Dr Jew

of me for being dumb now 'cause I can fight as good as any of 'em."
    "Yeah," said Dave, sneering at Anne. "The boy don't miss school and they don't have a thing to put in his head that I can't do better. Ain't that right, boy?"
    Swan smiled. "I don't miss school. I do miss ma though."
    "Well that 's only natural a good son like you. Of course you want to see your mother. You been away a month now, any good boy would feel it. But you seen her letter just like I have and if she wants you to stay in San Francisco for now, what can you do about it? What can we do about it?"
    "I just can 't understand why. Doesn't she want to see me?"
    "Boy, I know she does. But you got to consider. These are hard times we're in. Money's tight. Raising a boy like your size ain't cheap. She's asked me to chip in and I'm glad to help out my part."
    "But I could ge t a job back in Mississippi and help ma."
    "Doing what? You're still a youngster however big you are and couldn't get any job with the skills you got. No, it's best – your ma is right – it's best you stay here. I'll get you educated right. Tomorrow in fact we got a big day, you and me. Sort of a test."
    "I don 't like tests," said Swan.
    "It ain 't like those school tests. I know what you're thinking with that paper and book but it ain't nothing like that. Maybe even a little fun."
    "What are we gonna do?" said Swan.
    "Yeah, what do you have in mind?" said Anne.
    Dave 's eyes burned on Anne but he spoke to Swan. "You gonna have to wait and see, boy. Come tomorrow we'll be at it. So go get you some rest."
    "Alright. Goodnight, Uncle Dave. Goodnight, Aunt Anne."
    When the boy had left, they stared at each other. The food on their plates was largely untouched. They couldn't keep pace with Swan's appetite.
    "You have something you want to say?" said Dave.
    She shook her head.
    "I thin k you do," he said.
    She took her plate to the trash can and dumped the food in.
    "Say it," said Dave. "It's okay. We're alone now."
    She shook her head again.
    "Say it!" he said.
    She whispered it so low it was almost invisible. But there it was, the word cut into the air: "Liar."
    Dave smiled, almost laughed. "Oh, is that all?"
    "When are you going to tell him?" she said.
    "When are you going to stop asking stupid questions?"
    "You asked," she said.
    "I did. And now I'm asking you to shut the hell up and mind your own business. And if you breathe one word about it to the boy I'll drag you through such a haunt of hell you'll wish you'd swallowed your own tongue before spitting your brand of truth on the world. And I'll make sure he suffers because of it too because I know you care about his idiot mind and think I'm corrupting some kind of innocence. But trust me. No one's gonna dodge it in this life and the sooner he gets it into his system the sooner he can handle it. Seeing the world as it is. And if you try to hold him back or drag him out I'll pull him so deep into the shit with me he won't be able to breathe. But that's only if you stick your pig nose where it don't belong. You shut up and mind your own and we'll all be hunky dory. That's a fact."

XXV.

    Sergio Simpatico was looking at his wife through a webcam.
    "Hi, Lise," he said.
    "Hi, hon. How was today? You look tired."
    "Do I? I guess I am."
    "I know, babe. But it'll be over soon."
    "For you and me both , Lise," he said. "Oh shit, that came out wrong."
    "I know what you meant. It's okay. What's new?"
    "We just flew Gilbert back up here to reshoot the Swine-AIDS creation sequence. I wasn't happy with it, like he didn't give it his all the first time. Gilbert's agent did all the protesting about a reshoot, but once we settled the matter Gilbert was the total pro about fucking the pig. Again."
    "And how is the scene now?"
    "Eh, too early to say. Got to let it sit a little."
    "And I bet Rick 's happy about the delay."
    "Screw Rick ! And screw the rest of the studio. If they want mass-produced crap on schedule they can outsource it and tear my name off. At this point I don't care. Making this film must be what Swine-AIDS feels like, literally."
    Through the screen her coughs cut through like lo-fi knives.
    "Are you okay, Lise? Are you done?"
    "I 'm done. But I don't think I'll be okay till this thing is over."
    "You 're still coughing blood?"
    "I think it 's going to be my new condition till they get a cure or carry me away in the brown box."
    "Hey, don 't talk like that."
    "Sorry. I just miss you and the kids so much, and I know that I'm