Chapter 28 Proxy War
“Kelly…honey…you invited them. You asked Malcolm about the film festival.” I was trying to calm my girl down. I knew the signs – the pursed lips, her fingers tapping quietly on her thigh. They were small signs, probably invisible to most people but a warning to me of her mounting anger. Kelly glared momentarily at Kim Curzon. I hoped they both –Kelly and Kim were listening to my strained whisper. Kelly because I wanted her to calm down; Kim because I wanted to warn her what effect she was having on Kelly.
In any case what I said was true. Kelly had insisted on inviting Kim and Elena – among others – to Nancy Astor's fundraiser. I couldn’t even remember what this one was supporting – Nancy ran so many. I'd warned Kelly at the time. “Nancy was furious when she found out about the fight between Kim and Vi. She blames you for it. Why aggravate her?”
Kelly had smiled quietly and replied, “Peter, I do because she aggravates me.”
That didn’t make sense unless you knew Kelly. “So why do you go to her fundraisers?”
“Peter, I go to them for the same reason you teach sailing. We have an obligation to give back to society. I go to Nancy’s fundraisers because she works for good charities.”
“All of them? Come on, Kelly.” I had gently squeezed the soft flesh just above her left elbow – a placatory gesture that, for some reason, Kelly always found erotic – maybe because it always made me want to cuddle her and undress her. “Admit it…you’re grandstanding. It’s one upmanship. That’s why you always have to make up a complete table. You want to prove yourself to Nancy, even though you don’t need to.”
“When I want a psychiatrist, I’ll get a referral from my doctor,” Kelly had retorted acidly. “I'm inviting Kim, and that's the end of it." Predictably, that had been the last word on the subject.
Now, at the function, I suppressed a smirk. Kelly had gotten her comeuppance as Kim outshone her, dominating the conversation at the table. Kim took a drag on her cigarette, she turned to Malcolm. “Did the festival show any of your particular favourite films?”
He took a sip of his drink. “Yes – ‘D.O.A.’ for starters, Its opening must be the most unusual opening of any movie, with Bigelow walking into the police station to report his own murder.” He paused. “Ivor, I know you came to some. Which ones?”
Ivor grinned. “We had to – you just about threatened to shoot us if we didn’t.” The rest of us laughed. “But yeah, Pamela and I saw ‘Kiss Me Deadly’. Mickey Spillane didn’t like what the screenwriters did to his character, Mike Hammer. They almost turned him into a pimp. That was a major studio film, I think.”
“No,” Malcolm argued. “It was made by an independent, just released by Universal. We also showed Orson Welles’s ‘The Stranger’ – another film starring Edward G. Robinson.” He turned to Kim. “As you said earlier…despite Little Caesar, that man wasn’t just a gangster in the movies. In The Stranger – he was a Nazi hunter.”
“Welles played the Nazi. Kim I’m sure you remember Welles’s line in the film that almost put Robinson’s character off his scent.” Kelly looked straight at the actress. “Someone at dinner had just said, ‘War never solves anything,’ Welles retorts, ‘Oh I don't know. It seems we haven't heard much from Carthage over the last two thousand years’ “ Kelly’s eyes glittered coldly, “Sometimes a country, a person, is totally destroyed in battle.”
Kim flushed, She knew as I did Kelly was referring to Kim’s fight with Wendy Griffiths which had ended with Wendy forcing an already defeated, sobbing Kim to drink a large glass of neat vodka before Wendy punched her twice in the gut. Kim had crumpled to the floor and vomited up all her drink. Kim had been demurely subdued ever since and the memory of what had happened to her still terrified her
“’The Stranger’ isn’t strictly a film noir.” Kim, her eyes glistening, her face red, her hands trembling, pulled out a new cigarette. She held it up and in an action I thought had gone out twenty years ago, Michael Tippet reached over, cupped his hand and lit her cigarette. She put it to her lips and drew on it. “No, it’s not a crime film but ‘The Woman in the Window’ is. In that one, Edward G is a college professor. He was a very talented actor.”
