Requiem by Antonio Tabucchi Read Free Book Online Page B

alleging it was false, I
     couldn’t prove to the judge that what I’d said was true and I lost the case. Were
     you found guilty?, my Father as a Young Man asked. It’s not final yet, I said, I
     appealed and the trial is still going on, but I wish I’d done it differently, I wish
     I’d punched him, that would have been honourable, radical, in the old tradition.
     Don’t be hard on yourself, son, said my Father as a Young Man, you did the best thing,
     it’s better to use the pen than brute force, it’s a more elegant way of delivering
     a punch. It’s nice of you to comfort me, Dad, I said, because I don’t feel
     satisfied with myself. That’s why I’m here in this room, said my Father as a Young
     Man, because I wanted to reassure you, to reassure us both, now that you’ve told me
     everything, I feel more at peace. I hope so, Dad, I hope you don’t come back again the
     way you have done recently, it’s frightening, it was becoming unbearable. There’s
     one thing you should know, said my Father as a Young Man, I didn’t choose to appear in
     this room, it was your will that called me here, because it was you who wanted me in your
     dream, and now I only have time to say goodbye, goodbye my son, the maid is just about to
     knock on the door, I have to leave.
    I heard the knocking on the door and opened my
     eyes, Viriata came in and said: Good afternoon, you’ve slept for exactly an hour and a
     half, I’m very punctual as you see, I hope you’ve had a good rest. She placed my
     trousers and my shirt on the edge of the bed and asked: Are you staying here tonight? No,
     Viriata, I said, I have to leave, I want to go for a walk. In this heat?, asked Viriata,
     alarmed. It’s not a long walk, I said, and I might take the tram, I’ve got the
     whole afternoon ahead of me and I want to visit a painting. Visit a painting?, said Viriata,
     what a weird idea. I never really understood what the painting meant, you see, perhaps today
     I’ll understand it better, who knows, today’s a very special day. If you
     don’t mind, then, I’ll come with you to the tram stop, said Viriata, I’d
     like to go for a walk too. With the greatest of pleasure, Viriata, I said, but first hand me
     the wallet that’s in my trouser pocket. Viriata understood at once, raised her hands and
     exclaimed: Certainly not, I don’t want a tip, you’ve been very kind to me and
     kindness is the best gift you can give to someone you don’t know.
     
V
    YOUR
     PINEAPPLE
SUMOL
, the Barman at the Museum of Ancient Art said in a bored
     voice, placing the glass on my table. The garden’s lovely, I said, just to say
     something, it’s beautifully cool even on a hot day like today, it was a good idea to
     open a café here, the museum really needed one, in my day there wasn’t anything.
     Right, the Barman said in the same bored tone, we serve alcoholic drinks and everything, but
     unfortunately the customers drink nothing but
Sumol
and lemonade. I need a
Sumol
to help my digestion, I said, I had a rather heavy lunch today, it still
     hasn’t gone down. Alcohol’s the best thing for that, said the Barman, it’s
     alcohol that aids digestion, you’re a foreigner you should know that. Why should a
     foreigner know about that?, I asked. Because abroad they know everything, he said implacably,
     the problem in this country is that people don’t know anything, they’re ignorant,
     they don’t travel enough. Would you like to sit down?, I asked, offering him a chair.
     The Barman at the Museum of Ancient Art looked around. All right, he said, seeing as no
     one’s here I can rest my legs a bit, I’ve been on my feet since this morning. He
     sat down, crossed his legs and took out a cigarette. And what about you, have you travelled a
     lot?, I asked him, picking up the conversation again. I lived in France, he replied, I worked
     there for a long time, I lived really well in Paris, but last year I decided to come back and
     now