Chapter 13

At the next meeting of the anti OWG group there was information about Bertie. Jennifer the secretary who worked in the education ministry had managed to find out where Bertie had been sent to school before he disappeared. He had told his mother that he was going to a new school now that he was 16, but he did not know which one, so this had been the starting point of their investigation. She told of her daring incursion into the records office to get a look at the files which related to the advanced schooling project.

Her usual role was to gather information and then sort it. There was that which would be filed as a paper document. Some of it would go to a data clerk to be input onto the ESD, she was not allowed to touch the machine of course. The more sensitive facts would not go through her they were entrusted to a male member of staff.

The children whose records she handled were those who attended the labour class schools. If they passed the intelligence test at twelve they would then be dealt with by a different department. She had easily been able to track Bertie until he was spirited away to one of the elite academies.

"The documents relating to the elite schools are kept in a different part of the building from where I work. It's not somewhere I have any business being, but that was where I had to go. The curse of women in the work place, to be ignored and overlooked, proved a bonus in this situation. I could move through the corridors without being questioned.

There was a possibility that I might be challenged, so I had to have some kind of cover story. I had a hidden file about my person. When I emerged from the record room, I'd be clutching the previously hidden document. I could then say that I'd put it on the wrong pile for filing and that I'd risked going to retrieve it rather than be found to have made a mistake.

I had to give myself a pep talk as I left my office. Confidence was the key and I had to walk purposefully through the building to my destination. It seemed like a mile but the journey was much shorter. I approached the door to the room and hoped, wished, prayed that no one was inside.

To my relief the store was empty and I was humming a tune to calm myself as I searched for the file referring to Bertie. The OWG has many faults, but their record keeping is immaculate. The information was exactly where it should be and I scanned the details remembering the vital points.

The dummy file was in my hands as I left the store. Two men in suits were in the corridor as I emerged but they barely glanced my way. My heart was in my mouth at that point. I retraced my steps and once I was back in my section, I felt my breathing return to normal. The supervisor blocked my way as I tried to go back to the office. "Where have you been?" he asked.

This was a problem I could cope with. "Oh, I put something on the wrong pile and I've just been to get it back. Sorry." I said. A small pleading smile and a slight wiggle as I walked away were enough to get me out of a potentially sticky situation."

She was still extremely relieved when she was back behind her desk. Even the pile of paper in her in tray looked good.

Jennifer told the group that the old public schools Eton, Harrow, Rugby, Westminster and others were still used to educate the children of the leadership class and those who were deemed of exceptional intelligence. Bertie had been sent to Marlborough College. His records showed that he had been there for nearly a year after being transferred from Eton. Marlborough specialised in the sciences which Bertie had showed an aptitude for. The final entry in his file simply stated that he had been transferred.

If they could find someone in the education ministry who was sympathetic to their cause they might be able to find out more. The details of where Bertie had been "transferred" to and why would only be known to the upper management. These were the beards and their lackeys and getting one of them to change sides would be a risky business. They would have to find another way.

Surely, Dan suggested, the place to look for sedition was in one of the academies. The professors might be old school but there would be other employees and junior teachers who were more likely to disagree with the methods of the OWG. If clever pupils were made to disappear because of their ideals, someone would be worried about it.

"On what pretext could I take a trip to Wiltshire to visit the school?" Dan asked.

Martin was smiling and he moved to the edge of his seat with excitement.

"Trials have been undertaken on a new vehicle and it is ready for a bit of a run. Why don't we take it out on a drive to Marlborough? You have a son and it is never too soon to be looking at places for higher education."

"A road-trip." Said Dan smiling back at his friend.

He telephoned Marlborough College using the, old fashioned contraption with the hand set still attached to the body of the phone. Dan introduced himself and arranged for a tour of the school at the beginning of the next week. He and Martin were going to turn their trip into a bit of a jolly staying for a couple of nights at a country hotel. Even better was that the ministry would pay their expenses.

It would be good to get out of the suburbs and into the country. Dan was keen to see the farms and the machinery that they used on them. That glimpse he had caught when he watched the documentary about wheat had been nagging at him ever since. Phyllis made him some sandwiches and a thermos of tea for the journey.

He had not told Phyllis the reason for his trip, but the meaningful look he had cast her way when he had said he was going had been picked up. She gave him a hug when Sam was out of the way and wished him luck with his endeavours. A car picked him up and then they collected Martin. They were driven to the factory where the prototype was awaiting them.

Dan was not surprised to see that the new car was black. It had a slightly more streamlined shape and apparently had a better engine. This car had a turbocharger so more power would be produced. The bonnet of the car was opened and they stared in inspecting the new technology.

It was interesting, but what Dan and Martin really wanted to do was take the car out on the road to see what it could do. A man with a clipboard gave them instructions and made them sign for the valuable piece of equipment before they were allowed to take it away.

"Let's see how your idea works."

Dan was open mouthed at Martin's words. He had invented the turbocharger in this world.

Dan was given the honour of having the first go behind the wheel. Martin had a map on his lap and was planning their route. Roads had been built after the OWG took over, but there was nothing like the motorways which Dan had been used to. There was still only a small amount of traffic which was made up of lorries transporting goods and a few cars. There was no need for multi lane high speed travel.

There was not a direct route to Marlborough College and they would not be going very fast either. The turbocharger would help them go faster than the other cars, but they were looking at a fairly long journey. They were going to stop overnight near to the school and then visit it the following morning.

A lot of the time they would be travelling through the countryside. When it was Martin's turn to drive Dan would get a chance to have a good look around. They had given themselves plenty of time so if they saw something of interest they could stop for a closer inspection. The steam tractors were the main source of Dan's fascination.

The route that they were taking had to zigzag across the countryside, so that they could refuel. There were a very limited number of petrol stations all, of course, run by the OWG and for their exclusive use. Lorries were allowed to use them as were cars but it was not straightforward. They had to submit paperwork in order to get the petrol.

Once out of town and on a decent stretch of road Dan put his foot down. The car responded and moved smoothly up to 60mph. Martin was screaming with excitement at the speed and Dan laughed at his friend's reaction.

"This knocks the old engine into a cocked hat." Was his wonderfully, old fashioned comment.

What had happened to the Martin in his world which had made him such a dour character. This one was having fun.