Parchman, стр. 32

‘Says who?’ shouted McGregor making everyone turning to look at him.‘What?’ he whispered, shrugging.

‘Ha-ha. Don’t be coy now. I apologize for the necessity of sending in thosehorrible creatures buts needs must and all that. Now I assume you arewanting to make a deal?’

Professor Brittle took a step forward. ‘Yes. That is correct,’ he nodded hishead from side to side. ‘Can I speak with you in private?’

‘Of course, but you will come to me,’ the Commander General ordered.

‘Of course,’ he replied.

The general held out his palms. ‘Whenever you are ready.’

Everyone on the prison battlements turned and walked back down thesteps.‘I hope you know what you are doing Professor,’ said McGregor.

‘Me too,’ he replied. ‘Logan, once I am out there I expect you to lead theothers. I will give you the signal and then and only then we attack.’‘Professor,’ said Jay. ‘Put this on.’ He handed the Professor a smallmicrophone and clipped it to the lapel of the professor’s tweed jacket. ‘We willbe able to heareverythingthatgoeson,up in the prison’s communications room,’ he said pointing up to a room in one of the guardtowers.

‘OK,’ replied the Professor. When Jay was happy that the microphone wasattached correctly Jay climbed the short ladder into the guard tower andgave the thumbs up.

‘Good luck,’ said Logan.

‘Raba tuhāḍē nāla hōvē,’ replied the Professor. ‘May God forgive me forall my weaknesses and imperfections. Today I put them right.’

It took four inmates to lift the bolt across the prison gates and push themopen to allow the Professor to walk towards the Commander General. Ashe did so the entire army lifted their weapons and pointed them towardshim ready to eliminate him if he tried anything against their leader.

The Commander General stood poised with hands behind his back andready to address the Professor. The two men faced off with neither of themsaying anything.

‘Shall I start?’ said the Professor.

‘Please do. I cannot wait to hear what you have to say,’ replied theCommander General beaming from ear to ear.

‘There comes a time in every man’s life when he must make a sacrifice,’said the Professor.

*****************

The rest of the prison were back on the battlements watching theinteraction between the Commander General and the Professor.

‘

What’s going on?

’ Logan mouthed to Jay up in the guard tower.

Jay shrugged.‘

Nothing

,’ he mouthed back.‘So Logan, what isthe Professor’s plan?’ said Nathaniel.

‘He wouldn’t tellme’ replied Logan. ‘He only said he would give thesignal and then we put our attack into action.’

‘What’s the signal?’ said McGregor.

‘He said I’d know it when I sawit,’ replied Logan.

‘Great,’ said McGregor rolling his eyes.

Logan looked at Tallulah and held her hand.

*****************

Up in the guard tower Jay was fiddling with various buttons on thecommunications dashboard trying to make the signal from the Professor’smicrophone clearer. ‘Yes!’ he exclaimed as voices started to come throughthe speakers. He looked around at the machinery next to him which waswhirring away and recording the conversation.

As he concentrated on what was being saidJay didn’t see the dark shadowof a figure creeping up the ladder to the tower and through the hatchway.One of the Savages who had evaded the ground force and made it past theothers saw an easy meal in the guard tower with no defense.

Jay listened intently to what the Commander General was saying to theProfessor. ‘Please do. I cannot wait to hear what you have to say,’ camethe General’s voice.

The Savage crept up behind Jay and before Jay even had a chance toscream he was dead. The Savage pulled the body back through the hatch and down the outside of the prison away from any danger.

*****************

The Commander General looked at the Professor. ‘No more sacrificeBrittle. Now we just take what we want.’

The Professor started unbuttoning his jacket. ‘Do you mind? It’s ratherwarm out here today.’

‘Be my guest.’

The Professor opened his jacket to reveal explosives lined up around hiswaist.

‘Well well Brittle, I underestimated you. Touché,’ said the General. ‘Youhave undoubtably lost this war, but I will give you this win. I shall allowyou and everyone behind that wall to walk away unarmed and with onlythe clothes you are wearing, but you have my word noone will be hurt.’

‘Unfortunately we are way past that,’ said Brittle. ‘You have killed Isaacand your word means very little to me. For my part in The Cure it is nowtime that I make that sacrifice. It is my time and if I can do one thing tomake this world right again it is that I will take you to Hell with me.’

The Commander General started to panic. It was now clear that ProfessorBrittle had never meant to ask him for safe passage out of the prison. Theplan that the Professor hadn’t told Logan was that he had never intendedto come back to the prison. His plan was to get as close to the CommanderGeneral as possible and detonate the explosives vest killing both of themand any surrounding soldiers.

The General took a step backwards and the Professor took one forward.‘Wait, Brittle.’

‘The time for waiting is over General,’ replied the Professor.

The Commander General moved uneasily towards the Professor and thensmiled. ‘Before you do whatever it is you plan to do there is somethingyou need to know about The Cure.’

‘There is nothing you can tell me now that will stop me from saving thosepeople in there from a tyrant like you,’ said the Professor.

‘Even if I told you that you and Wanikiy were not responsible for TheCure. I mean not responsible for The Cure affecting the whole of Americaand the rest of the world,’ said the General.

‘You are lying?’ replied the Professor.*****************

Logan watched the Commander General lean in towards the Professor andsay something to him, which made the Professor turn