Late Night News

Dennis and Jack were quick into bed, having enjoyed an exiting day meeting Patrick.  Nina then joined Tobias and Patrick out on the balcony where she was given Patrick’s letter. She was as surprised as Tobias that Mr. Green himself took this initiative.

“Mr. Green is fair, Patrick. You don’t need to worry,” Nina said.

Tobias nodded back at them both.

“But what are those stories about Mr. Green you mentioned, Tobias?” Patrick asked.

“Well, you see, Patrick, Skyjland probably never would be if Mr. Green hadn’t been there in the background. Mr. Zed and Ms. Nodi know him well, and I guess Ms. Matey knows him best, but they still don’t say much about him.

“We do know he’s from Europe, from a small country called Sweden. It’s been said that Mr. Green had been institutionalized for most of his life because of his small size, and that he’d been subject to a lot of strange experiments in his childhood, during the war and afterward. His parents were ashamed of him and let the authorities put him away as a mental case. At that time in Sweden they castrated people labeled as insane to prevent them from reproducing—from having children.”

Patrick cringed.

“Mr. Green was never crazy though. You could say he is highly intelligent, in a mental sort of way. He does things to people, and what he did to those people who’d tortured him in his childhood—people say that’s worse than death. He didn’t let them out of the institution where he’d been. They were stuck there as patients in a lot of mysterious pain, and the only way for them to get any relief was to stay within those walls. Outside it’s said that they were sometimes screaming of pain throughout the nights, and doctors couldn’t help. So Mr. Green trapped them there, like in a prison, and he did similar things with other people and staff he didn’t like, too.”

Nina confirmed this story by filling in details, and the power of Mr. Green started to take shape in Patrick’s mind.

Tobias continued, “It’s also said that even the government in Sweden got involved, that they tried to get rid of him—to kill him secretly—although why all the secrecy back then I don’t know because no one would have missed him. But all the attempts ended up making Mr. Green only madder. He took his revenge against people outside the hospital, too.”

Nina added, “But you need to know, Patrick, that here in Skyjland Mr. Green is well respected. Just his very presence, people knowing that he’s here, has made any kind of formal justice system unnecessary.  We have no police, no prisons, no judges. That’s how powerful he is. It’s like: don’t even think about being mean to someone, and whatever you do, don’t lie or cheat. That will hurt only you.”

“Anyway, Sweden is believed to have paid him a considerable amount of money, using secret bank accounts, before he agreed to move to the U.S. and another institution there, which is where he met Ms. Matey. If that was fate or what, no one knows.

“But why would he move to another institution?” Patrick asked.

Nina explained, “My guess is that he just didn’t know anything else. I don’t think it matters how intelligent you are; if you’ve been locked up without any contact with the outside world, you’ll probably feel safe in that kind of environment even when you’re set free. I know many people who don’t like to change and often end up living in the same neighborhood their whole life even if they don’t like it.”

Tobias added, “And Mr. Green had learned how to gain power in that setting.”

He continued, “Ms. Matey is different in another kind of way, like she knows people; she knows about people whom she’s never even met. She knew that Mr. Zed existed and she even located him for Mr. Green. So, Mr. Green sort of arranged for Mr. Zed to join them, and Ms. Nodi moved over there, too, thanks to him.

“After that Mr. Green took over the institution and started to run things, with his three new associates, and later they bought the place where you first met us Patrick. Money didn’t seem to be a problem—it seems that Sweden paid him as long as he stayed put and left them alone. That place is not entirely unique though—there are several other places like that in other countries, too.”

Tobias paused and stretched a bit before continuing. “The four of them have something in common. What, I’m not sure of, because they are so different. You’ve meet Mr. Zed, haven’t you Patrick?”

Patrick nodded.

“They were able to communicate very well even in those early days, and they began all of this themselves.”

