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Authors: Anthony Flacco
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supposed to tell you!”
“Vignette, Miss Freshell hasn’t told me anything. And the police didn’t tell her anything, either.”
“And you still call her ‘Miss Freshell,’ Randall, putting her up on a pedestal!”
“Just because I show her respect—this conversation is not about her.”
“Who?”
“Miss Freshell.”
“Ah.
“Who is still not the topic.”
“No, right now, the topic is who told you.”
“Captain Merced told me. Tonight, at the theatre, during the show. Not that it matters.”
“…oh.”
He sat still after that, staring into the fireplace, waiting for her. Eventually, she found her voice.
“You can think it through all you want. Doesn’t matter. Nothing changes. And nothing changes because it’s so simple.”
“What’s simple?”
“That there’s nothing out there for me, Randall. There never was and it never changes.”
“All right. I know you say that, Vignette, but—”
“There’s nothing out there for me! And so there’s nothing wrong with me staying here and not being in any hurry to go be a spinster somewhere.”
“Don’t use that stupid word. You’re far too young for it. Even if you were twice your age, it would still be a stupid word.”
“And I am sure as hell not anybody’s wife, not anybody’s mother. How do words like that fit me? Can you see me doing that?”
“Not right now, maybe, but you’re still young.”
“So how long does it take until you know?”
“…Don’t ask me. But you don’t want to wait as long as I did, Vignette. I mean, I’ve been single ever since I lost…that was too many years ago. You can look at me and see that, can’t you?”
“No I can’t, in fact. What’s wrong with it? Our lives are good, just like they are. Far as I’m concerned.”
“Yes. But things change. In life.” He groaned to himself.
Things change in life?
If he had already reduced himself to saying something like that, he was in cold, deep water.
He tried again. “You understand, though, right? After a while…I think, whoever you are, after a while, you don’t want to be alone.”
She took a deep breath, then shook her head. “You, maybe. I think that it’s about the only thing that will work for me.”
“Vignette, here it is: You can’t go into any of the precinct houses. You can’t go into the City Hall Station, anymore. Not for a year or so, anyway. Maybe longer. It depends on how long it takes for this to be forgotten. And the men who run an organization like this, the thing they fear the most is looking weak. In their minds, for a young woman to beat them at their own game by fooling them like you did, it makes them look ridiculous.”
“I don’t even know those particular fellows, and I can’t see how they can take personal offense.”
“I just told you how. And what you think, what I think, it just doesn’t matter. They react automatically to something like this, like swatting a fly. The important thing now is for us to make sure that these men don’t notice you for a while. We don’t want them to think about you at all.”
“I swear, Randall, if I had to stay home and keep house for some man just because he stuck a ring on my finger, I’d go insane. How do the wives avoid suicide?”
“The
police,
Vignette, I’m talking to you about the police. Now the thing that you have going for you in this is the fact that they want to hush it all up. Women aren’t supposed to be able to do what you were doing, and apparently doing quite well. And right now, the city is so conscious of its civic image that they just want it all to go away. You’re in luck.”
“I didn’t know a city could feel things.”
“I mean the people I work for.”
“They’re not going to take this out on you, are they?”
“What, on me? Why would they do that?”
“Right. I know. So they won’t do it then?”
“Don’t you worry about me. Let’s talk about what you’re going to do with yourself, with your life.”
“Oh. Well,
“Vignette, Miss Freshell hasn’t told me anything. And the police didn’t tell her anything, either.”
“And you still call her ‘Miss Freshell,’ Randall, putting her up on a pedestal!”
“Just because I show her respect—this conversation is not about her.”
“Who?”
“Miss Freshell.”
“Ah.
“Who is still not the topic.”
“No, right now, the topic is who told you.”
“Captain Merced told me. Tonight, at the theatre, during the show. Not that it matters.”
“…oh.”
He sat still after that, staring into the fireplace, waiting for her. Eventually, she found her voice.
“You can think it through all you want. Doesn’t matter. Nothing changes. And nothing changes because it’s so simple.”
“What’s simple?”
“That there’s nothing out there for me, Randall. There never was and it never changes.”
“All right. I know you say that, Vignette, but—”
“There’s nothing out there for me! And so there’s nothing wrong with me staying here and not being in any hurry to go be a spinster somewhere.”
“Don’t use that stupid word. You’re far too young for it. Even if you were twice your age, it would still be a stupid word.”
“And I am sure as hell not anybody’s wife, not anybody’s mother. How do words like that fit me? Can you see me doing that?”
“Not right now, maybe, but you’re still young.”
“So how long does it take until you know?”
“…Don’t ask me. But you don’t want to wait as long as I did, Vignette. I mean, I’ve been single ever since I lost…that was too many years ago. You can look at me and see that, can’t you?”
“No I can’t, in fact. What’s wrong with it? Our lives are good, just like they are. Far as I’m concerned.”
“Yes. But things change. In life.” He groaned to himself.
Things change in life?
If he had already reduced himself to saying something like that, he was in cold, deep water.
He tried again. “You understand, though, right? After a while…I think, whoever you are, after a while, you don’t want to be alone.”
She took a deep breath, then shook her head. “You, maybe. I think that it’s about the only thing that will work for me.”
“Vignette, here it is: You can’t go into any of the precinct houses. You can’t go into the City Hall Station, anymore. Not for a year or so, anyway. Maybe longer. It depends on how long it takes for this to be forgotten. And the men who run an organization like this, the thing they fear the most is looking weak. In their minds, for a young woman to beat them at their own game by fooling them like you did, it makes them look ridiculous.”
“I don’t even know those particular fellows, and I can’t see how they can take personal offense.”
“I just told you how. And what you think, what I think, it just doesn’t matter. They react automatically to something like this, like swatting a fly. The important thing now is for us to make sure that these men don’t notice you for a while. We don’t want them to think about you at all.”
“I swear, Randall, if I had to stay home and keep house for some man just because he stuck a ring on my finger, I’d go insane. How do the wives avoid suicide?”
“The
police,
Vignette, I’m talking to you about the police. Now the thing that you have going for you in this is the fact that they want to hush it all up. Women aren’t supposed to be able to do what you were doing, and apparently doing quite well. And right now, the city is so conscious of its civic image that they just want it all to go away. You’re in luck.”
“I didn’t know a city could feel things.”
“I mean the people I work for.”
“They’re not going to take this out on you, are they?”
“What, on me? Why would they do that?”
“Right. I know. So they won’t do it then?”
“Don’t you worry about me. Let’s talk about what you’re going to do with yourself, with your life.”
“Oh. Well,
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