Basil did not answer him immediately. He looked around, to the people who knew him for a lifetime, to the men he had built their houses, to the women for whom he had repaired gates and windows without asking for money, to the doctor who had treated his father in the last months of his life.
“Doctor,” he said, “I apologize for ruining your anniversary. I didn’t come here to make a fuss.
Peter also got up.
- You didn’t ruin anything, Basil.
“Then let me say a few words. I don’t think I’ll have another chance.
Larisa put the glass on the table with a nervous movement.
“Woe to me, do we now give speeches?” Sit down, Basil! Don’t embarrass you!
But her husband didn’t even turn to her.
Eighteen years, he began. Eighteen years I thought that if I was silent, I kept quiet in the house. That if they don’t respond to insults, our child won’t have to see us fight. That if I work harder, if I bring more money and if I do everything I’m asked to do, one day I’ll be good enough.
