
Liz shook her head miserably. Brendon frowned suspiciously and mouthed the word 'liar' behind Liz's back. Liz pulled herself together and faced Sarah.
"I was wondering, if it would be possible for me to stay here tonight," she said. "I… I don't want to be alone. Not with the cat door broken and Sellene…"
Liz's lower lip trembled and she couldn't finish.

Sarah didn't answer and when Liz regained her composure, she turned to Sarah patiently for an answer.
"I'm not sure…" began Sarah.
"Please?" asked Liz.
Sarah had never seen the older woman so upset before and she was reluctant to refuse her. She tried a different tack instead.

"Liz," she said, leaning forward in her chair. "You didn't have anything to do with the break-ins, did you?"
Liz frowned but shook her head.
"What about the coven last year?"
Liz paused, "Coven?"
"I'm sure someone in the village has told you about the coven that tried to sacrifice Brendon just before Christmas," said Sarah firmly.
Liz nodded, "I did hear about it, yes."
Her hands twisted the tissue nervously.

"Liz, I was looking around the cottage before you got home," said Sarah firmly. "I found the altar. How do you explain that?"
Liz snorted miserably, "It's not illegal."
"No, just very suspicious," said Sarah.
"Suspicious?" asked Liz sharply. "Suspicious? By the Goddess… just because I'm not Christian does not make me an evil person!"

"Yes but we all know what witches get up to," said Brendon from behind her.
"Oh, do you indeed?" asked Liz angrily, sitting up in the chair. "Somehow I don't think you do! I don't think you know the first thing about Witches or Witchcraft and I don't think Commander Pollock did either."
"Commander Pollock was a witch," pointed out Sarah.
"Maybe that's what he called himself," said Liz, the words tumbling out in an angry rush. "But as far as I can tell he was more an acquisitive Christian that anything else. He just borrowed whatever he wanted from my religion because he was power hungry and desperate to make a success of his own business. I mean, honestly, what self-respecting witch would go to a Christian chapel to perform Witchcraft?"

"There's nothing Christian about human sacrifice," objected Brendon.
"Oh no?" asked Liz, rounding on him. "I'll have you know, young man, that there is more mention of sacrificing people in your precious Christian bible than there is in any Witchcraft book I've ever read. Unless you're talking middle ages, of course, but then medical doctors used to believe that blood-letting made people healthier so I don't think…"
Brendon cringed and backed away. Liz stopped mid-sentence and took several deep breaths.

She looked at Sarah to find her resolute and turned to find Brendon looking uncomfortable.
"Brendon," she said calmly. "I'm a vegetarian. I can't stand the thought of killing a cow for food. What makes you think that I'd be able to handle taking the life of another human being? The Goddess Hecate, in all her wisdom, put us on this Earth and who am I to deny her wishes?"
Sarah studied Liz's face trying to gauge whether the indignation was real.

"Sorry, Liz," she said at last. "But you can't blame us for being wary. Not only this house but probably the whole village is rather touchy about witches and witchcraft at the moment. You could have chosen a better time, that's all."
Liz managed a smile, "I came here because of Commander Pollock."
"You knew him?" asked Sarah.
"No," shrugged Liz. "But from what I hear, he's probably filled this village with a lot of angry, negative energy. I wanted to… try and heal the damage he'd done. I've been praying in the Chapel they used and trying to return the good fortune to the market garden."

Sarah smiled, "No harm in praying and the garden's looking very healthy."
"Probably due to the fertiliser," muttered Brendon.
Liz turned to look at him, "Perhaps, young man, but you never know. Commander Pollock and George Tracey ran the market garden before me and they knew how to grow plants. Yet they were still plagued by bad luck. I'm having better luck despite doing nothing different to the plants. Curious, no?"
"Believe whatever you want," shrugged Brendon.
"Thankyou," said Liz sincerely.

"Do you think Commander Pollock could have summoned something that is attacking people's pets?" asked Sarah.
Liz paused, "I wouldn't have thought so. He was a dangerous self serving amateur but I don't think he was capable of summoning living creatures. Not to mention that Jasper was his dog. Why would he do anything that could hurt Jasper?"
"That's true," said Sarah. "He loved Jasper. He only let me keep him because nobody else would take him and the only other option was to put him down."
"Even nasty people get sentimental about their animals…, " agreed Liz, sniffling.

Her eyes brimmed with tears and she buried her face in her tissue. Sarah placed a comforting hand on her knee.
"I'm sorry," hiccuped Liz. "I keep thinking about Sellene."
"It's all right," said Sarah, passing her another tissue. "Was… was Sellene a witches familiar?"
Liz snorted, "Goddess, no, just a pet. I had to keep her away from the altar. She kept knocking over the candles…"

She burst into real tears and Sarah looked helplessly at Brendon as she passed the entire box of tissues to Liz.
"I know she's just a cat…," gasped Liz.
Brendon stepped forward to put his arms around her shoulders.
"She wasn't just a cat," he said, ignoring Sarah's surprised look. "People's pets are important."
Liz smiled gratefully through the tears and leant into Brendon's hug.
"Well," said Sarah. "You can sleep here, tonight. We've got a spare bed and you can borrow one of Aunt Lavinia's nightshirts."
"Thankyou," sniffed Liz.
"No problem," said Sarah. "Anytime."

When Sarah woke up the next morning, she wandered into Brendon's room and shook him awake.
"Come on, sleepy head," she said. "I want to go to the village and check on Jasper."
Brendon grunted and rolled over. She was about to poke him again when he sat up abruptly of his own accord."What's cooking?" he asked, sniffing.
Sarah blinked and sniffed the air, anew. Smells of hot food and teas were drifting up the staircase.

"Liz must be up," said Sarah.
She laughed as Brendon scrambled out of bed and grabbed his dressing-gown. She followed him downstairs more sedately to the kitchen. Liz was standing in the middle of the room, taping a garbage bag across the broken window. She was still dressed in the nightshirt and dressing-gown that Sarah had leant her but her hair was already combed and tied back.

"Morning," Liz said cheerfully. "I thought it was getting a bit chilly in here so I figured I'd tape up the window."
"Good morning," said Brendon, making a bee-line for the plates of food on the bench.
"Morning and thankyou," said Sarah. "You didn't have to do that."
"No problem," said Liz briskly. "Breakfast's on the bench."
She grinned at Brendon who was hurriedly wolfing down a generous helping of scrambled eggs.
"Brendon," scolded Sarah.
Liz smiled, "Growing boys need to eat."

Sarah pulled up a stool and sat down in front of the second plate. It was filled with scrambled eggs, fruit toast and steaming herbal tea. She briefly regretted the absence of bacon but was tactful enough not to mention it to the vegetarian chef. She picked up the tea and sipped it carefully. It was warm and spicy and flavoured with honey. As usual, she couldn't tell what the flavouring was but she appreciated it all the same.

"Aren't you hungry, Liz?" asked Sarah.
"I've already eaten," said Liz, pulling out a cloth and beginning to wipe the bench.
"What time'd you get up?" asked Brendon.
"Five-thirty."
Brendon nearly choked on his tea.
"Can't stand sleeping in," Liz smiled at him.

"I was thinking of going to the vet to check on Jasper," said Sarah, starting on her eggs.
Liz's scrubbing slowed down. She carefully avoided Sarah's eyes.
"Do you mind if I come?" asked Liz quietly.
"No, course not," said Sarah.
"I… I want to pick up Sellene."

Brendon slowed down his shovelling, looking gloomy.
"I also wanted to ask you…," began Liz, turning around to ask Sarah. "If it would be okay for me to bury her on the grounds? I know it's your aunt's land but it was Sellene's home and…"
"That's fine," said Sarah, swallowing a mouthful of food. "Go ahead. I don't think my Aunt would mind."

