Still, according to the final e-mail, written by Meredith and titled
“
Pat and Audrey
’
s Amazing Adventure!
”
Pat and Audrey will be in-country next Thursday,
“
with a three-person film crew, a personal chef, a same-sex marriage counselor, and a check the size of a long board for the photo op.
”
Thursday, he notes. The same day as the Shangri-La Summit.
For several minutes Henry stares at the bank of onscreen messages, all unequivocally good, the subject headings laden with emoticons and
exclamation points. All regarding not some fool
’
s promotion or quarterly earnings that exceeded expectations but a small yet potentially life-changing act of goodwill. Then he turns
and looks toward the top of the stairs, where in what is more or less his room a beautiful woman sleeps in what is more or less his bed, and his stomach begins to turn.
It can
’
t be.
Things can
’
t possibly be going this well. After a lifetime of meticulously planned failures, can it be that he has found joy, if not bliss, through a series of random reckless and impulsive acts?
Can it last?
~ * ~
“
How does it feel to be half of the most glamorous couple in all of USAVille?
”
Maya accepts a cup of tea that he
’
s brewed for her. She
’
s not wearing the dress but a fresh set of casual clothes for work. Tight black pants, black boots, and a bright red sweater.
“
Special,
”
she responds, leaning down to kiss him.
“
Living in an abandoned subdivision built to accommodate the absolute worst that corporate America has to offer is, for a local girl like me, a dream come true. So what have you been up to?
”
He stands, already dressed in jeans, white T, and black cashmere sweater. He looks down at his laptop as if it is a person, a supposed acquaintance he doesn
’
t yet understand or fully trust. He taps the back of the screen.
“
It
’
s. . .crazy.
”
“
How so?
”
“
Surprisingly crazy. I-don
’
t-believe-it-in-a-good-way crazy.
”
“
Clarify, please.
”
“
They approved start-up money for the straw.
”
Maya smacks her free hand on the table.
“
Meredith was right!
”
“
It
’
s not a lot. Not enough to last more than a few months, to sustain one or two locations at best. But it
’
s a start.
”
“
My goodness, Henry,
”
Maya says, putting down her teacup and wrapping her arms around him.
“
Do you really think that this might happen?
”
“
For some reason,
”
Henry answers,
“
I do.
”
“
Then why do you look so unsettled?
”
“
Because I
’
m not used to the feeling that forces beyond my control are inexplicably conspiring on my behalf.
”
He sits back down and begins to type an e-mail to Madden. Then, thinking better of it, he stops and reaches for his sat-phone.
Over his shoulder Maya asks,
“
What are you doing?
”
Pressing illuminated numbers on the tiny flip pad, he answers,
“
I
’
m trying to take care of one last minor detail: acquiring the actual straws.
”
“
From whom?
”
He waits for the ringing to commence.
“
Madden.
”
“
Madden? I still don
’
t understand his connection to water purifiers.
”
Maya turns, walks to the kitchen sink, and then turns back to finish.
“
I know that he knows all about how to exploit the situation here for maximum personal profit, but I didn
’
t know that he was at heart this passionate humanitarian.
”
“
You want to go through this again? I know you
’
re not a fan, but he guaranteed me that he knows the guy who has the distribution rights in Galado, who has a direct pipeline to the regional straw guy, and working under this time frame, I have no other choice.
”
“
Guaranteed. Hah.
”
She plays with the faucet, pivoting it left and right but not pulling it on.
“
It
’
s just that this is such a good thing and . . . well, he
’
s not.
”
Henry presses Stop and snaps the phone closed. As he watches Maya, he thinks of what Madden said on the night drive to his meeting with the timber people:
You have to know all the wrong people to get anything done in this country.
“
Listen,
”
he says,
“
if you can put me in touch with someone else who can turn this around just as fast, that would be all right
with
me.
I
’
ll
meet with them immediately, wherever and whenever they want. Otherwise, I don
’
t know what to tell you.
”
When Maya doesn
’
t reply, he continues:
“
All that the suits from Happy Mountain care about is handing over their token check and taking a few well-choreographed photos of their heroic, world-changing founders. They are all
for it if it goes down without a hitch, but if we don
’
t have this ready to roll out by the time they arrive, I can almost guarantee they
’
ll shut it right down.
