The Terminal Experiment - Robert J. Sawyer Page 0,50
world. We know her better than Sarkar, better than Mom or Dad.”
“But, then, how could she do this?”
“Well, she’s never been as strong-willed as we are. That asshole Hans obviously pressured her.”
“But she should have resisted that pressure.”
“Granted. But she didn’t. Now, what do we do about that? Do we give up on the most-important relationship in our lives because of it? Even setting that aside, on a more pragmatic level, do you really want to go back to looking for a mate? Dating? Christ, what a pain in the ass that would be.”
“It sounds like you’re advocating a marriage of convenience.”
“Maybe all marriages are that to some degree. Certainly you’ve speculated that Mom and Dad stayed together simply because it was the path of least resistance.”
“But they never had what Cathy and I had.”
“Perhaps. Anyway, you still haven’t answered my question. We binary guys like simple yes-or-no answers.”
Peter was quiet for a moment. “You mean whether I still love her?” He sighed. “I don’t know.”
“You won’t be able to decide on a course of action until you resolve that question.”
“It’s not that simple. Even if I still love her, I couldn’t take this happening again. I haven’t slept properly since she told me. I think about it constantly. Anything will remind me of it. I see her car in the garage; that reminds me that she gave Hans a lift. I see the couch in our living room; that’s where she told me about it. I hear the word ‘adultery’ or ‘affair’ on TV— Christ, I never realized how often people use those words—and that reminds me of it.” Peter leaned way back in the chair. “I can’t put this behind me until I know that it will always be behind us. She didn’t just do it once, after all. She did it three times—three times over a period of months. Maybe she thought each time was the last.”
“Perhaps,” said the sim. “Remember when we had our tonsils out?”
“What you mean ‘we,’ white man? I’m the one with the scars.”
“Whatever. The point is, we had them out when we were twenty-two. Very late in life for something like that. But we kept getting sore throats and tonsillitis. Finally ole Doc DiMaio said enough already with treating the symptoms. Let’s do something about the cause.”
Peter’s voice was strained. “But what if—what if— what if I’m the cause of Cathy’s infidelity? Remember that lunch with Colin Godoyo? He said his cheating on his wife was a cry for help.”
“Please, Peter. You and I both know that’s bullshit.”
“I’m not sure we each get a vote.”
“Regardless, I’m sure Cathy knows it’s bullshit.”
“I hope so.”
“Cathy and you had a good marriage—you know that. It didn’t rot away from within; it was attacked from outside.”
“I suppose,” said Peter, “but I’ve been mulling it over a lot—looking for any clue that we’d blown it somehow.”
“And did you find any?” asked the sim.
“No.”
“Of course not. You always tried to be a good husband—and Cathy was a good wife, too. Both of you worked at making the marriage a success. You take an interest in each other’s work. You’re supportive of each other’s dreams. And you talk freely and openly about everything.”
“Still,” said Peter, “I wish I could be sure.” He paused. “You remember Perry Mason? Not the original TV series with Raymond Burr, but the short-lived remake they made in the 1970s. Remember it? They repeated it on A&E in the late Nineties. Harry Guardino played Hamilton Burger. Remember that version?”
The sim paused for a moment. “Yes. It wasn’t very good.”
“In point of fact, it stank,” said Peter. “But you remember it?”
“Yes.”
“Remember the guy who played Perry Mason?”
“Sure. It was Robert Culp.”
“Can you recall him? Picture him in the courtroom? Do you remember him in that series?”
“Yes.”
Peter spread his arms. “Robert Culp never played Perry Mason. Monte Markham did.”
“Really?”
“Yes. I’d thought it was Culp, too, until I saw a story about Markham in yesterday’s Star; he’s in town doing Twelve Angry Men at the Royal Alex. But you know the difference between those two actors, Culp and Markham?”
“Sure,” said the sim. “Culp was in I Spy and Greatest American Hero. And, let’s see, in Bob and Carol and Ted and Alice. Great actor.”
“And Markham?”
“A solid character actor; always liked him. Never had a successful series, but wasn’t he in Dallas for a year or so? And, round ’bout 2000, he was in that awful sitcom with Jim Carey.”
“Right,” said Peter. “Don’t you see? We both had a