Rupert scuffed his feet along the road. The road was deserted and surrounded on either side by paddocks and gardens. The sky was growing light but the air was still cold. He swung his arms to keep warm and watched his breath steam. The plants and weeds that lined the roadsides had grown dry and brittle under the winter's harshness. He made no attempt to cover his face, allowing the cold air to bite and keep him awake.

As he approached a fork in the road, he saw the Colonel walking briskly towards him along the side-road. The Colonel looked agitated, muttering angrily to himself with his shoulders hunched and kicking at any loose rock that caught his eye. He was only fifteen feet from Rupert before he noticed him.

The Colonel stopped, surprised. He stared at Rupert as if his brain was having trouble processing.
"Brisk morning, isn't it?" asked Rupert.
The Colonel looked about himself, seeming to notice the lightening sky for the first time. He tightened his coat.
"It is, isn't it?" said the Colonel. "I'm surprised to see anybody else up and about."
"I didn't finish with Sarah's dog until 3 am and I have an appointment at 7 am," explained Rupert. "Somehow, having four hours of interrupted sleep leaves me more tired than if I pull an overnighter. Strange, I know but it's just the way I am. I ran out of things to do at the surgery, so I went for a walk."
"Not as strange as you think," smiled the Colonel. "When I lived in London, pulling overnighters was quite commonplace. Not for a town like this, though, I would imagine."
"No, indeed," said Rupert. "A much quieter place than London but that's part of its charm."

The Colonel smiled and looked about the surrounding paddocks.
"What gets you up and about so early?" asked Rupert.
The Colonel's face fell and he hesitated.
"Ah… bad knee, you see," he said quickly. "It sometimes plays up and I just walk out the stiffness."
Rupert nodded in agreement, "I suppose that having a medical man like Dr Sullivan as a roommate would be a great help with your knee."
The other man looked uncomfortable, not quite meeting Rupert's eyes, "Harry is a very good friend."
"Of course," said Rupert. "I wasn't suggesting that you were taking advantage of him."
The Colonel didn't find that too reassuring, "I'd better get back."

Rupert stood there and watched while the other man turned around and walked back the way he'd come. The Colonel looked back over his shoulder once and Rupert waved. The Colonel waved back reluctantly and then disappeared around the bend. Rupert stood there, thoughtfully, before walking onwards to the vet.

When he got there, a car was waiting in the driveway. Liz and Brendon waved at him from the backseat of the car.
"Morning," said Rupert.
"Morning," came Sarah's voice.
She retreated from her place by Rupert's front door to join him beside the car. Rupert couldn't help but smile back. There was always something fairly direct and playful in Sarah's smile.

Liz unwound the car window, "Good morning, Dr Casey."
"Morning, Miss Patterson," said Rupert politely. "Brendon."
"We're here to see about Jasper," explained Sarah, sticking her hands in her armpits to warm them.
"Of course," said Rupert. "Come inside. No sense in freezing out here."
He led the way into the small cottage.

Sarah looked around, noting that half of the cottage was tidy and the other half was full of unpacked boxes.
"Sorry," he said, talking mostly to Sarah. "I haven't had time to finish unpacking."
"It's all right," said Sarah, smiling at him.
"Tea?" he asked.

"Can we see Jasper?" spoke up Brendon.
Rupert smiled guiltily and tried to pretend that he hadn't forgotten that the others were there. He nodded and waved them through the connecting door that led from the cottage to the vet surgery.
"I'm afraid he's still a bit groggy," said Rupert. "I wouldn't mind keeping him here another day but if you want to take him home, you can – provided that you let him get lots of rest."
"Well, if you think its best he stay here…," began Sarah, as Rupert led them into a back room where Jasper was stretched out in a large vet cage.
"Are you sure we can't take him home?" interrupted Brendon anxiously.

Sarah hesitated and looked to Rupert.
He smiled at her, "You can take him home if you want. I'll give you a list of instructions and if anything goes wrong, you can bring him straight back."
She still seemed undecided and crouched next to Jasper's cage. She slipped a hand through the bars to stroke a furry ear. The ear twitched under her fingers and the head pushed up to meet her touch.
"Hey, boy, how are you?" she asked gently.
Jasper blinked his eyes open and began to lick her hand.

She looked back to Rupert and an anxious Brendon.
"Okay," she said. "We'll take him home."
Brendon grinned. Liz smiled weakly from her position by the door. She seemed reluctant to come further into the room.
"I'll get you a list of things to do," said Rupert, turning back to the door.
Liz stopped him with a hand on his chest.

"Excuse me, Dr Casey," she said quietly. "I don't know if Dr Rodney told you but it was my cat that he found yesterday. I was wondering if I could… have the body."
"Oh?" said Rupert frowning. "I don't think he mentioned it but... Of course, you may. If you'd like to come through, Miss Patterson."
He directed her out of the room.

"Rupert?" called Sarah.
He stuck his head back in, "Yes, Sarah?"
"Did you ask Dr Rodney if the same animal attacked Jasper and Liz's cat?"
Rupert's face fell, "Blast. Knew there was something else I'd forgotten. Wait until I've finished with Miss Patterson."

Harry walked into the kitchen of his cottage. He paused as he spotted the Colonel stoking the fireplace and kept walking to the cupboard as if nothing had happened. Harry pulled out two mugs and began to make coffee. They ignored each other until the kettle had boiled and the fire was going.
"Where'd you go?" asked Harry, passing a coffee to the Colonel. "You were gone for hours."
The Colonel shrugged, "Walking."

"Visit Evan?" said Harry flatly, not making eye contact and not sounding particularly interested in the answer.
"No," said the Colonel. "Didn't make it that far."
"I tried to ring him fifteen minutes ago but he wasn't answering."
Harry looked at the clock and frowned, grasping for a neutral subject.
"Not like him not to be up at this hour," he said.
"Maybe he's not only up but also out and about?" suggested the Colonel with a weak smile.
Harry didn't smile back.

Brendon lifted Jasper awkwardly in his arms, under Rupert's amused but wary gaze. It wasn't that he found the dog too heavy but there were always legs and tails sticking out at unusual angles which threatened to overbalance them both. Fortunately, the German Shepherd wasn't awake or things would have become much more lively.

He managed to transfer the dog to the car without dropping him. Rupert passed him a blanket which he wrapped tucked around Jasper.
"I might just dash around to the back and talk to Dr Rodney," said Sarah.
Liz came out of the surgery with a large shoebox clutched possessively in both hands.
"Will you be long?" she asked Sarah.
"I'll make it quick," promised Sarah sadly.
"Don't know if he'll be up yet," said Rupert. "But follow that path round to the spare cottage."
He turned back to help Brendon arrange Jasper in the car.

Sarah smiled at him and walked in the direction he'd pointed. The stone path led around the side of the main cottage and the vet surgery to a much smaller cottage that had been built on the property much later. She walked up to the front door and knocked. There was a car parked in the garage.

The unlocked door shifted slightly on its hinges. Sarah frowned and pushed the door open.
"Dr Rodney?" she called. "It's Sarah Jane Smith."
There was no answer. The cottage felt cold and the fireplace looked as if it hadn't been lit. She gazed around the main room, noting the many certificates that had been framed and proudly displayed on the wall. A photograph of Dr Rodney with Harry and the Colonel took pride of place on the mantle-piece.

"Dr Rodney?" she called again. "Your door was open."
She walked into the back of the cottage to discover a neatly made bed. A key-ring lay on the table. She picked it up and examined the keys. There was a car key among them.
"Well, you certainly haven't driven anywhere," she said aloud.

