Chapter
3
The
incident forgotten, young Etienne thought no more of it for several
weeks. The matter only resurfaced as a result of an unusual
circumstance.
Toward
the end of the summer semester, in P.E. Class, Etienne found himself
anchoring the final leg of a relay race, competing directly against
Gary Arberton. The teams were evenly matched, and Etienne began his
leg with a slight lead. In the final 50 meters, Gary laboriously
reeled in his lead, and in the last 10 feet, he arrogantly put his
free hand on Etienne's chest and pushed past, winning by a
counterfeit nose.
As
the teacher inevitably approached, Etienne was so angry he was in
tears. By contrast, Gary belligerently launched into a verbal
tirade, insisting that Etienne had treacherously attempted to trip
him, which (he averred) left him no choice but to steady himself,
with observable results.
The
teacher had a miniature quandary on his hands. Etienne' father was
but a chauffeur at the Canadian Embassy, whereas Gary's father was a
full fledged diplomat. Following the path of least resistance makes
men and rivers crooked, and in two minutes the teacher loudly
pronounced Gary the victor, proclaiming for all to hear that Etienne
had cheated by attempting to trip him.
Denied
justice, Etienne launched forth with the sternest accusation of which
he could conceive. “Gary, you're a liar and a cheat, and your
daddy is a SPY!”
Flush
with his successful dissimulation, Gary retaliated at the top of his
lungs, “You'll pay for that Etienne! Just see if you DON'T!”
Hall
monitors had to drag the two apart as fisticuffs ensued.
None
could imagine the conflagration of hatred that would result from rash
words, lightly spoken in unguarded anger. It was a Catholic school!
