Adam Leadbeater - Audio Book

Transcript

Note: Transcripts are generated using speech recognition software and may contain errors.
Adam lead. Peter The man sat alone in his living room with nothing but his memories and his capture entertain him. He had so many memories and so little time to recall the more his eyes were professionally bandaged and his face showed shrapnel wounds. Shrapnel was named after Henry Shrapnel, a British officer, invented the exploding artillery shell. All young British military officers were taught this so many memories. Where was I? Of course, my grandfather. These pills give me so distracted. I only met him on his deathbed. I was for it. Think, maybe five. I've heard stories but never believed him. You see, Children could be so cool. C, C, c. And townspeople to neighbors. They can all be so cool. Gossip, innuendo, he muttered as he continued to stroke his cat, a beautiful, slender lilac Point Siamese. They say, My grandfather fought for the fair marked during the Second World War on something like that just didn't go unnoticed. Growing up in Kent, my grandfather survived his interment in England, met a nurse. It is camp, married her and eventually became a productive member of English society. The story is more involved in that, but we'll have to wait until I make my tea. He could hear the kettle whistling. You can take the man from England, but not the England from the man. He had repeated that phrase since he moved to Los Angeles so many times he gently pushed his vigorously purring cat from his lab and made his way to the kitchen, hugging the walls. Earl Grey was his choice. Loose Leaf was a must teabags, being such an American invention of convenience and certainly below him. He was surprised how easily he could get around his house by just touching the walls. The pills could not meet those memories. Has he entered the kitchen? He felt his way across the counter to the stove and turned off the flame. He then remembered the first time he'd ever made T as a child and how we burned himself on the cattle so badly he had to have a doctor bandaged his hand. That was the first at last time he burned himself on the stove. So many memories. He had already measured his tea, and all he did was pour it into the teapot only two minutes of steeping, and he would be in T heaven, but heaven would have to wait As he heard a knocking on the door. He bought the tray with the teapot, the lemon slices on the sugar into the living room. Just a moment. I'll be right there, he yelled before leaving the kitchen. He took us with vodka. Navigating his way back to the living room table was a little more challenging, but he was getting the knack of it. After placing the tray on the table, he made his way to the front door and opened it without asking. Who was there. Please tell me. Or a stripper. Ah, so you're probably either my neighbor Frank or the Army. I'm ready for both. I imagine he bluntly stated Hi, Derek is me, Frank. He awkwardly stated eso the army is evacuating the neighborhood. Voluntary, of course. And they asked us to tell our neighbors, and you know, uh, like he didn't know how to finish. Frank was the kind of person who would say I m and you know eso You kind of come out here and with all of us and, like, move to the safe zone for Hank. Good to see you. Actually, As you can see, it's not good to see you because I cannot see that is I can't thank you so much. United States Army. All I was doing was trying to get some fresh water and a missile hits the building. I was walking next to bang smash frames, flying glass and steel and heat. No ISAF, half my scalp gone. Cheers, mate. Thank you so much for trying to save me by destroying a building filled with the undead. And the insult the rial Insult is not my blindness. Not at all. Not all that's happening now. All of this. He motioned around him. The real insult is somewhat of the hospital. Took my role. It and they still sit me home on my own. Mind you with an invoice and her voice. His heartbreak was palpable and invoice. So I'm really not going anywhere with you or anyone. Especially not the United States Army. They already have my eyes voluntarily. Of course, his sarcasm was corrosive. I have no place anymore with all of you. Come with us for your safety. I've heard that one before. That old chestnut, when the time comes, as it most inevitably will I know what to do. The man pulled an old Webley 38 out of his bathroom pocket. The kind that you'd see in war films like Zoo. How did you get there? You're not even an American. He interrupted. Frank. Please. Anyone can get a gun in America. He knew the gun was a prop, but he was playing one final roll, and he was playing it to perfection. And in Los Angeles, please, my good sir, is practically mandatory. He scolded in that. Oh, so British way on, my good man. Just so that you'd know. I've been a citizen for 22 years, Frank. I suggest you tell your army friends that there is nothing here for anyone and that they should just leave an old blind man alone with his mortal coil. That Shakespeare? Oh, boy. William Shakespeare. He was ah, writer. You know, back in the day, I'll take English literature for 200 points. Please, Alex. His sarcasm would only have resonated with an English literature major. Or perhaps with anyone other than a man named Frank. Look, man, I'm just I'm just doing what they told me to do. Now. Did you could with your blindness. He finished frank sentence. No, Frank. I'm not the kind of person who would shoot his neighbor with his family just across the street. He let Frank think about this for a moment. So if we had done without neighborly business, I'd really like to get back to my tea and vodka. The old Russian water. Okay, fine. I'll leave now, Frank, Turn to go back and finish packing up his truck. Actually, just so you know, for the record, I really did like you on that show. You were pretty funny. Frank was referring to the man's tenure on the network's hit television show for seven