«You know,» Mike went on, «Brett was rather good. She’s always rather good. I gave her a fearful hiding about Jews and bullfighters, and all those sort of people, and do you know what she said: ‘Yes. I’ve had such a hell of a happy life with the British aristocracy!’
He took a drink.
«That was rather good. Ashley, chap she got the title from, was a sailor, you know. Ninth baronet. When he came home he wouldn’t sleep in a bed. Always made Brett sleep on the floor. Finally, when he got really bad, he used to tell her he’d kill her. Always slept with a loaded service revolver. Brett used to take the shells out when he’d gone to sleep. She hasn’t had an absolutely happy life, Brett. Damned shame, too. She enjoys things so.»
He stood up. His hand was shaky.
«I’m going in the room. Try and get a little sleep.» He smiled.
«We go too long without sleep in these fiestas. I’m going to start now and get plenty of sleep. Damn bad thing not to getsleep. Makes you frightfully nervy.»
«We’ll see you at noon at the Iruсa,» Bill said.
Mike went out the door. We heard him in the next room.
He rang the bell and the chambermaid came and knocked at the door.
«Bring up half a dozen bottles of beer and a bottle of Fundador,» Mike told her. «Si, Seсorito.»
«I’m going to bed,» Bill said. «Poor old Mike. I had a hell of a row about him last night.» «Where? At that Milano place?»
«Yes. There was a fellow there that had helped pay Brett and Mike out of Cannes, once. He was damned nasty.»
«I know the story.»
«I didn’t. Nobody ought to have a right to say things about Mike.» «That’s what makes it bad.»
«They oughtn’t to have any right. I wish to hell they didn’t have any right. I’m going to bed.» «Was anybody killed in the ring?»
«I don’t think so. Just badly hurt.»
«A man was killed outside in the runway.» «Was there?» said Bill.
18
At noon we were all at the cafй. It was crowded. We were eating shrimps and drinking beer. The town was crowded. Every street was full. Big motor-cars from Biarritz and San Sebastian kept driving up and parking around the square. They brought people for the bullfight. Sight-seeing cars came up, too. There was one with twentyfive Englishwomen in it. They sat in the big, white car and looked through their glasses at the fiesta. The dancers were all quite drunk. It was the last day of the fiesta.
The fiesta was solid and unbroken, but the motor-cars and tourist-cars made little islands of onlookers. When the cars emptied, the onlookers were absorbed into the crowd. You did not see them again except as sport clothes, odd-looking at a table among the closely packed peasants in black smocks. The fiesta absorbed even the Biarritz English so that you did not see them unless you passed close to a table. All the time there was music in the street. The drums kept on pounding and the pipes were going. Inside the cafйs men with their hands gripping the table, or on each other’s shoulders, were singing the hard-voiced singing.
«Here comes Brett,» Bill said.
I looked and saw her coming through the crowd in the square, walking, her head up, as though the fiesta were being staged in her honor, and she found it pleasant and amusing.
«Hello, you chaps!» she said. «I say, I have a thirst.» «Get another big beer,» Bill said to the waiter. «Shrimps?»
«Is Cohn gone?» Brett asked. «Yes,» Bill said. «He hired a car.»
The beer came. Brett started to lift the glass mug and her hand shook. She saw it and smiled, and leaned forward and took a long sip.
«Good beer.»
«Very good,» I said. I was nervous about Mike. I did not think he had slept. He must have been drinking all the time, but he seemed to be under control.
«I heard Cohn had hurt you, Jake,» Brett said. «No. Knocked me out. That was all.»
«I say, he did hurt Pedro Romero,» Brett said. «He hurt him most badly.» «How is he?»
«He’ll be all right. He won’t go out of the room.» «Does he look badly?»
«Very. He was really hurt. I told him I wanted to pop out and see you chaps for a minute.» «Is he going to fight?»
«Rather. I’m going with you, if you don’t mind.»
«How’s your boy friend?» Mike asked. He had not listened to anything that Brett had said. «Brett’s got a bull-fighter,» he said. «She had a Jew named Cohn, but he turned out badly.» Brett stood up.
«I am not going to listen to that sort of rot from you, Michael.» «How’s your boy friend?»
«Damned well,» Brett said. «Watch him this afternoon.»