The wooden door creaked and she jumped. Rupert appeared at the doorway.
"Sorry," he blushed. "Didn't mean to startle you."
She sighed and sat on the bed, "It's all right."
"How'd you get in?" asked Rupert, looking around curiously.
"Front door was unlocked," she shrugged, pulling her coat tighter around her. "But no sign of Dr Rodney."

Rupert shrugged himself, "I saw the Colonel out this morning, taking a walk. Maybe Dr Rodney's doing the same. They did use to be house-mates."
"It's possible," said Sarah. "But his bed hasn't been slept in. When did you see him last?"
Rupert frowned, "About 3 am. Maybe 3:30."
"Well, when you do see him, please tell him I want to talk to him," decided Sarah, standing.
"I will," promised Rupert. "I'll get him to ring you."
"Thanks," said Sarah, walking to the door but hesitating to walk through it. "You know… I wouldn't mind if you rang me too. Just to check on Jasper, of course."
"Of course," said Rupert, grinning widely at her.
He opened the door wider, "After you."
She smiled at him as she walked past.

Liz and Brendon marched out to a bush by Liz's cottage, armed with a shovel. Liz had the shoebox tucked under her arm.
"She made it her favourite place outside," said Liz. "Even though we weren't living here for very long."
"You don't have to live somewhere very long for it to become a home," said Brendon reassuringly, glancing up to where the Manor was just visible over the treetops.
He handed her the shovel. She placed the box gently on the ground and took the shovel with both hands and a grim determination.
"A final resting place," she said solemnly, digging the shovel into the ground.

Sarah walked up to join them. Reluctant to interrupt, she waited until Liz noticed her.
"I still can't contact Dr Rodney," she explained. "I'm going to drive over and visit Harry, see if he knows where he is."
"Can't you just ring him?" asked Brendon.
"I could but I'd rather talk to him face to face," said Sarah.
Her gaze fell on the shoebox and she just stopped herself from telling the two of them to 'have fun' while she was gone.

"Can you check on Jasper every half hour?" she asked.
"I've already set the alarm on my watch," explained Brendon, waving his wrist as proof.
"We'll be here when you get back," said Liz, slouching against the shovel.
Sarah nodded, patted Liz on the back and returned to the house. She left a bowl of water for Jasper and then drove to the Doctor's surgery.

There was a car in the driveway, still full of unpacked moving boxes. She wondered if she might find Harry and the Colonel gone too but there was smoke coming out of the chimney. Her knock on the door was followed by a crash from inside the cottage.
"Harry? Colonel Hanson? Are you okay?" she called.
She could hear movement but nobody came to the door. She tried the handle but the door was locked.
"Harry? It's Sarah," she called again, moving around to peer in the window.

The front door opened and Harry stuck his head outside, "Sarah?"
Harry was dressed lightly in a pair of trousers and a hastily buttoned shirt. He wasn't even wearing any shoes.
"There you are," said Sarah, coming back to the door. "I thought I heard a crash. Is something wrong?"
"No, no," said Harry quickly. "You just startled me, that's all. Dropped a coffee mug."
"A coffee mug?" she asked sceptically.
"Do you want to come in, old girl?" he asked, changing the subject.
"I'd like that very much," said Sarah but there was a crafty look in her eyes.
He opened the door wide for her to walk in.

The Doctor's surgery had a small waiting room and two offices. A set of stairs led to the small apartment above. Harry led the way up the stairs, trying to rearrange his shirt buttons without Sarah noticing.
"Must be a bit of a squeeze," said Sarah lightly. "What with the two of you."
Harry shrugged, "We're used to much worse."
He led the way into the kitchen where the remains of a smashed coffee mug covered the floor.

"The coffee mug, I presume?" said Sarah, surveying the wreckage critically.
"Indeed, poor thing," said Harry, pulling up two stools. "Tea? Or coffee?"
"Coffee, I think," said Sarah.
She sat while Harry prepared two new cups of coffee, gingerly avoiding the broken mug with his bare feet.

The kitchen itself was a mess of a different kind. There were unopened and half-unpacked boxes everywhere.
"Still haven't finished unpacking?"
Harry shook his head, "Not yet. Evan was going to come over and help this morning but he hasn't turned up yet."

"Not like him," said a voice warmly.
Sarah turned to see the Colonel emerging from the bedroom. He was still buttoning up the top buttons of his shirt but he was more dressed than Harry.
"Good morning, Miss," said the Colonel, dipping his head.
"Good morning, Colonel," answered Sarah. "Hope I didn't wake you."
"Never fear, I wasn't asleep," said the Colonel. "Just making myself decent for company. I'll finish that, Harry, why don't you get some shoes on, eh?"

Harry paused by the bench while the Colonel seemed to brace himself for an argument. Then Harry shrugged, surrendering some silent battle, and retreated to the bedroom. The Colonel looked relieved and began to clear away the mess.
"You said it's not like Evan not to turn up," asked Sarah. "How late is he?"
The Colonel frowned, "About an hour. He's usually quite punctual – probably all that giving medications-on-time routine that vets and doctors have. Harry's exactly the same."

"Exactly the same as what?" asked Harry, reappearing.
The Colonel barely blinked, "Evan. You're both habitually punctual. Almost like you were in the army or something."
"Funny that," said Harry wryly.
He passed Sarah her coffee and took the other for himself.

Harry took the stool beside Sarah while the Colonel leaned against the bench.
"I wanted to talk to Evan, actually," said Sarah. "But he's not at home and it doesn't look like his bed's been slept in."
Harry and the Colonel exchanged looks.
"Are you sure he didn't just… make the bed?" asked Harry.
"Quite sure," lied Sarah.

Brendon returned from checking Jasper.
"How is he?" asked Liz, still standing stiffly by the cat's grave.
"He's okay," said Brendon, frowning at the small patch of disturbed earth. "Pity we don't have any flowers."
"We can still put stems down," suggested Liz. "I think I know just the ones, too. Saw them growing on the side of the road."
"Nobody will miss a few stems, will they?" asked Brendon helpfully.
"Come on," said Liz. "We'll take my car."

"So, how long have the two of you been house-mates?" asked Sarah, setting aside the empty coffee mug.
"Eight years," said the Colonel promptly, without thinking.
Harry nodded wistfully, "Moved in together several months after… Scotland."
"Yes, Scotland," said the Colonel darkly.
Harry rolled his eyes, "I'm going to try Evan again."

Sarah raised an eyebrow at the Colonel as Harry moved to the phone. The Colonel leant forward towards Sarah.
"You were there for that Scottish business, Miss Smith, weren't you?" he asked in a low voice.
She shrugged uncomfortably, "Well, as a journalist, I travel all over the place."
"And why exactly did you travel up to Scotland?" asked the Colonel. "Harry mentioned something about a military unit but…"
"Not a military unit," said Sarah with a snort. "But an organization known as UNIT. Very secret, very much involved with a lot of the weirder things in life."
The Colonel blinked, "And how did a journalist get involved if it's all so classified?"

Sarah shrugged, "Right place, right time. Or maybe that should be wrong place, wrong time…"
"They just let a journalist witness military operations?" said the Colonel disbelievingly.
"I worked as a sort of assistant to one of their civilian scientific advisors," explained Sarah. "Have you been giving Harry a hard time about it?"
The Colonel flushed guiltily, "I was worried. Worried he was hiding something nasty."
"Nothing nasty, not Harry," she reassured him. "It really wouldn't be like him."
He smiled at her, trying not to look too relieved, "No, Harry may be many things but nasty isn't one of them. So, what's really going on?"
"Well…,"

There was a pounding at the door and Harry stuck his head back into the kitchen.
"I'll get it," offered the Colonel.
He smiled at her and left the kitchen. Harry approached Sarah reluctantly.
"So, what's Richard been saying?" he asked her, trying to sound casual.
"Harry," she scolded, slapping him lightly on the arm. "Stop with all this cloak-and-dagger nonsense. You're frightening the Colonel."
"I'm doing what?" stuttered Harry, torn between indignant and puzzled.