“Maybe because he was Jewish and an immigrant – his family were refugees from Romania – he was also a critic of the Nazis,” Elena joined the conversation. I wondered was she coming to Kim’s rescue as she continued. “He donated a fortune – a quarter of a million, which would be worth a lot more today – to charities just before the war. He starred in ‘Confessions of a Nazi Spy’ and in two more anti-Nazi films – biographies of Dr Ehrlich, the man who found a cure for syphilis, and Paul Reuter who started the news agency.” I was amazed that knew so much. Maybe I shouldn’t have been – Elena clearly studied hard.
Malcolm smiled and patted her arm. If she was trying to impress her new boyfriend with her mind and not just her body, she looked to have succeeded. I smiled too. It wasn’t just Kim who was outshining Kelly. Even Elena was talking more.
Elena continued, “’Confessions’ is an interesting film. It was released twice – the second one had footage of the Nazi invasion of Norway, which hadn’t happened when the film was originally released.”
“And it drew on real events,” added Kim. She gulped rather than sipped her Jamieson’s –nothing but Irish or Scotch whisky for her. “One of the scenes was straight from life, where the German Bund bashed some American Legionaries.” Kim knew her films. She put her cigarette to her lips, drew on it and, nestling close to Michael, gently breathed out some smoke. The cigarette seemed to calm her nerves, or perhaps it was Michael’s proximity.
I'd forgotten how sensuous smoking could be. So many of the older romance movies showed the lovers smoking intimately. Kim reminded me of that, and not only that – she showed she knew how to flirt. To be fair to her though, ever since Michael had taken Kim home after she had lost so horribly to Wendy Griffiths and had played the knight in shining armour I'd not seen her flirting with anyone, -not even me. Michael’s attention that night had been just what Kim needed and now she seemed genuinely smitten with him. But I suspected that Michael was indeed 'playing' the role of the knight in shining armour. Perhaps I was cynical- well that came from being with Kelly but I was certain he was more interested in getting Kim's legs open -often- than in her emotions. And I suspected he found it more than convenient to be the squire of an up and coming and well connected actress like Kim. Her voice brought me back to the conversation. “Edward G’s role was largely based on life too. There was an FBI agent who investigated a spy ring. Didn’t get him far – Hoover fired him.”
“Yes and later, Edward G got in trouble himself. He went before the House Un-American Activities Committee. Wasn’t he blacklisted in the McCarthy period?”
“Not quite, Elena,” Kim replied, taking another sip of her whisky and another draw on her cigarette, “but he did have trouble getting work.”
Malcolm sat back, content to listen to the two women. They knew a lot more than I did about the film industry of that period, probably a lot more than anyone at our table other than Malcolm himself. They certainly knew more than Kelly, which was something not lost on Michael. He stood at my side, he’d returned from getting Kim yet another whisky, her third or fourth since we’d sat down together and whispered as if he was speaking only to me, but Kelly was sitting right beside me and his voice was easily loud enough for her to hear. “Kelly seems lost for words. Being upstaged by Kim is one thing, but Elena too…” He stifled a chuckle. “Kelly must be glad that Vic isn't here. You know how he loves to gossip.”
Kelly's hand gripped my thigh and I glanced at her out of the corner of my eye. Her face was white, as it always was when she was consumed with anger. Michael handed Kim her drink and squeezed her arm gently. He sat down smiling and added, addressing Kelly directly now, “I believe you invited them both, Kelly – Kim and Elena.”
“I invited Elena because Malcolm wouldn't come without her,” Kelly snapped back. “I invited Kim as company for you.”
“And excellent company she is too,” Michael smiled smoothly.
“Surely you could pay her more attention.”
“What, and interrupt her conversation with Elena?”
“Why not? After all, its almost rude of them to monopolise the table talk like this.”
He turned and listened to the two women talking for a moment before injecting himself into the conversation. “Didn't Edward G get his start in live theatre?”
“Yes,” replied Kim, “but only for a year or so before he switched to silent films.”
“Have you ever thought about a film career?”
Kim shrugged. “Not really. For one thing, I'd have to move from here. Besides, I like the audience rapport that you get with live theatre.” She exhaled some smoke, took another puff of her cigarette and turned in her chair to look straight at Michael. “I've done some TV drama.”
