Chapter 16 Chapter 10 Endgame (1)

This is a very spacious room. In fact, until last week, it was the small non-denominational church in Ita.Karp complied quickly and easily with Hawksteeler's demands; it was a sign that things were slowly turning around. A new chapel - not a spare room but an actual chapel - was to be built at the east end of the site, while the remainder of the experiments with Charlie McGee would take place in the old chapel. Faux wood paneling and pews have been removed.Floors and walls have been insulated with asbestos batting that looks like steel wool and covered with high-strength steel.What used to be the altar and the nave were isolated.Various monitoring equipment and a computer terminal of Hawkes butler have been installed.All of this was accomplished within a week; the work began four days before Herman Pinchert ended his own life in such a grisly way.

Now, it is two o'clock in the afternoon in early October.In the center of the long room stood a cinder-block wall.To the left of the wall is a huge water tank six feet deep.The water tank contains more than 2,000 pounds of water that has been melted from ice cubes.Charlie McGee was standing in front of the water tank; she looked dapper and neat in a blue chinos dress and red and black striped football socks.A small black velvet bow was tied in a golden braid, hanging over her shoulders. "Okay, Charlie." Hawkes Steiner's voice came over the intercom.Like the rest of the equipment, the walkie-talkie was installed in a hurry, so the voice came out low and muffled, "You can start when you're ready."

Color cameras recorded everything.In these shots, the little girl's head is slightly lowered, and nothing happens for a few seconds.There is a temperature digital display bar on the left side of the TV image.Suddenly, the number started to rise, from seventy to eighty to ninety degrees.Since then, the speed of the digital change has been dizzying, and only the blurred red light that is constantly flashing can be seen.Electronic temperature detectors have been placed in the center of the cinder block walls. Now the screen goes into slow motion; that's the only way to record the entire scene.For those in the observation room watching it all through the viewing port, all of this happened at the rate of a shot.

In slow motion, cinderblock walls begin to smoke; bits of mortar and cement begin to billow upward like popcorn; then the mortar can be seen rushing between the cracks of the bricks, like heated molasses.The bricks then begin to crumble outward from the center.When the bricks exploded continuously due to the high temperature, large groups of fine dust rose into the air.At this time, the temperature detector installed in the center of the wall stopped at seven thousand degrees.This is not because the temperature has stopped rising, but because the detector itself has been destroyed. Eight huge air-conditioning machines surround the former chapel laboratory;

These eight machines are running at full speed, pumping fresh air into the laboratory continuously - when the overall temperature in the room exceeds ninety-five degrees, the eight air conditioners are already running.Charlie was now able to keep her internal heat under control, but anyone who had burned their hands on the handle of a frying pan knew that surfaces that don't conduct heat can conduct heat, if given enough heat. With these eight air conditioners operating at full speed, the temperature in the laboratory should have been fifteen degrees Fahrenheit, with an error of no more than five degrees.But now records show that the temperature has been rising: 100 degrees, then 105 degrees, then 107 degrees.However, the sweat running down the face of the bystanders can not be explained by heat alone.

Not even slow motion can clearly capture what happened now, but one thing is clear: as the cinder blocks continue to explode, there is no doubt that they are burning; burning like newspapers in a fireplace.Of course, eighth grade science textbooks will tell you that anything can burn if the temperature is high enough.But it's one thing to read about it in a textbook; it's quite another to see a cinderblock wall sprayed with blue and yellow flames blazing. Then, as the entire wall began to collapse, a cloud of smoke engulfed everything. The little girl turned slightly sideways, and a moment later the calm surface of the icy water in the tank began to quiver and boil.It was 112 degrees inside (despite eight air conditioners, the room was still as hot as a summer noon in Death Valley) and the temperature was starting to return.

interdepartmental memorandum Submitted by: Bradford Heck Dear Sir: Patrick Hawksdanler Date: October 2 Involved: Biotelemetry, latest Charlene McGee experiment (#4) Pat - I've seen the tape four times now, and I still can't believe it wasn't some stunt gimmick.I would venture to offer the following suggestion: Before you submit your report to the Senate Subcommittee on Appropriations and Renewal for Destiny VI, get things sorted and your defenses in place.Human nature is like this, those who watch these videos will find it hard to believe that this is not some fake trick. Regarding business one... The reading results have been sent to you by a special courier, and this memo will arrive three or four hours earlier than them.You can read it all yourself, but I will briefly summarize our findings and our conclusions can be summed up in seven words:

We're stuck.This time we had all sorts of wires plugged into her like she was an astronaut going into space.You will find: D Blood pressure is in the normal range for an eight-year-old, and barely changed when that wall blew up like the Hiroshima atomic bomb. 2) Abnormally high brainwave recordings; what we call her "imagination circuit" is well founded.You probably agree.Also may disagree with Kraber and I: This brain wave is basically smooth.This may indicate that she is gradually mastering this ability and can manipulate it with greater precision.This is what people call practice makes perfect.

