Simon's Mansion by William Poe

Author:William Poe [Poe, William]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781729078433
Publisher: William Poe
Published: 2019-09-09T22:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

When Simon finally reached Wally on his private line, they spoke about a sale he could make to an Argentine submarket by dubbing Bel Air Babes in Italian. Then Simon asked, “Wally, have you heard from Charlotte since I left Hollywood?”

“She’s no longer your secretary, right?”

“We definitely parted ways. I was just wondering.”

“I’m willing to keep working with you, Simon, but only on the videos in our contract. I’ve made that clear. Nothing has changed.”

Simon wondered what the contract had to do with having heard from Charlotte or not. Simon didn’t get an answer to the question of Rudy’s insistence that he contact Wally. He was convinced that Wally knew something, though his evasiveness wasn’t unusual. Since they’d reconnected after Simon left rehab, their conversations remained strictly about sales.

Simon considered Dean’s suggestion about going to Hollywood, even driving to Howard’s ranch and confronting him about Thad. Two considerations stopped him. In the first place, since he’d never received a demand for money, he couldn’t believe the Spaniards had abducted Thad. Secondly, having heard nothing directly from Thad increased the likelihood that he indeed was with someone else.

Simon felt helpless. Should he move on? During every class they shared, Blaine stated a conversation. Despite his repeated allusion to being involved with someone, Simon was sure that Blaine wanted to ask him on a date. Simon couldn’t help feeling flattered. Someone as alluring as Blaine could have anyone he wanted.

Simon and Blaine often found themselves in the student union at the same time. When Simon took afternoon strolls along the creek that flowed through campus, he would see Blaine walking the same path. Simon knew the encounters weren’t coincidental.

One pleasant afternoon, as a breeze rustled the leaves just beginning to fall from the oaks that populated the campus grounds, Simon bought a sack lunch at the student union cafeteria and took it to the creek, laying out his food on the redwood picnic table where he’d once perched with his friend Stanley to talk about the acid trips they had shared the prior weekend. Simon always made extra effort to engage Stanley in conversation because his friend too often secluded himself—a personality trait that had turned a hundred and eighty degrees when Stanley joined Sun Myung Moon’s church and enticed Simon to follow his example. Simon had been impressed by the personality change following Stanley’s conversion. Overnight, Stanley had transformed into a smiling, joyous person, no longer sullen and morose.

“This is a nice spot, isn’t it?” Blaine asked, dispelling Simon’s reverie.

“Nearly twenty years ago, I came here for lunch with a friend. It often seems as though my life is a spiral of recurring events. Déjà vu all over again, one might say.”

“This is my first time to take college courses,” Blaine confessed. “I should have attended in my twenties.”

“You look so young, Blaine.”

Simon expected Blaine to tell him his age, but Blaine played coy. “Have you been to the ballet?” he asked.

“Not here in Little Rock. I saw Giselle at the Palais Garnier once, but I have to admit that I fell asleep as soon as it started.

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