The King of Spain by Robert Ford

Author:Robert Ford [Ford, Robert]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: apostrophe books, novel, humour, fiction fast-track, robert ford, Edge Hill, new writing, british fiction, future, new writers
Publisher: Apostrophe Books Ltd
Published: 2013-01-21T00:00:00+00:00

A WINTER OF DISCONTENT

The lights in the Rec were always kept candle-low, an easy gloom that complemented the scruffy bar and its bingers.

Towards the back of the room, in their usual position, half-sprawled upon the sofas, were Sam, Rachel, Ted, Spike and Hal. The group looked dour, having been subjected for some time to Hal’s prattling.

‘It’s a disgrace. For this guy to come in and close the library - it’s bordering on an abuse of the patients’ civil liberties. Against their human rights.’

‘Not being funny, Hal, but since when did you give a toss about the patients’ civil rights?’ Spike regretted the comment almost as soon as it had left his mouth, wishing that he could have somehow recalled his words.

Hal glared at him from across the small table. ‘Of course I care... but it’s not just that, it’s not just the library. It’s this whole thing. Don’t you see? Now Daniels is gone, that’s it. Party’s over, mate. And I’m not too proud to admit it.’ Hal looked around the other faces of the group, drawing blanks from all. ‘I thought we had something here, a community or a way of life that was different, separate from everything. Special. Ah, fuck it...’ Hal trailed off, slumping back into the ragged cushions behind him.

‘I don’t mean to be rude,’ Rachel said. ‘And we’d miss you, but... would you think about leaving?’

It was a good question, a reasonable question, and also the one that no one dared put to Hal. Not ever.

‘Leave?’ said Hal. ‘Leave to where exactly?’

There was a pause, a communal intake of breath: who would say anything when he was in this kind of mood? At the back of the room behind the bar, Alan began to hiccup, his noisy diaphragm punctuating the tense atmosphere.

‘Back to the city. Back to... real life, I guess,’ Spike offered.

All eyes turned to Hal. But the explosion of rage that everyone was expecting failed to materialise. Instead, he leant forward and retrieved his cigarettes, lighting up with slow deliberate movements.

‘To the city,’ he said, repeating Spike’s words, chewing them over. ‘Only an imbecile would say such a thing. Or worse - an Australian.’

‘Steady on, mate,’ said Spike.

‘Do you know what it’s like out there? Really - what life is like out there in the city? Do you?’

‘Not for a while, but...’

‘Well, let me tell you. Other than the noise and the filth and the overcrowding and the crime and the rats and the disease and the pigeons and the government and the police and the jobs that scorch your soul, do you know what the really bad thing about living in the city is?’

‘The smell?’

‘The people.’

‘The people?’

‘The people. They are the single biggest reason why I could never move back there, or to the Enclaves for that matter. There’s just no way.’

‘What d’you mean?’ asked Sam.

‘I mean that the whole place is rotten. To the core. To the core.’ Hal took a long draw on his cigarette, a pause in which to gather.

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