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She saw another one coming and gestured wildly in the hope of stopping it, but to no avail. Another came along: nothing doing! Those damned yellow cabs just went their merry way, indifferent to her plight.
Aren’t there any of these damned cabs available?
She tried one last time, waving until she felt ridiculous: still nothing! With a sigh she turned and went back to the taxi driver.
"Listen... how much longer will it take?"
"Just a few more minutes, miss," he replied as he tightened a bolt on the wheel.
"Okay. Here’s what we’ll do." She took out a few bills. "If you get me to court by eleven o'clock, this will turn into one of your luckiest days."
The man stopped what he was doing to think about his customer's generous offer, then started to work faster. A couple of minutes later, he was behind the wheel again with her sitting in the back seat, looking at her mobile phone and counting the seconds that passed.
Heavy traffic around Hell's Kitchen slowed the taxi almost to a stop. They were now proceeding at walking pace, and the honking of horns revealed the impatience of the drivers.
"Isn't there a way to get out of this mess?" asked Loreley.
"I'm sorry, miss. Don’t you think I’d have taken it if there was?"
"My job is at stake!"
"You have no idea how many customers get in here and every guy has his own story. Some don’t talk and hardly move, ignoring me all the way, then there are others who get really agitated... as if the seat was on fire under their ass. And they jabber on like you."
In the rear-view mirror Loreley could see him smiling and forced herself to smile back at him.
"But there’s one thing everyone has in common," he went on, "they’re in one hell of a hurry to get to their destination."
She took a deep breath to calm down. "I've already apologized, what else should I do?"
"Nothing! I prefer customers like you, miss, rather than the mummies."
This time Loreley smiled more convincingly at him. And with all the money I gave you! she thought, leaning back against the headrest. The pain at the back of her neck had diminished just enough for her to work but had not disappeared entirely.
Maybe this was a good time for a painkiller. The doctor had told her to take one only when the pain was not too strong and to double the dose only when it was necessary. Her obstinacy and too many commitments, however, had led her to taking them haphazardly, and in the space of a few years she had found herself needing a stronger dose.
Talking the small silver container out of her handbag, she opened it, took out a tablet and closed it again, her gaze lingering on the two Ls in shining gold engraved on the lid. Once it had stood for, Lorenz Lehmann, her grandfather; now, Loreley Lehmann.
As she feared, she was late getting to the courthouse. Even though the taxi driver had failed to maintain their agreement, she left the entire amount she had already given him, to compensate for her irritation which he had been forced to endure.
She ran up the wide marble staircase leading to the foyer of the building, hoping she was in time for the verdict. Luckily, she knew where to go and there was no need to waste more time asking for information; it was easy to get lost in that vast building if you were not familiar with it.
Even before entering the courtroom, though, she realized that the ruling on the Desmond case had already been issued, as the door was open, and people were leaving.
Darn it, too late! She clenched her hand and hit it against an invisible object.
Glancing quickly around from the door, she could see the tension on people's faces which had not yet subsided; the public and jurors were leaving their seats, as was Judge Sanders, a petite elderly woman, walking out through the door at the back of the courtroom.
Loreley went in and searched for her colleague Ethan Morris amid the increasing chatter. She saw him standing beside the defendant, Leen Soraya Desmond.
As if he had sensed her arrival, Ethan turned and gave her a forced smile. A moment later Leen turned around too and her oriental-looking eyes twitched.
"It won't finish here, Lehmann!" she yelled at her. "Sooner or later I'll get my revenge!" As two uniformed officers were leading her away, she turned her attention to a dark-haired man watching the scene, a short distance away. "My father won’t forget you and what you’ve done to me. Never!"
"I won't forget either, Leen! You can be sure of that," she answered in a strong, determined voice, though not as spiteful.
Intrigued, Loreley studied the object, or rather the subject, of such acrimony, and the moment she recognized him she stiffened and stared at him as if in a trance. The clips of the old film started to flow through her mind again, but this time they were vivid, fast, with no interruption.
Oh my God! Him!
"What's wrong? Is it because of what my client said to you?" asked Ethan as he approached her.
