‘Bring the traitor in,’ the major said.
Flaming orange hair topped his rugged head. Next to him sat the captain, his blue eyes chill discs. Fire and ice together hunkered behind a desk. A youth in khaki pushed in a tall man, his hands tied behind his back.
‘You’ve been found guilty of treason,’ the major said. ‘You will be executed by members of the people’s liberation army immediately. Any last words?’
The man spat on the floor in contempt and was dragged out.
‘Execution’s not good enough for that one,’ the captain said. ‘Revealing half of his battalion’s arms stache to the enemy?’
‘Do you believe his claim? Tortured by the occupying forces?’
‘Irrelevant. His duty was to lay down his life for the nation, not betray it.’
/
Roig and Palumbo smoked nervily at the edge of the moor.
‘No need for you to fire,’ Roig said.
‘They’ll count the bullets.’
‘Tell you what. I’ll fire once with my rifle, then once with yours.’
‘Somebody could hear a gap of that length between shots.’
‘Out here on the moor? Look man, he’s your…’
‘I’ll do it,’ Palumbo said.
‘Nobody will know. There’s just us two and…’
Palumbo shook his head fearfully.
/
Roig led the man to be shot to a space brightened by moonlight.
‘Did they torture you?’ Roig asked him.
‘The occupying soldiers held a gun to my wife’s head. Either I told them where the cache was or she was done for.’
‘Why did you tell the major you were tortured?’ Roig said.
‘I wanted to keep my wife out of the story. He can kill me, but Eloise – ? No! Nor my kids.’
‘I’ll do my best, you know, to help Eloise and…’ Palumbo muttered.
‘Releasing me is what you should be doing, Peter!’
‘If we don’t carry out orders, we’ll be shot,’ Roig insisted.
‘An army of national liberation you’re called! Look at yourselves. Killing more of your own than the occupiers of our country! You’re led by religious nutters and sociopaths. They’re playing you, Peter. And you Roig.’
Roig rubbed his chin thoughtfully and said, ‘Do you think Peter’s been chosen to shoot you?’
‘His own brother? Of course! They know Peter’ll be tempted to let me escape. Maybe they suspect him, or both of you, as well as me. And if you don’t pass the test…’
‘Testing us?’ Roig said, feeling the pistol cold in his pocket. ‘You really think…?’
‘This country! First ruined by colonists and now the liberators. Obeying orders from our all-wise betters is the pretext, destroying our own is the outcome. C’mon the pair of you, get it over with. Shoot!’
/
In the dead of night in their bunks the major and captain woke up, disturbed by noise. Facing them were three privates, two armed. They were shot and died in a pool of their own blood.
The civil war, which normally follows a country’s war of independence against an occupier, had begun early.
