Seven Silent Men Read Online Free
Author: Noel; Behn
fifty yards over the rough grating before reaching the metal ladder rungs set into the tunnelâs cement wall ⦠climbed the rungs to the steel hatch in the floor of the abandoned irrigation system control booth above. Pushed the hatch open. Boosted himself up and into the improvised command bunker. Without a word to Meadow Muffin, grabbed the radio headset and yelled into it. Yelled for Mule.
Muleâs voice could be heard in the earphone, just barely.
Little Haifa screamed for Mule to speak up.
Mule answered, somewhat louder, to stop shouting at him, that he could hear perfectly well when Little Haifa used an ordinary tone of voice, that even if he could speak louder he wouldnât because he had a worsening sore throat from standing around in the frigginâ dampness trying to operate the frigginâ controls. Then he asked what Little Haifa wanted anyway.
Little Haifa yelled that the water level in the main irrigation tunnel was falling instead of rising.
Mule asked how the hell Little Haifa thought he got his sore throat in the first place ⦠by running around trying to get the water level up.
Trying wasnât good enough, Little Haifa countered. The water level was four feet too low. Four feet was a DISASTER.
Mule warned against shouting.
Little Haifa excitedly explained that everything was ready to go ⦠that everybody was in place ⦠that the soup was even sealed into the box ⦠that THE WHOLE OPERATION COULD GO INTO THE TOILET BECAUSE THE WATER LEVEL IS TOO GODDAM LOW!
Mule cautioned that one shouts at dumb animals and speaks civilly to human beings and told Little Haifa DONâT SHOUT AT ME ABOUT IT! GO SHOUT AT THAT FRIGGINâ PUSS-HEADED NEPHEW OF YOURS ABOUT IT! YOUR PUSS-HEADED NEPHEW DREAMT UP THIS SYSTEM! HE KNOWS HOW IT WORKS, NOT ME! GO GET HIM TO SHOW YOU!
Little Haifa let it be known YOU KNOW GODDAM WELL HE WENT AND VANISHED ON US! YOU GOTTA DO IT! YOUâRE THE ONLY ONE WHO KNOWS ANYTHING ABOUT THEM CONTROLS! YOU GOTTA HOLD UP YOUR END!
HOW? demanded Mule. YOU WANNA KNOW WHAT PUSS HEAD WENT AND DONE? YOUR GENIUS NEPHEW? HE WENT AND TOOK THE IRRIGATION CONTROLS AND THE FLOOD-CONTROL CONTROLS FOR A CITY OF MILLIONS OF PEOPLE AND SPLICED THEM ALL TOGETHER UP HERE IN ONE BIG BOWL OF FRIGGINâ SPAGHETTI! IF YOU FLUSH A TOILET IN UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS YOUâRE LIABLE TO BLOW FUSES AT THE RIVERFRONT MOTEL. I DONâT KNOW WHAT OPERATES WHAT UP HERE! ALL I KNOW IS EVERYTHING IS HOOKED INTO SOME SORT OF FRIGGINâ AUTOMATIC TIMER THATâS SET FOR GOD ONLY KNOWS WHEN!
WHY YOU KEEPING SECRETS? Little Haifa asked. WHY DIDNâT YOU SPEAK UP LIKE A MAN? WHY DâYOU GO ON SAYING âGOTCHA, GOTCHAâ ANY TIME I ASKED FOR SOMETHING TO GET DONE?
âCAUSE WAY BACK THEN I WAS IGNORANT! WAY BACK THEN I THOUGHT I COULD GET THESE CRAZY CONTROLS UNJAMMED AND WORKING. NOW I SEE WHAT THE PROBLEM IS.
Mule, what we gonna do? asked Little Haifa.
Put the score off, was the reply. Hit it tomorrow like we planned to do. Maybe by tomorrow Iâll have these controls figured out.
Canât go tomorrow, Mule. Gotta go right now. Mule, I already put the nitroglycerin in. A bank employee comes in and as much as sneezes in that vault room, itâs boom and good-by.
Maybe you can go with the water like is? Mule suggested.
With the water that low, most of the irrigation tunnels downstream will be bone dry. Weâll have to walk through them tunnels maybe ten miles carrying the score and our gear. By the time we get to the river, it could be dawn. Weâll miss the Treachery. Uh-uh, weâre stuck, Mule. We gotta go right now. You gotta come up with something to get us away from here.
