Read Online Havana Blue by Leonardo Padura - Free Book Online Page B

given these Stalinist accusations of which my comrade head of department clearly approves, please sign my resignation papers as I can’t continue here, even though there are sensitive, good and worthy students like the ones here, and she pointed at us and walked out of the headmaster’s office, and I’ll never forget how bright red she went; she was crying, and it was as if she were no longer pockmarked and had become the most beautiful woman in the world.
    We froze there, until Carmita started crying, and Lamey looked at the tribunal standing in judgement over us when Rafael stood up, smiled, smirked and sidled over to the headmaster, comrade headmaster, he said, after this nasty incident, I think it right I should speak to the students, because they’re all excellent comrades and I think they must understand what you have just told them. Take yourself, Carmita, he said, and he put a hand on the skinny girl’s shoulder, I’m sure you never thought through the consequences of your idealist story, but we must be on our guard, you must agree. I believe the best thing you can do now is to show how you can produce a magazine that reflects the needs of the times, in which we can emphasize purity, selflessness, the spirit of sacrifice to inspire the new generations ( sic ), right, Carmita? And poor Carmita said yes and nodded, not knowing she was saying yes forever, that Rafael was right, and even I wondered whether he was, but I couldn’t forget Olguita our teacher and what they’d said about my story, and Lamey got up, please, he said, any
complaints about him should be made to his rank-and-file committee and he walked out as well. It cost him a year’s curtailment of rights and the worst possible reputation; he’s always been an awkward, sarcastic, arrogant type, he’s got even more bigheaded after the publication of those paltry poems, pronounced the head of department as she watched him leave. I wanted to die on the spot as I’ve never wanted to since, I was afraid, I was speechless, I didn’t understand what I’d done wrong, I’d only written about what I felt and what had happened to me when I was a kid, that I preferred playing baseball on the street corner to going to Mass, and luckily I kept back five copies of La Viboreña , which never made it to issue number one, that was going to be about democracy, because Olguita our teacher, who was so nice and so beautiful, thought we should create that issue by taking a vote on the best we could reap from our rich literary harvest.
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    â€œYou had a bite to eat?” Manolo nodded, gently rubbing his stomach, and the Count thought it wasn’t a good idea to carry on without eating. “Look, I need you to go on the computer and get a list of all the investigations started in Havana over the last five days and which . . .”
    â€œEvery single one?” asked Manolo, sitting opposite the Count ready to challenge his orders. He stared at his face, and the pupil in his left eye began to shift till it almost disappeared behind the bridge of his nose.
    â€œHey, don’t look at me like that . . . Can I finish what I was saying?” asked the lieutenant, who rested his chin on his hands, contemplating his subordinate with resignation and wondering yet again whether Manolo was squint-eyed.

    â€œGo on, then,” the other demurred, sharing in his boss’s resignation. He turned to look out the window, and his left eye slowly returned to its normal position.
    â€œLook, you see, to get a grip on this we need to know if it’s related to anything, to whatever. That’s why I want you to get to the computer data and your brilliant brain to select whatever might be connected to Rafael Morín’s disappearance. Something might turn up, you know?”
    â€œI get it, blind man’s bluff.”
    â€œManolo, stop being so fucking awkward. It needs doing. Off you go. I’ll see