Nina took over. “In one of Ms. Matey’s early tales she talks about an ancient power, like a spring flower breaking through the ice. Even though the crack in the ice was tiny, the sound it made when it broke open was heard from miles away. The sound split apart, echoing off mountains and through valleys, like it was searching for something. Where the ice ended and water took over, the sound took off high into the sky, like it was being carried by a storm. The sound eventually embraced the Earth, and where it came together again, it was silent.

“A witch who had heard where the sound died went there to see what it left. She met a tiny little half-size man, standing out in the snowy wasteland like he was waiting for directions.

“‘I seek wisdom in soul and mind, and feet to stand on,’ he said.

“‘Wisdom in soul I can help you find, but wisdom in mind is far away. Your feet, however, you will find wherever you are,’ the witch answered.

“While traveling and learning with the witch, the little man gained wisdom in his soul, and the ancient power he possessed spread far. Soon thereafter they met a wizard, who joined them, and his wisdom in mind made ancient power assemble. Seeking feet to stand on also made ancient power bend down to the ground. A peasant woman once offered him shoes to walk in, and that’s how he found his feet.

“From there the threesome planted wisdom with each step they took, giving ancient life the power to prosper. However, some of the power that tiny little man possesses, he still keeps hidden deep in his shoes, and no one knows what will be revealed when he takes his last step.”

Tobias smiled, nodding towards Patrick to acknowledge the story Nina told. Patrick smiled too.

 “So you see, Patrick, that’s how Skyjland started, and if you’re interested, you could check out some more of Ms. Matey’s early stories. They’re all a bit cryptic, but they’ll give you an idea of how Skyjland became what it is today. And perhaps they‘ll even tell you what to expect in the future. Through her strange tales, Ms. Matey is said to be able to travel in time, but nobody really knows if that’s true or not.”

Patrick listened intensely, enjoying every word, because he certainly did want to know more. But it had gotten late, and the late night news was coming up. They all moved inside to the living room, where Tobias used his TeeWee to switch on a TV screen that had been hidden within a landscape painting on the wall.

First was regional news, and Patrick enjoyed that very much as it was about Skyjland and its people. But in almost no time the reporter interrupted with an announcement that Mr. Cantini had resigned and had been replaced by a Mr. Derek Boyd, whom Tobias and Patrick recognized as that tall tuxedoed man at Mr. Cantini’s fancy nightclub. The reporter also said that the full story was to come up right after Skyjland news.

“That’s only in about ten minutes,” Tobias said, stretching his legs.

As the news ended with a weather report, Nina filled in for Patrick about details on how things worked in Skyjland, like who ran the news station and how that benefited the people. But as the Cantini story started everyone fell into silence.

After a short introduction, a reporter explained that they were about to see footage from the scene where the coup had happened. It all started last night when Mr. Cantini was having dinner in his nightclub before opening. He enjoyed dining by himself in one of the back rooms, waited on by his staff; it was his way of beginning business.

However, last night as he sat there eating, his staff mysteriously stopped appearing when he called for them. He became impatient and stood up to go shout at them from the door. But when he turned to the door, he couldn’t find it; it just wasn’t there. And as he turned for the other door, and then a third, they were gone as well, just blank walls … and the windows too, they all had disappeared like they never had been there in the first place.

Mr. Cantini was visibly upset, but he didn’t yell for assistance. Instead he moved away from the walls and sat back in his chair, with a bewildered expression on his face, staring down at his plate.

“Hello!” a tiny voice was heard calling.

It was Mr. Green, and he was standing right in front of Mr. Cantini on the other side of the table.  It was like he had come from nowhere. Patrick knew it was Mr. Green because he was indeed very small, kind of like a child, but with a very adult-like demeanor.

Mr. Cantini twitched and raised his head to look at the small stranger. He seemed to be about to yell at him, that pint-sized man in a dark green, doll-size suit who dared to enter his domain without an invitation. But instead Mr. Cantini started to struggle to breathe, like he was hyperventilating.

