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dead-moans, weird laughs, snores, whimpers, choked half-screams mixed with the
softness of whispers of the sleepless. It was a cool good night here on the
bank above the road. All was normal.
Peter Marlowe jerked like a dog pointing. He had sensed the Korean guard
before his eyes picked him out of the darkness, and by the time he really saw
the guard, he had already given the warning signal.
At the far end of the hut, Dave Daven did not hear the first whistle, he was
so absorbed in his work. When he heard the second, more urgent one, he
answered it, jerked the needles out, lay back in his bunk, and held his
breath.
The guard was slouching through the camp, his rifle on his shoulder, and he
did not see Peter Marlowe or the others. But he felt their eyes. He quickened
his step and wished himself out of the hatred.
After an age, Peter Marlowe heard Cox give the all-clear signal, and he
relaxed once more. But his senses still reached out into the night.
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At the far corner of the hut, Daven began breathing again. He lifted himself
carefully under the thick mosquito net in the top bunk. With infinite
patience, he reconnected the two needles to the ends of the insulated wire
that carried the live current. After a backbreaking search, he felt the
needles slip through the worm-holes in the eight-by-eight beam which served as
the head crosspiece of the bunk. A bead of sweat gathered on his chin and fell
on the beam as he found the other two needles that were connected to the
earphone and again, after a blind tortured search, he felt the holes for them
and slipped the needles cleanly into the beam. The earphone static'd into
life. ". . . and our forces are moving rapidly through the jungle to Mandalay.
That ends the news. This is Calcutta calling. To summarize the news: American
and British forces are pushing the enemy back in Belgium, and on the central
sector, towards St. Hubert, in driving snowstorms. In Poland, Russian armies
are within twenty miles of Krakow, also in heavy blizzards. In the
Philippines, American forces have driven a bridgehead across the Agno River in
their thrust for Manila. Formosa was bombed in daylight by American B-29's
without loss. In Burma, victorious British and Indian armies are within thirty
miles of Mandalay. The next news broadcast will be at 6 a.m. Calcutta time."
Daven cleared his voice softly and felt the live insulated wire jerk slightly
and then come free as Spence, in the next bunk, pulled his set of needles out
of the source, Quickly Daven disconnected his four needles and put them back
in his sewing kit. He wiped the gathering sweat off his face and scratched at
the biting bedbugs. Then he unscrewed the wires on the earphone, tightened the
terminals carefully, and slipped it into a special pouch in his jock-strap,
behind his testicles. He buttoned his pants and doubled the wire and slipped
it through the belt-loops and knotted it. He found the piece of rag and wiped
his hands, then carefully brushed dust over the tiny holes in the beam,
clogging them, hiding them perfectly.
He lay back on the bed for a moment to regain his strength, and scratched.
When he had composed himself he ducked out of the net and jumped to the floor.
At this time of night he never bothered to put his leg on, so he just found
his crutches and quietly swung himself to the door. He made no sign as he
passed Spence's bunk. That was the rule. Can't be too careful.
The crutches creaked, wood against wood, and for the ten millionth time Daven
thought about his leg. It did not bother him too much nowadays, though the
stump hurt like hell. The doctors had told him that soon he would have to have
it restumped again. He had had this done twice already, once a real operation
below the knee in '42, when he had been blown up by a land mine. Once above
the knee, without anesthetics. The memory edged his teeth and he swore he
would never go through that again. But this next time, the last time, would [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]