"Harry!" bellowed the Colonel from downstairs.
"What now?" Harry bellowed back.
Sarah stuck her fingers in her ears but was still able to hear the Colonel come thundering up the stairs. His face was pale.
"Harry, grab your medical bag," he snapped.
Harry dropped his annoyance and rushed into the bedroom without another word.
Sarah pulled her fingers out of her ears, "What's happened?"

The Colonel shrugged helplessly, "Liz is here. She says she's found Evan and he's hurt. Badly."
"Liz?" said Sarah, sliding off her and stool and running downstairs.
She had nearly reached the front door when Harry came down after her and overtook her, slipping out the door first.
"Excuse me, Miss," called the Colonel, pushing past her as well.

Grumbling, Sarah made it outside the house.
"Brendon, you stay here," came Liz's voice.
Liz was forcibly pushing Brendon out of her car. Harry climbed into his place while the Colonel helpfully steered Brendon further away from the car. Sarah joined Brendon and the Colonel on the grass as Harry and Liz reversed down the driveway.

"Brendon, what happened?" she asked.
Brendon looked at the grass and wouldn't meet her eyes. She looked to the Colonel who was still holding Brendon's arm a little tighter than he meant to. She pried the Colonel's fingers away.
He sighed, "Sorry."
She put her hands on Brendon's shoulders, craning her neck to look the tall young man in the face until he met her look.
"Brendon?" she asked gently. "What happened?"
"We were driving by and I saw him from the car," said Brendon. "He was lying on the ground, not moving… I think Harry will be too late."
The Colonel drew in a ragged breath. Sarah spared him a glance but most of her attention was on Brendon.

"Why don't we go in and get something to drink?" she suggested, taking Brendon's hand and leading him back towards the house.
"Coming Colonel?" she added when she noticed that the man hadn't moved to follow them.
The Colonel blinked, "What? Oh yes, of course…"
"Oh good," continued Sarah. "I don't know my way around your kitchen yet."
She led the two of them upstairs, guiding them gently to stools.

The other two were silent, the Colonel alternately staring out the window and at the phone while Brendon slouched and looked gloomily into his mug of cocoa.
"I've never seen a body before," said Brendon quietly.
He didn't seem to notice the sudden stiffening of the Colonel beside him.
"I can't remember if I even said hello to him at the party," continued Brendon. "Do you remember?"
Sarah lied, "I'm sure you did."

Harry was crouching in the ditch just off the road. He was shivering in the cold air but he wasn't prepared to move his coat from the gruesome lump in front of him. A car approached along the road and he looked up hopefully. As it got closer, he could tell that it wasn't Liz returning. He sighed and settled back into the ditch.

The car drew level with him and stopped. Rupert climbed tentatively out of the car.
"Are you all right, Dr Sullivan?" he asked.
"Just waiting for Liz to return with the police," explained Harry.
He stood up and climbed out of the ditch to join Rupert in the road.
Rupert frowned, "Whatever for?"

Harry smiled thinly, "There's been a bit of an accident, I'm afraid."
"Nothing serious, I hope," said Rupert. "Do you need any help?"
"Evan's been killed," said Harry, pointedly refraining from looking at the body behind him. "Nothing to be done but wait for the police."
"I see," said Rupert.
He paused uncomfortably. Harry stood there, not quite willing to lose the company but equally unable to think of any conversation.

They were saved by the approach of two new cars. One was Liz's old sedan and the other was a police car. Harry and Rupert moved off the road and stood in the ditch. The two cars parked behind Rupert's car. Liz hurried over to join Harry and Rupert in the ditch, ignoring the body.
"I brought PC Carter," she told Harry unnecessarily.
"So, I see," said Harry.

The policeman joined them, his eyes flickering to the body.
"Dr Sullivan, Dr Casey," he nodded politely. "What's happened?"
"It's Dr Rodney," said Harry. "He's been killed."
Carter screwed up his nose and nodded. Harry wondered whether this signalled deep thought or distaste for the task at hand.

Carter approached the body and pulled back the coat. Liz gasped and shut her eyes. Rupert put an arm around her back and turned her so that she was looking in the other direction. Harry looked but made no move to come closer.

Evan was lying face-down in the ditch, still dressed in the coat and scarf he'd been wearing when he left the party the night before. At the very back of his head, the short dark hair was stained a darker colour. Carter knelt down and touched the dark stain with gloved hands.
"Blood," said Carter decisively. "From a blow to the back of the head."
"Terrible," said Rupert, over his own shoulder since he was still looking away. "Such a terrible accident and only his second night in town."

"It wasn't an accident," said Harry grimly.
Liz gave a small cry.
Carter's head snapped around to look at Harry, "That a fact?"
"That's my medical opinion," said Harry. "Blunt force trauma to the back of the head with a rock in that paddock."
He pointed further off the road. Carter stood and peered over the fence.

"There is a rock with blood on it," added Harry. "It looks like it was thrown some distance from the body."
"Any idea when?" asked Carter.
Harry paused, "My guess would be at least three hours ago."

Rupert peered over his shoulder at the police officer, "You know, I was out walking then. I saw Colonel Hanson out and he looked upset."
"What was he doing?" asked Carter, standing up and moving away from the body.
"Walking," said Rupert. "I thought it was strange at the time."
"I hope you're not suggesting what I think you're suggesting…" began Harry, an unusual edge in his voice.
Rupert flushed, "I know it's silly. I barely know the man."

"Still, it is a good point. I'll talk with him just to be sure," said Carter.
"Look," said Harry, crossing his arms angrily. "I've known Richard for years. He was upset because the two of us had an argument this morning. He went for a walk to cool his head."
"Then he can easily verify that," insisted Carter.
Harry offered no further protest. He seemed reluctant to argue with the policeman so he glared at Rupert instead.

The Colonel twitched at the sound of knocking at the door. Brendon took a sip of his cocoa only to find it had cooled. Sarah stood up but the Colonel stopped her with a hand.
"I'll get it," he said firmly. "I've already been a lousy host."
He stood and walked downstairs with his hands in his pockets. Sarah tipped out Brendon's cold cocoa and placed her own empty mug in the sink. She could hear the murmuring of voices.

The Colonel thundered back upstairs.
"I've very sorry, Miss Smith," he said. "It seems that PC Carter wants to talk to me and I get the impression it may take some time."
"Anything I can help with?" asked Sarah.
"No but thankyou for the offer," said the Colonel, managing a smile.

Sarah shooed Brendon down the stairs. They found Carter, Harry, Liz and Rupert in the waiting room. Carter and the Colonel went back upstairs, leaving Sarah to survey the room. Harry was trying and failing to disguise his anger. Rupert was avoiding his gaze and Liz was sitting by herself in a chair. She sighed in relief as she saw Sarah. Sarah smiled back and tried to smile reassuringly at Harry. He managed a shrug in return.

"What's going on?" asked Sarah as Brendon sat beside Liz. "Is Dr Rodney…"
Harry shook his head, "And it wasn't an accident."
"Not an accident?" repeated Sarah.
"He means someone in the village..." pointed out Liz blandly.
"But he was hardly in town long enough to make any enemies," objected Sarah.
"Exactly," said Rupert. "More likely to be someone from out of town."
Harry glared at him again and Rupert tried to act casual.

