Absolute Sunset Read Online Free

version of her mother and put today’s Sabina here in her place—something that every child knows the Silesian devils sometimes do—Sabina was struggling with breakfast. The bread kept moving on the cutting board. She tried to cut it into slices with shaking hands, but the pieces looked as if they’d been made with a chainsaw. It was better not to say anything, though. In the end Sabina hurled some sandwiches onto the table. They were nothing like the ones in the magazines, with cucumber, tomato and radish. Hanka would have really loved a sandwich like that, but her mother never made anything of the kind. Bread, butter, cold meat, jam, or cheese curds—nothing sophisticated.
    “You must have lost your fucking ass!” Sabina said harshly when Hanka asked her to sprinkle the cheese curds with chives. Hanka had eaten sandwiches like that next door, at her friend Agata’s, and they tasted really good.
    Hanka chewed slowly, trying to swallow the pieces without the benefit of tea since Sabina hadn’t served anything to drink today. She could hardly get the bread down, but it was better not to complain.
    “I’m not your housemaid!” Sabina would hiss at her in response to even a minor request. Better to say nothing.
    Fortunately, Janusz appeared a moment later. He came out of the bathroom dressed in old track pants and a T-shirt. He smelled of Nivea cream and some kind of aftershave. He didn’t actually shave, but he used it as a perfume because he knew that Hanka liked the smell.
    “Oh, you have nothing to drink!” He came over to Hanka and put the kettle on the gas. “Coffee?” he turned to Sabina, but she just snorted. He shrugged his shoulders and prepared two teas. His wife, perhaps offended by the sight of them, left for the living room.
    “Thanks!” Hanka muttered to her father, and he smiled in response.
    “Drink up and we’ll go. Mum probably didn’t get enough sleep,” he laughed and wiggled his eyebrows. Hanka snorted, but immediately went quiet, stopped by a warning gesture from her father. It wasn’t wise to provoke Sabina—she hated being mocked. They quickly packed a bottle of water and two apples into a plastic bag. The fishing tackle was waiting in the hall, where Janusz had put it the previous evening. They put their sneakers on and left. Sabina didn’t bother to say goodbye.
    As soon as they were downstairs, Hanka started to chatter. She felt better as she disappeared from Sabina’s view.
Sorry, from mum’s view
. Being with her father was good. Hanka laughed and told him incredible stories. She didn’t even notice where they were going—after all, he was leading the way. Sitting on the bus, she realised that she didn’t remember the walk to the bus stop or the moment when they’d boarded.
    The trip wasn’t long. On the way they passed meadows that were as flat and featureless as a pancake, here and there decorated with a single tree. Just like on postcards from Jura. Hanka wanted to stop by one of these solitary trees someday, spread a blanket and fall asleep. Dream of nothing. Or eat breakfast there. Maybe eventually she’d be able to talk her father into it.
    “We’re getting off soon,” Janusz said, interrupting her thoughts as he started gathering their things. As always, he checked that they hadn’t left anything on the bus. Hanka found it funny, given that all they had was one net and a fishing rod. She snorted quietly, then politely waited by the door.
    As soon as the bus stopped, she jumped out into the roadside dust, which billowed up around her knees and settled on her socks. She glanced at her father. Nothing. He hadn’t even noticed—he’d never been bothered by such things. Sabina would probably have whacked Hanka in the head.
    They made their way through a forest. A few isolated clumps of wild strawberries grew near the path. Hanka raced from one to another, picking the red fruit cautiously and then savouring it. Nothing could equal fresh wild strawberries.