‘Not yet. You could say he’s been turned into a sort of living metronome, setting the beat for that Wraith to live by … and to kill by, given half a chance.’ The Doctor’s lip curled. ‘But that beat hasn’t settled and steadied yet. Kim’s still in there, and that must be throwing off the Wraith’s own nature.’

‘Then we’ve got to do something!’ Seeing Kim’s blank face, Chantelle wanted to cry. ‘We’ve got to help Kim!’

The Wraith lurched forward. Kim’s face, contorted with pain, seemed to look Chantelle’s way: ‘You … pretty …’

‘Kim’s consciousness must still be separate from the Wraith’s.’ The Doctor looked surprised but so happy. ‘Chantelle, he’s responding to you. Go to him. Try to keep him talking – we need Kim’s consciousness engaged instead of the Wraith.’

‘What if I can’t?’ Chantelle looked at the Doctor. ‘What if the Wraith takes control and kills me?’

‘I need you to try.’

‘What are you going to do?’

‘Get past him, and through that door.’ The Doctor pointed to the huge vault door in the wall. ‘Maybe then I can stop whoever’s behind all this.’ She looked at Chantelle. ‘You got this?’

Chantelle tried to compose herself. ‘Kim …?’ She approached the huge, charcoal-black creature. ‘Kim … can you come to me?’

‘Pretty.’ Kim’s mouth slurred the word again. ‘Pretty.’

‘Um, thanks.’ She swallowed hard. ‘You, uh, you look well too.’

‘Be … co … host …’

‘Co-host on your podcast?’ Chantelle felt she could cry as she took a step nearer; Kim couldn’t know what had happened to him. She didn’t want him to know. ‘Yeah, I can get my geek on, Kim. I’m down with that.’ She beckoned the creature to come to her. ‘You and me presenting your Strange World thing …’

The dark creature took a step towards her, and Kim’s mouth flapped open and shut. ‘Mys … myst … myster …’

‘Mysterious World, right. Course.’ Trying not to shake, she wagged a finger, pantomime stern. ‘Just as friends, though, yeah? We can host it together but nothing dodgy …’

‘Together,’ Kim said, blank-eyed, his lips twitching like they were trying to make a smile.

The Doctor gave Chantelle a big thumbs-up and circled round behind the horrible composite of Kim and the dark thing. She waved the sonic over the vault door. Nothing happened so she put Squidget to work and it cracked it. The door swung slowly open.

A moment later, the Doctor had detached her pet tool and was through the door, lost from Chantelle’s sight.

That was when the Wraith lurched forward and grabbed Chantelle’s shoulders, its huge, ebony face thrusting close to hers, eyes black. Kim’s head had rolled back, and a sickening gurgle was building in the creature’s throat.