Other than that, I don't see what else this means. 3) All metabolic biotelemetry results were within normal limits - nothing strange or abnormal.She seems to be reading a good book or writing a composition, but not at all producing the high temperature of more than 30,000 degrees that you said.Burn almost no calories!In case you have forgotten your physics class - due to a professional relationship - Let me remind you: a calorie is a unit of heat; exactly he said it is the heat required to raise the temperature of one gram of water by one degree Celsius.She burned twenty-five calories during this little demonstration, about as much as we would need to walk around the building twice or do six sit-ups.But a calorie is a unit of heat, heck, heat, and that's what she's producing... isn't it?Does the heat come from her, or does heat from other places pass through her?If the latter, where did it come from?Find out the answer, and you're guaranteed a Nobel Prize!I think: if our series of experiments is coming to an end as soon as you say, then we will certainly not find the answer.

Closing remarks: Do you really want us to continue these experiments?Lately, just thinking about that kid makes me fidget.I started thinking about pulsars, neutrinos.Black holes and who knows what else.There are many forces in this universe that we haven't even heard of yet, and there are others that we can only observe a few million light-years away...and be thankful that they are so far away.The last time I watched the video, I began to think that this little girl might be a blemish—a bug, if you will—in the crucible of creation.I know it sounds ridiculous, but I feel like I'll regret it if I don't speak up.As the father of three lovely daughters, God forgive me for saying this.But I personally would be greatly relieved if she returns to normal.

If she can generate 30,000 degrees of heat effortlessly, have you ever wondered what will happen to her if she goes all out? Bradford "I want to see my father," said Charlie to Hawksdanner who came in.She looked pale and pale.She had taken off her dress and put on an old nightgown, her blond hair fell to her shoulders. "Charlie—" he began, but the words flew out of his mind suddenly, and Bradford Heck's memo and the results of the physiological telemetry were haunting him deeply.The fact that Heike dared to print out the last two paragraphs said a lot, and reminded him a lot. Hawkes butler himself was also afraid.When Cap approved the conversion of the chapel into a laboratory, he also approved the addition of more air conditioners in Charlie's quarters—not eight, but twenty.Only six have been installed so far.But after the fourth experiment, Hawksdanner no longer cared about installing them.He knew that even if they got two hundred of these damn things, they wouldn't be able to stop her power at all.It was no longer a question of whether she would kill herself, but a question of whether she would destroy the whole of Ita Base—and maybe all of East Virginia, by the way—if she wanted to.Hawkes butler now believes she could do these things if she wanted to. And the final stop on this line of reasoning is even more troubling—now only John Rainbird can effectively restrain her.But Rain Bird himself was a lunatic. "I want to see my father," she said again. Her father was at poor Herman Pinchert's funeral.He was with Cap at his request.Even the death of Pinchet, who seemed to have nothing to do with what happened here, casts an ominous shadow over Hawksdanner's mind. "I think this can be arranged," Hawkes said cautiously, "if you can go one by one:" "I've shown you enough," she said, "I want to see my father." She His lower lip trembled, and a layer of mist clouded his eyes. "Your handyman," said Hawksdanner, "that Indian, says you won't go out and ride your horse after your experiments this morning. He seems very worried about you." "That's not my horse," said Charlie hoarsely. "There's nothing here. Nothing but Papa; I...want...to see him!" she cried angrily, with tears streaming down her face. "Don't get excited, Charlie." Hawkes was suddenly frightened.Is it a sudden heat up here, or is it his imagination? "Don't... don't get excited." Rain Bird, this is supposed to be Rain Bird's job, damn it. "Listen to me, Charlie." He squeezed out a friendly note.Cheerful smiley, "Would you like