Alexander nodded. 'He's the hard worker, the grade-A student. He's the one that's going to make everyone proud. I've always been the lazy one, the f.e.c.kless one. The one who "could do better" but didn't.' Ace heard the slight tremor in his voice and suddenly wanted to hug him.

'Parents, eh?' she said. 'Can't live with 'em, can't murder 'em with a hatchet and bury their bodies in the garden.'

'You get on with yours, then?'

'Not so's you'd notice. Didn't see much of Dad and saw too much of Mum.'

'Maybe you were lucky.'

'Maybe...'

Alexander grinned suddenly. 'How d'you fancy a trip over to the island we've got a little camp over there, spare radio, that sort of thing. It'd make a change, give John a bit of s.p.a.ce. Fancy it?' Ace nodded. 'Lead the way, Cap'n!'

. .are we going then-oh yes, yes, I suppose we-ouch no-can't you turn it down.

Black sounds, black, black sounds. Sarah is that you? And all those coloured smel s, small and bright like pinp.r.i.c.ks. I know this, I know it. coloured smel s, small and bright like pinp.r.i.c.ks. I know this, I know it.

Thank you. Do I know you? I... it's like a, what do they call it, a kaleidoscope. I recognise all tbe parts, all the fragments... but (pain again, kaleidoscope. I recognise all tbe parts, all the fragments... but (pain again, pain again) they won't come together, won't make sense. pain again) they won't come together, won't make sense.

Splashing like a couple of kids at the seaside, Ace and Alexander dragged the orange dinghy ash.o.r.e on the island. This was more fun than the holidays she'd had when she was young, despite the wind and cold. Once the dinghy was far enough up the beach not to be dragged back out to sea, they set off for the camp. The island was much bigger than it had looked on the map a gently sloping green and brown rock, edged with pebbly beaches and a couple of low cliffs. The wind whipped Ace's hair around her face and she could smell that seaside smell seaweed and a hint of ozone.

'So how long have you been here?' she asked as they walked up the shingle beach towards the camp.

'Seems like a lifetime,' Alexander grinned. 'About two weeks.

We brought a van up to Thurso with all John's gear, and took the ferry to the Mainland that's the biggest of the Orkneys. We hired the boat off some money-grabbing local fisherman and sailed up here. And since then, I've stood around watching John doing whatever it is that he does.'

'Sounds like fun. A bit like me and the Doctor, really.'

'You mentioned him before. Friend or your shrink?'

'Friend although sometimes I reckon he he could do with a shrink.' Ace's thoughts suddenly turned to the Doctor, wondering what he was doing now. could do with a shrink.' Ace's thoughts suddenly turned to the Doctor, wondering what he was doing now.

'So ... he's your boyfriend?'

She laughed and gave him a playful shove in the back.

'Not likely he's... a hundred, if he's a day. He's a mate. He needs me around to look out for him, stop him from getting into trouble.'

'Right,' he said dubiously. 'Just remind me: who's the one that's castaway on an island three hundred miles from where she wants to be with no way to get back?'

Ace pulled a face. 'I'll think of something. Trust me.'

In the darkness of a small room at the top of the house, Sooal addressed eleven people. They sat in irritated, fidgety silence.

'A little more patience,' he said, looking round the a.s.sembled figures, 'and then we will be ready. Only two more.'

'Why is it taking so long?' demanded one man in harsh, imperious tones.

'These things can't be rushed.'

'We have waited too long, Sooal. I have no desire to wait longer.'

'Sooal is doing his best,' interjected a woman's voice, commanding but less impatient than the man's. 'We should be grateful that he has brought us so far. We can wait a little longer.'

One of the others made a growling noise; there was the sound of cracking knuckles, like a pistol shot in the dark. 'Why are we toadying around this colourless goblin?' asked the man.

'Why do we need him at all?'

'Because we aren't yet complete,' the woman reminded him.

'We were fine before '

'Things have changed,' interjected one of the other men. 'We need to be cautious and careful. If we attract undue attention, everything Sooal has achieved could be undone.'

