by Iain Pears
No one dared respond.
‘Then go now. The matter is decided for ever. Settle the lordship of Willdon and restore harmony to this land.’
As the crowd slowly began to follow his instructions and started drifting away, Lytten turned to Catherine and Pamarchon. ‘I see that Gontal is already heading off,’ he said. ‘I would hurry as well, if I were you.’
‘I will leave guards to make sure that this man does not try to escape,’ Pamarchon said.
‘He will not. Besides, I think your men may have better things to do. I sense that I was not as persuasive with Gontal as I had hoped. He looks unhappy, and I know what that look means. He wants to be ruler of Willdon so very badly, poor fellow, and this is his last chance. And do not suddenly become tempted by power yourself, young man. I do not want you to have Willdon, and you could win it only at the price of losing Rosalind.’
‘I am a man of my word.’
‘Good. That doesn’t mean, by the way, that you should abandon your comrades. Tell Catherine that I say her secret must be paid for.’
‘I do not understand what you mean, but I will tell her.’
‘Splendid.’
The young man bowed once more and followed the crowd to the place where domain business was conducted. Catherine had already gone.
‘May I go with him for a bit?’ Rosalind said.
‘Of course, my dear. But not for long. We need to talk. You, Jay, should go with Henary. I suspect he needs company. I imagine you have a few things to talk about with Aliena as well.’
Rosalind grinned and skipped after Pamarchon, catching him up and taking hold of his hand. Arm in arm, they walked into the trees and disappeared.
59
The following morning, as day broke over the hills, Jack woke and swiftly got up. He had a long day ahead of him; Emily had offered to drive him to a refuelling station, and there he would try and get a lift north. After that he would make it up as he went along. He didn’t dare travel on ordinary transport, as he would be spotted the moment he bought a ticket, so he would take a longer, more complicated route that gave him a reasonable chance of going into hiding. Then he would blend into the background, unnoticed amongst so many millions of people.
‘Are you ready?’ Emily always seemed to be up before he was, bright and fresh.
‘Yes. If I can take some bread with me …?’
‘Of course. We can go in an hour. There’s not much point leaving before that, as there won’t be anything on the road yet.’
‘I’d rather go now.’
‘I have a few things to do first.’
He supposed that she was worried. If anything went wrong and it became clear that she had been helping him, then the consequences would be bad for her. He was grateful she had offered, and even though it was somewhat selfish, he had accepted without hesitation. It saved him a six-hour walk.
‘Very well. I’ll go and collect the document. I’ll need to wrap it well.’
‘I’m not sure Kendred has quite finished.’
She led the way into the next room, which had been set up as Kendred’s laboratory. Jack had spent an hour in there with him the previous evening, watching to make sure he did not in any way damage anything. He was impressed by his care; Kendred snipped off only a tiny amount of paper to run his tests and for the rest of the time examined it carefully under an old-fashioned microscope, saying nothing and grunting occasionally. He was still working when Jack had left, and looked now as though he had been up all night.
‘Are you nearly finished? Jack wishes to leave.’
Kendred stretched himself. ‘Nearly.’
‘What are your conclusions?’
‘I am absolutely certain that this is a genuinely old document, dating back to the eighteenth century. The paper is certainly that old, the ink is of the same age. I have found nothing in the other papers which refers to it. So how do we explain it? The script cannot have been written then.’
‘Luckily, I do not have to worry about explanations,’ Jack said. ‘I was told to find it and return it. More than that I cannot …’
A low throbbing sound in the air had been growing steadily as they spoke. Jack had noticed it in the back of his mind but had paid no attention. He should have been more alert. Even Emily was quicker; she walked outside to look in the direction of the noise.
‘Helicopter,’ she said.
‘Several of them,’ Jack said as he joined her. ‘Big ones. That’s bad.’
*
There was no point in trying to run or hide, even if they had wanted to. Jack knew full well that advance soldiers would have surrounded the retreat already, taking up position and checking for any threats before the helicopters arrived. This was the end of the operation, the grand finale, not the beginning. There was nothing to do except stand and wait. Somehow or other they had been tracked and followed.
Four huge helicopters flew overhead, making last-minute checks, then pulled back into the middle distance. Jack didn’t want to think how many guns were now trained on them, but he warned the others – the Retreat had only a dozen or so inmates and they all came out to look at the noise – to move slowly and deliberately, to keep their hands away from their clothes, to do nothing which might even be thought of as threatening.
They nodded nervously as he told them what to do, and watched as another machine – vast and terrifyingly noisy – loomed overhead, then settled down like a metal insect in the field opposite. Ten soldiers jumped out and spread across the ground, weapons at the ready. Two ran towards Jack and Emily; they did not speak, did not explain themselves, and no one was foolish enough to protest. Jack put his arm round Emily, both to give comfort and to warn her not to move. He knew from experience how nervous the soldiers would be. ‘Gently,’ he said quietly. ‘They’re doing their job. Let them get on with it.’
