The Testimony of Taliesin Jones (58 page)

Th
e
d
elay
i
s goo
d
.
It
s
uspends him on
ce agai
n b
etween
h
omes w
ith p
eople
h
e
d
oesn't
kn
ow
.
Lik
e
thund
er,
th
e s
now throw
s e
veryone t
ogether i
n
co
mmon
awe
,
mo
ving
c
om
pl
ete s
trangers to t
alk as
fri
end
s
.
Th
e
p
eople
in th
e ca
rriage
c
hatter
a
nd p
eer
int
o
th
e w
hiteness
a
nd
s
peculate
a
s
to its d
epth a
nd th
e
t
ime i
t
w
ill t
ake
t
o
turn to slu
sh
.
The M
an
On Th
e Te
lly will ha
ve
mu
ch to say
.
Thi
s s
now has
co
me a
s a s
uprise
a
nd
w
ill h
ave ca
ught him
o
ut
aga
in. Onl
y
d
ays ag
o T
aliesin was
l
eaving
print
s i
n th
e sa
nd
w
hile th
e s
un
wa
rmed hi
s
b
ack
.
T
oday
h
is
f
eet s
ink
i
nto
so
ft
s
now,
s
now th
at's
m
ade f
rom r
ain s
ucked from th
e sea
, th
e
s
ame sea
th
at was
hed
ove
r hi
s
fo
otprints
in th
e
s
and.

A b
eardless
m
an
w
aits a
t Pr
escelli
Station
.
H
e
is th
e
sam
e s
hape
a
nd
s
ize
as
hi
s
f
ather a
nd w
earing
th
e
sam
e s
hort coat with th
e s
plit
co
llar. H
e's
not
e
ven wearing
g
loves. Th
e
m
an co
mes t
o g
reet him and T
aliesin
sees
his fath
er's
s
mile. Hi
s
fa
ther i
s
g
lad t
o
see
him
;
h
is
hu
g
is l
ong a
nd delib
erate a
nd it
says yo
u bel
ong w
ith m
e.

'
How
a
bout thi
s wea
ther
t
hen,' h
e sa
ys
.

O
n th
e way
h
ome
h
is fa
ther
t
alks w
hile T
aliesin
r
eadjusts
t
o
n
ew
but
o
ld
s
mells,
so
unds
a
nd thin
gs.
H
is fa
ther tri
es
to
r
ace
p
ast
th
e a
wkward
ca
tching-up
moment with
s
hort qu
es
ti
on s
and qui
ck
r
eplies
that f
ail
to
c
onceal a
t
ension.

'
What h
appened
to
your hair? h
e as
ks.
'To
ni
cut it
,'
Taliesin
s
ays.
T
aliesin's
lif
e
s
pans
a
hundr
ed
h
aircutS a
nd thi
s
i
s
th
e
fir
st
to dr
aw a
n
o
pinion
fr
om
hi
s fa
ther.
'
I th
ought
he
cut ladies hair
?' '
He d
oes
unis
ex
now
.'
'H
e
d
oes,
d
oes
he?'
There is thinl
y
di
sguised
co
ntempt in th
is a
nd
a
n innuendo that Tali
esin
und
erstands.
Hi
s
f
ather
m
akes a
mends a little with his,
'
It i
sn't
too
bad a
ctually
-a bit
s
hort
a
t th
e
back,'
then he tak
es a
h
and
f
rom th
e s
teering
w
heel
a
nd
ca
resses his c1eanjaw.
'
Wh
a
t d
o yo
u think
of my trim
?'
h
e as
ks.
'
I l
iked
it
be
tter before
,'
T
aliesin says
.
'
Y
o
u
th
ink it
s
uited
m
e
th
en?' '
It
m
ade yo
u l
ook
like
o
ne
of
th
e
th
ree w
ise
me
n
.'
'
Maybe I
s
hould
ha
ve
k
ept i
t.'
H
is fa
ther
s
lows
d
own
in r
espect
f
or
th
e c
onditions.
'
I d
on't s
uppose
yo
u h
ad a w
hite
C
hristmas by th
e
s
ea?' 'It
was s
unny, ' Taliesin
sa
id.
'
You r
eally
mi
ssed
someth
ing
h
ere, '
h
is fa
ther
s
ays
.
'
Jonathan
built
a
snowman
w
ith
Ra
chael.'
It
's
h
ard
t
o i
magine
Jonathan
co
nstructing
a
m
an o
f
s
now
of
h
is ow
n
acc
ord
.
His girlfri
end
mu
st
h
ave
in
stigated
it. J
onathan
's gi
rlfriend is mo
re
int
elligent
th
an
J
onathan a
lth
ough s
he
do
esn't seem to mi
nd
th
e
diff
erence.
R
achael
h
as
a
n
op
inion
o
n
most things,
es
pecially h
erself.
T
aliesin
f
ound
h
er se
lf-confidence
irritatin
g.
H
e
p
articularly
di
sliked
th
e way
h
er eyes
l
ooked a
s thou
gh
th
ey
und
erstood yo
u
.
B
ecause
h
e is a yo
unger
b
rother
s
he
see
ms
to
thin
k
h
e
i
s a
n
easy confidan
te.
S
he's
f
ond
of
say
ing
t
hat
th
ey are
lu
cky
t
o
h
ave
p
arents w
ho
h
ave s
plit-up inst
ead
o
f
s
taying t
ogether
for
th
e sake of
it. H
er
p
arents a
re
s
till t
ogether a
nd
th
ey fig
ht
a
ll
th
e
tim
e
,
s
he
says
.
A
s t
hey
nea
r
t
he vill
age
hi
s
f
ather
m
anages
t
o as
k h
im
if h
e
h
ad a goo
d
C
hristmas.
Talie
sin
mu
st ge
t
th
e
b
alance of
hi
s
answer right
:
not so enthusiastic
that he'll incite his father to j
ealousy;
not so downbeat that his father will hav
e
cause to criticize
hi
s
mother.

'Y
eah,
it wa
s
okay.'

'
Only okay
?'

'It wa
s g
ood.'

'So
,'
sharp intake of breath, 'how is your mother?
'

'
She's all ri
ght.'
Any
sign th
at s
he might not be h
appy
will m
ake
him
happy.

'And thi
s
Toni
,
was he nice to you?'

'Y
eah.
H
e
i
s
nic
e
.
I think you would lik
e
him too
.
If you m
et
him and h
e
wasn
't
with Mum or an
ything,
I mean if he wa
s
on his own and
y
ou just met him
.'

'
Maybe. In
a
nother life I mi
ght,'
his f
ather
say
s.

Th
ey
driv
e
on through the white
g
etting to know each oth
er
a
gain. It h
as
stopped snowing and already the black of th
e
road is visible. A
s
the Land Rover turns
into th
e
drive
T
aliesin
sees
the sn
owman
that
J
onathan a
nd
his
g
irl
built
.
it
h
as a
carrot
for a nos
e,
a
b
attered
peak
cap perched on it
s
half melted head
a
nd blue gloves for h
ands.