Chapter 6
The ride to Sausalito was pleasant enough, and Noel sensed that Chris was relaxed in his company. The car pulled into the garage of Chris’s small but stunning home, and the engine was switched off.
“Right, thanks Chef” Noel said, getting out of the car, willing him to offer him a Christmas tipple.
“It’s twelve thirty Chef”
Chris looked at his wrist watch as he locked the car, acknowledging the time.
“Merry Christmas!” Noel offered.
“Yeah you too” Chris replied nonchalantly
Noel reached into his coat pocket instinctively knowing that the answer to his dilemma lay within. He pulled out a pack of chewing gum, and indicated for Chris to take one. He did.
“Thanks” he said as he began to make his way to his front door. Noel waited for a while as he saw Chris falter for a second.
“Is everything ok Chef?” he enquired.
“Would, would you like to have a drink Noel?”
Noel sighed in relief and smiled enthusiastically. “I thought you’d never ask!”
The simple act of giving a stick of chewing gum had reached into part of Chris’s soul and resulted in him returning the act of kindness. Noel marveled at the tiny minute detail of God’s plan, as he entered the house that was devoid of anything Christmas.
****
“So; one for the road Noel?” Chris said as he walked to the drinks cabinet in his clinical looking perfectly tidy lounge room
“I have never had an alcoholic drink” Noel responded with a huge beaming smile, “This will be interesting!”
Chris shook his head at the strange young man standing in his home. He didn’t know why, but he liked him. He was like a people magnet; the staff liked him and after tonight he knew the customers loved him. He would have to rethink the situation and probably offer him a full time job, rather than agency work.
“Why are you always so damned happy?” He asked, handing Noel a small shot of brandy, “It’s late, we have to be up very early and you have been working non-stop!”
Noel took the drink from Chris and peered into the golden brown liquid at the bottom of the glass.
“Is that it?” he asked, peering at the small amount of amber liquid residing at the base of the lead crystal receptacle in his hand.
Chis actually laughed at his reaction. For the first time in years, he actually found something amusing.
“Drink it boy,” he said with a smile on his weary face “It will set you up for a good night sleep.”
Noel carried on gazing at the liquid as he had no intensions of experiencing human sleep, he had far too much to do before the clock stuck 6am, but he had to admit, he was looking forward to tasting what was in his hand. The sweet sharp smell wafted up his nostrils and tantalized the sensors of his brain.
“It smells amazing!” Noel blurted out like a child experiencing his first piece of chocolate.
He lifted the glass to his lips, his eyes wide with excitement and anticipation and carefully sipped the drink with no understanding of how the experience would affect him. The sensation of smooth sweet and sharp fire caught him by surprise and he began coughing extensively.
Chis began to laugh out loud at the scene before him. Noel coughed several times, his eyes watering and his tongue sticking out in reaction to the whole sensation.
“You really haven’t had a drink like this before have you?” Chis laughed
“No!” Noel replied, also joining in the hilarity of the moment. He realised how stupid he must look to Chris and found it hysterical. His laughter grew louder and louder as he and Chris enjoyed the humour of the moment.
“Here, let me put some lemonade in it for you boy!” Chris said as he took the glass out of Noel’s hand and left the room to go to the kitchen.
Noel gazed around the room and was immediately drawn to a small silver framed picture that sat on a corner table at the far side of the room. He picked it up and saw the face of Annika smiling back at him. How beautiful she was; so young so happy at the moment the picture was taken.
“Here you go.” Chris said handing over the glass now half full of a fizzy lighter amber liquid. “This will be easier to swallow!”
“Thanks!” Noel replied, his face still beaming.
Chris looked at the small picture frame that was still in Noel’s grasp, and his face lost the rare happiness it held instantly.
“Give me that.” He said flatly as he extended out his hand to retrieve the picture.
Noel obliged immediately, not wanting to antagonize him in any way.
“I’m sorry Chef, I didn’t mean to pry honest.”
Chris took the picture from him and gently placed it back where it belonged. There was a long silence between them and Noel did not want to affect his trail of thought.
“Sorry” Chris said, shaking his head “That’s Annika.”
He couldn’t believe he had actually said her name. He had not mentioned her to anyone since their separation.
“It’s ok” Noel replied “She is very beautiful.”
Chris nodded slowly, still looking at the picture of his love
“She’s dead Noel” he whispered flatly “I have not seen her for over eighteen years. She died not long after that picture was taken.”
Noel knew the whole situation. Time was running out. He glanced at the large Avant Guard clock on the wall above the fireplace; it said 1.20am.
“How did she die?” he asked quietly, eager to move the situation on
Chris sat down on his black leather sofa and put his glass onto the marble table to his right hand side. He looked up at the odd young man now standing in his home in the early hours of the morning.
“It was terrible!” he shook his head, the frustration of the years apparent “I met her in Prague, we were so in love! We so wanted to be together, but she was scared.
“Scared?” Noel prompted
“Her father” Chris continued “He was some kind of gangster at that time. I didn’t care Noel, I was so young and so in love! “
He swiftly picked up the glass and drank the remainder of his brandy.
“The last time I saw her was at a Christmas market in Prague. That’s when I bought that stupid puppet for Charlie, in fact Annika insisted on it.”
