Henry of Atlantic City (6 page)

His father stepped on the gas until the car was going super,
super
fast. “We’re gonna have a good time, kid,” he said and put on some more music.

They went to a big hotel across from a park. Henry’s father said it was the most famous hotel in the city and he let a man drive the Jaguar away. The hotel was sort of like the Palace except there weren’t any slot machines. They went up to their room and Henry’s father said in the Big Apple you lived large. He told Henry they had a busy schedule and to get cleaned up and rested while he made some phone calls. Henry asked if there was a library.

“Are you kidding? The best library in the world is just down the street! But what do you want at the library, kid? We have a ton of things to do!”

Henry said he wanted to get some books.

“No problem! The best bookstore in the world is just down the street. You want books? We’ll go get books. It’s Christmas, kid. You can have anything you want.”

When Henry was taking his nap an angel appeared to him. But instead of appearing to him in a tongue of flame or holding a sword, it entered his ear and stayed there. It told him that the children of the heavenly man were more numerous than those of the earthly man. It said that the children of the heavenly man had once been on the earth. They had passed through the degradation of the life of the flesh.

Henry asked the angel what the degradation of the life of the flesh was and the angel said it was everything necessary to keep the body alive. It was everything that passed from the mouth through the entrails and out of the body.

Henry asked if the angel was talking about shit.

The angel said no, it meant the body, which turned everything that passed through it into shit.

When he woke up from his nap, Henry’s father told him they were going out to see Sy and Jersey City.

Henry said he thought they ran away.

“Where’d you get that idea from?”

Henry said Helena and Sy’s sister.

“We’re meeting them for dinner, kid. How could we be meeting them for dinner if they ran away?” He handed Henry a big red shopping bag. “I got you some new clothes. Go see if they fit.”

Henry went to his room and put on the new clothes.

He looked in the mirror. He didn’t want to wear them because saints weren’t supposed to wear new things, especially fancy new things. But they weren’t supposed to complain either. As Henry got dressed the angel in his ear said that in this world those who put on garments are more precious than the garments.

“How do the shoes fit?” his father asked in the elevator. Henry said fine.

“You look like a million bucks, kid,” his father said and jabbed him in the stomach.

Sy and the Whore of Jersey City were waiting inside the restaurant. Henry didn’t recognize them at first because Sy had a beard and wasn’t wearing glasses and looked fat and Helena’s mother had black hair instead of blond hair frizzed out and was wearing round granny glasses like Sy used to wear. They made her look old.

“Well, well, well. Look who’s here.” Sy smiled when he saw Henry.

Henry asked where Helena was.

Helena’s mother got a funny look on her face and didn’t say anything.

“She’s got a boyfriend,” Sy said.

“Some goddamn Egyptian playboy,” Jersey City said. “The son of a bitch.” She began to cry. Henry had never seen her cry before. Her mouth and her eyes didn’t seem connected. Sy gave her the napkin from his lap. “The bastard won’t even let her come to the phone.”

“Maybe she doesn’t want to,” Henry’s father said.

“I’m her mother, for Christ’s sake. I feel like calling the cops.”

“Very funny.”

“She’s barely eighteen!”

Henry’s father patted Jersey City on the arm. “Take it easy. Things’ll be all right. She’s a little pissed off, that’s all. Give it some time. She’ll come around.”

“No, she won’t. I know she won’t. Everything’s all fucked up. A complete mess.”

Henry’s father leaned forward and took Jersey City’s hand but she jerked it away and put her napkin to her eyes and started crying again. Her hands shook and Henry noticed that they were wrinkled and the skin was chapped. “It’s all fucked up,” Helena’s mother said again. “Look at me! I’m afraid to even look in the mirror.”

“Don’t sweat it, kid,” Henry’s father said. “Pretty soon everything will be back to normal. Now just stay put. I’m arranging a meeting.”

“Look,” Sy said, “I don’t want to go to any meetings. I just want to get the hell out of here.”

“Take it easy, Sy. Don’t do this to me. All right? I’m putting some finishing touches on things.”

“What kind of finishing touches?”

