Gods and Monsters

II

RAF Twin Oaks, Sevenoaks

The abandoned airfield was located not far from the winding valley that Charlie had just traversed down, but each moment that passed worried him as he observed his friend's limp body flop around while he pulled the car up to the first hangar. Stepping outside, Charlie opened the rear doors and carried Peggy to the large hangar door, smacking his fist on the hard metal to get the attention of the occupants inside.

The door opened slightly and the small, snivelling face of Clark Loeb poked out. He took a quick breath from his inhaler and pushed his horn-rimmed glasses further up his nose as he checked out the dark surroundings. "Quinn," he said coldly, "were you followed?".

"Open the door. Now. We do not have time for this, Clark," Charlie said, not keen on mentioning his assailants from a few moments prior. Clark was a conspiracy theorist, constantly under watch whether it be from the government, aliens or secret lizard societies according to him. He didn't have a home unless you could count the slight renovation of the hangar which acted as his place of work too, and from which he rarely left.

Clark frowned, taking a final look at the surrounding areas. "Okay, okay. Excuse me for being vigilant. I'm telling you now Charlie, I do not want another incident like Switzerland again."

"Well, if you let us inside, there won't be," Charlie replied sharply.

The hangar door was opened slightly further so that Charlie could fit through while carrying Peggy, but Clark was sure to quadruple bolt and chain the door within seconds. Looking at the renovated hangar, Charlie had to admit it was quite impressive. The large open space had been transformed into somewhere that looked vaguely livable; a set of stairs led up to an elevated level which contained a bed, fridge and other basic necessities; whereas the lower section of the hangar acted as an impromptu surgery. Of course, Clark hadn't done any of the work himself. The small man suffered from a form of brittle bones that restricted the amount of walking he could do without a cane or walking stick. It perplexed Charlie why a man in his condition had decided to build an additional floor to live in, but that was a question for another time.

Charlie couldn't see everything behind the pale green curtain clearly, however, there was a lot of surgical equipment, both genuine and experimental and that Clark certainly shouldn't be in possession of. That was why Charlie had come here. He needed someone discreet to help Peggy, and who better than a man completely off the grid with access to more equipment and medicine than even a top hospital contained.

"What's the patient's condition?" Clark asked as he began to set up a table which Peggy was placed gently on.

"She's breathing – just about. She seems to have suffered from an overdose and she's had a few seizures on the way over."

"What had she taken?"

"Well, it's not really clear at this point. See the drugs were taken from my place and -"

Clark groaned. "That's all I need to know. Great, I've got an impromptu patient whose overdosed on an unknown drug. Gee, Mum. It was such a great idea forcing me to go to med school now, wasn't it!" He cursed inaudibly as he wandered around the table thinking things over. "Okay, I can't promise anything, but I'll try and save your friend's life. But remember Quinn, you owe me twice now. Switzerland and now."

"Fine, I'll buy you a new blow-up doll for Christmas." He said with a smirk which was met with Clark's cold, tiny eyes. "I've got to make a few calls but I'll just be over here, alright?" Clark squirmed at the thought of phone signals originating from his hideout, but let it pass for now. 

Continued in Part 3...