At the same day Ramona and her son Danny arrived in Israel. Humik had known that before: He received her letter still being in Nehusha settlement. It had informed him the good news, and now he was waiting for them in the Lobby of a small hotel in Tel Aviv, where they were said to stay for five days and nights.
In this opportunity Humik got a present from his mother, but it was sent to him personally by Solomon: A nice brown leather coat, that had been owned by Elkao. Maybe the hero had worn it once or twice. ‘In the Common Grave I could not place that’, Solomon said sarcastically to his wife, ‘so I have kept it very well; and your son will use it – till it becomes well worn out.’ (Kaplasky himself was dressing a short suede brown coat, in the quite warm winter of LA). It was really a nice coat and it matched Humik’s body measures. He was only complaining to his mother, that he would have to delay wearing it, as winter has already passed. Ramona said she had known that, but she would not come next winter to Israel, so he should ‘keep it now in the Nehusha Village’ as she said. Humik had not told her about the brave-quick step he had taken, joining already the parachuters’ Fireteam Course, that will very soon begin.
Humik was feeling very well with the coat, while he was wearing it. He appreciated Solomon’s generosity, letting him have that expensive coat, ‘that the warmness of Elkano’s body was still beaming from its inside parts,’.
Ramona was inquiring Humik about the ‘Nehusha village’. She had learned that it was quite interesting for him to return to agricultural work, dig ‘plates’ for irrigating the olives and grow vetetables. The guarding tasks on that border were not dangerous, he said, and they were all feeling well. Yes, one day, maybe next year, she would visit there and see henscoops…
Next day Humik, Ramona and Danny took a bus to Humik’s old hometown. They arrrived there at noon. The boy Danny had been left to play with the son of Ramona’s friend, Hemda, while Humik and Ramona were strolling at the Circle in crossroads Hertzl and Rothchild Avenue, looking at the old houses and telling each other about the changes that had taken place there.
Ramona suddenly said, that she had wanted to forget the far past, and talk about the near one:
“Humik, I want to tell you- what I had heard last week from Simone Richland. A terrible story.”
“What was it?”
“Her niece, Raphaella- the girl with whom you had some relationship… something terrible had happened to her.”
“Terrible?” he asked, thinking that maybe Raphella had been hospitalised, due to a complicated abortion operation, or something like that.
“S h e – is not alive any more!” said Ramona very loudly.
“What?” Humik remebered he had seen Naitty only a day before.
“It seems like she had made suicide, or even worse- one of her gang had murdered her. It was a few months ago, and Simone had told me only last month. She was weeping, having heard that, so she said. Simone had known the girl since childhood.”
“Oh, I’m sorry for Raphaella,” he said, “to me she seemed to have a strong character.”
“It’s your luck, that it had all happened after you left New York.
If not – it would have blown our heads, that case. The local police will close the file. Maybe also FBI has been involved, I don’t know. Really, it’s a regular case there, that a young woman is found drawn in a pool. Whatever, if they reach you and try to inquire – you should talk as less as possible, do you understand?
Don’t be entangled. You have not known who were her friends or aquaintances, or who she was meeting, and so on. Solomon was truly telling me to add this: “You keep yourself, also for the sake of your small family, that worries about you- as you cannot imagine. When somebody …takes some imbalanced steps, like you had done in your short life, all his poor family might suffer. I know: egotism is burninmg in the viscera of many young people like you, and each has that deep disregard of his dear worrying and loving relatives… ”
“Mom, stop talking to me like that. I’m grown up.”
“I don’t mean only you, dear Humik… But please, wherever you would be- remember Solomon’s wise and careful point of view about the ‘scarcity of life in the universe’, as he would call it. Yes, you know his bitter life experience. I have the same bad feeling … So, please have pity on me.” Her eyes were wet.
CHAPTER 44