Where's Bob? by Ann Ireland

Author:Ann Ireland
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Biblioasis
Published: 2018-03-19T15:27:00+00:00

24

YOU SHOULD KNOW,’ Iris informed Victor, ‘that this is not my first encounter with a Mexican artist.’

Was he a bit deaf? Most men were, after a certain age. Even Steve needed to be bellowed at if you got on his left side. He refused to acknowledge this minor disability.

Her voice rose: ‘It was in San Miguel de Allende back in the early 70s. I’d come with my first husband, Richard. We took note of the young artist who taught at the Instituto. He knew of all the important American and European artists and spoke passable English. Wildly ambitious. Well, why not? I don’t see that as a flaw. He’d dart between the Instituto, his studio, and the café where a bunch of us would congregate. He was working on a mural in one of the civic buildings. Some historical epic, copious blood and gore.’ Iris paused at the crest of the hill, panting. It was hard to climb and talk at the same time.

Hotel staff were starting to douse the coals and drag the grills back to the shed. A boy had begun to climb the rickety fireworks tower with lighter in hand. The grand finale was about to begin, deafening bursts of gunpowder and twirling pinwheels and flashing lights. Iris felt the painter’s hand slip away from hers and understood that he didn’t want them to be seen together. Men could be such cowards.

‘Turned out that our friend had a wife and children stashed in a nearby town,’ Iris said. ‘All the while, carrying on with the female students under his tutelage.’ She offered a knowing laugh. ‘Including yours truly, in one memorable afternoon.’

She waited to be asked for more, but Don Victor was staring at the fireworks assemblage, watching the boy reach to light one of the pinwheels that flared and began spinning and shooting off sparks. Hotel guests shrieked and pressed into the darkness. Staff seemed to find this chaotic retreat funny.

‘He was desperate to escape to the north,’ Iris continued after the first round of explosions plumed the air with magnesium dust. ‘He saw himself as being far too talented for a provincial town.’ Don Victor was paying attention to her now. Encouraged, she went on: ‘When he invited me to go to the movie theatre, I was flattered. Bonnie and Clyde, dubbed into Spanish.’ She paused, remembering the odd celebratory mood inside that flea-ridden movie house where locals laughed at the grisly scenes.

‘When he put his arm around my shoulders, I didn’t exactly push him away. When he slipped a hand onto my thigh—’ She shrugged, as if to say, ‘What was I to do?’

A piece of the fireworks structure sailed into the crowd, popping electric blue. A mass scream of delight. They’d never seen such a ramshackle thing, so lacking in security buffers. No yellow tape to keep spectators back. Iris remembered why she loved this country.

The painter was looking at her as if fascinated by every feature of her face. He drew closer and reached with his fingers, those dry broken nails, and began to stroke her cheek.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.