Devolution

Riding in silence in the back seat of a Statesman limousine with two very wide men on either side of him, Sid boiled inside. He was angrier than he had ever been. Of all the stuffed up scenarios he had ever heard of, experienced or could imagine, this was the most embarrassing for him. This reflected very badly on his ability to carry out the assignments given to him. This was a death blow to his reputation, and his reputation was everything to Sid. Everything.

Worse still was the undeniable fact that he had to accept the blame-all of it. He worked alone and was always happy to take all the kudos, and all the cash, so when things went wrong as they had done on this occasion, the fault was entirely his.

‘Are you morons going to tell me where we’re going or not?’

More silence as the two quiet giants stared straight ahead.

They had pulled up in the Statesman right in front of Sid’s hiding place opposite Turning Point, which by the time they arrived had become about as concealed as red wine spilled on the front of a white shirt. Sid had actually given up on Joshua and was considering his next move when they arrived. Had he been less distracted-what was wrong with him these days?-he might have sensed the danger and at least tried to escape. As it was, the two giants, dressed in the typical all black ensemble of enforcers, exploded from the rear doors of the Statesman with frightening alacrity, raced to Sid, grabbed an arm each and hauled him off his feet, over the sidewalk and into the Statesman before he had time to do anything.

He yelled at them, struggled against their titanic strength and even tried to reach for and draw his electrogun but he was like a sparrow being shaken in the mouth of a cat. Totally overpowered, Sid surrendered and instead of fighting began to ask questions, none of which had thus far been answered.

There was no doubt in Sid’s mind that Joshua had been helped but by who? What role did Turning Point play? Was it really a church or a front for some other organization? Or both? Who were these men and where were they going? Questions. Damned infuriating questions.

Next to the driver in the front seat was a fourth man dressed in black like the others but he was more normal looking in terms of his size. He too stared ahead. Sid looked out through the tinted windows of the limousine and watched Sydney city’s crowded streetscape give way to a buzzing bustling freeway. A sign indicated they were heading north, and they quickly passed exits to Mosman, Crows Nest and St. Leonards. The ride was smooth and quiet, the air was cool and dry and with some kicking driving music and without his new friends, it might have been a very pleasant experience indeed.

They left the freeway at Chatswood and proceeded along the Pacific Highway, maintaining the speed limit and the silence all the way. Soon, Sid felt drowsiness creep over him and with nothing better to do he yielded to it and fell asleep.

A short time later he awoke when his head had apparently lolled into the shoulder of one of his bodyguards and disturbed him to the point where he felt the need to wake Sid up, suddenly and rudely. Sid stared out the window, searching.

‘Where are we?’ He should’ve known better than to ask.

The city’s forest of shining skyscrapers thinned as the six lane freeway, full of fast moving vehicles of all shapes and sizes, cut its way north. Soon, the scenery was dominated with thick scrub and Sid noticed a white and green sign jutting from a sheer sandstone wall at the roadside announcing that the Gosford exit was two kilometers ahead.

‘The R.T.A. advises you are now traveling at ten kilometers above the legal speed limit. First warning.’

‘Watch it will you, we’re nearly there. Don’t get us into shit now.’

Finally a voice. It was the front passenger talking to the driver in response to the R.T.A. announcement.

‘You get three warnings before they cut the engine, don’t worry about it.’

‘Just stick to the limit will you. There’s no rush. We’ll be early any way.’

Sid felt an elbow dig into his side accompanied by the comment, ‘We’re way ahead of schedule,’ and immediately retaliated with his own nudge.

The guy on Sid’s left reached across suddenly and thumped Sid on the chest with the bottom of his fist. Sid went to hit back but the other guy on his right restrained him.

The guy in the front passenger said, ‘Knock it off. He’s supposed to be delivered unharmed.’

Thumper replied, ‘That bruise won’t show,’ then he smiled for the first time making Sid immediately wish he hadn’t. A dog would have been ashamed of having such a mouthful of horrendous, misshapen and discolored teeth. That thought amused Sid and he couldn’t resist a cheap shot.

‘Bloody hell mate! You need a dentist badly!’

Thumper turned on Sid in the blink of an eye with his fist clenched and cocked.

‘You’re the one who’s gonna need a dentist.’

Sid jerked his head to the side to avoid the blow from Thumper but the collision with the other guy’s shoulder still hurt.

‘Lay off him I said,’ shouted the voice from the front. ‘Last warning,’ he said pointing his bony finger at Thumper and thrusting violently towards him.

Turning to the guy whose shoulder his head had collided with, Sid said quietly, ‘Your friend just can’t take a joke can he?’

‘He’s not my friend but I know he’s gotten himself into lots of trouble with his temper. Why don’t you shut your cakehole and be a good boy for the rest of the trip, okay?’

