The cinema of my dreams – I always wanted to see the planets – Episode 47

The four members of the high council – maybe

…

There was a man in a red suit, a man in a blue suit, a woman in a green suit and another woman in a grey suit.

Grey suit spoke first, “Are all you people from the earth as tiresome as you are Captain?”

She was either the lowest rank or the highest.

“We are an interesting bunch when you get to know us, which, despite this turn of events, I hope we do. We have a predilection for interfering in matters where we see injustices.”

“Be that as it may, I would like to remind you, that what might pass as acceptable behaviour on your planet, might not be on ours. You should be aware that in your travels, everyone you may or may not meet has their own specific rules, customs, and regulations which can and will be a lot different to yours.”

“I accept that, and in fact, in the briefing we had before leaving earth, it was impressed upon us that very premise. And I understand that we may be seen to be interfering in matters that are not our concern. But, and there’s always a but, that’s how we humans think and rationalise the many situations we often find ourselves in, we don’t like injustices.”

“Does what might appear an injustice to one, not be one to another? There is ample evidence in your history that points to those overlooking so-called injustices for the greater good?”

“That may be true in the past, but we like to think we have evolved into a better civilization. But we are not perfect, as you point out. However, this instance does not qualify as an instance for the greater good, it is simply the selfish whim of a single person. We have people who are supposed to set an example too and don’t, because they don’t believe the rules apply to them, and I would like to believe that you, too, would not tolerate this sort of behaviour in your leaders. Your people have been living on our planet for some time, I gather, so you should know that.”

Blue suit had been looking rather severely at me. “It was a mistake to let you people develop space travel capability. Our efforts to delay it haven’t been as successful as we had anticipated. You are not ready.”

That someone or something had been manipulating our progress would probably not come as a surprise to some back home. My knowledge of the steps we took to get where I was now pointed to several disasters that set the whole program back nearly twenty years, if not more.

I wonder how the Admiral would react when I told him. If I told him.

“It was inevitable, like everything we do. Unfortunately for you, we thrive on adversity.”

“You are not the only warlike race in the galaxy you know. You may want to hold off meeting them for as long as you can, but they know where you are, so there’s more than one inevitability.”

“By uttering those words, does that make you look more like the aggressors than us? The thing is, we’re out her for better or for worse, and I think you know what has transpired here is an injustice, but the ramifications are unpalatable. We have an expression; absolute power corrupts absolutely.”

Blue suit looked as though he was going to explode. “It is no use talking to these primitives.”

Grey suit glared at him. “It is your house that is not in order, and we have tolerated it for long enough.” She looked at her fellow members and received nods. Blue suit disappeared, most likely transported back to the planet.

Grey suit: “You are, using another of your sayings on earth, “treading on very thin ice.”

Green suit took up the narrative. “We believe you would not adhere to a request to turn around and go back home, so, before you alert the galaxy that you are now participants in intergalactic exploration, take heed of this warning. Not all species are friendly. Most are bound by customs and rules which are nothing like yours, and it is possible you will commit the most heinous of crimes by just acting normally.

In this instance, you may have uncovered a problem that we were not aware of, and lucky for you, is a minor transgression in accordance with our customs. We are no longer those people and will rectify the issue. The prisoner in question will be allowed to remain on your vessel to do with as you wish. If you are to continue your travels, I suggest you do so with caution.”

Grey suit again, “We acknowledge you are not going to go away. So, as the first gesture of friendship between our worlds, we would like you to return the Princess to her home world, and before you do, we will provide you with an advisor to help you navigate the protocols of her world. We will also grant two members of your crew an audience with our scribes who will give you knowledge of our worlds and people, and that of others in this galaxy. The other ship does not get this privilege and must leave immediately. If they do not, they will be destroyed. There will be no negotiation on this matter. Do you agree?”

It was probably the best we could hope for under the circumstances.

“Yes.”

Grey suit to their captain. “I’ll leave you to work on the details.”

With that, the remaining three were gone.

…

A to Z – April – 2026 – D

D is for – Delores

…

She spent the first weekend of the month dreaming about the things she was too afraid of doing every other weekend of every other month of her life until one day, something happened…

It was just another one of those dreams, of dressing up, going out to a bar, sitting at the counter sipping on a long, cool cocktail when a tall, dark, mysterious, handsome man slipped into the seat beside her…

“Doris!”