They fell into a glowering silence. Sooal looked round the room, sensing that he had the majority of them on his side.

Good. They knew that they needed him. It galled him that he needed them just as much at least for now. In his pocket, his datapad suddenly bleeped: he repressed a snarl they didn't know about the ship, about the processors. And it had to stay that way. He excused himself and left the room. Outside, he leaned against the wall and pulled out his datapad. d.a.m.n!

Another processor had been disconnected. What was going on and where was Megan? Hadn't she killed the girl yet?

Ace was disappointed at the camp. She'd expected something bigger, something a bit more Lawrence of Arabia Lawrence of Arabia: big tents with awnings, tables with charts and maps. Maybe a couple of camels.

Instead, there was a raggy-looking orange tent and awning, the blackened remains of a small fire and a pile of cooking utensils, battered and in need of a good clean.

'Not much to look at, is it?' said Alexander, reading her thoughts. He unzipped the tent, ducked inside and came back out with a half empty bottle of whisky and two tin mugs.

'Now that's more like it!' she said.

The two of them hunkered down on the gra.s.s as Alexander poured out a couple of generous measures. She gazed around, realising how starkly appealing the, island was. Apart from the ever-present wind roaring in her ears, it was so peaceful, so...

untainted. Graystairs and the s.p.a.ceship seemed a hundred miles away.

'Hi,' she heard Alexander say suddenly, and turned to see an elderly couple coming round the side of the camp. Plodding at their feet was a rather old and tired-looking black terrier. It sniffed at the corner of the tent, and Ace half expected it to c.o.c.k its leg.

'h.e.l.lo,' said the woman in a sharp, precise voice, wind blowing at her mussed-up brown hair. She wore a surprisingly new-looking green jacket; a thick tweed skirt and ultra-sensible brown walking boots. Her face, like that of her husband, was flabby and pale; and her accent was softly Scottish, with a strange, musical lilt to it. There was something vaguely familiar about them, Ace thought, but maybe it was just that they were a typical middle-aged tweedy couple. They looked miserable and uninterested, surveying the campsite almost disdainfully before looking back at Alexander.

'We were walking around the island,' the woman said, turning her head sharply to stare at Ace. 'And an enquiry as to the progress of your survey seemed appropriate.'

Alexander pulled a face and shrugged. 'A few technical problems, he said lamely. 'Should be sorted soon.'

Ace watched the couple. They were definitely odd their eyes didn't quite match their facial movements or their words.

And their speech patterns were strangely clipped and precise, yet clumsy. As if they'd learned English from a bad school textbook.

As she stared at them, the man caught her gaze and smiled but just a moment later than he should have done, like he hadn't quite grasped what smiling was all about, and had to make a deliberate effort. The dog came snuffling around her and she reached out to stroke its head. It pulled away and stared at her and its big, bizarrely blue eyes held on hers far longer than felt natural. Ace took another swig from her cup and watched the couple staring out to sea. It was as if they'd suddenly stopped finding Alexander and her interesting. Or important.

'Nothing has been discovered out there, then? Nothing unusual,' the man said abruptly, switching his gaze back to Alexandra 'Oh, just a '

' a few fish,' Ace cut in sharply with an overly cheery smile.

'You know the sort of thing a couple of sharks, dolphins. The usual. We saw two, er, what are they called Alexander? A couple of sea horses, riding around on the waves.'

Alexander looked at her as if she'd gone mad. Just go with me Just go with me on this. on this. Ace thought. Ace thought. Just go with me, Alexander. Just go with me, Alexander.

Alexander smiled at the couple and nodded, although he looked more like he wanted to ask for help in escaping from the madwoman at his side.

'Fine, fine,' the woman said, taking a deep breath. 'Your friend does not appear familiar to us. Is her arrival recent?' She stared at Ace, her eyes cold and piercing.

'Problems with my boat,' Ace said hurriedly. 'It sank.'

'No doubt you will recover.'

