Shirley Simpell! He deserved her! She really would make him miserable! And he’d make her miserable too! They deserved each other! There was justice in the world after all, even if it hadn’t been administered by Llona.
She chewed on it for a long time. It was almost dawn before she finally fell asleep. When she awoke, Archer was already gone. She felt better about things as she faced a new day. The only part of it that really bothered her was that she’d lost out in a competition with that bitch Shirley Simpell! That was a blow to her ego. However, later in the day, even the hurt to her ego was alleviated.
She had an appointment to see the specialist in the late afternoon. Despite the intervening visits since the day he’d told her that her case was terminal, the doctor's attitude had remained hostile to Llona. It remained that way when he admitted her to his inner office.
“Have you had any discomfort?” he asked.
“No.”
“Too bad. Maybe if you had some pain yourself, you wouldn’t find it necessary to be such a bleeding heart for all those Commies in Vietnam.”
“Let's not discuss politics, Doctor. Let’s stick to business.”
“All right then. I have bad news.”
“Bad news? That’s hard to believe. I thought you’d managed to already give me all the bad news you could muster. How can you give bad news to a woman you’ve already told is going to die soon?”
“That’s the bad news. You’re not going to die.”
“What!” Llona’s knees gave way and she sat down on the edge of the X-ray table.
“That’s right. Believe me, I hate to tell you this. People like you shouldn’t be allowed to live. But there it is.”
“But what--?”
“I made a mistake.” The doctor shrugged. “Sue me. It happens. The old X-ray switch. You’ve seen the movie a hundred times.”
“Do you mean you mixed up my X-rays with someone else’s?”
“That’s it. Crummy plotting, but there it is. Don’t look at me like that! Didn’t you ever make a mistake?”
“Not where life and death were concerned!”
“You’re not a doctor.”
“You’re not much of a plug for the AMA yourself. And neither is your attitude.” Llona was angry. All those months thinking she was doomed—the mental agony of it!
“You should be happy, not mad. Think of the poor girl whose X-rays I got mixed up with yours. She thinks she’s okay and now I have to tell her she’s only got a few weeks left. She was a lot more sorry for you than you seem to be for her.”
“She was sorry for me? Why? She doesn’t even know me.”
“She saw you coming out of my office that day I told you that you were going to die. You looked pretty upset, I guess. Anyway, she asked me about you and I told her what the prognosis was. She was really sorry for you. But then she’s a fine person. She’s dedicated to the American way. She no pinko like you!”
“What happened to her? I mean, what caused her condition?”
“She was struck by a golf ball on the ninth hole. Pity. Knocked her out. She couldn’t finish the game. And she was playing under par too.”
“Well, it is a shame that she’s going to die,” Llona said. “But I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t glad it was her and not me.”
“Just about what I’d expect from a hippie peacenik like you. At heart you’re all selfish. You don’t care that tomorrow she’ll come in here and learn she has only a few weeks to live. You don’t care about Mrs. Simpell at all!”
“Who?!!!!” Llona jumped up from the X-ray table. “What was that name?”
“Simpell. Mrs. Shirley Simpell. You wouldn’t know her. She’s not your kind. She’s a decent upstanding American!”
“Shirley Simpell!" Llona started to laugh then. She couldn’t control it. Tears flooded her eyes but she kept right on laughing.
“I know you radicals have no respect for human life, but don’t you think you’re over-reacting?” the doctor inquired.
“I’m sorry,” Llona gasped, still unable to control her laughter. “But Shirley Simpell!”
“Do you know her?"
“Uh-huh. Sort-of.” Llona went off into another uncontrollable spasm of mirth.
“You’re hysterical,” the doctor decided. “If you don’t stop that obscene laughter, I’m going to slap your face.”
But Llona couldn’t stop laughing.
“I warned you.” He slapped her hard across the face.
She slapped him hard right back and went off into another gale of laughter at the look of surprise on his face.
“Stop it!” He slapped her again.
“I can’t!” Again she slapped him back and kept laughing.
“Ouch! That hurt!” The doctor grabbed her wrists so she couldn’t hit him again. He held them in one of his hands and slapped her a third time with his other hand.
She kicked him in the shins. And she laughed louder than ever as he started hopping around the room. She was still laughing when he came up to her again, but then she did something that really surprised him.
Llona put her arms around his neck and thrust her moist mouth at his. “All this physical activity is arousing me,” she told him between laughs.
The doctor found himself kissing her. It didn't stop the laughter, but somehow he didn’t mind. Maybe it was because one of his hands had found its way to her breast. Llona didn’t protest the intimacy. For one thing, she had been aroused by the inter-action of the slapping. But more than that, Llona’s mind had been reviewing a few interesting facts behind the laughter.
She remembered that Shirley Simpell, like the doctor, had been an ardent conservative—if not far more into the right wing -- when she met her. And she recalled that Archer’s affair with Shirley had started with his determination to change her views. So the disparity in their political views had led them to bed.
Well, Llona reflected, she and the doctor had a similar disparity going for them. And sauce for the gander was sauce for the goose. It was only just that she be unfaithful to Archer in the same way that he'd been unfaithful to her.
And it would be being unfaithful to him. He wouldn’t be wanting a divorce now. Shirley Simpell was doomed to death. So Archer would remain married to Llona.
That was all right. Llona really loved him. But she wanted their marriage to be an even match. Making it with the doctor would even the score between her and Archer. Llona’s laughter subsided and she turned her complete attention toward that goal.
The doctor’s hand was inside her blouse now, fumbling with her bra. “What are you doing?” Llona teased him with wide-eyed innocence.
“Laissez-faire," The doctor was breathing hard, groping the soft breast flesh inside her brassiere now.
“I suppose you’re against socialized medicine too.” Llona shrugged her shoulder so the bra strap fell loose and his hand cupped the whole of the large, firm breast.
“Damn right!” He kissed her again, his tongue probing deep. “It would lead to anarchy in the field.”
“God! How can you be so selfish? So unaware of the needs of the society around you?” Llona slid her hands inside his shirt and trailed her fingers over his chest.
“Look who’s talking about society! You know people like you have no respect for society. Society is founded on law and order and you flaunt law and order all the time.” The doctor slid his hand under her skirt and kneaded the warm flesh of her thigh.