Antipodes 20
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(from "Captain Marvel,") "Well, I guess I got to see Kona, and you did say I shouldn't just run off," Mike said lamely and mock-ruefully from his hospital bed as Julia looked down at him pityingly. "Fred and his mob told me what happened; they saw the whole thing. My God, Mike, why were they trying to kill you? --Jesus, and after all the shit you must have gone through in Vietnam! --And it's killing me to think that I'm really responsible..." He put his hand gently over her mouth. When he took it away she added, "I can't believe that son of a bitch, Blake, as rotten as he is, would--" "No, no, they weren't trying to kill me. The knife was an act of panic on the part of that freaked-out amateur. I'm sure it was meant to be just a straightforward, garden-variety beating. And you're not responsible for anything; things like this just have a way of happening. And, the good news is your pal Blake won't be bothering anybody for a while, if I heard what I think I heard between the cops and the bartender, who apparently heard what those drunken clowns were saying around the pool table about Blake and me. --Feel any better?" "A little. --But didn't anybody try to help you? Fred said--" "Thank God Fred and his friends didn't try to help me. I had more than I could handle as it was," Mike chortled, then winced as his attempt at humor brought on a spasm of pain. "I think the bartender tried," he groaned. "That's Joe Akino, by the way. --But I'll tell you what there is to be thankful for. The doctor told me no really bad damage was done. Nothing really important got punctured (except you, course). It missed your lung by a millimeter, she said, whatever that is." Mike held up his thumb and index finger, which were almost touching. "That's a millimeter," he smiled. Julia shuddered. "Well, she says if there are no complications--I think she said if you don't have a fever or start bleeding again--I can take you home day after tomorrow, maybe even tomorrow. But you'll have to take it easy for a while. Oh, she also said you had a very interesting collection of scars. Is that the real reason why you don't like to go swimming, by the way? --because I'm sure I could stand looking at a few scars." When he smiled at her but said nothing she began looking for something in her purse. She finally came up with her car keys, which, she explained, had been returned to her at the nurses' station. "Okay. Is there anything you need in the meanwhile? Is there anybody you want notified about this, like somebody back home, wherever that is, or your insurance company or somebody?" She asked as she prepared to leave. Mike at first shook his head, No, then as an afterthought asked her to cancel his reservations, and to have the hospital administration notify the nearest VA hospital about what had happened, so he wouldn't have to pay for all this (waste not, want not, again). They'd find his VA card in his wallet. Julia agreed to do all that, and kissed him quickly but tenderly on the mouth. "Make it tomorrow," Mike looked up at her earnestly, "get me out of here tomorrow." And with a nod and the hint of a smile she turned and walked out of the room. He inhaled the aura of perfume she'd left behind, and then with a sigh, fell asleep.
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About the Book
A collection of twenty short stories, some related, some not, about people and events in two places half way around the world from each other-- Hawaii and the Mediterranean; thus the title Antipodes. These are stories of passion and pathos, love and hatred, vengeance and intrigue--in short "the human condition"--which reveal the well-traveled John Pascal's intimacy with those two places and with the men and women, and even the animals who inhabit them. John Pascal is a master at portraying irony--as in "Digger Malloy," the story of a man who unwittingly has a bizarre encounter with his estranged daughter. The conclusion to this story will astound you, for Pascal also is adept at producing the surprise ending. Another example of this ability is found in his prize-winning tale "A Fragile Vessel" where, as described in London's The European, "...at a Sicilian villa dark secrets bubble to the surface, ending an old friendship for ever." "The Maine Coon Cat and the Tiger Snake," in which a man seeks revenge from his late wife's lover, is a lesson in the emotions of love and hatred. This clever tale has an unforgettable climax, at the center of which is a gifted feline. The collection closes with "The Imposture," a tour de force which demonstrates the entire panoply of Pascal's writing talents. You won't know whether or not you believe what you have read in "The Imposture"; what you will know is that you'll want to read another twenty stories by John Pascal. ************* "John Pascal is determined to reinstate the short story to its proper place in English literature. Antipodes 20 is proof that he has every chance of doing so." "John Pascal writes about people in the tradition of Guy de Maupassant, W. Somerset Maugham, and Eric Ambler, but with a refreshing modernity."
About the Author
After serving twenty years as a U.S.
Army officer in such fields as intelligence, research and development,
psychological and political warfare, and special operations, (during a tour of
duty in Vietnam he was Senior U.S. Advisor to the then Republic of Vietnam
Armed Forces Political Warfare College) John Pascal acquired an additional
bachelor's degree and two master's degrees.
He then taught English and political science at the university level in
both Germany and Italy for ten years.
He has traveled widely in Europe and Africa as well as in South and
Central America, lived for seventeen years in Hawaii and for six years in the
Near and Far East. He began writing
full-time in 1992, and in 1993 won the élan
short story prize in London's The
European, and in 1996 won the Writer's
Digest first prize for unrhymed poetry. He has published Antipodes 10, a collection of short
stories, and The Dartist, a novel.
When he is not traveling he lives in Upstate New York, where he writes prose
and poetry.