My Magazine Ch. 10

"Look I'd better get back to my office. It was every so nice meeting you and strolling in the sunshine with you."

"I feel the same Jenni and I'm pleased that you bothered to speak to me. You are a rare woman, just like my mum. You can talk about sex as if it's little different to reading a book after dinner. Ladies like you normally get uptight at the mere mention of the word sex."

"Ah yes but they don't know what you and I know do they Maria?"

"You're right about that Jenni. Mum and I will love to see you back on the island and no doubt dad will as well. He reckons you've got classical mons, whatever that means."

"Goodbye Maria. Must dash," said Jenni, feeling a surge of blood rushing to her cheeks.

She walked back to the office, the colour of her cheeks draining back to off-white pink.

Think about it, she thought. When Maria and women like her are at home what do they say to their husband/partner, with perhaps older children listening, when asked what they intended doing after dinner:

'I have no idea dear. Perhaps I'll watch some telly, maybe read a book or I could wander next door for some sex if it's on offer.'

'Right dear, but if you do go out take a coat, it's getting a bit chilly at nights. I'll think I'll do the dishes and go to bed. All of this sex I am getting at the office is making me so tired.'

'Is that so dear? You must look after yourself. I've got a new lot of dried figs. Eat a handful - they're supposed to be good for your stamina. Don't worry if I'm very late as I might stop over after sex and read the newspaper.'

Jenni laughed as her fantasy dialogue.

Although she had sex only occasionally, her mind was frequently on it. Perhaps her hormones were out of balance or she was eating far too much spinach or her new perfume contained an aphrodisiac.

Determined to process along this new track of thinking, she wondered if My Magazine readers would care for an in-depth article on the exciting life of a school librarian. Or alternatively, an article about technicians at those blood specimen collection centres describing the reactions of their victims at the hovering long, thick needle looking like a giant mosquito about to pierce the ...

"Oh god!" called Jenni, thrusting a hand over her mouth.

"Are you all right dear - do you think you should sit down?"

"No thanks," Jenni said to the old lady. "I should get back to thinking about sex; the jabbing of needles into flesh rather upsets me."

"Oh dear," said the old woman, scurrying away and looking nervously back over her shoulder.

Climbing the stairs to her office Jenni was still admonishing herself. Obviously she was far safer being up to her elbows in work in her office than wandering city streets in the sunshine and scaring the daylights out of little old women.

As she approached her office Rhonda motioned her finger three times towards Jenni's office. Somebody was waiting for her. Probably Timothy, with his extra-sensory perception waiting to volunteer to dash over to interview Maria on the Island of Jersey and spend the weekend with her and her girlfriends.

Oh, groaned Jenni to herself. It's this damn perfume.

Nico was sitting on her chair. In one of the visitor's chairs was a very thin, old man wearing a multi-coloured beanie, a dirty white T-shirt, a dark suit, white socks and brown boat shoes. His razor was obviously malfunctioning and judging by his right lapel he'd eaten soup recently.

"Nico it's nice to see you."

"Hello, Jenni," he replied, making no attempt to get out of her chair, "I have here Mr Kecic - a very important gentleman who immigrated from the Old Country, Franjo Kecic."

"How do you do," said Jenni, holding out her hand, which was ignored.

"Nico wants my land."

"Oh dear," said Jenni wisely, "And you don't want his money?"

Mr Kecic spoke to Nico at length in a language she could not understand.

Finally Mr Kecic stopped speaking, and looked at Jenni expectantly.

Jenni arched an eyebrow at Nico.

"He says of course he wants my money. He did not come all the way from the Old Country to invest in a fine property to give it away. He is sure you are not a stupid woman, not like most women. He's seen you on TV and because of that can trust you, because untrustworthy people do not go on TV - I didn't know that."

"That thought had never occurred to me either," Jenni said.

"You shouldn't interrupt my translation as it may cause me to lose my place," Nico frowned.

"Sorry, please proceed."

"He says would you please take him to your lawyer. If you do that the most he is prepared to pay you is one hundred dollars. I warned him about lawyer's being mainly interested in fee extraction but he told me not to be stupid as he knew that before I was born, which is something I would doubt very much."

"And?"

"And what?"

"And what else."

"How should I know? That's all he said."

"Thank you Nico, you have been most helpful," said Jenni, now feeling a little mentally exhausted.

