lest euch doch mal bitte diese story auf englisch durch! sie ist noch nicht korrigiert, aber mein englischlehrer hat sie mit note 1 bewertet. ich wüsste gerne, was ihr vom schreibstil und der handlung haltet.
The Invisible Hand
by Leon Rüterbories
It was a cold afternoon and I stood on my balkony. The wind brought a scent that would change the world. It smelled of strife and fear. Something was not all right, I noticed. And I was about to find out what was not all right soonly…
The cell phone rang and I went back into my office. I picked up the phone. „Hello, Detectiv McGill speaking!“ „My name is James Norrington.“ The caller had a very foul and cold voice. When I heard the voice, it sent a shiver down my spine. „I have a job for you. I’ll pay well!“, Mr. Norrington said. „What’s it about?“, I answered. The person on the phone sounded professional, but something was peculiar. „My father was kidnapped a few weeks ago. Today, I got a message: If I don’t give them two million dollars, they’ll kill him.“ „Do you know the kidnappers? Are you able to contact them?“, I asked. „Yes, the organisation is called „Invisible hand“, they sent me a telephone number. I have to phone them, when I
have got the money. They said, that they’ll kill my father, if they don’t get the money in the next week. I want you to find out who are the bosses, where their headquarter is and whether we can get my father back without giving the kidnappers any money.“ „Why don’t you go to the police? They’ll surely be able to help you!“, I wanted to know. I usually only
search criminals, but a liberation is something different. Only one false word or action can cost somebody his life. „No, if I would have informed the police, the kidnappers would have killed my father. And people in my age aren’t taken seriously by the policemen.“,Norrington explained me. „I’ve got an important question: How old are you? Are you a child? I just want to know, not many adults still have parents.“, I asked. The person didn’t sound like an adult… but he didn’t sound like a child as well. The voice was too cold and emotionless. He spoke in cold blood. „I am twelve years old. But that doesn’t matter. I’m as able to pay you as an adult and Butler, my ähm… butler can drive me to your office or wherever you want to meet me.“ „You’re only twelve years old… if that’s right, how do you want to get the money for the kidnappers? I can’t imagine, that you’ve got so much money…“ „I understand, why you’re asking that, but the money isn’t the problem. My family is rich.“ „And what does your mother say about this?“ „Nothing, Mr McGill, when my father disappeared, she became manic-depressive and started to see fictive figures. I can’t hold a reasonable conversation with her anymore.“, the kid told me. While he said this, I firstly heard a little bit of emotion in his voice. I think, that his parents were very important for him. If he was so sad about his mother’s depressions, what has he felt about his fathers disappearation? „I’m feeling with you, kid. You’ve said, that ‚Butler‘ can bring you whereever you want. How fast can you come to London? I think, that we should meet before I take the job.“, I said. „We can be at your office in three and a half hours.“, James answered. „Good, I’ll await you.“ „Then see you later!“, the kid said good bye. „Yes, see you!“ I rang off. I took out my mobile phone and called the number of my old firend Jack, an officer at Interpol. It was time to find out more about the Norringtons…
A few hours later, the kid sat in my office. When he entered, I got a real shock: His face was
nearly white and his probing glance seemed to pierce me, his lookation completely matched with his voice at the telephone. I wouldn’t have been surprised if I had seen vampires’ fangs appear at the corners of his mouth. It was difficult to belive, that this exsangoinous character was a boy.He wore a brown blazer and looked extremly serious. Next to his chair stood a small suitcase with the ransom: Two million dollars. Behind the kid stood a real colossus. Nearly two metres big, built like a Mac truck and a pistol in its holster. The man had weak eyes and observated the room, always able to take out his pistol. I was angry, but I tryed to keep cool and started talking. „James, in the last hours, I’ve informed me about the „Invisible Hand“, about your family and about you. You have lied to me: Your father didn’t disappear a few weeks ago. He was kidnapped when he went to Russia, a few years ago. His name was James Norington Sr, right?“ „Yes, thats true. But that doesn’t matter.“, the boy answered. „Oh sure, it is!“, I effervescenced. „He leaded a criminal empire that was bigger than the USA! He just wanted to start illegal trades, when he went to Russia. The „Invisible Hand“ is a group of economic criminals, who have their territory in China, Russia, Alaska and Mexico. Your father was going to trade in their territory and they sank his ship so that they could go on with their operations.“ I was furious now. „No, the Murmansk- project was absolutly legal! My father only wanted to sell Cola to the Russians. That’s not criminal!“, the kid denfended his father. „But what he did before was criminal! Many people had to die, only because they detered him.“, I called. This boy didn’t want to accept, that his father was one of the world worst crimimals. I couldn’t belive it! At the cell phone, he let it look like if his father was a victim, but luckyly my friend Jack told me the truth. „Maybe, but at last he changed! Perhaps a little bit too late, but he changed! And he is my father! What a kind of son would I be, if I wouldn’t try to help my father?“ In this moment, I didn’t see an emotionless an cold whippersnapper ,but a boy who misses his father. And this short moment helped me to decide, whether I should take the job or not. „OK, I will help you to save your father. But you must promise me, that you won’t become a gangster. Call the kidnappers and tell me, where the exchange will happen. Then I’ll devise a plan, so that you needn’t give them any money.“, I said. The kid looked very happy and promised me, that he would always be a respectable person. Only Butler, his bodyguard wasn’t so happy about all this. „It’ll be very dangerous to cheat the „Invisible Hand“. They’ll have guns and they will be there with many men! We three can’t take them all. We’ll need backing!“, he explained and I agreed with him. It could cost us our lifes, if we three would go there alone, without any backing. „I can organize us a troop of 100 men. That should be enough to be able to take them.“, James told us. I was surprised, but Butler seemed, as if he had expected that…
