A/N: Hey, hope everyone out there had a good Easter! Enjoy the lastest in
developments...
*
Chapter 6
Kim rubbed the rim of her mug with her fore-finger, enjoying the warmth of the hot chocolate. The last twenty-four hours had been murder. Kim was surprised by the fact that it was only yesterday when Penfold had been hurt.
At that moment, the emergency signal sounded throughout the pillarbox. She gasped and jumped. Regaining her composure, she set her mug down and then ran through to the lounge. She pressed a button on the wall and immediately, a tracking screen pooped up. A red dot marked 'DM' showed that the mouse was travelling AWAY from the pillarbox, and NOT in the direction of the hospital. Further more, the vehicle he was travelling in wasn't the Mark III!
"Oh, no", mouthed Kim. Then she quickly ran from the room, though the corridor and banged on Woodruff's door. No matter how much he must dislike DM right now, Kim was sure he would help.
There was no reply. Kim knocked again, and then, getting desperate, opened the door.
"Wood - " she started. Her voice trailed off. Woodruff wasn't in the room - but the window was open and the curtains were blowing in the evening breeze.
Kim blinked twice. Then she ran to the window and called out.
"Woodruff? Where are you?"
There was no reply. Quickly, Kim went back to the lounge, and decided the only option was to call Colonel K.
"Colonel K from Kim, over".
"Kim? This is Colonel K", came the reply. "What's the problem?"
Kim explained the situation. "DM went to see Penfold a while ago. Then the emergency signal went off. The tracking system shows that DM is headed in a direction away from the hospital and he's not in the Mark III. Woodruff was here, but he's gone missing too".
The Colonel frowned. "Maybe you'd better go out in the Mark III, see if you can find them".
"I'll do that", said Kim. Then she remembered something, and groaned. "Oh, but sir. DM took the Mark III out with him. I'm not sure where it is".
"You can look it up on the system", he advised her. "Just switch back to the tracking system and type it in".
Kim nodded and then switched back to the tracking system. She used the built-in keyboard to type in 'Mark III'. She had an immediate result.
"The Mark III's parked right outside", she told the Colonel, switching back to him. "What's going on?"
"I'm not sure, old girl", said the Colonel. "But you had better take the lift and get down there".
"Yes sir", said Kim. "Over and out".
"Over and out. Good luck", the Colonel replied.
Kim sat on the couch. It suddenly seemed to slip away under her and Kim suddenly felt terribly vulnerable and self-conscious, going down by herself. She normally had Penfold or DM to cling onto, but tonight she had to make do with squeezing the edge of the seat.
When she arrived in the garage, Kim had to press a button fixed to the wall to get the panel to open. Stepping outside, she spotted the Mark III neatly parked right next to the wall.
"DM?" she called. As she would have expected, there was no reply.
Kim went over to the Mark III and cautiously climbed in. She looked at the steering wheel and the tracking system. Then with a sigh, she put on her seatbelt and strapped it up tight. Then she pressed a button and immediately the engine roared to life. The press of a second button brought up a tracking system. Kim looked at it and frowned. DM was still getting further away. Kim quickly put her foot down and the Mark III shot off into the clouds.
*
The blindfold was removed from DM's face. He blinked a couple of times and was startled to see a hawk standing in front of him.
"W-w-welcome, Danger M-m-mouse", said a voice. DM looked up quickly, to see that he was in a dark chamber. Furthermore, Count Duckula was standing in front of him, with a tiger and a stoat whom DM recognised as Doctor Frankenstoat.
"Count Duckula! Doctor Frankenstoat!" he shouted. "Where's Woodruff?"
"Someone mention my name?" said a groggy voice. DM looked around and saw Woodruff, tied to a chair against the wall. DM suddenly realised that his own arms and legs were bound, too. He sighed. They were in trouble.
"Woodruff? Are you alright?" asked DM, concerned.
"Yeah - fine. Did I knock him out?"
"Who?" asked DM, confused.
"The guy who went for me back in Baker Street. Did I - where are we?" Woodruff had only just caught sight of their surroundings.
DM turned back to Duckula and raised an eyebrow.
"Why are we here, Duckula?" he asked coolly.
"To s-s-stop you", said Duckula.
"Stop me from what?" asked DM.
"Wait a minute", interrupted Woodruff. "Duckula? COUNT Duckula? As in, I want to be a TV star?"
Duckula fixed his gaze on Woodruff and his eyes narrowed.
"Watch your t-t-tone, collie", he said.
"You're not threatening me, are you?" Woodruff's voice was dangerously low.
"I d-d-don't see how YOU'RE in any p-p-position to threaten ME", said Duckula. He turned to the hawk.
"Helen?"
"Sir?"
"Show the c-c-collie what I m-m-mean by THREAT".
The hawk smirked. Woodruff cringed and DM's mouth became taut as she came forwards, walked past DM and over to Woodruff's chair.
"Don't you dare", growled DM, as Helen stood over Woodruff.
"Come any closer", Woodruff snarled. "And I swear - "
Helen suddenly swooped down, took Woodruff's head firmly between her wings and turned it to the side. The next second, Woodruff gave a gasp of pain and as Helen pulled her head back, she wiped the red smear from her beak and a small drop of blood was oozing from Woodruff's cheek. The hawk smiled.
"If I were you, I'd keep your opinions to yourself", she said. Then she went back to stand by Duckula. DM gave them all angry looks as Duckula turned his head back to look at him.
"As I w-w-was saying, before I was s-s-so rudely interrupted", said Duckula. "In c-c-case you haven't g-g-guessed it, I am the one behind the h- h-hate potion!"
"I might have known, you fiend!" snapped DM.
"Always wanted to m-m-make a lasting impression", smirked Duckula.
"Why, though? Why ruin a whole country's happiness - and Valentine's Day? What have you got against it?"
Duckula's eyes narrowed and he turned away. He felt annoyed that DM had asked that question - what business was it of his anyway?
"F-f-figure it out", he said in a cold tone.
Danger Mouse narrowed his own eyes. He decided not to pursue the matter. For some odd reason, he felt compelled to not pressure the vampire duck. Despite everything he'd done...
"Where have you sprung from, Frankenstoat?" he asked the Professor. "The last time I saw you was in Undergargle!" (A/N: The episode 'Doctor Frankenstoat meets Count Duckula').
