[TheStellarEnsemble.com] The Godfather - Mario Puzo

There was silence at the other end of the phone and then Mrs. Corleone’s voice camestrong. “Mikey is a home. He no call you up? He no see you?”Kay felt her stomach go weak from shock and a humiliating desire to weep. Her voicebroke a little when she asked, “How long has he been home?”Mrs. Corleone said, “Six months.”“Oh, I see,” Kay said. And she did. She felt hot waves of shame that Michael’s motherknew he was treating her so cheaply. And then she was angry. Angry at Michael, at his mother,angry at all foreigners, Italians who didn’t have the common courtesy to keep up a decent showof friendship even if a love affair was over. Didn’t Michael know she would be concerned forhim as a friend even if he no longer wanted her for a bed companion, even if he no longerwanted to marry her? Did he think she was one of those poor benighted Italian girls who wouldcommit suicide or make a scene after giving up her virginity and then being thrown over? Butshe kept her voice as cool as possible. “I see, thank you very much,” she said. “I’m glad Michaelis home again and all right. I just wanted to know. I won’t call you again.”Mrs. Corleone’s voice came impatiently over the phone as if she had heard nothing thatKay had said. “You wanta see Mikey, you come out here now. Give him a nice surprise. Youtake a taxi, and I tell the man at the gate to pay the taxi for you. You tell the taxi man he gets twotimes his clock, otherwise he no come way out the Long Beach. But don’t you pay. Myhusband’s man at the gate pay the taxi.”“I couldn’t do that, Mrs. Corleone,” Kay said coldly. “If Michael wanted to see me, hewould have called me at home before this. Obviously he doesn’t want to resume ourrelationship.”Mrs. Corleone’s voice came briskly over the phone. “You a very nice girl, you gotta nicelegs, but you no gotta much brains.” She chuckled. “You come out to see me, not Mikey. I wantatalk to you. You come right now. An’ no pay the taxi. I wait for you.” The phone clicked. Mrs.Corleone had hung up.Kay could have called back and said she wasn’t coming but she knew she had to seeMichael, to talk to him, even if it was just polite talk. If he was home now, openly, that meant hewas no longer in trouble, he could live normally. She jumped off the bed and started to get readyto see him. She took a great deal of care with her makeup and dress. When she was ready toleave she stared at her reflection in the mirror. Was she better-looking than when Michael had313