Read Online The Last Days by Laurent Seksik - Free Book Online Page B

right man for the job. Vargas will never let the communists get to Rio. We have a saying here, ‘We’ve got room for Jews, but not for communists.’ Are you communists? Whether you’re Jewish or not doesn’t bother me. Look at our Redeemer up on that hill over there, he belonged to the tribe of Israel. He watches over us. In any case, we’ve got room for all the world’s poor; and from what I’ve been hearing on the news, it sounds like the world’s poor are mostly Jews at the moment. Between you and me—and I say this because you don’t strike me as Jewish—what goes around, comes around! Before all this, the Jews had all the wealth in the world. The tables have turned. When all is said and done, they’ll come out the other side one day. They’ve honed their survival instincts. The only problem is that there’s so many of them here now, and they occupy such positions of influence, that thanks to the grudge they’ve got against Hitler, they might very well drag us into the war. Look at what they’re doing in America—they’re always knocking on Roosevelt’s door and they’ll wind up winning the American people over to their cause, even though Americans are pacifists. Pacifists to a fault I should add. Look where the French wound up thanks to Blum.Those German bastards marched right through the Arc de Triomphe! Blum clearly couldn’t stand a chance against Hitler. Jews are good at business and making fine speeches, but put a gun in their hands and they’re clueless. Have you seen the newsreels of German troops in Paris? Without taking sides, I must admit they looked rather great, and, after all, the French might benefit from being taken down a peg or two. So long as those Yids don’t drag us into the war—otherwise I won’t see them as friends any more. Hitler’s done nothing to me, quite the opposite in fact, he’s been good for business. The war’s got nothing to do with us. Let the Jews go and fight if they want to, the boats are waiting in the docks, ready to sail for Germany. They can stay provided they only want to swim in the bay. There’s no such thing as racism here in Rio. We’ve already got Indians, so we can cope with the Jews. All they need to understand is that each has to keep to his own, look at the Indians, they stay put in the
favelas
, you’ll never see one of them at the Hotel Copacabana. Well, there we have it. You know, my job would be a lot less cheerful if I didn’t have people like you to talk to.”
    The driver stopped the car in front of the hotel entrance, asked for his fare, got out and went to open Lotte’s door, wished them a happy stay and bid them goodbye. They lingered in a sort of daze in front of the hotel’s marquee, standing still as a warm wind blew in from the sea. Their eyes followed the taxi as it drove back into the fray. They exchanged a silent look, feeling stunned and outraged. They stepped into the hotel, walking slowly, their arms linked, looking as uncertain and awkward as if they’d just walked away from a road accident, unscathed but groggy. They crossed the grand lobby, whose walls were decorated with reproductions of Otto Kirchner’s portraits. There were a few men in suits working their way through a bottle while sitting on white leather sofas.Their voices blended into an indiscernible tangle. Stefan and Lotte gave their names at reception and asked for Abrahão Koogan, the man they were due to meet. An employee pointed them in the direction of the terrace, where Koogan was expecting them.
    They had barely set foot outside when they felt as though they’d been blinded by the light, a burning brightness that flooded over everything and seemed to rise out of the ocean and solidify in the atmosphere. Warm voices and hearty laughter resounded under the taut white canvas awnings, which were being gently stirred by the wind. It was like standing on the deck of a sailing boat. Abrahão Koogan, the Brazilian publisher, was sitting alone at a