Mercy on Your Soul by H. M. Mills

Author:H. M. Mills
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Published: 2021-02-28T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter-Thirty

Vanished

W aiting patiently for the group to settle, the tour guide was satisfied the majority of the class had been respectful of the property and his intermittent commentaries. Mr Silver joined him at the front, looking a bit worse for wear. His slightly silvering hair was mussed and the creases around his weary brown eyes had deepened.

“Settle down,” he called, waving his arms in the air to capture their attention. His voice was as fatigued as he looked. The students, however, seemed to have boundless energy, jostling each other for the best positions and expressing themselves like a troop of howler monkeys. Though it wasn’t necessary, with their proximity, their volume increased, each trying to be heard over the other.

At the startling sound of a shrill whistle blowing long and hard, all heads swivelled to face the front. Mr Silver, though grateful for the assistance, could no longer hear anything but a high pitch ringing in his left ear.

The tour-guide spat the offending silver object from his mouth, returning it to its position hanging about his neck.

“Sorry,” he mumbled, noticing the way Silver pushed a finger into his ear.

“This behaviour is unacceptable. I would expect this from a bunch of twelve-year-old’s, not from young adults preparing to complete the final years of their school education. Now, I will hand you over to Gustave. He would like to say a few words before you depart, so please give him your full attention.”

“Merci, Monsieur Silver.” The tall young man gave him a respectful nod before focussing his enthusiasm on the quietly fidgeting crowd. “J’espère que vous avez apprécié votre visite au Château des Falaises et que vous avez beaucoup appris sur Guillaume le Duc de Normandie, et conquérant de l’Angleterre.”

He smiled at the glazed expressions staring back at him. It never got old, he thought. “I hope you enjoyed your visit to Castle of the Cliffs and have learnt much about William, the Duke of Normandy, and Conqueror of England,” he translated. He licked his dry lips, permanently parted over his overly large and crooked teeth. “Per-aps you will return when you are wishing to learn how to speak French, non?” he jested. “Please take a gift bag with you when you depart. Merci, au revoir.”

“Thank you, Gustave. Class, please thank Gustave and line up single file at the door. Each of you is to take one gift-bag and make your way quietly to the coach.”

A chorus of ‘Thank you, Gustave,’ Sang out, followed by a few sniggers and snorts.

“Quickly and quietly, please.” Silver waited for the last of the students to disappear through the door, exhaling in relief. He made his way out, gathering up his strength for the long noisy trip home.

“Monsieur, Monsieur Argent. Une minute, s’il vous plait. Please, please, one minute.” Gustave, ran towards the bus, holding up a gift bag and waved it about.

Silver waited for him to approach. “Oh, thank you, Gustave. My apologies, I thought they were for the students.” He took the bag with a grateful thanks.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.