‘We are still trying to trace whoever these men might be.’ Morris Stanford explained. ‘However Prime Minister we have yet to come up with anything significant, and the Americans haven’t been forthcoming with information.’
Churchill nodded and looked back at the file. ‘I have to admit I was doubtful whether or not this committee would be fruitful, given that Tizard’s Flying Saucer Working Party has made little progress over the last two years. However because of the events which included the incident that happened during Operation Mainbrace it proves that this flying saucer phenomenon is very real. Not only that, but the Americans seem to think that they can come over here and do what they bloody well please. Mr Stanford I want an extra man assigned to the British Embassy in Washington. His key role will be to monitor all newspaper, radio and television broadcasts, relating to flying saucers. I also want an extra agent in Moscow to monitor the situation over there. We must be vigilant and on our guard from this moment on Gentlemen.’ The Prime Minister took a deep breath. ‘This whole flying saucer issue leaves me uneasy to say the least. During the war we knew what we were up against, and we fought to overcome a dark tyranny that would have engulfed the planet. God only knows what we are up against now. We can only hope that the events of the past six months are not part of something bigger. From this moment on anything relating to flying saucers will be classed as above top secret. All Material will be filed away for analysis. We will meet up again in the new year to discuss a strategy regarding American incursions on the British mainland. I’m afraid gentlemen that this investigation into flying saucers is on going for now.’ Churchill looked at Frederick. ‘I know you were only expecting to be part of this group for several months Professor, but it seems we are going to need your services for a lot longer.’
‘Given my experiences over the last six months, I wouldn’t want it any other way.’
Churchill nodded than got to his feet.
Chapter 38
Merry Christmas Professor Frederick
St Peter’s Church Gardens – Wisbech – Cambridgeshire – 2:04pm
Friday 19th December 1952
Frederick glanced over at the nine hundred year old Norman church which dominated the local landscape. After the briefing with the Prime Minister Frederick returned to Cambridge and took his final lectures of the year. The day before had been packed with final meetings and endless goodbyes from the students he taught. Late in the afternoon he had received a telegram from Rothschild who he had not seen for a while. Frederick spent the evening wrestling with the offer that Rothschild had made.
Rothschild approached from the town centre, dressed in a grey suit and matching trilby he smiled and offered his hand. ‘Professor, good to see you again I’m sorry I have not been in touch sooner. Rumour is rife that comrade Stalin’s health is failing. As you can imagine crossing from east to west is getting a little difficult.’
Frederick nodded. ‘Well I won’t keep you for long doctor, I’m here to accept your offer to join your organisation.’
Rothschild nodded. ‘That is good to hear Professor we were hoping you would accept.’
‘It’s been quite a year.’ Frederick commented.
‘And it's just the beginning Professor, there are wonders in our cosmos that we are only now discovering. Life elsewhere is just a small part of the splendour which makes up our universe. The more science pushes the frontier, the more we learn.’ Rothschild looked towards the town centre. People rushed by going about their day to day business. ‘I’m afraid my time is short Professor I must leave immediately for Berlin.’
‘So what now that I have accepted your offer?’ He asked.
‘We will be in touch very soon Professor, some of my colleagues are anxious to meet with you.’
Frederick nodded. ‘Is there a way I can contact you?’
‘That bottle of unopened brandy you keep in your office at Cambridge, when you need to contact me leave it in the window in plain view then I will be in touch. In the meantime I suggest you learn all you can from your experiences of the past year it will prepare you for what lays ahead.’ Rothschild tipped his hat. ‘Merry Christmas Professor.’
Chapter 39
Mutilation
Whitehall – London – 12:08pm
Friday 16th January 1953
‘Take a look at these.’ Chambers handed Frederick four photographs.
Frederick looked at the pictures then at Dr Lloyd and Chambers who had requested a meeting the day before.
‘A wartime colleague of mine took them a week and a half ago.’ Explained Lloyd.
Frederick rifled through the photos of a cow which looked as if part of its upper body and head had been stripped clean of flesh leaving the bone exposed, parts of its jaw had also been removed.’
Lloyd continued. ‘A newspaper in Hereford reported a number of UFO sightings around the time of this event. The chap who took these photos states that this animal was found in a field with a locked gate. No tracks were leading away from the animal, which also suffered complete blood loss.’
‘I want you and Dr Lloyd to go and investigate this mystery and find out what exactly happened to that animal.’ Chambers said.
‘We’ll drive out to Hereford on Monday and he will point us in the direction of the farm on which these photos were taken.’
‘You’re not suggesting this has anything to do with flying saucers are you?’ Asked Frederick.
Chambers shrugged. ‘We have kept our eyes peeled, despite the article in the Hereford Times, radar stations haven’t tracked any UFO activity over Herefordshire. Nevertheless those photos are disturbing enough to warrant an investigation, it’s better to be safe than sorry.’
