Aces and Knaves

evenings and slept late. Arrow wanted to see everything at once. We settled on a tour of the Tower of London, led by a Beefeater in his fancy costume, topped by a beaver hat.
    We saw prison cells with graffiti from hundreds of years of prisoners, the crown jewels and the place where Anne Boleyn lost her head. I remembered a song I learned in college with lyrics that went, "With her head tucked underneath her arm, she walks the bloody tower..."
    By 1:45 we had eaten lunch and were at the entrance to the park. Our meeting with Mr. Zeebarth was scheduled for two.
    "Let's walk around for a while," Arrow said. "It's such a pretty day and pretty place."
    Indeed, we were blessed with nice weather. We strolled along one of the walkways. Arrow and I were being cordial to each other. We hadn't spoken about what if anything had happened between her and Larry. I didn't want to know.
    Larry was already eating breakfast the next morning when we went down. He and Arrow spoke casually to each other, but there were certain inflections in their voices. Or was it my imagination?
    Young women, perhaps the famous British nannies, pushed babies in prams; older children gamboled on the grass; young adults did things on the grass that Americans generally reserve for a more private place; pensioners walked slowly or sat on the benches. Ducks paddled on the snake-like pond, called the Serpentine.
    "If I'm interpreting his directions correctly, we're supposed to meet Mr. Zeebarth over there," I said, pointing to some benches. "He'll be wearing a tam and carrying a walking stick."
    "There's a gentleman there already who meets that description," Arrow said.
    I saw him too, sitting on a bench, and wondered if our man had arrived early. We were still some distance from him. As we watched, another man sat down beside him, a younger man, dressed much more casually, with his hair shaved off. The two started talking.
    "That must not be him," Arrow said. "Those two seem to know each other."
    It looked that way. The conversation grew more heated as we approached and suddenly the younger man shoved the older man, almost knocking him off the bench. Arrow did a sharp intake of breath. I looked around quickly but nobody else seemed to notice.
    I ran toward them and called, "Mr. Zeebarth." The older man, who was trying to recover his balance, looked at me. I said, "May I help?"
    "Who the bloody hell are you?" asked the younger man, although his "who" sounded more like "ooh."
    "I'm a friend of Mr. Zeebarth," I said, coming up to them.
    The younger man stood up. He was shorter than I was, but his body was thicker and more muscular.
    He stepped toward me until we were nose to nose and said, "This is none of your bloody business."
    I stood my ground, despite a strong compulsion to step back. I said, "We've come to talk to Mr. Zeebarth."
    "Mr. Zeebarth can't see you today," he said. "Get along now."
    I was partially prepared when he shoved me, but it happened so fast that I staggered backward. Then he charged me, driving his head into my chest. I fell over onto my back, with him on top. He knelt over me and pummeled me with his fists. I tried to ward off his blows with my arms, mostly unsuccessfully.
    Before I had a chance to try anything else, Arrow jumped on his back. They struggled briefly and then he suddenly screeched so loudly that my ears rang. His head jerked sharply to one side. He shook off Arrow, stumbled to his feet and ran away through the park, not looking back.
    Arrow watched him for a few seconds and then bent over me and said, "I don't think he's coming back. Are you all right?"
    "I don't know," I said. I took inventory. "The back of my head hurts and my cheek hurts."
    "You've got a bruise on your cheek," Arrow said, inspecting it. "And your head hit the ground."
    "At least the ground is soft," I said, and since it had, apparently rained during the night this was true. I sat up and Arrow brushed some dirt off my back.
    "Tell me," I said, "what did you do to our friend to make him scream like that?"
    Arrow grinned. "I took a course in self defense. The instructor told us about vulnerable parts of the human body; one of them is the ear. First I pulled his ear, but that didn't faze him so then I really yanked it; I think I almost tore it off."
    "Thanks. That makes us even," I said, taking her offered hand to help me up.
    "That was an amazing exhibition," Mr. Zeebarth said.
    That brought me back to the reality of the moment. Not only he but also