He looked down into his empty glass, his mind in the moment of Prague all those years ago.
“That final day. We said goodnight to each other and agreed to meet the next day at 8am for breakfast, after which I was to go and meet her family. We were going to tell them that she was moving to America so we could be together.”
Noel slowly sat directly opposite Chris on the second black leather sofa in the room. His head was beginning to ache, and his body experiencing some sort of illness. Time was running out, he needed to move this on.
“What happened Chris?”
“God!” Chris rasped “I have never talked about this to anyone, and here I am talking to a kid who I have known for less than 24 hours! What is it about you Noel?”
“I guess I am just a good listener” he replied not wanting to move off the subject, “So what happened that morning with Annika?” he prompted.
“She didn’t turn up. I waited for over an hour, but she didn’t show up. I walked around Prague for hours with a picture of her” he nodded towards the picture in the frame, “no one knew where she was. No one had seen her that day, not even the local shop owners who saw her every day.”
“So why do you think she died?”
Chris rubbed his face, partly through tiredness, but also in an attempt to find strength to talk about that time.
“Eventually, after three days of searching I discovered where Annika lived. The house was very imposing to me then. It was heavily gated with cameras everywhere, but I managed to get into the grounds and eventually into the house. I just didn’t care; all I wanted to do was to see Annika.”
Chris stood up and walked back to his drinks cabinet to poor himself another brandy. He raised the bottle to Noel, silently asking if he wanted another one. Noel shook his head eager to get Chris through this process. Chris continued with his story of woe,
“To cut a very long story short, I broke into the house of one of the most notorious gangsters in Prague; it’s amazing I wasn’t killed! I started running around the great hall and up the stairs shouting Annika’s name. I just didn’t care! As you can imagine, bodies appeared from everywhere wondering who the intruder was.”
He returned to his seat and looked at Noel who was listening intently.
“Three guys jumped me and wrestled me to the ground. Eventually I stopped struggling and kept shouting Annika’s name.”
He drew in a breath at the memory and sipped his drink. Noel held his breath, he knew that once the coldness in his heart was penetrated he could deliver his gift to Chris.
“I was taken to her father, his name was Danek Kolar. He sat silently in a dark cold room as his people dragged me to face him. I begged him to let me see Annika, I rambled on and on about how much I loved her and that nobody would keep us apart.”
Chris’s expression had changed. He was reliving that moment for the first time in many years.
“He remained silent, he said nothing. I remember feeling extremely frustrated and screaming for him to let me know where my Annika was. I couldn’t understand why she hadn’t come running through the door to defend me. To tell her father how much she loved me; but she didn’t. Eventually Danek Kolar slowly stood up, I remember every detail of that moment. He slowly walked towards me, a tall lean foreboding man and the light from a window shone onto his stern face. His eyes were so cold, ice blue and cold and his face was like stone as he looked down at me; this young loud-mouthed boy who had entered his home with no respect. Then he spoke, his English was excellent.”
Again Chris fell silent for a few seconds, the memories of the night flooding his mind.
“He very quietly told me that his beloved Annika was killed on her way to meet a friend three days previous. She had left the house at 7am quietly he said; she had left to meet someone that the family knew nothing about and there had been a freak accident.”
Chris’s eyes began to well up, and Noel witnessed his heart beginning to feel again.
“Go on Chris, I’m listening. You need to do this!”
“Danek told me that Annika had slipped on an iced cobbled side street that morning. He said that she had banged her head so violently that she had died instantly! Can you imagine something so stupid Noel; slipping on some ice and then dead?”
Chris was shaking his head,
“I didn’t believe him obviously, but he proceeded to tell me how a little old woman had found her lying in the cobbled side street, when she was walking her dog. The woman was a local old dear and knew Annika. Danek told me that she had called the family home instantly and Annika’s body was taken to hospital. The day I broke in, was the day of her funeral Noel’ that’s why I managed to get in so easily, the family were grieving the loss of their beautiful daughter, and I was running riot like a mad man searching for her!”
“What happened next?” Noel pushed, his health deteriorating further,
“I broke down. I fell to my knees and broke down in front of this man. He then done something I didn’t expect, he touched me on the shoulder and helped me to my feet. He said that he could see that I loved his beloved Annika and that I must be in shock. He indicated to one of his people to go and get something, and they brought back the marionette that I had purchased with her. She had taken it home and we were to come to America together to give Charlie her gift.”
“So I see why you keep the marionette with you. It reminds you of Annika and of Charlie”
Chris nodded, the tears were now rolling down his face
“He gave me the puppet saying that Annika had it in her hands when she fell.”
“Did he know Annika was going to leave Prague with you?”
He shook his head, and wiped his nose on his sleeve in an attempt stop the flow of emotion.
“No, how could he? He was ok really considering I had broken into his house on the day he had buried his daughter. He allowed me to see her bedroom and then offered me a ride to the airport. I was supposed to have left the country the day before, with Annika but he never knew that, and I am glad that the younger version of myself didn’t tell a grieving father that his daughter was about to leave forever, and live with me in America!”
“So Danek sent you back to the United States that day?”
“Yeah! I had lost my Annika, there was no reason for me to stay!”
Noel closed his eyes as he listened to his next instructions.