Lynda Plante - Entwined

Helen suggested they get out and walk. Louis agreed, but the driver argued, since he could not turn back. Louis gave him a generous tip, and the well-dressed couple began to hurry alongside the cars.

The rain started, lightly at first, but after a while it began to come down steadily, so now umbrellas added to the crush. Torsen could see Luis Grimaldi coming toward him, and he lowered his window. Luis was soaked, his hair wringing wet, and he was out of breath as he called out:

"Inspector! Inspector!"

Torsen smiled, and turned to Freda. "This is my friend Freda, I think you know Sergeant Rieckert."

Rieckert leaned forward to shake Grimaldi's hand. "I keep telling him to put his siren on, just to get us through the crowds. Will they start on time?"

Grimaldi looked puzzled, but then Torsen waved his tickets. "We have complimentary seats, Mr. Grimaldi, front row. Will everyone get in, do you think?"

"Yes, yes. There are always enough seats or, if not, there's standing room. The show may be held ten, fifteen minutes — it's not usual. So... you are just here for the performance?"

Torsen nodded, slammed his foot on the brake as they almost ran into the back of the vehicle in front. "I am looking forward to seeing your wife's act."

Grimaldi walked away, relieved, and hurried back to the trailer. He churned over how narrowly he had avoided making a fatal mistake: The inspector wasn't coming for Ruda, he was there for the show. He gave a mirthless laugh. As he scraped the mud from his boots, he remembered again Torsen's query regarding Ruda's old boots. He sighed. Best, he told himself, just to ignore it.

Luis banged on the door and let himself in.

The women turned toward him. Ruda smiled. "This is my..."

"Sister," said Rebecca.

Ruda's cheeks were flushed, her eyes brilliant. Her mouth was tremulous, quivering.

They spoke as one: "We are sisters."

Luis found the way they moved together and spoke in the same high-pitched singsong voice disconcerting.

"We are twins."

"Twins," repeated Rebecca. They both lifted their right hand, touched each other's cheek, and laughed.

Luis looked from one to the other. "But — you're not identical."

They sat down at the same time. Crossed their left leg over the right. Ruda leaned forward, Rebecca leaned forward. "We were, but Rebecca..."

"I had my nose done."

Luis poured himself a brandy. When he offered them a drink, they shook their heads and said "No," in unison. For a moment he wondered if they were playing some kind of game.

"Just remember, Ruda, you've got a show to do!"

They talked together, heads very close. They made soft shushing sounds and words he could not make out. Then they both looked toward him.

"Rebecca wants to see..."

"The show."

Their eyes were identical in color. So were their lips, their cheeks.

Luis felt uneasy. "I see the likeness now. I see it."

They nodded, smiling as if very pleased.

Luis looked to Rebecca: "How did you find Ruda?"

Ruda answered. "She went to the church in the city."

"The lights..."

"Yes."

There followed a conversation that Luis could not make heads or tails of. He heard them say the name "Magda," then watched as they both put their hands over their faces and laughed.

Luis leaned forward. "Ruda, keep an eye on the time." She ignored him. Luis got up and looked out of the window. "The lines are thinning out."

Their eyes seemed to follow him around the trailer. He sat down again, then half rose. "Do you want to be alone?"

He saw the way they pressed closer and he sighed, looking at Rebecca.

"Ruda must get ready."

They stared back, with their identical wide eyes. He sipped his brandy. "Where are you from? I mean, do you live in Berlin?"

Ruda answered that Rebecca was staying in a hotel. "Her husband is called..."

They both said "Louis!" and then giggled, bending their heads.

They were beginning to irritate Luis. He drained his glass. "I'll go and check on the boys."

As he opened the door, he asked, almost as an afterthought: "Do you work in a circus, Rebecca?"

"No," said Ruda. "Mother," they both said.

"I'm sorry?" Luis didn't understand.

Ruda said her sister was a mother. Rebecca nodded, and shrugged her shoulders. "I am just a mother."

Luis had his hand on the door handle. He wanted to leave them, and yet there were so many questions he wanted to ask. "Does she know where your parents are? I mean, if they're alive?"

They both looked to him, turned to each other, then back to him.

"For God's sake, stop this! You're acting crazy, Ruda. I mean, can't she speak for herself?"

"Yes," they both said, and Luis yanked the door open.

Then Ruda answered solo.

"She was adopted after the war," said Ruda firmly.

"After the..." Rebecca's voice trailed off.

Luis sighed. It was too much for him. "Well, I'm glad you've found each other." He didn't mean it to sound so hollow, so lacking in warmth, as if they had been apart for only a few hours — not a lifetime. He forced a smile. "You have a whole life to catch up on, I'll leave you alone, but don't forget you have a big show to do, Ruda."

They stood up, hands still held tightly. "Nothing will ever separate us again." Then they turned and held each other.

Luis closed the trailer door behind him. A feeling of dread enveloped him. He knew he should have stayed, made sure Ruda got herself ready.

The rain was pouring down now and Luis had no raincoat. He muttered to himself. It was stupid, all he had to do was turn around, walk back, and get one. But he didn't want to see them again, not just now. He looked at his watch. Then he looked over toward the main tent. A few stragglers stood at the box office now, and the last cars were being directed toward the private parking lot, the attendant in his bright yellow cape making authoritative, sweeping gestures.

Luis passed by the lighted window of his trailer. He peered into it, but the blinds were down. He could see nothing. The laser beams continued to spell out the acts, and he looked up. Suddenly the sky blazed with the words: Ruda Kellerman.

Luis prayed that the reunion would not overwhelm Ruda. He knew just how essential it was for her to have her wits about her. He plodded through the sodden ground and made up his mind that, just in case, he would bring a loaded rifle to the ring tonight. Suddenly he stopped, oblivious to the rain.

"I love her." He said it out loud, to no one.

The realization of how little he really knew about Ruda and of her past shamed him. "I love her," he repeated to the air.

Of course he did. Hadn't he been prepared to tell the inspector that he had killed Kellerman? He could have been in cuffs by now. It was sad that after all the years they had been together, it was only now that he realized just how much he loved her. He shook his head, smiling to himself, and then chuckled.

They would be on the move soon, out of the country. He had time to make up for the bad years. Luis wondered if Rebecca would be coming with them.

"I love my wife," he repeated. Anyone who had witnessed his slow progress from the trailer would have concluded he was drunk, talking away to himself in the rain, without so much as a coat on.

The ground was slippery; Louis held Helen's elbow tightly to ensure that she did not fall. They stepped onto duckboards leading to the administration offices.

At first the secretary thought the baron was trying to get invited to the small champagne party the owners had organized. She asked them to wait while she tried to reach one of the managers.

The baron gave her a winning smile and said that he did not wish to disturb anyone, that he didn't want tickets for the show, but that he wished to speak to Ruda Kellerman.