The Transmigration of Bodies Read Online Free Page A
Author: Yuri Herrera
Tags: Drama, spanish, Fiction, Mexico, Hard-Boiled, translation, Love Story, Urban, Novel, Dystopia, gangs, Plague, hispanic, disease, Romeo, blonde, Translated fiction, Yuri Herrera, Trabajos del Reino, Señales que precederán al fin del mundo, Signs Preceding the End of the World, La transmigración de los cuerpos, The Transmigration of Bodies, Latino, Vicky, Three Times Blond, Neyanderthal, the Dolphin, Anemic Student, valeria luiselli, mexico city, The Redeemer, daniel alarcón, mediation, narco-literature, gang violence, la Nora, francisco goldman, herrera, redeemer, the Unruly, the Castros, narcoliteratura, maya jaggi, Ganglands, dead bodies, Transmigration of the Bodies
reached out a hand and took hold of his cock, squeezing and stroking steadily until he came, tho he begged Wait wait wait, stop, because he had his hopes set on who knows what.
He dreamed. Among the succession of images in his dream, a replay of his half-assed hungover day, was one of a black dog who turned up often; this time the black dog, shaggy and wet, was shaking himself energetically, whipping out shards of water like little sliced-up lakes, and with each sliver that flew off he felt himself—since the dog was also him—grow lighter, lighter, lighter, lighter, until he awoke so light he could touch the ceiling.
She was still there beside him. Not once in the night had he lost awareness that she was there. Not when he was an animal shooting out shards of water, not in the flickering light at the end of the hallway, not in the face of the anemic student staring at him one last time before he left, had he ever stopped knowing she was there, spooning him. Yet he told himself anyway: there they were, the two of them, at the same lock-in under the same roof.
He started stroking her from curve to curve. He heard the fridge start up behind the door and panicked. The power had come back on and he feared she might flip the lights and see him, squalid, ruining her mattress the way he ruined suits, so when he felt her start to stir he said Shh shh shh and slipped a gentle hand between her thighs to rouse her sex softly, awaken it gently. He moved his hand ever so lightly and as he did she moaned, and he moved a little more and felt his sorrow start to slip away and himself finally defeat what his roughneck cousins used to say to one another if they saw a drop-dead gorgeous girl: Ain’t nothin the likes of you could do with the likes of that.
He felt her body contract and release and then languish again, but awake now.
Bet you can’t do that, she said after a minute.
What?
See colors like I do. When I was a girl it was just bright lights but now I see colored lights.
What colors did you see just now?
I don’t know. They were pastel. When they go out I forget.
This was exactly the way he wanted everything to stay. Let them bury me, he said to himself, let them scatter dirt on me, mouth wide open, snuggled up just like this. Let them bury me. Let them burn me and turn me, mark me and merk me. They can deep-six me if they want, but let everything stay like this.
Suddenly, like an involuntary twitch: guilt.
I meant what I said yesterday, he declared. I said it to sway you but I meant what I said.
She said nothing.
You mad?
That stuff about how great it’d be if the world was all loved up?
Yes.
Pfft, I knew that. What, you think I’m stupid? That’s just a way to flirt, right? Why bring it up now? Silly.
Why indeed. She was right.
It’s just habit, tricks of the trade, but I didn’t want it to be like that with you. You know what I do?
Yes.
He sat up, and it was he who turned on the little bedside lamp to look at her.
You do? For real?
Of course. You’re a fixer. Take care of stuff under the table at the courts.
He froze. For her to call him that, after all those kisses.
One time I heard la Ñora say The landlord told me not to bother the guy in 3 if he’s late with the rent—that man knows a lot of people and he doesn’t want any trouble.
He said nothing, but the silence was interrupted by his phone. He decided to answer. Like a man who goes to the john to sidestep the bill.
He picked up and said Yeah. No one spoke but he knew the half-lung wheezy sonofabitch on the other end of the line, and knew if he was calling now, with the city shut down the way it was, that he was needed and couldn’t say no.
Who’s this? the man asked, like he didn’t know what number he’d just dialed.
Who do you think, replied the Redeemer. It’s me.
2
Animals. They behave like animals, the Redeemer thought, watching a line of cats prowl the ledges along the block, and a small happy dogpack trot down the
He dreamed. Among the succession of images in his dream, a replay of his half-assed hungover day, was one of a black dog who turned up often; this time the black dog, shaggy and wet, was shaking himself energetically, whipping out shards of water like little sliced-up lakes, and with each sliver that flew off he felt himself—since the dog was also him—grow lighter, lighter, lighter, lighter, until he awoke so light he could touch the ceiling.
She was still there beside him. Not once in the night had he lost awareness that she was there. Not when he was an animal shooting out shards of water, not in the flickering light at the end of the hallway, not in the face of the anemic student staring at him one last time before he left, had he ever stopped knowing she was there, spooning him. Yet he told himself anyway: there they were, the two of them, at the same lock-in under the same roof.
He started stroking her from curve to curve. He heard the fridge start up behind the door and panicked. The power had come back on and he feared she might flip the lights and see him, squalid, ruining her mattress the way he ruined suits, so when he felt her start to stir he said Shh shh shh and slipped a gentle hand between her thighs to rouse her sex softly, awaken it gently. He moved his hand ever so lightly and as he did she moaned, and he moved a little more and felt his sorrow start to slip away and himself finally defeat what his roughneck cousins used to say to one another if they saw a drop-dead gorgeous girl: Ain’t nothin the likes of you could do with the likes of that.
He felt her body contract and release and then languish again, but awake now.
Bet you can’t do that, she said after a minute.
What?
See colors like I do. When I was a girl it was just bright lights but now I see colored lights.
What colors did you see just now?
I don’t know. They were pastel. When they go out I forget.
This was exactly the way he wanted everything to stay. Let them bury me, he said to himself, let them scatter dirt on me, mouth wide open, snuggled up just like this. Let them bury me. Let them burn me and turn me, mark me and merk me. They can deep-six me if they want, but let everything stay like this.
Suddenly, like an involuntary twitch: guilt.
I meant what I said yesterday, he declared. I said it to sway you but I meant what I said.
She said nothing.
You mad?
That stuff about how great it’d be if the world was all loved up?
Yes.
Pfft, I knew that. What, you think I’m stupid? That’s just a way to flirt, right? Why bring it up now? Silly.
Why indeed. She was right.
It’s just habit, tricks of the trade, but I didn’t want it to be like that with you. You know what I do?
Yes.
He sat up, and it was he who turned on the little bedside lamp to look at her.
You do? For real?
Of course. You’re a fixer. Take care of stuff under the table at the courts.
He froze. For her to call him that, after all those kisses.
One time I heard la Ñora say The landlord told me not to bother the guy in 3 if he’s late with the rent—that man knows a lot of people and he doesn’t want any trouble.
He said nothing, but the silence was interrupted by his phone. He decided to answer. Like a man who goes to the john to sidestep the bill.
He picked up and said Yeah. No one spoke but he knew the half-lung wheezy sonofabitch on the other end of the line, and knew if he was calling now, with the city shut down the way it was, that he was needed and couldn’t say no.
Who’s this? the man asked, like he didn’t know what number he’d just dialed.
Who do you think, replied the Redeemer. It’s me.
2
Animals. They behave like animals, the Redeemer thought, watching a line of cats prowl the ledges along the block, and a small happy dogpack trot down the
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