The grating sound that resembled her name came from another room, a voice that was the product of a lifetime of smoking 50 cigarettes a day, a voice belonging to her mother, the woman who was stealing the very days of her life away from her.

Doris was never going to see 30, well 35, alright then 41, again.

“What?”

She should not have yelled back, but it was the umpteenth time that day, and she was tired. Her mother’s hacking cough had kept her awake all night, and it wasn’t getting better. She refused to go into palliative care where they could look after her, preferring to burden her youngest daughter with her care. Payback, she said, for all the years she had to look after Doris.

Not the two older sisters who were married with children, who also got the same care as Doris, which basically amounted to zero. The other two couldn’t wait to get away from home, knowing what was going to happen.

“I need my pills. Where are they?”

“In the yellow bottle next to the bed.”

The old woman knew exactly where they were.

“There isn’t any cold water!”

Doris shrugged. It would be the third time she had refilled the water bottle. What was she doing with it?

She waited another minute, and then went to the refrigerator, got the jug of water, and then went into the room.

It was hot and stuffy, and the window closed. When she had last been in the room, it had been open. There was also a slight hint of cigarette smoke in the room. She had been smoking again, very much against doctors’ orders.

It meant her mother could move around and quite easily have come out. Certainly, if she could go to the window and put her head out, she would attempt to disperse the smoke outside.

Doris filled the bottle. “Next time, come out yourself. You’re quite capable of walking, and the exercise will do you good.”

“You heard the doctor. No excessive movement.”

“Doesn’t stop you from breaking the rules and smoking. You have emphysema, and smoking won’t help it.”

“I’m dying anyway. What do you care what I do?”

“More than you can obviously comprehend. Do whatever you’re going to anyway.”

She turned and walked towards the door. This battle of wills was never going to end, and she knew neither of them was going to win.

“What’s for dinner?”

She stopped and turned around. At first, she was sympathetic, but that was before she realised her mother could be very manipulative. “What do you care. You won’t eat it anyway.”

“That’s because it tastes horrible.”

“That’s because of your treatment. I’m just giving you what the doctor and dietician recommended.”

“Then I’d rather starve to death.”

Doris gave her a glare and left. There was no point arguing with her. All that would do was upset them both.

Respite came once a month when Doris was able to escape for a weekend, which inevitably ended up just staying at a small hotel not far from home, dining in the restaurant, and rising late to have breakfast in bed.

Just not having to wake to the barked sound of her name, “Doris,” reverberating through the passageways of their tiny house was reward enough.

But away from home, she could give free rein to her imagination and wondered what adventures she could get up to in just the course of one day.

This Saturday, she had arrived at the hotel, and the proprietor, Jason Prederfield, greeted her in his usual cheery manner, asked her the same question she had no doubt he asked all the guests on arrival, then gave her the key to the room.

It was the same room each week, overlooking the park and playing fields, which in summer hosted cricket matches and in winter soccer matches. Sometimes she told herself she should go over and watch, but more often, she just sat in the very comfortable old leather lounger chair near the window and read.

She was an avid reader of Mills and Boon romance novels and had brought three with her.

More than once, she had wished that her life would be like a Mills and Boon, but there was no fairy godmother, as there wasn’t a three-wish-granting genie.

If only there was.

She woke with a start, the sound of the book plopping on the ground after it slipped out of her hands, waking her.

It was just beginning to get dark, and soon night would set in. Time to dress for dinner. This time, instead of going down to the hotel dining room, she was going to treat herself at an upmarket fish restaurant not far from the hotel.

She had seen it when out on a morning walk the last few months and decided it was time for something different.

She showered, went through the rigours of applying her ‘face’ more carefully, added style and a ribbon to her hair, then brought her special occasion dress, her version of a little black dress that was less revealing than it could be but just enough to make her feel at least five years younger.

An examination of the finishing product in the mirror told her that her life was not over yet, and maybe something might just happen.

And, even if it didn’t, she had at the very least felt a spark of excitement she hadn’t for a long time.

At the bottom of the stairs, she collected her coat from the rack, and Jason helped her put it on and said that he had not seen her look better, in a tone that sent a shiver down her spine.

