personally I don’t think that’s such a bad idea.’
‘Are you out of your mind? She hates the bitch!’
‘Maybe, but what’s the harm in letting Vivienne at least talk to her to issue the invitation? The world won’t fall apart any
further than it’s fallen already, and who knows, Vicky may even be grateful to you later.’
‘Let me have a word with Vivienne.’
‘No. You’d fight. I’m staying on the line until you transfer this call to Vicky’s room.’
‘Oh shit!’ said Cornelius, but I heard him tell his aide to transfer the call.
I waited. Eventually I heard the bell ring again but nobody answered. ‘Neil?’ I said tentatively at last.
As I had guessed, he was listening in.
‘Yes, I’m here,’ he said heavily. ‘Well, you’ll just have to tell Vivienne that Vicky’s not picking up the phone.’
‘Would it be too much to ask you to go up to her room and let her know her mother’s on the line?’
‘Yes. It would. But maybe I’d better check on her anyway to see if she’s okay.’ He set down the receiver and I heard a door
close in the distance.
While I waited I told Vivienne what was happening.
‘My God, Sam, do you think she’s all right? She hasn’t been suicidal, has she?’
‘Just mad at the world in general.’
We went on waiting. I tried not to think of Teresa in her cheap turquoise dress with the little gold cross slipping into the
hollow between her breasts, but the next moment I was remembering when we had last made love. I had had a shade too much to
drink and the occasion had been only moderately successful although Teresa had sworn everything had been fine. Later, when
I was working for the ECA in Germany and my problems had been straightened out, I was going to give up cigarettes and hard
liquor and drink only the occasional glass of wine.
The line clicked. The pristine future dissolved, leaving me enmeshed in the clouded, chaotic present. ‘Sam?’ gasped Cornelius.
‘She’s gone!’
‘What!’
‘I had the guys force the door. The window was open. She’d let herself down on to the terrace by knotting some sheets into
a rope. Oh Christ, Sam—’
‘Is there anything I can do?’
‘Yeah, keep that bitch Vivienne off my back,’ said Cornelius, voice shaking, and hung up.
I stood looking at the receiver in my hand while Vivienne demanded to know what had happened. Finally I recovered sufficiently
to say: ‘Vicky’s run away again.’
She looked first shocked, then incredulous. ‘You don’t expect me to believe that, do you?’ she demanded furiously. ‘That little
bastard’s just spinning you that yarn to get rid of me!’
‘Not this time. This was genuine. My God, I hope I never have an eighteen-year-old daughter!’ I slumped down exhausted on
the couch.
‘Well, what’s he going to do, for God’s sake?’ Vivienne shouted at me in a frenzy of frustration. ‘What’s he going to do?’
By this time I knew I had had as much of Vivienne as I could take. Ringing the bell briefly twice, my signal which indicated
that I wanted my chauffeur to have the car waiting at the kerb, I said shortly: ‘Neil has an army of people working for him
and the police commissioner’s a personal friend. He’ll find her. And now if you’ll excuse me, Vivienne—’
‘But I can’t go now! I must wait for him to call you back with further news!’
‘I’ll call you as soon as I hear anything.’
‘“Anything to get rid of the old bag,” he thinks! Why the great rush to get rid of me, darling? Are you expecting someone?’
‘No.’
‘Sure? Incidentally, are you still dating those fluffy little blondes who live in outrageous places like Brooklyn, or do you
feel less socially inferior nowadays and set your sights a little higher?’
‘My chauffeur will drive you back to your hotel, Vivienne. I’ll see you to the door.’
‘I guess that’s why you’ve never married,’ she said idly. ‘You only feel at home with
‘Are you out of your mind? She hates the bitch!’
‘Maybe, but what’s the harm in letting Vivienne at least talk to her to issue the invitation? The world won’t fall apart any
further than it’s fallen already, and who knows, Vicky may even be grateful to you later.’
‘Let me have a word with Vivienne.’
‘No. You’d fight. I’m staying on the line until you transfer this call to Vicky’s room.’
‘Oh shit!’ said Cornelius, but I heard him tell his aide to transfer the call.
I waited. Eventually I heard the bell ring again but nobody answered. ‘Neil?’ I said tentatively at last.
As I had guessed, he was listening in.
‘Yes, I’m here,’ he said heavily. ‘Well, you’ll just have to tell Vivienne that Vicky’s not picking up the phone.’
‘Would it be too much to ask you to go up to her room and let her know her mother’s on the line?’
‘Yes. It would. But maybe I’d better check on her anyway to see if she’s okay.’ He set down the receiver and I heard a door
close in the distance.
While I waited I told Vivienne what was happening.
‘My God, Sam, do you think she’s all right? She hasn’t been suicidal, has she?’
‘Just mad at the world in general.’
We went on waiting. I tried not to think of Teresa in her cheap turquoise dress with the little gold cross slipping into the
hollow between her breasts, but the next moment I was remembering when we had last made love. I had had a shade too much to
drink and the occasion had been only moderately successful although Teresa had sworn everything had been fine. Later, when
I was working for the ECA in Germany and my problems had been straightened out, I was going to give up cigarettes and hard
liquor and drink only the occasional glass of wine.
The line clicked. The pristine future dissolved, leaving me enmeshed in the clouded, chaotic present. ‘Sam?’ gasped Cornelius.
‘She’s gone!’
‘What!’
‘I had the guys force the door. The window was open. She’d let herself down on to the terrace by knotting some sheets into
a rope. Oh Christ, Sam—’
‘Is there anything I can do?’
‘Yeah, keep that bitch Vivienne off my back,’ said Cornelius, voice shaking, and hung up.
I stood looking at the receiver in my hand while Vivienne demanded to know what had happened. Finally I recovered sufficiently
to say: ‘Vicky’s run away again.’
She looked first shocked, then incredulous. ‘You don’t expect me to believe that, do you?’ she demanded furiously. ‘That little
bastard’s just spinning you that yarn to get rid of me!’
‘Not this time. This was genuine. My God, I hope I never have an eighteen-year-old daughter!’ I slumped down exhausted on
the couch.
‘Well, what’s he going to do, for God’s sake?’ Vivienne shouted at me in a frenzy of frustration. ‘What’s he going to do?’
By this time I knew I had had as much of Vivienne as I could take. Ringing the bell briefly twice, my signal which indicated
that I wanted my chauffeur to have the car waiting at the kerb, I said shortly: ‘Neil has an army of people working for him
and the police commissioner’s a personal friend. He’ll find her. And now if you’ll excuse me, Vivienne—’
‘But I can’t go now! I must wait for him to call you back with further news!’
‘I’ll call you as soon as I hear anything.’
‘“Anything to get rid of the old bag,” he thinks! Why the great rush to get rid of me, darling? Are you expecting someone?’
‘No.’
‘Sure? Incidentally, are you still dating those fluffy little blondes who live in outrageous places like Brooklyn, or do you
feel less socially inferior nowadays and set your sights a little higher?’
‘My chauffeur will drive you back to your hotel, Vivienne. I’ll see you to the door.’
‘I guess that’s why you’ve never married,’ she said idly. ‘You only feel at home with
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