Blackstone and the Heart of Darkness (4 page)

He
treads
as
softly
as
he
can
,
all
the
while
thinking
of
what
tactic
to
employ
.
He
must
enter
the
second
cavern
,
he
decides
—
expose
himself
to
whoever
is
there
.
It
is
a
dangerous
move
,
but
there
is
really
no
choice
,
because
his
men
cannot
deploy
themselves
while
he
is
blocking
the
entrance
.

He
can
hear
the
Afghans
talking
now
He
does
not
understand
a
word
of
what
they’re
saying
,
but
he
can
tell
from
the
easy
tone
of
their
exchange
that
they
are
relaxed
and
unsuspecting
.

*

Now, years later, walking along a cinder road and looking at the smoking chimneys, he found himself still wondering if he had made a mistake that day at the caves. But he also recognized that there was no clear answer to that question. Soldiers take risks. It’s their job—what they’ve signed up to do. And if they lose their lives because of it, they can have no complaint.

*

He
takes
a
deep
breath
and
thrusts
himself
into
the
second
cave
.
By
the
light
of
the
oil
lamp
,
he
can
see
that
there
are
five
Pathans
there
,
sitting
cross
-
legged
around
a
samovar
;
making
tea
.
He
aims
his
rifle
and
shoots
one
of
them
in
the
chest
.
The
others
start
to
rise
immediately
,
but
he
calculates
that
he
can
bayonet
at
least
one
of
them
before
they
are
in
any
position
to
fight
back
.
Then
he
feels
a
crushing
blow
to
the
side
of
his
head
,
and
realizes
that
there
were
not
five
Afghans
there
at
all
—
but
six
.

*

‘Not five, but six,’ Blackstone repeated to himself, as he walked along the cinder track.

He was still not sure whether it had been an ambush—whether they had been willing to sacrifice one of their own men to lure him in. Or whether the sixth man had simply been completing some task at the other end of the cavern. But whatever it had been, it had put him out of action.

*

He
feels
as
if
.
his
head
is
lying
on
an
anvil
,
and
the
blacksmith
is
attempting
to
fashion
it
into
a
horseshoe
.
Though
the
pain
is
mostly
above
the
neck
,
it
hurts
his
whole
body
to
move
.
But
he
moves
anyway
,
first
getting
into
a
crouch
and
then
forcing
himself
painfully
to
his
feet
.

The
cavern
has
become
a
charnel-house
while
he
has
been
unconscious
,
with
blood
staining
both
the
floor
and
the
walls
.
He
counts
the
bodies
:
seven
.

Corporal
Jones
has
half
his
face
missing
,
and
is
undoubtedly
dead
.
Private
Wicker
has
had
his
throat
slashed
.
But
the
other
dead
men
are
all
Pathans
.

He
hears
footfalls
in
the
passageway
,
and
gropes
for
his
rifle
.
The
noise
alerts
whoever
is
approaching
,
and
a
voice
calls
out
,
‘Who’s
there?’

‘It’s
me
,
’
he
croaks
.

Yardley
enters
the
chamber
.
His
uniform
is
soaked
with
blood
,
and
his
face
is
as
grim
as
death
.

‘What
happened
?
’
Blackstone
asks
.

Yardley
shrugs
,
as
if
he’s
not
entirely
sure
himself.

‘After
you
went
down
,
they
shot
Corporal
Jones
,
’
he
says
,
in
a
dull
,
exhausted
voice
.
‘Wicker
managed
to
get
two
of
them
,
before
he
got
his
throat
slashed
.
I
finished
off
the
other
three
.
I
don’t
quite
know
how
I
did
it
.
’

‘There
were
six
of
them
,
but
there’s
only
five
here!’
Blackstone
says
urgently
.

Yardley
nods
.
‘The
other
one
ran
.
I
was
worried
he
might
have
some
other
mates
nearby
,
so
I
followed
him
.
I
caught
up
with
him
just
outside
the
cave.’

‘He’s
dead?’

‘Yes
.
’

‘You’re
sure
of
that
?
’

‘I
blew
a
bloody
big
hole
in
his
chest
, .
so
he’d
better
be
dead
.
’

‘We’d
better
check
anyway
,
’
Blackstone
says
.

He
makes
his
way
down
the
dark
passage
,
into
the
first
cave
,
and
then
out
into
the
blinding
light
of
an
Afghan
August
afternoon
.
The
Pathan
is
lying
on
the
ground
,
and
Yardley
had
been
right
—
there
is
a
bloody
big
hole
in
his
chest
.

‘
He
was
out
here
waiting
for
me
when
I
came
out
of
the
cave
,
’ Tom
Yardley
says
.
‘He
got
off
the
first
shot
,
and
I’d
have
been dead
myself
if
his
rifle
hadn’t
jammed
.
’

‘
You’re
a
real
hero
,
’
Blackstone
says
.