At the restaurant, she had made the booking in the name of Delores Sparks, using her surname but a change in the first. Doris sounded plain, the name of a woman who would never frequent this restaurant.

While being escorted to her table, she noticed there were about a dozen other diners, married or not, couples, and she could feel the eyes of the men on her.

She ordered a glass of French Champagne, Bollinger, one she had seen advertised, and perused the menu. For some odd reason, it was written in French, perhaps a mistake, but she smiled to herself.

She had taught herself French back in school and was now fluent. One of those dreams was to visit France, but she never quite found the courage to go alone.

Perhaps, after tonight…

The waitress came, stood beside her, and waited patiently. She gave her order in French and then had a quick conversation with the waitress, surprisingly able to speak the language.

It seemed to captivate some of the people around her.

A few minutes later, the maitre d’ came over. “Excuse me, madam.”

She looked up, wondering what the problem could be.

“We have a slight problem which you may be able to help us with. We are fully booked and just realised we have a regular guest whom we cannot accommodate…”

She glanced over to the front door and saw a middle-aged well-dressed man who looked on her opinion, either a banker, a lawyer, or an accountant. He was a rather good-looking man at that. Probably married, the good ones she discovered early on were always taken.

“Would it be possible to share a table? He says he is prepared to pay for your dinner. I will be happy to cover your drinks. He has been here many times, and I can vouch for his good character.”

Another glance, then back to the maitre’d.

“Of course. I accept your kind offer.”

“Very good. This will not be forgotten, Madam, when you return.”

She deliberately didn’t turn around to watch as he was escorted to the table, but as he appeared in front of her, she rose to greet him. In that moment, she felt a little weakness in her knees, a strange reaction indeed.

“I must thank you, Miss, Mrs…”

“Just call me Delores.”

“Delores, what an interesting name. My name is Jackson Courtney, Jack for short.”

They shook hands, a rather peculiar thing to do for her, perhaps not him, but the touch of hands was almost electric. She had to quell her imagination, or she might start blushing.

“Please, sit.”

They did, and the waitresses came over for his drink order.

“I’ll have what Delores is having.”

The waiter nodded and left.

Delores smiled inwardly, noticing how he pronounced her name had that edge to it that might give a little shiver.

“What brings you to this restaurant? I have to say I am somewhat surprised that you are dining alone.”

Oh, God. She hadn’t quite thought that far ahead that she would have a proper and sensible conversation, one that didn’t include her telling him she was a full-time carer for her sick mother.

Delores was far more sophisticated. She took in a deep breath and slowly exhaled. “I try to find a small hotel and a different restaurant every so often after the hustle and bustle of London.”

“There’s no Mr Delores?”

“Is there no Mrs Courtney?” Better to answer a question with a question and work on that air of mystery.

He smiled, and it made all the difference to his expression. Tanned, signs of being an outdoor type, hair lightly receding, but no greying. There was more, but that would do for now.

“Touche. We should not dance on the boundaries. Do you prefer the weather or our health as suitable topics?”

A sense of humour. “Latest movies perhaps, a book, news that doesn’t involve politics, religion or that swamp on the other side of the Atlantic.”

“You don’t like America?”

“Oh, I love the country, I just don’t like half the people. But that’s a woman’s perspective. I suspect a man’s opinion would be different.”

And she swore to herself she was not going to talk politics. “Sorry. My personal opinions are mine and best left in my head. Sometimes I speak without thinking, or perhaps it sounded better in my head.”

“You and me both. I can and have put my foot in my mouth.”

His champagne came, and they decided to focus on the menu. He didn’t speak French.

…

The conversation was at first centred around interests. She did not think that she could tell him that she preferred to sit quietly and read, so she embellished the truth, that she liked taking long walks in the countryside, weekends in towns or cities by the sea, easily accessible by train, as she didn’t drive.

There was a stutter in the flow for just a moment when he learned she did not drive, and it led to a diversion about motor cars, and it seemed he had a passion for expensive vehicles.

She did not ask what type of car he drove.

He liked long walks and seaside towns, with piers.

He liked reading thrillers, adventure, and detective novels, and oddly, he thought, gardening magazines.

It led to the discovery that he lived only a few villages across, closer to London, and he took the train to work each day, and sometimes stayed in London overnight, if he worked late.

Oops, he said apologetically, he nearly stepped over one of the invisible boundaries.

