The Tower is clean and sweetsmelling and dustfree by late afternoon. The seawind has blown through it, every window opened wide as could be.
"Foul fug of smoke everywhere… strange I never noticed it before now." She spent some time cleaning her smoking gear.
If I could see this yech,
a disgusting slime, dark dung of tobacco she's excavated from her pipes and nargheel.
every time I smoked, I do believe it would put me off for life… On the other hand, I don't see it,
cheerfully lighting a pipe before going down to make tea. She is laying the fire when the radiophone buzzes.
Hundred to one it's Gillayley senior. It can buzz its head off.
But the clamour is unrelenting, going on and on, so she snatches up the mike and thumbs home the speak button as though she'd like to push it through the set.
"Ah hah," says the operator brightly. "Don't tell me, I know. I just got you out of the shower."
"You did not."
"O? Is everything all right?"
"Yes. Did you just ring up to say hello?"
"No. I've got your friends on the line," all the good humour has fled the operator's voice. "One moment please,"
switch, click, switch.
"Tena koe e hoa!" bellows Joe. "C'mon down to the Duke, Kerewin! We got all kinds of celebration going on!"
Up you.
"No thanks," she says coldly.
"Huh?"
"I said, No thanks."
"Uh Kerewin, you not feeling well?"
"I'm feeling fine."
He's scratching his head. "I've upset you some way? Himi's upset you?"
"Hell, you're self-centred, bloody self-centred. What makes you think the only thing in the world that could upset me would be you or your son?"
"What's wrong?" bewilderment in his voice. "Whatever's wrong?"
"Nothing. I just don't feel like going out and grogging up tonight."
He must be in the phone booth at the Duke. She hears a door pulled shut, and the babble and clamour in the background dim.
"E Kere, that's okay," he says gently. "I'm sorry if it sounded like I expected you to drop everything and come out with me. I didn't mean it that way. You see, Piri and his missus are back together, that's why he went north eh. And Ben's just sold a stud
heifer for a few hundred more than he expected, and everyone's happy. We're having a bit of a do, and I thought you might be happy to come and join it. Piri's been asking where you are. So's Pi and Polly and the old lady, you know? And I've been wanting you here."
Well want on, man.
"Yeah, but I'm busy."
"Okay, e hoa," and sighs his breath huhhh out. "Ahh, will you be busy tomorrow? Because I've got a sort of present for you if you want it-"
Talk about baits… or is it just because I've set too many traps today?
"All right, I bite. What kind of present?"
He laughs.
"I'll give you a clue. He aha koa iti, he pounamu." His voice has grown stronger and more relaxed with each word. "You know last night?"
"What about it?"
"I didn't say anything about the painting, unwrap it or even give a thank you… but it's the best self-portrait I've ever seen, Rembrandt included."
("Ha bloody ha."
"No truly, I love it. I hung it up in the sittingroom today eh, right above the fireplace. The frame's perfect. I think I'll do the room up to match it eh?"
His high throbbing giggle.
"Yeah," she drawls.
"I mean that too…" she can hear him ripping open a packet of cigarettes, the click and hiss of his lighter. "Well, I was thinking what I could get you. Nothing nearly as good as your gift, but something special-"
"That plait you said you'll be making from Sim's hair will do fine."
"O, I made that already. I stayed up a while last night doing it. I was thinking all kinds of things while I did eh." "I'll bet," she says drily.
Hell, imagine. While I was drinking my way through a sludge of selfpity, there was the earnest Gillayley wearing his fingers down to the bone, up all night regardless of early morning work, to make me a necklet from his son's moonshimmer hair. I'll bet the bugger's lying.
"Anyway, what I was thinking doesn't matter… I bought you this present today, and I was going to give it to you tonight." Pause.
The harsh eager gasp as he sucks in more smoke, and the long soft breath out.
He aha koa iti, he pounamu… it doesn't mean that it is a gift of greenstone, but that it carries the emotional content of jade. The value, the indications of affection and respect, the mana of pounamu.
"All right, you've hooked me… I'll put away me sour mood, and crawl along to the Duke."
"E ka pai, ka pai," his delight makes his voice rise to a tenor pitch. "Look, I'll borrow Piri's truck and come right over, eh?"
"Nah, she's right. I'll ring a taxi. I haven't had much to eat today, and I better get some food aboard before drinking."
He asks with sudden consternation,
"You haven't had one of those stomach attacks, have you? Like at Moerangi?"
"Hell no. It's just been a shit of a day… I went mad and cut my hair, cleaned everything out, slaughtered mice… a sort of dreary combination of the murderous and the domestic, you know?"
Joe, giggling, says he doesn't. "But I'm glad you're all right… her, what does your hair look like? Ah not to worry. I'll see it soon… must be shearing time eh?" Snicker. "I'll chop mine too, and get in on the act. O by the way, Haimona's with the old people. We were on our way to you with this koha, and he nearly had us off the bike, shrieking and pointing and carrying on at some kids. Took about ten years off my life and three inches of rubber off the tyres as we screech to a halt. And the kids all start yelling and dancing bad as Himi, and it's Piri's mob, all of them. So we went into the farm quick and you'd never believe it but Himi and them are all over the top of one another like they're old mates from way back. And I told you how they used to fight, eh?"
"Yeah."
"Piri and Lynn are all over the top of each other too, ur, I mean they're hugging us as much as we're hugging them."
"That did sound very much like double entendre."
"Weellll," and she knows he is grinning. "They were kind of close when we barged in… anyway, that's where Himi still is. The old people are babysitting while we depraved adults go out and booze."
"Lucky Marama. Lucky Wherahiko," intense sympathy in her voice to pervert her words-
16 ounces of beer and two whiskies in ten minutes. A bit much too fast for comfort. Particularly after last night's performance. A momentary giddy swirl.
Polly is saying something.
"I said, you done your hair nice."
"Sorry, I was far away… you like it? I just hacked, but hair like mine grows quickly over catastrophes."
"Huh, you're lucky. You want to have hair like mine. "Polly tosses her head and shuffles cards faster.
My cut hair, lying in a woolly pile on the floor… wondering whether it might be better, more respectful, to bury it — but then, worms, mould, decay… so, as always I burn it, and watch, as always, dismayed to see it shrivel to a sticky mass that charred and disintegrated. A little more of me gone forever-
"Yeah, I'm lucky," she says to Polly.
Joe comes back with another tray of drinks. He whispers in her ear, "Happy you came?"
She nods. "Ah, I'm glad… I'll give it you in private?" laying his hand on her shoulder. Again she nods.
"What're you fellas whispering about?" Piri bawls it out. He is very drunk and very happy, one arm draped about his wife, hugging her tight to him every minute as though he's afraid she'll forget him.