Then came the grand climax of the event, which was, he realised, choreographed to perfection. As the helicopter’s engines died and the huge rotors stopped, two more men leapt out and opened the doors; they put a set of steps up to the side of the machine. Then a small figure appeared at the doorway, blinked in the bright morning air and came down the steps, assisted by a guard who, almost touchingly, held his arm to steady him. He walked slowly towards them, then went straight past into the building. From the gestures of the soldiers, Jack gathered they were meant to follow, so he gripped Emily by the arm even more firmly. ‘Come with me. Don’t be alarmed,’ he whispered. ‘It’s a good show. It’s meant to frighten. If he’d wanted anything else we’d all be dead by now.’
*
Oldmanter was sitting in the one chair by the fire, which he briefly gazed at with what seemed almost like appreciation. Jack, Emily and Kendred were lined up in front of him. The bodyguards took up position at the doors and windows.
‘You understand my caution?’ he asked, gesturing at the guards with a lazy flick of the hand.
‘They are not necessary,’ Emily replied. ‘You know we do not approve of violence in our group.’
Oldmanter ignored the remark and looked around him at the room, which was bare and whitewashed, with wooden floors that had been scrubbed so often they were almost white as well. ‘Unusual. Not healthy, but appealing to the eye.’
‘Would you care for some refreshment?’
‘Would I care to drink some unhygienic muck that is not scanned in advance, out of a receptacle which has not been properly sterilised?’
Emily flushed.
‘No, thank you. I haven’t survived as long as I have by taking unnecessary risks. Shall we get down to business, or do you prefer a leisurely period of polite conversation first of all?’
‘I would like to know why you have come here. We have done nothing wrong.’
‘You think not? I could give you a very long list if I had the time. Unregistered Retreat, harbouring a fugitive. In fact, you know perfectly well why I am here. I want that document. Would you hand it over, please?’
‘I’m afraid I
cannot,’ Jack replied. ‘You know that I am duty-bound to Dr Hanslip.’
‘He is under arrest and has been stripped of his status.’
‘Since when?’
‘Since we raided his institute last night. I took the precaution of bringing him here to demonstrate, in case you doubted my word.’
The old man flipped a hand and one of the guards walked out. They stayed there – Oldmanter sitting, the others standing, the guards with their backs to the wall, eyes flitting nervously everywhere – until the door opened once more, and two guards brought a dishevelled and badly beaten Hanslip into the room.
Far from being one of the rulers of the world, if only a minor one, Hanslip now seemed like one of the criminals Jack had arrested in the past. His face was filthy and bruised, and already it was scored with that look of defeat and resignation which he had seen so often.
‘Well, Hanslip?’ Oldmanter said – not harshly or cruelly, Jack noted. There was no tone of victory or triumph in his voice. ‘You see how well your employee serves you. He will not hand over the manuscript until he is certain his contractual obligation to you is at an end. Please confirm it now.’
Hanslip continued to look as though he didn’t quite realise where he was or understand what was going on. Eventually he attempted a weak smile, which made him grimace from some hidden pain.
‘I’m sorry to see you like this, sir,’ Jack said, ‘but you must answer the question. Am I now free to hand over the document to Mr Oldmanter?’
‘No!’ Hanslip croaked. ‘No! Never. You must not! It is mine! No one must have it but me …’
He got no further. One of the guards clubbed him sharply from the rear with his gun, and Hanslip sank to his knees, his head bowed. Oldmanter regarded Hanslip with what looked surprisingly like sympathy. ‘Oh, shut him up!’ he said, then turned back to More. ‘I am not to be trifled with. This is too important. Mr More, you no longer owe loyalty to that man and all contracts and loyalties have passed to me. You must surrender the document. That is now a direct order.’
‘I would do so,’ he said, ‘but unfortunately I do not have it.’
‘Then who does?’
‘I do,’ said Emily from the corner of the room. ‘It is concealed, and if you try to take it by force it will be destroyed. From what I understand of its nature, merely rendering a small section unreadable will make the whole thing useless, is that not the case?’
‘Then I ask you to give it to me.’
‘Certainly. By all means.’
Kendred instantly rounded on her.
‘Are you mad, girl? Don’t you know who this is?’
‘I do. This is the man who controls the fate of the world, whether we like it or not.’
Oldmanter’s eyes showed his amusement. ‘Quite right.’
‘Unless I destroy that little booklet,’ she continued, ‘in which case the machine you are all so interested in will be just a useless piece of ironware. Correct? You are not clever enough to reproduce Angela Meerson’s work and this is the only copy of it.’
‘An interesting opening, young woman. Let us say, for a moment, that your statement is correct. What do you do next?’
‘I make modest demands that you will find easy to accept, in exchange for giving you what you want.’
‘Oh, dear! You are going to beg me to abandon the campaign against the Retreats and the renegades. How wearisome of you!’
‘No. I want you to increase it.’
‘I beg your pardon?’ Oldmanter visibly perked up at hearing something new for once.
‘Shut them down. Gather the inmates together, by force if necessary.’
She got no further, though. Kendred, his face white with fury, spoke once more. ‘Stop this now.’
‘I know what I’m doing.’
‘We must talk. Now.’
He all but dragged her from the room. Oldmanter did not move to stop them, but nodded to one of the guards.
