have special significance.”
25
“Uh-huh,” I said because she seemed to be waiting for 26
some kind of response.
27 S
“They might have belonged to rich men, maybe even 28 R
royalty. Your family might descend from a direct blood-96
3rd Pass Pages
ManInMyBasemnt_HCtext3P.qxd 10/24/03 8:16 PM Page 97
The Man in My Basement
line of
matic and full of feeling.
2
But if I was a prince, I too had forgotten.
3
“I’m getting hungry.” It was almost impossible for me 4
to get out those few words. “Why don’t you write me or 5
call about the stuff, you know, that you’re selling.”
6
“But these masks —”
7
“I have to talk about it later. Later.”
8
I was looking at the book, the picture of a longish face 9
carved from wood. The eyes were gouged out, making a 10
ridge for the nose. The forehead was high and the mouth 11
was just a slit. Narciss’s hands closed the book and then 12
pulled it away. I heard her chair sliding backward. As she 13
moved away the air on that side seemed to cool, as if her 14
body heat had been keeping me warm.
15
I didn’t want her to go but I couldn’t even look up —
16
much less ask her to stay.
17
“The boy so retarded he sit on the toilet waitin’ for in-18
spiration to wipe his ass.” That’s what my uncle Brent 19
used to say about me on report-card day four times a year.
20
That’s how I felt.
21
I heard the front door close.
22
My descent progressed even though I didn’t move a 23
muscle for a very long time.
24
25
26
S 27
R 28