Soup was followed by fish, followed by chicken, followed by bread and butter pudding. He selected the white wine, and she selected the after-dinner port they had with coffee.

Food, wine and coffee tastes were the same.

The restaurant had emptied, and the owner was hovering. It was time to leave.

He stood and helped her with the chair, then accompanied her to the door, where he helped her with her coat. They thanked the owner and left.

Outside, he said, “I must thank you for an excellent evening. I have not enjoyed myself for such a long time.”

“And I, too.” There was a question on her mind, one she wanted to ask but did not have the courage.

“I know this is perhaps impertinent of me, but perchance do you come here very often?”

She was going to say, as many times as you would ask me to, but instead had to temper he reply, taking into account the reality of her situation. “About once a month, though not necessarily here, but not far.”

“Do you stay at quaint hotels. I rather want to believe you have that sort of whimsical nature. I find staying in those modern concrete and glass building have no soul. Creaking stairs and floorboards, strange noises in the night, muffled conversations as they pass your door.”

She smiled. “I can see why you like mystery novels. But yes, I do. I’m staying at one tonight, the Railway Hotel has been there forever. My room is like it has been preserved from the 1800s.”

“What a remarkable coincidence. I’m staying there too. Please allow me to escort you there.”

If he had been anything other than the perfect gentleman, she might have refused, but he had. And why not? Ten minutes more with him would give her enough time to imagine what it might be like…

No… It could never be possible. Once he found out about her mother, the truth of her situation, that would be the end.

It was perhaps fortuitous that he was on the second floor and she was on the third. They bade each other good night in the lift, she stepped out, the door closed, and she was taken up to her room.

Once inside, she leaned against the door and smiled.

“Delores and the retired Captain” was practically writing itself, right there, in her head.

….

365 Days of writing, 2026 – 77

Day 77 – The Gimlet eye

…

How to Cultivate a “Gimlet Eye” for Detail – Lessons from George Orwell’s Early Years

“The writer’s job is to make sense of the world, and the only way to do that is to see it with a sharp, unflinching eye.” — paraphrasing George Orwell

When Eric Blair set out to become George Orwell, he didn’t start in a fancy study with a stack of literary journals. He lived “almost down and out” in the gritty back‑streets of London and the squalid basements of Paris, penning Down and Out in Paris and London while sleeping on a bench, sharing a room with a drunkard, or scrambling for a crust of bread. It was in those cramped, chaotic corners that he forged a gimlet eye—a razor‑sharp, probing vision that could pick out the smallest tremor of truth in a bustling crowd.

If you want to write with that same forensic clarity, you don’t need to abandon your apartment and take up a night‑shift in a soup kitchen (though it wouldn’t hurt). Instead, you can adopt the habits, mind‑sets, and practical techniques that turned Orwell’s lived‑in‑hardship into literary gold. Below is a step‑by‑step guide to sharpening your observational muscles, inspired by Orwell’s early apprenticeship.

1. Live “Just Inside the Fence” of the Experience You Want to Capture

Orwell’s Approach	How to Apply It Today
Immersion – He worked as a ploughman, librarian, cook’s assistant, and bookshop clerk to feel the pulse of each world.	Pick a micro‑environment you can access: a coffee‑shop kitchen, a warehouse, a community garden, a public transit hub. Take a shift, volunteer, or shadow for a week.
Economy of Comfort – He deliberately gave up comforts to feel the pressure of scarcity.	Create constraints: Write from a coffee‑shop table for a month, limit yourself to a $10 lunch budget, or sleep on a couch for a few nights. The discomfort forces you to notice the details you’d otherwise gloss over.
First‑Person Documentation – He kept a notebook in his pocket, jotting down snippets of dialogue, smells, and sensations.	Carry a small notebook or a notes app. Capture anything that strikes you: a bus driver’s sigh, the way rain smells on pavement, the pattern of a coworker’s sarcasm. Review weekly.

Pro tip: You don’t need to stay in poverty; you just need to touch its edges. Even a single night in a low‑cost hostel can give you a fresh lens.

2. Train Your Senses, Not Just Your Brain

Orwell’s prose is vivid because he recorded what he saw, heard, smelled, tasted, and felt.

