and my colleagues at Eight King's Bench Walk Chambers, including by name Jemma Levinson and the slapped primate. Special thanks are due to Barry Fantoni, my critic and advocate. 'Gilbert', intoned the Headmaster forming his face into a patently insincere smile, 'I'd like to have a few words with you if you don't mind. Come to my study straight away'. Charlie swallowed hard and followed the headmaster to his study. a minor royal and his lumpish wife who discovered to their delight that the Patriotic Alliance had declared the throne vacant, citing the precedent of the departing James II and the Glorious Revolution, and themselves the heirs to the throne. Richard Horton and the king were keeping the vast crowd, largely made up of enthusiastic fascists, waiting. Charlie put his arm around Jill's shoulders as if they were lovers, which they were not, and whispered urgently into her ear. 'For Christ's sake, you are in the middle of a hundred thousand fascists. If you want to get yourself carted off to the labour camps at least do it somewhere where I'm not!' The waiting crowd began to amuse itself with a Mexican wave of fascist salutes. Cries of 'Hail!' accompanied the wave around the rally. Charlie felt the need to further concentrate Jill's mind. 'How do you know I'm not a fervent fascist?' Jill smiled. 'I can tell. I also suspect that the headmaster can tell too'. 'What do you mean?' Charlie was both annoyed and disturbed by this last comment. Jill noticed his reaction and adopted a more conciliatory tone. 'Well...has he had one of his fatherly chats with you recently?' Charlie nodded. 'Yes. The day our pupils turned into little murderers'. Charlie and Jill, unwilling spectators to the rally in their capacity as schoolteachers, were sitting in the middle of those pupils. They, together with several thousand other schoolchildren, were at Hyde Park to give a display of English country dancing in celebration of the auspicious occasion. The headmaster had pulled a few strings to have them included and was feeling exceptionally pleased with himself. 'He does that', continued Jill. 'It's one of the little ways he finds to amuse himself. He decides which members of staff may be politically suspect. Then he acts as if he is taking a special 'Absolutely splendid', announced the headmaster triumphantly. 'I'll have the arrangements made for your induction courses myself. Now if you'll excuse me...' Charlie and Jill withdrew after being presented with half a pack of biscuits each. In the corridor Jill turned on Charlie. 'What the hell were you playing at in there?' she hissed. 'I was ready to tell him to go and fuck himself. Once you said yes I was in an impossible position'. Charlie looked apologetically at her. 'I'm sorry. I've got my reasons. I couldn't see any alternative'. 'And what might your reasons be?' asked Jill. 'I assume you haven't sold out for half a packet of biscuits?' 'Of course not', snapped Charlie and then he paused. 'I don't want to be difficult. I can't say'. 'You're not really one of them, are you?' 'No, of course I'm not'. Charlie was aware that he was blushing. Jill sighed. 'Well then, we need to meet and talk. Give me your address. It had better be tonight'. 'Well...you said yourself that the headmaster tries to recruit teachers he believes to be suspect to the Patriotic Alliance. It's a kind of test'. Jill nodded. 'Therefore he must believe that we are both suspect from his point of view'. 'I know'. 'Therefore we are both at risk'. 'I know that too'. Jill let out a cynical little snort. 'What do you think would happen to us if we had said no?' Jill paused for what seemed an age. 'Well, sooner or later something very unpleasant would happen to us'. 'Exactly. These people may seem like a freak show, but they've got the power of life and death over us'. 'And you don't want to die. Neither do I, obviously. But what do you want to live for?' Charlie paused for thought. It was a pity he couldn't tell Jill the truth. He was, by his silence on the subject of Natalie, creating a barrier between them. He gave the most anodyne answer he could think of. 'Better times'. He looked at Jill and gave a rueful little smile. Jill smiled back and raised her eyebrows. 'And so...?' 'So pretend to conform. It's all about survival. Pretend to conform'. 'And wait for better times, I suppose. Obviously, I've thought of all that. But what if we got incorporated? You can't deny that it's possible. It's what the headmaster wants to happen and we aren't the first people he's tried to manipulate in this way.' 