“You and I are going to have a chat,” Mr. Green continued without Cantini able to respond.

Mr. Green’s eyes became very dark and piercing, like he was evaluating Mr. Cantini’s feelings. Despite his size, his authority couldn’t be denied, and it started to fill the room.

“Here’s the deal. You are going to resign and turn over your business to one of your staff who’s able to handle it, backed up by your name. That person must be able to obey commands when he or she is told to, and you will be liable if he or she fails to do so.”

The posture of Mr. Green was demanding yet relaxed. That tiny voice was no more; his tone and pitch were the same, but his delivery sounded hard and without hesitation. Those first seconds of his comic leprechaun impression had been washed away. The seriousness in his deepening eyes made his otherwise small, perhaps childish face, look hard as rock. He had no beard or wrinkles to reveal his true age; it looked like not even age could touch him.

“Your money and all the money your business generates is going to be accounted for as I say, and by a person who will obey commands just like before. Again, you will be liable if the accounts are not managed properly. You will be allowed some money for a decent living, and you will be allowed to choose four of your closest men whom you will pay to protect you, but nothing more. You are not allowed to do any business ever again, and you are only to follow the commands I give you for the rest of your life.”

There was a pause when Mr. Green just looked at Cantini, without the slightest change of expression. The pause stretched, and soon it was clear that Mr. Cantini was in pain, unable to express a word.

All three—Patrick, Tobias and Nina—were glued to their seats on the sofa, silent, serious. Despite all the stunts, hypnoses, and illusions Tobias had pulled off in his time, he had never seen anything like this.

After five minutes in a dead silence, Mr. Green opened his mouth again to speak. “I’m going to stay here with you for twenty more minutes, and when you’re prepared to give me the names, you’ll do that. If I leave here without you having given me those names and accepting the deal, you’re leaving with me.”

There was yet another short pause with Mr. Green looking straight at Mr. Cantini, who was suffering.

“Yes, you may ask,” Mr. Green then said.

Mr. Cantini was suddenly able to breath again freely, making it possible for him to move. But what he wanted most of all was to grab his gun from inside his vest and fill that half figure standing there in front of him with bullets. But he didn’t dare. Nothing before in his life had scared him, but now that was exactly what he was feeling. He felt Mr. Green was holding him with a thin string, which was his only guide to finding his way back. That darkness he felt when he’d lost his breath started to open, finally giving him space.

Mr. Cantini stood up like he was searching for support, and he tried to take some steps away from his chair, but he didn’t get far. It was a full couple of minutes before he could open his mouth. He asked hoarsely, “Or else? What are you going to do?” He was able to work sarcasm into his voice, but that was as far he dared to go.

Mr. Green changed, gently smiled. “Please sit down.” He gestured to Cantini’s seat. He then turned to fetch for himself a chair of massive oak from a corner.  Mr. Cantini sat down, waiting. Mr. Green, the tiny half-man, grabbed the tall chair, and with one hand he lifted it up like there was nothing to it. He walked the chair to Mr. Cantini’s table and placed it a bit away from the edge, in front of Mr. Cantini, so he would be visible in full without the table getting in the way. Then he climbed up to take a seat.

Mr. Green started to smile even more as he leaned back in his chair, with his head not even reaching the top of the seat back. This smile wasn’t for fun.

Patrick reacted. “Can I go and touch it?” he asked.

“Yes, of course you can,” Tobias answered without knowing what it was Patrick wanted to do.

Patrick stood up and walked over to the TV screen, where he reached out with one hand, like he was searching for something on the surface of the screen, but a couple of inches away without touching it.

“He’s letting go of him!” Patrick exclaimed. “Mr. Green is letting Mr. Cantini lose.”

Neither Tobias nor Nina understood what he was talking about, but they let him stand there searching with his hand over the screen, even though he partially blocked the view.