The Litchfield Vaults – Hereford – 11:53am
Monday 19th January 1953
Dr David Mitchell swigged down half a pint of beer and set it down on the table. ‘Dammed if I’ve seen anything like it before, I’ve shown these pictures to other vets in the area, they are as mystified about this as I am.’
Frederick had the photographs in front of him. ‘Where is the animal now?’
‘The farmer who found the animal destroyed it before I could make another examination.’
‘How long did you have to examine the animal?’
‘I received a telephone call from another vet, who asked me to go over to the farm to examine the cow, as he was unavailable. The farmer showed me the animal and I examined it for about an hour.’
‘What did you find?’
‘First off the animal was in a field with a locked gate, there was no way anyone with a vehicle could have got in. It had been raining so the ground was soggy, but there were no tracks of any kind leading away from the animal. The first thing I noticed when I examined it was the total loss of blood, and there was none anywhere in the immediate area.’
‘Not one drop?’ Asked Lloyd.
Mitchell shook his head.
‘What about the wounds?’ Frederick asked.
‘I gave them close attention, but could not find signs that any kind of cutting tool had been used. The edges of the animal’s wounds were smooth, like nothing I have ever seen. The cut on the jaw bone was also smooth. The bone was bleached, but the most puzzling aspect was the heart.’
‘How so?’
‘It was still beating for one thing. No blood, the liver had been removed, yet the heart was still functioning. It’s scientifically impossible, the heart shouldn’t have been beating.’
‘So where is this farm?’ Asked Frederick.
‘Near a place called Stoke Lacy, about eleven miles out.’ Mitchell revealed. ‘If you’re going out there I should warn you the locals don’t like outsiders, probably why that farmer got rid of the animal. I don’t think he wanted people nosing around.’
‘Is there any boarding house in the area?’ Lloyd asked his friend.
‘Try the Plough Inn, it backs onto the farm where I took these pictures but like I said don’t expect anyone to roll out the red carpet.�
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Chapter 40
Village of the Dammed
The Plough Inn – Stoke Lacy – Herefordshire – 2:36pm
The pub landlord glared hard at Frederick and Lloyd, who had just knocked on the main door of the pub.
‘Good afternoon sir.’ Frederick greeted politely. ‘Do you have any rooms available?’
‘Nicholson Farm is a few miles down the road I suggest you try there.’ The man barked.
Frederick shoved his foot in the door before the landlord could shut it. ‘I’m afraid we’ve already been there but they’ve no spare rooms so they suggested we come here.’
The door opened wider. ‘You better come in.’ The landlord sighed.
‘Thank you.’ Frederick replied as he stepped through the door followed closely by Lloyd.
‘You can have the double room, there are two single beds. Dinner is at seven thirty, we do have two other guests. I’ll tell you what I told them, we’re simple country folk around here. We don’t want any trouble makers or do-gooders. So we would all be grateful if you kept to yourselves and leave as soon as possible.’
‘We won’t be any bother.’ Lloyd reassured him as the landlord led them to their room.
‘I’m afraid there’s only one bathroom, so you’ll have to share with the other guests. There’s a chamber pot in your room, otherwise you’ll have to walk across the farmyard to use the toilet.’ The landlord turned the key in the lock, opening the door.
‘Thank you for your hospitality.’ Said Frederick as the landlord handed him the key.
‘Don’t be late for dinner.’
‘Friendly chap.’ Lloyd commented.
Frederick surveyed their room. Two single beds were set out in the middle of the room with a chest of drawers. The chamber pot was just under the window which looked onto the farmyard at the back of the inn. Frederick walked over and peered out. The landlord was below talking to another man who wore priest’s robes. Two women were also present. The group of people looked up at the window Frederick was standing by. They stared at him for several seconds before walking across towards the farmyard entrance. ‘I don’t know about you Arthur, but there’s something definitely off about the people in this village.’
‘I’m glad I’m not the only one.’ Lloyd replied.
Frederick stepped back from the window looking at the doctor.
‘The woman in the post office earlier wasn’t exactly chatty either and when I tipped my hat to two gentlemen stood outside they seemed to look right through me.’
‘We’ll keep on our toes.’ Advised Frederick. ‘If we need to get out quick then we better be ready. The last thing we need is a bunch of country bumpkins turning on us. We’ll track down the farmer tomorrow; see if he is willing to give us more information.’
Chapter 41
Interesting Bedfellows
6:52pm
Frederick glanced at his watch. He’d been waiting outside the bathroom for about five minutes. Whoever was in there was making plenty of noise, whistling cheerfully. Finally the door opened revealing the occupant. Frederick stood rooted to the spot as he and the man eyed each other for several seconds. ‘You!’ Frederick gasped.
The man seemed completely surprised to see Frederick.
‘What the hell are you doing here?’ Frederick demanded to know raising his voice.
‘Professor Frederick.’ The American greeted. ‘What an unexpected surprise.’
Two of the guest room doors opened, and Lloyd and another man stepped out.
‘I demand you answer my question.’
‘Calm down Professor, believe me you don’t want to draw attention to yourself. If you want answers then we need to speak privately.’
