The Testimony of Taliesin Jones (29 page)

'
He's
okay,'
Talie
sin says
.

'
And l
ots o
f l
ove
t
o y
ou, D
arling.'

'
Okay.'

'
Love
yo
u
.'

'Y
eah.'

'
Bye.'

'
Bye. '

'
Oh, ju
st o
ne mor
e
th
ing
:
the
ca
rriage cl
ock.
D
on't
f
orget
to
w
rap it. All ri
ght
no
w
.
B
ye.'

'By
e.'

Th
e
fi
sh
kni
ves
and f
orks a
re
exac
tly
w
here hi
s
m
other sai
d th
ey wo
uld b
e.
The
y
li
e in a v
elvet
i
nlaid b
ox.
Th
e
fo
rks
h
ave
hallm
arks a
nd
a s
hell motif at th
eir e
nds, th
e
kni
ves
h
ave
bon
e
h
andles.
Ther
e a
re
e
nough f
or s
ix pl
ace se
ttings. Sh
e
alw
ays
talked about wantin
g
four childr
en.

'Bun
g
thes
e c
urtains in th
e
ch
est
if y
ou ca
n,' hi
s
fath
er s
ays, dumpin
g
th
e ye
llow
v
elvet
o
nto th
e
fl
oor. '
What d
id
she w
ant?'

'
She
sa
id
s
he can pick up th
e
trunk
t
omorrow.
And
s
he
wanted th
ese
fish kniv
es.'
Hi
s
fath
er
t
akes
th
e
kniv
es
and
fork
s. .'
Never knew w
e
had the
se
.
W
e'll
h
ave
nothin
g
l
eft a
t thi
s
r
ate. S
he'll want th
e
tel
evision
n
ext.
Put
th
ese
in th
en
.
'
Tali
esin
folds th
e c
urtains
a
nd
s
queezes
th
em
into th
e
b
ox.

H
e
f
etches
th
e s
topped cl
ock
from th
e
mantle piec
e, st
ill unw
ound si
nce
s
he l
eft.
B
y ge
tting rid of this cl
ock
th
ey
m
ay
m
ove o
n
fro
m thi
s
limb
o s
tate, h
e
th
inks
.
H
e w
raps it in n
ewspaper a
nd
fi
nds
s
pace f
or
it betw
een
und
erwear a
nd
c
utlery
.
T
he b
ox
i
s now c
rammed
,
like a tr
easure c
hest b
ound
f
or a fa
r d
istant sea
port
,
filled with the b
ounty
o
f
a once
h
appy
m
arriage.

CHAPTER EIGHT

J
UST-DROPPED
L
EAVES
c
arpet
the p
ath to
th
e go
rge. Th
e woo
d i
s
ju
st
p
ast
gold
en,
th
e
tr
ees gr
owing
s
keletal,
s
howing th
emselves
.
T
aliesin
take
s
tw
o
strid
es
to hi
s fa
ther's
one a
nd th
eir coa
ts m
ake
noi
ses
as the
a
rms bru
sh aga
inst th
eir
b
odies
.
So
me
o
f th
e
le
aves
se
em
t
o
be h
anging
on f
or t
heir liv
es, wa
iting f
or a s
mall bree
ze
t
o e
nd it
a
ll. Th
ere
i
s a c
risp
wi
nd up n
ow a
nd
i
t
w
hispers to the l
eaves
t
o
dr
op a
nd
t
hey
say
,
'
No, n
ot
just
ye
t, let us stay h
ere g
olden for
a
f
ew
m
ore
d
ays,
th
en a
t l
east y
ou can make a
noi
se
ru
stling
thr
ough
u
s; a
fter
a
ll w
ithout
u
s y
ou are silent
;
w
e a
re
yo
ur
i
nstruments.' Th
is
w
ay
th
ey
b
argain
with their l
ives.

Taliesin's
father wants to convince his son that his latest plan can work. He has made
some connection between this
pl
an wo
rking
a
nd his wife
c
oming b
ack
b
ecause
o
f it.

'I'm
go
ing t
o s
how
y
ou
so
mething,'
h
is fa
ther s
ays.

The
cave was once a place where Taliesin played a game called Run From The Dragon.
It was an uncomplicated game th
at
i
nvolved
runn
ing
from
th
e ca
ve t
o
th
e to
p
e
nd
of
th
e
w
ood
with
out
looking
ov
er yo
ur
s
houlder.
Th
e
p
oint of
th
e
r
ace was
n't t
o c
ome first, it w
as a
ll
a
bout
ma
king
th
e o
ther
p
erson
l
ook
b
ack.
If
y
ou l
ooked
b
ack
th
en yo
u l
ost
th
e ga
me. It
as
h
ard
f
or a yo
ung bo
y w
ith
a
li
vely
im
agination
n
ot
t
o
b
elieve
th
er
e was s
omething th
ere w
hen hi
s o
lder br
other sa
id th
ere was.
F
or
Jon
athan
it
wa
s
a
lways
a si
mple
v
ictory
.
J
onathan's
literal
co
mpetitive mind k
ept
h
is gaze fixe
d
fir
mly
a
head
.
It
was ea
sy f
or
him t
o
win th
e ga
me
.
T
here w
ere
tim
es
wh
en Ta
liesin
was
conv
inced
th
at
h
e co
uld
s
mell th
e
b
east
 
a
nd f
eel
it
s
h
eat
li
cking a
t hi
s
n
eck.
Hi
s
fear
co
njured ima
ges o
f a
mag
nificent m
onster:
t
wenty
foot win
gspan, c
rimson
sca
les and
a
methyst
eyes
. J
onathan's
c
easeless co
mmentary
a
ugmented thi
s
pi
cture
.
'
It's ri
ght
b
ehind
u
s, i
t's
a
lmost
g
ot u
s
.
D
on't
l
ook
b
ehind,
wh
atever
you do, d
on't
l
ook
b
ehind.'