"I changed my mind", croaked the stoat. "It's much better to have a team behind you. Besides, I would have been a fool to miss out on these plans".
"You're already - ow! - a fool", snapped Woodruff from behind DM. DM turned around and saw salty tears running down Woodruff's cheeks. It was obvious by the look on Woodruff's face that he was ashamed of the fact that he was silently weeping. DM gave the collie a sympathetic smile, knowing Woodruff must hurt both mentally and physically.
"With my hate p-p-potion", spat Duckula. "I c-c-can hurt people all over the w-w-world. And YOU won't b-b-be there to mess it up! COME!" Duckula gestured his associates out of the chamber. Before he left himself, Duckula turned his head to look at DM.
"If I w-w-were you", he said coolly. "I would try and f-f-figure a way out. In a few hours, I'm h-h-having two thousand bottles of hate potion smuggled into America. They won't stand a ch-ch-chance!"
DM's jaw tightened and Woodruff looked alarmed as Duckula turned and with a swish of his cloak, left the room, closing the door behind him. DM's heart sank as he heard a key turn and realised that they were locked in.
There was a stunned silence, broken by Woodruff's voice.
"I'd say bad childhood, wouldn't you?" said the collie in a neutral voice.
DM turned his head to look at him.
"Seems that way", he said.
"You should've asked him".
"I didn't want to", replied DM.
"You might have found his proper motive".
"He wants to destroy Valentine's Day. Duckula's background is his business".
Woodruff narrowed his eyes. DM blinked.
"What?" he asked.
"Don't tell me you're feeling sorry for him, DM - "
"I'm not", said DM. "It's just there doesn't seem any point questioning Duckula about his past when we can already pretty much guess his motive. We KNOW what he's planning and we KNOW where he's striking. Now, we just need to THINK of a way to stop it".
Woodruff fell silent. There was an awkward pause.
"That guy's disturbed, isn't he?" said Woodruff after a minute.
"Don't I know it", mused DM.
"How long have you been fighting him?" asked Woodruff in an attempt to make conversation.
"I'm not sure - a year, at most", said DM. What Woodruff said next came completely unexpected to the agent.
"Feels long, doesn't it?" said the collie.
DM turned to him, surprised. "Why - yes. How - how did you know that?"
"I've had experience. My parents weren't looking eye-to-eye for an entire year before they divorced".
"I'm sorry about that", said DM. "That must have been upsetting for you".
"It was. Believe me, it was".
"But - why are you telling me this?" asked DM.
Woodruff seemed to come out of some kind of trance: he blinked and looked a bit embarrassed.
"I - I don't know", he said. He turned his head away.
DM watched the back of the collie's head thoughtfully.
"You weren't expecting something like this, were you?" he asked gently.
Woodruff shook his head. "No".
"Listne", said DM. "I know I'm not your favourite person right now, but we need to work together to get out of this. Help me to help you, alright?"
"How are we going to do that?" snapped Woodruff. "We're tied up and we're locked in".
"I know that", said DM firmly.
"So how do you propose we - AH! - escape?" Woodruff winced as his head gave another painful twinge.
"I don't know. But we'll think of something", replied DM.
Woodruff sighed, and gave a groan. He tilted his head back against the wall, eyes closed. DM watched him with some concern.
"Dad..." the collie mumbled suddenly.
DM blinked at him. "Pardon?"
Woodruff blinked back. "W-what?"
"You just - said something about your Dad".
"No, I didn't", said Woodruff, with a defensive edge to his voice.
"Yes, you did".
"NO, I DIDN'T!"
"Woodruff, I assure you, you did! Is something wrong?" asked DM, before the collie could deny it again.
"No. Nothing", said Woodruff.
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah. Everything's fine. Why would you care, anyway?"
DM stared at him. "Of course I care! We ALL care!"
"Funny way of showing it".
"Woodruff, let's not start this again", said DM. "You've already been upset enough tonight, and now we've got a lot more than we bargained for".
"Oh! So now you're blaming me!" snapped Woodruff. "Well, let me tell you something, you moron - if you were half the agent everyone says you are, you would have told me that you and Kim were dating!"
"It's not like that - " began DM. But Woodruff was on a roll.
"I helped you defeat Crumhorn", he snapped. "I helped put him in jail. And I came back because I thought we could be proper friends!"
"We ARE, Woodruff", said DM firmly.
"Ha! Some friend!" cried the collie. "Do friends stab each other in the back?"
"That has nothing to do with what we're discussing! I didn't stab you in the back -AND WHY ARE YOU SO ANGRY?!" yelled DM, his patience snapping.
"Well, you can't blame me; these last few months have been murder, and it's all thanks to my Dad!"
Woodruff gasped and bit his lip after saying those words. DM narrowed his eyes at him.
"Woodruff...?"
"Shut up", snapped the collie.
"Woodruff? What has your Dad done?"
"Nothing. We just - haven't spoken for while", said Woodruff. He shrugged. "Nothing important".
"What do you mean? He's your FATHER!" cried DM.
"Could've fooled me", said Woodruff. His face was now filled with a different sort of anger as he turned to look at the agent, his resentment towards the agent forgotten.
"I hate him, DM. He's ruined everything".
DM just stared back at him, lost for words.
*
Kim was confused. DM had left the tracking map completely. Kim was headed in the direction he had gone, but how did she know where to go when he was no longer on the tracker? She decided to just keep going, and see if she could shed some light on the mystery.
At that moment, something new appeared on the screen. Kim looked up expectantly and saw a blue dot on the screen. she frowned and leaned closer. Blue normally meant 'Trouble'.
The dot was situated at a beach with a pier. Kim's eyes narrowed curiously. Trouble at the beach?
Well, she was an assistant. It was her job to check out suspicious activities. Kim looked off into the distant sky.
"Sorry, DM", she murmured. Then she turned the Mark III around and set off for the opposite direction.
*
"It was a week after testifying against Crumhorn". Woodruff's voice was dull. "Dad started acting strange and cold towards me. It was as if he was ashamed of me for being beaten. He had introduced me to the gym, but I think he wanted me to become a wrestler. I explained I just wanted to learn how to defend myself - and mostly, wrestling was for releasing nervous tension and for enjoyment.
"But Dad wouldn't have it. He kept telling me I would make a great wrestler, and he told me that it was what I wanted. He wouldn't listen to me. He kept shutting my side out".
