"Welcome gentlemen, welcome. You must all be exhausted from your various journeys. I hope none of you were put through too many difficulties. Miss Creedy, could you please fetch some refreshments for everyone. Thanks." said Winston, his smile beaming from ear to ear.
He kept up pretences until Caroline had left the room, then turned seriously to those gathered.
"Please sit." he waited until the men had begun to settle themselves before he finished, "Let us begin."
"First off, are there any questions?" Winston asked, without looking up. He knew there wasn't any. He could sense their fear in the air, but also their resistance and fierce sense of pride. He smiled, "No? Good."
He stood and started to pace around the room, organising his thoughts and things he wanted to say.
"Gone is the fear of Big Brother." Winston began, "Every day the proles are getting more and more restless, the Thought Police have ceased to exist as an organisation and daily Outer Party members abandon the Party and flock to our cause."
Most of this they already knew, but he was just going over everything again, at first anyway.
"We have munitions to supply all of our troops do we not?" Winston asked.
"Yes, but there is one small matter we would like cleared up." spoke up someone.
Winston smiled, "And that is?"
"Who will take power in Britain once Big Brother and the Party are overthrown?" the man continued.
Winston sighed, "We are not going through this again. It was agreed that free and fair elections would take place as soon as it was possible to organise them after the fall of Big Brother. We will have no more discussion on this topic, is that understood?"
"But please! Consider standing in the elections! You would have a huge wave of support and surely take power! After everything you have gone through, you deserve this more than anyone and are in a better to anyone else to be the new head of government! People see you as the leadership of the opposition, it is your right to take power!" shouted the man. He was standing with his arms raised towards Winston, the man was hysterical.
The two men sitting either side of the man who had been shouting, but had now broken into hysterics grabbed hold of either arm and pulled him back into his chair.
This would never do, thought Winston, "I will tell you for once and for all why it is that I cannot simply seize power for myself."
The whole room fell silent, Winston paused for effect and only started speaking once more when the birds outside of the open window quietened down. He was surprised that they were up so early, so late in the year, the snows would be coming soon, but he didn't let it distract him from what he had to say next.
"As leader of the Brotherhood and the opposition to the Party I am supposed to display the human traits which the Party members so often neglect to do. They crush individual thought, I allow and encourage it to blossom, it would be hypocritical of me to seize power from a Party who seized theirs in the first place. The people would never forgive me and the new government would be torn down before it had achieved a single bit of good for our ruined world." said Winston collapsing into his seat once he'd finished, a man quickly got out of his chair and ran to see if he was all right, but Winston waved him away.
Caroline opened the far door and walked in again. The main conversation died down and those gathered, once more went into their broken up groups and discussed in hushed voices all that had been said. They quietened down however whenever Caroline got close to lay another cup of coffee onto the table. They thanked her politely and as she turned to leave Winston called her, "Miss Creedy, up here for a moment if you please!"
Caroline left the tray on the table by the door and walked up to Winston. He beckoned her towards him and whispered in her ear, "One of the men has managed to get past security with a firearm, I need you to leave as if everything is in order and fetch the guards from downstairs silently. Can you do that for me Caroline?"
Caroline's hands started shaking, "Can you do this for me?"he repeated.
He looked directly into her eyes and she inclined her head slightly, "Thanks." he whispered, before she turned and walked out.
"Back to business gentlemen." said Winston, standing up again.
Another man rose with him.
"So it is you. What do you want from me?" demanded Winston, his brow creasing, the glasses wobbled on his thin nose.
"The Party demands your immediate death." said the man in an almost robotic manner.
"Are you sure we cannot simply talk about this?" said Winston, a smile starting to appear on his face.
"The Party demands your immediate death." repeated the man.
No one moved.
No one said anything.
Everyone watched simply stunned.
Winston started to walk slowly towards the man. A rush of footsteps could be heard outside and the door burst open.
A single gunshot went off. A body dropped and hit the ground hard.
Stone dead.