Sense	Orwell‑Inspired Exercise	Quick Daily Drill
Sight	Sketch a street corner in 5 minutes – no details left out.	Look at a city billboard for 30 seconds; write down every word, colour, and emotion it evokes.
Hearing	Record ambient sounds on your phone, then transcribe the “conversation” of the city.	Spend 2 minutes listening to a cafe. List every distinct sound and why it matters.
Smell	Write a paragraph that uses only olfactory cues to describe a place.	When you enter a room, note the first three scents you notice.
Taste	Eat a simple meal (e.g., toast) and describe it as if writing a novel.	At lunch, pick one ingredient and document how it changes through the dish.
Touch	Sit on a park bench for 10 minutes, catalog textures (bench wood, wind, your own clothing).	Close your eyes for a minute; list everything you feel on your skin.

Consistently exercising each sense forces you to notice subtleties that most writers skim over.

3. Adopt the “Reporter” Mindset

Orwell started as a journalist (the BBC’s Indian service, the Tribune). Reporting taught him to:

Ask the “Five Ws + H” of Every Scene
- Who is present? What is happening? Where exactly? When (time of day, season, historical moment)? Why does it matter? How does it unfold?
Practice: Choose a mundane event—like the line at a grocery store—and answer the five Ws + H in 150 words.
Seek Contradictions
- Orwell loved spotting the gap between what people say and what they do.
Practice: Record a conversation, then write a short paragraph highlighting any mismatch between claim and action.
Strip Away the Superfluous
- He famously edited his drafts until each sentence earned its place.
Practice: After a first draft, underline every adjective. Remove any that don’t add a concrete detail or a new nuance.

4. Make Space for “Idle” Observation

Orwell’s most striking passages often came from moments when he was waiting—on a train, in a queue, at a pub. Idle time is a fertile hunting ground for detail.

Schedule “Observation Walks”: 10‑minute walks with no destination, only the intent to notice.
Turn Commutes into Labs: Bring a small notebook onto the bus and note down one scene per ride.
Use “Micro‑Journals”: A single page per day with headings like Sound, Smell, Glimpse, Tension—you’ll be surprised how much accumulates over a month.

5. Read Like a “Reverse Engineer”

Orwell’s own reading habits helped him refine his eye.

Deconstruct a Paragraph: Pick a passage from Down and Out that dazzles you. Identify:
- The concrete detail anchors the scene.
- The sensory verbs (e.g., “clanged,” “stank”).
- The underlying social commentary is hidden beneath the description.
Write a “Shadow” Version: Take the same scene and rewrite it without any adjectives, then rewrite again, adding only sensory nouns. Compare the effect.

6. Cultivate Empathy, Not Just Observation

Orwell didn’t just see poverty; he felt its weight. Empathy is the engine that turns raw data into a compelling narrative.

Practice “Perspective Shifts”: After observing a scenario, write a short paragraph as if you were one of the participants.
Use “Emotional Mapping”: Sketch a simple chart with the observed scene on one axis and possible emotional responses on the other. Identify which feeling is most resonant and why.

When you can inhabit the inner world of the people you observe, your details acquire moral and psychological gravity—just as Orwell’s descriptions of the “tramp” or the “shop‑assistant” do.

Putting It All Together: A 30‑Day “Orwellian Bootcamp”

Day	Activity	Goal
1‑3	Choose a “micro‑environment” (café, subway, market). Spend 2‑3 hours there each day, notebook in hand.	Immersion
4‑6	Sensory drills (see/hear/smell/taste/touch) – 10 min each, using the same environment.	Sensorial acuity
7	Write a 300‑word scene using only sensory details; no dialogue or exposition.	Pure observation
8‑10	“Five Ws + H” exercise on a mundane event.	Reporter mindset
11‑13	Record a conversation; note contradictions.	Critical listening
14	Edit the 300‑word scene: cut every adjective that isn’t strictly necessary.	Precision
15‑17	Read a passage from Down and Out; deconstruct it. Write a “shadow” version.	Reverse engineering
18‑20	Empathy shift: rewrite yesterday’s scene from the viewpoint of a peripheral character.	Emotional depth
21‑23	“Idle observation” walks—no phone, notebook only for quick sketches.	Spontaneous detail
24‑26	Write a full 800‑word vignette that combines all senses and an undercurrent of social commentary.	Integration
27‑30	Peer review (or self‑review) focusing on: clarity of detail, emotional resonance, and concision. Refine.	Mastery

At the end of the month you’ll have a short piece that could sit comfortably alongside Orwell’s early work—and a set of habits that will keep your gimlet eye honed for life.

