The Grasshopper (43 page)

Seneca ran to the other aircraft,
waving to Noah.

“Bring them! Quickly!” he
shouted.

Manami ran first, because she felt
so bad. She felt bad because of the way that she had treated
Julius, because of his dignified and painful reaction, because of
his parting with the children. “You’re not saying goodbye to your
children, Julius,” her thoughts raced while she ran across the
roof. “They are your children. You are their father. They love you.
You will always be with them, Julius! Whenever you want. Just let
us leave now! To hide again! To calm down!”

The second helicopter was still
hovering above them. It couldn’t keep its balance and could not fly
away, because the arm of the heavy screen was coming off of the
fuselage. The next moment the arm detached and the screen fell onto
the roof between Seneca, who was already standing next to their
helicopter, and Manami, who was still running towards
him.

The impact with the concrete
shattered the screen. One shard from its glass surface, in the
shape of a very sharp triangle, flew through the air towards Seneca
and jammed itself deep into his body, across his stomach. Seneca
dropped to his knees, grabbed the glass, cutting his hands, and
dropped to his side without a sound.

Manami was injured by smaller
shards of glass. One had cut her forehead, another was stuck in her
shoulder, a third in the palm of her hand.

Noah, Peter, Pascal and Eir were
still far enough that none of them were injured.

Manami ran to Seneca and knelt next
to him.

“Julius!” she grabbed his shoulder
and turned him on his back.

Only then, through the darkness,
did she see what had happened. The blood from his gut was gushing
all over her.

“Pascal!” she looked up and
shouted. “Get the children out of here!”

Pascal realized that something
horrible had happened. He had to get Peter and Eir away. They had
only seen the silhouette of their father go down, but even that was
enough. They both screamed, calling out for their
father.

Pascal grabbed Peter around the
waist, lifted him and carried him on his hip. He ran towards
Seneca’s office, carrying both children.

Noah rushed over and knelt next to
his Mayor, but he didn’t say anything.

Manami lifted Seneca’s head from
the concrete.

“Julius, Julius…” she wept
quietly.

Seneca opened his eyes for a
moment. He saw Manami, covered in his blood.

“No, Manami, no…” were the last
words of the Mayor of Megapolis.

Chapter 153

During the war, Seneca had created
an improvised hospital on one of the top floors of the television
station building, in the administrative offices. Eir and Peter were
sleeping, heavily sedated, each in their own bed in a four-bed room
at this hospital. The on-call nurse sat on a chair next to them,
paying careful attention.

The cuts that Manami got on the
roof were shallow and harmless. The on-call doctor quickly clean
and bandaged them. Manami didn’t want to take any
sedatives.

She and Pascal sat next to each
other in the conference room of the improvised hospital and
listened to Noah explain what was going on.

“As soon as he finished his call
with the Grasshopper, the mayor ordered the helicopter and sent me
to get you from the shelter… He wanted you to immediately leave
Megapolis. But it’s still not too late. I can call a helicopter
this moment…”

“That hangar, is it deep enough
that the Grasshopper’s beams can’t reach it?” Manami
asked.

“No,” answered Noah, after a brief
pause. “But it is located near a city that the Grasshopper has
already destroyed. This is why the mayor believed that he would not
strike there again.”

“So that would mean,” Manami said
calmly “the Grasshopper defeats this Doctor in Russian roulette,
destroys Megapolis and continues to destroy the entire world. And
the four of us sit there waiting for our end in that basement. In
the meantime the electricity generators run dry, we’re left without
food and water…” Manami turned to Pascal. “I won’t accept that,
Pascal!” she said in a raised voice. “I don’t want that! I won’t
watch my children die! We’ll stay in Megapolis, Pascal! In this
hospital room, until that roulette game. And if the decision is
such, we will all disappear in an instant. My children don’t need
the agony! I gave birth to them and I now decide for them! And for
you too, Pascal!”

Manami took Pascal by the hand and
placed her head on his shoulder. She looked at Noah, who was seated
across from them.

“Noah, you’ve probably noticed my
strange behavior,” she said in a calm tone. “When I was arranging
the order in which we would take the elevator, when I insisted that
Pascal carry Eir… when I ran after Julius, so that he wouldn’t do
anything to Pascal… behind that large painting.”

Noah was silent.

“Pascal and I are in love. We love
each other, immensely. Julius knew that. I told him, Noah. If we
survive, if the Grasshopper loses, we’ll immediately get married.
Immediately!” she shouted, then lowered her head and
sobbed.

Pascal put his hand around her.
Noah didn’t say anything. He stared at his hands, laid down on the
table. When Manami’s moans had calmed down, Pascal
asked:

“Noah, can you tell me, how did the
mayor manage to preserve Megapolis? If I understood you correctly,
people from all corners have been coming to this city.”

“Yes, that’s right, Mr. Alexander,”
Noah replied. “Because the Grasshopper switched off power to the
other cities. When he saw what was happening, that columns of
people were moving on Megapolis, the mayor sent helicopters with
screens and loudspeakers…” Noah paused.

“Like the one that caused the
accident?” Pascal asked.

“Yes. Those aircraft were our
media. At night they flew over those thirsty, hungry, desperate
people. In the silence of the night they could hear and see the
screens better. We informed them that we would not allow anyone to
enter our region. We openly told those wretches that we would
protect our water works, our fields, our food production… at any
cost. Whoever tried to enter would be liquidated without warning.
In return the citizens of the Megapolis region introduced drastic
restrictions. Families received food and water according to their
size. In minimal quantities necessary for survival. All surplus was
shipped to the people beyond our borders. Medicaments too. We
called on them to forget their mutual conflicts, to organize and
establish their stations, where we would airlift humanitarian
aid.”

