Christos Ikonomou - Something Will Happen, You'll See

Are you crazy, Michalis? Vayios jumped in. You mean because they fucked his sister it’s fine if he fucks us next? Do us a favor and get lost, the last thing we need is you taking his side.

Yeah, Iraklis said. And how do we even know that’s how it went down? How do we know what happened? I’m telling you, the asshole’s gotten mixed up in drugs and that’s why they’re after him. It’s as clear as day. And I’m sure that little whore was into something too and that’s why they kicked her out of the house. And the mother’s just covering the whole thing up. What’s all this shit about guarding the neighborhood. Guarding my ass. Don’t try and turn some junkie into a hero.

Eventually they agreed that Michalis and Iraklis would go together to talk to Mao’s mother and see what the hell could be done. The people who initially wanted to go straight to the police agreed because someone said that if the police got involved Mao and the guys from Korydallos might all come after us and then we’d be up shit creek — this is dangerous stuff not fun and games. Better for us to take care of things ourselves without involving the cops.

So that’s what happened. Only Mao’s mother said she didn’t know where Mao was. She said she was out of her mind with worry that he might do something stupid with that gun. She said she didn’t know what kind of gun it was or where he’d gotten it. She didn’t know anything.

The others want to go to the police, Michalis said. We convinced them not to, but it wasn’t easy.

I know, the woman said. They should go. I’ll go with them. I don’t know what else to do.

Then she said she’d talked to Mao’s boss at the Lido who promised to try and track her son down. He told her to wait until afternoon. Don’t worry, he said. Leave it to me. I know how to find him.

Fine, Iraklis said when he heard that. But there’s the mute, too. You know your boy broke his windshield? What are we going to do about that? Who’s going to pay for the damage?

The woman looked at them and then collapsed into a chair and started to sob. She was shaking all over, she couldn’t breathe. Her daughter Thomai went over and hugged her and tried to wipe her mother’s eyes with the sleeve of her pajamas. Then the woman got up and opened a drawer and pulled out a fifty-euro bill.

What is that? Iraklis said. What are we supposed to do with that, woman? You can’t even buy a pair of wipers for fifty euros, much less a new windshield.

It’s all I have, she said. I’ll get more by the end of the week. This is all I have right now. I don’t have anything else.

Okay, said Michalis.

No way, man, Iraklis cut him off. You think he’s going to get off with fifty euros? He could have killed someone last night. No way.

It’s all I have, the woman repeated. Take it and leave me to my worry. Where’s my son? My Mao. Why don’t you go out looking for him? What did you do to him? Where’s my Mao?

The daughter who’d been watching silently all this time went into her room and came back out carrying her accordion.

Take this, she told Michalis. It’s German. It’s worth at least a thousand euros. Take it and leave us alone.

The mother looked at the girl and then at the men. She seemed not to understand what was happening. She was bobbing her head up and down like a broken doll. Her blouse had slipped down on one shoulder and you could see her bra strap. It was pink.

Let’s go, man, said Michalis and grabbed the other guy by the elbow. Come on, let’s go. Move it.

Iraklis reached out a hand and pressed a black button on the accordion. It made no sound at all. The girl shrank from him. Her shoulders trembled and her cheeks were bright red.

We’re not through, said Iraklis. Don’t think you’re going to get off so easy. You can tell your son I’m waiting for him. Tell him that’s what Iraklis said. I’m waiting. He won’t get off so easy, you hear? I dance a tough dance.

When they went outside they stood on the sidewalk to light cigarettes. It was windy and it took a few tries to get the cigarettes burning properly.

You noticed, right? Asked Iraklis.

What?

Her mouth, man. It stank from a thousand meters. From all those blow jobs. She reminded me of a girl I did once in Keratsini. An incredible whore. Didn’t leave a single dick limp. Just like this one here.

He turned around and looked at the house.

But the girl isn’t bad. A fresh young thing. You could eat her for dinner.

What are we going to do about the deafmute, Michalis said.

Fuck that crybaby pussy. We’ll see what we can do with that girl, though. Wouldn’t say no to a piece of her. Anyway. We’ll see. How about an ouzo at Satanas’s? My treat.

• • •

Mao’s been missing since that Saturday night. No one knows what happened to him. And his mother and sister are lying low too. Michalis went by the house once or twice but no one was home. He says maybe they went to that island where they sent the older girl, Katerina. Or maybe they’re staying somewhere else for a while until the whole thing blows over. Who knows.

Meanwhile there have been developments in the neighborhood. Last week they brought some of those big blue bins from the municipality for recycling and put one on each corner and sent around flyers and some special bags for us to collect our papers and cans. Progress. On Thursday night when we were sitting at Satanas’s the admiral came and asked if we’d heard what happened to that guy Sofronis who lives next to the school.

What happened, said Vayios. Did he die?

He’s lost it, the poor guy, said the admiral. Last night my son was coming home from work and found him trying to climb into the recycling bin. He caught him just in time. What are you doing, barba-Tasos, he says. Are you crazy? You’re trying to get into the trash? And the guy turns around and you know what he says? Let me be, Stefanos, he says. Just let me be. A man who lets his wife die like that is fit for the trash. They can pick me up and recycle me and maybe I’ll come out a better man. Just listen to that. Listen to the things that happen out there in the world. My son could barely hold him back. And then he sat on the street corner and laughed to himself like a crazy person. Things are not going well around here. I’ve said it before. Things are not going well.

I remember his wife, said Michalis. She struggled with the hospitals and doctors for a while. Cancer, right, admiral? I’m pretty sure.

The admiral ordered a half kilo of ribs and some tsipouro for the table. He started to say something about Sofronis and his wife but saw that no one was interested. No one spoke. Outside a wind had picked up and we could hear the windowpanes creaking and the wind whistling through the cracks. It was almost eleven. Satanas had turned off the TV and was standing behind the bar watching us.

Tomorrow I’m going to go see my kid at the clinic, Iraklis said. They said we should take him out for the day now that it’s the weekend. They say it’ll do him good. Keep him from going nuts. But his mother is scared and doesn’t want to come. She doesn’t want me to go either. She’s scared. So I don’t know what to do.

How old is he? Asked Vayios.

Twenty. Going on twenty-one.

Take him to a Russian. He doesn’t need a family outing. He needs a woman. That’s the only way to keep him from going nuts in the state he’s in.

As for my kid, they’re going to lay him off at the end of the month, the admiral said. He found out yesterday. But I’d already warned him. Take care, I told him. Take care not to lose your faith. Don’t do them the favor and lose your faith. You have to believe. There may be no god but you have to believe. Your belief is god. That’s what I told him. But the whole thing’s hit him pretty hard. Last night I got up out of bed and found him smoking on the balcony. I didn’t know what to do, him leaning over the railing like that. It made my blood run cold. I sat in the dark and watched and I was so scared.