DM was listening to the collie's story intently. Woodruff was avoiding the agent's gaze; he was staring straight ahead at the locked door.
"Anyway, Dad started pressurizing me more and more. He kept telling me to go to our local gym - every waking moment - more time than I wanted to spend there".
"Is that all?" asked DM. "You can't hate him for a little thing like that. He's accepted it now, hasn't he?"
"You haven't heard the half of it", said Woodruff quietly.
"What do you mean?"
"It - it was - Dad snapped", said Woodruff. "Just after Christmas. Called me pathetic for letting Crumhorn get to me. Then the agency tracked me down, they offered me a position. Dad got angry, we had a blazing row, and I walked out".
DM gazed thoughtfully at him for a moment. Then a scraping noise was heard and Woodruff jumped. He looked round to see DM, struggling back and forth with his chair, trying to move closer to him. After several minutes of struggling, DM managed to situate himself so that he was right in front of Woodruff. Woodruff didn't meet DM's eyes, instead looking awkwardly at the ground.
"You can tell me if you want". DM's voice was gentle and understanding. "I'm not forcing you to reveal anything".
"No - I guess not".
Woodruff was biting his lip and fidgeting. Still he did not look up at DM, preferring to look at the floor. His shoulders were shaking. DM looked at him, his concern for his friend growing.
"It's alright", he whispered. "Don't panic".
"I'm not panicking". Woodruff's voice lacked emotion, but his voice was shaking. DM wished his hands weren't tied behind his back so he could offer the collie a bit of physical comfort.
"You look like you're going to fall apart", he told Woodruff.
"Pathetic, isn't it?" said Woodruff. His hand was over his mouth in a fist so DM could hardly hear him.
"No, it's not", said DM firmly. "Woodruff - LOOK AT ME".
The collie rose his head shakily to meet DM's eye. He suddenly felt the mouse's gaze to burn right through him. He wanted to look away, but forced himself to look back at the mouse's amber stare.
"You are NOT pathetic", said DM. "I don't know what gave your father that idea, but it was cruel. But there's no use dwelling on it now. We need to look forward. Don't hate your father. Is there any reason why you SHOULD hate him?"
Woodruff was silent.
"Alright", Danger Mouse continued. "So try not to resent him so. Now, we need to figure a way out of here".
Woodruff didn't reply...not for the moment.
"Hmm..." mused DM, looking around the room. "I wonder if we could - "
"They're getting married", suddenly blurted out Woodruff.
DM jumped and looked at him. "Pardon me? Who?"
"Dad...and Freya".
"Freya...who's Freya?"
"His fiancee", said Woodruff. "They're - they're getting married in two months time - and I don't know what to do!"
"Well, it's certainly good news for your father", said DM carefully. "But - having a stepmother..."
"Is bad news", finished Woodruff.
"How do you know that?"
"I just know", said Woodruff, his voice barely more than a whisper. "I - I've never met her...but...I can't take it in!"
"When did your father tell you he was getting married?" asked DM.
"In November, when I went home".
"What's so bad about it?" asked DM. "It's a big change, yes, but why not be happy for them?"
"What if it's bad?" asked Woodruff. "Freya - she has a daughter of her own - and I've never met her!"
"You shouldn't judge this situation before it's happened", said DM sympathetically. "When is the wedding?"
"Some time in April. Not that it matters", said Woodruff snappishly. "I'm not going".
"WHAT?!" cried DM.
"DM, do you know what this means?" snapped Woodruff. "This means that my parents' marriage is officially OVER!"
"But - it was over ages ago", said DM, not understanding.
"NO, IT WASN'T!" cried Woodruff suddenly. "There was still a chance - but now it's gone! And it's never coming back!"
"Woodruff...calm down", said DM, alarmed.
Woodruff took a few deep gulps of air, and then bowed his head.
"You know something?" he gasped. "I - even when Mum married Matt, I still thought she could go back to Dad. I kept praying that she would realise her mistake and...we could be a family again. Stupid, isn't it?'
"No", said DM gently. "But, you have to understand", he said in a firmer voice. "You have to try and see it from your parents' point of view. If they feel they don't love each other, then let them go back to their own lives!"
Woodruff closed his eyes in pain and leaned his head against the wall.
"You know I'm right", said DM. "I hate seeing you tearing yourself apart like this".
"I've got no other choice. Is it - is it ME?" asked Woodruff. "I - I keep thinking - did I do something wrong? I felt like I was fighting against my parents – I felt they hated me".
"You've done nothing wrong", said DM. "Don't let anyone make you think that way. You're just you, and that's the most valuble thing we all like about you. You're our FRIEND. We aren't going to leave you alone. You have our support all through everything".
"I like you guys too", said Woodruff. "And Kim..." He blushed and turned away.
Ah. Now was the time for the truth, thought DM. He gave the collie a chance to collect his bearings, and then decided to question him.
"Why do you do this to yourself?" he asked.
Woodruff looked around at him.
"What do you mean?"
"Why did you attack me? Why do you tear yourself up over Kim?"
Woodruff blinked and then went pink. "No - no reason".
"Do you love her?" DM wanted to know.
Woodruff's face immediately had 'Alert!' written all over it.
"Yeah - I guess".
DM raised an eyebrow.
"Look, I don't - I don't know!" cried Woodruff. "How am I supposed to know?"
"People know in different ways, Woodruff", said DM. "You can't choose who you fall in love with".
"I - I know - but - I - chose Kim", stuttered Woodruff.
DM bit his lip.
"Woodruff, sssh..." he said softly, seeing the collie's face. He leaned forward in his seat and looked directly into Woodruff's eyes.
"Stay calm", he said. "It's alright".
Woodruff took a few more gulps of air.
"You're really torturing yourself", frowned DM. "You're trying to CONVINCE yourself, Woodruff. Don't. Kim's the first female in your life - I understand you feeling something for her. She truly is an amazing woman".
"Yeah - she is", grinned Woodruff. DM smiled at the brightness shining through on the collie's face.
"So answer me something, DM", suddenly said Woodruff, the smile fading. "Why do I keep thinking of her as a friend, and not a lover?"
DM narrowed his eyes. So that was the case. He took a deep breath. He hated to do this, but he had to.
"Because she's not the right woman for you", he said.
Tears appeared in Woodruff's eyes, and he bowed his head again. A single tear dripped down his face and landed on the hard ground.
