The Altonevers (38 page)

“
You’re welcome to stay as
long as you like. We have all the banks you'll ever need, the world
is your oyster Cider, but you know that already. Oh I’m repeating
myself, I’ve said all this last night.”

“
Thanks Viv, it's nice to
see you and your bountiful, unmatched beauty,” he says.

“
Being fresh Apples? you
know where flattery will get you,” Vivian laughs with her hand over
her mouth. A habit that humanizes her to Anna, who’s thinking of
how gorgeous she is, rivaled only by Daisy, who she thinks of as
sexuality embodied, and Vivian as essence of elegant power ruling
as a platinum blonde Cleopatra.

“
I seen her,” he says
solemnly.

“
Who have you seen? I’m
just dying to know,” Vivian asks.

“
Rebecca.”

“
Oh, that girl is something
isn’t she. I did the best I could, but, work, work, work, you know.
Anyway how is she? is she doing well?” Vivian asks.

“
She is. She’s as ruthless
and seductive as ever,” he says eyeing his fingernails as
subterfuge.

“
That's good to hear at
least,” the Baroness says relieved.

“
She made captain. Alister
seems to have a liking for her and her ravenous rages. Though most
everyone else reviles her,” he says.

“
I hope she's careful. That
man’s strings can quickly become a noose,” Vivian says.

“
Or a parachute. He’s not
so bad, and he really does like her, even sent her after
me.”

“
Cider, He's a death
incarnate,” Vivian says.

“
Eh,” he shrugs, “one of
many.”

“
That pale skank with the
hole in her....,” Anna says trailing off in realizing where she
knows that lake from, even noticing the ghostly diffraction of a
white rowboat bedded at its bottom ebbing at its
surface.

“
Anna!” Vivian says
playfully smacking her on the arm, “Skank? that's my
daughter,”

“
Yeah Carrots. That's her
daughter,” Cider laughs, as Anna spews milk from her nose to the
table.

“
She was coming onto you,”
she grumbles.

“
Of course she was, she's
in utter love with him. But you Cider! how could you let
her.”

“
I didn't,” he
says.

“
You’re the boy she fell in
love with from her story,” Anna says in shock.

“
Yes, but I’m not a boy,
and she was just a girl then,” he says.

“
And I asked him not to,”
Vivian sighs, “maybe I was too stern on her, but what can you do
about those sorts of things.”

“
Oh I see,” Anna says “but
you don't look anything alike,” she says as though
asking.

“
It's in the legs and the
eyes,” he says.

“
Actually come to think of
it, yea I see it, but why is she so pale, with black hair and
eyes?” Anna asks.

“
I was seduced by a mime, a
long, long time ago. It’s probably where she gets her ravenous
temper. Ha! that reminds me of my age,” Vivian says.

“
Eh,” she sighs.

“
Happens to the best of
us,” Vivian adds, finishing off a glass of vodka with a smile, then
lighting a cigarette on the end of the longest filter Anna's ever
seen.

“
You don't look a day over
twenty five,” she says.

“
Thank you Anna, sometimes
a lady just needs to hear a thing like that,” Vivian smiles a
bright smile.

“
What happened to
flattery?” he asks.

“
Oh be quiet, you,” Vivian
says, swatting at him.
“A wonderful day
isn't it. The birds are chirping, the cameras crews are running on
almost every corner,” Vivian says as a group of hummingbird’s break
from the branches behind her head and flutter through the air. Then
an eagle swoops down and snatches one of the flock out of a life of
living. An out of control helicopter spins through the sky with a
muscular man hanging onto its nose, slamming on the windshield with
his fists.

“
Idiots! can't they keep it
to the sets. The whole city is a set and they can't even keep to
that!” Vivian shouts, “anyway I've been seeing both your faces all
over the daily pages and InterAltonews for months now. What brings
you two love birds around here?”

“
Just walking the girl
home,” Cider says.

“
What a gentleman,” says
Vivian.

“
I could be,” he
says.

“
Yeah, could be,” Anna
says, bringing Vivian to laughter.

“
Well, you’re welcome to
stay as long as you like, and you too Anna or Carrots? Anna I’d
say, It's more lady like. Besides Daisy has taken a liking to you.
She's already calling you her sister,” Vivian says.

“
Is she dangerous?” she
asks.

“
No no, dear, well yes,
extremely so. She's effectually insane, but not a drop of danger to
you. You have nothing to worry about here, a friend, lover or
whatever of this fool is a friend to her, to me and all of the
Vaudevs alike,” Vivian says with affection.

“
Thank you, your very
hospitable, and you have a very nice property,” Anna says as shy as
a house guest, still a bit intimidated by her.

“
Besides it'll be good to
have a hand,” Vivian says looking to Cider “The tonal tides are
rising. My rivals are regrouping, I can feel it. There's been more
challenges to my reign and even patches of dimming color popping up
in some of the more, rambunctious places.”

“
There's always some,”
Cider says.

“
This is a bit different. I
suppose more steady, more personal in the places their choosing to
hit. All of which are places of my past,” Vivian says.

“
Happy to help, pull my own
weight and that,” he says.

“
That a boy. Remember the
world is your apple to eat. Just do what you do best, and as much
of it as you can. We gotta keep em on their toes before they're
comfortable enough to stand,” the Baroness says.

“
Can do,” he says with a
glow in his eyes. Free reign over the criminal enterprise in
control of an entire Alto. Thinking of why he ever left the first
time, then glancing over to the smooth water surface of the
lake.

“
I'm sure you'll have a
ball out there with Daisy and the boys, like last time. Due stay a
bit longer though this time around will you,” Vivian
says.

“
We'll it's up to her. Out
of my hands you know,” he says.

