‘No. Though I do believe he was in the office next door when I had a training day at the Ministry.’
‘And what were you learning?’
‘The dangers of family.’
‘Now that, I have to attend,’ said Joshua.
‘Let’s go along the coast, away from the beaches,’ said Holroyd, ‘see if we can catch anyone foolish enough to be doing a spot of illegal fishing.’
This was the twentieth official year of the fish ban and it was working. The fish stocks were creeping up but there were still too many toxins in them and the sea. However, some people had short memories, probably caused by the toxins in the first place.
Joshua turned the balloon around.
‘You make for a fine pilot,’ commented Holroyd.
‘You should take a ride with Bastian. He could fly a balloon blindfolded.’
‘I know, it’s one of the few remarkable things in his file.’
* * *
‘Just look at the cheek of that fellow,’ said Holroyd, ‘and in broad daylight.’
Up ahead a man was in the water up to his knees, dragging a net onshore. Twisting one way and then the other was a large blue marlin.
‘You there,’ shouted Holroyd through the megaphone, ‘stop what you’re doing immediately. You’re in contravention of the No Fishing Act.’
Jambit looked up at the balloon that had rapidly descended with the sun at its back and blinding him to the danger. After one last glance at his catch, he let it go before running under the palm trees and into the thick bush.
‘Stay where you are,’ shouted Holroyd through the megaphone. ‘Joshua, put us down on the beach,’ and he unlocked the gun box before removing and loading two rifles.
They jumped out of the basket and stepped onto the warm sand that squelched between the toes of their sandals, the rifles slung across their backs. Amongst the trees, as light filtered through the canopy, they could see swarms of midges waiting to nip their skin, and perhaps even worse, mosquitos or the dreaded tsetse fly. The two men looked at one another and agreed the fisherman had long gone.
‘Did you get a good look at him?’ asked Joshua.
‘No,’ said Holroyd, looking around. ‘But maybe I didn’t have to.’
‘I’m not certain I know what you mean.’
Holroyd bent down and picked up the stalk of sugarcane.
‘Let’s take another fly-by over the village, lower this time. Find the sugarcane and we have our catch of the day.’
And perhaps a citation read by Edward himself over the radio. Sugarcane was the number one banned substance in the land and those who used it lost all remaining points. But criminality was your choice and saved the government from wasting valuable points on you elsewhere.
Their balloon touched down on the village green with Holroyd and his journeyman exhausted. Light had stopped play and the sugarcane plot remained a mystery, like the identity of the subversive still drawing an O on the new government billboards.
‘Are you attending church this week?’ asked Joshua.
‘Of course.’
‘Then I shall introduce my wife Agrinda, she’s dying to meet you.’
‘Really?’
‘Oh yes, Nabulus often speaks of your assistance.’
Chapter Eighteen
Bastian and May rode one horse into town to help ease congestion and after tying it to the hitching rail, took a deep breath and entered the building for new couples, an old redundant cinema where young men and women once engaged in their own genetic screening. They were both nervous. Success meant a Licence to Populate but failure led to a flyer on the church notice board asking citizens to keep you apart. And in some cases, sterilisation if your shortcomings were deemed serious enough to prohibit breeding with any partner.
They walked up the tall flight of stairs, an inbuilt test of fitness, and sat in the small waiting room belonging to the Ministry of Coordination. There was no clock in the room, only a window with the height of the sun to test your impatience.
A large poster hung on the otherwise blank blue walls:
‘Any verbal abuse of staff will result in the loss of ten points, threatening behaviour will cost fifteen points, and any physical assault or that construed thereof will lose you all points. Good Luck.’
The door swung open and a softly spoken voice murmured their names. They looked at one another in their shorts and T-shirts before holding hands and jumping through the doorframe together, a village superstition for good luck.
‘Cute, but it won’t change the decision,’ said the middle-aged woman on the other side.
Her face was long with large eyes. She handed them a pen and a form each.
‘Fill these in, don’t take all day, and no talking,’ she said without pausing for breath.
‘Can I have a glass of water?’ May asked.
‘No. The administrator will see you afterwards, followed by the MHCA,’ she said, before leaving through the back door.
The MHCA was the Medical Health Care Assistant once known as a doctor. To begin a career in health, one simply started as an HCA, then after several years became an EHCA, an experienced carer previously referred to as a nurse. Most folk called them all HCAs.
They sat either side of the wooden desk that wobbled and filled out their names, dates of birth, and occupations. There followed a list of questions with a tick-box, yes or no, with a health warning typed in bold red at the top of the page:
‘Deliberately inaccurate information will result in the loss of points and in the most severe cases transfer to a chain-gang. You have been warned.’ They picked up their pens.
Have you ever been caught in a sandstorm? A yes will lead to breathing tests in London.
Were you a home birth? Please remember that should you receive a Licence to Populate, home births are now banned. This gives our wonderful MHCAs the opportunity to test the health of your baby for future survival.
Have you ever suffered sunburn or sunstroke?
Is your intended breeding partner of the same race? If no, write the race of both partners and this could give you housing priority at a later date.
Have you ever