"Oh, Woodruff", said DM, feeling very guilty. "I'm sorry".
"Why?" sobbed Woodruff. "Why do you get on so well with her?"
"I don't know". DM shook his head. "It's just - something's there". He was really shocked to see Woodruff crying. It had just never sounded like something the collie did.
Woodruff felt very ashamed of himself for crying in front of the agent. "Sorry", he apologised. "I promised myself I'd never cry again".
"I've been in tears lately", said DM. "It's nothing to be ashamed of".
"You? Cry?" asked Woodruff in surprise. "Never!"
They both laughed shakily.
"It's alright to feel scared", said DM. "You don't always have to be brave. Everyone gets frightened - even me".
"Danger Mouse, you are full of surprises".
"Why not?"
Woodruff smiled. "I'm sorry. For everything", he sighed.
DM smiled back. "We'll forget it. I don't even know what you're talking about!"
Woodruff chuckled. "OK", he said, more cheerfully, as he looked around the room. "How do we get out of here?"
"That's a good question", said DM thoughtfully. Then a lightbulb seemed to shine above his head. "I got it!" he cried. "Woodruff, listen. I'm going to scrape the chair around, and when I do, I want you to bite through my ropes".
Woodruff blinked, and then sighed. "Well, what have I got to loose?"
"America's happiness, if we don't hurry", retorted DM.
"OK, then. We'll give it a try".
DM tried his best to move the chair again by using the force of his body. It was very difficult, because he had to go slowly to prevent falling over. Finally...
"How's this?" DM asked the collie, as his back faced Woodruff. The collie saw that the ropes had been tied around DM's hands, and then around the rungs of the chair.
"Yeah, that's good. Stay still".
"You don't have to tell me twice", said DM. It had occurred to him that if Woodruff missed and accidentally slit his wrists, the consequences would be very serious.
"I'll be careful", said Woodruff, as though he could read the agent's thoughts. Very gingerly, he leaned forward - and the chair leaned forward with him. Unfortunately, it went too far and Woodruff's nose banged into the rungs. He winced in pain.
"Woodruff!" cried DM, looking round. "Are you alright?"
"Yeah...I THINK I can still..." Woodruff started to bite one of the ropes tying DM's hands to the chair. He gnarled at it for two minutes before it came loose and DM was able to give it a slight pull.
"Alright, now the other one". Woodruff turned his head to the other rope and bit through that too. It came free after a couple of minutes. DM's hands were still tied behind his back, but he could now move them more freely as they weren't tied to the chair.
At that moment, Woodruff's chair slipped and he fell on his side. DM heard him curse.
"Are you OK?" he asked.
"Yeah...but now what do we do?"
DM thought for a minute, before getting another idea. "Can you reach my legs?" he asked.
"Yeah...I think so".
"Cut them free. Then I can stand up, you can bite through the ropes on my hands and then I'll set you free".
"OK". Woodruff moved around, getting a bit closer to DM's feet.
"Hurry, Woodruff", said DM. "America needs us!"
*
Kim landed the Mark III in the beach car-park and jumped out. There was no place on the beach were she could park it, and the tide was probably coming in at this hour.
Kim frowned and looked around. Her gaze landed on the gate that was usually supposed to be locked to stop people coming in. It stood open, and a broken chain lay on the ground.
There were steps leading up over the sand-hill, built in with concrete walls either side of them. Kim climbed them, curiousity growing and when she reached the top, she looked down at the beach below her. She frowned even more.
Way out to the sea, she could see a ship's dim light. A small speed-boat was driving away, back to the shore. On the pier, there were crates upon crates of bottles. Kim couldn't see what they were, but had a sneaking suspicion that this meant trouble.
At that moment, another car came into the car-park. Kim turned, and gasped. She ducked low on the steps as two figures climbed out of the car.
"This is it?" Kim heard a male voice say. "This is the smuggler's point?"
"Jack, keep your voice down!" hissed the other, a female. "Do you want to get us caught?"
"Alright, Helen, cool it!" cried the tiger.
The two figures came closer, and as they got nearer, Kim could make them out - an anthro hawk and an anthro tiger. She looked fervishly around, took a chance and stepped around the concrete wall. She lay low as she heard the hawk and tiger climb the steps, trying not to breathe as their shadows passed over her. She gave a sigh of relief as she heard their footsteps walk down the steps leading down to the bottom.
Kim crawled to the top of the sand-hill and peeked over. She saw the hawk and tiger being greeted by a Beagle on the beach, and strained her ears to hear what they were saying.
"Is this it?" asked Helen.
"Yeah", replied the Beagle. "For now".
"This is crazy", said Jack. "Duckula's off his nut!"
"I wonder what he'd do if he heard you saying that", said the Beagle. Up in her hiding-place, Kim shivered at the thought.
"So", said Helen. "The ship out there - it'll take all the potion over?"
"Yes", said the Beagle. "Leon and Alex are taking it on the ship. Other henchmen were sent over to America last night. They should be there by the time the potion comes through. If not, Alex and Leon will anchor out at sea and wait for them".
"Right".
Kim's eyes grew wide. Now it was clearer - they were going to smuggle something over to the USA! The question was, what?
Kim's question was answered in the next instinct.
"I still don't see why Duckula can't wait a while before smuggling the hate potion over", said Jack. "I should be in bed right now!"
Kim had all the information she needed. She planned to turn away, go back to the Mark III, alert HQ and they, in turn, would alert their agents in the US. But then Helen brought something else to the light.
"Hey, we've kidnapped Danger Mouse and that Border Collie. The Count will be pleased with us when this job's over".
"I guess so", said Jack, in a slightly sulky voice.
Kim gasped. So Danger Mouse had been captured, and so had Woodruff! Kim didn't know how these two anthros had done it, but she knew she had to help DM and Woodruff.
"We'd better get back. We'll give Duckula your report and tell him everything's going smoothly", said Helen. "C'mon, Jack!" she said to the tiger. "Let's go back to the castel".
Kim's hopes rose. She could follow them in the Mark III! Quickly, she ran back down the sand-hill and ran to the other end of the carpark, where she had left the Mark III - thankfully, Jack and Helen had not seen it. She jumped inside and started the motors on a quiet hum as Jack and Helen came down. She watched them get into their car, and the next minute, the car started up and left the car-park. Kim quickly flew the Mark III into the air. It hovered for a second, and then flew off after the car.