Keep getting ready ⦠Iâll call you back, Mule said.
Returning to the underground excavation site, Little Haifa, with Wiggles and Cowboy, began stringing fuse into the northern tunnel leading to the command bunker. While they did, Windy Walt began piling
Muleâs voice could be heard in the earphone, just barely.
Little Haifa screamed for Mule to speak up.
Mule answered, somewhat louder, to stop shouting at him, that he could hear perfectly well when Little Haifa used an ordinary tone of voice, that even if he could speak louder he wouldnât because he had a worsening sore throat from standing around in the frigginâ dampness trying to operate the frigginâ controls. Then he asked what Little Haifa wanted anyway.
Little Haifa yelled that the water level in the main irrigation tunnel was falling instead of rising.
Mule asked how the hell Little Haifa thought he got his sore throat in the first place ⦠by running around trying to get the water level up.
Trying wasnât good enough, Little Haifa countered. The water level was four feet too low. Four feet was a DISASTER.
Mule warned against shouting.
Little Haifa excitedly explained that everything was ready to go ⦠that everybody was in place ⦠that the soup was even sealed into the box ⦠that THE WHOLE OPERATION COULD GO INTO THE TOILET BECAUSE THE WATER LEVEL IS TOO GODDAM LOW!
Mule cautioned that one shouts at dumb animals and speaks civilly to human beings and told Little Haifa DONâT SHOUT AT ME ABOUT IT! GO SHOUT AT THAT FRIGGINâ PUSS-HEADED NEPHEW OF YOURS ABOUT IT! YOUR PUSS-HEADED NEPHEW DREAMT UP THIS SYSTEM! HE KNOWS HOW IT WORKS, NOT ME! GO GET HIM TO SHOW YOU!
Little Haifa let it be known YOU KNOW GODDAM WELL HE WENT AND VANISHED ON US! YOU GOTTA DO IT! YOUâRE THE ONLY ONE WHO KNOWS ANYTHING ABOUT THEM CONTROLS! YOU GOTTA HOLD UP YOUR END!
HOW? demanded Mule. YOU WANNA KNOW WHAT PUSS HEAD WENT AND DONE? YOUR GENIUS NEPHEW? HE WENT AND TOOK THE IRRIGATION CONTROLS AND THE FLOOD-CONTROL CONTROLS FOR A CITY OF MILLIONS OF PEOPLE AND SPLICED THEM ALL TOGETHER UP HERE IN ONE BIG BOWL OF FRIGGINâ SPAGHETTI! IF YOU FLUSH A TOILET IN UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS YOUâRE LIABLE TO BLOW FUSES AT THE RIVERFRONT MOTEL. I DONâT KNOW WHAT OPERATES WHAT UP HERE! ALL I KNOW IS EVERYTHING IS HOOKED INTO SOME SORT OF FRIGGINâ AUTOMATIC TIMER THATâS SET FOR GOD ONLY KNOWS WHEN!
WHY YOU KEEPING SECRETS? Little Haifa asked. WHY DIDNâT YOU SPEAK UP LIKE A MAN? WHY DâYOU GO ON SAYING âGOTCHA, GOTCHAâ ANY TIME I ASKED FOR SOMETHING TO GET DONE?
âCAUSE WAY BACK THEN I WAS IGNORANT! WAY BACK THEN I THOUGHT I COULD GET THESE CRAZY CONTROLS UNJAMMED AND WORKING. NOW I SEE WHAT THE PROBLEM IS.
Mule, what we gonna do? asked Little Haifa.
Put the score off, was the reply. Hit it tomorrow like we planned to do. Maybe by tomorrow Iâll have these controls figured out.
Canât go tomorrow, Mule. Gotta go right now. Mule, I already put the nitroglycerin in. A bank employee comes in and as much as sneezes in that vault room, itâs boom and good-by.
Maybe you can go with the water like is? Mule suggested.
With the water that low, most of the irrigation tunnels downstream will be bone dry. Weâll have to walk through them tunnels maybe ten miles carrying the score and our gear. By the time we get to the river, it could be dawn. Weâll miss the Treachery. Uh-uh, weâre stuck, Mule. We gotta go right now. You gotta come up with something to get us away from here.
Keep getting ready ⦠Iâll call you back, Mule said.
Returning to the underground excavation site, Little Haifa, with Wiggles and Cowboy, began stringing fuse into the northern tunnel leading to the command bunker. While they did, Windy Walt began piling
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