Chapter Thirteen

Simon and Alex reunited on the dance floor to the dulcet tones of Malcolm singing Charmless Man

"Oh, never before has a karaoke number been so apt," Alex sighed.

"No sign?" asked Simon.

Alex shook her head.

"I'm sorry," she said, "he's not here."

"Oi," Gene appeared crossly beside them, "where the bloody hell have you pair of DCI-need-to-talks been?"

"It's Robin, Gene," Alex began, "he's gone missing."

Gene barely registered her news. He had something to get off his chest.

"You left me playing gooseberry to Kite and what's-his-name. Even Metal Mickey over there took pity on me and bought me a drink!" he pointed to Kim, "she thought a scotch would cheer me up."

"It didn't?"

"It was only a bloody single," Gene sighed as Malcolm's song came to an end. "Anyway, thanks to you I had to go and amuse myself by singing three more songs. So now they're calling me Karaoke Hunt and I'm going to have to come up with thirty new putdowns to put them in their place."

"Yeah, well, while you've been exercising your vocal chords Robin's vanished," Simon said anxiously

"No he hasn't," Alex's eye was drawn to someone familiar sheepishly re-entering the club. She pointed in his direction and Simon's eyes turned to see the face he'd been desperate to locate.

"Robin," he cried.

Together, Simon and Alex ran towards him with a fairly bewildered and increasingly annoyed Gene in tow.

"He's probably been giving the Batmobile the once over," he said crossly.

Simon reached Robin and threw his arms around his neck. It was all he could do to stop himself crying with relief.

"Robin, where the hell did you go?" he cried, "I couldn't see you… I tried to find you as soon as it came on.."

He drew back a little and noticed Robin's face was as pale as falling snow.

"I'm sorry, Si," he said quietly, "I had to get out of here. I couldn't stand to hear that song."

Gene, who had missed Simon's explanation, frowned in confusion.

"Was my singing really that bad?" he asked.

"No… Well, yes, it was," Alex volunteered, "but that's not the song he meant."

Simon looked at Robin seriously.

"I was terrified you were going to do something stupid," he said, "where did you go?"

"I just… walked," Robin said quietly, "I didn't know where I was going so I just walked round until I found my way back."

"Are you alright?"

Robin nodded slowly and closed his eyes.

"I will be," he said.

"Can I get you a drink?" Alex asked quietly.

"He's probably part of the lemonade watch an' all," Gene commented.

Robin rarely drank, if ever. But after a day such as this one, especially the last half an hour, he was prepared to make an exception.

"Brandy," he said.

Simon looked at him in surprise.

"Are… are you sure?" he asked. He'd seen Robin drink on only three occasions in his life.

Robin nodded.

"Anything to get rid of this world," he said quietly.

"Drink won't get rid of it," Simon said quietly, "neither did my little blue and white pills. No matter how you try to block it out, you'll still be here tomorrow."

"If Batman wants a drink let's get 'im a drink," said Gene.

Alex almost passed out in shock.

"Are you offering to… get one in?" she asked.

Gene looked confused.

"I said 'lets'," he corrected, "you're paying for half."

Simon put an arm around Robin's shoulders as they began to follow Alex and Gene. For a few moments neither spoke, but finally Robin said something. The words left his mouth before he could stop them.

"Simon, something happened."

Simon froze and looked at him nervously.

"In what way… 'happened'?" he asked, "what did you do?"

Robin shook his head

"I didn't do anything," he said , "I met someone."

"Who?"

"I don't know," Robin shook his head, "It was… strange. I can't my finger on what it was. I saw just standing… watching… just trying to block things out. This man stood behind me… it sounds really dumb now I try to explain it…"

"No, go on," Simon urged.

Robin hesitated.

"He just hid in the shadows, smoking," he explained, "all he said was something about this being a good year for music."

Simon frowned.

"A bit weird," he said, "but not exactly a crime."

"Yeah, but after that he said he was a Mike and the Mechanics man," he looked pointedly at Simon, "he was here, Si. I don't know who he was, but he was here, and then he followed me."

"Why would anyone do that?" Simon frowned, "Why would anyone target you? And anyway, no one knows about that song. Uh, except Alex now. Sorry."

Robin shook his head.

"No, Simon, I'm serious. Something strange happened. I don't know who he was but it was too strange to be a random conversation. This man wanted me to know that he knew me."

"And you've no idea who it was?"

"He stayed in the shadows."

Simon drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly. He knew there were things and people to beware of in this world.