She unbuttoned her tight-fitting blue jacket which at that moment was preventing her from breathing, until her chest finally lifted and let some air into her lungs.
"Not really. I'm just a little tired."
The lawyer smiled at her, nodding. "I guess yesterday was a kind of tour de force."
"Yes. And seeing that woman again just now..." She looked at the doorway through which Leen had just left. "Well... it certainly wasn’t pleasant. And besides, I didn’t get here in time."
"Don't worry. I won’t tell Kilmer you were late, not him and not Sarah. If you come to lunch with me, I’ll tell you everything that was said, so in case you get the third degree you will know what to say."
"Thank you. But I wasn’t late on purpose, you know, the taxi had a flat tire."
"Kilmer wouldn't believe you, but I know you better than he does. Now let's go and eat, it's the only pleasure I have left."
The dark-haired man who had just had the exchange of words with the defendant, caught up to them and blocked them just outside the door. Loreley gripped the handle of her bag so tightly that her nails dug into the palm of her hand.
"Counselor Morris, I congratulate you on your excellent defence, but I'm happy that it wasn't good enough for you to win," the newcomer said smiling at him, as she discreetly took a step back.
"That’s understandable Mr. Marshall." Ethan looked awkward.
"I wish you a good day, counselor," said the other, then turned his gaze to Loreley. "Hello, Lory." He stared at her for a moment, as if he wanted to speak to her, but didn't know what to say.
Overwhelmed by conflicting feelings and thoughts, she opened her mouth to return the greeting, but was unable to utter a single word.
He smiled at her, though his amber-colored eyes had a serious look. "I'd prefer that we see each other a long way from here next time," he concluded, then turned his back on her and walked away.
Ethan scratched his shaved head. "What’s wrong, Loreley? You didn't even say hello."
"I'm sorry... I don't know what got into me."
She saw him shake his head, as his eyes expressed confusion.
"Well, come on. I was so tense this morning, I didn't have breakfast, and now that it's all over, I’m feeling very hungry."
***
A week went by, with Loreley feeling more serene and managing not to think too much about the mess she was in. The few times that she did, especially when she alone was in bed, she would dismiss those memories, take a book at random and read until her eyes were red from exhaustion and she fell asleep; or else she would watch all kinds of documentaries on television. Anything was okay if she could focus her attention elsewhere.
She remembered very little of the hours of passion she had spent with the impromptu lover of that one night stand, but on the other hand she was starting to remember what had happened before she went up to the room with that man.
Sitting at the table of a large restaurant with other wedding guests, Loreley had been nibbling at a slice of wedding cake when he, with a glass of champagne in one hand and a chair in the other, had sat down opposite her, beside his friend Steve.
"Everyone at this table has found their other half, even Hans and Esther, and I'm the only one left," he said, accompanying that last sentence with a sip of champagne, as if to congratulate himself.
"I’d advise you to stay single for a while longer," was Steve's joking response.
"I tell myself that too, you know, every day, so I don’t forget it. No romantic commitments for the next few years. I've had enough of them!"
Loreley had felt slightly uncomfortable and had looked down at her plate, realizing that the man was still hurting because of Esther, who instead looked like a bride who was happy with her choice. He had not shown any emotion all day, but then the champagne must have lowered his guard.
"You're actually not the only single sitting at this table... or don’t I count?" Lucy, a curvaceous blond, had corrected him. "Unlike you, though, I still continue on my way, despite everything..." She had emphasized the last two words, as if to make it clear what, or rather, who she was alluding to with that "despite everything."
"I’ll bet you do, I’ve never had any doubts about that!" the man had replied, sarcastically.
A frown of displeasure had appeared on the young woman's face: "Always better than feeling sorry for yourself!"
Loreley had found it hard not to giggle. Lucy enjoyed provoking him whenever she had the chance and he reciprocated as best he could, considering that he was not usually the type to be disrespectful towards women. For some reason, the girl always turned their approaches into skirmishes. It had become a ritual by now, their only means of communication, and if they had changed this habit, Loreley would have been astonished and perhaps even a little disappointed.