'I don't believe that we will. It's just about survival. That's all there is to it'. 'You're repeating yourself. What's really maddening is that I think you're right. Martyrdom will help no one. Furthermore, I expect that it's a thoroughly unpleasant experience'. 'I'm a schoolteacher'. Cameron said nothing but raised his eyes to the heavens. Charlie shuffled his feet uncomfortably. 'I've got to check you out for racial purity. I suppose I could get the fucking form filled out now while we're waiting. Let's get it out of the way and then I've one less to do'. Cameron fiddled about in an elderly briefcase and eventually pulled out a form. 'Any Jewish blood?' 'No. Not that I'm aware of'. 'Just stick to "no". It makes life less complicated'. 'No'. Cameron ticked a box on the form. 'Any negro blood? I don't know why they don't just put nigger. That's what they mean'. 'No'. 'Any other non-white blood?' 'No'. 'Do you have AIDS or are you HIV positive? 'No'. Cameron laughed a little laugh. 'You pass. Oh, one more thing. This one is new. Are you married?' Charlie shook his head. 'Have you ever been married?' Charlie practically jumped out of his skin. 'No'. Cameron looked him up and down for a third time. 'You're not fucking queer, are you? I hate queers'. 'No'. 'Probably wouldn't matter if you were. The question is supposed to smoke out race mixers. Seems fucking stupid to me. I mean, they're not going to say "oh yes, I'm a race mixer, can I join?" are they?' 'I suppose not', stammered Charlie. 'The gene pool's all messed up now', continued Cameron. 'There was some couple in Birmingham what had a baby a while ago. They both looked as white as you or me. The baby was as black as the ace of spades. They did a DNA check and it showed the bloke was the father'. Cameron giggled inanely. 'What happened to the baby?' Charlie asked. 'How the fuck would I know?' answered Cameron. 'They boiled it down to make a bar of soap for all I care'. At that point various aspirant members of the Patriotic Alliance began to drift in and Charlie found himself making small talk with them. He began to see Cameron's point of view. They were obviously all there for careerist reasons or because, like him, they had been bullied into it. The careerists were in the majority. Finally, Jill made her way in. She was the last of the group to arrive. Her racial purity having been ascertained, they were led into a side room where they all sat down. Cameron prowled up and down in front of them. 'I don't know why you're fucking here tonight', he commenced. 'You're all old enough to have joined the Patriotic Alliance when the going was tough. I expect half of you are just here for your Academy Store passes'. 'I have a fear of torture', Charlie said.
the Year Is 2012. The Global Conflict That First Manifested Itself In The Attack On The Twin Towers And Broadened And Deepened With The Invasions Of Afghanistan And Iraq Has Continued Through The First Decade Of The New Millennium And Beyond, Bringing With It Ever Increasing Hatred And Misery. A Broken Backed Britain Battered By Global Economic Collapse And Seemingly Endless Terrorist Outrages, Has Succumbed To Fascism And Barbarism.
charlie Gilbert, A South London Schoolteacher, Is Not A Particularly Brave Man Yet He Will Need All His Resources Of Bravery And Ingenuity As Events Close In On Him. Charlie Has A Secret. He Has A Young Mixed Race Daughter, Natalie, Hidden Away In The Country With His Elderly Mother. If Caught By The Authorities, Natalie And Anyone Helping Her Would Meet A Brutal End. Charlie Decides That Their Only Hope Lies In Escape To Ireland, Which Remains A Democracy. He Sets Out To Collect Natalie With Only The Haziest Idea Of How To Effect Their Escape.
charlie, Natalie, His Elderly Mother And A Disagreeable Family Cat Called Catesby Set Out West, Heading For Wales And Thence To Ireland And Safety. En Route, They Experience Capture, Incarceration In A Slave Labour Camp, Escape And Recapture, Collecting On The Way Billy, An Elderly Jamaican. Their Story Is Both A Fast Moving Adventure Story And A Warning As To The Future Of A Troubled World.
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andrew Keogh Was Born In Leeds And Lives In South London With His Wife And Two Children. He Is A Practising Barrister Specialising In Criminal Law. When Not Engaged In The Law Or Writing Or Reading Fiction, He Enjoys Cookery, A Wide Range Of Popular Music, Being A Cricket Anorak And Following The Misadventures Of Leeds United Football Club. This Is His First Novel.
