Rafael Yglesias - The Work Is Innocent

Richard wasn’t frightened in Sears, despite the nervously breezy manner that Mark and Leo affected. He thought, They’re obviously not going to rob it, so there’s nothing to fear. They think it’s illegal to buy guns—confusing motive with action. He trailed behind them and enjoyed looking at the gun section. It was commingled with the games section: Ping-pong, pool, tennis, baseball, football, and basketball equipment reminded him of his childhood when he often came to the sporting goods department to strengthen his resolve to blackmail his parents into buying him a new glove. But Richard was included in Leo’s and Mark’s paranoia enough to be anxious when a salesman approached them while Leo handled a rifle.

Richard felt he should stay away from them while they were being waited on, since his nervousness would make him appear suspicious. He noticed that after a brief moment of awkwardness the salesman showed them various rifles with great enthusiasm. His brother was amusingly ignorant of guns—he deduced from the slight smiles that Leo’s questions were greeted with—but of course the salesman took Leo for a city boy interested in hunting. Leo bought a rifle and a Puma knife, and Mark showed Richard some knives that looked as if they had rubber tips but were in fact throwing knives.

“You mean like out of a Western?” Richard asked him.

Mark nodded at him excitedly. “It’s heavy.”

After his purchase, Leo strode through the store carrying the rifle in its pouch and a few boxes of bullets in his other hand. Richard was both nervous and pleased by this dangerous flair of Leo’s, but nobody even turned his head in the store. Out in the parking lot, Leo and Mark held a conference over the best way the gun could be concealed in his duffel bag. When they had placed clothes and books so that there was no bulge, Leo grabbed Richard by the elbow and squeezed. “You understand, of course, that Mother mustn’t know anything about this?”

“I hardly know anything about this.”

“I mean she mustn’t know that I’ve bought a gun.”

“What about Dad?”

This was apparently a close question because Leo made a face. “Let’s get in the car,” he said.

Leo’s face continued its calculations and he didn’t answer Richard until they were out on the open highway, with the wind blowing hair over Richard’s face. Leo spoke loudly to top the wind’s noise. “You see I have to register this with the town. The guy at the store registered it but a similar thing has to be done with the local town. Do you know who’s the person who handles that?”

“I can’t be sure but probably Mr. Snow. He’s the tax man.”

“I don’t think it would be him, man.”

He always contradicts me. “He’s the guy who we register the car with and pay taxes on the house. That’s his job. Town clerk.”

“Well anyway, I’ll need Aaron for that. ’Cause I said I was a resident and I’ll need Aaron to prove it.”

“Why didn’t you say you were a resident of New York?”

Leo was contemptuous of that remark. He shook his head. “No, man. That would fuck everything up.”

“Well, I can’t advise ya unless I know what you’re tryin’ to do. I mean you don’t have to tell me, but—”

“Yeah, yeah, that’s right.” He shifted so that he faced Richard. Leo lowered his voice. “See, it’s not legal to have a rifle in New York.”

“Are you sure?”

“I don’t think that’s true, Leo,” Mark said.

“It is, man. I’ve checked it out. Anyway, I don’t want them to know. If it’s registered here they’ll never get it together to find out.”

“If you use it they will.” Richard was horrified.

“I don’t mean if I use it.” Leo laughed.

“That’s heavy,” Mark said, laughing with him.

Leo reached out and grabbed Richard’s knee. He lowered his voice and spoke out of the side of his mouth, whispering, “See, man, the pigs have been busting in lately and icing people. And then they justify it because there were guns inside.”

“Oh, I get it. Okay.” He smiled at Leo. “That’s cool. I thought you thought you could use the gun and they wouldn’t be able to trace it.”

“I’ll be underground when I use it.” Leo said it casually, as if it were merely an obvious practical solution to an awkward problem. He’s going underground? He might. Richard needed the correction. He was scared by Leo’s seriousness, but with a sibling’s inability to imagine a brother acting with independence and energy, he decided it was a bluff.

Their parents came out to greet them when they reached home. “So,” Aaron said, and nodded wisely at them, “went out exploring, eh? Isn’t it good, Betty, to have these strapping young fellows about—”

Betty’s eyes narrowed with amusement. “Strapping!”

“—getting up first thing—”

“And leaving the dishes.” Betty went off into peals of laughter and said, “Don’t be silly,” when Richard, abashed, apologized for his neglect.

“What are you forgiving them for, Betty? Pretty sexist behavior if you ask me.”

“Look who’s talking,” she said to her husband, and Leo joined in, pointing his finger at Aaron and saying, “She fixed your wagon.”

Aaron grabbed Louise, who was uninvolved and looked worried, and hugged her to his side. “Isn’t it terrible how they treat their father?” He looked at Mark. “Oh, the poor fellow. Here I am behaving like a doting old man—”

“And you don’t know what to do with yourself, right?” Betty said to Mark. She was gleeful and reminded Richard of Nana. “Let’s go in the house.”

Louise demurred. She had to read. Richard was disappointed that she didn’t join in on one of his favorites: a family lunch. But it was dismaying after all. Leo kept Aaron and Betty busy describing good places to see, and Richard was bored by it. Leo hardly listened to their answers until he abruptly asked Aaron if he could speak to him. Aaron was surprised. He looked a little amused by it, but Betty glanced at Leo with a wide-eyed look that Richard understood to be serious worry.

Betty started a conversation with Mark that Richard couldn’t listen to. He spotted Aaron and Leo on the lawn. His father’s expression had taken on the grave demeanor that accompanied any treatment of equality. Richard was surprised he hadn’t just laughed at Leo and returned to announce, “My dear, our son, who has been unable to make a dental appointment for six years, wants to go underground.” Richard looked at Betty, somehow convinced that she must have guessed what was going on, and found her saying, “Well, you can’t bring up Yevtushenko in that sense. You realize that he’s practically a CIA agent.” She tilted her head as she always had when softening the blow of revealing someone’s ignorance. Richard saw Aaron go off toward the car and Leo return to the house.

Betty heard the car start and said to Leo as he was coming in, “Where’s he going?”

Leo paused for a moment. “You really think everything around here is your business, don’t you?” He walked over to her and pretended roughness. He put his hands on both sides of her head and kissed her resoundingly on the forehead.

“My God,” she said when free, “I think you’ve scrambled my brains.”

“You’ve completely destroyed any chance of serious conversation.” Richard was pleased to have said this and it did seem to right matters.

“That’s right,” Betty said. “I was trying to straighten out Mark about literature and politics.”

“Oh, God,” Leo said. “Not that discussion.”

“Isn’t it awful,” Betty said. She laughed. “I’ve been having this discussion for thirty years.” She brushed the table thoughtfully. “But don’t you realize that we learned how wrong it was to adopt that attitude in the Communist Party. I remember how foolish they were about Mike Gold. They broke his heart.”