to go to Six Flags over Georgia? It's probably the best amusement park in the whole South, except maybe Disney World. We'll rent the whole park for a day just for you. You can ride the Ferry Running the wheel, visiting ghost towns, riding wooden horses—” "I don't want to go to any amusement park, I just want to see my dad. And I have to. I hope you understand me, because I must see you! " It does get hot in here. "You're sweating," Charlie said. He thought of exploding cinderblock walls so fast you could only see the flames burning in slow motion.He thought of steel ashtrays flying across the room.Scattered burning wood chips.If she turned that power on him, he would be reduced to ash and scorched bones before he knew what was happening. Oh God please don't-- "Charlie, getting mad at me won't solve anything—" "It will." She was quite right. "It will. And I'm mad at you, Dr. Hawksdanner. I'm mad at you." "Charlie, please don't—" "I want to see him," she said again, "now you go. Tell them I want to see my father, and after that they can let me do a few more experiments if they want. I don't care. But if I don't see him , I'll do something. You tell them that." he's gone.He felt he should have said something more—to save face, to hide some fear. ("You're sweating.") She had caused him great embarrassment—but luckily nothing had happened.He was gone, and not even the iron gate between the two of them could quite take away his fear...and his feelings for John.Rainbird's wrath.Because Rain Bird foresaw this, but kept silent.But if he accuses Rain Bird of that, the Indian simply sneers and asks him who the hell is the psychiatrist here? The experiments had weakened her pre-existing psychological barrier to starting the fire, which now resembled a dirt dam spraying water from a dozen cracks.These experiments provided her with good opportunities to transform a wild force into a weapon she could wield with precision, like a circus performer throwing a weighted dagger. And these experiments are perfect object education.They told her beyond doubt who was in charge here. is her. After Hawksdanner left, Charlie collapsed on the sofa, covering her face with her hands and weeping, with waves of complicated emotions coming to her heart—guilt, fear.Anger, and even a malicious pleasure.But fear was the strongest of them all, and after she had agreed to work with them, things had changed a lot; she was terrified that things would just change forever.Now she didn't just want to see her father; she needed him.She needed him to tell her what to do next. At first she got some rewards - out for a walk with John, grooming the Celestial Master, and then riding him for a ride.She loves John and Celestial Master...that idiot has no idea how much pain it is for her when he says Celestial Master is hers because she knows Celestial Master can never be hers.It belonged to her only in the dream she remembered so far.But now... now, the experiments themselves—using one's power and feeling it grow stronger—these were beginning to become rewards.This has turned into a scary yet powerfully engaging game.And she felt like she wasn't even scratching the surface of things, like a baby just learning to walk. She needed her father, she needed him to tell her what was right and what was wrong, to move on or stop forever."If only I could stop." She murmured to herself through her fingers. That's the scariest thing -- not knowing if you can stop anymore.What does it mean if she can't?Oh, what will this mean? She burst into tears again.She had never felt so terribly alone. A funeral is a tragic sight. Andy had thought he'd be fine; his headache was gone, and attending the funeral was just an excuse to be alone with Cap, after all.He had never liked Pinchet, but it turned out that Pinchet was too mean to be hated at all.His undisguised arrogance and undisguised joy at being able to bully a fellow human being—all these reasons, along with his concern for Charlie's arrogance, made Andy distrustful of his own inadvertence at Pinchett. There is no guilt in the rebound effect that is triggered in the brain—and it is that rebound effect that ultimately destroys the person. There's been an echo effect before, but he's always had a chance to get things back on track.He was pretty good at it when he and Charlie had to flee New York City.There seem to