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PARTISAN REVIEW
closer, realize their common bond in the losses they suffered on the same
spot. They will begin to trust each other, and he will invite her for a drink
or even (because he might well be Aca) suggest they take a load off their
feet by going up to see Blam, Miroslav Blam, an old school friend, a friend
also of my brother Slobodan, who died a tragic death in the war, Blam
always comes to hear my band, my new pieces, he's the one I told about
the accident two months ago, the accident that cost my father his leg and
me my freedom, he lives right here and he has a wonderful wife, don't
worry, I'll introduce you, he's very understanding, and a lawyer, well, kind
of, and maybe he can give you some advice about getting your husband off,
it's right here, right in the Mercury....
A far-off ring, a knock on the door. Aca with his sagging cheeks, sag–
ging nose, apologetically sagging shoulders, and listless expression suddenly
looks amazingly like his dead brother. He pushes the pretty stranger in and
introduces her with a quick smile.
"Is Miroslav in?" he asks, winking as if referring to a secret agreement.
"He's around here somewhere," Janja answers, giving him a curious
look. "Gone for a walk. .. .I'll call him."
"No, no. Don't bother. We'll find him. Just point us in the general
direction. We need some legal advice. You see, the lady's husband...."
Now they are out again, squeezed together in the passage, because Aca
wants to let her go first but also needs to show her the way, and she is
rather heavy and afraid the wind will mess up her hair or lift her skirt.
The wind slams a door shut somewhere. Otherwise nothing happens.
The two of them are still downstairs in front of the building; up here there
is no one but Blam. His fellow tenants avoid the walkway. It is hot in sum–
mer and windy at all times. Should they feel the need for fresh air, they go
out on the courtyard terrace, where they can drowse, shaded and sheltered,
in deck chairs, where they can chat with a neighbor, read the papers, or take
the children to play so the children won't disturb afternoon naps. The rea–
son Blam likes the walkway is that he can count on being alone there, at
least until someone comes looking for him. Only until then. Because
if
Aca were in fact to come up with his lady friend, determined to find him,
or if there were a search warrant out for him (and eventually there has to
be-he cannot imagine living his life without one, without another war),
the very fact that the mansard was secluded would turn it into a trap. He
would not be able to double back to the terrace: an armed patrol would
keep the passage covered. Nor would he be able to duck back into the
apartment except through a window: in case of a manhunt, search, raid, or
blockade, all windows are closed, all curtains drawn. Those are the rules of
the game and have been from time inunemorial. All the tenants can do is
