Doctor Who: Surprise Holiday

Chapter 6: Control Freaks

"Nothing unusual? Nothing at all?" Clara paced in the small office.

"No Clara—all is in order," replied Siegfried Braun, general manager of the Grand Germania, as he sat behind his desk. "If anything, our occupancy rate is higher than we normally expect for this time of year."

Nearly two months had passed since Clara bought the Grand. What began as a surprise holiday had turned into daily life. Clara had given up expecting the Doctor to return at any moment. She had to face up to the fact it could be years before the Doctor returned, or possibly never at all—a forgotten companion abandoned to her fate.

Purchasing the Grand had been an impulse; a way to thumb her nose at Clyde Moon while protecting jobs and the people she had come to know, without any thought to the future. If the Doctor had arrived at that moment, she would have been at a loss to know what to do next. As it was, she was now glad she had a source of income separate from the line of credit the Doctor had set up. She was positive it was something the Doctor threw together in haste, the sort of thing one might expect to crumble away at any moment.

With her new responsibility came a new anxiety: what of Clyde Moon? He was not a man to forgive and forget.

"I think you're overly worried," Sophie suggested. She was seated in one of the chairs in front of Siegfried's desk. Sophie had become Clara's unofficial part-time assistant, while continuing her work/study program.

"And really," Sophie added, "what can he do?"

Clara stopped pacing and looked at Sophie. Sophie's innate trust in people never ceased to amaze Clara, and in her experience so far, it seemed to be a common trait among Neuesonners. It was refreshing, but in her estimation, it left the people here vulnerable to predatory types.

"What can he do?" Clara said. "Here's an idea. As owner of several hotels he could start a price war, offering steep discounts in an attempt to drive us out of business."

"And that's if he stays honest," Siegfried added, and sighed. "Like you, Clara, I'm not native to Neuesonne. I've seen his kind before, out in the galaxy. There's a litany of dirty tricks as well: anonymous bomb threats, post bad reviews full of rumor and innuendo, file phony complaints about tainted food in the kitchen or unsafe work conditions triggering repeated safety inspections, anonymous calls to the police with fake tips about illegal activities, and so on."

"Could he really do those things?" Sophie said, eyes wide. "I've never heard of anything so wrong in my life!"

Siegfried smiled at Sophie. "Men like Clyde Moon don't care about right and wrong, they only care about what they can and can't get away with." He looked back at Clara. "But if Moon intends to play hardball, he's going about it a funny way."

Clara sat down in one of the chairs. "How so?"

"A friend of mine is—or was—manager of the Plaza, a smaller but respectable hotel that's been in business in the same location for a good two hundred years. Consistently profitable too, and yet Moon shut it down for 'renovations.' Just one problem—there's been no renovation work, nor have any plans or permits been filed with the city. He's done the same thing with at least one other investment property. It wouldn't surprise me if that's true of others as well."

"Hmm. Strange indeed," Clara mused. "Well, sitting around guessing all day won't help." She stood up, ending the meeting.

As Sophie and Clara turned to leave, Siegfried spoke up. "Clara? A word in private please?"

Clara sat back down as Sophie closed the door. "I hope you don't mind me being frank," Siegfried said. "It is, after all, the Neuesonner way," he said with a smile.