be various land mines, fear, guilt, and suicidal patterns buried deep in the brain of all humans.Various impulses of the schizophrenic and delusional types—even murderous ones.Andy's power can induce a state of extreme suggestion, and if a suggestion continues to develop along some dark path, it can bring destruction. Once a housewife in his weight loss training class began to fall into a state of extreme suggestion. Nervous; a member of his Confidence Club once admitted to having an urge to pull a pistol out of the closet and play Russian roulette, inspired by a book of Edgar Allan he read in high school.Poe's novel influence.In both cases, Andy stopped the echo effect just in time before it transformed into a deadly rebound effect.All Andy did to the club member—a reserved third-class bank official—was to tell him again that he hadn't read that Poe novel.The association—whatever it was before—is interrupted.Yet the opportunity to suspend the echo effect never came to Pinchert. As they drove to the cemetery in the howling autumn rain, Cap babbled on and on about the man's suicide.He seemed to be trying to come to terms with this reality.He said it never occurred to him before that when those blades started to stir, a man could still put... his arms in it.But Pinchet did it, and somehow he did it.That's when the funeral began to look tragic to Andy. The two of them only attended the burial form.Relatives and friends of the deceased were tightly packed under a pile of black umbrella flowers, and Andy and Cap stood far behind them.Andy found remembering Pinchet's arrogance and his affectation; remembering him endlessly.An unpleasant twitchy laugh is one thing; it's one thing to watch his mourning, veiled wife clutching her two sons (the youngest is about Charlie's age, and they look shocked and terrified). dazed, as if drugged) hand is another matter entirely.Pale.Emaciated, she must have known relatives and friends who knew how her husband had been found: in her underwear, with his right arm shaved to the elbow, in the sink.The closet was splattered with his blood, his flesh— Andy couldn't help but want to throw up.He bent down in the cold rain, desperately trying to restrain himself, the pastor's melodious voice came from ahead. "I want to leave," Andy said. "Can we go?" "Of course," Garp said.He himself looked pale and aged.Not in good health, "I've attended too many funerals this year, so I'm going to survive." They quietly moved away from the crowd and walked side by side down the winding gravel drive.Cap's small Chevrolet was parked at the end of the funeral procession.The willow branches on the side of the road are dripping with rain, rustling mysteriously.three.Four shadowy figures swayed around them.Andy thought he must know how the President of the United States felt by now. "You know, that rumor was bad for the widow and the kids," Cap said. "Will she...well, be well cared for?" "Money wise, it's pretty good," Karp said flatly.The driveway is in sight. Andy could already see Cap's yellow Vega parked on the side of the road.Two agents got into the Biscay in front of it silently, and the other two got into a Portsmouth behind it. "But no one can make it up to those two kids. Did you see their faces?" Andy was silent.Now he felt guilty, like a sharp saw blade churning in his stomach.He reassured himself that his situation was precarious, but that didn't ease his guilt, all he could do now was to hold Charlie's face tightly in his hands... Charlie and a sinister figure behind her, a A one-eyed pirate named John Rainbird.This man had cheated her of her trust so that she could— After they got in the car, Cap started the engine. ·The Biscay in front started, followed by Karp.The Portsmouth followed suit. Andy suddenly felt strangely that he must have lost his special powers again-if he tried, nothing would happen.Is this the retribution of the look on the faces of those two children? But he has no choice.He has to give it a try. "We're going to chat casually," he said to Cap, mentally pushing. The function is still there, and the headaches started almost immediately—this is the price he has to pay for using too much power, "It won't affect your driving." Cap seemed to be sitting comfortably in the chair.His left hand, reaching for the blinker, paused for a moment, then returned to normal.The