Chapters (45)
- Title Page
- Copyright Page
- Contents
- Prologue
- 2046
- One
- Two
- Three
- Four
- Five
- Six
- Seven
- Eight
- Nine
- Ten
- Eleven
- Twelve
- Thirteen
- Fourteen
- Fifteen
- Sixteen
- Seventeen
- Eighteen
- Nineteen
- Twenty
- Twenty-One
- Twenty-Two
- Twenty-Three
- Twenty-Four
- Twenty-Five
- Twenty-Six
- Twenty-Seven
- Twenty-Eight
- Twenty-Nine
- Thirty
- Thirty-One
- Thirty-Two
- Thirty-Three
- Thirty-Four
- Thirty-Five
- Thirty-Six
- Thirty-Seven
- Thirty-Eight
- Thirty-Nine
- About the Author
‘No,’ Konrad says firmly. ‘You’re gonna need more men.’
‘More men?’ Roland asks with a look of alarm.
‘In case they go nuts,’ Konrad says.
‘When they go nuts, not if,’ Malcolm adds.
‘Right. More men, eh?’ Roland says, grimacing at the prospect. ‘Er, perhaps you chaps could find some?’
The two men exchange a look. ‘Fine,’ Konrad groans.
‘Great!’ Roland booms. ‘Get some big ones.’
‘Big ones,’ Konrad says with an exhausted nod.
‘But don’t tell them what . . .’
‘Yes, boss,’ Malcolm sighs. ‘Don’t tell them anything. We know.’
‘They can’t see the door thing,’ Roland says.
‘Door thing,’ Konrad mutters.
‘Portal,’ Malcolm says.
‘Yes, that portal door thing. They can’t see it . . . or outside! Christ, don’t show them outside.’
‘We won’t.’
‘Offer them money,’ Roland says, holding a finger up.
‘Well, they ain’t gonna work for free,’ Konrad says.
‘But not too much money,’ Roland adds quickly with a look of panic. He stares at the two bruised men. ‘Well, off you go then.’
‘What, now?’ Konrad asks.
‘We’ve only just got back with Safa,’ Malcolm says.
‘But they might wake up and go nuts,’ Roland says. ‘We need some big men here.’
‘Yes, boss,’ Malcolm sighs again.
‘Great stuff,’ Roland says. ‘Well done chaps!’
Five
Five
Three austere sterile rooms. Concrete walls. Concrete floors and ceilings. A single metal-framed bed in each room. Two of the rooms have metal shutters indicating the placement of a window.
Ben stirs, sighing and breathing heavily. ‘Can you turn the light off please?’ he mutters, squeezing his lids closed from the glaring light of the single bulb hanging from the ceiling.
Harry opens his eyes and closes them immediately, waiting for the retina burn to pass before trying again with tiny increments to lessen the pain and increase the transition from darkness to light.
Safa wakes and immediately rolls over to bury her head in the pillow at the glaring light as she becomes acutely aware of the pounding headache in the back of her skull.
Ben tries again and slowly peers round at the room. He must be in a hospital. A really horrible hospital run by stretched staff too busy to actually provide care for their patients. Maybe if they bought lower-wattage bulbs they would have enough money left to pay nurses. These things could illuminate a football pitch.