Only the Good Die Young by George Helman Read Free Book Online Page A

his eyes were failing.
    ‘Where are you going?’ he asked.
    ‘Logistics, dear,’ said Richie.
    ‘What?’
    ‘It ain’t safe here. Not for long anyway. I need a new lock up.’
    Dave had images of himself rolling to safety like Houdini. He pulled at the rope again. No give.
    ‘Hey, honey,’ said Richie. ‘What do you want for supper?’ He laughed. ‘Meat and two veg? Or are they a bit sore? I’ll be back with Vindaloo.’
    ‘Please,’ said Dave. ‘Feed Stephen too.’
    ‘What are you on about?’ said Richie.
    Dave didn’t reply. He didn’t have much of a chance. The shutters went down and the dim light disappeared.
    ‘Hello?’ he called.
    Then he gagged. He knew why he could smell death. There were dead bodies in here. He didn’t know how many. They were all around him. He breathed through his mouth. Images of looking at corpses came into his mind. But why? Why would he have stood next to corpses on metal slabs and been talked through their injuries? Perhaps he was the bad guy.
    ‘Stephen!’ he called.
    ‘I’m here,’ came his voice.
    ‘I asked him for food for you,’ said Dave.
    ‘Thank you.’
    ‘Am I the bad guy?’
    ‘Have you killed anyone?’
    Dave had images of himself with guns. He could see the gun in his hand. But he was at a rifle range. He wasn’t in battle.
    He couldn’t imagine himself wanting to kill someone. He wanted to see Richie die. He’d do it if he could. But not collecting victims in a lock up or whatever he called it.
    ‘I don’t think this is a cell,’ said Dave.
    ‘What is it?’ asked Stephen.
    ‘A garage of some sort.’
    ‘Probably you’re right. You’d know better than me.’
    ‘Why? Because I’m older? How old are you?’
    ‘I’m nineteen,’ said Stephen.
    ‘But you were always nineteen.’
    ‘No I wasn’t.’
    Dave thought for a minute. He had a memory of playing with cars as a child, making a zooming noise as he ran the toy car over Stephen’s head.
    ‘If you’re nineteen,’ he said. ‘I must be twenty three.’
    Stephen said nothing.
    ‘But you died, Stephen,’ said Dave.
    It was coming back to him now.
    ‘You said I was good for nothing,’ said Stephen. ‘You didn’t even come to my funeral.’
    ‘I’m in the army,’ said Dave. ‘I didn’t come to your funeral because I was in the army. Yes I remember. How come we thought you’d died when you were here? Didn’t anyone look for you?’
    Stephen didn’t reply.
    Dave smiled to himself. He had remembered. Now maybe he could remember his name. And if he was in the army, surely he could get out of here. He just needed to play it right.
    He sat in silence and listened to the room.
    Could he hear breathing? It was like a wheezing.
    ‘Stephen are you wheezing?’ he asked.
    He heard a groaning noise, as if someone was waking up.
    ‘Wait,’ he said. ‘Who is that?’
    He turned his ear towards the noise.
    ‘Alive.’
    Dave was sure he heard it softly said.
    ‘Alive? Is someone here alive? Hello?’
    ‘Help me,’ said a voice.
    It was the elderly lady from before.
    ‘You’re alive!’ said Dave.
    ‘Help me. I can’t move,’ she said.
    Dave felt himself start to cry. Big teardrops made his bandage wet. He felt colder. He felt like a new-born baby.
    ‘I can’t help,’ he said.
    It seemed the most awful thing that had happened to him.
    ‘I always help,’ he said. ‘But I can’t move. I’m tied with rope. But I’m in the army.’
    ‘You’re a soldier?’ The woman’s voice was high, he heard the hope in her voice.
    ‘I’m a soldier,’ he said. ‘With your help, we can both escape.’

Chapter 6
    Shirley collected the empty cups from every table in the open plan office. She spoke to no one. She willed anyone to say something. She needed to snap, to shout, to cry.
    ‘Thanks,’ said an officer.
    She glared at him.
    Everyone was watching her. Several days had passed and there had been no progress in finding Dave or his kidnapper. Their faces showed sympathy,