Vega car followed the approach car smoothly, passing through the huge stones to the street. "Of course, I don't think our conversation will affect my driving," Karp said. They were twenty miles from Ita headquarters; Andy checked the odometer as the car left the base and as it arrived at the cemetery.Most of the trip was on Route 301, which Pincher had told him about.This is the highway.He estimated that he had only about twenty minutes to arrange everything.He's been thinking about it pretty much for the past two days, and thinks he's planned out every detail...but there's one thing he needs to know very badly. "How long can you and John Rainbird guarantee that Charlie will work together, Capton Hollinster?" "It won't grow any longer," Cap said. "Rainbird has arranged everything so cleverly that he's the only one who can really control her while you're away. Stand-in father." He went on in a low, almost Said the singing voice, "Rainbird was her father when her father was away." "And when she stops cooperating, she gets killed?" "Not right away. Rain Bird can keep her going longer." Cap turned on the lights and drove onto 301, "He'll pretend we caught them chatting; caught him teaching her how to handle her… ... her question; found out and he sent you a note." He fell silent, but Andy didn't need to ask any more.He feels sick.These people won her favor in a lonely environment, and once cheated her trust, they misled her to serve their own purposes.He wondered if these people were complacent about fooling a child so easily.In desperation, just telling her that her only friend, John the handyman, will lose his job and may be prosecuted under the (Official Secrets Act) just because he is her friend She gave in, and Charlie would volunteer for the rest of the experiment.Charlie would agree.She will continue to cooperate. I hope to see this guy soon.I really hope. But there was no time to think about that right now...and if everything went according to his plan, he wouldn't have to meet the Rainbird at all. "It has been decided that I will go to Hawaii in a week." Andy said. "Yes, not bad.  … "how to get to?" "Take an army transport plane." "Who did you contact to arrange this?" "Parker," Garp replied quickly. "Who is Parker, Capeton Hollinster?" "Victor Parkridge," Cap said. "He's at Andrews." "Andrews Air Force Base?" "Of course" "Is he your friend?" "Let's play golf together." There was a faint smile on Garp's face, "He likes to play diagonal shots." Andy thought: Good news.His head was throbbing with pain like a tooth. "Could you call him this afternoon and say you want to move your flight three days earlier?" "Ok?" "Will it be troublesome? Lots of written reports?" "Oh no. Parker's going to cut the written report." That weird, not really happy smile from before came back. "He's a slasher. Did I tell you that?" "Yes, yes, you did." "Oh. That's good." The car was traveling at fifty-five mph.The rain had turned to a drizzle.The wipers swung back and forth. "Call him this afternoon, Cap. As soon as we get back." "Call Parker, all right. I'm wondering if it's time to call him, too." "Tell him I have to be shipped on Wednesday, not Saturday." Four days wasn't enough to restore his body to its original strength, three weeks was more or less— But now things are about to enter a critical moment.The endgame has begun.Andy has to face the facts in front of him.He didn't want—and couldn't—leave Charlie in this Rainbird's grasp any longer. "Wednesday instead of Saturday." "Yes. Then you tell Parker you're going with me." "Together? I can't—" Andy made another effort.It caused him great pain, but he still pushed hard.Cap jerked in his seat, and the car swayed imperceptibly on the road. Andy couldn't help thinking again that he was simply trying to cause an echo effect in the man's brain. "Let's go, all right. Let's go." "That's right," snapped Andy. "Now—what arrangements have you made for security?" "No special security measures," Garp said. "You've been rendered useless by the chlorpromazine. Besides, you're almost dead. You can't use your mind control anymore. It's dormant." "Ah; yes." Andy said, resting his forehead with a trembling hand, 'You mean I'm going to fly alone? " "No," Cap said quickly, "I think I'll go with you." "I know. But besides the two of us?" "There'll also be two Ita guys, one as a flight