"Tell Mr Kecic to follow me, I shall take him to my solicitor er my lawyer though we may have to wait because we don't have an appointment."

"Tell him yourself, Jenni. "He speaks very good English."

"Well, why did his talk to you in his native tongue?"

"He's a bachelor. He's shy of women,"

"Okay I can accept that. But there is a problem: my lawyer is a woman."

"He knows that but that is not a problem because he knows her concentration will be on fee extraction."

"Oh I see."

"So why did he offer me one hundred dollars to take him just two blocks to the lawyer's office?"

"Because he's a gentleman, it's the polite thing to do."

"Well Mr Kecic, thank you but I am sorry but I cannot accept your money. I will take you without charge."

Mr Kecic looked at Nico.

"Good."

"Good what Nico?"

"Mr Kecic is pleased. He knows you are honest."

"But how can you know that? He hasn't said anything?" Jenni enquired, believing this to be the strangest conversation she'd ever had, and that was saying something.

"Look at him."

Jenni looked at Mr Kecic.

He was grinning at her, several teeth missing, and bowing his head at her.

Jenni stood up and put out her hand. Mr Kecic grasped it and she helped him to his feet. He was holding a walking stick in his other hand.

Taking Mr Kecic by the arm Jenni escorted him towards the door.

"Stay there Nico until we get back. Run the office for me while I'm gone but try to not make too much money for us. I didn't realise that Mr Kecic is unsteady on his feet. I will drive him over there."

"He will insist on paying petrol and will want to know what contribution is required towards total car running costs," Nico called.

"He's a bright boy, that young Nicolo. I would have known his father but the war put paid to that."

Jenni definitely wasn't going to be led down that track.

"You are sure you really want to sell your property to Nico? He may sell it to someone else and get a lot more money for it."

"If he can he's welcome to it. I like to help out young people."

They walked past the interested staff to the stairs.

"Now mind how you step, Mr Kecic," Jenni said nervously. "The stairs are quite steep."

"Nicolo said the quickest was to get me down stairs is to kick me down."

"Oh I'm sure you must have misunderstood Nico. He would never say a terrible thing like that."

"You don't know Nicolo miss. He used to kill invaders in the Old Country with his bare hands."

"But Nico's never been to the Old Country. He's never been out of England, not even to Wales."

"Well it must have been his father, or his father's father. Does it really matter?"

"I could write a very interesting story about you Mr Kacic. But I doubt that once I had completed my interview I'd never be able to follow my notes of such contorted conversation."

"Interviews? I was interviewed once about Nicolo blowing up a bridge just as a general was crossing it in a staff car. Unfortunately it was one of our own generals."

"But it can't have been Nicolo - he's never been ..."

"He tells you that miss. But is it the truth? Was Nicolo that man, or was it his father or his father's father. Sometimes these things are not what they seem to be."

"Quite and what age were you when last in the Old Country, Mr Kacic if that's not a rude question?"

"Nineteen."

"Goodness, that's a long time ago?"

There was no answer.

"Now mind the step. It's just a short walk to my car."

"You know miss, our country has experienced much trouble over the centuries. I have seen on film many times and photographs of our countrymen fighting invaders and even their fellow countrymen of different ethnic origin. Those fighters of ours look just like Nicolo who would have looked like his father and so on. I see them in my mind, sometimes.

"But you have lived here for so long - you are a British resident."

"Perhaps we can say that. But I am Croatian by birth and nobody can deny me of that. I lived in Croatia until I was nineteen and then we had to flee and it was almost five years before my parents my older sister and I arrived here. Now my parents are gone. When I sell to Nicolo I plan to return home. I understand people with money are welcomed back there and I have a sister who also wants to return. We plan to go home together."

God all these stories leaping out of ground at me, thought Jenni, driving slowly because her passenger appeared terrified. I'll have Ella Schaefer talking to Mr Kacic before too long, but he will have to get used to her first. Nico will be able to help with that. She's got the sympathetic ear and patience to get the real story of Mr Kacic and his sister into print.

They arrived at the law office.

"Are you all right?" Jenni asked, helping Mr Kacic out of the car.

"Yes these new-fangled ways take a bit of getting used to," he said.

"I was a bit nervous you know. I don't venture out much. This was the first time I've been driven anywhere by a woman and as I said, these new things take some getting used to."

More Coming