Twelve hours later, we arrived at Murmansk, in the nort of Russia. James had called the telephone number he got from the „Invisible Hand“ and the man who answered told him to come to the Kola bay at the north of Murmansk. Butler had put some C4 petards
into the suitcase and I changed the bills to forged ones. They looked just like real ones and the Norringtons didn’t loose so much money. At the airport, we met us with commander Root, the leader of the troupe of mercenaries. „Commander, how do you judge the situation?“, Butler asked him. „Difficult to say… There are more than seventy foes with guns, I know some of them from the military academy. Good fighters. But my men are better. It won’t be a problem to take them, but it will surely be a problem to do this without
civil vouchers. What we are going to do isn’t legal. But I think that we won’t have any problems.“, the commander told us. „The exchange is at eight o’ clock, we have got much time to prepare us. Commander, your troopers mustn’t be seen by the „Invisible Hand“-
men. They should wear white uniforms and perhaps it is the best, if only ten or twenty men hide around the handcover place, the rest of them could stay behind a hill. If they hear shots, they can come and eliminate every danger.“, James explained his ideas. „But what shall we do, if they kill your father?“, Commander Root wanted to know. „Then you should rescue my father’s corps and defray our fallback.“, James instructed him. „Then let’s go through the plan a last time: Butler, Mr McGill…“ „No, call me Butch. We’re working together. Everyone else calls me so.“, I corrected him. „Well, Butler, Butch one of the soliders and I will go to the handcover place, Commander Root and twenty of his men Hide in the snow, the rest of the troop will wait behind the next hill. The solider will bring the suitcase to the „Ivisible Hand“-men and take my father with him. Butch will detonate the bomb in the suitcase, when my father is arrounded of our men.“ „Well, let us hope, that all of us will survive that. If they kill James’ father everything was for nothing.“, Commander Root told James.
At eight o’ clock, everybody was prepared. James, Butler, Butch and a solider stood in a
wide plain. It was foggy, everything was white. „The fog will hide Commander Root and his men. We are in egde over the man of the „Invisible Hand.“, Butler noted. „They are late.
I hope, that they haven’t discovered our backage. If so, we have to disappear fast…“, James
meant. Suddenly, the solider became very nervous.„Watch out, I can recognize silhouettes. Over there!“, he whispered. „Then bring them the suitcase.“, Butler told him. James gave the solider, who went up to the „Invisible Hand“-men, the suitcase. A felt hour later, the solider met the silhouettes. There were three of them. I couldn’t recognize much, but two of them wore sunglaces, the third stood in their middle. It seemed, like if he would watch out for somebody, because he moved his head to the left and to the right. The left man took the suitcase and said something. The right man took a gun and shot at the solider. Butler reacted fastly: He took his pistol and shot in the air twice, that was the agreed signal. I took out my own gun, put it in aiming position and pointed it. Everybody waited. But nothing happened. Then all hell broke loose. Many people with guns appeared in front of us. Behind me, I heared Commander Root and his men. Numeral, they were hopeless inferior, but Root’s soliders were more adepted. The three silhouettes came nearer. Now I could recognize details. One of them, the medial man had a pale face. His black hair was unshorn and his clothes were tattered. But I could clearly see the likeness to James. So the man in the middle was James Norrington Sr. But who were the others? I hadn’t got any more time to think about this, because the right one gave an order. The armed man in front of us came nearer. They were in range, but none of us wanted to shoot first. At once we were under fire. But not only we,the man in the middle ran in our direction, clearly scared. Root’s man reared him cover. At last, he saved himself behind our lines. I took out the remote control and lighted the bomb. A fireball raved the two men who watched the battle. They would never kidnap anyone again. Two criminals less. Next to me, James ran into his father’s arms. The imagination of the cold boy was absolutly destructed. It was touching to see father and son united. Norrington Sr. Wasn’t out of danger, the men around us were fighting, always watching out for a signal of us. „Commander Root! Fallback!“, I called. Root ordered the fallback and the soliders turned. While they ran, they shot and kept their combantants in distance. I leveled my gun and shot twice. Then I turned around and sprinted towards Murmansk.
A few miles outside the town, we thanked by Commander Root and his troopers. They had lost only four men, but their combantants lost more than fifty. At the suburbs, I said googbye to the Norringtons. „What about your honorar, Butch?“, James asked me. „Forget it, kid. You needn’t pay me.“, I answered. „Thanks a lot, Butch. You’ve given me my father back.“ „Well, that’s part of my job.“, I responded.
The End