*
Chapter 6
Kim rubbed the rim of her mug with her fore-finger, enjoying the warmth of the hot chocolate. The last twenty-four hours had been murder. Kim was surprised by the fact that it was only yesterday when Penfold had been hurt.
At that moment, the emergency signal sounded throughout the pillarbox. She gasped and jumped. Regaining her composure, she set her mug down and then ran through to the lounge. She pressed a button on the wall and immediately, a tracking screen pooped up. A red dot marked 'DM' showed that the mouse was travelling AWAY from the pillarbox, and NOT in the direction of the hospital. Further more, the vehicle he was travelling in wasn't the Mark III!
"Oh, no", mouthed Kim. Then she quickly ran from the room, though the corridor and banged on Woodruff's door. No matter how much he must dislike DM right now, Kim was sure he would help.
There was no reply. Kim knocked again, and then, getting desperate, opened the door.
"Wood - " she started. Her voice trailed off. Woodruff wasn't in the room - but the window was open and the curtains were blowing in the evening breeze.
Kim blinked twice. Then she ran to the window and called out.
"Woodruff? Where are you?"
There was no reply. Quickly, Kim went back to the lounge, and decided the only option was to call Colonel K.
"Colonel K from Kim, over".
"Kim? This is Colonel K", came the reply. "What's the problem?"
Kim explained the situation. "DM went to see Penfold a while ago. Then the emergency signal went off. The tracking system shows that DM is headed in a direction away from the hospital and he's not in the Mark III. Woodruff was here, but he's gone missing too".
The Colonel frowned. "Maybe you'd better go out in the Mark III, see if you can find them".
"I'll do that", said Kim. Then she remembered something, and groaned. "Oh, but sir. DM took the Mark III out with him. I'm not sure where it is".
"You can look it up on the system", he advised her. "Just switch back to the tracking system and type it in".
Kim nodded and then switched back to the tracking system. She used the built-in keyboard to type in 'Mark III'. She had an immediate result.
"The Mark III's parked right outside", she told the Colonel, switching back to him. "What's going on?"
"I'm not sure, old girl", said the Colonel. "But you had better take the lift and get down there".
"Yes sir", said Kim. "Over and out".
"Over and out. Good luck", the Colonel replied.
Kim sat on the couch. It suddenly seemed to slip away under her and Kim suddenly felt terribly vulnerable and self-conscious, going down by herself. She normally had Penfold or DM to cling onto, but tonight she had to make do with squeezing the edge of the seat.
When she arrived in the garage, Kim had to press a button fixed to the wall to get the panel to open. Stepping outside, she spotted the Mark III neatly parked right next to the wall.
"DM?" she called. As she would have expected, there was no reply.
Kim went over to the Mark III and cautiously climbed in. She looked at the steering wheel and the tracking system. Then with a sigh, she put on her seatbelt and strapped it up tight. Then she pressed a button and immediately the engine roared to life. The press of a second button brought up a tracking system. Kim looked at it and frowned. DM was still getting further away. Kim quickly put her foot down and the Mark III shot off into the clouds.
*
The blindfold was removed from DM's face. He blinked a couple of times and was startled to see a hawk standing in front of him.
"W-w-welcome, Danger M-m-mouse", said a voice. DM looked up quickly, to see that he was in a dark chamber. Furthermore, Count Duckula was standing in front of him, with a tiger and a stoat whom DM recognised as Doctor Frankenstoat.
"Count Duckula! Doctor Frankenstoat!" he shouted. "Where's Woodruff?"
"Someone mention my name?" said a groggy voice. DM looked around and saw Woodruff, tied to a chair against the wall. DM suddenly realised that his own arms and legs were bound, too. He sighed. They were in trouble.
"Woodruff? Are you alright?" asked DM, concerned.
"Yeah - fine. Did I knock him out?"
"Who?" asked DM, confused.
"The guy who went for me back in Baker Street. Did I - where are we?" Woodruff had only just caught sight of their surroundings.
DM turned back to Duckula and raised an eyebrow.
"Why are we here, Duckula?" he asked coolly.
"To s-s-stop you", said Duckula.
"Stop me from what?" asked DM.
"Wait a minute", interrupted Woodruff. "Duckula? COUNT Duckula? As in, I want to be a TV star?"
Duckula fixed his gaze on Woodruff and his eyes narrowed.
"Watch your t-t-tone, collie", he said.
"You're not threatening me, are you?" Woodruff's voice was dangerously low.
"I d-d-don't see how YOU'RE in any p-p-position to threaten ME", said Duckula. He turned to the hawk.
"Helen?"
"Sir?"
"Show the c-c-collie what I m-m-mean by THREAT".
The hawk smirked. Woodruff cringed and DM's mouth became taut as she came forwards, walked past DM and over to Woodruff's chair.
"Don't you dare", growled DM, as Helen stood over Woodruff.
"Come any closer", Woodruff snarled. "And I swear - "
Helen suddenly swooped down, took Woodruff's head firmly between her wings and turned it to the side. The next second, Woodruff gave a gasp of pain and as Helen pulled her head back, she wiped the red smear from her beak and a small drop of blood was oozing from Woodruff's cheek. The hawk smiled.
"If I were you, I'd keep your opinions to yourself", she said. Then she went back to stand by Duckula. DM gave them all angry looks as Duckula turned his head back to look at him.
"As I w-w-was saying, before I was s-s-so rudely interrupted", said Duckula. "In c-c-case you haven't g-g-guessed it, I am the one behind the h- h-hate potion!"
"I might have known, you fiend!" snapped DM.
"Always wanted to m-m-make a lasting impression", smirked Duckula.
"Why, though? Why ruin a whole country's happiness - and Valentine's Day? What have you got against it?"
Duckula's eyes narrowed and he turned away. He felt annoyed that DM had asked that question - what business was it of his anyway?
"F-f-figure it out", he said in a cold tone.
Danger Mouse narrowed his own eyes. He decided not to pursue the matter. For some odd reason, he felt compelled to not pressure the vampire duck. Despite everything he'd done...
"Where have you sprung from, Frankenstoat?" he asked the Professor. "The last time I saw you was in Undergargle!" (A/N: The episode 'Doctor Frankenstoat meets Count Duckula').
"I changed my mind", croaked the stoat. "It's much better to have a team behind you. Besides, I would have been a fool to miss out on these plans".