“Trust me. The main thing now is to stick with the program!”

“You’re insane. I can’t believe I’m tied up in this.”

“You’re not tied up in it, Sy. You’re up to your ass in it. Now, sit tight and wait.”

“I feel like one of those witness protection people.”

“Well, there ain’t no witnesses and you don’t need protection, so just stop the whining, will you?”

The waiter came to take their order.

Henry said he didn’t want to eat.

“You have to eat, kid. You haven’t eaten all day.”

Henry said he was fasting.

“Veal parmigiana for the comedian here,” his father said and the waiter wrote it down.

“So, Henry, tell me about school,” Sy said.

Henry said it was all right.

“Had a few little problems, but things are looking up,” Henry’s father said.

“What kind of problems?” Sy asked.

Henry said theological ones.

Sy laughed. “I know what you mean, kid.”

Henry said no he didn’t.

“Stop being a wiseass,” his father said.

“He’s not being a wiseass,” Sy said. “He’s being Henry. We understand each other, don’t we, kid? Remember our talks?”

Henry said he remembered them but it looked like Sy had forgotten them.

Henry’s father clipped him on the back of the head. “If you don’t stop the wisecracks, you’ll spend the rest of this vacation in the hotel room.”

When the waiter brought the veal parmigiana Henry said he couldn’t eat it.

“Eat it,” his father said. “You order, you eat.”

Henry said he didn’t order it.

“Don’t get wise, kid. Just eat it.”

Henry said food was shit.

Henry’s father grabbed him by the arm and hoisted him out of his chair and led him to the men’s room. He picked him up and sat him down on the edge of the sink. “Look, I’m not going to tolerate any more big-mouth stuff. You got that? If you don’t cut it out you’ll find yourself back at the O’Briens’ by tomorrow morning. Understand?”

Henry didn’t say anything.

His father stared straight into his eyes. Henry stared straight back. Then his father turned away and put his hands in his pockets. “You think I’m being mean? I’m just trying to do what’s right, Henry. I’m sorry if you’re mad at me for leaving you at the O’Briens’. But we don’t have too many options, kid. That’s the long and short of it. Life’s full of tough lessons. Believe me, I know it more than most. And I know you have it tough too, but you don’t have it
that
tough. I’m doing the best I can, kid. Believe me. You don’t know what tough is.” He put his hand on Henrys shoulder. “This is a vacation. Let’s call a truce, okay?” They shook hands. “Nice chain! Where’d you get it?”

Henry said you gave it to me.

“Don’t you forget it either.” Then he lifted him down from the sink. “Let’s try to have a little fun, okay?” They went back to the table, where Jersey City was still crying. Her eyes and her napkin were all black from mascara.

“Christ,” Henrys father said. “I’ve never been around so many miserable bastards in my life! What did you think? That everything would just fall into your lap? What’s the matter with you? Stop thinking about how miserable you are, and let’s get the job done.” Everybody ate and nobody said anything for a long time. “Instead of whining about how scared you are, think about what you’ll do with all the money,” he said when they were almost finished eating. “Have a little faith, for Christ’s sake.”

“It’s hard to have faith when you’re in the dark about everything,” Sy said.

Then Jersey City said, “Mind if we change the subject?”

“I’d love nothing more than to change the subject.”

“Sy and me are married.”

Henry’s father looked up and then dropped his knife and fork onto his plate. “You’re what? Married? Is that true, Sy?”

“We were going to keep it a secret until it was all over,” Sy said.

“Of all the goddamned things! Why keep it a secret?” He dropped his napkin and ordered a bottle of champagne. After the waiter poured the champagne Henry’s father lifted up his glass. “May your life together be happy.” Then he took a sip. “It goddamn well better be.” He laughed in a way that Henry had never heard him laugh before and clapped Sy on the shoulder. “Goddamn, Sy! You’re one smart bastard,
you know that? I gotta hand it to you. It never would have occurred to me to
marry
her for the extra cut.”

“Fuck you,” Jersey City said. “I wouldn’t marry you if you were the last man on earth.”

After that everybody was happy again.