«Brett’s got a bull-fighter,» Mike said. «A beautiful, bloody bullfighter.» «Would you mind walking over with me? I want to talk to you, Jake.»
«Tell him all about your bull-fighter,» Mike said. «Oh, to hell with your bull-fighter!» He tipped the table so that all the beers and the dIsh of shrimps went over in a crash.
«Come on,» Brett said. «Let’s get out of this.»
In the crowd crossing the square I said: «How is it?»
«I’m not going to see him after lunch until the fight. His people come in and dress him. They’re very angry about me, he says.»
Brett was radiant. She was happy. The sun was out and the day was bright. «I feel altogether changed,» Brett said. «You’ve no idea, Jake.»
«Anything you want me to do?» «No, just go to the fight with me.» «We’ll see you at lunch?»
«No. I’m eating with him.»
We were standing under the arcade at the door of the hotel. They were carrying tables out and setting them up under the arcade.
«Want to take a turn out to the park?» Brettasked. «I don’t want to go up yet. I fancy he’s sleeping.»
We walked along past the theatre and out of the square and along through the barracks of the fair, moving with the crowd between the lines of booths. We came out on a cross-street that led to the Paseo de Sarasate. We could see the crowd walking there, all the fashionably dressed people. They were making the turn at the upper end of the park.
«Don’t let’s go there,» Brett said. «I don’t want staring at just now.»
We stood in the sunlight. It was hot and good after the rain and the clouds from the sea. «I hope the wind goes down,» Brett said. «It’s very bad for him.»
«So do I.»
«He says the bulls are all right.» «They’re good.»
«Is that San Fermin’s?»
Brett looked at the yellow wall of the chapel. «Yes. Where the show started on Sunday.»
«Let’s go in. Do you mind? I’d rather like to pray a little for him or something.»
We went in through the heavy leather door that moved very lightly. It was dark inside. Many people were praying. You saw them as your eyes adjusted themselves to the half-light. We knelt
at one of the long wooden benches. After a little I felt Brett stiffen beside me, and saw she was looking straight ahead.
«Come on,» she whispered throatily. «Let’s get out of here. Makes me damned nervous.» Outside in the hot brightness of the Street Brett looked up at the tree-tops in the wind. The
praying had not been much of a success.
«Don’t know why I get so nervy in church,» Brett said. «Never does me any good.» We walked along.
«I’m damned bad for a religious atmosphere,» Brett said. «I’ve the wrong type of face. «You know,» Brett said, «I’m not worried about him at all. I just feel happy about him.» «Good.»
«I wish the wind would drop, though.» «It’s liable to go down by five o’clock.» «Let’s hope.»
«You might pray,» I laughed.
«Never does me any good. I’ve never gotten anything I prayed for. Have you?» «Oh, yes.»
«Oh, rot,» said Brett. «Maybe it works for some people, though you don’t look very religious, Jake.»
«I’m pretty religious.»
«Oh, rot,» said Brett. «Don’t start proselyting to-day. To-day’s going to be bad enough as it is.» It was the first time I had seen her in the old happy, careless way since before she went off with
Cohn. We were back again in front of the hotel. All the tables were set now, and already several were filled with people eating.
«Do look after Mike,» Brett said. «Don’t let him get too bad.»
«Your frients haff gone up-stairs,» the German maоtre d’hфtel said in English. He was a continual eavesdropper. Brett turned to him:
«Thank you, so much. Have you anything else to say?» «No,ma’am.»
«Good,» said Brett.
«Save us a table for three,» I said to the German. He smiled his dirty little pink-and-white smile.
«Iss madam eating here?» «No,» Brett said.
«Den I think a tabul for two will be enuff.»
«Don’t talk to him,» Brett said. «Mike must have been in bad shape,» she said on the stairs. We passed Montoya on the stairs. He bowed and did not smile.
«I’ll see you at the cafй,» Brett said. «Thank you, so much, Jake.»
We had stopped at the floor our rooms were on. She went straight down the hail and into Romero’s room. She did not knock. She simply opened the door, went in, and closed it behind her.
I stood in front of the door of Mike’s room and knocked. There was no answer. I tried the knob and it opened. Inside the room was in great disorder. All the bags were opened and clothing was strewn around. There were empty bottles beside the bed. Mike lay on the bed looking like a death mask of
