【英文读物】Misrule

【英文读物】Misrulechapter 1 The brick smashed through the window and skittered across the top of Glen Wheatleys desk. He had already removed most of the breakables, but it caught a large plastic ash tray and sent it caroming off his cheekbone. A thin trickle of blood crept down his face."Good God, arent they starting a little early this year?" Bert Hillary, who shared Wheatleys office, was obviously not expecting an answer. He had been making it clear for the past hour (they had all got to their desks an hour earlier for this day) that he was an old hand, while this was Glens first experience of Peoples Day.Glen knew that Hillary had been in the Civil Service only five or six years. He himself could hardly be accused of being an expert on the every-four-years Day. Still, he waited for the older man to make the first move.Hillary got up and peered cautiously out the shattered window. "Yeah, theyre already boiling around the outer wall like yeast in a vat. That guy with the brick must have quite a pitching arm." Sweat stood out on his forehead. He was clearly much more frightened than he pretended to be.Glen noticed this with some satisfaction. At least, he wasnt the only one. "Come on, Wheatley. Us lower-level boys have got to be on the hop. Youd be surprised how fast that mob can get up here."Glen unfolded the map of Government House that had been placed on his desk that morning. He stared grimly at it, dabbing at his cheek with a rather grubby handkerchief meanwhile. The bleeding did not show any signs of stopping.Hillary hurried to the door. "Come on!" He was openly nervous now. "Its no good studying that map for safety-holes now. You should have been doing that ever since we got here this morning."As a matter of fact, Glen had been doing just that, whenever Hillarys flow of words had momentarily run dry. But he had not yet got the location of all the nearby hidden cubbies clearly in his mind. "Government House is such a maze," he said defensively."And were damned lucky it is," Hillary said from the doorway. "Anyway, how do you know that map youve got there isnt just what theyve been hawking in Peoples Square all this past week?" He gave a slightly sick leer."You know those maps are inaccurate. Theyre just a sop, just to give the mob an extra thrill. Government House plants most of them." He could sound like an old hand, too, Glen thought with a certain smugness."Nuts to that. Some of them are amazingly accurate. There are a hell of a lot of non-Government people in here from year to year, and some of them arent here just on business. Lets get going." Hillary pulled Glen through the door, and then locked it. Glen raised his eyebrows at this. "Oh, sure," his co-worker said wryly. "Gives the People something to work off steam on." He patted the flimsy door. "This will cave in under a few hard shoulders. Not like the safety-hole panels. We hope.""But they dont unlock for another half hour in this area.""Thirty-eight minutes, to be exact," Hillary said, glancing at his watch. "And of course the ones deeper in and higher up open even later. Were supposed to give them a run for their taxes."The corridor was emptying out rapidly. Glen could hear smashing noises from the ground floor.Apparently the People were already in the building, beginning their day of destruction. He thought gratefully of his private apartment, tucked away in the impregnable heart of Government House. Of course, it was closed off to him too on this day; but at least it was safe from the mob. They would get mainly the chaff to destroy."Im heading for the upper levels," Hillary said. "Even if the safeties open later up there, it takes longer for the mob to penetrate. Theres enough breakable and burnable stuff at the first few levels to keep them busy for a while. Coming?"Glen had just seen Joan Bourne emerge from her office and lock the door. He headed toward her. "Im going to stay near some out-of-the-way safety in this area and hop in when it first opens. I dont feel like running from the People," he called back with a bravado he did not really feel."Suit yourself." Hillary was already at the stairs. He paused for a moment. "And good luck.""Thanks," Glen said. "Good hiding."Joan had been listening, and met him in the middle of the corridor. "I think youve got the right idea, Glen. Want some company?"He smiled, and brushed her cheek with his lips. "You know the answer to that, Joan. For life.""This is hardly the day to bring that up again." She took his arm, and they turned off down a side corridor. "Besides, I thought our relationship was very nice as it is," she pouted."It is. Im just greedy."The side passageway took them deeper into the labyrinth that was Government House. Glen had hardly ever been out of it. He had been born and brought up in the great central area that surrounded Government Park, now sealed off from both the People and the Civil Servants. Apart