Earth, Air, Fire and Water by William Walling & Stephen Nemeth

Author:William Walling & Stephen Nemeth [Walling, William & Nemeth, Stephen]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Sci Fi & Fantasy
Publisher: Analog Science Fiction/ Science Fact
Published: 1974-02-02T00:00:00+00:00

XII - April, 1988

“I love it!” Marissa pirouetted at the window, enchanted by the view. Their suite in Hotel Baur au Lac looked out over the Zurichsee, with the clean white silences of the Great Alps hanging along the horizon. “It’s so bright and cheerful now,” Marissa exclaimed. “Last night, when we landed, Zurich was moody and misty. I wasn’t sure I’d like it. But, today …”

Volpone watched her, thinking how like a lovely butterfly she was with sunlight streaming through the French windows, illuminating her filmy negligee. He realized sadly how little he now felt for Marissa. Beautiful in a classic, more-than-human way, like perfect porcelain, she dressed fashionably, knew all of the right people, and was very, very competent in bed. But no longer exciting. The nagging worry of growing old rose to haunt him. “Come and dress,” he urged. “Weren’t we going shopping?”

“Oh, we must,” she said. “You rushed me away from Washington with nothing but the clothes on my back.”

They windowshopped along Zurich’s Fifth Avenue—the Bahnhofstrasse— admiring quaint buildings, old signs, medieval lanes, tearooms, and the city’s incongruous baby-blue streetcars, a holdover from another era. They spent a half-hour at the GrossmiThster Kirche, where Karl der Grosse—Charlemagne—lies halfway up the south tower, visited his somber crypt briefly, then returned gladly to the lucid sunlight of Bahnhofstrasse. The sky was azure; the air crisp. Linden trees were already beginning to cast perfume.

They had lunch in a so-so restaurant near the Urania Bridge, then Marissa began shopping with a vengeance, modeling chic pantsuits and gowns in one salon after another. Glancing at his watch often, Volpone finally asked, “Would you mind terribly if I went out for a drink and a stroll, my dear?” She touched his cheek. “Run along, Alex. I know you’re bored.” Leaving the boutique, he hurried along the boulevard toward the bank. It would be his first dealing with the “Gnomes of Zurich” since Leonard Colo’s death. Volpone sorely missed Leonard; he had grown accustomed, over the years, to allowing Leonard to run important errands like this one. He had taken Leonard for granted. Now he must do it himself, since there was no one else—no one.

He entered the bank, going directly to the barrier, and let himself in as if he owned the place. “Buon Giorno. Signor Valenti to see Herr Rothenberg,” he said in Italian. “I believe he expects me.”

“Grlietzj.” A thin-faced, spectacled man rose diffidently. “If you’ll have a seat, Signor Valenti, I’ll tell him you are here.”

Volpone paced the carpet. Zurchers had always intrigued him, for some reason. Polite enough if one did not look too far beneath the surface, they reminded him of New Yorkers—stand-offish and brusque, often to the point of rudeness.

“This way, if you please, sir.” The thin-faced man ushered him into a paneled office, closing the door discreetly as he left. Herr Rothenberg rose behind a large ebony desk, a pink-skinned, chubby bear of a man who smiled and shook hands cordially.

“Good afternoon, Mr. Volpone,” he amazed the other by saying.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.