The Case of the Wayward Professor (11 page)

As automatically as it had opened, the lid closed again.

‘You've broken it,' said Tilia.

‘I'll try again,' said Acer, trying to stop the lid from closing, but as she did so she screamed, suddenly pulling away her claw again.

‘What happened?' asked Buxus.

‘It bit me,' said Acer.

The lid closed. Betula stepped forward. ‘From now on I'm looking after this,' she said, going to grab it in her mouth, but screeching and jumping back.

This time Dirk noticed the spark that flew from the case.

‘It's giving off electric shocks,' he whispered to Holly.

‘You stidiotical fool,' said Salix, ‘We'll all end up in Euphorbia Falls for this.'

‘I'm not scared of the Dragnet,' said Acer.

‘Well, I am. We'll be banished to the Inner Core. That new Dragnet captain is arresting hundreds of suspected Kinghorns.'

‘Vainclaw said we shouldn't worry about the Dragnet,' said Betula. ‘Now, get back into guarding position. Enough of this. That includes you, Acer. You've done enough damage for one day. You better hope you haven't broken it.'

The Tree Dragons resumed their circling motion, swinging their heads from side to side.

‘I've seen enough,' said Dirk, turning and crawling away. Once he was out of sight of the Tree Dragons, he leapt into the air, taking Holly up through the trees, bursting out of the dappled shadows into the full sunshine above the forest.

Holly allowed herself a small squeal of excitement. Flying over the trees was even better than jumping over rooftops. It was brilliant to be back with Dirk. She felt safe on his back, like no one could harm her. And special, like no one else in the world could be happier than she was at that moment in time. She thought of Petal Moses, who got everything she ever wanted, but she didn't have a dragon for a friend.

‘I've missed you,' said Holly.

‘Me too, kiddo,' admitted Dirk.

‘How's Willow?'

‘She's fine. Mrs Klingerflim's looking after her while I'm away.'

‘Is that safe? She thought she was a dog last time she saw her.'

‘That would explain why she keeps throwing sticks for her to fetch in the back garden and trying to train her to fetch the paper.'

Holly laughed. ‘Where are we going?' she asked.

‘That silver case is some kind of weapon. I want to know what it does,' replied Dirk, sailing down towards the black-and-white cottage in the middle of the forest. He landed quietly behind the stone wall and ducked down. ‘This is where they've been keeping the professor.'

Holly climbed off his back and they approached a window in the cottage.

Looking in, Dirk said, ‘It's empty,' and quickly moved to the front of the building and ducked through the door.

Holly followed him in and shut the door behind them.

She glanced around at the tatty furniture, coated in a thin layer of grime. ‘What a dump.'

‘Quick, I'll check this room, you look in the bedroom,' said Dirk, lifting up the worn cushions of the mouse-eaten armchair. ‘We shouldn't stay here too long.'

‘What are we looking for?' asked Holly.

‘Clues.'

Holly found the bedroom through a door on the right. It was small and dingy, with a tiny window. She sat down on the bed and picked up a newspaper with yesterday's date on it. Seeing the picture on the front she shouted, ‘Dirk, come and look at this.'

‘What is it?' Dirk's head appeared around the door frame.

‘I guess I was wrong about Callum,' she replied, holding up the paper. It was a picture of the Prime Minister and his family outside Number 10 Downing Street. His other two grown-up sons were smiling. Callum stood in front of his father, glaring fearfully at the camera. ‘The men who took Callum must have been for real,' said Holly.

‘Let me see that.' The room was so small that Holly had to stand on the bed so Dirk could get in as well.

‘I'm not sure this room was designed for a drag—'

She stopped mid-sentence, interrupted by the sound of a car engine. Holly and Dirk looked at each other. The engine cut out and doors opened.

‘Well, professor, as usual it has been truly gratifying indulging in such weighty discourse. Once again, apologies for my colleague's windy interruptions,' said the voice of the crook Arthur.

‘Yeah, sorry about that. The fish pie I had last night keeps disagreeing with me gut,' said Reg.

‘When can I go home?' asked the professor.

The front door opened.

‘Mr G has requested that you remain here for the time being in case your services are required.'

‘But I've reprogrammed the machine now. There's nothing more I can do.'

‘You could put the kettle on,' said Reg. ‘I'm parched.'

‘Quick, through the window,' whispered Dirk, urgently lifting up Holly, pushing the window open with his tail and putting her through it.

‘But they'll see you,' protested Holly. ‘Even if you blend they'll walk straight into you in such a small room.'

Dirk placed her down on the ground and said, ‘Don't worry about me, just run into the woods as fast as you can, wait five minutes, then come back, but make sure you get out of earshot.'

‘What are you doing?' said Holly. ‘They'll see you.'

‘Don't argue, run.'

She jumped over the stone wall and ran full pelt into the woods as Dirk had told her, but before she got far she felt her feet slow down. She could hear music. Beautiful music. Her feet felt like lead, unable or
unwilling to take her any further from the sound. It was beautiful, like an ancient hymn sung in a forgotten language, like nothing she had ever heard and yet like it was coming from inside her, the harmonies and melody being produced by her own breathing. All she wanted was to hear the music, to get lost in it, to be the music.

Dirk found Holly standing on one leg, the other angled out in front of her, frozen mid-stride. Her arms were outstretched, her lips curled into a smile, her eyes open with a faraway look as though remembering a happy but distant memory.

‘Rats of the wild frontier,' he cursed.

He zipped around her, lifted his paw to her face, said, ‘Sorry, Holly,' and slapped her hard on her cheek.

Holly toppled to the side, waking from her stupor. ‘What did you do that for?' she said, regaining her balance.

