Anne Billson - Suckers

'We all know what's happening,' Dino began, glaring fiercely at the assembled company. 'And we know what we have to do. We're all British here, so none of us have actually lived under an oppressive Fascist regime. But I've been conferring with the Weinsteins — Ruth's father and his father — and, believe me, these are guys who know what they're talking about. They lived through the Holocaust. And the way things are going, they reckon this country is turning into something that'll make Nazi Germany seem like a vicar's tea-party. The only way we can stop this happening is if we stand up and fight. We've got to do it, and we've got to do it now .'

He paused, possibly for applause that wasn't forthcoming, and went on: 'Me, I've always been a pacifist, but maybe that's because we've never had a cause worth fighting for. Until now. Now, our customs, our traditions, our way of life are being threatened by inhuman invaders who will stop at nothing to impose their vile regime. We must stand firm — not only for our own sake and the sake of our children, but for the sake of mankind . Now — are we going to lie down and let these scumbags walk all over us? Or are we going to stand up and fight? '

There was a hubbub of approval. I didn't join in — I was thinking about a dream I'd once had, and wondering whether to keep mum or pipe up. Dino's smarmy expression helped me make up my mind. As soon as the noise died down, I raised my hand.

'You don't have to put your hand up, Dora,' said Ruth.

'Well,' I said, feeling everyone's eyes on me and almost wishing I'd kept my mouth shut, 'it seems to me that you've missed the point.'

Dino was frowning. 'What point? What are you talking about?'

'I don't know whether you can compare all this to Nazi Germany,' I said. 'I think if you must use an analogy, it's more like the situation in the Middle East.' There was a ripple of unease, but I pressed on regardless. 'Look at it this way. All down the ages, vampires have been hunted down and persecuted, just because of what they are. Now they've had enough. They've decided to create a haven where they can live and hunt in safety. No more torch-wielding villagers, no more stake-happy vigilantes — just a smoothly run economy and specialized catering facilities. Business goes on as usual, the only difference being that it goes on at night. There wouldn't be a problem if it weren't for us . We're in their way, you see. We're the Palestinians.'

Suddenly, everyone was yelling at once. Ruth had gone purple with rage and was jabbing a finger in my direction, but I couldn't hear what she was saying because of the racket. Dino looked extremely pissed off at having lost the limelight. I'd had enough of being yelled at, so I tried to direct attention back to him. I said, 'Francine gave us access to some of your negatives.'

Everyone looked at Francine, who blushed and stared at her shoes.

Dino snarled, 'Who's us? You and the PLO?'

Ruth butted in. 'She's talking about Duncan . Duncan Fender , aren't you, Dora? So why isn't he here tonight?'

'Yeah, why isn't he here?' asked Dino. 'And why the hell did you give him those negs, you silly bitch?'

'I didn't ,' Francine protested. 'She stole them.'

'We sent photos to all the newspapers,' I said, adding lamely, 'No one ran them. Except the Sunday Sport .'

Dino slapped his forehead in exasperation. He didn't seem too thrilled about his work appearing in something so downmarket.

'Why should we believe you?' asked Ruth, who was still looking quite flushed. 'You know who Duncan is. Why would he want to have those photos made public?'

'No, I don't know who Duncan is,' I snapped back. 'Or rather I do know, but I don't know why you keep going on about it as though all this is his fault.'

They were still staring at me, so I let them have it. 'OK, so he used to go out with a vampire. But as soon as he found out what she was, he put a stop to her. He did, you know. If it weren't for him, all this would have happened thirteen years ago, and we wouldn't be in a position to stand around discussing it.'

There was another uproar. I wasn't sure what had upset them this time. I had assumed that Ruth, at least, would have worked out the connection between Duncan and Violet by now. She was saying something, and she had to repeat herself several times. I finally managed to read her lips. 'Ask him ,' she was saying.

'Ask him what? ' I mouthed back.

Then I heard her say, quite clearly, 'He doesn't give a fuck what she was. He just likes beating the crap out of people.'

'Don't be ridiculous,' I said.

'He's a known sadist,' said Dino, his lip curling.

'Lulu had a shiner only the other week,' Ruth said. 'No wonder she left him.'

'Don't be silly,' I said. 'That wasn't Duncan. She banged into someone at her dance class.'

'Oh yeah ,' said Dino.

'Pull the other one,' said Ruth.

I was about to protest again, but the meeting was on the verge of fragmenting into petty squabbling. Dino called for order with a sergeant-major roar. The bickering petered out. 'Perhaps Miss Vale would be so kind as to return my negatives as soon as possible,' he said sarcastically. 'But in the mean time, I think we are all in agreement that we are on the same side. If we're to survive, we must stick together. Now, I don't know how many of you know about Rotnacht …'

Someone volunteered the information that it was a little-known German expressionist film.

'No, no,' said someone else. 'It's a type of soft cheese.'

'Stop it!' snapped Ruth. 'This isn't funny . Now, are you going to be serious, or not? Because if not, we might as well forget the whole thing. We're history .' She drained her glass and stomped across the room for a refill. My little remark about Palestinians had ruined her entire evening.

Dino took over again. 'If we're not prepared to take this seriously, we'll end up dead, or changed into one of them , or worse.'

'What could be worse than being one of them? ' asked the TV presenter. 'The idea of drinking blood makes me feel sick.'

'Is it true they never grow old and die?' someone asked. 'Do they ever get ill?'

'Great,' said someone else. 'I could cut out my BUPA payments.'

'Couldn't we give them AIDS?'

'Nuke them!'

'I know, let's emigrate.'

Dino called for silence again. 'Rotnacht , basically, is the night when the decks are cleared for action, when all opposition is wiped out in one fell swoop, when the garbage is disposed of, for keeps, with extreme prejudice. And when I say garbage — let's not be coy about this — I mean us. Rotnacht is the night our number comes up. That is, if we're not prepared to take a stand and do something about it.'

There was a shout from the back of the room; it might have been Desperate Dan. 'How come you know so much?'

This was Dino's cue. He smiled bitterly and said in his best Method actor voice, 'I used to be a part of it. I was part of the original Multiglom set-up. When I saw what they were up to, I got the hell out. They've been on my case ever since.'

He'd seen too many Marlon Brando movies, but I had the feeling he wasn't all bullshit. I wondered how close he'd got to Violet, and I wondered what had made him draw the line and opt out. Had it really been his choice, or was he just trying to save face? One thing was for sure; Dino was not playing at being a freedom fighter for lofty moral reasons. This was personal. He was getting his own back on someone. Just like the rest of us.

Ruth was beaming again, with only the faintest tinge of pink in her cheeks to suggest she had ever blown her top. 'What we really need is to know when Rotnacht is planned for. So we can warn everyone.'