The Girl of his Dreams - Brunetti 17 Read Online Free Page B
lucky to live in a city with a small population of young people, Brunetti reflected, not for the first time. If they had to live in a world driven by capitalism, then thank heaven for this fortuitous side-effect: with so small a target population, few would go to the trouble and expense of marketing drugs in Venice.
Into Brunetti's continuing silence, Antonin asked, 'Do you mind if I ask you about this, Guido?'
Brunetti smiled. ‘I still don't know what it is you're asking me about, Antonin, so I can't mind ’ he said.
The priest at first looked surprised by Brunetti's remark, but then he gave a grin that managed to make him look almost embarrassed and agreed. 'Gia, gia. It's hard to talk about.' He paused, then added, ‘I suppose I'm not accustomed to the problems of luxury any more.'
'I'm not sure I understand ’ Brunetti said. It was a statement, but it disguised a question.
'Where I was, in Congo, people had different problems: disease, or poverty, or starvation, or soldiers who came and took away their possessions, sometimes their children.' The priest looked across at Brunetti, to see if he was following. 'So I've sort of lost the knack of listening to problems that aren't concerned with survival; to problems that come from wealth, not poverty.'
'Do you miss it?' Brunetti asked.
'What? Africa?'
Brunetti nodded.
Antonin used his hands to make another arc in the air. 'It's hard to say. I miss some of the things about it: the people, the immensity of the place, the sense that I was doing something important.'
'But you came back ’ Brunetti observed, saying, not asking.
Antonin looked Brunetti in the eyes then and said, ‘I didn't have a choice.'
Brunetti asked, 'Your health?' thinking of how thin the man had looked as he came up the steps, how thin he was now, sitting across from him.
'Yes ’ the priest said, and then added, 'in part.'
'And the other part?' Brunetti asked because he sensed that he had been led to a point where he was expected to.
'Problems with my superiors ’ the priest answered.
Brunetti had little interest in this man's problems with his superiors, but he thought back to what he remembered of Antonin's youthful need to command and found that he was not surprised. 'It was about four years ago that you came back, wasn't it?' Brunetti asked.
'Yes.'
'Is that when the war started?' Antonin shook his head. 'There's always a war in Congo. At least where I was.' 'War about what?'
Antonin surprised him by asking, 'Are you really interested, or are you just being polite, Guido?' 'I'm interested.'
'All right, then. The war, though there's always more than one, is really many mini wars or robber wars or robber raids - they're all about getting possession of something someone else has that you want. So you wait until you have enough men with guns, and you think you can go and take it away - whatever it is you want - from the other men who are guarding it with their guns. And then there is a fight, or a battle, or a war, and in the end the men who manage to have the most guns or the most men left get to keep or they take over the thing that both sides wanted.'
'What things?
'Copper. Diamonds. Other minerals. Women. Animals. It depends.' Antonin glanced at Brunetti, then went on, 'I'll give you one example. There's a mineral that's found in Congo, well, most of the present supply is found in Congo, and you have to have it to make the chips for telefonini. So you can imagine what men will do to get it ’
'No ’ Brunetti said with a small shake of his head, 'I don't think I can imagine.'
Antonin was silent for a while, then finally said, 'No, I suppose you can't, Guido. I don't think people here, with rules and police and cars and houses, have any idea of what it's like to live entirely without law ’ Then, before Brunetti could say it, the priest went on, ‘I know, I know, people here talk about the Mafia and how they do whatever they want, but at least they're limited - well, sort of
Into Brunetti's continuing silence, Antonin asked, 'Do you mind if I ask you about this, Guido?'
Brunetti smiled. ‘I still don't know what it is you're asking me about, Antonin, so I can't mind ’ he said.
The priest at first looked surprised by Brunetti's remark, but then he gave a grin that managed to make him look almost embarrassed and agreed. 'Gia, gia. It's hard to talk about.' He paused, then added, ‘I suppose I'm not accustomed to the problems of luxury any more.'
'I'm not sure I understand ’ Brunetti said. It was a statement, but it disguised a question.
'Where I was, in Congo, people had different problems: disease, or poverty, or starvation, or soldiers who came and took away their possessions, sometimes their children.' The priest looked across at Brunetti, to see if he was following. 'So I've sort of lost the knack of listening to problems that aren't concerned with survival; to problems that come from wealth, not poverty.'
'Do you miss it?' Brunetti asked.
'What? Africa?'
Brunetti nodded.
Antonin used his hands to make another arc in the air. 'It's hard to say. I miss some of the things about it: the people, the immensity of the place, the sense that I was doing something important.'
'But you came back ’ Brunetti observed, saying, not asking.
Antonin looked Brunetti in the eyes then and said, ‘I didn't have a choice.'
Brunetti asked, 'Your health?' thinking of how thin the man had looked as he came up the steps, how thin he was now, sitting across from him.
'Yes ’ the priest said, and then added, 'in part.'
'And the other part?' Brunetti asked because he sensed that he had been led to a point where he was expected to.
'Problems with my superiors ’ the priest answered.
Brunetti had little interest in this man's problems with his superiors, but he thought back to what he remembered of Antonin's youthful need to command and found that he was not surprised. 'It was about four years ago that you came back, wasn't it?' Brunetti asked.
'Yes.'
'Is that when the war started?' Antonin shook his head. 'There's always a war in Congo. At least where I was.' 'War about what?'
Antonin surprised him by asking, 'Are you really interested, or are you just being polite, Guido?' 'I'm interested.'
'All right, then. The war, though there's always more than one, is really many mini wars or robber wars or robber raids - they're all about getting possession of something someone else has that you want. So you wait until you have enough men with guns, and you think you can go and take it away - whatever it is you want - from the other men who are guarding it with their guns. And then there is a fight, or a battle, or a war, and in the end the men who manage to have the most guns or the most men left get to keep or they take over the thing that both sides wanted.'
'What things?
'Copper. Diamonds. Other minerals. Women. Animals. It depends.' Antonin glanced at Brunetti, then went on, 'I'll give you one example. There's a mineral that's found in Congo, well, most of the present supply is found in Congo, and you have to have it to make the chips for telefonini. So you can imagine what men will do to get it ’
'No ’ Brunetti said with a small shake of his head, 'I don't think I can imagine.'
Antonin was silent for a while, then finally said, 'No, I suppose you can't, Guido. I don't think people here, with rules and police and cars and houses, have any idea of what it's like to live entirely without law ’ Then, before Brunetti could say it, the priest went on, ‘I know, I know, people here talk about the Mafia and how they do whatever they want, but at least they're limited - well, sort of
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