“And did work?” Pascal
asked.

“In the beginning it did. But when
the Grasshopper started destroying cities, the situation became
unbearable. The number of people around the region increased to
such a level that the closest ones were simply being pushed across
our borders. The Mayor was in agony for days. He didn’t give us any
orders. People surged into our fields, trampling them, destroying
them… our wells, irrigation systems… The food and water production
and distribution chain started to fall apart. That is when the
Mayor decided. He ordered us to save Megapolis, regardless of the
cost in casualties. So that at least some people might live, if
everyone cannot… and we pushed back this mass of people. We
reestablished our borders… at the terrible, terrible cost in
casualties, Mr. Alexander. At one moment the Grasshopper switched
on the power to the remaining cities. And the pressure on Megapolis
lessened. Now these helicopters of ours are flying over the people
in the surroundings and showing footage of the Grasshopper speaking
about the Russian roulette…”

“I don’t want to listen to this
anymore!” Manami suddenly said loudly. “What can I do? I can’t even
save my children! I’m going to lay down next to them and fall
asleep, sedated!” She got up and started towards the door. “Pascal,
you’re coming with me, too!”

Pascal got up and turned towards
Manami. She opened the door and stepped through it. She then
stopped and turned.

“Noah!” she shouted.

“Yes, Madam Manami?”

“”
Does that
Svetlana still work in Julius’ cabinet?”

“Yes,” answered Noah. “Svetlana Van
Andel.”

“You’re the mayor of Megapolis now,
you say?”

“That’s what your husband wanted,
Madam.”

“This is the television station!”
Manami raised her voice. “City Hall is on the other side of the
square. That’s where the Mayor’s office is! That’s your
secretariat, Mr. Mayor! I don’t want to see that person in the
building that I am in! I don’t want to see her anywhere!” She
grabbed Pascal by the hand and pulled him down the corridor. “Come
here, Pascal!”

After making a few steps towards
the hospital room with Pascal, Manami suddenly stopped, let go of
Pascal’s hand, and ran up to Noah, who was closing the door on his
way out of the conference room. Manami hugged him.

“Forgive me, Noah!” she said.
“Forgive me! I never even told you how sorry I am about your
parents! Your mother and father. How much I loved and respected
them,” Manami started crying again, stepped back from Noah, held
his arms and looked him in the eyes. “How proud they would be of
their son right now. Julius couldn’t have had a better successor,
Noah. Megapolis couldn’t have a better mayor… Don’t be angry with
me… Forgive me…”

“Thank you, Madam…” answered Noah.
“I’m not angry, of course. You’re in shock… These are horrible
things that you knew nothing about. And the mayor is gone. Go to
your children, please, take something to calm yourself. Its been
too much…”

Pascal came up to Manami. “Come, my
love, lay with your children,” he held her to himself and took her
down the corridor. “So that you may sleep, my dear…”

Chapter 154

The Grasshopper had called the
television secretariat the previous day and briefly informed them
that he would establish a video connection the following day at 10
o’clock, Megapolis time, and that he would play a game of Russian
roulette with Dr. Palladino.

Manami did not allow for Eir and
Peter to wake up during the five days since their father had been
killed. She demanded that the doctors keep them sedated because she
couldn’t bear to look in their eyes, knowing that they might die
soon.

She also didn’t allow any device
for communication with the outside world or accessing the media to
be brought into their hospital room. “What will be will be,” she
told Pascal. “I won’t watch that.”

Pascal wanted Manami to also be
sedated, but she wouldn’t agree to that. “I want to feel you until
the very last moment,” she told him.

That morning she said that no one
could enter their room anymore.

At half past nine she moved Eir to
Peter’s bed and told Pascal to sit on the edge of it. She lay down
in his lap and held her children’s hands.

Pascal caressed her back and kissed
her hair.

Chapter 155

Dr. Palladino sat alone at a table
in the middle of the square. In front of him, installed on a
tripod, was a camera that was filming him. He had earphones in his
ears and a microphone in front of his mouth. He held his sweaty
palms on his knees. Dr. Palladino looked at the small monitor in
front of him, next to which lay a revolver and one
bullet.

Noah stood behind him. The table,
camera, Dr. Palladino and Noah were protected by inspectors, with
their bodies. They stood in a perfect circle, with their backs
turned towards them.

A huge screen was installed along
the entire width of the television station building. The people
that had flooded the square watched it in silence.

The Grasshopper placed a revolver
and one bullet on the command desk. He watched the satellite image
of the square in Megapolis. At precisely ten o’clock he switched on
his camera and microphone, and established communication with Dr.
Palladino.

When the participants in the
Russian roulette appeared on the big screen, split into two halves,
the entire square gasped.

“Good day, Dr. Palladino,” said the
Grasshopper.

“Good day, Mr.
Grasshopper.”

“Dr. Palladino do you see my
revolver lying on the command desk?”

“Yes, I do.”

“That means that the command desk
is locked. In the event that I lose this game of ours and if my
head hits the desk, it won’t cause any change in the energy
system.”

“I understand,” said Dr.
Palladino.

“In that case, the shields from all
the platforms and the Command will be automatically lowered at noon
exactly, your time. This means that specialists will be able to
enter this room and take over control of the energy
system.”

“I understand,” Dr. Palladino
repeated.

The Grasshopper took the bullet,
placed it in the revolver and spun the barrel. Dr. Palladino did
the same.