— He already knows about these stupid archives doesn't he?
— I'm talking about these stupid bills and stupid overdue accounts and stupid liens against your stupid salary Oscar, this whole stupid mess you've got yourself into, what do you plan to do.
— What do you expect me to do! Burrow in the cushions for change that fell out of his pocket when he went to sleep reading the paper? That's what it would be like, asking him for money it would be like burrowing in the…
— Well you've simply got to make peace with him somehow, there's your mother's trust account in that Maryland bank you'd need his permission to go into that wouldn't you? There's something in this mess about an escrow payment on the mortgage, do you want to wait for them to step in and sell the place out from under us and try to explain that to him? Will you call him?
— Well I, maybe after lunch Christina, maybe…
— And what do you plan for lunch, poached salmon with carrots in the Spanish style? We've got to get some food in the house, if I look at another egg I'll turn into one.
— Yes well, you can call the cab in the morning and…
— I am not going to call the cab! Spend money on cabs after what we've just, you can call Lily. You can call Lily can't you? She's got a car hasn't she?
— But, to ask her to go shopping for us I don't…
— I didn't say I'd even think of doing that did I? She'd come back with God knows what, a frozen pizza and some Hostess Twinkles no, of course I'll go with her.
Bread, celery, tea, soups, oil, chicken breasts, onions, vermicelli, lamb chops, capers, sour cream, butter — You can put all that right in the refrigerator Lily, and tea, didn't we get tea? Put some water on will you? And I got this ginger preserve he likes with his toast, you might want to make tea for us right now I'm chilled to the bone and those dishes, maybe you can clear them up while we're waiting, that is of course if there's any hot water God knows what's wrong with it, there's scarcely enough to wash your face.
— Oscar had Mister Boatwright here, I thought maybe he fixed it.
— He had what?
— This old plumber, Mister Boatwright?
— I can't imagine what you're talking about, let me see if there've been any calls. Oscar? She burst down the hall, had Harry called while they were out? or had anyone? Well, had he finally got up the nerve to call Father? or would she have to do it herself, like everything else here. She'd asked Lily to stay to supper, a decent meal probably wouldn't hurt her it might be that appalling haircut makes her look like something the cat dragged in, if she could simply stop that incessant chatter, her daddy and mother say they're going to come up here and they're going to get everything reconciled when she's able to see them without that Reverend Bobby Joe always hanging around because she's all they've got left now with her brother Bobbie gone God knows where but they're still mad at her for where she went and made that dumb marriage outside the faith to this Jewish guy which Reverend Bobby Joe says like it's some kind of a disease that all of a sudden just turned up again like this bad penny who's suing your ridiculous accident lawyer for adultery so she's real scared he'll make her be this witness if he can find her — so you may have the chance to work another courtroom appearance into your own busy schedule Oscar, if you see what I mean. What are you reading there? He held up Hobbytime, — my God, like that ant farm you sent off for when you were seven and we had them all over the house oh, just put it down there Lily I think we can manage, before you wait, can you get that? If it's Harry tell him I'm not, no I'll talk to him give it to me, here. Harry? Oh… oh! followed by oh my Gods and but how awfuls, Nembutals? and finally — yes but do! It will do you good, you must be exhausted, when do you… Well whenever you can, if they need you in court then come out when it's over, it can't go on forever can it? resting the phone back in its cradle, cradling her head in her hand, — now. Where has she gone. Do you ever expect to see Ilse again? And will you do me a favour and call that therapist? unless you plan to spend the rest of your life lying around here like a beached whale. Do you think you can ask her to get rid of some of this trash?
— Wait, wait I want to keep that, I…
— This? She held up Hobbytime, — you're going to start another ant farm?
— No, there's a fish tank…
— My God Oscar. I'm going to have a bath. Unless she's used all the hot water in the kitchen of course, and remind me to tell her. When she does those chops for dinner tonight for God's sake not to overcook them.
But a fish tank? when they could better be watched in living colour and much wilder variety spawning and feeding, fin ripping and vacant staring glassy eyed from far grander submarine vistas and exotic plant and coral strewn habitats right here on his nature program, spared those custodial concerns for wind and wave, temperature and salinity, aeration, pH balance, light and filtration and the daily toll of all those mouths to feed confined, best of all, where they could be summoned and banished in an instant like those hordes of his own species crowding the channels elsewhere rather than actually having them all over the house here firing guns, spouting news events, telling jokes, doing pushups, deep knee bends, shuddering with diarrhea, howling half dressed and full of passionate intensity humping guitars like the monkey with the greased football loosing mere anarchy upon the world where three's a crowd even in a house as large as this one, how long did he think she expected to stay? Just let her cool down, leave it to Harry, it couldn't all go on forever could it? and she wasn't still on the warpath like she'd been when he'd driven off without her, muttering — I could kill him! or, in the car when they'd gone shopping for groceries, snapping — Murder? yes. Divorce? never! interrupting a barrage of questions prying into everything from adultery to revenge and this lecherous accident lawyer, dry skin, depilatories, mammograms, reconciling with Daddy since tragedy'd struck coming down, all of it, to money, to the question of money right down to that faltering moment over seven dollars at the gas station but mostly, it was mostly just this feeling that — we never get to be alone anymore like it used to be Oscar, like remember that time we were doing it outdoors in the woods with those pine tree needles sticking into me with that squirrel watching us doing it and that rabbit where we were scared any minute she might see us? where any minute now she might come through the door with some new perplexity embracing household management, errands, the laundry or cornering him alone with — where in God's name she got hold of that car, it's really putting your life in her hands, she says it needs a new alternator whatever that might be, but I'm sure she imagines you'll pay for it, of course the reason she's never got a penny is that everything she's got goes on cosmetics, she's panic stricken at the thought of a wrinkle let alone this lump she rattles on about in her breast but I'm sure you've managed to find that all by yourself haven't you, is that the same shirt you've had on for a week? I'm almost afraid to trust her with the laundry after what happened to my beige cotton blouse and that little white alarm clock, have you seen it recently? I suppose she's managed to break it too like she did the last of those hideous Spode teacups, we simply can't go on like this Oscar do you ever expect to hear from Ilse again?
— Yes she called, while you were both out shopping she…
— Well thank God. When do you expect her.
— Well she, I don't. I told her I didn't think we could…
— That we can't afford her? My God, it's costing us more in sheer carnage than whatever her miserable wages came to isn't it? and you'd like to see everything around here taken care of by me and this poor girl out there right now mopping the kitchen floor just to save a few dollars?
— It's, no Christina it's her sister, she…