It was obvious now that Mr. Cantini could move more freely, and he started to look really angry. But Mr. Green just sat there smiling, waiting like a doll in an oversized chair, watching Mr. Cantini gain strength.

After another minute at the screen, Patrick turned back to Tobias and Nina on the sofa, saying, “He’s lose! Mr. Green let him lose! There are no strings now.” Patrick had a wild look in his eye, like he spoke without understanding or even being aware of his actions.

Both Tobias and Nina looked back at Patrick with wonderment as he sat down beside them. He was so fully concentrating on that screen.

Mr. Green’s smile, before he spoke, boded no good.

Patrick rose quickly and stepped towards the screen again, feeling with his hand for a couple of seconds, but from a farther distance this time, and then he went back again to his seat.

“He’s strong. He’s terribly strong, Mr. Green is,” Patrick mumbled to himself as he sat down.

Tobias and Nina had not just the late night news to watch. Something was happening right before their eyes in their living room, but they didn’t know what it was.

“I’m not interested in stealing your money—that I can do anyway without you knowing it,” Mr. Green began.

Mr. Cantini’s eyes became darkly sharp, like he was waiting for the right moment to pull the trigger.

“He’s still lose,” Patrick again mumbled.

“I’m interested in you,” Mr. Green said in a sharp voice while smiling widely.

Mr. Cantini looked a bit off guard.

“What do you think you’re worth on the black market?”

“What do you mean? What black market?”

“You. That you, who you are. That body of yours. What do you think you’re worth?”

Mr. Cantini was silent. But this time Mr. Green didn’t wait for any answers.

“That body of yours. I’m going to strip you bit by bit and sell your body parts as donations on the black market. How much do you think you’re worth?” Mr. Green’s voice was sharp like pins and needles, making both Tobias and Nina grab their seats while Patrick followed the screen.

Mr. Cantini wasn’t able to quite catch up or recover his composure before Mr. Green delivered his next blow.

“And I’m going to do it with you alive. How much do you think you’re worth alive? How much do you think your body parts are worth with you donating them?” Mr. Green started to add some nasty depth to his voice.

Tobias and Nina froze; they didn’t know what to do. Were they going to turn the TV off or what? This in just a couple of seconds had turned into a nightmare. What about Patrick? What would he think?

The sharpness in Mr. Green’s eyes intensified. “And I’m going to be with you at all times. No anesthesia needed. What’s your body worth, Mr. Cantini? I can keep you steady, you know that now, and you’ll be aware and awake all the time, that I can promise.”

To hear his name like that, filling the room, started to wear on him.  Whatever Mr. Cantini tried to prepare himself to say, Mr. Green was ahead of him, but close enough to drag him along behind him, a route with no return.

Mr. Cantini started to sink; the room got smaller. The darkness that he felt stealing his breath before he now saw in Mr. Green’s eyes, but this time the darkness let him breath; it let him feel all his organs as his blood, with every beat, drained him of life.

Mr. Green’s small self now dragged Cantini farther and farther into darkness, still with no strings attached, but with Mr. Green’s face turning nasty as he continued.

“But I’ll keep that brain of yours, and I want it alive….”

Not a breath was heard. Not a sound was heard from the screen or the living room where Patrick, Tobias and Nina sat staring.

“Now you can ask me what I will do with your brain if you don’t comply.”

“He’s still lose, but he can’t do anything. Mr. Cantini is finished, he can’t do anything!” Patrick blurted. He stood up again and leapt to the front of the screen, and this time he touched the screen lightly.

“He’s finished. Mr. Green took him and he did it without any strings attached. Mr. Cantini never stood a chance,” Patrick said as he turned back to his seat.

And right he was. After two more minutes of silence, Mr. Cantini started to give Mr. Green names, and it was not the same Mr. Cantini as before. Broken was not the word; humble was not the word either. Instead he expressed emptiness, like he had been dried out. Patrick knew that mentally Mr. Cantini had lost contact with his body. His consciousness was now split. It was like his body had been ripped away from him, and the only thing that remained was a role for him to play. He now inhabited a state between life and death, where he wasn’t able to find any relief.

