The situation can't possibly get any worse once you're languishing in Death Row, waiting to be burned for the crime of 'heresy', right? Wrong, as the subject of this short story from the anthology ISOLATION SPACE is set to find out
Sinners In Streaming Video
"DON'T worry," he says, wiping the incessant perspiration from his face. He stands by the door, framed in the pale light filtering in through the window high above my head. His beady eyes stare out of his pudgy face with a doll's sincerity. Almost it hides his embarrassment.
"Axel, they're going to burn me!"
"It won't come to that."
"No?"
"It's just for show. That's all – a pure formality."
"Exactly!"
He looks away sharply and glances at the walls. I can see his disgust at the mildew. That's nothing, compared to the banging of the pipes in the middle of the night – the ones intended to keep the dungeon damp and unpleasant. I'd tell him that, but he looks troubled enough.
"I'm sorry," he suddenly says.
"What?"
"I'm sorry I pointed the finger. They didn't leave me any choice. You know –"
"It's all right, Axel. I know what they're like."
"I may be a rich man, but it carries no weight with them."
"No."
"But I do have some clout. I'll take care of things. I promise."
I have to confess, Axel is starting to annoy me, but I bite my tongue. Here I am facing death, and I don't want to make him feel worse. I just ask, "What things?"
Yet another furtive look at the walls. Is he worried about bugs – in this damp? He showed no such reticence before. "Trust me," he quietly says.
CATEGORY: ISOLATION SPACE
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