“Go on and throw them and don’t be silly.”
Thomas Hudson rolled out three kings and a pair of tens on the slightly dampened bar.
“Want to bet?”
“We have a bet,” Ignacio Natera Revello said. “The second round of drinks.”
Thomas Hudson shook the dice lovingly again and rolled a queen and a jack.
“Want to bet now?”
“The odds are still greatly in your favor.”
“OK. I’ll just take the drinks then.”
He rolled a king and an ace, feeling them come out of the shaker solidly and proudly.
“You lucky sod.”
“Another double frozen daiquiri without sugar and whatever Ignacio wants,” Thomas Hudson said. He was beginning to feel fond of Ignacio.
“Look, Ignacio,” he said. “I never heard of anyone looking at the world through green-colored glasses. Rose colored, yes. Green colored, no. Doesn’t it give everything a sort of grassy look? Don’t you feel as though you were on the turf? Do you never feel as though you had been turned out to pasture?”
“This is the most restful tint for the eyes. It’s been proven by the greatest optometrists.”
“Do you run around much with the greatest optometrists? They must be a pretty wild bunch.”
“I don’t know any optometrists personally except my own. But he is familiar with the findings of the others. He is the best in New York.”
“I want to know the best in London.”
“I know the best optometrist in London. But the very best is in New York. I’ll be glad to give you a card to him.”
“Let’s roll for this one.”
“Very well. You roll back to me.”
Thomas Hudson picked up the leather cup and felt the heavy confident weight of the big Floridita dice. He barely stirred them in order not to irritate their kindness and generosity and rolled out three kings, a ten, and a queen.
“Three kings in one. The clásico.”
“You are a bastard,” Ignacio Natera Revello said and rolled an ace, two queens, and two jacks.
“Another double frozen daiquiri absolutely without sugar and whatever Don Ignacio wishes,” Thomas Hudson said to Pedrico. Pedrico made his smile and the drink. He set down the mixer before Thomas Hudson with at least another full daiquiri in the bottom of it.
“I could do that to you all day,” Thomas Hudson said to Ignacio.
“The horrible thing is that I’m afraid you could.”
“The dice love me.”
“It’s good something does.”
Thomas Hudson felt the faint prickle go over his scalp that he had felt many times in the last month.
“How do you mean that, Ignacio?” he asked very politely.
“I mean that I certainly don’t, with you taking all my money.”
“Oh,” said Thomas Hudson. “Here’s to your good health.”
“I hope you die,” Ignacio Natera Revello said.
Thomas Hudson felt the prickle go over his scalp again. He reached his left hand against the bar where Ignacio Natera Revello could not see it and tapped softly three times with the ends of his fingers.
“That’s nice of you,” he said. “Do you want to roll for another round?”
“No,” the other said. “I’ve lost quite enough money to you for one day.”
“You haven’t lost any money. Only drinks.”
“I pay my bar bill here.”
“Ignacio,” Thomas Hudson said. “That’s the third slightly edgy thing you’ve said.”
“Well, I am edgy. If you’d had someone be as damned rude to you as your bloody ambassador was to me.”
“I still don’t want to hear about it.”
“There you are. And you call me edgy. Look, Thomas. We’re good friends. I’ve known you and your boy Tom for years. By the way how is he?”
“He’s dead.”
“I’m so sorry. I didn’t know.”
“That’s all right,” Thomas Hudson said. “I’ll buy you a drink.”
“I’m so very sorry. Please know how terribly sorry I am. How was he killed?”
“I don’t know yet,” Thomas Hudson said. “I’ll let you know when I know.”
“Where was it?”
“I don’t know that. I know where he was flying but I don’t know anything else.”
“Did he get into London and see any of our friends?”
“Oh yes. He’d been in town several times and to White’s each time and he’d seen whoever was around.”
“Well, that’s a comfort in a way.”
“A what?”
“I mean it’s nice to know he saw our friends.”
“Certainly. I’m sure he had a good time. He always had an awfully good time.”
“Should we drink to him?”
“Shit, no,” Thomas Hudson said. He could feel it all coming up; everything he had not thought about; all the grief he had put away and walled out and never even thought of on the trip nor all this morning. “Let’s not.”
“I think it is the thing to do,” Ignacio Natera Revello said. “I think it is eminently proper and the thing to do. But I must buy the drink.”
“All right. We’ll drink to him.”
“What was his rank?”
“Flight lieutenant.”
