بخش 05 - فصل 28

28 Hodges and his junior Watsons stand in Brady’s basement control room, looking at the row of silent computers. “Chaos first,” Jerome says. “Then darkness. Right?” Hodges thinks, It sounds like something out of the Book of Revelation.

“I think so,” Holly says. “At least that’s the order she had them in.” To Hodges, she says, “She was listening, see? I bet she was listening a lot more than he knew she was listening.” She turns back to Jerome. “One thing. Very important. Don’t waste time if you get chaos to turn them on.” “Right. The suicide program. Only what if I get

nervous and my voice goes all high and squeaky like Mickey Mouse?” She starts to reply, then sees the look in his eye. “Hardyhar-har.” But she smiles in spite of herself. “Go on, Jerome. Be Brady Hartsfield.” He only has to say chaos once. The computers flash on, and the numbers start descending.

“Darkness!” The numbers continue to count down. “Don’t shout,” Holly says. “Jeez.” 16. 15. 14. “Darkness.” “I think you’re too low again,” Hodges says, trying not to sound as nervous as he feels. 12. 11.

Jerome wipes his mouth.

“D-darkness.”

“Mushmouth,”

Holly

observes. Perhaps not

helpfully.

1. 1. 6.

“Darkness.”

5.

The countdown disappears.

Jerome lets out a gusty sigh of

relief. What replaces the

numbers is a series of color

photographs of men in oldtimey Western clothes, shooting and being shot. One has been frozen as he and his horse crash through a plate glass window. “What kind of screensavers are those?” Jerome asks. Hodges points at Brady’s Number Five. “That’s William Holden, so I guess they must be scenes from a movie.”

“The Wild Bunch,” Holly says. “Directed by Sam Peckinpah. I only watched it once. It gave me nightmares.” Scenes from a movie, Hodges thinks, looking at the grimaces and gunfire. Also scenes from inside Brady Hartsfield’s head. “Now what?” Jerome says, “Holly, you start at the first one. I’ll start at

the last one. We’ll meet in the middle.” “Sounds like a plan,” Holly says. “Mr. Hodges, can I smoke in here?” “Why the hell not?” he says, and goes over to the cellar stairs to sit and watch them work. As he does, he rubs absently at the hollow just below his left collarbone. That annoying pain is back. He

must have pulled a muscle running down the street after his car exploded.