A General Theory of Oblivion by José Eduardo Agualusa Read Free Book Online Page B

growling, nervous, head down. Ludo grabbed him by the collar, firmly, pulling him toward her. The German shepherdresisted. He made as if to bite her. The woman smacked him on the nose with her left hand, again and again. Finally, Phantom gave in. He let himself be dragged away. She tied him up in the kitchen, shut the door, and returned to the terrace. Che Guevara was still there, watching her with light, wondering eyes. She had never seen such an intensely human look in the eyes of any man. On his right leg she could see a gash that was deep and clean, that looked like it had been made just moments earlier by a machete blow. The blood was mixing with rainwater.
    Ludo peeled a banana, which she had brought from the kitchen, and held her arm out. The monkey leaned forward, sticking out his muzzle. He shook his head, in a gesture that might have indicated pain, or distrust. The woman called sweetly to him:
    “Come on now, come on, little one. Come, I’ll look after you.”
    The animal approached, dragging his leg, crying sadly. Ludo let go of the banana and grabbed him by the neck. With her left hand she drew the knife she had at her waist and buried it in the lean flesh. Che Guevara gave a cry, broke free, the blade stuck in his belly, and with two big jumps reached the wall. He stopped there, leaning against the wall, wailing, spattering blood. The woman sat down on the floor, exhausted, and she, too, was crying. They stayed like that a long while, the two of them, looking at each other, until it started raining again. Then Ludo got up, walked over to the monkey, pulled out the knife, and slit his throat.
    In the morning, as she salted the meat, Ludo noticed that the rebel aerial was once again turned toward the south.
    That aerial, and three others.

The Days Slide By as if They Were Liquid
    The days slide by as if they were liquid. I have no more notebooks to write in. I have no more pens either. I write on the walls, with pieces of charcoal, brief lines
.
    I save on food, on water, on fire, and on adjectives
.
    I think about Orlando. I hated him, at first. Then I began to see his appeal. He could be very seductive. One man and two women under the same roof – a dangerous combination
.

Haikai
    I am oyster-sized
    kept apart here with my pearls
    •
    •
    •
    shards in the abyss

The Subtle Architecture of Chance
    The man with the brilliant smile was called Bienvenue Ambrosio Fortunato. Not many people knew him by that name. At the end of the sixties he’d composed a bolero entitled “Papy Bolingô.” The song, which was performed by François Luambo Luanzo Makiadi, the great Franco, had been an immediate hit, played day and night on the radios of Kinshasa, and the young guitar player earned himself a nickname that would accompany him for the rest of his life. A little over twenty years old, persecuted by the regime of Joseph-Désiré Mobutu, a.k.a. Mobutu Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu wa Za Banga, Papy Bolingô had sought exile in Paris. He first got work as a doorman at a nightclub, and later as a guitarist in a circus band. It was in France, where he made contact with the small Angolan community, that he rediscovered the country of his ancestors. As soon as Angola became independent, he packed his bags and set off for Luanda. He performed at weddings and other private parties frequented by Angolans who had returned from Zaire, and by true Zaireans pining for their homeland. The daily bread that was so hard to earn he managed to get through his work as a sound technician at Rádio Nacional. He was on duty on the morning of May 27 when the rebels entered the building. He then witnessed the arrival of the Cuban soldiers, who quickly put the house in order, with slaps and kicks, retaking control of the broadcast.
    As he left, very disturbed by the events he had been witnessing, he saw a military truck plowing into a car. He ran over to save the occupants. He immediately recognized one of the wounded men, a chubby guy with