"You're already - ow! - a fool", snapped Woodruff from behind DM. DM turned around and saw salty tears running down Woodruff's cheeks. It was obvious by the look on Woodruff's face that he was ashamed of the fact that he was silently weeping. DM gave the collie a sympathetic smile, knowing Woodruff must hurt both mentally and physically.
"With my hate p-p-potion", spat Duckula. "I c-c-can hurt people all over the w-w-world. And YOU won't b-b-be there to mess it up! COME!" Duckula gestured his associates out of the chamber. Before he left himself, Duckula turned his head to look at DM.
"If I w-w-were you", he said coolly. "I would try and f-f-figure a way out. In a few hours, I'm h-h-having two thousand bottles of hate potion smuggled into America. They won't stand a ch-ch-chance!"
DM's jaw tightened and Woodruff looked alarmed as Duckula turned and with a swish of his cloak, left the room, closing the door behind him. DM's heart sank as he heard a key turn and realised that they were locked in.
There was a stunned silence, broken by Woodruff's voice.
"I'd say bad childhood, wouldn't you?" said the collie in a neutral voice.
DM turned his head to look at him.
"Seems that way", he said.
"You should've asked him".
"I didn't want to", replied DM.
"You might have found his proper motive".
"He wants to destroy Valentine's Day. Duckula's background is his business".
Woodruff narrowed his eyes. DM blinked.
"What?" he asked.
"Don't tell me you're feeling sorry for him, DM - "
"I'm not", said DM. "It's just there doesn't seem any point questioning Duckula about his past when we can already pretty much guess his motive. We KNOW what he's planning and we KNOW where he's striking. Now, we just need to THINK of a way to stop it".
Woodruff fell silent. There was an awkward pause.
"That guy's disturbed, isn't he?" said Woodruff after a minute.
"Don't I know it", mused DM.
"How long have you been fighting him?" asked Woodruff in an attempt to make conversation.
"I'm not sure - a year, at most", said DM. What Woodruff said next came completely unexpected to the agent.
"Feels long, doesn't it?" said the collie.
DM turned to him, surprised. "Why - yes. How - how did you know that?"
"I've had experience. My parents weren't looking eye-to-eye for an entire year before they divorced".
"I'm sorry about that", said DM. "That must have been upsetting for you".
"It was. Believe me, it was".
"But - why are you telling me this?" asked DM.
Woodruff seemed to come out of some kind of trance: he blinked and looked a bit embarrassed.
"I - I don't know", he said. He turned his head away.
DM watched the back of the collie's head thoughtfully.
"You weren't expecting something like this, were you?" he asked gently.
Woodruff shook his head. "No".
"Listne", said DM. "I know I'm not your favourite person right now, but we need to work together to get out of this. Help me to help you, alright?"
"How are we going to do that?" snapped Woodruff. "We're tied up and we're locked in".
"I know that", said DM firmly.
"So how do you propose we - AH! - escape?" Woodruff winced as his head gave another painful twinge.
"I don't know. But we'll think of something", replied DM.
Woodruff sighed, and gave a groan. He tilted his head back against the wall, eyes closed. DM watched him with some concern.
"Dad..." the collie mumbled suddenly.
DM blinked at him. "Pardon?"
Woodruff blinked back. "W-what?"
"You just - said something about your Dad".
"No, I didn't", said Woodruff, with a defensive edge to his voice.
"Yes, you did".
"NO, I DIDN'T!"
"Woodruff, I assure you, you did! Is something wrong?" asked DM, before the collie could deny it again.
"No. Nothing", said Woodruff.
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah. Everything's fine. Why would you care, anyway?"
DM stared at him. "Of course I care! We ALL care!"
"Funny way of showing it".
"Woodruff, let's not start this again", said DM. "You've already been upset enough tonight, and now we've got a lot more than we bargained for".
"Oh! So now you're blaming me!" snapped Woodruff. "Well, let me tell you something, you moron - if you were half the agent everyone says you are, you would have told me that you and Kim were dating!"
"It's not like that - " began DM. But Woodruff was on a roll.
"I helped you defeat Crumhorn", he snapped. "I helped put him in jail. And I came back because I thought we could be proper friends!"
"We ARE, Woodruff", said DM firmly.
"Ha! Some friend!" cried the collie. "Do friends stab each other in the back?"
"That has nothing to do with what we're discussing! I didn't stab you in the back -AND WHY ARE YOU SO ANGRY?!" yelled DM, his patience snapping.
"Well, you can't blame me; these last few months have been murder, and it's all thanks to my Dad!"
Woodruff gasped and bit his lip after saying those words. DM narrowed his eyes at him.
"Woodruff...?"
"Shut up", snapped the collie.
"Woodruff? What has your Dad done?"
"Nothing. We just - haven't spoken for while", said Woodruff. He shrugged. "Nothing important".
"What do you mean? He's your FATHER!" cried DM.
"Could've fooled me", said Woodruff. His face was now filled with a different sort of anger as he turned to look at the agent, his resentment towards the agent forgotten.
"I hate him, DM. He's ruined everything".
DM just stared back at him, lost for words.
*
Kim was confused. DM had left the tracking map completely. Kim was headed in the direction he had gone, but how did she know where to go when he was no longer on the tracker? She decided to just keep going, and see if she could shed some light on the mystery.
At that moment, something new appeared on the screen. Kim looked up expectantly and saw a blue dot on the screen. she frowned and leaned closer. Blue normally meant 'Trouble'.
The dot was situated at a beach with a pier. Kim's eyes narrowed curiously. Trouble at the beach?
Well, she was an assistant. It was her job to check out suspicious activities. Kim looked off into the distant sky.
"Sorry, DM", she murmured. Then she turned the Mark III around and set off for the opposite direction.
*
"It was a week after testifying against Crumhorn". Woodruff's voice was dull. "Dad started acting strange and cold towards me. It was as if he was ashamed of me for being beaten. He had introduced me to the gym, but I think he wanted me to become a wrestler. I explained I just wanted to learn how to defend myself - and mostly, wrestling was for releasing nervous tension and for enjoyment.
"But Dad wouldn't have it. He kept telling me I would make a great wrestler, and he told me that it was what I wanted. He wouldn't listen to me. He kept shutting my side out".
