Renaldo

by James McCreath

  his journey. He feared for a moment that he had caused her some physical

  damage, so violent was the reaction to his reaching the gates of Utopia. He was

  only reassured that she was whole by the loosening of her iron grip on his locks,

  and the hearty laugh that she emitted once composure found its way back into

  her spent existence.

  He had swooned at her fragrance, almost unable to follow her urgings.

  Never could he have imagined such a sweet musk. He drank her in, his head

  swimming in the pool of her craving.

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  JAMES McCREATH

  At the conclusion of this segment, the underclassman was congratulated

  for proficiency beyond expectation and escorted lovingly up once more to caress

  her northern lips. He would be informed that there was more on her course

  curriculum this night, however, and after a short recess, instruction began on

  the most essential of human functions.

  His athletic prowess carried over into the domain of these lessons, and it

  was the teacher, not the pupil, who was amazed at the versatility and innovation

  which was abundantly displayed in class.

  Time slipped away until the first hue of the coming morning made itself

  evident on the ceiling of the lovers’ cloistered surroundings. They had not slept

  at all, preferring, instead, to drink the sweet wine of their newfound pleasures

  time and time again.

  There was a sense of the supernatural under that canopied college. A

  sense of things and experiences beyond this world. Things too complex for the

  exhausted student to comprehend as he lay with the source of his enlightenment

  curled up in his arms.

  So much had happened to him in the last twenty-four hours. Too much

  for his clouded, overwhelmed brain. He was aware of only one fact as his senses

  tried to etch this moment in his mind for all time. The worldly professor had

  been most appreciative of his attention to detail and unselfish research. While

  she would demand extended tutorials right up until he was forced to depart

  back through that mystic portal into the real world, she had revealed his term

  grade with a pink lip pencil on the smoothness of his chest. He would derive a

  sense of deep satisfaction each time he glanced down at the ‘A+’ that adorned

  his exhausted physique.

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  Chapter thirty

  I’m sorry to say that I must leave you soon, my love. I have a business

  luncheon with Astor Gordero at the Jockey Club at one o’clock. I’ll tell you

  all about it after I clean up and get dressed, but first I have to locate my

  personal belongings. They had everything moved from the training center to

  the rooms they assigned us in the hotel here. The key to my room should still

  be in my jacket pocket.”

  It was just after eleven o’clock, and Argentina’s new football hero stood

  peering through the bedroom window at the never-ending procession of

  celebrants below him on Avenida Nueve de Julio. Simone had not stirred from

  their love-nest, wanting to prolong her rapture until the last possible moment.

  She knew that there were serious matters to discuss with this naked adonis

  strikingly framed in the window, but the essence of his virility made it hard for

  her to burst the sensual bubble the two of them had been floating in. Now the

  time had finally come to pay heed to Astor Gordero’s bidding.

  “Take a look in the closet here, my darling. I’m sure you will find

  everything has been delivered in tact. I even took the liberty of unpacking for

  you.” She smiled coyly at her surprised lover.

  “How on earth did you manage a trick like that?”

  “Oh, a small word and a large tip from Astor Gordero can accomplish just

  about anything in this city. Surely you have come to realize that by now.”

  Renaldo opened one of the large French doors to the closet. Just as

  described, his wardrobe was perfectly displayed for inspection.

  “I feel like the two of you conspired to seduce me last night. What if I

  had fallen for one of those ‘hostesses’ down in the ballroom and gone to my

  assigned room to sow my wild oats?” The smile on his face belied his mock

  serious tone.

  “Then you would have been a horse’s ass, my young stallion!” They both

  laughed as Simone threw a pillow at his pleasure parts. Her expression turned

  pensive all of a sudden as she addressed her amour in a more serious voice.

  “Renaldo, I am aware of the reason that you are meeting with Astor today.

  He has watched us fall in love, and he didn’t want me to get hurt by any

  decisions that were out of my control.”

  She paused while motioning for him to come to her on the bed. Once they

  were entwined in each other’s arms, she continued.

  JAMES McCREATH

  “I know that there are people in Buenos Aires from England. People who

  want you and Ramon Vida to go back with them to London to play for their

  football team . . . for a considerable amount of money as I understand it!”

  Renaldo was quick to interject, “Simone, my darling, I don’t need the

  money, and one word from you will keep me in Argentina by your side forever!

  It would be impossible for me to leave you now!” She pressed a finger gently

  to his lips.

  “Listen to me, my love. We do not control our own destinies anymore, you

  and I. We are both assets of an adoring public, and our careers are controlled

  by the same ambitious man. I know that you have signed a personal services

  contract with Astor, as have I. He is, therefore, in a position to do whatever he

  wants with us if we defy his wishes.”

