Page 27 of Venus Was Her Name

Edie

She found Joe in the loft apartment, out on the balcony staring into the night. Not at the sky, the angle of his head told her his gaze was resting on the horizon, his eyes scanning the fields obscured by a dark blanket and swirls of mist.

As she pushed open the door, she could see the square set of his shoulders underneath his crinkled shirt and she wondered if he was chilly because as always his sleeves were rolled up to the elbow, one lower than the other. He was gripping the balcony, his stance solid, jeaned legs slightly apart, his whole body tense, which was why when she approached from behind she alerted him to her presence by closing the door loudly, rather than startle him. He didn’t turn, just waited so when she appeared by his side holding a mug of tea, and he realised who had joined him, he looked genuinely surprised, pleased even, and that pleased Edie.

‘Hello love. Are you okay now?’

Edie held out the mug which he took. ‘Yes, I’m fine. I thought I’d bring you a brew and check you were all right. I could tell talking about the past took its toll and it can’t have been easy, dragging up all that.’

‘It needed to be said, ugly as it was, but I’m glad I got it off my chest. It was probably one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do, admit to all that.’ Joe took a sip of his tea, milky, one big sugar.

Taking up position by his side, Edie left him to his thoughts and followed his gaze out across the farmland. It was pitch black, no street lights. She couldn’t even see or hear the road which added to the sense of isolation and made her question the wisdom of living in such a remote location. Yes, it was an idyllic spot but at times like these, knowing that if you screamed nobody would hear, gave La Babinais an eerie feel. It was different on the other side of the house where you could listen to the waves crashing on the rocks below the cliff and look across the bay to the village. Knowing Herval was only a few kilometres away was comforting and its lights were better company than the cries of a fox and the screech of the barn owl.

It had been four hours since the summit. Apart from bringing Joe a warm drink, Edie was there because Nanou had sent her upstairs on an errand. Delivering the message broke the silence. ‘Dinner is in half an hour, or should I say tea.’ She winked when he turned and smiled.

‘I’m not really hungry.’

‘Well, Nanou said you’d say that, and she told me to tell you that she didn’t care, and you have to come down and eat with everyone. I don’t think she’ll take no for an answer.’

Joe managed a low chuckle. ‘You’re right. Is she okay, after my big confession?’

‘Yes, she’s fine. Been bustling about the kitchen, keeping busy and telling everyone what she’s going to do to a crazy woman if she dares come near any of us. I doubt you’ll need security to be honest. She’s really mad and you are totally forgiven because she worships you. I can tell.’ Edie was glad because her words had made Joe smile, and in her pleasure she left herself unguarded and unprepared for the next question.

‘And what about you? Do you forgive me?’

Edie’s stomach lurched. She didn’t know the answer, it was too soon and too complicated to decide, so she asked him a question instead.

‘Can we go round the other side? We can look for ships.’ When he nodded she set off first, making her way around the decked balcony; each step was a tick of a clock, counting down while she searched for the right words to say.

When she’d shot from the kitchen earlier and raced up the stairs, yes she was in a state, tears blinding her way, but they weren’t because she was disgusted or angry, it was because she was confused. There were so many things she wanted to ask him, blurt out right in the middle of his confession but she held it all in, telling herself to listen, make notes and work through it all later because if she gave herself away too soon… No, she didn’t want to even contemplate that, her head was tangled enough.

They’d reached the cliff side of the house, so Edie halted and let Joe do the talking. ‘The storm’s on its way. Can you feel it blowing in from the sea? There’s a change in the air. I can sense it, like an advance party sent to scout the terrain, sneaking across the ocean bringing a stiff breeze and a smug warning of what’s to come.’

No wonder he wrote such beautiful lyrics and Edie had a funny feeling that Joe was letting his imagination and heightened sense of awareness get to him, so answered honestly. ‘I hadn’t noticed, not until you just said but yes, the air isn’t as warm and it doesn’t feel as muggy, and the breeze isn’t as gentle.’

‘That reminds me of Mary Poppins, when that chimney sweep bloke with the shit cockney accent says that there’s a wind blowing in from the east, or west. Always gave me the chills, that bit of the film, like something bad is coming.’

Edie nodded. ‘I know which scene you mean. It is a bit ominous.’

‘I like the words you use; I can tell you’re a clever girl. I bet your gran is proper proud of you.’

Don’t think of Gran, not now, change the subject… ‘Yes, she is.’ And before he had the chance to delve, Edie diverted the conversation again. She was getting good at it. ‘How did Jenny take the news about the exposé?’

‘Like I expected her to, she was mad as hell, so God help Gina Zilli if they ever cross paths or any pap who gets in her way.’

‘Will she feel angry towards the women who are telling their stories, as well as the press? Because they’ve stirred it all up in the first place.’

Joe looked into his mug and swirled the tea as he spoke. ‘No, not at all. In fact she will have total sympathy for them, probably stand with them too. She’s got plenty of stories to tell about how men treated her growing up, and when she ran away to LA.’

‘You make it sound like it was the norm, that young women had been badly treated by the industry for years.’ Edie knew she sounded naïve but part of her really hoped it wasn’t true, that it was a random occurrence so when Joe turned to face her, she saw from his expression that she was wrong.

‘Did you know that Iggy Pop wrote a song called ‘Look Away’?

Edie shook her head. ‘No, I’ve never heard of it.’

‘It’s about a young girl, Sable Starr, who was the reputed queen of the baby-groupie scene. She lost her virginity at twelve, and in the song he says he slept with her at thirteen. Did he ever get arrested? Nah. Sable was an icon for all the most tragic reasons. Take a look online, it’s all there. The title is ironic and kind of puts what I told you into perspective. And then there’s ‘Stray Cat Blues’ by the Stones, and right there in the lyrics we have another fifteen-year-old girl, but hey, as they say, it’s not a capital crime.’

‘Oh my God. I didn’t know.’ Edie was truly shocked.

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