Read Online Sink: Old Man's Tale by Perrin Briar - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Perrin Briar
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and followed the little girl.
“Just lead the way,” he said.
She led him from the festivities and down a narrow street.
“Just where are we going?” Graham said.
The little girl came to a stop. Graham realized how quiet the street was. There wasn’t another soul around.
“I’m going to head back,” Graham said.
He turned, and his face was smothered with a thick bag.
Chapter Twenty-One
With the metallic rock now in his possession Jeremiah set to finishing the machine. He polished it so the surface shone bright. Then he wrapped the wire around it. Happy with the result, he sat it to one side. The digger looked a mess, like he’d demolished it. But sometimes you needed to destroy something before you could rebuild it again.
A cheer erupted in the town square outside. Jeremiah had to admit, the party festivities did sound fun… No. He wouldn’t go out there. Once, he wouldn’t have thought twice about joining a street party, but at some point he had lost touch with civilization. He no longer felt comfortable in it. Besides, he didn’t need it. All he needed was to go home.
Jeremiah let out a sigh. Despite being deep underground he was no worse off than when he was on the surface. He kept to himself, not letting anyone get close. The only thing he really missed was his beloved eucalyptus tree. If it wasn’t for that, he’d have been just as happy down here. What did that say about his life?
Graham’s casual comment about Stuart had rocked him to his core, and it had been all he could do not to ask how his son was doing, how his grandson was. How trivial the root of an argument seemed with the perspective of years.
Though Jeremiah’s fingers were large and knotted around the knuckles, the skills came back to him quickly. He was making good progress and should finish the machine ahead of schedule. No thanks to Graham. The big quitter.
The music outside built to a crescendo and Jeremiah turned to look at the crowd. What would these people even do up on the surface? They had no skills, no way to function in the modern world. They would find themselves in a new bubble. But what concern was that of his? He would get the digger done. His eucalyptus tree depended on him.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Clearly his disguise hadn’t fooled everyone. Graham’s joints had once again been locked by a team of tiny bodies, before dragging him away. For little people they certainly were strong.
He was now sat on a chair with a bag on his head. He wasn’t tied up. He heard a door open and close, and people whispering, fidgeting and moving around inside the room.
“I’m going to remove the bag now,” a deep voice said. “Please don’t panic. We mean you no harm.”
The muscles in Graham’s limbs tightened, preparing to spring and make a run for it.
The bag was whipped off. A big friendly face with a large nose and wart on his chin beamed at him.
Graham leapt to his feet, banged his head on the roof, and immediately fell back into his seat. He was dazed, almost knocked unconscious.
“Be careful,” the little man said. “Don’t get up. You’ll only hit your head again.”
The room swirled around Graham like he was on a Ferris Wheel, the faces and forms of a dozen people floating through his eyes.
“Washer woman 4813, get him a cold towel, quick,” the friendly faced man said.
Graham blinked, and then peered around at his surroundings. He was sat in the front room of a small house. Even prone in the tiny child-like chair as he was, his head almost grazed the roof. It was like living in a child’s model house. The people before him looked like average little people, but there was a similarity in the features. Casting his eyes around at the photo frames confirmed they were a family. There were even marks on the doorframe showing how tall each of the kids were at various stages of their life.
Two of the kids dug at the walls with tiny shovels. Their mother picked them up and held them in her
“Just lead the way,” he said.
She led him from the festivities and down a narrow street.
“Just where are we going?” Graham said.
The little girl came to a stop. Graham realized how quiet the street was. There wasn’t another soul around.
“I’m going to head back,” Graham said.
He turned, and his face was smothered with a thick bag.
Chapter Twenty-One
With the metallic rock now in his possession Jeremiah set to finishing the machine. He polished it so the surface shone bright. Then he wrapped the wire around it. Happy with the result, he sat it to one side. The digger looked a mess, like he’d demolished it. But sometimes you needed to destroy something before you could rebuild it again.
A cheer erupted in the town square outside. Jeremiah had to admit, the party festivities did sound fun… No. He wouldn’t go out there. Once, he wouldn’t have thought twice about joining a street party, but at some point he had lost touch with civilization. He no longer felt comfortable in it. Besides, he didn’t need it. All he needed was to go home.
Jeremiah let out a sigh. Despite being deep underground he was no worse off than when he was on the surface. He kept to himself, not letting anyone get close. The only thing he really missed was his beloved eucalyptus tree. If it wasn’t for that, he’d have been just as happy down here. What did that say about his life?
Graham’s casual comment about Stuart had rocked him to his core, and it had been all he could do not to ask how his son was doing, how his grandson was. How trivial the root of an argument seemed with the perspective of years.
Though Jeremiah’s fingers were large and knotted around the knuckles, the skills came back to him quickly. He was making good progress and should finish the machine ahead of schedule. No thanks to Graham. The big quitter.
The music outside built to a crescendo and Jeremiah turned to look at the crowd. What would these people even do up on the surface? They had no skills, no way to function in the modern world. They would find themselves in a new bubble. But what concern was that of his? He would get the digger done. His eucalyptus tree depended on him.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Clearly his disguise hadn’t fooled everyone. Graham’s joints had once again been locked by a team of tiny bodies, before dragging him away. For little people they certainly were strong.
He was now sat on a chair with a bag on his head. He wasn’t tied up. He heard a door open and close, and people whispering, fidgeting and moving around inside the room.
“I’m going to remove the bag now,” a deep voice said. “Please don’t panic. We mean you no harm.”
The muscles in Graham’s limbs tightened, preparing to spring and make a run for it.
The bag was whipped off. A big friendly face with a large nose and wart on his chin beamed at him.
Graham leapt to his feet, banged his head on the roof, and immediately fell back into his seat. He was dazed, almost knocked unconscious.
“Be careful,” the little man said. “Don’t get up. You’ll only hit your head again.”
The room swirled around Graham like he was on a Ferris Wheel, the faces and forms of a dozen people floating through his eyes.
“Washer woman 4813, get him a cold towel, quick,” the friendly faced man said.
Graham blinked, and then peered around at his surroundings. He was sat in the front room of a small house. Even prone in the tiny child-like chair as he was, his head almost grazed the roof. It was like living in a child’s model house. The people before him looked like average little people, but there was a similarity in the features. Casting his eyes around at the photo frames confirmed they were a family. There were even marks on the doorframe showing how tall each of the kids were at various stages of their life.
Two of the kids dug at the walls with tiny shovels. Their mother picked them up and held them in her
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