Liz put an arm around Brendon, "Sarah, do you want me to take Brendon home?"
Sarah turned to find Liz and Brendon both huddled together in the same chair.
"I think that's a very good idea, Liz," said Sarah.
"I'll come with you," said Rupert quickly, stepping away from Harry. "Just to make sure you get home safe."
"Thanks," said Liz gratefully. "You coming, Sarah?"
Sarah looked between Brendon and Harry uncertainly.
"I think I'll stay," she said. "Could you stay with Brendon until I get home?"
"Sure," said Liz.
She and Brendon followed Rupert out the front door.

Sarah turned around to face Harry and Carter.
"Now, what happened?" she said firmly, placing her hands on her hips.
Carter wrinkled his nose, "That's what I'm trying to find out, Miss."
"I still say you're barking up the wrong tree, officer," said Harry resignedly.
Carter ignored the comment and turned to face the Colonel as he joined them.
"Do you have some place we can talk in private?" asked Carter.
The Colonel nodded and waved up the stairs. He shot a look at Harry before following Carter.

Harry sighed and collapsed into one of the waiting room chairs. Sarah pulled up a stool opposite him.
"Harry," she said firmly.
Harry looked up. There was a tiredness in his eyes that hadn't been there before.
"What happened?" she asked.
He shrugged, "Evan's dead and I want something to drink."
He made to stand up from the chair but she stopped him with a hand on his knee.

"Harry," she said.
"Sarah," he echoed.
"Harry," she repeated, a warning tone creeping into her voice.
He sat back in the chair and looked at the wall. He played with the lapel of his jacket. After a short silence, he looked back at her.
"I've known Evan for eleven years," said Harry. "I mean, I knew Evan for eleven years. At first, the two of us were going to be doctors together. Going to save the world together."

Sarah looked down at her hands.
"Then Evan decided he wanted to be a vet instead and you can't be a vet in the navy," continued Harry. "So he joined the army. We didn't always see a lot of each other, especially when I was at sea but we still kept in touch. Then, I was assigned to UNIT in London and he introduced me to Richard. I never told them where I was for those few months that I… that we, disappeared. Don't think they'd have believed me if I'd tried."
"It was an experience, Harry," said Sarah softly. "You don't have to tell anybody about it for it to be important."
Harry snorted, "I know that, old girl. It's just that sometimes, I'd like to share everything with… with my friends. It's frustrating that I can't."

"So, why are the police so interested in the Colonel?" asked Sarah.
Harry pulled a face, "Your Dr Rupert Casey saw him walking along this morning and assumed he was up to no good."
"My Rupert Casey?" said Sarah, her voice rising.
He winked at her and crossed his legs. Sarah ignored his knowing smirk.
"Can you vouch for him being elsewhere?" she asked coldly.
"He was out for a walk," said Harry. "We had a stupid argument and he left. We both needed time to cool off. He was back within twenty minutes."

"When was the last time you saw Dr Rodney?" she said, pulling out a notebook.
Harry eyed her notebook with trepidation, "Not since he left the party with you last night."
"Right," said Sarah, scribbling on the paper. "I last saw him when he left the Manor with Rupert and Jasper about two-thirty. Rupert said he last saw him at three-thirty."
"Is that what Rupert said, is it?" said Harry, teasing.
Sarah blushed, "Do you know when Dr Rodney..."
"My best estimate for time of death is between three-thirty and four in the morning," said Harry, sobering. "How long would it have taken to walk from the vet to where he was found?"
"I don't know," said Sarah. "Let's go find out."

Rupert stroked Jasper's head. The German Shepherd perked up and licked the vet's hand. Brendon came in carrying a bowl of water and Liz followed with a blanket.
"You're being spoilt," said Brendon accusingly as he placed the bowl within Jasper's reach.
The dog was curled up in his wicker bed which had been moved into the living room near the fireplace.

"Pets are members of the family," said Rupert. "It's not a bad thing to be fond of them."
"People do get a little crazy about their pets," agreed Liz, poking the cold fireplace.
Rupert looked sideways at her, "You need some more wood. It's out the back isn't it?"
"I'll show you," offered Brendon.
"That's all right," said Rupert. "You wait here. I'll take care of it."

Brendon sat on the ground by Jasper's head and looked across at Liz.
"Break-ins, murders," sighed Liz. "Is this town always like this?"
"I've only been here a couple of months," said Brendon. "But it's the first successful murder that I know of."
"First successful murder?" squeaked Liz.

Harry waited by the front door, wrapped tightly in his coat. Sarah slipped out to join him, shutting the door behind them.
"What did PC Carter say?" asked Harry.
"I'll start my watch so we can time ourselves," answered Sarah, clicking her wrist-watch.
"You did tell him where we were going, didn't you?" said Harry.
Sarah set off across the lawn, "You know how fast Dr Rodney usually walked, don't you?"
"Sarah!" scolded Harry, hurrying to catch up. "You should have told him."

"Nonsense," said Sarah. "He would only have tried to stop us. Now, how fast do you think he would have been walking?"
He rolled his eyes, "Faster than this."
He sped up and Sarah had to jog to keep up with her high-heels. Harry led the way down the side of the road for several metres and then stopped so abruptly that Sarah very nearly walked into him.

"What? Harry, what?" she snapped angrily.
Harry pointed at the side of the road. It took a moment for Sarah to see it. A set of claw marks in the dirt that led from the road into the field of Harry's neighbour. They looked at each other and turned off the road as one.
"Do you think Dr Rodney could have followed this in the dark?" asked Sarah, as they clambered over the fence.
Harry caught her as she tripped, "Maybe he saw whatever was making those tracks. He's a vet. He wouldn't be afraid of an animal."
"Maybe this isn't the kind of animal he's used to," said Sarah.
They began to follow the trail across the paddock.

Rupert returned to the living room with an armful of firewood and began to stoke the fireplace. Liz wordlessly handed him a mug of tea. He looked at it in surprise.
"I really shouldn't stay," he said uncertainly.
Liz just held the mug out insistently until he took it. He sat down on the couch next to Brendon who was curled up with his own mug of tea. Unfortunately, being a very tall young man, Brendon's feet still dangled off the end of the couch.
"I don't think normal routines are being observed at the moment," said Liz, sipping from her own tea.
The three of them were silent for a moment.

"So," said Liz.
The other two looked at her expectantly.
"Why do you think the Colonel did it?" she asked Rupert.
"I don't want it to be him," said Brendon. "I liked him."
"Especially when he gave you alcoholic punch," said Liz disapprovingly.
"Yes, especially then," agreed Brendon, ignoring her disapproval.

"Back to the point at hand," said Liz. "Dr Casey. Do you have any evidence against the Colonel or are you just jealous of Dr Sullivan and his friends in general?"
"Jealous?" stuttered Rupert. "Jealous of what?"
"Dr Casey," sighed Liz. "I may be a newcomer to Moreton Harwood but I've lived in country towns all my life. You and Sarah, Sarah and Harry, ergo jealousy."
Rupert blushed, "I'm not… I mean… This has nothing to… I mean, I saw the Colonel out walking."
Liz studied him over the top of her teacup, "Interesting."

"You know, I'm getting thoroughly sick of walking backwards and forwards," snapped Sarah, clambering over one particular fence for the fourth time.
Harry paused to rub his hands together as he waited for her.
"Certainly feels as if we've been going around in circles," said Harry.
Sarah snorted, "Whoever made this trail wasn't going anywhere in particular. It's like they're exploring."
"Certainly fits the behaviour of an animal," agreed Harry. "Can't quite tell what kind. Do they get foxes here?"
Sarah made a face, "Harry? There's something I ought to tell you."

