Good old 235 clearly lived a life almost as thrilling and hectic as my own, all that was missing was the essential, those little extras that make the heart skip a beat. I was sad to see him drive away in his thirteen-wheeled, four-eyed dragon.
The Greater Algiers Urban Transport Authority is very fortunate to have a man of such calibre. As is his sainted mother. There aren’t many like him these days. Though she might loosen the aprons strings a bit, the poor guy needs to let his hair down.
Chérifa left me in a foul mood and has returned to find me in a foul mood. The little baggage is completely brazen, she sulks, she does a bunk, she shows up whenever it suits her, she brings bus drivers to my door. People behave better in hotels — you let the hotel know when you’ll be arriving, when you’ll be leaving, you leave your taxi driver at the door, you’re polite to the staff, you put your things away, you flush the toilet and turn off the tap when the water is running low. A few rules and a little common decency are essential in any family. She should tell me everything, whether there are people looking for her, whether she’s in danger, whether… Well, the possibilities are endless.
‘Now listen to me, mademoiselle, since my idiot brother has cleverly finagled things, I’m prepared to put you up, but let me tell you right now that my home is not a hotel, and it’s not a crèche where you can drop off your little problems. Now it’s not an army barracks, either, but I do expect a little discipline — assuming you know what the word means — and you’ll need a permit if you’re going out!’
‘But, Tata, I can’t stay cooped up in here!’
‘You go out when I go out… is that clear?’
‘Hmm.’
‘I said is that clear?’
‘Hmmmm!’
‘Now, here’s the deal. Tomorrow, I’ll take you for a check-up, we need to know what’s in that belly of yours. Then we’re going to get rid of these frills and fripperies you’re wearing and get you a wardrobe more appropriate for an expectant mother. And we need to think about the baby too, whether it’s a boy or a girl, it’s going to need a cot and some baby clothes.’
‘And a bottle, a bonnet, nappies, a rattle, some…’
‘We’ll make a list. Thirdly, and this will be the hard part, you’ll have to lead a healthy lifestyle: wholesome food, lots of exercise, lots of rest. And a little reliability.’
Over dinner, we drew up a list of baby things. The longer we sat at the table, the longer the list grew. We talked about colours. Unable to choose between pink and blue, we decided white would fit the bill. Before it’s even born, this baby is costing the earth and creating problems. But, well, you treat people according to their merits and this child had already tugged at my purse strings and my heart strings, there was no going back now. Never forget that children are the oldest and most expensive joy in the world.
Today was truly one of those auspicious days for which Algiers is famous.
What a wonderful moment, I could already see myself going gaga!
Suddenly I felt a flash of pain. An association of ideas, a call to order, a warning to be cautious? I was besieged by memories of Louiza, my foster sister, my beloved little Carrot. What morgue does she live in now?
We were no older than our dolls
We dreamed our dreams of wonders
Eternity cupped us in its hands
In a world filled with enchantment
Little noticing
Little realising
We died
Walled up alive
Such is the law
Allah be praised
And may they rot in hell
The Defenders of Truth!
I scrawled this in my splenetic notebook, one day when loneliness had the acrid taste of poison.
That night we laughed until we cried. I was liberal with the jokes, with the Turkish delight, thinking this was a good way to coax the little runaway’s secrets from her. By midnight, she was doubled up in stitches, her cheeks streaked with tears she was too tired to wipe away. Mustafa, Louis-Joseph-Youssef, Carpatus, Daoud Ben Chekroun excelled themselves — I could see them sniggering in their graves. I tore Mourad off a strip, the silly man, him and his tales of proletarian bus stations and university halls of residence. Ending with a flourish, I put Bluebeard in the dock and accused him of comical crimes of my own invention.
All that remained was to steer the conversation to get her to open up. The trick is to begin with ‘I’ve never told anyone this, but…’ to bait the hook and then pass the baton, ‘What about you, what did you do and with whom?’ It’s essential to recognise the perfect moment, to create an expansive mood, nurture the urge to talk freely — that is the real trick.
Being a well-brought-up woman of a certain age, I had little to confess beyond a small scar and a bruise that had long since healed. I was evasive, I was not about to invent trials and tribulations simply to cajole her, after all I’m not the one who’s pregnant and isolated from everyone I know. I told her about the secret boyfriend I had back when I was eight and Papa had already begun to stand guard at the school gates. An only daughter is a father’s worst nightmare.
As it turned out, I was right: the man in the photograph was indeed the culprit responsible for her swollen belly. There was a moment when I both feared and hoped that it might turn out to be that idiot Sofiane. If my horoscope decreed I was to raise a child, I thought, it might as well be my own flesh and blood.
The man’s name, she told me, was Hachemi and he was thirty-eight. In the photo, he could pass for ten years younger. It was this discrepancy that had dazzled the little ninny. ‘He’s so handsome,’ she told me, squirming in her seat, ‘he’s so intelligent, and kind, and strong…’ I cut short her litany, this man was not the good Lord, he was a swine, he was a complete and utter bastard. You can find a baker’s dozen of them in the nearest alleyway.
‘Where and how did you meet him?’
‘In Oran. I was walking along the Corniche with my new best friends, Lila and Biba…’
‘Lila and Biba, did you ever hear of such a thing!? So then what happened?’
‘He came up to us and said: I’d like to buy you girls some ice cream.’
‘So you went with him.’
‘Yeah. Afterwards, he took me for a drive in his car.’
‘Don’t tell me, I can guess what happens next. He offered to show you his etchings, or his collection of human scalps.’