24
I pour myself some mineral water and drink half a glass. This was unexpected, I must admit.
“Don’t worry, the water’s not poisoned,” Gamma makes a little joke.
“Who knows… But tell me, why are you with Them? Your Mum’s a linguist, you’re from an intelligentsia family…”
This finally gets him riled.
“Yeah, and look where that’s got her! She lived her whole life in communal flats, taught school kids for peanuts. I wanted something else. I wanted power, influence… The country is ours now, not yours, and it’ll be that way for a long time, if not for ever. Do you think we only have country bumpkins and polytechnic dropouts? No, there’s call for brains everywhere, especially here… Why do you think I joined the orchestra?”
“I’ve no idea now.”
“Just think about it. It’s the House of Schol
