CHAPTER 15
The strong poet indeed says: “I seem to have stopped falling;
now I am fallen,consequently, I lie here in Hell,” but he is
thinking, as he says this, “As I fell, I swerved,consequently I
lie here in a Hell improved by my own making.”
HAROLD BLOOM,Ruin the Sacred Truths
1. Fertile Plains
Bennie raced against the rolling twilight in the Undergrounds van, a
lousy old Fiat formerly owned by a Greek moving company.
Previously, “Metafora” had been painted on the sides of the van—
literally “move up to a higher level.” The owner explained that this
was what moving companies were called in Greece. Roy guessed the
only thing the van could move up to a higher level now would be
repair bills. Still, how could he pass up a metaphor so ironic that it
rusted?
But this day the ancient Greek artifact was on their side; the van
zoomed down the highway like a chariot of lesser gods. In the vehicle
with Bennie were Sprout, Colin and Izzy. This was the first time Izzy
had been inside a car since killing his parents and he was
understandably ill-at-ease. He smoked like a volcano, cigarette butts
littering the long stretch of interstate behind them.
“Slow down! You’re going to crash!” he screamed He had
exclaimed this repeatedly since they left Los Angeles, after Martin’s
funeral.
“If you don’t shut up, I am
going to crash,” Bennie said
threateningly.
“Stop it you two,” Sprout said, her arm around Izzy.
“How long ‘till we hit Vegas?” Colin said. Izzy flinched at the
word hit.
“We’re almost there,” said Bennie, unfolding a map and pointing
to where he thought they might be.
“Damn it! Watch the fucking road!” Izzy screamed.
Bennie put away the map and laid his forearm across the steering
wheel. “People who don’t drive should not tell people that do drive
how they should drive,” he grumbled.
ABYSSINIA
240
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