years. Gosh, Thank you, Frank. That is kind of you to say I did win three Emmys for my performances, although not consecutively. You do know what those are, don't you? Oh, and, Frank, I actually do have something to say to you as we're being brutally honest on. This is probably the last time I'm ever going to speak to you and look into those. Oh, so dumb, witless eyes. I want to say to you, you're an ******* and you go **** yourself with your drinking and yelling at your wife and the way you speak to your Children, You're what we would call in England a ******* count. So go **** yourself. For the record, of course. Now get your ******* wanker *** off my property before I go all texas on you, boy. Frank slowly backed off and back. Pedal down the walkway. He didn't turn around until he was halfway down the path that led to the man's front door. I know. Come back, you hear, son? There's nothing I could do view. So you don't time by you here. The man closed the door and took his place on the couch. Moments later, a cobalt blue potted cactus came flying through his side window. ******* wanker. At least we got a breeze in here. He muttered, ********. Now my tease better. He didn't have to taste it to know it was better. The over steep T bothered him more than the broken window. Well, the water is still hot. Let's make some more Sorry. The cat joined him on the kitchen counter. He bought the teapot back into the kitchen and just left it on the opposite counter. He would use another teapot as he had several. He was English after all. So where was I as he sipped from his freshly brewed cup? Yes, of course. My grandfather, the German. This is how the story goes, or at least how it was told to me. Christmas Eve, 1944 and some small town in southwest Germany. He and his squad were given orders to hand over to the Gestapo a group of Jews who had been found hiding in some attic or basement or whatever for the last few years. On one thing Germans do well is follow orders. You see, he was a German officer of the ver marked from a proud family of German officers. He wasn't one of those scum. Nazi thugs pretend soldiers pretend humans, no matter how sharply they dressed. When they arrived at the rendezvous, he must have had a shall we say, change of mind. My grandfather must have looked up at that full moon in the clear blue night and had an epiphany of sorts. I can almost smell the cold and see his breath now see expressed. If he had eyes too close, he would have, as the people poured out of the truck and wood lined up by the side of the road. My grandfather had a break, a snap. He became detached from his uniform and from his duty as a German officer, all he could see with the looks on the Children's faces. For some of them, this was the first time they had ever seen the outside of that basement or wherever they were hiding. And they were going to be executed on Christmas on Baby Jesus's birthday, I suppose being murdered on any days bad. But on Christmas, that was bad form beyond the pale, even from the ******* Nazis. No matter how sharply they dressed in their Hugo Boss, Yeah, without hesitation, he pulled his pistol and shot the three Gestapo thugs. And as they could stop, a commander turned to run. My grandfather took careful name and shot him in the back of the head. His own men turned their weapons on him, but hesitated. They all looked at each other, the prisoners, my grandfather, the soldiers under his command. No words were exchanged. No further gun shots were exchanged. Only humanity was given a second chance. He told them that the only way they would all survive. The war is if they made it to Switzerland that night, he took them to a military base a few miles away. You see, my grandfather had been stationed in the area for the entirety of the war, So he knew along the guards and all the outposts in the reason he told the gate cards that the people in the back of the truck we're family of prominent Gestapo on needed to be shuffled across the border that evening, traveling on Christmas night. How one present, the guard must have told him, he must have thought not as unpleasant as murdering women and Children. On Christmas, the man took another sip of tea as he wondered how accurate the story was becoming, as he told it, or how accurately it was told to him. Well, they made it to Switzerland that night. The Jews eventually made it to the British Embassy. The men under his command melted into the populace. My grandfather was placed under house arrest at a nice little hotel. In this stance, he was an officer. After all. When hostilities ended, he was transferred to the British authorities. On that was that so How was I? Was I entertaining? Was I sufficiently entertaining? How was my last great performance? Shall I exit stage left on a trip? He needed one last affirmation. One last ovation before the curtain finally fell upon his performance. Despite his own pain and inner torment, he had dedicated himself and his entire life to the entertainment of others. Now was no exception. His cat me out as if on cue, Uh, treasure. You have always been there for me. He mattered as he stroked his prop gun, A pair of hands clapped. Then another pair clapped and a few more and finally all of them. Thank you. Thank you all. Well, then I'm ready. I'm ready to be with all of you. Now on. Thank you for listening. Thank you. We thank you. We thank you for helping us. And we thank you for the stories they have made us remember. And they have made us forget. One of them said, if you already we already all the zombies he had been hiding from the authorities had peanut rapt attention listening to his one final soliloquy. Good. I I'm ready. My brother, the brother walked behind the couch and kiss the man on the top of the head. He then proceeded to gently slip a carving knife into his thoracic cavity. Between his first trip in his collarbone, the knife plans deep into his chest, pacing his heart and ending his human life instantly, his after life was about to begin.