TEN SECONDS , The Kenny Ackerman Story BOOK ONE~ ORIGINS ,by Melly O'Hara

GRANDPA

CHAPTER 7 GRANDPA

I looked up at Jas, my Owl, tears, silently streamin' down her exqusiste face, hopin' for a contradiction. But she had no wise words for me. The moon now, were startin' ta wane, makin' it's journey taward the inevitable sunrise, that would dawn in a few hours.

I pulled her close an' held her tight as the pain o' the memory grew, the lump in my throat growin' ta the size o' a boulder.....But, no tears came. The grief still raw, still unprocessed, mingled with the anguish o' what I'd jus' done.....What had led me here. Tellin' my story ta Jas, seekin' absolution. When no words came, I continued...

" As the mornin' wore on an' I knew that I had ta do somethin', again, I felt the acid bile rise inta my throat, but this time I made it to the sink. Splasin' water on my face an' hair, I stood at the basin, shakin' an' weak. I couldn' look at myself in the mirror, intead I stared at the remnants of the water swirlin' down the drain, breathin' deeply.

Bein' drunk as a lord were one thing, but this; I couldn' go on like this. I had ta do somethin'. I had ta get outta here.

The ol' dude. I'd go an' find the ol' dude. Then when I came back an' found Kuchel (I wouldn' let myself think 'bout not findin' her). So, yeah, when I came back, an' I found Kuchel I could make it right again. I mean, this guy had lived on the surface for the last seventy years or what-ever, an' he were an Ackerman by the sounds o' it. So's maybe he had a secret that would make it possible for me an' Kuchel to get out. A glimmer o' hope pricked at the corner o' my mind an' I felt my strenghth returnin' as my purpose became clearer.

I had ta wait 'til dark fell ta do my scoutin' - after all, I didn' even know where he were. So's I spent the day bribin' an' heavyin' everyone who had any connections, ta find out anythin' that anybody knew 'bout an ol' guy who'd come from the outta districts an' were now bein' held under house arrest in Mitras.

Word were scarce, but there were multiple whisperin's 'bout a new group o' Ackerman's livin' along side Wall Sina, that were makin' their way ta Wall Rose. Could they be kin? If so, who were they? Did THEY know my parents? Or know 'bout me an' Kuchel? Were I on the wrong track with this ol' guy? Should I be trackin' them instead? Word was, they'd jus' appeared within the las' month, which explained why I hadn' come across 'em in my travels. An' that , as their recent arrival showed, the persecution o' the Ackermans were still goin' strong, with Ackermans jus' runnin' from place ta place, soon as anyone knew who they was.

An' then lady luck came my way. It were durin' one o' the routine Military Police raids on the miners an' the regular sweep on the thieves an' smugglers o' the Underground. Usually my boy's would jus' take care o' 'em - either; out-run 'em, suck-up ta 'em or bribe 'em. But this time one o' my men had the brains ta ask a few questions while he were slippin' some exrta bucks inta the greedy Captain's sweaty hand, who'd agreed ta look the other way ta my rackets. That same fat pig who had agreed ta look the other way an' were always lookin' for a little extra, ta line his sty with were more than willin' ta tell 'im all 'bout a recent arrival ta Mitras that the Military Police were guardin'. Who he were, an' more impotantly; where. I told my guy ta give the fat pig the whole roll o' cash. He'd been useful afore an' would prob'ly be useful again.

So's as soon as night fell, I made my way outta the Underground, an' back inta Mitras. An' hidin' in the shadows I made my way ta the address the Captain had, so kindly provided. Sure enough, there were 'bout eight Military Police guardin' the small, square, grey brick house; two on each side.