Melinda’s dark face was just a few inches from Durval, a strong face with a prominent chin and large green eyes. Heitor’s wife was absolutely beautiful, she must have been at most 25 years old, and her long black hair fell to the middle of her back. She wore a very short floral dress that revealed her arms and legs. Her thighs were shiny, and you could see the tiny hairs on her skin, which felt as soft as velvet.
Melinda was leaning over Durval, one knee resting on the sofa and the other leg stretched out. Her hands were skillful as she applied the dressing to Durval’s arm. Durval’s skin, on the other hand, was flabby and withered, as thin as gauze. No wonder the cockatoo’s claws had caused so much damage. The feet of a cockatoo are the size of a pigeon’s feet. Durval felt a bit of shame for getting so hurt in his fight with such a small bird. For his consolation, Heitor had also gotten hurt, even more than he did. Melinda had first taken care of her husband, who had a bandage on his forehead and another on his hand. In summary, both gentlemen had come off worse in the confrontation with the bird, a real beating. All because the creature had gone crazy and attacked Heitor when he inadvertently took a horned skull out of the cabinet. In trying to help his friend, it ended up being Durval who now received care from Melinda. He forgot the pain of the scratches, almost wishing he had suffered injuries on the other arm too, just to stay a few more moments near such a sweet creature.
Heitor’s grumbling brought Durval back from his trance. He was rummaging through the drawers of the living room cabinet looking for his cigar box.
— How could you have lost the cigars, dear? — Melinda asked. Her breath smelled of mint.
— How am I supposed to know? — Heitor grunted, annoyed. — It’s all Dorotéia’s fault!
— You know she doesn’t like the skull.
— Had she gone crazy like this before with the skull? — Durval asked.
— The first time was worse — Melinda said.
— Really?
— Dorotéia scratched near Heitor’s eye; he thought he was going to go blind — she gestured with her fingers showing a tiny space.
— I thought she had gotten used to it — Heitor explained.
— And then she ran away — Melinda continued. — It took us almost a week to find her. She was at Geraldo’s junkyard. She didn’t even want to come with us. Heitor had to use a glove to pull her out from under a rusty car where she had nestled. Then, here at home, she didn’t want to eat. It took a while for her to get back to normal.
— At least this time she didn’t run away — Durval said, referring to the screams the cockatoo let out from time to time outside the house.
— I really lost the cigar box!! How could this happen?
— I’ll help you look for it — Melinda said, finishing the dressing on Durval’s arm. — You’re ready for another one, Mr. Durval! Sorry again for Dorotéia.
— It’s fine. She got scared of the skull.
Melinda smiled and got up.
Episode L continues in the next edition.
JOSÉ GASPAR
Filmmaker and writer
www.historiasdooutromundo.com