Double or Die by Charlie Higson

Author:Charlie Higson [Higson, Charlie]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Ian Fleming Publications Ltd
Published: 2010-12-23T06:00:00+00:00

16

Carcass Row

Wolfgang had a bandage wrapped around his head with thick padding over where his right ear had been. His face was pale and his black-ringed eyes were shining feverishly. The rainwater pouring down his face made him look like he was crying.

He was holding a pistol and a torch. They were both shaking slightly.

Ludwig had his hands in his pockets. With his skull face he looked completely at home here in the cemetery. His top hat was keeping the worst of the rain off him.

‘Well, this is a nice surprise,’ said Ludwig, with no hint of emotion in his voice. ‘Finding you here. An added bonus. Now, I think you’ve got what we was looking for. So, give us the piece of paper, boy.’

‘Or what?’ said James.

‘Or whatever you like,’ said Ludwig and he lifted his hands out of his pockets. In his hands were two weird and sinister weapons – stubby revolvers, with very short muzzles, whose grips were knuckledusters.

Ludwig smiled. His hands were not shaking. They were rock solid. As he raised the guns towards the boys a narrow bayonet slid out of the end of each weapon with a metallic click and snapped into place. The blades were not much thicker than knitting needles and tapered to tiny stiletto points.

James swallowed hard and wiped his face. He had seen the wound in Peterson’s eye. The last thing the professor would have seen was one of these blades as it slid into his skull.

‘You should be careful with those things,’ said James. ‘You could do yourself an injury.’

‘Very droll,’ said Ludwig. ‘Now, give us the piece of paper like a good little boy.’

James stuffed the paper into his jacket pocket.

‘Watch him, Ludo,’ said Wolfgang, his voice hoarse. ‘He might be armed.’

‘I am watching him,’ said Ludwig irritably. ‘What do you think I’m doing? I’ve got two bleeding guns pointed at his chest. If he pulls out anything more dangerous than a rabbit I’ll put two holes through him and spit on his corpse.’

James remembered that he still had the other letter in his pocket, the one with the binary code on it.

He didn’t need it any more. Tommy had made a copy. He crushed it into his palm.

‘Here,’ he said, stepping forward. As Ludwig put out his hand for the paper, James threw it as far as he could into the bushes. Ludwig sighed.

‘Go and get that, Wolf,’ he said.

‘Why should I get it?’ said Wolfgang. ‘Make the boy go. He threw it there.’

‘Oh, good idea,’ said Ludwig sarcastically. ‘What a very good idea. Let the boy go traipsing off into the dark and get away from us. You’ve got the torch. Go and get it.’

Wolfgang grumbled as he picked his way into the undergrowth. Ludwig advanced on James, one of the thin, vicious blades pointing straight into his face.

‘You really shouldn’t have done that, boy,’ he said. ‘It’s very annoying.’

‘It was meant to be,’ said James.

‘James,’ said Perry, quietly, ‘I don’t think you should annoy the m-man.

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.