Read Online Black August by Dennis Wheatley - Free Book Online Page B

Division have been concentrated there, and they’re great fellows—know a lot of ’em myself. They’ll soon put things right.’
    Veronica shook him gently by the shoulder. ‘You divine person, we heard all that hours ago from Fiona’s hairdresser. Do you really mean to tell us that you don’t know anything more?’
    â€˜Not much,’ he smiled at her affectionately. ‘We’re just standing by. Have to give a telephone number if we leave barracks for more than half an hour—that’s all.’
    Kenyon filled up Fiona’s glass from his shaker, then he looked across at Veronica. ‘Why waste your breath, sweet Sis?’ he inquired with gentle sarcasm. ‘Don’t you realise that Alistair rides one of the King’s horses and is one of the King’s men. If he did know anything he wouldn’t tell
you
in a thousand years. It’s his job to keep his mouth shut.’
    â€˜That’s true.’ Hay-Symple ran the back of his hand under his upturned moustache, ‘but honestly I know little more than you can read in the papers. Only odds and ends about what to do in the event of an outbreak of plague and that sort of thing.’
    â€˜Gadzooks! these men—what children they are,’ Veronica exclaimed to Fiona. ‘Let’s all play robbers—but don’t tell the girls, they’d spoil everything!’
    â€˜The children must have their fun, darling!’ Fiona smiled, ‘they are all going to be so important now. Alistair will run up and down in a nice brass hat before he’s much older. Kenyon will be given a purple ribbon for his button-hole, so that everyone will get off the pavement knowing him to be an M.P.—and Peter—well poor Peter will have to put up with a little red, white and blue shirt just to show he’s on the right side in this General Strike.’
    â€˜It’s all very well for you young women to scoff, but you may be almighty glad we’ve got an Army before this business is through.’ Hay-Symple held out his glass, ‘Here, Kenyon, old man, give me another, will you?’
    â€˜Why do you compare this with a General Strike?’ asked Kenyon curiously.
    â€˜Well, isn’t it?’ Fiona parried. ‘They’ve been having the most ghastly trouble up at Peter’s works in Sheffield since they stopped supplying the Balkans with munitions, and he’s always said that when steel went down the drain, everything else would go too.’
    â€˜I agree that all these strikes and stoppages have helped to bring it about, and the Communists have played an enormous part in aggravating the situation; they are so much stronger now, but that’s where the resemblance ends. The Trade Unions and the working men are no more responsible for the present state of things than we are. It is the effect of colossal bad debts made through other countries cracking up—taxation of industry out of all proportion to the profits made, and the complete stranglehold which the banks have acquired on every form of property and business. As long as they maintain their policyof refusing further advances without adequate cover more and more people are bound to go under, and every crash gets us nearer to six million unemployed—which in turn means more taxation for the poor devils who are still striving to carry on. That is the vicious circle we are up against.’
    Fiona nodded. ‘Yes, the rations for the unemployed have got to be paid for somehow of course, but I don’t see why the banks should lend money without security all the same.’
    â€˜They are getting it in the neck today,’ observed Hay-Symple, ‘half London was queueing up this morning to get their money out.’
    â€˜Effect of last night’s moratorium.’ Kenyon patted his breast pocket. ‘I was on the doorstep round the corner when they opened today and drew out a couple of hundred. The