Frederick closed the door of their guestroom. The two Americans he had encountered at Ripley four months earlier and Church Fenton sat side by side on one of the single beds. ‘So why don’t we begin with your names?’
The two Americans looked at each other.
‘Look either you tell us who you are, or we’ll ring the police since you’re wanted for the murder of that doctor in Ripley last year and impersonating two Royal Air Force officers.’
‘The man you say I murdered last year wasn’t exactly an innocent bystander. Besides I didn’t murder him, all I did was push him over.’
‘Explain.’ Lloyd stated.
‘Did you bother to examine the body Doctor Lloyd? Was there an incision on the back of his neck?’ The American asked.
Lloyd thought back to the strange mark he had discovered on the back of the doctor’s neck. ‘I did, there was some kind of surgical procedure evident yes.’
‘So you called the cops and the ambulance just carted him away, without any further investigation.’
Both Lloyd and Frederick exchanged glances.
The American smiled. ‘Don’t tell me, the doctor’s body mysteriously disappeared.’
‘We are not sharing any information at this moment.’ Lloyd said.
‘You don’t have to, your looks say enough. If you’re not willing to share information then we better leave.’ Both men stood up.
‘What exactly are you getting at?’ Frederick blocked their path.
‘What I’m getting at Professor is the doctor in Ripley along with that woman you and your team were looking into were part of something we’ve been investigating for several years now.’ He paused and took a deep breath, looking at the other American who nodded. ‘Now that you have stumbled on to our little operation we’ve no choice but to let you come along for the ride. I take it you’re here because of the cattle mutilation?’
‘How do you know about that?’ Frederick asked.
The American smiled back. ‘Very little escapes our attention Professor.’
‘All right then if you’re in the mood for sharing information is there anything you could tell us about this incident?’ Asked Lloyd.
‘I can tell you that this type of phenomenon is nothing new, although I can confirm that this is the first time it has happened on British soil. There have been a number of incidents in France, Germany, and the Soviet Union. We have also had cases in the mid west United States.’
‘But why is US intelligence interested in mutilated cattle?’ Frederick asked.
‘Because all incidents come hand in hand with UFO sightings, and this one is typical.’
Frederick smiled at the dark haired American. ‘You seriously believe that these cattle mutilations have something to do with flying saucers.’
‘So what are you doing here then Professor?’ The American smiled back.
Frederick said nothing.
‘Look either we can sit here and argue all night or we can find out exactly what’s going on in this village.’
‘Which is what exactly?’ Lloyd asked.
‘We’re not sure but we have managed to make a friend of one of the locals, which if you haven’t already noticed aren’t the talkative type.’ The black haired American looked at the clock. ‘It’s almost seven thirty gentlemen I suggest we go down for dinner.’
‘Do you both have a name?’ Asked Frederick.
‘I’m Frank Cones, this is my partner Jack Baker.’
‘CIA?’ Lloyd said.
Cones just smiled. ‘Sort of, but let’s not sit here and speculate shall we.’
‘Are you going to tell us how you know our names?’ Frederick asked.
‘Sorry Professor but at this moment we’re bound by our government not to reveal anything to you.’
‘Typical!’ Lloyd sighed.
Chapter 42
The Priest
7:52pm
Frederick savoured the last mouthful of mashed potato which made him think about Elizabeth’s wonderful cooking. Although the bar of the public house was quite busy; the first thing Frederick and his companions noted as they ate was the silence. This made it difficult to have a conversation. The locals sat quietly playing cards and dominoes. Four men were playing darts in the corner of the bar. Occasionally they
would look over at the four strangers sat in the dining area.
The main door to the bar opened and in walked the priest Frederick spotted earlier. He walked to the bar and talked to the landlord for a few minutes. Looking over at the guests. Eventually he headed for Frederick’s party.
‘Good evening gentlemen.’ The priest spoke softly.
All four men looked up and greeted the man.
‘I trust the food is to your liking?’
Frederick nodded. ‘It’s excellent thank you, I was just thinking of how much it reminded me of my wife’s cooking.’
‘I’m sure the landlady will be pleased to hear that.’ Several seconds of silence followed. ‘What brings you to our little village?’
‘We’re just passing through.’ Lloyd said.
‘To where exactly?’
Frederick gathered his thoughts. ‘We’re surveyors, mapping out a new road atlas. We’re logging all the towns and villages in this area.’
The priest stared at Frederick making him feel uneasy. ‘I see.’ He said before looking at Cones and Baker. ‘But you’re not all surveyors.’
Cones shook his head. ‘No, myself and my companion are humble servicemen exploring your beautiful countryside.’
‘You’re American.’ The priest noted.
‘Yes.’ Baker answered. ‘Just enjoying some leave, and sampling the wonderful ales you Brits like to brew.’
The priest nodded slowly whilst staring intensely at Cones. ‘Very well gentlemen, I’ll leave you to your business.’ The priest started to walk back towards the bar.
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