The Ends of Our Tethers by Alasdair Gray Read Free Book Online

our lives lasted.
With great thankfulness and great
contentment, holding her hand,
I fell asleep on the floor
beside our bed.

PILLOW TALK

    W AKENING HE TURNED HIS head and saw she was still reading. After a moment he said,
    â€œAbout that e-mail you sent.”
    â€œI never sent you an e-mail,” she said, eyes still on the book.
    â€œNot before today, perhaps, but this afternoon you e-mailed me and said —”
    â€œI repeat,” she interrupted, looking hard at him, “I have never sent you or anyone else an e-mail in my life.”
    â€œBut you did send one to the office this afternoon. I remember it perfectly – the heading stating it was from you to me and everyone else in the firm. Why did you have to tell them ? You must have sent it from a friend’s computer or one in the public library.” “You’re still drunk.”
    â€œIf you mean I was drunk when we came to bed you are wrong. We had only one bottle of wine with the evening meal and I drank only one more glass of it than you. I’m glad you’re sorry you sent that message but you’ll never persuade me you didn’t.”
    â€œYou’re hallucinating. What am I supposed to have said?”
    â€œThat you want to leave me. Five words – I want to leave you – just that.” She stared at him, shut the book and said bitterly, “Oh, very clever. Cruel, but clever.” “Do you want to leave me?”
    â€œYes, but I never told you so. I’ve never told anyone that – they think ours is such a solid marriage. You must have noticed it’s a farce and this is your bloody cunning way of blaming me for something I never said and was never going to say.”
    â€œBlethers!” he cried, “I am never cunning, never cruel. I remember these words coming up very clear and distinct on the computer screen: I want to leave you .”
    â€œThen why didn’t you mention it when you came home? Why didn’t you mention it over dinner? Are you going to pretend you were brooding over it before we came to bed?” He thought hard for a while then said,“You’re right. I must have dreamed it before I woke a moment ago.”
    â€œI’m glad you’ve sobered up,” she said and resumed reading.
    Â   
    After a while he said, “But you want to leave me.”
    She sighed and said nothing.
    â€œWhen will you do it?”
    â€œI don’t suppose I’ll ever do it,” she murmured, still appearing to read, “I haven’t the courage to live alone. You’re an alcoholic bore but not violent and I’m too old to find anyone better.”
    â€œI’m glad!” he said loudly. “I don’t want you ever to leave because I love you. My life will be a misery if you leave me.”
    â€œThen you’re luckier than I am. Go back to sleep.”
    He turned away from her and tried to sleep. About half an hour later he heard her shut the book and switch off the bedside lamp. He got up and went to a room next door where he had hidden a bottle of whisky for this sort of emergency.

MORAL PHILOSOPHY EXAM

    A BIG TELEVISION COMPANY regularly broadcast a news programme informing the viewers of bad deeds: not the bad deeds of corporations who might withdraw advertising revenues, or the bad deeds of big businessmen and government officials who could afford to bring strong libel actions, but the exploitive practices of small private landlords, tradesmen and moneylenders. This did some social good and entertained viewers, who were also encouraged to help the programme by supplying it with evidence of scandalous instances.

    Â   
    So one day the broadcasters heard of a man who liked horses but had become so poor that the few he owned were badly fed and stabled. The broadcasters tried to contact the horses’ owner but he hid from them. They besieged his house with a camera crew until he emerged and was filmed fleeing from an