Lupideloop's thoughts: Sugar? No thanks, We’re Maltese!

A short story by Mike Gatt (that’s me by the way!)
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Part 4

John grudgingly had to admit that he had a point there, but his actions spoke too loudly of a dictatorial leaning. And recently a joint committee of world leaders had issued an edict in which they declared total, zero tolerance towards any sort of Dictatorship. This edict being backed up with calls for all countries to impose a 100% sanction on any form of dealing with the offending state.

“Dave?” John looked over at his mate who had gone pasty white and very quiet. Obviously Dave must have read up on the edict and its consequences and must have been imagining the downfall of his Demerara Palace before it was even built.

“DAVE!!” John had to shout to get through the trance, “Snap out of it mate, you haven’t lost anything yet and anyway we might get lucky and this whole nonsense gets blown over.”

“Haven’t lost yet?” Dave seemed hysterical, “where you not watching? Everyone seems to have gone ape over this “D” chap and if he gets his way we are going to be isolated” as always Dave saw the blacker side of things.

“Not yet Dave, and ……”

“John,” Dave cut John off mid-sentence, “look at the TV, look outside… how can you say that? Not yet my ass” with eyes on fire Dave glared at his mate and sucked a gallon of air into his lungs.

“You’ve heard about his ideas on politics I’m sure” Dave continued, and as if on cue a Breaking News item was flashed on to the TV screen.

‘PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET DECLARED GUILTY OF TREASON AGAINST THE NATION. GEORGE “D” ASSUMES FULL CONTROL OF PARLIAMENT AND MILITARY’

“oh god….” Dave’s hysterics seemed justifiable. John just sat there staring blankly at the screen. How long, John was thinking, before the world catches on with the events here and imposes the sanctions on tiny Malta. Damn.. Dave was right, we are going to be isolated.

The room was deathly quiet, even the news presenter on tv seemed to be whispering and the noise from the streets had mysteriously become very muted. The afternoon light was fading and the room was becoming very dark as John hadn’t bothered with lights as they charged in earlier giving the room a gloom worthy of the waryness in his heart. Glancing out of the window John noticed that the throngs of people were still milling about but they seemed unsure, confused, about something. The latest breaking news must have brought their Castle-in-the-sky crashing down as the earlier news brought Dave’s Demerara Palace down.

The nightmare played itself out and within a few days the gauntlet of the Sanctions crashed down on the island state. A tough and arduous time seemed to loom ahead especially as Dave seemed to have flipped! The destruction of his sugar plans taking on a completely melodramatic importance.