Sid considered the giant and decided he was doing him a favor with that warning so he held his tongue.

The exit ramp swung sharply to the right and passed under the freeway before joining a connecting road at a set of traffic lights. There they stopped and waited for green. Gradually the roadside bushland was taken over by civilization as they entered Gosford City’s southern entry point: the suburb of Kariong. After more traffic lights and more turns they were again seemingly in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by dense green and grey bush.

Suddenly the car skidded to a halt in the rocky sand beside the road.

‘Sorry,’ said the driver which made Sid laugh.

‘What are you laughing at?’ demanded Thumper.

‘He,’ said Sid gesturing to the driver, ‘comes to a dead stop for no reason in the middle of nowhere, giving us all whiplash, and then he says “sorry”, and none of you say anything. I make a little joke and I nearly get my lights punched out.’

By now the car was reversing slowly and Sid saw they had crossed a narrow dirt track barely wide enough for a car. Still looking for some sympathy from his captors, he asked, ‘Doesn’t anybody think that’s strange? Unfair even?’

The answer to his plea; Thumper and the other guy simultaneously telling him to shut up.

Shaking which alternated between gentle and rough, interspersed with the odd bang of a large hole being filled with some part of the car’s undercarriage, or a branch hitting the side of the car, made the journey unbearable. Despite his normally strong constitution, Sid began to feel queasy and wondered if he might need to ask for a quick stop to unload the contents of his stomach.

Fortunately, after what seemed like hours of torture the car again came to an abrupt stop and Thumper immediately got out, dragging Sid with him. A disturbing feeling, like drunkenness and seasickness combined had Sid staggering and stumbling around, swinging on the viselike grip of Thumper’s right hand.

A new voice. ‘He’s ready to see you, come straight in.’

‘I could use a drink first,’ grumbled Thumper. ‘And this sorry piece of tissue paper,’ he said jerking Sid to an upright position, ‘can hardly stand up.’

‘He’s ready to see you now.’

Sid watched the speaker turn and disappear inside the house. He looked around to see nothing but a wall of Eucalyptus and bush scrub. How did they drive in? What happened to the track? Thumper shoved him in the back towards the house and the other guy came alongside to lend a hand. The driver remained with the car but the man in the front seat, who seemed to be leading this merry band of henchmen was nowhere to be seen. Sid assumed he was already inside.

The cleared area in front of the single level house was about half the size of a football field and bordered on all sides by the Australian bush. Sid felt unusually hot and instinctively looked to the sky despite knowing there was nothing to see there but yellowy gray clouds.

In through the front door, a rush of cold air swamped him and he exhaled a loud whoosh of relief which only prompted Thumper to shake him again. Sid was getting the shits with this treatment and wondered how much longer he would have to put up with it.

From the hall where they stood, Sid looked left into the living room which was bare except for a lounge suite and a coffee table, all set up in front of an open fire place. There were no decorations on the wall or on the mantle. Catching his eye was the room’s only embellishment; an unusually ornate ashtray on the coffee table. Next to it sat a box of tissues.

Sid caught it all in a blur in the short time it took to cross the hall and enter the kitchen. At least he could see a refrigerator and a sink in there but they actually stopped before the kitchen where Thumper knocked on a door to the right its entrance and waited.

When the door opened Thumper stepped into the room pulling Sid with him and the other guy brought up the rear of the procession.

Behind a huge dark mahogany table, sitting in an oversized leather recliner was a strikingly attractive man dressed in a gray suit. Sid noted his hair which almost looked too good to be true and studied the impassive face beneath; tanned and smooth. He looked like a young man but something about his presence, the way he sat still and radiated authority, made Sid suspect he must be older than his appearance suggested.

‘Please have a seat Sid,’ said the man pointing to the vacant chair in front of the desk.

‘Who are you?’ demanded Sid.

‘Please,’ he repeated ignoring Sid’s question.

‘Thank you, gentlemen,’ he then said, apparently to Thumper and his buddy who released Sid and allowed him the luxury of positioning himself in the seat. Sid looked at the man expectantly.

Returning his direct gaze, the man spoke. ‘My name is Gareth Masterman.’

Now Sid was really worried. He didn’t really expect the guy to tell him who he was and now that he had he was suddenly gripped by fear. An instinctive fear warning him that Masterman was a man who cherished an almost impenetrable anonymity. That he should reveal himself to Sid was ominous in relation to Sid’s chances of leaving alive.

‘Tell me what the hell I’m doing here!’

‘Sid,’ said Masterman. ‘I’m going to answer your questions but you should know that I expect more respect than your voice is displaying at the moment…from my employees.’

This bombshell took Sid’s breath away though he tried hard to conceal his feelings. The truckload of dread became a shipload as he realized he was living on borrowed time. At least, if Masterman was true to his word, he would not die wondering.