Flashback – Shane

“We can nail her”, I exclaim, grinning at Alice.
She just looks at me and her eyes are tired, as if she isn’t sleeping well.
“She is having a black-tie dinner at eight o’clock tonight”, I state.
“The food critic from The Post called to confirm the time. She sent me this phoney exterminator’s notice saying the house is being gassed for termites, so I’d stay away”.
Alice scratches the back of her head, stretching against her chair.
“She can have dinner parties”.
“She lied about the exterminator”, I exclaim, widening my eyes.
Alice simply shrugs.
“She can lie, Shane”.
My jaw clenches.
“She took two of my Staffordshire figures. Any dealer would give you at least 800 dollars for them. She is financing her dinner with my things!”.
I get up, walking anxiously across the room.
“I want to file criminal charges and I want her thrown in jail”.
Alice’s eyebrows arch.
“Shane, first of all I know you can’t be serious. And anyway, unless you have proof, there aren’t grounds”.
I stop, turning my head towards her and narrowing my eyes.
“Wait a minute. Whose side are you on?”.
Alice doesn’t reply. She just moves uncomfortably on her seat.
I grimace.
“Did she get to you?”.
She says nothing.
I smash my fist on her desk, feeling my face on fire.
“Did you bang her?!”.
Alice jolts and her eyes pop out.
“No! Not at all!”.
I tilt my head, exhaling slowly.
“So are you telling me that nothing happened?”, I ask, cautiously.
Alice half-smiles at me, blinking her eyelids.
“No, Shane, nothing happened”.
I suddenly feel very, very tired.
Tired of all this.
Tired of being far away from her.
I plop down on my chair and rub my forehead.
“She is great in bed… She was a gymnast…”, I mumble, to no-one in particular.
Alice chuckles nervously.
“She was?”, she asks, surprised.
“Yeah…”, I sigh, weakly.
“Look, Shane…”.
I wave my hand in the air.
“Sorry, Al. I lost my train of thought”. I clear my voice. “Come on. Let’s have her arrested”.
Alice just shakes her head.
“I don’t think you should stay in the house. Sell the house and divide the proceeds”, she says, quietly.
My eyes dart in her direction.
“No. You’re selling me out. You don’t think I got the guts to go to the mat”.
Alice tries to smile understandingly.
“You don’t want to go to this mat, Shane”.
She gets up from her desk and kneels down right in front of me.
“Look. I respect you, Shane. You’re a professional. I am a professional. As a professional and a friend, I am telling you, one way or another, you’re gonna lose”.
She stares at me and rests her hands on my knees.
“Give it up, Shane”.
I brush her head, friendly.
“Al, I understand what you’re saying”, I murmur.
“You’re fired”.
I get up and set off for the door, leaving her speechless.