When they were back in the hotel, the angel in Henry’s ear told Henry to go to the window and look outside. Henry pulled the curtains back and looked out the window. The angel asked Henry what he saw.

Henry said tall buildings and a park and cars moving on the street below.

The angel said the city was the manifestation of creatures that eat of the body. The city comes into being. It devours itself and the creatures that dwell within it devour each other. It said the earthly city was a defilement of the heavenly city.

Henry asked the angel what else there was to see.

The angel said knowledge of what is hidden.

Henry asked the angel how he could know something that was hidden.

The angel said the one who has come to knowledge is also called the one who knows himself.

Henry asked the angel how you could know yourself.

The angel said by not being taken captive by a sweetness of darkness and carried off in a fragrant pleasure.

Henry wanted to ask if all darkness was sweet but the angel went away.

In the morning Henry looked out the window again. It was snowing. The streets were filled with slush when Henry and his father went outside. Henry’s father said it was too wet to walk so they got a taxi. He said it was time to get some Christmas shopping done. “I’m taking you to one of the best places in the world. Ever hear of F. A. O. Schwartz?”

Henry said no.

When they were inside the store Henry’s father said, “Okay, kid, where to?”

Henry said he didn’t know.

“You like games?”

Henry said he guessed so.

They went into a row that was filled with games. Henry’s father took down different things and asked Henry if he thought they looked interesting. Henry didn’t know what he wanted. Then they walked around some more. “Do you like to build models? When I was a kid I was crazy about models.”

Henry said he’d never built a model.

“Model building is a fine art. Some models are so good you’d almost swear they were real. Once, when I was a kid, I built a model of the
Titanic
. It was so real—you know what? I wanted to sink it as soon as it was finished!”

His father took down boxes with pictures of battleships and airplanes on them but Henry said he didn’t really feel like building models. They walked through the store and stopped in front of a gigantic train set. His father took
his hand and said, “Pretty amazing, huh?” Henry nodded. It was the most beautiful little world he had ever seen.

“Incredible, isn’t it?” his father said.

Henry nodded again. He was about to ask if maybe he could have one when his father ruffled his hair and said, “Too bad it’s not for sale. When I was your age I wanted one exactly like it. But it’s only a display. They put it out every Christmas. It’s one of a kind.”

Henry wished that he could shrink himself down to the size of the little toy engineer and drive the train through the tunnels and around the snow-covered mountains and stop at the little toy towns where the houses had lights shining in the windows and everybody looked like they were at home. Henry wondered if his angel could see what he was seeing; then he realized that to an angel, the whole world probably looked like a toy train set and suddenly he was scared. They watched the trains until his father said, “C’mon Henry. There’s tons of other stuff to see.” They went to another part of the store that had video games. It was loud. Henry looked around at all the games but nothing was as good as the train set and that made him feel sad. He wondered how many children there were in the world and if some of them got everything they wanted or if they all deserved everything they got.

He asked his father if they could leave.

“I don’t believe it. You want to go?”

Henry nodded.

“You don’t want to get anything?”

Henry said no.

“You still mad about last night?”

Henry shook his head.

“Then why do you want to go?”

Henry said he just did.

They went outside. Henry’s father said they were only a few blocks from a gigantic bookstore. He asked if Henry wanted to go.

Henry said okay.

“I didn’t realize you were such an intellectual, kid. What are they teaching you at that school?”

Henry said nothing.

The bookstore was almost as big as F. A. O. Schwartz. Henry looked and looked but he couldn’t find the books he used to have.

“Exactly what sorts of books are you looking for?” his father asked.

Henry said he had to go to the library to get them.

“Jesus Christ, Henry. What are you reading?”

Henry said
The Secret History
by Procopius and
The Coptic Gnostic Library
.

“What the hell are they?”

Henry said
The Secret History
was about Justinian and Theodora and the gnostic books were found in a cave in Egypt.

“I’ll be goddamned, you really are some sort of genius, aren’t you? What’s the word? Prodigal? Something like that.” He took a book called
Invertebrate Biology
from the shelf. “How about some science? This is pretty heavy stuff.”