Cказки Призраков. Tales of Ghosts. Премия им. Эдгара По / Edgar Poe Award (Билингва: Rus/Eng)

– Последний друг… Он ждал, когда я вернусь с работы… Чирикал мне что-то на своём языке… И… сдох – не вынес жизни в нашей проклятой семье! Зато теперь он является мне по ночам – призраком… Ты веришь в призраков?

– Твоя канарейка умерла?

Артём кивнул и шепнул Светлане на ухо:

– Беги от денег прочь. Я потрачу их все, чтобы они не испортили моих детей и не достались жене!

– Что ты такое говоришь?! – воскликнула Светлана, отшатнувшись от него в ужасе и подумав: как же хорошо, что их пути разошлись!

– Да, наши пути разошлись, – будто читая её мысли, произнёс Артём.

 – И в прошлое невозможно вернуться, потому что в него не нужно возвращаться… Но, кто знает, если бы ты не ушла от меня тогда, возможно, сейчас на моём месте оказалась бы ты…

    21 сентября 1995

9. A canary

Svetlana hadn’t been there for ten years, but she went to her old friend’s party with a light heart and absolute peace of mind. It was only out of simple female curiosity that she wanted to have a look at Artyom, what if he still lived there and was at home.

He worked for a commercial company then. At first, everything was great, they had clothes and food exclusively from luxury supermarkets, the most prestigious car, and not a dacha, but a palace. However, soon a bottomless void appeared in Svetlana’s soul, and she felt lonely. She loved her husband, who used to leave early in the morning and return at night, because of meetings, negotiations, friends, partners, clients and business trips, and she missed his attention, care and, probably, love.

Repeatedly and in vain, Svetlana asked to devote more time to her.

«You don’t understand anything, money rules the world!» Artyom used to say, and nothing changed.

One day Svetlana left him for nowhere, but quickly enough she got a good job, began to earn decent money and to live no worse than before. She stopped being sad, soon got married again and gave birth to charming twins. However, at some point, she caught herself thinking that she no longer cared what time her second husband came home, whether he devoted free time to her or not.

Negotiations? Okay. Business trip? Okay as well.

They had money, that really managed everything.

«Just think about it! I became an ideal woman for Artyom,» Svetlana came to the conclusion, passing by his doorway, and noticed light in the familiar window…

Artyom opened the door.

«Wow! What way?!» he said in surprise. «I’ve been thinking about you a lot lately.