When she had seen Lucy leave the table to go and join the dancing, the man had turned his attention to her, and she had kept him company with a couple of after-dinner drinks, forgetting she should not mix painkillers with alcohol.
In those last frantic days spent helping Esther with the preparations for the wedding and discussing the Desmond case with her boss for the umpteenth time, the pain at the back of her head had given her no respite. The icing on the cake had arrived two days before the wedding when her fiancé had phoned from Los Angeles to inform her, as if it were no big deal, that he couldn’t be with her for the wedding. The ensuing argument had accentuated her headache and she had been forced to take the medication on several occasions.
There was still a dark chasm in her recollections, between the time the newlyweds had left the restaurant followed by festive exclamations of good wishes, to when she had woken up in the middle of the night in a room on the upper floors of the hotel. A hole where there were only flashes in which she saw herself naked, wrapped around a man with tanned skin crushing her against the bed under his body as he caressed and kissed her.
Then, total darkness.
And him again, rolling over and putting her on top of himself, straddling him. She remembered his feline eyes that announced passion and the sly smile on lips that invited her to abandon herself to any unspoken desire.
And again, total darkness, followed by a befuddled awakening... and that unspeakable reality.
2
What would happen once John got home? Was it necessary to confess something to him when she didn't even know how it had happened? Was sincerity at all costs essential to keeping their co-habitation alive in the best possible way?
Questions that came back to haunt her even when she was driving through the Manhattan traffic. Questions that instilled doubts in her which she had never had before, undermining her few certainties. After all, she was only twenty-eight years old with little experience in couple relationships to be certain she had the right answers.
The sound of her cell phone drew her attention. She pressed a button on the dashboard and activated the speakerphone.
"Hello, Loreley. How are you?"
"David!" she said happily. "What a pleasure. I haven't heard from you in a while."
"Yes, you’re right, but you could have called me too."
"You know, I’ve been very busy, and Hans' wedding took everything out of me, including the desire to get married should John ever ask me one day."
She heard a short laugh at the other end of the phone. "Still the same old story of the fox that can't get to the grapes..."
"Don't make fun of me, come on! Do you have anything to tell me, instead?"
"Yes... there is something."
"Don't string it out!"
"It's something serious and I'd rather talk to you about it in person if I can..."
«All right, I'd love to spend some time with you."
"If you’re free, we could get together tomorrow afternoon, at your place."
"Let's make it three o'clock?"
"Three o'clock."
Loreley ended the conversation wistfully recalling David's gentle, smiling face. She missed the days she had spent with him, especially their university days, and the lovely carefree moments he had given her.
All things pass and as often happens, the most beautiful things are also those that last less time.
She slammed her foot on the brake and cursed, clutching the steering wheel. The car in front of her had slowed down abruptly and she had narrowly escaped running into the back of it.
For the life of me! She usually kept at safe distance, so stopped for a few moments to take a deep breath. As soon as she heard cars honking behind her she drove on again.
Everyone is in such a hurry! Sometimes she longed for her beloved Zurich, with its order and tranquility. So different from electrifying and hectic New York.
A light rain began to tap on the windshield. She scowled: she had forgotten to bring an umbrella. And yet she knew that in October the weather was unpredictable.
***
The following afternoon Loreley left the house dressed in a simple pair of jeans and a shirt of the same cloth and colour. Her friend David was waiting for her outside the front door.
As soon as she was close to him, she threw her arms around his neck and held him close for several seconds.
"You are enthusiastic!" he began, hugging her in turn.
"We’ve never been apart for so long," she defended herself pulling away. "Where would you like to go?"
"It's a lovely sunny day, we could walk for a while."
"Okay!"
Loreley adjusted her bag on her shoulder and took him by the hand, but after a few steps she stopped him. "Don’t dare put your hand near your wallet," she said, raising her index finger at him. "I'll take care of it today, okay?"
"Well, what an effort for someone like you!"
"What would you be implying?" she asked, hands on hips. "I'm waiting."
"Your family’s... well, they do alright."
