The Orphan Master's Son_ A Novel - Adam Johnson [49]
Then the door opened and, breathing hard, the Second Mate’s wife came in.
She was carrying a suitcase and two five-liter jugs of water. She was sweating, but there was a weird smile on her face.
“What do you think of my new suitcase?” she asked. “I had to barter for it.”
“What did you barter?”
“Don’t be an ass,” she said. “Can you believe I didn’t own a suitcase?”
“I guess you never went anywhere.”
“I guess I never went anywhere,” she said to herself.
She ladled some rice water into a plastic cup for him.
He took a drink and asked her, “Are there dogs on the roof?”
“That’s life on the top floor,” she said. “Broken elevator, leaky roof, toilet vents. I don’t even notice the dogs anymore. The housing council’s breeding them. You should hear them on Sundays.”
“What are they breeding them for? Wait—what happens on Sundays?”
“The guys at the karaoke bar say that dogs are illegal in Pyongyang.”
“That’s what they say.”
“Civilization,” she said.
“Aren’t they going to start missing you at the cannery?”
She didn’t answer. Instead, she knelt down and began rifling the pockets of the suitcase, looking for any evidence of its previous owner.
Jun Do said, “They’re going to give you a criticism session.”
“I’m not going back to the cannery,” she said.
“Not ever?”
“No,” she said. “I’m going to Pyongyang.”
“You’re going to Pyongyang.”
“That’s right,” she said. In a fold of the suitcase’s lining, she found some expired travel passes, stamped by every checkpoint between Kaesong and Chongjin. “Typically it takes a couple weeks, but I don’t know, I got a feeling it could happen any day.”
“What could happen?”
“Them finding my replacement husband.”
“And you think he’s in Pyongyang?”
“I’m a hero’s wife,” she said.
“A hero’s widow, you mean.”
“Don’t say that word,” she said. “I hate the sound of it.”
Jun Do finished his rice water, and slowly, slowly lay back down.
“Look,” she said, “it’s horrible what happened to my husband. I can’t even think about it. Seriously, whenever my mind goes there, something inside me just turns away. But we were only married a few months, and he was on a boat with you almost the whole time.”
It had taken a lot out of him to sit up, and when his head touched the pallet, the comfort of yielding to exhaustion overtook the discomfort of recovery. Almost everything on him hurt, yet a feeling of well-being came over his body, as if he’d been working hard all day with his mates. He closed his eyes and felt the hum of it. When he opened them again, it was afternoon. Jun Do had a feeling that what had awakened him was the sound of her closing the door as she left. He rolled some, so he could see the corner of the room. There was the pan that she used to wash herself. He wished he could reach it, to check if the water was still warm.
Come twilight, the Captain stopped by. He lit a couple of candles and sat in a chair. Looking up at him, Jun Do could see he’d brought a bag. “Look here, son,” the Captain said, and from the bag produced a slab of tuna and two Ryoksong beers. “It’s time to get your health back.”
The Captain opened the bottles and sectioned the tuna raw with his bosun’s knife. “To heroes,” the Captain said, and, halfheartedly, they both drank. The tuna, though, was exactly what Jun Do needed. The fat of the sea, he savored it against the roof of his mouth.
“The catch was good?” Jun Do asked.
“The waters were lively,” the Captain said. “It wasn’t the same without you or the Second Mate, of course. We got a couple hands to help out from the Kwan Li. You heard their captain ended up losing his arm, right?”
Jun Do nodded.
The Captain shook his head. “You know, I’m real sorry about how they worked you over. I wanted to warn you, but it wouldn’t have made much difference.”
“Well, it’s over,” Jun Do said.
“The hard part’s over, and you took it well, no one else could’ve done what you did. Now comes the reward part,” the Captain said. “They’re going