  As she breathed the last word, Symca could feel the tension and anger

  build in his body.

  “Nobody owns me, Simone, and I’ll be damned if I’ll let anyone run your

  life either. You are a star, the most famous woman in all of Argentina and . . .”

  Again she set her finger to his lips to calm him.

  “Shhhhhh, just listen to what I have to say. Astor is not the enemy. We

  are both where we are today because of the faith he showed in us. He has big

  plans for both of us, plans that will allow us to be together more often than if

  you stayed right here in the capital itself. Because of your victory yesterday, and

  my close association with the successful tournament, Astor claims that I am

  now a very hot property on the international market. He wants to milk my new

  global status for all it is worth. That means an extended world tour, and he has

  already finalized many of the arrangements. I have very little choice other than

  to go along with his wishes, for Astor Gordero always gets what Astor Gordero

  wants, one way or another.”

  She paused to let the last phrase have the desired effect.

  The chanteuse gave her lover a squeeze, then nibbled his muscular biceps

  ever so tenderly before reciting the obvious.

  “That means that we will only be separated for six months at the most, as

  opposed to possibly two years if you remain in Argentina.”

  “I don’t want to be away from you for six minutes let alone six months.

  It would seem like an eternity! Surely there is ample work for you here in

  Argentina!” His pained countenance o
nly strengthened her resolve.

  “My love, you know so little about the woman inside this body. I came from

  humble roots, starting with only the clothes on my back before Astor Gordero

  showed me the way. I swore that I would never be homeless or penniless again.

  I am an ambitious woman, a woman that wants to grab the golden ring while it

  is there for the taking. Maybe it is because you have never experienced poverty

  the way I have, maybe that is the reason you have trouble understanding why

  I am so driven.”

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  RENALDO

  He had no rebuttal to her last point, and she could see his pain and

  frustration mounting. Simone tried again to make him see the way their worlds

  were about to unfold. “Renaldo, you have reached the pinnacle of your chosen

  profession. I want to be the best that I can possibly be in my profession as well.

  If you really love me, allow me to be the best that I can possibly be. That is

  what true love is all about!”

  She had taken considerable poetic license in relating her tale to the young

  athlete, but it was true that she was an ambitious woman, a woman who would

  not let her heart stand in the way of what she believed continued hard work

  could achieve.

  “There is another reason I wish to leave Argentina, a reason that could have

  a terrible effect on us both. You know that Astor is very well connected with

  the ruling junta. Well, it is his opinion that the mood of euphoria that your

  victory has brought to this country will be short-lived. Argentina’s problems

  have not gone away. They have only been obscured by this football mania. Each

  dollar that I earn here at home is eaten up by our astronomical inflation rate. It

  will be the same for you.”

  Her gaze was steadily searching for acknowledgement of these facts in

  his pale blue eyes. Simone could see that she was finally making headway.

  Renaldo’s nod confirmed that he was aware that she spoke only the truth.

  “The tournament did not help the starving and unemployed in the long

  run. When today’s luster fades, the people will be left with a giant economic

  hangover. And who will be the voice of the people to express their pain and

  suffering? The same bloodthirsty terrorists that claimed to act on their behalf

  before they agreed to an armistice during the tournament! Renaldo, don’t

  you see? The junta will react even more ruthlessly to keep their image from

  being tarnished now. The world has been watching us the past month, and

  we have passed the test with flying colors. What you and your teammates

  accomplished on the football field has glossed over our nation’s violent fight for

  civil liberties and freedom of speech. But it is only temporary. People will start

  to disappear in the middle of the night again, and there will be more bombings

  and kidnappings and bloodshed.”

  As much as Renaldo did not want to hear such blasphemy against his

  beloved homeland, the land for whose very honor he had toiled so ardently for

  the past several months, he knew that her prophecy had far too great a chance

  of coming true.

  “It will be dangerous to be a prominent figure in Argentina, according to

  Astor. It won’t matter anymore if you are a government official, a general, a rock

  star, or a football player. If you are perceived as having wealth and stature by

  those who wish to make an example of you, then it won’t matter who or what

  you are. I am scared to death about Argentina’s future and my own personal

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  safety, Renaldo, and I am going to leave as soon as I possibly can! Please, my

  love, take this opportunity to get away from here. Go to a place that is safe,

  where we can be together to watch what happens in Argentina from a distance.

  Astor knows what he is talking about, and he has convinced me that this

  country is not the place to be in the foreseeable future!”

  There was real passion and fear in her voice now, not contrived play acting.

  She held him tightly in her arms while he tried to grasp the urgency of her

  current affairs lecture. Finally, he kissed her gently, then rose from the bed.