“He’d probably have been a wing commander by now or at least squadron leader.”
“Let’s skip his rank.”
“Just as you wish,” Ignacio Natera Revello said. “To my dear friend and your son Tom Hudson. Dulce es moriré pro patria.”
“In the pig’s asshole,” Thomas Hudson said.
“What’s the matter. Was my Latin faulty?”
“I wouldn’t know, Ignacio.”
“But your Latin was excellent. I know from people who were at school with you.”
“My Latin is very beat up,” Thomas Hudson said. “Along with my Greek, my English, my head, and my heart. All I know how to speak now is frozen daiquiri. ¿Tú hablas frozen daiquiri tú?”
“I think we might show a little more respect to Tom.”
“Tom was a pretty good joker.”
“He certainly was. He had one of the finest and most delicate senses of humor I’ve ever known. And he was one of the best-looking boys and with the most beautiful manners. And a damned fine athlete. He was tops as an athlete.”
“That’s right. He threw the discus 142 feet. He played fullback on offense and left tackle on defense. He played a good game of tennis and he was a first-rate wing shot and a good fly fisherman.”
“He was a splendid athlete and a fine sportsman. I think of him as one of the very finest.”
“There’s only one thing really wrong with him.”
“What’s that?”
“He’s dead.”
“Now don’t be morbid, Tommy. You must think of Tom as he was. Of his gaiety and his radiance and his wonderful promise. There’s no sense being morbid.”
“None at all,” Thomas Hudson said. “Let’s not be morbid.”
“I’m glad you agree. It’s been splendid to have a chance to talk about him. It’s been terrible to have the news. But I know you will bear up just as I will, even though it is a thousand times worse for you being his father. What was he flying?”
“Spitfires.”
“Spitties. I shall think of him then in a Spitty.”
“That’s a lot of bother to go to.”
“No, no it isn’t. I’ve seen them in the cinema. I’ve several books on the RAF and we get the publications of the British Information Bureau. They have excellent stuff, you know. I know exactly how he would have looked. Probably wearing one of those Mae Wests and with his chute and his flying togs and his big boots. I can picture him exactly. Now I have to be getting home to lunch. Will you come with me? I know Lutecia would love to have you.”
“No. I have to meet a man here. Thanks very much.”
“Goodbye, old boy,” Ignacio Natera Revello said. “I know you’ll take this thing the way you should.”
“You were kind to help me.”
“No, I wasn’t kind at all. I loved Tom. As you did. As we all did.”
“Thanks for all the drinks.”
“I’ll get them back from you another day.”
He went out. From beyond him, down the bar, one of the men from the boat moved up to Hudson. He was a dark boy, with short, clipped, curly black hair, and a left eye that had a slightly droopy lid; the eye was artificial but this did not show since the government had presented him with four different eyes, bloodshot, slightly bloodshot, almost clear, and clear. He was wearing slightly bloodshot, and he was already a little drunk.
“Hi, Tom. When did you get in town?”
“Yesterday,” then speaking slowly and almost without moving his lips, “Take it easy. Don’t be a fucking comedian.”
“I’m not. I’m just getting drunk. They cut me open they find security written on my liver. I’m the security king. You know that. Listen, Tom, I was standing up next to the phony Englishman and I couldn’t help but hear. Did your boy Tommy get killed?”
“Yeah.”
“Oh shit,” the boy said. “Oh shit.”
“I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Of course not. But when did you hear?”
“Before the last trip.”
“Oh shit.”
“What are you doing today?”
“I’m going to eat over at the Basque Bar with a couple of characters and then we’re all going to get laid.”
“Where are you going to have lunch tomorrow?”
“At the Basque Bar.”
“Ask Paco to call me up from lunch tomorrow, will you?”
“Sure. Out at the house?”
“Yes. At the house.”
“Do you want to come around with us and get laid? We’re going up to Henry’s Sin House?”
“I might come around.”
“Henry’s hunting girls now. He’s been hunting girls ever since breakfast. He’s been laid a couple of times already. But he’s trying to beat the two tomatoes we had. We got them at the Kursaal and they look pretty bad in the daylight. We couldn’t find a goddam thing. This town’s really gone to hell. He’s got the two tomatoes up at the sin house just in case and he’s out hunting girls with Honest Lil. They’ve got a car.”
“Were they doing any good?”
“I don’t think so. Henry wants that little girl. The little one he sees all the time at the Fronton. Honest Lil
