Nicholas and Elizabeth

The fifth story in the cycle that includes “Alex Sees Him on the Water” and “He Talks to Himself” is now in the works. It faces the same sociocultural challenge that faced the first (and yet unpublished) story in the group, “Now That He Had Stolen It”: It revolves around two old, white, heterosexual people. I hear the chorus of editors: “That’s nice. Let’s get together sometime. I’ll give you a call. Bye.” But Nicholas and Elizabeth are idiosyncratic and distinct enough to be given the chance to play a duet for us. There are many ways to make music out of love and death, and theirs is worth hearing. And “Stolen” was a hoot.