DM was listening to the collie's story intently. Woodruff was avoiding the agent's gaze; he was staring straight ahead at the locked door.
"Anyway, Dad started pressurizing me more and more. He kept telling me to go to our local gym - every waking moment - more time than I wanted to spend there".
"Is that all?" asked DM. "You can't hate him for a little thing like that. He's accepted it now, hasn't he?"
"You haven't heard the half of it", said Woodruff quietly.
"What do you mean?"
"It - it was - Dad snapped", said Woodruff. "Just after Christmas. Called me pathetic for letting Crumhorn get to me. Then the agency tracked me down, they offered me a position. Dad got angry, we had a blazing row, and I walked out".
DM gazed thoughtfully at him for a moment. Then a scraping noise was heard and Woodruff jumped. He looked round to see DM, struggling back and forth with his chair, trying to move closer to him. After several minutes of struggling, DM managed to situate himself so that he was right in front of Woodruff. Woodruff didn't meet DM's eyes, instead looking awkwardly at the ground.
"You can tell me if you want". DM's voice was gentle and understanding. "I'm not forcing you to reveal anything".
"No - I guess not".
Woodruff was biting his lip and fidgeting. Still he did not look up at DM, preferring to look at the floor. His shoulders were shaking. DM looked at him, his concern for his friend growing.
"It's alright", he whispered. "Don't panic".
"I'm not panicking". Woodruff's voice lacked emotion, but his voice was shaking. DM wished his hands weren't tied behind his back so he could offer the collie a bit of physical comfort.
"You look like you're going to fall apart", he told Woodruff.
"Pathetic, isn't it?" said Woodruff. His hand was over his mouth in a fist so DM could hardly hear him.
"No, it's not", said DM firmly. "Woodruff - LOOK AT ME".
The collie rose his head shakily to meet DM's eye. He suddenly felt the mouse's gaze to burn right through him. He wanted to look away, but forced himself to look back at the mouse's amber stare.
"You are NOT pathetic", said DM. "I don't know what gave your father that idea, but it was cruel. But there's no use dwelling on it now. We need to look forward. Don't hate your father. Is there any reason why you SHOULD hate him?"
Woodruff was silent.
"Alright", Danger Mouse continued. "So try not to resent him so. Now, we need to figure a way out of here".
Woodruff didn't reply...not for the moment.
"Hmm..." mused DM, looking around the room. "I wonder if we could - "
"They're getting married", suddenly blurted out Woodruff.
DM jumped and looked at him. "Pardon me? Who?"
"Dad...and Freya".
"Freya...who's Freya?"
"His fiancee", said Woodruff. "They're - they're getting married in two months time - and I don't know what to do!"
"Well, it's certainly good news for your father", said DM carefully. "But - having a stepmother..."
"Is bad news", finished Woodruff.
"How do you know that?"
"I just know", said Woodruff, his voice barely more than a whisper. "I - I've never met her...but...I can't take it in!"
"When did your father tell you he was getting married?" asked DM.
"In November, when I went home".
"What's so bad about it?" asked DM. "It's a big change, yes, but why not be happy for them?"
"What if it's bad?" asked Woodruff. "Freya - she has a daughter of her own - and I've never met her!"
"You shouldn't judge this situation before it's happened", said DM sympathetically. "When is the wedding?"
"Some time in April. Not that it matters", said Woodruff snappishly. "I'm not going".
"WHAT?!" cried DM.
"DM, do you know what this means?" snapped Woodruff. "This means that my parents' marriage is officially OVER!"
"But - it was over ages ago", said DM, not understanding.
"NO, IT WASN'T!" cried Woodruff suddenly. "There was still a chance - but now it's gone! And it's never coming back!"
"Woodruff...calm down", said DM, alarmed.
Woodruff took a few deep gulps of air, and then bowed his head.
"You know something?" he gasped. "I - even when Mum married Matt, I still thought she could go back to Dad. I kept praying that she would realise her mistake and...we could be a family again. Stupid, isn't it?'
"No", said DM gently. "But, you have to understand", he said in a firmer voice. "You have to try and see it from your parents' point of view. If they feel they don't love each other, then let them go back to their own lives!"
Woodruff closed his eyes in pain and leaned his head against the wall.
"You know I'm right", said DM. "I hate seeing you tearing yourself apart like this".
"I've got no other choice. Is it - is it ME?" asked Woodruff. "I - I keep thinking - did I do something wrong? I felt like I was fighting against my parents – I felt they hated me".
"You've done nothing wrong", said DM. "Don't let anyone make you think that way. You're just you, and that's the most valuble thing we all like about you. You're our FRIEND. We aren't going to leave you alone. You have our support all through everything".
"I like you guys too", said Woodruff. "And Kim..." He blushed and turned away.
Ah. Now was the time for the truth, thought DM. He gave the collie a chance to collect his bearings, and then decided to question him.
"Why do you do this to yourself?" he asked.
Woodruff looked around at him.
"What do you mean?"
"Why did you attack me? Why do you tear yourself up over Kim?"
Woodruff blinked and then went pink. "No - no reason".
"Do you love her?" DM wanted to know.
Woodruff's face immediately had 'Alert!' written all over it.
"Yeah - I guess".
DM raised an eyebrow.
"Look, I don't - I don't know!" cried Woodruff. "How am I supposed to know?"
"People know in different ways, Woodruff", said DM. "You can't choose who you fall in love with".
"I - I know - but - I - chose Kim", stuttered Woodruff.
DM bit his lip.
"Woodruff, sssh..." he said softly, seeing the collie's face. He leaned forward in his seat and looked directly into Woodruff's eyes.
"Stay calm", he said. "It's alright".
Woodruff took a few more gulps of air.
"You're really torturing yourself", frowned DM. "You're trying to CONVINCE yourself, Woodruff. Don't. Kim's the first female in your life - I understand you feeling something for her. She truly is an amazing woman".
"Yeah - she is", grinned Woodruff. DM smiled at the brightness shining through on the collie's face.
"So answer me something, DM", suddenly said Woodruff, the smile fading. "Why do I keep thinking of her as a friend, and not a lover?"
DM narrowed his eyes. So that was the case. He took a deep breath. He hated to do this, but he had to.
"Because she's not the right woman for you", he said.
Tears appeared in Woodruff's eyes, and he bowed his head again. A single tear dripped down his face and landed on the hard ground.
