Part 38 (1/2)

White shook his head. *No, Frank, I haven't. You don't understand.' Flynn opened his mouth to speak, but White raised his hand quickly, then stepped forward. *Have a seat, Frank. Let's talk about this rationally.'

*Rationally!'

It was not a word much used on Wrathlin, and there it was twice in as many seconds.

*Where's Duncan?' I asked.

*They took him away,' said Flynn. *Why don't you listen out for the gunshot?'

White shook his head. He stepped behind the Council table and pulled a chair out. Intentionally or not, he ignored the Council leader's seat. Then he looked expectantly up at Flynn.

Flynn wavered. I touched his arm. He looked round quickly, as if he hadn't been aware of my presence. *It can't do any harm, Father,' I said.

*Are you in this with him?'

*No. Of course not. Don't be daft. I'm the original impartial reporter.'

He looked doubtful. *So you're not on my side either.'

*Father, hear what the man has to say. What harm can it do? He's calling the shots anyway. Literally.'

*Thank you,' White snapped, *we can do without your contributions.'

I pulled out a chair for myself at the end of the table. Flynn looked from me to White and back. Then he rounded the table and for a moment I thought he was going to thump his usurper, but he stopped behind the leader's chair. His eyes betrayed a flicker of hesitation, then he drew back the seat next to it, so that they sat on either side of it. *Very well,' Flynn said, sitting rigidly, *I'll listen. I'll be fascinated to hear whatever explanation you can come up with. Fascinated to know how a man of G.o.d can justify the murder of six people.'

A face appeared at the window at the end of the hall. Bearded. A gun barrel over one shoulder. He peered in, nodded, turned away.

White hunched forward. He rubbed his hands together slowly. Looked at the ground. Flynn's eyes bored into the top of his head. White was searching for the right words. Finally he looked up. *Frank,' he said quietly, his diplomatic hat finally in place, *I must apologise, I . . .'

*An apology isn't going to bring . . .'

Firmer voice: *I must apologise for keeping you in the dark. We thought . . . the Council thought it best, with your fragile heart . . .'

*There's nothing fragile about it!' Flynn boomed.

White raised calming hands. *Frank! Please! Just listen to me. We knew you wouldn't go along with what we planned to do. But we thought we were right. We know we are right. Now listen to me.'

*I'm listening.'

*Right. Right.' White rubbed his hands together again. *Just give me a chance. I've already explained about Murtagh and Mary.'

*You've admitted killing them. You've explained nothing.'

*I did explain. To protect the island. To protect Christine.'

*That's neither explanation or justification.'

White tutted. *Bear with me, Frank, will you? Let me tell you about the one that really matters. The government man.'

*Mark Blundell,' I said.

*Whoever.'

*Killed before Christine was even born,' I said.

*Yes. Thank you,' said White, turning shut-up eyes upon me, then away. *Frank. It's like this. This man. Blundell. He wanted us off the island. All of us.'

Flynn's eyes narrowed. He leant forward, suddenly intrigued. *What do you mean?'

*What I say. He wanted to move every last man-jack of us across to the mainland. For good.'

*But why, for heaven's sake?'

*He said it was too dangerous to live here.' He let it hang in the air for a moment, then half whispered, *Have you ever heard of radon?'

Flynn repeated the word silently. He shook his head. *What is it?'

White glanced up the table. *What about you?'

*It's a type of was.h.i.+ng powder, isn't it?'

White tutted. *Of course it isn't.' Back to Flynn. *Frank, this fella, Blundell. Long before you came back, he came across to the island one day, unannounced, with all this equipment. Sneaked. Didn't ask permission. Just, just . . . did it. I watched him for a few hours, then I went down to see him. He wasn't going to tell anything, but I kept asking and he said he was doing a survey. What sort of survey, I asked, and why here? He said, not just here, throughout the whole United Kingdom, had been going on for years a just that Wrathlin had never been the top of anyone's list. It was a snide wee comment. I didn't like him. A superior type and nothing to be superior about. I was polite. He said it would only take a couple of days. He was looking for traces of radon. What's that? I asked. A radioactive gas, he said. Goodness, I said, that sounds scary. He laughed. Nothing to worry about. He said it was a natural gas they like to keep an eye on. Just a wee survey. I'll be gone before you know I'm here, he said.' White took a deep intake of breath. He shook his head. Looked at the floor. Dramatic pause.

*What happened?' Flynn asked.

*What happened, Frank, was that he scuttled away and continued his survey, and we put him up and gave him food and just made him welcome as we always do to strangers . . .'

*Did,' I said.

*Do, did a shut up, Starkey, and listen.'

*Okay.'

*The survey went on for several days. He was a curious wee man, always kept himself to himself, but the truth of the matter is, there was an evil streak in him, and in a way it's as well for us that there was. He should have taken his survey, gone home and reported the findings to his superiors, but instead he couldn't resist telling me a you could see the pleasure on his face a letting slip, almost by accident, but definitely by design, that he was getting readings that suggested an abnormally high radon presence.'

*But . . . but . . . but . . . what does that mean?' Flynn asked.

*Abnormal is abnormal, Frank,' White said drily. *Said he'd never come across anything like it. Claimed it was extremely dangerous. That he was seriously concerned for the population and that he would be recommending an immediate evacuation of the island.'

*To which you replied?'

*I thought it was a little rash. I asked why he needed to recommend such a thing. What danger was there? He said he didn't know. He said there'd never, ever been such high readings, it was just such an incredible phenomenon that the safest thing would be to get everyone off the island until a team of scientists could investigate the situation properly. He wouldn't listen to me, Frank. I told him we'd an extremely healthy population. I told him that if he moved people off the island, the chances were that they wouldn't come back, that it would be the death of our whole community, but he wouldn't listen, said he had the power to have us moved off. There was no reasoning with him.'

*So you killed him,' I said.

*It wasn't as simple as that, Starkey. We insisted he stayed for a Council meeting.'