Ace nodded, trying not to catch Alexander's eye. The dog had rejoined its owners, standing like a sooty sentinel between them. It looked from her to Alexander and back again.

'We should continue our walk,' the woman said suddenly, rubbing the palms of her hands together, as if she had something unpleasant on them. 'Good luck.'

'Thanks,' Alexander said, and the two of them sat in silence as the couple walked away up the slope towards the crest of the island.

As soon as they were out of hearing, Alexander turned to Ace. 'What the h.e.l.l was all that? Sharks, dolphins? Sea horses Sea horses?'

'I know, I know. Total cobblers.'

'I'll say!'

'Yeah, but the weird thing was their reaction, didn't you think? They've lived on this island for G.o.d knows how long, they must know a bit about the sea. But they didn't react at all.'

'Maybe they were just humouring you.'

'Yeah, yeah, course they were. Didn't you see their expressions not an ounce of surprise or humour between them. And that's not the weirdest thing.' Ace could suddenly picture the couple and their dog in a totally different setting.

'You say they've been here since you arrived? And they've not been away at all?'

Alexander shook his head. 'Not unless they've got a secret submarine hiding on the other side of the... hang on, you're not telling me that they've come through that transmat thing as well, are you?'

'I don't know about that. But if they haven't, someone ought to tell them that they've got identical twins in Muirbridge. With the same weird speech patterns, too. And an identical dog.'

'You're sure?'

'Back in Muirbridge, there was a tweedy couple, identical to them, in the village. We b.u.mped into them once or twice. I thought those two looked vaguely familiar, but it was only when they spoke that it clicked where I'd seen them before. So how are they getting between here and there unless it's with a transmat?'

Alexander grinned. 'I can see where this one's going. You want to take a walk over to their cottage, find the transmat and use it to get back.'

'Bright lad! You'll go a long way!' She held out her mug, the remains of the whisky still sloshing about in it. 'Another pint, please, barman!'

'This is mad,' panted Alexander half an hour later, as he crawled through the gra.s.s on his stomach, rocks digging into him. He couldn't believe he'd let Ace talk him into this stupid expedition.

From here, lying face down at the crest of the hill, they could see the tweedies' tatty-looking cottage, at the foot of the opposing slope. There was no sign of its occupants. Overhead, seagulls wheeled and dived and headed out to sea, screaming at them, their cries disturbingly like those of babies. He shuffled into place at Ace's side and rolled over onto his back, staring up at the thin, scudding clouds, feeling the gentle warmth of the spring sun on his face.

'If there is a transmat in that cottage, he said thoughtfully.

'Can I come with you?'

'What would Big Brother say?'

'Sod him,' Alexander laughed. 'And anyway, I'm Big Brother.

He's a year younger than me.'

'You're planning on leaving your little brother behind and making a break for freedom?'

'Yeah,' he said after what seemed like a decent enough pause. 'Maybe I am.'

'Boy are you going to be in for it when Mummy finds out!'

He turned to her, stung by her humour more than he would have expected. He opened his mouth to ask her how she'd managed to get away from her family when she suddenly pushed his head down into the coa.r.s.e gra.s.s.

'Ow!'

'Ssh.. I can see them.'

He struggled out from under Ace's grip and peered over the hillock behind which they'd concealed themselves. Squinting, he could see what Ace had seen: the two tweedies were leaving their cottage, walking down and away from them towards the sea, a few hundred yards from them. Circling around them, a fluffy satellite, was the little Scottie dog.

'Right, Ace whispered. 'We're off.'

'Shouldn't we wait 'til they're further away like round the other side of the island?'

'You nance! Come on!'

The cottage looked rotted, decayed: holes gaped in the slated roof and weeds sprouted from the crumbling gutters and downpipes. The windows reminded Ace of the holographic shopfront in London all dust and flies and cobwebs. Tatty blankets served as curtains, draped clumsily and haphazardly behind the smeared gla.s.s. She vaulted over the low wall at the back of the cottage, Alexander close behind her.

'Shouldn't one of us keep a look out for Zorg and Zeta?' he said. 'Who?'