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

SECRETS

CHAPTER 10 SECRETS

An' maybe, if Gramps had anythin' worthwhile ta say, it WOULD change things enough so's I could get her an' her an' her littl' runt, outta that shit-hole an' finally let Silver Lady wipe the greasy smile offa ' Jerk- off Jones's' face. I could go back, an' this time it wouldn' be with ' talk o' dreams an', it'd be real. I knew that what ever ol' Gramps knew, hadn' done him no good, an' had only got him hunted all his life. But, I had a couple o' advantages over ol' Grandpa - first; I ran the underworld o' Mitras. That gave me power on the surface that he'd never had. It gave me ears an' eyes an' a freedom from bein' hunted from all sides, somethin' else he'd never had. Me, I only had ta 'worry' bout the Military Police, an' God knew, me an' Silver Lady could take care o' 'em. Second, I had somethin' he never even dreamed o' - I had an aquaintence with the heir ta the throne. An' come the future, Uri WOULD be king. An' if'n I played my cards right, when that day came, I'd have the power an' influence ta get him ta change things for us Ackermans. Their hatred o' us couldn' be jus' cause o' our power. 'Cause as far as I could see, not all Ackermans had that power. So's I figured that what ever he knew, could only help. An' maybe, it'd be the missin' piece o' the puzzle as ta why we were despised; change that, an' we'd be free.

This time I didn' need ta wait 'til it were completely dark ta leave for good ta ol' - Grandpa's. But ta let off steam, I found some 'good- ol' – boys that was late with their repayments, an' took out the interest on their faces. Silver Lady made such perdy patterns when she were riled! - Reckon I left 'em betta lookin' than afore I started. Did 'em a favour, I reckon.

Feelin' refreshed, I had me a whiskey, an' set off for Gandpa's. I had my scouts whistle when the streets was clear an' the ' good citizens' o' Mitras was inside their comfortable homes, with their comfortable lives. (Ignorant, smug, fat sheep, with shit for brains). An' easy as a cat, sly as afox, I made my way, keepin' ta the shadows ta the small, grey-brick house, that were his prison. Guess I really musta spooked the higher-ups, 'cause this time, even though it were still day, the whole block 'round the house were scattered with Military Police, as well as his house. I climbed ta the roof on one o' the lower buildin's usin' the drain pipe an' made my way along the roof tops, 'til I could see the entire compliment o' the Police guardin' his house. There musta been 'bout a hundred o' them. This were goin' ta be fun! I'd alredy had a hell-av- a- day, an' this'd be jus' like dessert, after a nice dinner. I rubbed my hands together, smiled an' reached for Silver Lady, an' a couple o' her friends, an' got ta work.

'Workin' in the Capital had made 'em soft. All they was used ta were roughin' up defenceless scum an' women an' children. So's nothin' in their 'defences' had any affect on me. Maybe took a littl' bit longer an' the firs' time, but not much. An' afore long, I had a nice pile o' used, bloody, Military Police uniforms - ready ta be given ta the next generation o' new recruits. Once ya took the bodies outta 'em!

Takin' the keys, I once again, let myself in.

"Hi ya, Grandpa", I said lazily as I made my way through the lounge area to his bed, an' pulled up a chair.

"Get rid of all the Miltary Police, did ya?'' he asked with a voice as soft as death.

I sat down beside his bed. "Yeah, musta been 'bout a hundred o' 'em out there this time – not jus' guardin' the house, but the whole damn block. Guess I scared the livin' shit outta them last time", I laughed. " But they're gone. We won' be disturbed".