‘Watch them. If either makes any dangerous moves, then shoot them both.’
Then he turned to Hanslip, who was still standing in the corner, watching in shock. ‘Oh, take him away,’ he said. ‘I can’t stand to look at him.’
*
The room was empty except for Jack and Oldmanter, who sat there and hummed to himself for a while.
Eventually, though, he spoke. ‘Are you surprised, Mr More?’
‘By you allowing them to leave the room, or by what she just said?’
‘The second. It is obviously safer if it is handed over voluntarily. As she said, it is unwise to risk damage to the text. If I have to use force, then I will. But I would prefer not to.’
‘I did not expect it.’
‘Nor I. She is an interesting young woman. But each must use such advantages as they have, and what loyalty does she owe to any of us? Can anyone offer her a better price than I can, do you think? It is sensible to sell the information to the highest bidder, although I must admit I assumed the stupid principles of these people would get in the way. They always seem to prefer suffering and self-sacrifice to common sense.’
Oldmanter moved slightly in his chair and Jack saw again how very old and frail this man really was. ‘I was impressed by your behaviour,’ Oldmanter continued. ‘You must have known I might have ordered your execution for disobeying me just now.’
‘I gave my loyalty to Dr Hanslip,’ Jack said. ‘I was bound until it was clear the tie was dissolved.’
‘And now it is. So what will you do?’
‘Look for another job, I suppose. Unless you plan to have me locked up.’
‘I do not punish loyalty. Besides, I can think of a better use for you. You will continue in your present employment, but obedient to me directly. Do you accept?’
‘Of course.’ Jack spoke without hesitation.
‘That is settled then.’
‘What will you do with Emily?’
‘Are you worried for her? Don’t be. I will give her everything she wants. I imagine her demands will be limited.’
‘Why would she trust you?’
‘Because I am a man of my word,’ he said in a slightly hurt tone. ‘It is my pleasure to be so. I do not win by cheating. Where is the achievement in that?’
‘Hanslip said this technology is too dangerous to use.’
Oldmanter laughed. ‘A remarkable change of mind, don’t you think?’
‘You think he was lying?’
‘I know he was. There were very advanced plans to use that machine lying in his desk when we took control of his institute, and we have not found a shred of evidence to suggest it is dangerous. Besides, we have analysed the problem ourselves. I put the matter to a committee of the most senior figures in physics. We will not take undue risks, I assure you. It is in good hands; rather better than it was before.’
*
Emily was expressionless as she led Kendred back into the room.
‘Have you persuaded your associate?’ Oldmanter asked.
‘You may have the document.’
‘The trouble with that,’ Oldmanter said, ‘is that once you have done so, you will have no way of ensuring that I keep my side of any bargain. Mr More here pointed that out, which was quite offensive of him, but it has a measure of truth to it.’
‘I know. But you will.’
‘Why do you think that?’
‘Because my price will accomplish your greatest desires, provide you with an interesting experiment and gain you worldwide applause,’ she said.
‘You are very attentive to my needs. Go ahead.’
‘I want a universe.’
Oldmanter paused, genuinely caught on the hop for the first time in decades. ‘How splendid!’ he said. ‘That is what you meant by a modest demand, eh?’
‘As fast as is reasonable,’ Emily went on, ‘you will make your machines operational. You will then transmit those members of Retreats who wish to depart. You will announce the discovery and, as a way of demonstrating its power, announce also that
you are financing a programme to rid the world of all subversive, non-productive influences like us. The acclaim will be considerable. Then you can get on with whatever you have in mind.’
Oldmanter was impressed. Jack, standing to one side, could see that he was following her train of thought as fast as she was laying it out; the two of them were in step. It was an extraordinary thing to witness.
‘Now that, young lady, is a proposal worth listening to. I am inclined to agree just because of the scale of your nerve.’
‘Think of the new data you will gather, the organisational expertise. Think of the gratitude as well. You will recoup the cost in no time, and most will be research expenses you would incur anyway.’
‘What a shame,’ Oldmanter said appreciatively, ‘that you are a renegade. If only my employees had half your imagination. I don’t suppose I could tempt you …’
‘No.’
‘Ah well.’
‘Ah well, indeed,’ Emily said. ‘That’s the deal. Accept and you can have the data. Refuse and you can’t.’
Oldmanter was not a man to hesitate. His success had been built on seeing an opportunity and grabbing it wholeheartedly.
‘Obviously I accept. As you say, it is greatly to my advantage.’
‘Good.’
He nodded. ‘We will go to Mull, set up and calibrate. As long as there has been no substantial damage and my people haven’t gone overboard and razed the place, it will take a couple of weeks. Then we will have to test it with a few volunteers to make sure it is functioning properly. We will construct a bigger machine, building in what we have learned. Then perhaps five thousand a day, working up to ten thousand as more machines come on stream. This will continue until all volunteers have gone.’
‘Then you will leave us alone.’
‘Oh, certainly. We will switch to a different universe for our purposes. You may have a life of rustic bliss festering in primitivism until the day every single one of you dies.’
‘One more thing. I would like that poor man to have the chance of coming too. Hanslip.’