“
Yours in hers? I've never
known you to be monotonous. It's absolutely adorable, as is she.
Now If you'll excuse me, I've got a day full of appointments. Make
yourselves at home, though you especially Anna,” the Baroness says
kissing the both of them on both cheeks before excusing herself
with a wave and leaving the table losing its glow, and dimmer by
the second as she strolls away. Stopping and shouting back to them
from the open doorway “Sometimes it's the nicest thing just to have
some one’s hand to hold” then disappearing into the ivy cover walls
of her gilded age mansion. The helicopter returns to view, swaying
until a rocket trails through the air, blowing the metal bird into
falling flaming wreckage.

It's been months of near bliss for the
both of them. Cider taking daily delight in sweeping through the
fading territories with Daisy, knocking over every place with a
door. Holding up whole theatre's while in shootouts with scores of
rival theatre troupes, and the armed zealots of the other syndicate
studios. Number banks and brothels are overrun with bullets and
blood splashing onto polished brass to shine like gold. Sufficing
his lust for the heist and mayhem is as easy in this Alto as eating
a dinner with friends. Happy to come home, when he does, to sleep
like a baby on Anna's silk pillow.

Anna's enjoying the days of endless
summer sun. The architecture of art deco and new wave styled
baroque ornaments and inlays in most of the places she’s been so
far. Taking pleasure in looking for new colors, which are easy to
find and gulping them down with her eager eyes. Strolling through
the Sets, where everywhere in the city you are is a movie set. One
day catching a deli clerk breaking character when she ordered a
buttered roll, he looked away as though looking off camera for a
cue, and saying, “Line,” lowly.

“
A buttered roll,” a
muffled voice replied from out of view.

Then strolling through
eighties style action movies are unfolding all around her, and
diners chock full of film noir charm. Everywhere she goes, in every
cafe is a love scene or brokenhearted one. Spies and private
investigators are creeping around and tailing people they deem as
corrupt or communists. It's all in the script she was told when she
asked Daisy about it.
People living real
lives with the thought that they’re actors playing their own lives
as roles. Even in emotional expression of lovers on night lit
bridges or in the throes of making love or giving birth, to each
person here it's only their portrayal of them as themselves. She
watches awestruck at first, but this sentiment fades when she
starts to wonder if she herself is in some way acting through her
life. Then from a learning that a smog that hovers above the
spectrum city just after daybreak and before nightfall is from the
broken souls of the almost stars, and neverweres who even in death
cling to the unfulfilled fantasies of their own life roles. Despite
this Anna’s happy, finally finding a place where the two can relax
enough to feel at home.

A day with
Daisy

Knock! knock! knock! loudly shakes the
solid wood door of Anna's bedroom.

“
Carrots, Carrrotts! come
on, wake up. I know you’re in there,” Daisy yells from the hall.
It's seven in the morning, a time when Anna isn’t awake unless it
was from the night before. She’s awoken, with her head squeezed
between her pillows, ignoring her bubbly friend like she were an
alarm clock.

“
Carrrotts!”

“
Noooo,” she groans and
Daisy hears her from the other side.

“
I'm coming in and I don't
care if you’re dressed or not,” Daisy says, already in the room and
standing over the half slumbering Anna, who's stubbornly refusing
to even open her eyes.

“
Get up we have things to
do.”

“
Noooo,” Daisy hears
muffled from under the pile of pillows Anna's squeezing to her
ears.

“
Yes,” the starlet
demands.

“
What time is it?” she
moans.

“
I think it's around
seven,” Daisy says, already wired awake, and ready to meet the new
day maniacally grinning a wide eyed smile with sunglasses sitting
like a tiara on her very blonde head.

“
What? seven? in the
morning. Go away.”

“
Were you always like this,
or are his habits rubbing off on you? wait don’t answer that,”
Daisy chuckles then strips the blanket from the bed like a waiter
clears a table. Leaving Anna in her pajamas curling up and clinging
to her pillow, then sitting up bleary eyed and hurling the feather
bag at an evasive Daisy.

“
I’m up. What're we doing
today, kidnapping a princess?” Anna asks.

“
Hahaha, maybe. I mean if
you want,” Daisy says. Anna wakes up to a sight most men would die
for, Daisy looking right back at her, rubbing her honey brown eyes
as subterfuge for a second longer of slumbers comfort. Miming a
yawn and really dragging it out, stalling to not have to get out of
bed.

“
Come on. Stop dragging
your feet Carrots. Get up.”

“
I'm up.”

“
I mean off the
bed.”

“
I need to wash up,” she
says, and stands at the sound of Daisy turning on the shower, and
throws another drool filled pillow through the bathroom
door.

“
Hurry up, don't waste
water.”

“
Blah, blah blah blah,
blah,” Anna sings into a melody.

“
I'll be in the
car.”

“
Brle gky,” she answers
through the water and closed door.
The two
chic's are stalking through the congested parkways in Daisy's sleek
powder blue Saoutchik like a tiger moves through the woods. Already
trading paint when sideswiping two cars and plowing through busy
intersections. Daisy is a notoriously terrible driver, not terrible
but ambivalent to anyone else being on the road at all. It's not
entirely her fault though, her beauty stops traffic so often she
crashes when traffic doesn’t stop around her. Anna braces for her
life as she tosses around the passenger seat when the car harshly
swerves and turns, and violently drifts around corners. Daisy
drives much like she lives, quickly and recklessly, almost never
letting off the gas.

“
So where we going anyway?”
Anna asks.

“
To the movies
Carrots.”

“
This early?”

“
It's never too early to
see a moving picture, a dream on the screen. Besides we have to
make a stop or two.”