"Oh?" asked Harry, starting to walk again.
"Last night, we think the same creature that attacked Liz's cat attacked Jasper," she said, hurrying to catch up.
Harry stuck his hands in his pockets and slowed down to a stroll. Sarah caught up with him, puffing.
"I guessed as much last night," agreed Harry.
"K-9 saw them," said Sarah.

He stopped mid-stride and Sarah nearly ran into him. He pointed ahead at the road.
"Harry, did you hear what I said?" she asked in annoyance.
"Look, old girl," said Harry. "Look where the trail leads."
She followed the line of his sight. The trail had finally taken a new turn and led to the roadside. A police car was parked there and they could see the village's only other policeman walking around.
"What is it?" she asked.
"The trail leads from the vet straight to Evan's body," said Harry flatly. "Hell of a coincidence."

"Do you think the trail continues past?" asked Sarah.
"I don't know," shrugged Harry.
She seized his sleeve, "You're a medical doctor and Evan's friend. The police won't think it's strange if you walk past the crime scene."
"I don't want to walk past the crime scene," said Harry. "What do I say? I was just out for a walk?"
"Well, come up with a good excuse first and you probably won't have to use it," said Sarah firmly. "I'll wait here."

"What do I say? I didn't get enough grief in last time I was here? Can I try again?" snapped Harry.
She blinked at him, stung. His face fell.
"I'm sorry, Sarah," he said quickly. "I didn't mean it."
"No, you're right, Harry. Your friend's just died and I'm out here playing Sherlock Holmes…" said Sarah flatly.
She turned away from him and began walking back the way they had come.
"Sarah!"

She hadn't walked far when Harry caught up to her and swung her around to face him.
"Sarah, I was upset," he shrugged. "You know what an idiot I can be sometimes."
She shook her head, "You're not an idiot, Harry. You always mean well."
"Thanks," he said dryly but he seemed reassured by the back-handed compliment.
"We can go back to your place, if you want," she said. "We can wait for the police to solve the mystery for once."

"Well, that might be best," said Harry.
He let her lead back the way they'd come. He kept glancing over his shoulder at the crime-scene.
"After all," he said. "It's not like there are any aliens involved. I'm sure the police can handle it."
Sarah stopped so suddenly he nearly bowled her over.
"But, Harry, I was trying to tell you, I think there is something strange behind all this," she said, seized by a new energy.
He sighed and stuck his hands in his pockets.

"Let's hear it then," he said.
"K-9 saw the creatures that broke in last night. He chased them off."
"What were they?"
"He didn't know. He couldn't identify them."
"Get him an encyclopaedia, then."
Sarah rolled her eyes, "Harry, he said medium-sized and hairless. I can't think of any animal that could fit that description."

"Some kind of sick animal?" said Harry.
"A new kind of animal appears and then one of the village vets is killed?"
"Sort of stretching co-incidences, isn't it?"
Sarah nodded.
"Very well, then," said Harry. "Let the investigation continue, Holmes."
"You'll talk to the police officer then?"

Harry shook his head, "No need, old girl."
He pointed to where the policeman was getting into his car and driving away. She blushed.
"Guess that argument was for nothing," she said.
"Got everything out in the open," said Harry.

They resumed following the trail and were led directly towards the roadside ditch that Harry had hoped to avoid. He skirted around the outside of the ditch despite the fact that the tracks went straight through it.
"Strange that he was so close to the trail," said Sarah.
She knelt down to look into the ditch while Harry made his way to the point that the trail left the ditch. The body had gone but there was still blood seeped into the soil to mark its place.

"Sarah?"
She turned and joined Harry on the other side of the ditch. The animal tracks led out of the ditch and continued on into the next paddock but this time they were accompanied by human footprints.
"That's new," said Sarah.
"Somebody else was following this trail," said Harry.
"Dr Rodney?" frowned Sarah. "He was following the trail towards the vet but he never reached the end of it. Somebody made sure of that."
"But if the trail ends at the vet? Where does it start?" said Harry.
"Only one way to find out," said Sarah. "Hopefully, it'll lead us to the killer as well."

The two of them set off with a renewed energy.
"Hurry up, Sarah, old girl," Harry called over his shoulder.
"I'm coming," she called back.
They followed the trail into the next paddock but it was just as meandering as before. They did five passes across the paddock before the trail finally led underneath the fence and into the next paddock.

It took them another twenty minutes to cross the next paddock. The trail was just approaching the next fence when Sarah grabbed Harry's sleeve.
"Harry," she hissed, pointing.
He frowned and crouched down. Beneath a bush by the edge of a fence was a small scattering of orange and black fur.
"Something certainly got into a fight," said Harry thoughtfully, gathering some of it in his hand.
"It's ginger and black," said Sarah. "A tabby cat. Liz's cat."

"This is close to where we found the injured cat last night," said Harry. "It had crawled to the road over there and we saw it as we were driving past."
"This is close to my Aunt's place," said Sarah. "Those creatures must have attacked the cat and then come up to Liz's cottage."
Harry left the trail to clamber onto the road. He gazed at the road in some puzzlement.
"Sarah, come and look at this," he said.

She joined him, tipping a rock out of her shoe. She stared hard at the road and saw nothing but bitumen. Harry rolled his eyes and pointed instead at the gravel that lined the roadside. She could clearly make out two sets of tyre marks.
"One of those is from our car when we stopped last night on the way to the party," explained Harry. "We pulled over to see to the cat, you can see there where we turned around and went back to the vet."
"But the second set of tyre tracks overlays yours," said Sarah. "Someone's been here more recently than you."

"Evan," said Harry. "He must have come back to where we found the cat and tried to follow the tracks back to the vet."
"But whose car did he use? His is back at the vet's," said Sarah.
Harry shrugged.
"So the tracks end up at my place but they start back near the vets?" said Sarah. "I think we need to go and take a closer look."

Liz and Brendon stood in the kitchen rolling out biscuit dough. Liz waved through the window as Rupert's car disappeared down the driveway.
"Do you really think the Colonel did it?" asked Brendon.
"I don't know but what's the motive?" said Liz. "That's the problem with all this. What's the motive?"
"Maybe Dr Rodney simply got into an argument with someone?"
"Maybe… and stop eating the mixture."

Brendon stopped picking at the dough and began to flatten it vigorously with the rolling pin.
"Not too thin," said Liz. "It'll break when you pick it up."
He squeezed and packed together the flattened dough and began again.
"I don't know how the break-in factors in on this, yet," said Brendon.
"Why does it have to? Co-incidence?" suggested Liz.
Brendon shook his head, "No. They're connected all right. I just don't know how."

Rather than follow the wandering trail all the way back, Sarah and Harry walked along the road back to where they'd started. It only took twenty minutes when the original trail had taken them an hour and a half. The vet surgery was still several hundred metres down the road.
"Here's where we found the trail," said Harry, pointing to the side of the road.
The strange prints led off into the paddock, accompanied by Harry and Sarah's footsteps from earlier.
"So we know where it goes," said Sarah. "But where did it come from?"

They followed the trail onwards. Sarah was not surprised to see it leading closer to the vets.
"Maybe those animals belong to Dr Rodney," she suggested. "He's a vet, he'd be interested in strange animals."
Harry snorted, "The Colonel and I helped him back all his belongings into that absurd little car of his for the drive out here. We would have noticed anything squirming."
"Are you sure?"
"Quite."

They approached the side of the vet surgery, on the opposite side from the house. The trail abruptly cut off, mid-print.
"What'd they do? Start flying?" said Harry.
"No, someone's tried to wipe away the trail," said Sarah, pointing.
The next few metres of sand had been disturbed recently and looked unusually flat. A broom rested against the wall of the building.
"Subtle," said Harry.
"Our killer probably wasn't expecting anybody else to come snooping around so soon," said Sarah. "Or they'd have erased more of the trail."

