father said: Look at the fucking moon,
A burning cigarette leaving a hole in my soul
Fatzy Dembo on the bunk bed below him seemed to feel good, he had outshone himself by tying a fork on a long string to the upper bed; he was now blowing at the string so that the fork moved over his naked body and “scratched” him right where the fleas bit him fiercely.
Rob couldn’t restrain himself any longer and peed in his bed. The thin mattress under him quickly soaked up and the piss leaked onto Sali who insisted his father taught him they were a pure breed Gypsies and not bloody made-up Roma. “The most famous woman in the world Carmen was a Gypsy”, stated Sali’s father prously, although no one knew what he was talking about.
The trickling piss was welcome because it relieved Sali’s itching.
They all fell asleep.
Chapter 13
AT MELITA’S CAFÉ EVERYBODY was talking about the disappearance of Nicos. The town had woken to a day without their favourite chicken and mushrooms pies and many flocked to the café in the hope to learn something about this devastating episode in their otherwise uneventful life.
With the arrival of officer Boyd sporting dark circles under his eyes and in an urgent need of triple espresso they all surrounded him but there was nothing he could say besides asking them to remain calm and to think of any possible piece of evidence in regard of this mysterious disappearance. Conspiracy theories quickly emerged one of which pointed to a hijacking so Nicos could make his pies somewhere else.
At the far corner of the café a strikingly beautiful young woman was sitting by herself over a cappuccino. Oblivious of the agitated people she was checking her phone and looked what she really was: a random tourist strayed from the nearby big town with flourishing tourism thanks to an ancient Roman amphitheatre used for musical performances.
The young woman was dressed in ripped jeans and shapeless shirt but her wild hair the colour of sun and honey, and her skin smooth like the first cream the women beat from cows’ milk were so eye-catching that at certain moment most of the people stopped pretending they weren’t openly gawking at her.
Officer Boyd also gave her an all over but only because he was supposed to know everything happening in his little town. Besides the disappearance of Nicos there was another problem emerging: more and more of the locals were in favour of a petition for the Home of the Chernobyl children to be transferred to another place so that tourists no longer avoided their clean little town and of course the lake.
Mayor Damien was behind it. He would say: Well, tourists come to the lake and what they see, they see an old dilapidated building like a chicken coup perching there and the poor souls running around making everyone feel guilty, although we are miles away from the bloody Chernobyl, even in another country although the Soviets ruled us with tyranny like theirs. We are sympathetic and we took them, but we also have to look after ourselves with all the unemployment and young people leaving for good.
Some old women were even swearing by their ritual onion readings indicating that because of those outcast children the town was doomed to calamity. The disappearance of Nicos a fact as sad as it was provided support to their foreseeing or at least that was what they said.
Officer Boyd’s thumb rule was not to take sides when the citizens had a friendly or bitter dispute. His job was to protect them. Now with Nicos’ disappearance he had a real challenge.
When the door opened and a tall dark-haired woman with a fierce expression on her face stormed in he knew it was time to leave if he didn’t want to be pressed and questioned by the local infamous journalist Nadya. But as expected Nadya quickly intercepted him: “Isn’t your coffee bitter today Officer Boyd?”
The confrontation was registered by the blonde tourist who stopped fussing with her phone and openly looked at Boyd and Nadya. Her big blue eyes were so mesmerizing that some people in the cafe said it was pity that the most beautiful woman in town Elena was not present so they could compare the looks of both women and come with a verdict.
Melita quick on making extra bucks suggested a betting but given Nicos’ demise few had the heart to go for a bet.
The flamboyant journalist looked around and didn’t like what she saw. “You people, you are not ready to demonstrate people’s power” She sneered. “Spineless creatures like your Mayor Damien who you happily elected to MISlead you!”
She finished her anger address facing the backs of the people in the crowd who preferred to order another coffee or an early beer.
Chapter 14
ON THE OTHER SIDE of the lake Rob caught up with a group of schoolboys. These boys were his arch enemies. They all had mothers, looked good in nice clean clothes, had a nice place to live and play music like Victor.
. Soon their schoolbags were dancing in the air, notebooks floating around, torn to pieces; the boys hoping they were not going to share the same fate.
Victor wearing heavy glasses dared to speak up.
“How could you do that? Be ashamed of yourself!”
“You, little blind shit, what did you say?” Rob didn’t hide his anger at hearing there was somebody to challenge him.
“Look what you’ve done!” Squatting, Victor was trying to collect his notes.
Rob eyed the shrimpy boy, so unaware of the punishment he was about to receive.
“I haven’t read a fucking book but I’m stronger than all your shit together!” Rob hissed through clenched teeth, looking menacingly. Collecting their bags, the boys cautiously tried to send secret signals to Victor to keep his mouth shut.
Victor either didn’t see them or didn’t care because he went on “And look at your legs all smeared in dirt. Perhaps you don’t brush your teeth either!”
“Shut up, you twit!” Rob hated to hear this.
The children who knew the savage taste of his fists froze as they watched Rob approach Victor in two strides ready to hit him only to find the latter staring mesmerised at something over Rob’s shoulder. Unwillingly Rob followed his glance to see that the adoration in Victor’s eyes was caused by a girl with long plaits decorated with red ribbons. She was sitting on a bench, stretching herself in the sun like a kitten. The girl became aware that they were looking at her and blushed. Her big blue eyes met Rob’s and he felt strangely unnerved.
Angered and ashamed of this moment of distraction he teased Victor: “Haven’t you seen a girl before? The world is full of them; all nuisances, weeping, sobbing, all tears and fucking shit!”
Unexpectedly, Victor threw himself against Rob, pounding him with his small fists. Rob laughed. Poor Victor acting a knight with his body on which fragile should be written. With a bulging fist itchy for a fight, Rob punched him away.
Victor had to be taught a lesson. Leaving him whirling in the dust Rob pretended he was going away as he noiselessly approached the bench behind the girl’s back.
By the time Marianne was aware of his presence it was too late. Her scream stabbed the sunny morning as Rob in one swift move cut off one of her plaits with his sharp folding knife. He waved the plait, the ribbon hanging like the flag of the defeated and
