Chapter 28
The Thompsons were having difficulty believing what they
were not seeing.
'This is getting silly,' said Jock,
staring into the empty ditch.
Jimmy stood silently
beside him in a state of bewilderment.
'Well, looks like
it's the jail for us,' he sighed. 'Someone found the body.'
'I guess the police will know about it by now.'
Jock sat
on his haunches and pulled a blade of grass from the ground. He stared
morosely at the small bits of mud clinging to its roots and then gently
patted it back into place.
'Feeling sorry for the grass
now are we?' asked Jimmy.
'We will be old men by the
time we get out of jail,' replied Jock sadly, a distant look in his
eyes.
'Well, what now Mr Bright Ideas?'
'Do a runner?'
'Where to?'
'We could
make the evening ferry if we hurried.'
'You mean leave
the island?'
'We have a few thousand quid saved up, that
should be enough to start a new life somewhere.'
'You're
not thinking clearly.'
'Oh, I think I am. What about Peru?'
'Peru? Where the hell is Peru?'
'It's in South America,
you dickhead, and will you please stop swearing!'
'What
would we do?'
'I'm sure there's as much of a need for
coffins in Peru as there is here.'
'Well, yes, I guess
death is pretty much a thriving business everywhere you go these days.
Does it have a coast? I would want to live beside the sea.'
'No idea, I expect so.'
'South America eh?'
'It sounds more appealing than jail.'
'Yes, and when we
arrived we could rent a small workshop, buy some new tools and some
timber and get to work.'
'We'd lose the house here.'
Jimmy shrugged.
'I guess so,' he replied, 'but it would
be of no use to us in the jail anyway. What made you think of Peru? Are
there terrorists and suicide bombers there?'
'No idea,
never thought of that. It would be good for business, I suppose.'
Jimmy checked his watch.
'Let's go home brother.'
'In a minute.'
Neither of them said another word. They
just stood for a while looking out over moors they were sure they would
never see again.