Why It Matters

In an era of endless scrolling and algorithmic echo chambers, a writer who can pierce the surface and expose the hidden mechanics of everyday life offers something rare and valuable. Orwell’s legacy endures not because he was merely a chronicler of poverty, but because he made the invisible visible—and did so with a clarity that still rattles readers today.

By intentionally placing yourself at the edge of comfort, training every sense, asking relentless questions, and injecting empathy into each observation, you’ll develop that same gimlet eye Orwell wielded. The result isn’t just a richer description; it’s a deeper connection between your words and the world they intend to illuminate.

Takeaway: Observation is a muscle. The more you flex it—through immersion, sensory drills, and empathetic storytelling—the sharper it becomes. In the words of Orwell himself, “If you want to keep a secret, you must also hide it from yourself.” Let your keen eye be the tool that uncovers the truth you didn’t even know was there.

Ready to start? Grab a pocket notebook, step outside your comfort zone, and let the streets of your own city become the laboratory for your next great story. Your gimlet eye awaits.

An excerpt from “Sunday in New York”

Now available on Amazon at: https://amzn.to/2H7ALs8

…

Williams’ Restaurant, East 65^th Street, New York, Saturday, 8:00 p.m.

We met the Blaines at Williams’, a rather upmarket restaurant that the Blaines frequently visited and had recommended.

Of course, during the taxi ride there, Alison reminded me that with my new job, we would be able to go to many more places like Williams’. It was, at worst, more emotional blackmail, because as far as Alison was concerned, we were well on our way to posh restaurants, the Trump Tower Apartments, and the trappings of the ‘executive set’.

It would be a miracle if I didn’t strangle Elaine before the night was over. It was she who had filled Alison’s head with all this stuff and nonsense.

Aside from the half-frown, half-smile, Alison was looking stunning. It had been months since she had last dressed up, and she was especially wearing the dress I’d bought her for our 5th anniversary that cost a month’s salary. On her, it was worth it, and I would have paid more if I had to. She had adored it and me, for a week or so after.

For tonight, I think I was close to getting back on that pedestal.

She had the looks and figure to draw attention, the sort movie stars get on the red carpet, and when we walked into the restaurant, I swear there were at least five seconds of silence, and many more gasps.

I even had a sudden loss of breath earlier in the evening when she came out of the dressing room. Once more, I was reminded of how lucky I was that she had agreed to marry me. Amid all those self-doubts, I couldn’t believe she had loved me when there were so many others out there who were more appealing.

Elaine was out of her seat and came over just as the Head Waiter hovered into sight. She personally escorted Alison to the table, allowing me to follow like the Queen’s consort, while she and Alison basked in the admiring glances of the other patrons.

More than once, I heard the muted question, “Who is she?”

Jimmy stood, we shook hands, and then we sat together. It was not the usual boy, girl, boy, girl seating arrangement. Jimmy and I on one side and Elaine and Alison on the other.

The battle lines were drawn.

Jimmy was looking fashionable, with a permanent blade one beard, unkempt hair, and a designer dinner suit that looked like he’d slept in it. Alison insisted I wear a tuxedo, and I looked like the proverbial penguin or just a thinner version of Alfred Hitchcock.

The bow tie had been slightly crooked, but just before we stepped out, she had straightened it. And took the moment to look deeply into my soul. It was one of those moments when words were not necessary.

Then it was gone.

I relived it briefly as I sat and she looked at me. A penetrating look that told me to ‘behave’.

When we were settled, Elaine said, in that breathless, enthusiastic manner of hers when she was excited, “So, Harry, you are finally moving up.” It was not a question, but a statement.

I was not sure what she meant by ‘finally’, but I accepted it with good grace. Sometimes, Elaine was prone to using figures of speech I didn’t understand. I guessed she was talking about the new job. “It was supposed to be a secret.”

She smiled widely. “There are no secrets between Al and me, are there, Al?”

I looked at ‘Al’ and saw a brief look of consternation.