  “Do you promise to come to London if I go? You won’t disappoint me,

  will you?” He sounded like a lost little boy now, not the insatiable stickman

  that had driven her over the brink.

  “Of course I do, my darling. Do you think that I would deny myself this

  for a second longer than I possibly had to?”

  She was up off the bed and at his side now, grasping his sleeping giant

  in her tiny hand. Their lips met lustily, as if to confirm their devotion to one

  another even if they were thousands of miles apart. Simone grudgingly broke

  the embrace, her agent’s instructions resurfacing in her passion-clouded mind.

  “Go, go and take your shower. I will order some coffee and croissants from

  room service. Think about what I have just told you, Renaldo. We can have the

  best of all possible worlds, wrapped in each other’s arms, far from the gathering

  storm.”

  Simone was pleased with her performance, convinced that her lover was

  still putty in her hands. It had not been a hard role to play, for she did believe

  much of the rhetoric that Gordero had given her as a script. What was more, she

  really didn’t want to leave her eager stallion for any longer than she absolutely

  had to.

  The streets of Buenos Aires resembled a giant wastepaper basket. Ticker-

  tape, confetti, and various other forms of paper jubilation were strewn from

  lamposts, trolley cables, trees, and buildings. It seemed that no one was working

  in the capital this glowing Monday, for the populous was either too hungover,

  or still too high on the adrenaline of victory to concentrate on their menial

  day-to-day tasks. Wandering bands of merrymakers jammed the sidewalks and

  often took over whole streets, blocking traffic to start an impulsive festival of

  football euphoria.

  The general manager of the Hotel Presidente had been informed by

  Wolfgang Stoltz to contact both Renaldo De Seta and Ramon Vida no later

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  RENALDO

  than eleven o’clock that Monday morning. He was to personally relay the

  following message:

  “Due to the congestion along Avenida Nueve de Julio, Astor Gordero’s

  limousine will be at the rear service entrance of the hotel at twelve noon. Both

  the National Team players will be escorted by hotel security to the waiting

  vehicle using nonpublic areas of the hotel. They are expected to be on their way

  to the Jockey Club no later than twelve-fifteen.”

  Renaldo had phoned down to his friend immediately upon finishing his

  shower to make sure that Vida had his priorities straight.

  “Ramon, it’s Renaldo. Did you get the message that there has been a

  slight change of plans?”

  “Ya, man, some little shit in a tuxedo kept pounding on my door at a very

  bad time. I was just saying good-bye to one of my new friends. The asshole

  wouldn’t go away. Estes finally had to get rid of him! Say, that old coach of

  yours is alright with the sweet young things. We kind of pooled our talents and

  bunked in together last night. As a
matter of fact, he’s still here going strong.

  The guy thinks he’s twenty years old, for Christ’s sake. Where did you go last

  night, man? I was looking all over for you. There were so many señoritas that

  wanted to meet ‘The Great Renaldo.’ You really owe me, man. I had to look

  after them all for you. I’m exhausted!”

  “Well, Ramon, they were in the most capable hands on the National

  Team, of that I am certain! Now get your act together. We are being picked up

  in less than an hour. I’ll see you then.”

  Simone had promised her new lover to be waiting anxiously for his return,

  for she had booked the Ambassador’s Suite for the Monday night as well. A

  second evening of romance would be all that was required to cement their

  future plans together, in England!

  It was only a six-block journey to the Jockey Club for the two National

  Team players, but the streets were alive with such irrational chaos that the

  forty-five minutes allotted traveling time would barely be enough. The R&Rs

  settled back into the tinted obscurity of the Mercedes to enjoy the sights and

  sounds.

  “So, where did you get to last night, man? That was too good a party

  to just walk out on.” Ramon had a lascivious grin on his face that belied his

  fatigue.

  “Oh, you know me. I’m not much of a partier. It was a big day, and I

  couldn’t stand all those drunken idiots wanting pictures and autographs. I just

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  went to my room and took it easy.” Ramon could not believe what he was

  hearing.

  “Man, oh, man, I don’t know about you, my friend. How are we ever going

  to live together in England if you don’t want to get laid? I have my work cut

  out for me if we are going to be roommates.” The extroverted Vida sat silently

  looking out the window for several seconds. “OK, so here’s the deal. You teach

  me how to speak English, and I teach you how to act around the ladies. You

  are a star now, man, you have to start acting like one. That means, lots and lots

  of pussy! If you don’t listen to me, Renaldo, the English will think that you

  are some kind of fairy, and we can’t afford to have that kind of reputation over

  there. We are the great Latin saviors, come to rescue English football and fuck

  English women. That is our mission, my friend!”