attendant and the other to watch over you. You know that's standard operating procedure. Protecting the investment." "Just two of us going with us? Are you sure?" "yes." "Plus the crew, of course." "yes." Andy looked out the car window.They were halfway there, and here was the crucial part; but his head was sore now that he feared he might have forgotten something. If that were the case, his carefully constructed hut would be ruined. Charlie, he thought of her, held on. "It's a long way from Virginia to Hawaii, Capeton Hollinster. Will the plane land to refuel?" "Yes" "Do you know where?" "I don't know." Cap said quietly, and Andy really wanted to punch him in the face. "Give the phone to..." What's that person's name?He searched desperately in his tired, wounded brain, and finally found it. "When you call Parker, ask him where the plane is going to land for refueling." "Okay, fine. "Bring it up naturally in conversation." "Okay. I'll naturally find out in the conversation where the plane will land and refuel." His eyes were confused.Thoughtful eyes glanced at Andy.For a moment, Andy suddenly thought, could this be the man who ordered Vicky to be killed?A sudden impulse surged in his heart, wanting to step on the clutch to the bottom and rush into the oncoming abutment.But Charlie, Charlie!He cried out in his heart.Hold on for Charlie. "Did I tell you that Parker likes to hit the crossball?" Cap said fondly on the topic. "Yes, you did!" Think fast!Think, fuck it, the most likely place would be around Chicago or Los Angeles.But not at a civilian airfield like O'Hare or Los Angeles International Airport, the plane is supposed to be refueling at some Air Force base: but as long as he knows the exact location in advance, it won't cause much trouble for his poor plan ——Unfortunately, there are not many such aspects. "We're leaving at three o'clock in the afternoon," he told Cap. "Three o'clock." "You've got to make sure of this John. Rainbird was somewhere else then." "Send him away?" Garp asked expectantly.Andy's heart goes cold: he realizes that Cap is terrified of Rainbird—very terrified. "Yes. It doesn't matter where they are sent, but they must be sent." "Santiago?" "Can." Now he was about to start the final process; a green light ahead marked the motorway exit for Longmont.Andy reached into his trouser pocket and took out a folded piece of paper.For a while, he just held it on his lap with his thumb and forefinger. "You're going to tell the two Ita agents who are going to Hawaii with us to wait for us at the Air Force base," he said. "They're going to be waiting for us at Andrews Field. You and I are going to the airport alone, as we are doing now. " "OK." Andy took a deep breath: "But my daughter will go with us. "Her?" Pu showed genuine anxiety for the first time, "Her? She's dangerous! She can't—we can't—" "If it wasn't for all of your tricks, how could she have become dangerous?" Andy asked sharply, "She must go with us, and you are not allowed to oppose me anymore."do you understand? " This time, the rocking of the car was more pronounced; Cap moaned, "She'll come with us. I've got nothing against you," he said, "It hurts, it hurts." But I hurt more. Now the pain in the head is getting more and more severe; his voice seems to come from far away: "You give this to her." Andy said and handed the folded paper to Karp, "today She, but be careful, don't make anyone suspicious." Cap tucked the note into his jacket breast pocket.At this time, Ita's base was in sight.To their left were the two grids, with warning signs every fifty yards or so. "Repeat the point," Andy ordered. Garp quickly and accurately recounted it—as expected of a person who has received rote training in military academies since he was a teenager. "I will arrange for you to go to Hawaii on Wednesday, not Saturday, on an army transport plane. I will go with you; your daughter will go with me. The two Ita agents who are going with us will be at Andrews Airport Wait for us. I'll call Parker to inform him of the change of flight date, and at the same time find out from him where the plane will be refueled. I have a note for your daughter.I'll hand it over to Parker when I'm done calling, and I'll do my best not to arouse any suspicion.Also, I will arrange for Rain Bird to be in San Diego next Wednesday.I guess this saves