"Robin, do you think -" he began, but the arrival of Gene's hand with a double brandy cut him off.

"One double brandy," Gene announced, "that'll put hairs on your cape!"

Silently Robin took the glass and sipped it. The last time he'd tasted alcohol was shortly after Simon woke from his coma and his cries of Alex's name in the night prompted Robin to fear he was having an affair. Now here he was, in the same place Simon had left, facing so many of the same questions.

"Looks like the karaoke is over," sad Alex, watching as the equipment was whisked away and a DJ took the stage instead.

"And not a moment too soon," Simon remarked, worried about more drunken CID renditions of songs he used to like.

Silence fell amongst them for a few moments; a blessed chance gather their thoughts and observe some of the chaos going on around them. Simon looked nervously at Robin. He wasn't used to seeing him drink for a start and his tales of strange men talking about music had somehow unnerved him.

Breaking the silence came a particularly smooth DJ who was starting up for the rest of the night.

"Hey all you kids out there - I'll be here with you for the next two hours bringing you hit after hit!"

"If he plays anything by Celine Dion I'll be delivering hit after hit," said Gene.

The DJ adjusted his inappropriate shades and carried on.

"Starting us off tonight I've just received a request for a song dedicated to mister Simon Shoebury…"

Simon turned to Gene, his eyes flashing with annoyance.

"Don't tell me, you've requested In These Shoes by Kirsty MacColl?"

Gene shook his head, for once an innocent party.

"Nothing to do with me," he said as the DJ continued.

"Looks like you've got yourself an admirer tonight, Simon! The request says he's glad you're back where you belong… and here's the track he asked for, it's Take That with Back for Good!"

"What the hell is this?" frowned Simon, "some kind of joke?" His eyes scanned the club to see if he could work out who'd made the request. "Where's Malcolm? Did he ask for this?"

"The only thing Malcolm's up to requesting right now is an intimate evening with the toilet bowl," said Gene.

"Well, where's Susannah?"

"Over there by the pool table, trying to crawl into a pocket," said Gene.

Simon couldn't think who else would have requested a song for him, or why. While on its own the act seemed fairly innocuous alongside Robin's bizarre musical interloper it began to seem a little suspicious. He began to walk toward the DJ as Robin called after him,

"Si? Where are you going?"

"I'll be right back," Simon waved over his shoulder to protests from Robin who didn't want to be left on his own.

The DJ saw Simon coming through the crowd and gave him a cheesy grin.

"He-e-e-e-ey," he said smooooooothly, "d'you have a request?"

"Yeah, I need to know who asked you to play this," Simon told him.

The DJ hesitated.

"Who's that by?" he asked eventually, "Alanis Morissette?"

Simon rolled his eyes.

"This song," he tried again "I need to know who asked you to play it."

"Some guy."

"What guy?"

"I don't know what guy… the guy with the piece of paper with the message on and the record he wanted."

"Can I see it?"

"What?"

"The paper!"

"Oh, that…" the DJ scrambled around or a moment before turning up a large pile of pink post-its. He skimmed through them for a while before admitting, "oh bugger, these were last night's… Sorry, mate, I think I lost it."

Inwardly, Simon cursed. He set off back to Robin and a curious pair of DCIs.

"What's the beef?" asked Gene, "didn't he have Fall at your Feet?"

Simon shuddered. He couldn't put his finger on it but something didn't feel right. Ignoring Gene, he crossed to Robin and squeezed his hand.

"We're going," he said quietly.

Robin looked a little confused, still shaken from his own experience.

"What?"

"Finish your drink," he said quietly, "we're getting out of here. We'll go back to your flat."

"I don't even know where it is."

"I do. Come on."

Robin nervously chewed on his lip.

"What's the matter, Simon?" he asked quietly.

Simon took a deep breath.

"I don't know," he said honestly, "but something is. I don't feel safe in here any more. Not for either of us."

Robin recognised that look in Simon's eyes. It was a look that meant his instinct wasn't to be ignored. That was the very look that earned him the rank of DCI in the first place.

"OK," said Robin. He downed the rest of his brandy and got to his feet, weaving a little and wondering why Gene had turned into five Genes who were all rotating around the room. The night had taken so many turns that he wasn't completely sure the alcohol was to blame for that. Despite himself, he still hoped that if he went home and fell asleep he'd wake up tomorrow back in his own time, his own bed, in his own flat, with his own life there to lead.

It was a wish he had a dire feeling would not come true.