‘Sorry, kiddo. The only way out of the trance is a jolt to the head. I tried to go as easy as I could.'

‘What happened to me?'

‘You heard Dragonsong.'

‘Yes,' said Holly, the light returning to her eyes, ‘it was beautiful. Like … Like … Like no music I've ever heard.'

‘Well, I'm sorry.'

‘Why are you sorry? It was amazing.' ‘Come on, I'll show you.'

They approached the cottage. A yellow car was parked outside. As they went through the front door, Dirk said, ‘Try not to scream.'

Holly stopped in the doorway. In front of her were the two crooks. Reg was sitting at the table. Arthur was standing by the doorway. A man with a bald head, who she guessed was the professor, was leaning over the cooker with a box of matches in one hand and a match in the other, as though about to light the hob. All three of them wore the same vacant look on their faces, standing perfectly still, like a moment preserved in time.

‘Don't worry, I turned off the gas,' said Dirk.

‘Is that what happened to me?' asked Holly.

‘Yes. You heard the music right up to the point that I slapped you, didn't you?'

‘Yes.'

‘I only sang for a few seconds. It gets inside you.'

‘It was almost like I was making it,' said Holly, smiling at the memory. ‘Do they know we're here?'

‘They can see the world around them, but they're not looking at it, and they'll only listen when spoken to directly. All they care about is the Dragonsong.' Dirk turned to the professor and said, ‘Professor Rosenfield, I want you to stand upright and light that match.'

Instantly Rosenfield did exactly as Dirk told him.

‘Wow. Can you make him do anything?'

‘Yes. I could make him blow out the match or light the hob and make us all a nice cup of tea …'

‘That's brilliant.'

‘Or I could make him drop it and burn down the cottage with him and these two in it.'

Holly blew out the match. ‘You could make him kill?'

‘Lots of good dragons have died this way,' said Dirk. ‘Dragonsong is a gift in the right hands, but a deadly weapon in the wrong. It's been against our laws to use it as a weapon for thousands of years. I hate it. I'd never have used it at all but I had no choice, I couldn't let them see me.'

‘What do we do with them now?' asked Holly.

‘We'll send them home after we've extracted information from the professor. Needless to say, these two idiots don't know anything.' Dirk turned to the professor and said, ‘Professor Rosenfield, why are you here?'

Still smiling, with a spaced-out look on his face Rosenfield replied, ‘I've reprogrammed the QC3000.'

‘That's what it said on the screen of the silver case,' said Holly.

‘What's it for?' asked Dirk. ‘Is it a weapon?'

‘It's a weapon, all right.' The professor smiled.

‘Have you stolen it?'

‘Yes, don't tell anyone, will you?' He spoke like a little child who had done something naughty and didn't want to get told off.

‘Won't someone be looking for it, then?'

‘No. Hardly anyone knows about it. It's top secret.'

‘What does it do?' asked Holly.

The professor didn't answer.

‘He'll only answer the questions or take orders from the first voice he hears,' said Dirk, turning to the professor and repeating the question. ‘What does it do, professor?'

‘It uses sonar signals to create small but significant movements in the earth's tectonic plates. It's completely
revolutionary, the only one in the world.'

Holly gasped. ‘It makes earthquakes.'

Dirk looked at her. ‘So you have been listening in school?'

‘No, I read it somewhere. The earth is made up of tectonic plates. They're always moving, but earthquakes are caused when they suddenly shift.'

‘Manmade earthquakes,' said Dirk. ‘Professor, what does AOG stand for?'

‘Acts of God, weapons designed to create natural disasters like tornadoes, tsunamis and earthquakes so that governments can wipe out entire cities without having to declare war.'

‘That's awful,' said Holly.

‘That's humans,' said Dirk.

‘It's dragons who have stolen it,' replied Holly.

‘Fair point,' admitted Dirk, then to the professor asked, ‘Who are you working for?'

‘I don't know who they are. I've never seen the man with the deep voice. The only people I've met are the two silly idiots with the smelly car.'

Holly looked at Arthur and Reg, who remained oblivious to this insult.

‘Where are they planning to attack?'

‘I entered the coordinates but I don't know where
they relate to. I don't want to know. I don't want to be responsible.'

‘I see, so if an earthquake happens, you can just convince yourself it was a natural one and you'll never know for sure if it was you.'

The professor nodded then added, ‘But they can't make it work. I told them that.'

‘Why can't they make it work?'

‘It can only be activated by one person.'

‘Which person?'

‘It was developed for the British government. Only the Prime Minister of Great Britain can operate it,' said the professor, swaying a little. ‘I told them, I can't get around it. It's programmed only to respond to his DNA.'

‘Callum,' said Holly.

‘Would it work with his son's DNA?' asked Dirk.

‘No, it requires a direct match and it scans for exact fingerprints. Only the Prime Minister's hand will activate the machine.'

‘What happens when the wrong person tries to operate it?'

‘It shuts down and becomes impossible to touch for one hour.'

Holly could tell from the amount of white smoke coming from Dirk's nostrils that he was getting
angry. ‘And what did you get for your hand in all this, professor?' he asked. ‘What does it cost to make you betray your country and your species, to break the law and put your job and your family on the line?'

The professor's distant smile neared. He leaned forward and whispered, ‘Proof.'

‘Proof? Proof of what?'

‘Dragons. I saw a dragon once, while holidaying in Wales as a child. My parents said I was making up stories, of course, but I know what I saw and ever since then it's been an obsession of mine. My wife has never understood it and my colleagues laugh at me behind my back, but now they will have to believe me,' he said. ‘Now I have proof.'