I was not sure Alison liked the idea of being called Al. I tried it once and was admonished. But it was interesting that her ‘best friend forever’ was allowed that distinction when I was not. It was, perhaps, another indicator of how far I’d slipped in her estimation.

Perhaps, I thought, it was a necessary evil. As I understood it, the Blaines were our mentors at the Trump Tower, because they didn’t just let ‘anyone’ in. I didn’t ask if the Blaines thought we were just ‘anyone’ before I got the job offer.

And then there was that look between Alison and Elaine, quickly stolen before Alison realised I was looking at both of them. I was out of my depth, in a place I didn’t belong, with people I didn’t understand. And yet, apparently, Alison did. I must have missed the memo.

“No,” Alison said softly, stealing a glance in my direction, “No secrets between friends.”

No secrets. Her look conveyed something else entirely.

The waiter brought champagne, Krug, and poured glasses for each of us. It was not the cheap stuff, and I was glad I brought a couple of thousand dollars with me. We were going to need it.

Then, a toast.

To a new job and a new life.

“When did you decide?” Elaine was effusive at the best of times, but with the champagne, it was worse.

Alison had a strange expression on her face. It was obvious she had told Elaine it was a done deal, even before I’d made up my mind. Perhaps she’d assumed I might be ‘refreshingly honest’ in front of Elaine, but it could also mean she didn’t really care what I might say or do.

Instead of consternation, she looked happy, and I realised it would be churlish, even silly, if I made a scene. I knew what I wanted to say. I also knew that it would serve little purpose provoking Elaine or upsetting Alison. This was not the time or the place. Alison had been looking forward to coming here, and I was not going to spoil it.

Instead, I said, smiling, “When I woke up this morning and found Alison missing. If she had been there, I would not have noticed the water stain on the roof above our bed, and decided there and then how much I hated the place.” I used my reassuring smile, the one I used with the customers when all hell was breaking loose, and the forest fire was out of control. “It’s the little things. They all add up until one day …” I shrugged. “I guess that one day was today.”

I saw an incredulous look pass between Elaine and Alison, a non-verbal question; perhaps, is he for real? Or, I told you he’d come around.

I had no idea the two were so close.

“How quaint,” Elaine said, which just about summed up her feelings towards me. I think, at that moment, I lost some brownie points. It was all I could come up with at short notice.

“Yes,” I added, with a little more emphasis than I wanted. “Alison was off to get some studying in with one of her friends.”

“Weren’t the two of you off to the Hamptons, a weekend with some friends?” Jimmy piped up and immediately got the ‘shut up, you fool’ look that cut that line of conversation dead. Someone forgot to feed Jimmy his lines.

It was followed by the condescending smile from Elaine, and “I need to powder my nose. Care to join me, Al?”

A frown, then a forced smile for her new best friend. “Yes.”

I watched them leave the table and head in the direction of the restroom, looking like they were in earnest conversation. I thought ‘Al’ looked annoyed, but I could be wrong.

I had to say Jimmy looked more surprised than I did.

There was that odd moment of silence between us, Jimmy still smarting from his death stare, and for me, the Alison and Elaine show. I was quite literally gob-smacked.

I drained my champagne glass, gathering some courage and turned to him. “By the way, we were going to have a weekend away, but this legal tutorial thing came up. You know Alison is doing her law degree.”

He looked startled when he realised I had spoken. He was looking intently at a woman several tables over from us, one who’d obviously forgotten some basic garments when getting dressed. Or perhaps it was deliberate. She’d definitely had some enhancements done.

He dragged his eyes back to me. “Yes. Elaine said something or other about it. But I thought she said the tutor was out of town and it had been postponed until next week. Perhaps I got it wrong. I usually do.”

“Perhaps I’ve got it wrong.” I shrugged as the dark thoughts started swirling in my head again. “This week or next, what does it matter?”

Of course, it mattered to me, and I digested what he said with a sinking heart. It showed there was another problem between Alison and me; she might have been telling me lies. If what he said was true and I had no reason to doubt him, where was she going tomorrow morning, and had she really been with a friend studying today?

We poured some more champagne, had a drink, then he asked, “This promotion thing, what’s it worth?”

“Trouble, I suspect. Definitely more money, but less time at home.”

“Oh,” raised eyebrows. Obviously, the women had not talked about the job in front of him, or, at least, not all the details. “You sure you want to do that?”

