Railsea by China Mieville

Author:China Mieville
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub, azw3
ISBN: 9780345524546
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Published: 2012-05-14T18:30:00+00:00

FORTY-ONE

ROBALSON WAS IN THE PUB AGAIN. “WHAT GOT HOLD of you?” he said, at the sight of Sham’s face.

“I’m stupid & useless.”

“Blimey,” Robalson said.

“You know I said I was going to see some people? Well, they gave me the chance to go somewhere with them. They wanted me to go with them, I think. One of them. & I wanted to go with her. But I bottled it. & I don’t even know why! I think I did want to go. But I can’t have done, can I?”

“Who were they?”

“Just a family. I found something of theirs. A sort of a treasure map. Sort of. & they’ve gone off to find out if it’s right.”

“This is them Soaks. & you didn’t go?”

“I didn’t. Because I’m stupid …”

“Whoa, hush. Look. Tell me about it. I don’t think you’re stupid or useless. You’re no one’s fool, Sham.”

Nice to have someone think so. It was a scrappy version of the story that Sham told. He rambled about the wreck, spoke in vague terms of “evidence,” of “something,” of a secret that the poor dead prospectors appeared to have managed to keep, that the Shroakes had the right to know.

Robalson was rapt. “I heard Engineday they was going!” he said.

“That was … disinformation.”

“No!” Robalson said at last. He looked thoughtful. He looked grim. “I think I understand. The rumours are right!”

“Eh? What rumours?”

“The rumours about you.”

“What?” breathed Sham. “What are you talking about?”

“You made the right decision not to go, Sham.” Robalson spoke tensely. “I have to tell you something.” He was glancing side to side.

“What is this? What do you mean?”

“Come outside,” Robalson said. “I’ll explain. Wait. Don’t make it look like we’re going together. You’ve got to be careful.” He was not looking at Sham as he spoke. “Outside, left, there’s a little alley. I’ll go first. Five minutes, follow me. & Sham—don’t let anyone see you leave.”

& he was gone, & Sham was bewildered & not unafraid. He waited. He swallowed. He felt his blood rush. At last—head whizzing & not from booze—he stood. Was he watched? He glanced at the drinkers in the dim light. He had no idea.

Into the grey of local streetlamps, the Manihiki night. He crept round into shadows. Daybe came out of the sky & landed on him. He nuzzled it. There was Robalson, slouched by the wall, waiting by a trash bin.

“You got your bat with you?” he whispered nervously.

“What’s the big secret?” Sham whispered.

“The big secret.” Robalson nodded. “You remember when you asked me what my train was? Asked me what I did?”

Sham shivered. “Yeah,” he said. “You said you was—well, you made a joke.”

“Yeah. You remember. The secret’s this.” Robalson leaned closer. “I wasn’t lying. I am a pirate.”

& Sham discovered—as he was grabbed roughly from behind & gripped so he couldn’t move, as his unseen assailant shoved a fumey cloth up against his mouth & nose so great gusts of bleach-&-menthol-smelling stuff went into his lungs & made his head corkscrew into

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