"Oh, Woodruff", said DM, feeling very guilty. "I'm sorry".
"Why?" sobbed Woodruff. "Why do you get on so well with her?"
"I don't know". DM shook his head. "It's just - something's there". He was really shocked to see Woodruff crying. It had just never sounded like something the collie did.
Woodruff felt very ashamed of himself for crying in front of the agent. "Sorry", he apologised. "I promised myself I'd never cry again".
"I've been in tears lately", said DM. "It's nothing to be ashamed of".
"You? Cry?" asked Woodruff in surprise. "Never!"
They both laughed shakily.
"It's alright to feel scared", said DM. "You don't always have to be brave. Everyone gets frightened - even me".
"Danger Mouse, you are full of surprises".
"Why not?"
Woodruff smiled. "I'm sorry. For everything", he sighed.
DM smiled back. "We'll forget it. I don't even know what you're talking about!"
Woodruff chuckled. "OK", he said, more cheerfully, as he looked around the room. "How do we get out of here?"
"That's a good question", said DM thoughtfully. Then a lightbulb seemed to shine above his head. "I got it!" he cried. "Woodruff, listen. I'm going to scrape the chair around, and when I do, I want you to bite through my ropes".
Woodruff blinked, and then sighed. "Well, what have I got to loose?"
"America's happiness, if we don't hurry", retorted DM.
"OK, then. We'll give it a try".
DM tried his best to move the chair again by using the force of his body. It was very difficult, because he had to go slowly to prevent falling over. Finally...
"How's this?" DM asked the collie, as his back faced Woodruff. The collie saw that the ropes had been tied around DM's hands, and then around the rungs of the chair.
"Yeah, that's good. Stay still".
"You don't have to tell me twice", said DM. It had occurred to him that if Woodruff missed and accidentally slit his wrists, the consequences would be very serious.
"I'll be careful", said Woodruff, as though he could read the agent's thoughts. Very gingerly, he leaned forward - and the chair leaned forward with him. Unfortunately, it went too far and Woodruff's nose banged into the rungs. He winced in pain.
"Woodruff!" cried DM, looking round. "Are you alright?"
"Yeah...I THINK I can still..." Woodruff started to bite one of the ropes tying DM's hands to the chair. He gnarled at it for two minutes before it came loose and DM was able to give it a slight pull.
"Alright, now the other one". Woodruff turned his head to the other rope and bit through that too. It came free after a couple of minutes. DM's hands were still tied behind his back, but he could now move them more freely as they weren't tied to the chair.
At that moment, Woodruff's chair slipped and he fell on his side. DM heard him curse.
"Are you OK?" he asked.
"Yeah...but now what do we do?"
DM thought for a minute, before getting another idea. "Can you reach my legs?" he asked.
"Yeah...I think so".
"Cut them free. Then I can stand up, you can bite through the ropes on my hands and then I'll set you free".
"OK". Woodruff moved around, getting a bit closer to DM's feet.
"Hurry, Woodruff", said DM. "America needs us!"
*
Kim landed the Mark III in the beach car-park and jumped out. There was no place on the beach were she could park it, and the tide was probably coming in at this hour.
Kim frowned and looked around. Her gaze landed on the gate that was usually supposed to be locked to stop people coming in. It stood open, and a broken chain lay on the ground.
There were steps leading up over the sand-hill, built in with concrete walls either side of them. Kim climbed them, curiousity growing and when she reached the top, she looked down at the beach below her. She frowned even more.
Way out to the sea, she could see a ship's dim light. A small speed-boat was driving away, back to the shore. On the pier, there were crates upon crates of bottles. Kim couldn't see what they were, but had a sneaking suspicion that this meant trouble.
At that moment, another car came into the car-park. Kim turned, and gasped. She ducked low on the steps as two figures climbed out of the car.
"This is it?" Kim heard a male voice say. "This is the smuggler's point?"
"Jack, keep your voice down!" hissed the other, a female. "Do you want to get us caught?"
"Alright, Helen, cool it!" cried the tiger.
The two figures came closer, and as they got nearer, Kim could make them out - an anthro hawk and an anthro tiger. She looked fervishly around, took a chance and stepped around the concrete wall. She lay low as she heard the hawk and tiger climb the steps, trying not to breathe as their shadows passed over her. She gave a sigh of relief as she heard their footsteps walk down the steps leading down to the bottom.
Kim crawled to the top of the sand-hill and peeked over. She saw the hawk and tiger being greeted by a Beagle on the beach, and strained her ears to hear what they were saying.
"Is this it?" asked Helen.
"Yeah", replied the Beagle. "For now".
"This is crazy", said Jack. "Duckula's off his nut!"
"I wonder what he'd do if he heard you saying that", said the Beagle. Up in her hiding-place, Kim shivered at the thought.
"So", said Helen. "The ship out there - it'll take all the potion over?"
"Yes", said the Beagle. "Leon and Alex are taking it on the ship. Other henchmen were sent over to America last night. They should be there by the time the potion comes through. If not, Alex and Leon will anchor out at sea and wait for them".
"Right".
Kim's eyes grew wide. Now it was clearer - they were going to smuggle something over to the USA! The question was, what?
Kim's question was answered in the next instinct.
"I still don't see why Duckula can't wait a while before smuggling the hate potion over", said Jack. "I should be in bed right now!"
Kim had all the information she needed. She planned to turn away, go back to the Mark III, alert HQ and they, in turn, would alert their agents in the US. But then Helen brought something else to the light.
"Hey, we've kidnapped Danger Mouse and that Border Collie. The Count will be pleased with us when this job's over".
"I guess so", said Jack, in a slightly sulky voice.
Kim gasped. So Danger Mouse had been captured, and so had Woodruff! Kim didn't know how these two anthros had done it, but she knew she had to help DM and Woodruff.
"We'd better get back. We'll give Duckula your report and tell him everything's going smoothly", said Helen. "C'mon, Jack!" she said to the tiger. "Let's go back to the castel".
Kim's hopes rose. She could follow them in the Mark III! Quickly, she ran back down the sand-hill and ran to the other end of the carpark, where she had left the Mark III - thankfully, Jack and Helen had not seen it. She jumped inside and started the motors on a quiet hum as Jack and Helen came down. She watched them get into their car, and the next minute, the car started up and left the car-park. Kim quickly flew the Mark III into the air. It hovered for a second, and then flew off after the car.