The Timor Man. Kerry B Collison

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СКАЧАТЬ rested. Coleman lay on his back savouring the clove cigarette. Louise’s radio clock had turned itself on and he rested in the double bed listening to the Voice of America’s music segment. He found himself humming along with Buddy Holly’s ‘Heartbeat’ although he didn’t know the words. He was happy! And as the song continued, he hummed, “why do you skip when my baby kisses me?”

      Totally relaxed, at peace, and resisting the floating sensation merging on drowsiness he’d rarely experienced after previous sexual encounters, he smiled as he dragged on the sweet cigarette. This nothingness, this lack of ‘afterglow’ should have a word more descriptive of how he felt, he mused. His lips compressed into a thin smile as he mentally envisaged a definition for this lack-luster feeling. They smoked marijuana; his first. And now he was suffering from post-coital depression.

      He laughed. He turned his head just enough to observe her beautiful body, the soft lines of her milk white breasts and pink aureoles dominated by the tiny nipples standing lazily overlooking the lines falling away to the firm stomach and shapely thighs. He remembered the warmth of her tongue and the shuddering spasms which followed. They spent the entire weekend together, making love, sitting on the large cushions which lay carelessly thrown onto the floor over the broadloom carpet, listening to her collection of LPs and cooking for themselves while Louise’s two servants looked on in dismay.

      She played the guitar and sang, and when Stephen had tried to accompany her she threw the smaller cushions at him, pulling a childish face while mocking his poor voice. They wrestled and they showered together (Louise insisted that the two of them just couldn’t squeeze into the bath!) and Stephen taught her how to play Five-Hundred, a card game he had picked up back in his boarding school days.

      Late on Sunday evening as the unfinished bottle of Medoc stood on the floor, accompanied by two partially finished glasses of the soft red wine, Louise suddenly leaped to her feet and ran into the bathroom where she stayed until Stephen could coax her out. He knew exactly how she felt. As the weekend came to a close it was as if each would lose something extremely precious that they had shared together.

      He held her closely in his arms and whispered to her until the tension of the moment was broken, and he tried to sing the Johnny Horton ballad she loved, softly into her ear. She collapsed to the floor laughing and then he knew they would be all right. They were in love. And neither wanted to say it for fear that they would break the spell.

      Louise asked him to leave before morning. He didn’t understand but he unhappily agreed to her wishes, leaving the apartment compound where she was billeted in search of a becak to take him home. To his amazement, Achmad was standing outside beside the Holden with a broad grin on his face.

      “Selamat pagi, tuan,” he said, pulling the rear door of the sedan open for the young foreigner.

      “Ya, selamat pagi, Achmad,” Coleman responded, alerting the driver to the fact that he was not all that happy to be going home.

      Monday was hell in the office. Everybody wanted him for something or other. He phoned her office before lunch and then again late in the afternoon. He had left several messages for her before leaving for an official visit to Medan. When he returned he was disappointed to discover that there had been no reply at all.

      The second week dragged slowly and Coleman felt that had Louise really wanted to respond she would have returned his calls. He was depressed. A few more weeks passed and he decided to get on with his work and, if necessary, put the affair quickly behind him. He tried, unsuccessfully, as Louise totally dominated his thoughts. Stephen had been required to attend yet another reception. He was averaging more than five per week due to his linguistic skills and was becoming more than a little testy with the over-demand on his time. He understood the cause of his moody behaviour and was determined to put her out of his mind, once and for all.

      The evening had commenced well. He had accompanied the Ambassador’s wife to the function at her request as she despised being alone and admired the young Coleman’s knowledge of the local people. Her husband had been unable to return from Pontianak on time as the aircraft was grounded with engine trouble leaving his wife to carry on to represent them both.

      Actually, she was quite pleased. Normally she found these cocktail parties as boring as hell but never indicated to those around her that she felt so. Tonight she would not be obliged to stand behind or to the side of her vociferous husband and listen to him carry on about the Commonwealth’s interests being eroded in this hemisphere or how that man in Singapore was really a Communist, and so on.

      Stephen held her by the elbow as he escorted her up the few steps to the formal reception line. He had developed considerable social skills and, dressed in his white jacket, attracted more than one second look from the ladies, most of whom were married and led very dull lives. The reception had been under way for just a short time when he spotted her. The other guests were moving around quickly, almost in a frenzy, snapping up the hors d’ouvres before the fresh Sydney rock oysters all disappeared. It had been quite a culinary coup for the New Zealand Ambassador to have a visiting RNZAF Hercules crew bring the ice packed shellfish on their visit in time for his function.

      Peering over the heads of the crowded room he could see her standing talking to an Indonesian officer. He sauntered over to join in their conversation. As he approached, Louise’s blue eyes sparkled as they had that first night they’d met and when he heard the soft laugh he felt the fist grab at his stomach. He moved in closer to them and was about to say ‘Why the hell didn’t you answer my calls,’ when their eyes met and he instantly felt foolish.

      “Selamat malam, Bapak Seda,” was all he could muster, hoping at least his use of the language would impress her.

      “Good evening, Mr Coleman,” the general replied in English as a courtesy to the young lady. “Have you met Miss Louise?”

      “Yes, sir, I’m pleased to say,” he acknowledged adding “but I was not sure that at the time I hadn’t been dreaming.”

      The general looked at them both quizzically not understanding the connotation as the beautiful young woman flushed red with embarrassment. Louise regained her composure almost immediately and asked, “So, you are friends with General Seda?”

      Coleman looked distantly into her eyes. Why hadn’t she returned my calls he wondered? “We have met once or twice,” Seda replied before Coleman could. “Then I am sure you will have something to discuss. Please excuse me,” she said, smiling at the officer and quickly leaving to speak to another group she had spotted near the temporary bar.

      Seda took mental note of the mild social skirmish and then he too excused himself leaving Coleman feeling like some disbeliever who had just been discovered in the midst of a holy gathering.

      He headed for the bar and not finding Louise, settled down to enjoy the champagne.

      Stephen did not go unobserved as he downed the Moet, too quickly, the bubbles forming an airlock in his throat. Louise stared at him, with mixed emotions, from the far side of the room while the Timorese casually observed them both. He reached for another glass from the silver serving tray as the jongus passed by. The house servants were always careful to ensure that this man always had their attention for more often than not, his presence in a household inevitably meant that the domestic staff were in trouble as he was the man who could speak their language and they knew they should watch him carefully.

      Nathan considered the smartly dressed Australian. His dossier had been completed with additional input from Albert. He had identified some reluctance from his stepbrother when pushed for the information but eventually the data had flowed through. Nathan was surprised with his СКАЧАТЬ