Island of the Sequined Love Nun

hands right now. How much more confidence would you like?"
    Tuck didn't really know how to answer. "I guess you're right. Sorry. You could be a little less mysterious about what's going on here. I know that we're not flying supplies, not with this plane and the kind of money you're paying me."
    "If you really want to know, I can tell you. But if I tell you, I'll have to kill you."
    Tuck looked from the instruments to catch her expression. She was grinning, a deep silly grin that crinkled the comers of her eyes.
    He looked at the instruments. "I'm going to take off now Okay?"
    "And I haven't even shown you the best way to fight boredom on our little island."
    Tuck concentrated on the gauges and the runway. He said, "What church do you and your husband work for?"
    "Methodist."
    "You'll have to tell me about it."
    "What's there to tell? Methodists rock!" she said, then she giggled like a little girl as Tuck pulled the plane into the sky.

    Malink joined the drinking circle late, hoping that everyone would be drunk enough to forget what had gone on that day He'd spent most of the afternoon at Favo's house, afraid even to face his wife and daughters, but when the sun was well boiled in the sea, he knew he had to join the other men or face the consequences of tubapoisoned theories and rumors aspiring to truth. He sneaked into an open spot in the circle and sat on the sand, even though several younger men moved so he could sit on a log with his back to the tree. He threw an open pack of Benson… Hedges into the center of the circle and Favo divided up the smokes among the men. Some lit up, others broke them into sections to chew with betel nut, and a few tucked them behind their ears for later. The distraction was short-lived and one of the Johns, an elder said, "So why did Vincent send the Japanese into our houses?"
    Malink waved him off as he drank from the coconut shell cup and made a great show of enjoying his first drink before handing the cup to Abo, who was pouring. Then he stalled another few seconds by lighting a Benson… Hedges with the Zippo, making sure everyone saw it and remembered, then after a long drag he said, "I'm fucked if I know." He said this in English-English being the best language for swearing.
    "It is not good," said John.
    "They came to the bachelors' house," said Abo, who, as usual, was angry. "They looked at our mispel's thighs."
    "We should kill them," said one of the younger men who had been named for Vincent.
    "And eat them!" someone added-and it was as if the air had been pulled on the circle before it could inflate to well-rounded violent mob.
    Everyone turned to see Sarapul walking out of the shadows. For once, Malink was glad to see him. The old cannibal seemed to have a spring in his step, seemed younger, stronger.
    "I need an ax," Sarapul said. The men who owned axes all stared into the sand or examined their fingernails.
    "What for?" Malink asked.
    "I can't tell you. It's a secret."
    "You're not going to start headhunting, are you?" Malink said. "We've put up with your talk of eating people, but I draw the line at headhunting. No headhunting while I'm chief."
    Everybody grunted in agreement and Malink was glad to have been able to assert his authority in a way that no one could dispute. An anthropologist had once come to the island and given him a book about headhunters. Malink felt very cosmopolitan discussing the topic.
    Sarapul looked confused. He'd never read the headhunting book, had never read any book, but he did have a Classic Comics version of The Count of Monte Cristo, which a sailor had given him in the days before the Shark People were forbidden to meet visiting ships. He'd made Kimi read it to him every night. Sarapul liked the thread of revenge and murder that ran through the story.
    Sarapul said, "What is this headhunting? I just want to cut a tree."
    "Cutting trees is taboo," said one of the younger men.
    "I will get special dispensation," Sarapul said, using a term he had learned from Father Rodriquez.
    Malink shook his head. "We don't have that anymore. We only had that when we were Catholics."
    "I need an ax," Sarapul said, as if he might do better if he started over. "And I need permission from the great Chief Malink to cut a tree."
    Malink scratched a mosquito bite and looked at his feet. It was true that he could give permission to break a taboo, and Sarapul had distracted the circle before they ganged up on him. "You may cut one tree, on your side of the