At last, the voice of reason. “Me? No.”

“Yet you accepted the job.”

I sucked in a breath or two while I considered whether I could trust him. Even if I couldn’t, I could see my ship was sinking, so it wouldn’t matter what I told him, or what Elaine might find out from him. “Jimmy, between you and me, I haven’t as yet decided one way or another. To be honest, I won’t know until I go up to Barclay’s office and he asks me the question.”

“Barclay?”

“My boss.”

“Elaine’s doing a job for a Barclay who recently moved into the tower a block down from us. I thought I recognised the name.”

“How did Elaine get the job?”

“Oh, Alison put him onto her.”

“When?”

“A couple of months ago. Why?”

I shrugged and tried to keep a straight face, while my insides were churning up like the wake of a supertanker. I felt sick, faint, and wanted to die all at the same moment. “Perhaps she said something about it, but it didn’t connect at the time. Too busy with work, I expect. I think I seriously need to get away for a while.”

I could hardly breathe, my throat was constricted, and I knew I had to keep it together. I could see Elaine and Alison coming back, so I had to calm down. I sucked in some deep breaths and put my ‘manage a complete and utter disaster’ look on my face.

And I had to change the subject, quickly, so I said, “Jimmy, Elaine told Alison, who told me, you were something of a guru of the cause and effects of the global economic meltdown. Now, I have a couple of friends who have been expounding this theory …”

Like flicking a switch, I launched into the well-worn practice of ‘running a distraction’, like at work when we needed to keep the customer from discovering the truth. It was one of the things I was good at, taking over a conversation and pushing it in a different direction. It was salvaging a good result from an utter disaster, and if ever there was a time that it was required, it was right here, right now.

When Alison sat down and looked at me, she knew something had happened between Jimmy and me. I might have looked pale or red-faced, or angry or disappointed, but it didn’t matter. If that didn’t seal the deal for her, the fact that I took over the dining engagement did. She knew well enough that the only time I did that was when everything was about to go to hell in a handbasket. She’d seen me in action before and had been suitably astonished.

But I got into gear, kept the champagne flowing and steered the conversation, as much as one could from a seasoned professional like Elaine, and, I think, in Jimmy’s eyes, he saw the battle lines and knew who took the crown on points. Neither Elaine nor Jimmy suspected anything, and if the truth be told, I had improved my stocks with Elaine. She was at times both surprised and interested, even willing to take a back seat.

Alison, on the other hand, tried poking around the edges, and, once when Elaine and Jimmy had got up to have a cigarette outside, questioned me directly. I chose to ignore her and pretend nothing had happened, rather than tell her how much I was enjoying the evening.

She had her ‘secrets’. I had mine.

At the end of the evening, when I got up to go to the bathroom, I was physically sick from the pent-up tension and the implications of what Jimmy had told me. It took a while for me to pull myself together; so long, in fact, that Jimmy came looking for me. I told him I’d drunk too much champagne, and he seemed satisfied with that excuse. When I returned, both Alison and Elaine noticed how pale I was, but neither made any comment.

It was a sad way to end what was supposed to be a delightful evening, which, to a large degree, it was for the other three. But I had achieved what I set out to do: to play them at their own game, watching the deception once I knew there was one, as warily as a cat watches its prey.

I had also discovered Jimmy’s real calling; a professor of economics at the same University Alison was doing her law degree. It was no surprise in the end, on a night where surprises abounded, that the world could really be that small.

We parted in the early hours of the morning, a taxi whisking us back to the Lower East Side, another taking the Blaines back to the Upper West Side. But, in our case, as Alison reminded me, it would not be for much longer. She showed concern for my health and asked me what was wrong. It took all the courage I could muster to tell her it was most likely something I ate and the champagne, and that I would be fine in the morning.

She could see quite plainly it was anything other than what I told her, but she didn’t pursue it. Perhaps she just didn’t care what I was playing at.

And yet, after everything that had happened, once inside our ‘palace’, the events of the evening were discarded, like her clothing, and she again reminded me of what we had together in the early years before the problems had set in.

It left me confused and lost.

I couldn’t sleep because my mind had now gone down that irreversible path that told me I was losing her, that she had found someone else, and that our marriage was in its last death throes.

And now I knew it had something to do with Barclay.

…