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"There's no need to thank me, Lieutenant," the Mayor teases.
"Thank you," I say, my eyes still on the wall.
"It keeps you from doing what you don't want," he says. "It keeps you from having to kill."
"Unless someone comes after you," I say.
"Unless someone comes after me, yes. Will that be a problem for you, Todd?"
"No," I say. "No, sir."
"Good," says the Mayor.
I look back thru the mirror. The naked man's head has lolled lifelessly onto his chest, drool dripping from his slack jaw. Mr. Hammar is angrily taking off his gloves and slapping them on a table.
"I am very blessed," the Mayor says warmly. "I have achieved my ambition to put this planet back on track. Within days, maybe even hours, I will crush the terrorists. And when the new settlers come, it will be me who puts out a proud and peaceful hand to welcome them." He raises his hands, like he can't wait to start putting 'em out. "And who will be right beside me?" He holds his hands out to the two of us. "Both of you."
Davy, buzzing pink all over, reaches out and takes his pa's hand.
"I came into this town with one son," the Mayor says still holding out his hand to me, "but it has blessed me with another."
And his hand is out, waiting for me to take it. Waiting for his second son to shake his hand.
"Congrats, Lieutenant Pigpiss," Davy says, hopping back into Deadfall's saddle.
"Todd?" Ivan says, stepping away from his post as I climb onto Angharrad. "Can I have a word?"
"He outranks you now," Davy says to him. "You'll address him as Lieutenant if you don't want to be digging bogs on the front lines."
Ivan takes in a deep breath, as if to calm himself. "Very well, Lieutenant, may I have a word with you?"
I look down on him from Angharrad's back. Ivan's Noise is busting with violence and the gunshot to his leg and conspiracies and resentments and ways to get back at the Mayor, openly thought, as if to impress me.
"You should keep that quiet," I say. "You never know who might hear."
I slap Angharrad's reins and off we go back down the road. Ivan's Noise follows me as I go. I ignore it. Feeling nothing, taking nothing in.
***
"He called you son," Davy says, looking ahead as the sun disappears behind the falls. "Guess that makes us brothers." I don't say nothing.
"We should do something to celebrate," Davy says. "Where?" I say. "How?"
"Well, we're officers now, ain't we, brother? It's my understanding officers get privileges" He looks over at me sideways, his Noise bright as a flare, filled with things I used to see all the time in old Prentisstown.
Pictures of women with no clothes.
I frown and send him back a picture of a woman with no clothes and a band on her arm.
"So?" Davy says.
"Yer sick."
"No, brother, yer talking to Sergeant Prentiss. I may finally be well."
He laughs and laughs. He feels so good some of it actually touches my own Noise, brightening it whether I want it brightened or not.
"Oh, come on, Lieutenant Pigpiss, you ain't still pining for yer girl, are ya? She left you months ago. We need to get you someone new."
"Shut up, Davy."
"Shut up, Sergeant Davy." And he laughs again. "Fine, fine, you just stay at home, read yer book-"
He stops himself suddenly. "Oh, damn, sorry, no, I didn't mean that. I forgot."
And the weird thing is, he seems sincere. There's a moment of quiet where his Noise pulses again with that strong feeling he's hiding--
That something he's trying to bury that makes him feel--
And then he says, "You know ..." and I can see the offer coming and I don't think I can bear it, I don't think I could live another minute if he says it out loud. "If you ever wanted me to read it for--"
"No, Davy," I say quickly. "No, thanks, no."
"You sure?"
"Yes."
"Well, the offer's there." His Noise goes bright again, blooming as he thinks about his new title, about women, about me and him as brothers.
And he whistles happily all the way back to town.
I lay on my bed with my back turned to Mayor Ledger, who's chomping down his di
"People are wondering when the big attack's go
I don't answer him. I run my hand over the cover of the book like I do every night, feeling the leather, touching the tear where the knife went in with the tips of my fingers.
"People are saying it'll be soon."
"Whatever you say." I open the cover. Ben's folded map is still inside, still where I stashed it. It don't even look like Davy bothered to open the book, not once in the whole time he had it. It smells a bit like stables, now that I know where it's been, but it's still the book, still her book.
My ma. My ma's words.
Look what's become of yer son.
Mayor Ledger sighs loudly. "They're going to attack here, you know," he says. "You'll have to let me out if that happens."
"Can't you keep quiet for five seconds?" I turn to the first page, the first entry my ma wrote on the day I was born. A page full of words I once heard read out.
(read out by--)
"No gun, no weapon." Mayor Ledger's standing now, looking out the windows again. "I'm defenseless."
"I'll take care of you," I say, "now shut the hell up."
I'm still not turned to him. I'm looking at my ma's first words, the ones written in her hand. I know what they say but I try to sound them out across the page.
Muh - y. My. It's My. I take a deep breath. Dee. Dee - arr. Dee - arr - ess. Dee - arr - ess - tuh. Which is Dearest, which seems mostly right. My Dearest. And the last word is Son, which I know, having heard it so clearly today.
I think about his outstretched hand.
I think about when I took it.
My Dearest Son.
"I've offered to read that for you," Mayor Ledger says, not able to hide his groan at the sound of my reading Noise. I turn round to him, looking fierce. "I said, shut up!" He holds his hands up. "Fine, fine, whatever you say." He sits back down and adds a last sarcastic word under his breath. "Lieutenant."I sit up. Then I sit up higher. "What did you say?"
"Nothing." He won't meet my eye. "I didn't tell you that," I say. "I didn't say a word."
"It was in your Noise."
"No, it wasn't." I'm getting to my feet now. Cuz I'm right. I ain't been thinking bout nothing since I came in for di
He looks up at me but there ain't no words coming outta his mouth and his Noise is scrambling for something to say.
And it's failing.
I take a step toward him.
There's a ker - thunk at the door and Mr. Collins lets himself in. "There's someone here for you," he says to me, then he notices my Noise. "What's going on?"
"I ain't expecting no one," I say, still staring at Mayor Ledger.
"It's a girl," Mr. Collins says. "She says Davy sent her."
"Dammit," I say. "I told him."
"Whatever," he says. "Says she won't talk to no one but you." He chuckles. "Pretty little piece, too."