”
Maya places her cup in the sink, releases a splash of cold water into it, and comes back to the table.
“
Fine,
”
she says.
“
But I don
’
t
want anything to do with him. I don
’
t want to see him or hear him or hear what anyone else has to say about him.
”
Henry nods. Okay.
“
And I don
’
t want you to mention my name or discuss any aspect of me with him at all.
”
“
Yeah, sure.
”
“
I just want the damned straws.
”
“
I understand, Maya.
”
“
And you should be very careful, because he is a despicable, greedy, self-serving human being who cannot be trusted.
”
“
Okay. Other than that, do you mind if I ask what he ever did to make you feel this strongly about him?
”
Maya straightens her chair, sits down, and rubs her eyes with the palms of her hands.
“
Well,
”
she says, blinking and laying her hands palms down on the table,
“
for starters, about a year ago we kind of slept together.
”
~ * ~
Angle of Deterioration
“
So how
’
s your lady friend, then?
”
They
’
re in Madden
’
s Range Rover, heading toward the capital for a lunchtime meeting with the man who has the Galadonian distribution rights to the LifeStraw. How Madden got the Range Rover back after their mountain-road hijacking is a mystery to Henry. He thinks of asking but decides not to. He doesn
’
t want to know.
“
What lady friend?
”
“
Playing coy, eh, mate?
”
Henry stares at the smog-blurred mountains. It
’
s not yet noon, and already the astonishing scale and clarity of the morning peaks are diminished, obscured, something that he can
’
t be sure he ever saw to begin with. It
’
s a malicious tease every dawn. Brilliant sun rising upon a day filled with beauty and possibility, only to disappear a little more each second behind massing clouds of natural and unnatural origin, all but disappearing before peak inclination.
“
I know, Madden.
”
“
Pardon?
”
“
Maya told me.
”
Madden makes a popping noise with his lips.
“
I didn
’
t mean to do her any harm, mate. I tried to do right by her.
”
Henry sighs. According to Madden, a year earlier he met Maya when she was part of a committee representing local interests during the first phase of the prince
’
s corporate revolution. Madden had promised her that a construction deal he was working on would
include housing and jobs for locals. During the process they began sleeping with each other. No explicit promises of fidelity. When a more lucrative and easily resolved situation presented itself, Madden reneged on his promise and abandoned Maya
’
s interests. She was outraged. Several days later, after discovering that he was also having a relationship with a woman in a remote village in the southern part of the country, she abandoned him.
“
But, of course,
”
Henry replies,
“
you did do her harm and you didn
’
t do right by her. Plus, if I
’
m not mistaken, you were married.
”
“
It
’
s more complicated than she might lead you to believe, Tuhoe. I tried to bring her plan to life, but it became more and more unrealistic. It was purely business.
”
“
I really don
’
t care,
”
Henry says.
“
Other than hating you more than I think is healthy, she
’
s over you. That
’
s between you two and this is between us.
”
Madden nods.
“
All right.
”
“
Just don
’
t accuse me of being coy when you
’
re the one groping around for information and pretending you barely know her.
”
“
She deserved better than me.
”
“
This is true. She deserves better than me too. The only question is whether I represent a step forward or back.
”
~ * ~
They meet in a Western-style steak house called Holy Cow a mile outside the capital, in the shadows of the unfinished sports stadium: Henry, Madden, and the regional distributor of the LifeStraw, a man named Sirajh. They order drinks in the bar and then Madden and Sirajh excuse themselves and leave Henry and his warm Chinese lager to consider the abundance of cow paraphernalia in the lobby while they step outside to have a private conversation.
Upon returning ten minutes later, a smiling Sirajh places an arm around Henry
’
s shoulders and leads him through the large, empty restaurant to a corner table that overlooks the abandoned construction site. Sirajh explains that they may eventually be joined by another guest, the Galadonian minister of health,
“
who, along with the prince, offers his full support for this enterprise. But with the situation in the capital, I cannot guarantee this.
”