Harry walked onto the swept sand and examined the wall. Most of the wall was made of wood but in the very centre was a boarded up window at Harry's knee height.
"That's very low," said Harry, bending over to pick at the splintering boards.
"Probably leads to a cellar," said Sarah. "I hate cellars."
Something hissed at them from the other side of the boarded up window. Harry jumped backwards, nearly knocking Sarah over.
"I really hate cellars," said Sarah.

Harry looked at her, "Shall we go have a look, old girl?"
"We're not going to solve this mystery by standing around out here," said Sarah.
They walked around to the front of the vet surgery. Harry walked cautiously in the front door.
"Hello? Dr Casey?" he called.
"Rupert?" echoed Sarah.
There was no answer.

They moved through the waiting room with its comfortable chairs and the posters plastered to its walls. The posters had slogans like 'Is your pet protected from fleas' or 'Will you still love me when I'm older?' above pictures of kittens and puppies.
"Where do you think the cellar is?" said Harry, looking between the three doors that led out of the waiting room.
"I was here earlier," said Sarah. "That one leads to the back room and that one leads to Rupert's living space so… I say we try door number three."

Harry walked towards the door she'd pointed at, holding up a hand to stop her going first. She grimaced at him but said nothing.
"Do we really want to go down there, Harry?" she asked.
"We won't know until we're down there," he said, squaring his shoulders. "You don't have to come, old girl."
"What? And let you go down by yourself?" said Sarah. "Not a chance."

Harry opened the door to reveal a set of stairs that went down into darkness. He reached forward and groped along the wall until he found the light switch. He flicked it. Nothing happened.
"Typical," said Sarah, from over his shoulder.
He led the way down the staircase. The steps were sturdy, regular and easy to feel with their feet.
"Stay close to me, Sarah," he whispered. "Sarah?"

He turned around to see Sarah coming back down the stairs towards him. She slipped something long and round into his hand.
"Torch," she said.
"Good thinking, old girl," said Harry.
He flicked the torch on and shone it on the stairs in front of them. The torch beam revealed the spider web that Harry had nearly walked straight into. He wrinkled his nose.
"At least they're not evil Spiders," said Sarah from behind him. "Just regular ones."
"What?"
"Nothing."

He reached the cellar floor. He raised the torch to shine it around the room. The cellar walls were old and dusty but the floor had been swept recently. Most of the floor was taken up by animal cages stacked on top of each other. On the far wall was the boarded up window.

Harry walked forward, avoiding a tottering pile that reached over his head. He walked around the cages, shining the torch into them. They were empty.
"What was hissing?" asked Sarah. "Empty cages don't hiss."
Something hissed behind her and she jumped the rest of the way down the stairs.
"There!" she said to Harry, pointing. "Underneath the staircase."
Harry pivoted and shone the torch in the direction she was pointing. Four metal cages had been arranged in the recess beneath the staircase.

Three of the cages contained a small creature and the fourth showed signs of being broken. Two of them were sleeping, snuggled deep into the old blankets that lined their cages. A third was awake and blinking at the strangers. It was about the size of a dog but so fat it was nearly round. It rocked back on its squat hind legs and lifted a hand to grip the cage bars with stubby, clawed fingers. It reminded Sarah of a fat ginger cat that had belonged to her neighbours when she was young.

When nobody had moved for about a minute, the creature dropped back down onto all fours. No longer bothered by their presence, its beady little eyes kept closing and its portly little head started to droop. Sarah revised her opinion from fat cat to lazy toad. Then it yawned, its large mouth splitting open. The mouth seemed too big for its head, like the head was about to split in half and fall off. The light from Harry's torch glinted off each of the long, blue-tinged teeth that lined its jaw.
"Ouch," said Harry.
"Exactly," said Sarah. "It… doesn't look so dangerous now, though."

"They're not," said a voice.
Harry and Sarah spun around to see Rupert standing on the stairs behind them. He squinted as Harry shone his torch straight into his face.
"Not dangerous?" said Sarah. "What about Jasper? And Liz's cat?"
Rupert sighed and sat down on the step, "That was an accident. They got out… They get lonely, you see. They came looking for me. I should have stayed here with them instead of going to that stupid party."

"Accident or not," said Harry. "They ought to be put down."
Rupert looked up sharply, "You don't have a pet, do you Doctor Sullivan? People can get quite funny about their pets."
"Even if you love your pets, you're still responsible for them," said Sarah loudly.
The two men jumped as if they'd forgotten she was there. She walked forward to sit beside Rupert on the stair.

"Where did you find them?" she asked.
He smiled sadly at her, "Asteroid. Or rather it wasn't an asteroid. Some kind of alien lifeboat or escape pod. It landed in a paddock near where I was working with some cows. The alien in it was dying of his injuries. He spoke only once and it was to beg me to take care of his Fieves."
"Fieves?" said Harry.
"Yes," said Rupert, still talking to Sarah. "That's what he called them. Some secret military unit took away the dead alien and the escape pod but I hid the Fieves from them. I took them in, I took care of them."

"It was probably UNIT that took the escape pod," said Harry. "You should have given them the creatures."
Rupert snorted, "They were entrusted to my care and I have looked after them for more than six years!"
"There's no telling what trouble they could get up to," said Harry. "What if they'd attacked a child?"
The irate vet stood up to face Harry, his fists clenching. Harry interrupted the other man's angry glare by shining the torchlight in his face. Rupert shut his eyes but continued to face Harry regardless.

"They've never attacked anybody," hissed Rupert through clenched teeth.
"What about Evan?" said Harry.
"Rupert…" said Sarah, uncertain whether or not to rise from her place on the step.
"Dr Rodney? Oh yes, bloody Dr Rodney, who couldn't leave well enough alone…" said Rupert. "I tried to stop him from following that trail. He wouldn't listen to me. I tried to get him to see reason."
"And when he didn't?" said Harry.

Sarah stood up, "Harry…"
"I didn't mean to do it," said Rupert. "But he wouldn't listen to reason and I had no choice."
"You murdered him," said Harry.
"Yes."
"Just because of your mangy, stupid little animals."
"It's not their fault."
"They don't belong here. They don't belong on Earth. We'll have to call UNIT and get them to dispose of the little mongrels."

"No. I won't let you kill them," snapped Rupert.
The vet jumped forward, his fist slamming into Harry's face. The momentum knocked the two men to the ground.
"Stop it!" shouted Sarah.
They ignored her. Harry's torch went bouncing across the ground and knocked against the cages. The Fieves roused from their sleep and watched the fight with blinking eyes.

Liz opened the kitchen cupboard to pull out more flour. A fat little Fieve hissed at her as it awoke. She jumped backwards, grabbing Brendon by the arm and dragging him away. The Fieve blinked at them groggily and began to stretch its legs.
"What on Earth…" said Brendon.
"I don't know but I don't think its vegetarian," said Liz, steering Brendon towards the kitchen door.

The Fieve jumped down from the shelf where it had been sleeping and looked around the kitchen. It spotted Liz and Brendon and started waddling enthusiastically towards them. Liz and Brendon retreated to the hallway with the Fieve following.

Jasper came limping out of the living room, growling. His ears were flattened and his teeth were bared. The Fieve stopped in its tracks as it saw the dog. It stiffened and began to hiss. It snapped its large jaws with an audible crack. Jasper imposed himself between his humans and the intruder.
"Jasper, heel!" said Brendon.
Jasper ignored him and the hissing Fieve began to advance.

"Master, I am coming," called a monotonic voice.
K-9 came motoring into the room, nearly tripping up Liz. The Fieve spun to face the newcomer and Brendon lunged forward to grab Jasper's collar. Ignoring the bizarre appearance of the metal dog, Liz joined Brendon in dragging Jasper away from the Fieve.