trouble. " "Yes," said Andy, "I think so." He leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. Fragments of many things, past and present, swarmed in his mind, like wheat straw blown by a strong wind, flying aimlessly in the air.Is there any hope for all this to work out?Or was he just dying?Now they knew what Charlie could do; they had firsthand knowledge.If the plan fails, they will end their trip together in the third-class cargo hold of that transport plane.in two boxes. Cap stopped at the sentry box, rolled down the window, and handed a plastic card to the guard on duty.The guard fed the card into a computer terminal. "You can go, sir," he said. Cap drove on. "One last thing, Capeton Hollinster. You will forget all of this. You will go through the things we discussed, and talk about them with no one." "great." Andy nodded.It wasn't great, but there was nothing else he could do.The possibility of causing an echo effect in this person's brain is extremely high, on the one hand because Andy had to perform gong exercises on him many times and with great force, and on the other hand because Andy's instructions to him completely ran counter to his interests.With his position here, Cap may or may not be able to do these things.But now Andy's tiredness and headaches made him think less of that. He got out of the car with great difficulty; Cap had to hold his arm to keep him from falling.The cold autumn rain swished on his face, and he felt a little better. The two men who got out of the car in the Bay of Biscay looked at him with cold disgust.One of them was wearing a blue wool vest that read "USA Olympic Beverage Team." He is Don Jules. Take a good look at this stupid fat man, Andy thought drowsily.His breathing became rapid, and his throat began to choke.Take a good look now, because if the fat man does get away this time, he's going to blow up the whole filthy place. "Okay, okay," Cap said condescendingly.Perfunctory sympathy tapped him on the shoulder. Do your job well, Andy thought, trying to hold back his tears; he'd never cry in front of these people again, ever.do your job well you bastard Back at the residence, Andy barely realized what he was doing.He stumbled and fell asleep on the bed, where he lay motionless for six hours.In his brain, blood seeped out from a tiny crack, and many brain cells began to turn white.die. It was ten o'clock at night when he awoke.The headache is still unbearable.He touched his face, the numb spots on his face—the one under his left eye.One on the left cheek, one on the temple—it reappeared, this time on a larger scale. I'll kill myself if I do this a few more times, he thought, knowing full well that this wasn't a scare.But he had to stay the course, give Charlie a ray of hope; if he could, he'd have to save Charlie.In any case, he must persist until then. He went into the bathroom to get a glass of water, then went to bed again.After a long time, he finally fell asleep.In the split second before falling asleep, he was still thinking: Charlie must have gotten his note by now. From Hermann.After Pinchett's funeral, Capeton Hollinster was very busy.As soon as he walked into the office, the secretary brought an interdepartmental memo marked "Urgent."This is from Pat Hawkesdanler.Cap told the secretary to put him through to Vic.After Parkridge called, he sat down and began to read the document.I should get out and about more, he thought; it seemed to increase the supply of oxygen to the brain cells.As he was driving back, it occurred to him that there was no need to wait another week to get McGee to Moy; this Wednesday was late enough. Immediately afterwards, the report suddenly attracted his full attention. It was a far cry from the calm, dignified style of Hawks Butler; in fact, the report was very flamboyant, bordering on hysterical.卡普饶有兴味地想一定是那小姑娘用赶鸡的棍子揍了豪克斯但勒一顿，狠狠地揍了一顿。 报告的中心意思是说恰莉己决意不再合作。这比他们预料的要早。不仅如此，也许比雨鸟预料的都要早。不过，他们可以先停顿一段时间，然后……然后…… 他的思路中断了；两眼有些迟疑地向远处望去。在脑海里，他看见一根高尔夫球杆呼啸而下，重重击在一只球上；接着，白色的小球呼地一声高高飞起消失在蓝天中；但它是个斜线球…… 斜线球…… His brows flared.What is he thinking?这样走神可不是他的一贯风格。恰莉已决意不再合作一这就是他在考虑的事情。不过，这不要紧，没必要着急。他们可以先让她清静一阵子，也许一直到周未，然后他们就可以用雨鸟要挟她。为保护雨鸟，她会痛痛快快继续合作的。 他的手滑到胸前口袋里，摸到了那张叠着的小纸条。高尔夫球杆的呼啸声再次在他耳边响起，似乎回荡在整个办公室中。但现在已不再是呼呼声，而是一种轻微的丝丝声，几乎像是一条……一条蛇在叫。这令人很不舒服。打很小的时候起，他就发现蛇让人非常不舒服——他有些费力地把这些关于高尔夫球杆和蛇的胡思乱想从脑海中驱除出去。也许葬礼对他的影响比他预想的要大得多。 对讲机响了，秘书告诉他帕克在一号线上。