Churchill chomped down on his cigar and stared ferociously at his whisky-soda as he stomped backwards and forwards. “These are times when we, as a nation, must rise to meet the challenge and end the threat of dark tyranny that hangs over us all. We must stand up and fight this abomination that has taken place. Let us therefore brace ourselves to our duties, and so bear ourselves, that if the British Empire and its Commonwealth last for a thousand years, men will still say, ‘this was their finest hour.’“The Duke of St. Albans applauded the bravado with a strong dose of irony at its incongruousness. “Well done, Winston. That would have made a great speech in Parliament.”“It would have been one. I had it all written, but That Man forestalled me. He has silenced me, and when the time comes, I will silence him. There will be no last speech from the scaffold for him. He will lose his head in silence.”“Speaking of losing heads, Winston, we cannot afford you losing yours. And you will if you appear now.