Whatever Mr. Green took, it was not Mr. Cantini’s body. That Mr. Green still intended to make use of, turning his business to act according to his rules. No, what Mr. Green took was something more profound. And as if life itself darkens and vanishes in the shades, Mr. Cantini’s face on the TV screen had faded away.

As the program ended Tobias asked, “But what did Mr. Green take, do you know, Patrick? He’s still alive and will now work for us, won’t he?”

“No, he’s not alive, not anymore,” Patrick answered sadly. But then he stated with authority, “Mr. Green is for real. He doesn’t need any tube display; he’s seriously strong.”

And without giving Tobias and Nina a chance to ask him any more questions, Patrick told them about the time back in school when he was bullied by a gang and ran away. “They died later, one by one. Each one died by a single stroke. And everyone in school thought it was me, but it wasn’t. It was Mr. Green, I know that now,” Patrick said with relief.

“Would you like us to go with you to that meeting with Mr. Green on Wednesday, Nina and I?” Tobias asked.

“Yes please, would you do that?”

“Yes, of course, Patrick. We will never leave you—you know that now.”

Patrick produced a happy smile back at them both; in a strange way he didn’t seem to feel scared or upset at all after Mr. Green’s startling, violent performance. Tobias and Nina were both having a hard time relating to what they just had seen, but neither of them wanted it to show.

“Great, guys. How about a late snack?” Tobias exclaimed.

Patrick wasn’t sure what that was, so he first looked at Nina to get a confirmation that it was okay and then back at Tobias to check that he was not joking. The clock had turned late, and Patrick wasn’t sure if he was supposed to be up that late in his new home. He was tired all right, in fact exhausted after yet an exiting day that exceeded them all, but he nonetheless didn’t want to miss anything. Nina seemed to have no problem with Patrick joining in, and Tobias obviously meant what he was saying.

“Right, I’ll get some crackers, cheese and jam in the kitchen. Tea or hot chocolate, anyone?”

“Hot chocolate with some whipped cream, please,” Nina ordered. “You should try some,” she then said to Patrick.

Patrick was all for it, and Tobias went out into the kitchen to prepare.

“So, what do you think of your first day here, Patrick?” Nina asked.

“I like it very much,” Patrick politely answered.

He still was a bit shy before Nina, but after some more easy-going small talk and as the day suddenly wore him down even more, he loosened up. Nina asked about his interests and what he wanted to do, and Patrick answered the best he could from what he had learned so far. He’d been seriously impressed by Doris presenting her TeeWee—especially her skills using it—and he told Nina that he wanted to learn that. Nina explained about his options, that it was no problem to enter a class anytime.

“We don’t bother about age and school schedules like that here. We arrange classes to meet our interests and needs,” she explained.

After a while Tobias called from the kitchen for them to come and dig in. They squeezed in at one corner of the kitchen table for a cozy late night snack. Again, this Patrick never had experienced before, sitting between two adults—a man and a woman, a husband and a wife—and being accepted as their child. Their chatting was quiet and comforting, and after Patrick had finished his last cracker with jam and hot chocolate, he more than ever felt ready for bed.

They all hugged, and then Patrick headed to the bathroom. Tobias didn’t have to get up early because he controlled his own time, and that he intended to use spending the week with Patrick, showing him around.

When Patrick was washed up and ready, having brushed his teeth and put on his pajamas, he went back to Tobias and Nina in the kitchen where they were still chatting about the evening events and what they’d witnessed.

Patrick told them, “You don’t need to worry about Mr. Green, he’s not like that at all. You just shouldn’t mess with him.” He gave both Tobias and Nina an extra goodnight hug before he went back to his room and bed, falling asleep safe and confident that now finally he had come home.

…

To be continued next Friday.