Books › Blue Book v073-n03 [1941-07], 1941 › scan 52
Scan 52
Blue Book v073-n03 [1941-07], 1941
21 lines. Read by computer on 18 September 2026. No printed page number was found. See the scan on archive.org.
1"Not as long as Dunkerque," said Haldon, as his eyes roved about. "Dunkerque was where our boy John stayed. He would have been at the Conservatory, except for the war. His poor mother was not quite the same afterward. There was no doubt about him, no doubt whatever; he came and spoke to us that night, so we were quite sure."
2"You mean—after he was dead?"
3"Naturally. That is, after his body was dead, to be more exact. We have a very careless habit of speech about such matters, eh? Yes, poor Elsa was not the same. She took it terribly to heart, and I could not help her, though we have lived a long time together."
4Hallucinations? Moore sat in silence, a troubulous wind of thought whirling across his brain. A child, to him and to Caroline, might have made all the difference. There had been a child, at the beginning, but the child had died.
5Haldon's eyes probed at him.
6"I did not mean to stir old griefs in you," he said gently.
7Moore started slightly. Old griefs? Yes, of course; but one or two very strange things had happened, after the child died; quite incredible things, in a prosaic world. Hallucinations, he had called them. He smiled at Haldon.
8"You're a strange fellow, if you don't mind my saying so! Do you live near by?"
9"Oh, anywhere!" Haldon waved a hand vaguely, a slim, well-kept, long-fingered hand. "It is of no importance. We lost everything when the bomb came, that night; and what was worse, I lost Elsa. That was before matters were as well organized as they are now, you know. She just disappeared. I've been looking for her ever since."
10The tragedy of the words hit Moore.
11"You mean, she was—hurt? Killed?"
12Haldon shook his head. "No—if she were dead, I'd know. She's just wandering somewhere, and I must find her. You see, she'd tell me about it if she were dead, but I've heard nothing at all from her. Of course, I've searched through the regular channels and all that sort of thing; it's quite useless. So I'm looking for her myself. It's the best way, really, though it's rather wearing at times."
13As he spoke, Haldon sat quite easily, quite relaxed, his eyes wandering about as always. He accepted a cigarette and lighted it at the match Moore held.
14Hallucinations, yes. No doubt of that. Plenty of people had been faced with the same sort of tragedy these days; the well-ordered world was gone, and uncertainty was the worst of all things. Moore thought of his own case; how little it seemed, how pathetically trifling beside this man's sorrow! Caroline, at least, was safe enough somewhere, probably with her people in Sussex, though she had replied to none of his letters.
15"Well, here's to a quiet night!" Haldon lifted his glass, smiling again. "A quiet night, and pea-soup fog—and thumbs up!"
16They drank, walked out of the hotel, and separated with a handclasp.
17MOORE'S thoughts went back to the man again and again, in the days that followed: Haldon and his Amati, delving everywhere into the deeps, searching aimlessly night after night, day after day—well, it dwarfed his own troubles and helped him to keep his chin up. What a cursed fool he had been to snap at Caroline that last day! Just nerves, of course; people all over the country were being hit hard the same way. The bombing, the hellish nights, sapped one's vitality and left one weary and worn out.
18Meantime the Lucky Fiddler, as he was generally known, became something of a legendary figure; Moore heard of him from various directions. Every air-raid night—which was close to every night—he showed up among the cave dwellers, usually sticking to the East End, though he occasionally went farther afield. Like the general public, he avoided the brick shelters and frequented the underground stations; he was always alone amid the throngs, he refused any proffered coins, he played any and all sorts of music, and it was said that wherever he showed up, luck came that way. Accidents diminished, everything went well; it was rumored that good luck attended him.
19"Natural enough," thought Moore. "People fasten their attention on him and forget their worries; they listen to his music and their nerves relax the tension. He's in a different class from the usual entertainers, and they appreciate it. Damn it! If he does bring luck, I'd not mind if he showed up again where I'm concerned!"
20Things were not going so well with Moore; the clouds were closing in upon him. Business was, of course, demoral-
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