Read Online A Sport of Nature by Nadine Gordimer - Free Book Online
Authors: Nadine Gordimer
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flanges of her black nose lined with rosy wet. While drinking coffee standing up in the kitchen, Pauline and Joe, with Carole listening, discussed whether or not to telephone Olga. âOh my godâOlga ⦠What suggestions could she have. She didnât have enough understanding to take her after that Rhodesian business, so how could she have any idea at all of how to deal with this?â Yet Pauline came back from the duty call somehow relieved, though scornful. âI told you. Dâyou know what she said? First she didnât know what to say ⦠then she came up with the bright idea Hillela might have gone to Mozambique.â Joe seemed actually to be considering the supposition, so Pauline exposed it in all its uselessness. âShe hasnât had a word from her mother since she was old enough to read, we havenât even an address any more, so the notion she would run away to Ruthie ⦠really. Olga reads too many romantic novels from her ladiesâ book club.â
âOlgaâd like to go and look for Ruthie, herself, maybe ⦠so itâs a perfectly reasonable idea for her to have.â
âWell, I happen to love Ruthie, too, but Iâm capable of being a bit more intelligently objective than my sister Olgaâ
âShe reproached you?â
âNot that ⦠unless you read her silences. She didnât dare. But what does it matter now. Doesnât help us.â
âCarole. Dâyou think thereâs any chance Hillela might have had a notion to go to Lourenço Marques?â Joe gestured lightness; it would not be such a serious matter if her cousin had. âDâyou ever get the impression she longs for her mother, or at least for some idea of her? Or might go for the adventure of it? Take the von Herz girl along?â
Well, Hillela would know how Carole had to answer her fatherâs weighing-up of circumstantial evidence. It was only surprising when Hillela did ask her young cousin: âHow?â
âI said you wouldnât go to Len or to your mother. It wouldnât be anything we would think of. So then they went on and on, whether you were unhappy, whether you didnât love usâall that stuff, I nearly passed out with embarrassment.â
But Joe was accustomed to persisting logically towards the uncovering of motivation. âIf she were to be unhappy, to whom would she go?â
Carole didnât tell Hillela what she had said then: âSasha. I think. If he were around.â
âSasha? Really? Not you!â
âWhy Sasha!â
They still suspected Carole of covering up for her cousin.
âShe would. I donât know ⦠because heâs older ⦠but heâs not here. So she couldnât have.â
They did something Carole would never have thought they would do. Pauline telephoned Swazilandâto the school. Sasha was out on a cross-country run but he was allowed to telephone home when he returned half-an-hour later. Hillela? He had not heard from her. They did not write to each otherâPauline knew very well Hillela never wrote, even when she was away at Plett with Olga, she didnât write.
Had she ever spoken to him of any friends she didnât want the family to know about?âit was natural for young people, part of growing up, beginning to be independent of their parents, to have little secrets. But it would be necessary for him to betray a confidence in an emergency like this, to prevent possible harm coming to his cousin.
Pauline came from the telephone with the dread settled upon her again. âNo idea where she could be. He got quite cross when I said, if she should phone him or turn up there ⦠Thereâsan inter-school match today, heâll be away playing soccer at Manzini.â
Pauline went to take her Saturday-morning coaching classes as usual. She did not know what else to do? She would not help Hillela by letting down black children who travelled
âOlgaâd like to go and look for Ruthie, herself, maybe ⦠so itâs a perfectly reasonable idea for her to have.â
âWell, I happen to love Ruthie, too, but Iâm capable of being a bit more intelligently objective than my sister Olgaâ
âShe reproached you?â
âNot that ⦠unless you read her silences. She didnât dare. But what does it matter now. Doesnât help us.â
âCarole. Dâyou think thereâs any chance Hillela might have had a notion to go to Lourenço Marques?â Joe gestured lightness; it would not be such a serious matter if her cousin had. âDâyou ever get the impression she longs for her mother, or at least for some idea of her? Or might go for the adventure of it? Take the von Herz girl along?â
Well, Hillela would know how Carole had to answer her fatherâs weighing-up of circumstantial evidence. It was only surprising when Hillela did ask her young cousin: âHow?â
âI said you wouldnât go to Len or to your mother. It wouldnât be anything we would think of. So then they went on and on, whether you were unhappy, whether you didnât love usâall that stuff, I nearly passed out with embarrassment.â
But Joe was accustomed to persisting logically towards the uncovering of motivation. âIf she were to be unhappy, to whom would she go?â
Carole didnât tell Hillela what she had said then: âSasha. I think. If he were around.â
âSasha? Really? Not you!â
âWhy Sasha!â
They still suspected Carole of covering up for her cousin.
âShe would. I donât know ⦠because heâs older ⦠but heâs not here. So she couldnât have.â
They did something Carole would never have thought they would do. Pauline telephoned Swazilandâto the school. Sasha was out on a cross-country run but he was allowed to telephone home when he returned half-an-hour later. Hillela? He had not heard from her. They did not write to each otherâPauline knew very well Hillela never wrote, even when she was away at Plett with Olga, she didnât write.
Had she ever spoken to him of any friends she didnât want the family to know about?âit was natural for young people, part of growing up, beginning to be independent of their parents, to have little secrets. But it would be necessary for him to betray a confidence in an emergency like this, to prevent possible harm coming to his cousin.
Pauline came from the telephone with the dread settled upon her again. âNo idea where she could be. He got quite cross when I said, if she should phone him or turn up there ⦠Thereâsan inter-school match today, heâll be away playing soccer at Manzini.â
Pauline went to take her Saturday-morning coaching classes as usual. She did not know what else to do? She would not help Hillela by letting down black children who travelled
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