卡普拿起电话，闲聊几句后，他问帕克如果把运送麦克吉到默依去的日期提前到星期三会不会有什么问题。帕克查了一下安排说没什么问题。 “比方说下午三点钟？” “没问题。”帕克再次说道，“只是不要再提前了，否则我们就忙不过来了。这地方在高峰期比高速公路还忙。” “不会了，就这么定了。”卡普说，“不过还有件事：我也一起去。不过你不要对别人说，OK？” 帕克爆发出一阵畅炔的大笑：“晒晒太阳，看看草裙舞，好好乐一乐？” “为什么不可以？”卡普承认，“我是在护送一宗价值连城的货物。就是站在参议院委员会面前，我想我也有充足的理由。而且从1973年到现在我还从来没有享受过一次真正的假期。那些该死的阿拉伯人和他们的石油把我最后一个假期给毁了。” “好的，我不会对别人提起这事。”帕克答应道，“在那儿的时候，你是不是想打打高尔夫球？我听说默依至少有两个一流的球场。” 卡普没有回答。他出神地盯着自己的桌面，又似乎看穿了它。话筒微微从他耳边垂了下来。 “卡普？你在听吗？” 在这小巧。舒适的房间里响起轻微。不吉的丝丝声。 “妈的，我想线断了。”帕克嘟味着，“卡普？卡普——” “你还在打斜线球，老伙计？”卡普问。 帕克笑了，“你开玩笑？我死后，他们会把我埋在深草区的。 我以为刚才线断了呢。 " “没断。”卡普说，“帕克，夏威夷有蛇吗？” 这回轮到帕克迟疑了：“说什么？” “蛇。毒蛇。” “我……我根本不知道。如果这很重要的话，我可以帮你查一下……”帕克暖昧的语调似在暗示你手下大概有五千特工可以去查这类事情。 “不，并不重要。”卡普说完，再次将话筒稳稳拿到耳边，“我想大概我是在自言自语。也许我老了。” “不可能，卡普。你永远精力过人。” “也许吧。谢谢你，老伙计。” “小事一桩。很高兴你可以放松一阵。去年你经受了那么多，没人比你更应该去休息休息了。”他当然是指乔治亚；他并不知道麦克吉一家的事。卡普疲惫地想：那就是说我的麻烦他知道的连一半都不到。 他正打算说再见时忽然想起了什么，“顺便问一问，帕克，那架飞机中途在哪儿加油？你知道吗？” “德班，伊利诺斯州。”帕克很快答道，“在芝加哥郊外。” 卡普谢过他，道过再见，然后挂上了电话。他再次把手伸进口袋摸着那张纸条。他的目光落在了豪克斯但勒的备忘录上。看起来那小姑娘也很不好过。也许他应该下去跟她聊聊，安慰安慰她。 他俯身打开对讲机。 “什么事，卡普？” “我要到楼下去一会儿。”他说，“大约三十分钟后回来。 "OK." 他站起来走出办公室，一路上用手摸着口袋里的小纸条 卡普离开后，恰莉在床上躺了十五分钟。她的脑海中一片混乱，充满了悲哀、恐惧和各式各样推测。她真的不知道该如何思考了。 他是在五点一刻，大约半小时前来的。他自我介绍说叫卡普顿·霍林斯特（“不过请叫我卡普，大家都这么叫”）。他长着一张和蔼。敏锐的脸。这张脸她最近在哪儿见过，但她怎么也想不起来了。在卡普的提醒下她终于记起他就是在第一次实验后把她送回房间的那个人。当时，她处于震惊，内疚机一不错——骄做交织在一起的混乱心情中，所以一点不奇怪她没能记住他的脸。 也许当时就算是美国总统送她回去，她也不会在意。 他那种圆通。富有说服力的说话方式立即使恰莉起了戒心。 他说豪克斯但勒非常不安，因为她宣称在见到父亲之前她拒绝进行一切实验。恰莉说情况确实如此，然后便闭上嘴不再置二词，固执地保持着沉默……但这主要是因为害怕。如果你跟卡普这样说话圆通的人谈论自己做事的理由，他会逐条驳倒它们直到把白说成黑。把黑说成白。所以只简单地提出要求会更好，也更安全。 但他还是令她吃了一惊。 “如果你想这样，那可以。”他说道。她脸上吃惊的表情一定有些滑稽，因为他轻声笑了，“这需要一些小小的安排，但是听到“一些小小的安排”这几个字，恰莉的脸立即又板了起来，“不要再让我点火。”她说，“不要再让我做实验。你就是花上十年时间'安排”我也宁愿等着。” “噢，我想用不了那么长时间。”他说道。：他并没有生气，“只不过我还得应付一些人，恰莉。而且在这种地方，做什么都得打报告。不过在我安排这一切的时候，你连根蜡烛都不必点。” “那就好。”她不为所动地说。恰莉并不相信他，不相信他会做什么安排，“因为我不愿再做那样的事。” “我想我应该能安排好……在星期三以前。对，肯走在星期三以前。” 他忽然陷入了沉默。他的头微微歪着，好像在侧耳倾听她听不到的什么声音。恰莉困惑地看着他，正打算开口问他是不是有什么事，却猛地把话收了回去。他坐在那里的样子看上去有些……有些眼熟，使她想起了什么。 “你真的认为我在星期三能见到他？恰莉怯怯地问。 “是的，我想是的。”卡普说道。他在椅子里动了动，沉重地叹了口气。他的眼睛对上了她的目光，于是他给了恰莉茫然的一笑……这笑也很眼熟，接着他驴唇不对马嘴他说：“我听说你爸爸高尔夫球打得很糟。” 恰莉莫名其妙地眨眨眼睛。就她所知，她父亲这辈子连高尔夫球杆都没摸过。她正打算这样告诉他……忽然一阵几乎令她昏眩的巨大喜悦流过全身一她想起来了摩尔先生！”他看上去像摩尔先生！ 当他们在纽约时，摩尔先生是爸爸信心俱乐部的成员。他是个浅黄头发，戴着副粉框眼镜的小个子男人，脸上总挂着羞怯。 甜甜的微笑。他是在一家银行或是一家保险公司工作。像其他人一样，他来俱乐部是为了变得更加自信。有段时间爸爸很为他担心。为了增强他的自信，爸爸曾对他发过功，但这使他以一种危险的方式想起了以前读过的一个故事。这故事在他脑子里像网球似地跳来跳去，但它不会像网球那样最终停下来；恰恰相反，对这故事的记忆会变得越来越强烈直至使摩尔先生感到极其地不适。但恰莉感觉到父亲不仅仅是害怕这会使摩尔先生不适；他害怕这会最终杀了他。所以有一天晚上当其他人都离去后，爸爸让摩尔先生留下，又对他发了次功，使他相信他从未读过那个故事。在那之后，摩尔先生就一切正常了。爸爸有次对她说他希望摩尔先生千万不要去看一部叫做《猎鹿人）的影片（美国反映越战的影片，里面有俄国轮盘赌镜头），但他并没解释为什么。 但在爸爸使摩尔先生恢复正常之前，他看上去就跟卡普现在一样。 她突然肯定父亲一定对这个人发过功；而这发现给她带来的喜悦就像龙卷风席卷全身。这么长时间已没有看见他或听到他的任何情况（除了约翰有时带给她的泛泛的消息），也不知他身在何方，而现在就好像他突然出现在了屋子里，告诉她他就在身旁。告诉她一切都会过去的。 卡普猛地站了起来，“我得走了。但我还会再见到你，恰莉，别担心。” 她想告诉他别走，留下来和她谈谈爸爸：他在哪儿，他还好吗……但是她的舌头僵住了，说不出话来。 卡普走到门口忽然站住了。“噢，差点忘了。”他又走回到她面前，从上衣口袋里掏出一张叠着的纸递给她。她机械地接过纸条看了看将它放进睡袍口袋里。“你以后出去骑马时，一定要当心蛇。”他用一个老朋友的亲密口吻说，“一匹马要是看见一条蛇，他会惊跑的。肯定会的、他会——” 他忽然停下了，将一只手按在太阳穴上使劲揉着。有一刹那，他看上去衰老而精神恍惚。接着，他微微摇了摇头，似乎打消了什么念头。他向她道过再见，离开了房间。 他走后，恰莉久久地站在那里。然后，她取出纸条将它打开，开始读上面东西。 一切都改变了恰莉，亲爱的—— 第一：当你读完这张字条后，把它从马桶冲走，记住了吗？ 第二：如果一切像我计划——像我希望——的那样，下个星期三我们将离开这里。给你这张纸条的人站在我们一边，不过他自己并不知道……明白了？ 第三：我要你在星期三下午一点钟到马厩去。我不在乎你怎样做到——如果有必要，再给他们做次实验。但是一定要去。 第四：也是最重要的一点：不要相信这个约翰·雨鸟。这也许会使你难过。我知道你一直信任他。但他是个非常危险的人，恰莉。没人会为你对他的信任而责怪你一霍林斯特说他骗取别人信任的能力已足以获得奥斯卡金像奖。但你应该知道：是他带领那些人在爷爷的营地把我们抓起来的。我希望这不要使你太伤心。但也许这是不可避免的，因为我了解你的性格。发现别人一直在利用自己确实是一件令人伤心的事。听着，恰莉：如果雨鸟再来——他多半是要来的——你一定要让他觉得你对他的感情并未发生变化，这非常重要。星期三下午他不会碍我们的事。 我们要去洛杉矾或芝加哥，恰莉，而且我想我知道怎样为我们安排一个新闻发布会。我有个老朋友叫昆西，我希望他能帮助我们。而且我相信——我必须相信——如果我和他取得联系，他会替我们安排这些。召开新闻发布会就意味着全国都会知道我们的情况。也许那时人们仍想把我们关在某个地方，但我们会在一起。我希望你像我一样期待着这一天。 虽然可能还会被关在什么地方，但只要他们不让你为错误的目的点火，这种状况不会太坏。如果你对再次逃跑有什么疑问的瓦记住这是最后一次了……而这也会是你母亲所希望的我想你，恰莉，并深爱你。 爸爸约翰？ 是约翰带领那些人用麻醉枪射中了她和她父亲？ John? 她在枕头上辗转反侧，巨大的悲哀和心碎的感觉令她不能自己。她不知该如何走出这残酷的困境。如果她相信父亲，她就不得不相信约翰为了使她同意做实验而一直在欺骗她。如果她继续信任约翰，那么她揉起来用马桶冲走的那张字条就是签着她父亲名字的一句谎言。无论选择哪条路，受到的伤害和付出的代价都是巨大的。难道成长就意味着这些？承受这样的伤害？如果是这样，那她宁愿早早死去。 她记起那天第一次看见天师时，约翰脸上的微笑……那笑里有什么东西她不喜欢。她想起自己从未在他身上发现过任何真实的感情，就好像他把自己封闭了，或者……或者…… 她试图将这念头抛到一边。 （或者他的心已经死了？） 但它还是出现了。 但他看上去并不像那样。他不是的。停电时他的恐惧，那些越南共产党对他的折磨，难道这些都是假的吗？is it possible?看着那张被毁了容的脸？ 她的头在忱头上滚来滚去，滚来滚去，似乎在拼命地否定什么念头。她不愿去想这些，不愿意，不愿意。 但她不得不想。 假设……假设是他们故意制造了那次停电？或者偶尔发生了停电……而他利用了它？ （不！不！不！不！） 然而她的思绪已挣脱了意志的控制，带着固执，冷酷的决心穿梭在这条布满荆棘的通往事实真相的小径上。她是个聪明孩子，现在在逻辑的引导下，她正做着谨慎的推理。 她想起以前看过一个电视节目：人们把一个警察投进监狱，和一个知道抢劫案的坏蛋关在一个牢房里。他们把装扮成囚犯的警察叫做“卧底”约翰，雨鸟是个卧底吗？ 她父亲说他是。况且父亲又何必骗她呢？ 你相信谁？约翰还是爸爸？爸爸还是约翰？ No, no, no.她的大脑不断单调地重复着……然而没有丝毫用处。她被一个八岁女孩本不该经历的疑惑苦苦折磨着，当她终于睡着时，那个恶梦也随之而来。只不过这次，她终于看见了那个挡住光明的人的脸。