The Fieve hissed a final time and launched itself at K-9. It barely got half-way through its leap before a red beam shot out of the end of K-9's nose, stunning it. The Fieve twisted in the air and landed at Liz's feet. She nudged it with her toe but it remained motionless. Brendon poked it with a finger.
"What is it?" asked Brendon.
"I don't know," said Liz.
She looked at K-9 and then back at Brendon.
"All right," she said, pointing at K-9. "What's that?"
"Well, he belongs to Sarah…"

Harry rolled on top of Rupert and began punching him. Sarah grabbed one of Harry's arms and tried to pull him off.
"Stop it!" she shrieked. "Stop it, right now!"
A surprised Harry paused mid-punch and allowed Sarah to drag him backwards. Rupert seized the opportunity and the torch.
"Harry, this is crazy," said Sarah, clutching his arm. "This is a matter for the police."

"No police," said Rupert, swinging the torch at Harry's head.
Torch and head collided with a sickening crack and Harry slid out of Sarah's grasp.
"Rupert!" said Sarah.
The vet ignored her and advanced on a stunned Harry as he lay on the ground.
"Rupert," warned Sarah. "I'll call the police!"

The vet paused and stepped away from Harry.
"Sarah, please," he said.
He stepped towards her and she stepped away.
"Sarah, I'm not going to hurt you. You've got to believe me…"
As he stepped forward again, she retreated across the room towards the cages.

"Like you didn't hurt Dr Rodney?" she asked.
"I told you, it was an accident," he said. "Please, Sarah. They're not dangerous. They just don't know their own strength sometimes."
"I know people go to strange lengths to protect their pets, Rupert," she said. "But, believe me, they'll be better off with UNIT and their scientists."
"Scientists? You mean they'll be poked and prodded for the rest of their lives?" said Rupert. "Look at them, Sarah. Do they deserve that?"

She looked over to the cages where the Fieves were watching the fight. They were starting to wake up, their heads twisting nimbly to peer first at Rupert and Sarah and then at Harry. They were all sitting on their hind legs, resting their weight on the cage fronts. They were flexing the claws on their stubby little fingers.
"I have connections at UNIT," said Sarah. "I can see to it that they're taken care of."
"Taken care of?" said Rupert. "Sarah, please, I know that any good journalist's first instinct is to tell everything about any secret they manage to ferret out. I know there's probably no bigger story for someone like you than aliens… but can't you consider the consequences of revealing this? Some things have to be kept secret."

She tilted her head on the side, looking at his expression.
"I keep more secrets that you can imagine, Rupert," she said quietly. "The existence of aliens is not new to me. I've known many aliens who I feared and… and one who is one of the closest friends I've ever had. But it doesn't change the fact that these aliens are dangerous. You can't keep them here."
His face fell, "Sarah."
She shrugged, "I'm sorry, Rupert."
"So am I."

He ran at her but she was expecting him. She twisted out of his way and darted behind the pile of cages. He grabbed her wrist but she was already throwing her weight against the cages. The pile swung forward and began to fall. He released her wrist to throw his hands above his head to protect himself. The weight of the cages knocked him to the ground.

Sarah stood back, trembling. Rupert was motionless under the pile of cages. She forced herself to look away and walk over to Harry. Harry rubbed the back of his head, ruefully.
"Did I miss anything?" he asked.
Sarah sat next to him on the ground, "Nothing but the usual. Bad guy dealt with."
She sighed and Harry frowned.
"What's wrong?" he asked.
"Nothing."

She slid her arms underneath Harry's armpits and helped him up. Harry winced and let her lead him up the staircase.
"We'll need to call UNIT," said Sarah thoughtfully. "And an ambulance for Rupert."
"Dead?" asked Harry.
"It's typical, you know," she said, ignoring the question.
"What?"
"I really liked him."

Harry and the Colonel sat on Sarah's couch as Brendon and Liz carried in afternoon tea.
"Oh, smells good, Liz," said Sarah, sniffing.
She leaned forward eagerly to snatch up a fresh scone. The Colonel picked up two and passed one to Harry.
"Don't they?" asked Liz. "But I didn't make these. I just made lunch."
"Store bought?" said the Colonel. "Unusual of you to cut corners, Miss Patterson."

Liz smiled as she placed a tray of herbal teas on the table, "Brendon made the scones."
Sarah paused and sniffed the scones again, "Are you sure?"
"I watched him make them," added Liz.
Brendon stuck his hands in his pockets grumpily, "Not game enough to eat something I made, Sarah?"
The Colonel sniffed the scone and Brendon looked offended.

Harry ate his scone in one bite and everyone turned to look at him. He chewed slowly, thoughtfully.
"Not quite up to Liz's standard," he decided. "But better than any packaged ones."
Brendon beamed and Sarah took a bite of her scone. The Colonel grinned at Harry's serious expression and ate his scone.

Liz settled into an armchair with her cup of tea, leaning down to scratch Jasper's ears.
"So," said Liz. "Does anybody want to tell me what really happened?"
Sarah and Harry exchanged looks. Brendon perched on a stool and watched with interest.
"Let's just say that there was a side to Rupert… Dr Casey, that none of us knew about," said Sarah.
"Hmm," said Liz sceptically. "A pity. Seemed like a nice man."
"Appearances can be deceptive," said the Colonel bluntly. "Obviously wasn't good enough to fool our Miss Smith."

Sarah smiled at the compliment, "Well, let's hope that you're good enough for our Harry."
The Colonel paused, "Pardon?"
"Oh please," said Sarah. "Two men living alone together for eight years who argue like an old married couple? Not to mention that you seemed to share the same bedroom. You expect me to believe that that's platonic?"
Harry smiled at her, "Wondered how long it'd take you."

Liz frowned, "You mean you're…"
"Gay," said Harry. "And quite happily so."
"That solves a few questions," said Liz. "Why on Earth didn't you say?"
The Colonel snorted, "Country towns aren't known for being the most open-minded of places. It's a pity, I rather liked Moreton Harwood."
"True," said Liz. "But I don't think anybody in this room cares."
"I don't think anyone outside this room has to know," said Sarah firmly.
The others in the room nodded.

"You won't object if we stay?" asked the Colonel carefully.
Sarah shook her head, "Course not. Friend of Harry's is a friend of mine. I will expect the two of you to be over here regularly. Especially when we need any heavy lifting done."
"Well, in that case. I've been thinking," said the Colonel.
Harry frowned, just as puzzled as everyone else.

"I've got all this money I've inherited and nothing to do," he explained. "You've got a market garden business with a very competent manager in Liz but, from what I hear, significant debts after the arrest of both the previous manager and the co-owner. Would you be interested in a new investor, by any chance?"
Liz paused, "Next year's crop should be a good one. All we need is to stay afloat until then."
"It's Aunt Lavinia's final decision," said Sarah. "But until she gets back, I see no problem with that."
"Oh good," said the Colonel. "I stick by my earlier statement. Plants are nice."
"Plants are nice," laughed Sarah and Liz together.

"Seems like everyone has some harmless secrets," continued the Colonel. "Trust the journalist to find them all out."
Sarah smiled, "Oh, I've got my fair share of secrets, Colonel. I intend to keep most of them to myself but if you're going to be living here permanently… there's one I should probably let everyone here know about. provided that you all keep quiet about it, of course…"
"You can count on us, Miss Smith," said the Colonel with a mock bow.
"Of course," said Liz.
Brendon and Harry exchanged amused looks and sipped their tea.
"You know how I said I only had one dog… well, I wasn't being entirely truthful...," began Sarah.

THE END