Read Online Cobalt by Nathan Aldyne - Free Book Online

of the visitors who had come to Provincetown for the day, the weekend, or the previous week were packing up now or had already left; the town seemed quiet. At a table just behind where Clarisse sat at the bar two men in their late forties were fighting, merely for the pleasure of it, it seemed. Their relationship had broken up formally eight years before but they still debated the causes and the blame, and seemed very pleased that Clarisse was attending closely to them.
    To her right at the bar were seven men, of greatly varying age and appearance but all Provincetown regulars, engaged in a kind of round-table discussion on who had the biggest tits in Hollywood. The contest had narrowed to Kathryn Grayson and Mamie Van Doren, with Miss Jane Russell contemptuously dismissed as publicity hype. When Valentine placed a second drink before Clarisse, one of the men turned to her and asked, “You ever had a screen test, honey?”
    When she went to the ladies’ room, Clarisse passed through a dark corner of the bar, and to her surprise, discovered Ann and Margaret sitting at a tiny table that was nearly hid behind a vast palm in an Art Nouveau pot. Holding hands and gazing intently into each other’s eyes, they did not even notice her until she spoke.
    â€œGood afternoon,” said Clarisse pleasantly.
    The two women looked up, grasped for recognition, and then broke into smiles.
    â€œHi,” said Ann, lifting her drink in a toast.
    â€œHello, Clarisse,” said Margaret with a smile.
    They spoke for a moment about the party, about Noah’s pool, about their plans for the evening, then Clarisse went on into the ladies’ room. When she came out again, Ann said, “Have Daniel bring me another gin and tonic, will you please? He’s been forgetting me.”
    â€œNo, he hasn’t,” said Margaret in a low voice. “You’ve had enough. If you have any more, you’re not going to be able to taste your dinner.”
    â€œI want one more!” protested Ann.
    Margaret sighed and nodded to Clarisse. “Have Daniel send one over, and a Perrier for me.”
    Clarisse walked away, and heard the two women buzzing behind her. When she got to the bar, she said, “The lady who doesn’t need another gin and tonic wants another gin and tonic.”
    â€œThat’s six,” said Valentine, shaking his head. “Do you think she’ll try to bust up the place?”
    â€œI like to drink,” said Clarisse. “But I think it’s undignified for a woman with an appearance to maintain to fall on her face before eight o’clock. Barroom floors always smudge your makeup.”
    â€œIf I had Terry O’Sullivan for a boss, I’d get sloshed on my vacation too.”
    â€œMargaret is trying to keep her in line, that’s something. Is this summer love or is it a real affair, do you think?”
    â€œSummer love. Unfortunately, they’re involved in a four-sided triangle.” Clarisse turned to him inquiringly. “Ann will have to go back to Miriam in Boston. Miriam has a lot of money and an ugly temper.”
    â€œAnd Margaret?”
    â€œIs married to Joyce, in Toronto. Joyce is thin, and supports her mother in a nursing home.”
    â€œHow do you know all this?”
    Valentine shrugged. “A good bartender learns a little something about every one of his customers.”
    â€œYou eavesdrop, you mean.”
    Valentine held up his hands in protest. “I draw the line at mechanical listening devices. I scorn hidden microphones. All my information is obtained legally. This information came from Mr. Terry O’Sullivan.” He moved away to wait on Mamie Van Doren’s most fervent partisan. In the dark corner of the bar, Ann burst into tears and fled into the ladies’ room.
    Margaret came to the bar. “Tell Daniel to forget about the reorder, Clarisse. Ann and I are leaving. You don’t happen to know where I could