“Oh yes? Tell me, which ones?”
Kim started to tell him. I’ll admit I was impressed. She had done a lot of roles – including a few major ones – in PBS dramas. I was surprised that Michael hadn't asked her before.
Kelly nudged me and whispered – as Michael had done – as if only to me, but intended to be heard across the circle, “They say the best way to win a man is to get him talking about himself. Maybe that’s the best way to win a woman too.”
Kim flashed a defiant look. Kelly met Kim’s glance with a cold smile and a steady gaze. Kim coloured and looked away. Again she gulped some of her whisky before getting Michael to light another cigarette for her It occurred to me that perhaps Michael had indeed asked Kim about herself before – often – and that Kelly was right too.
A few moments later, Kelly laid her hand on my arm as she got up. “Come, Peter. It’s meet and greet time.”
We said our farewells and went to mingle. I ignored Michael’s last comment, “Vic would say Kelly’s cutting her losses,” but I knew from Kelly’s soft hiss that she heard and was even more furious.
“My dear, you seem to know everyone,” I murmured as we meandered our way through the crowd.
“Peter, your friend Vic would say ‘only the people that matter’ but I say Nancy and I have a wide circle of friends…even if I wouldn’t count her as a friend.”
I squeezed her arm. “Kelly, you’d better be careful. There she is.”
Kelly smiled as she turned. “How lovely to see you, Nancy. Thank you for inviting me to your function. I’ve brought some friends along…Kim you know, and Peter of course…but I don’t think you’ve met Elena, Malcolm’s new girlfriend. I’ll have to introduce you to her later.”
“I look forward to it,” Nancy smiled, “but in the meantime, I’d like you to meet Barbara Castle. She’s a market analyst and works with the university.”
Kelly smiled and greeted Barbara. Nancy described Barbara as being a close associate and instrumental in supporting the fundraising for whatever the charity was. I couldn’t remember – Nancy Astor was involved with so many and a patron of most. We chatted for a while, moving from small talk to economics and philosophy – if you regarded Hayek and von Mises as philosophers. Barbara was a libertarian and she repeated all the anti-state maunderings that were then – in 2006 – so popular with some of the rich. She opposed the state supporting anyone or anything. My own anger was about to brim over when Barbara finally left to talk to some other people.
As she was leaving, Kelly turned to me and whispered, “I should introduce her to Kim.”
“Why? Barbara hates PBS. She and Kim will be instant enemies, the moment the topic comes up…and it will.”
Kelly smiled. “That’s precisely why I want to introduce them.”
I looked at her.
“Peter Balfour, do I need to explain everything? I’ll spell it out. A – I don’t like Nancy.”
“I know that. You haven’t liked her since school, and it’s still the same reason.” I threw my grenade. “She makes you feel small.”
Kelly whitened. “I’ll ignore that comment.”
That was one point for me. I’d gotten under her skin. I might pay for it later, but sometimes Kelly needed reminding that she could play her mind games with a lot of other people, but they didn’t work on me – not always, at any rate. I bit off a smile as she went on.
“B – Barbara Castle is one of Nancy’s key supporters. That means Nancy needs her around and to do that, Nancy needs to stay on her good side. But Nancy also wants people like Kim to grace her functions, so she can show them off and preen. She loves to play the patron of the arts.”
“What do you mean…play?” I asked, feeling to need to challenge her again. “Nancy isn’t playing at that. Remember the garden party she hosted to raise money for the theatre companies – the garden party where we saw Kim and Violet fight? No, Nancy really is a patron of the arts.”
“Maybe, it’s irrelevant,” Kelly’s replied with a little gasp of exasperation that told me I’d got under her skin again. Another point to me.
“C - Nancy can’t support both sides when hostilities commence.”
“So that’s what you want? Hostilities, to ruin Nancy’s fundraiser?”
“What if I do?” Kelly was tight lipped, defensive, which was unusual for her. I wondered if I’d stung her more deeply than I realized. Nevertheless, I wasn’t going to let her plot go unchallenged.
“You didn’t invite Elena because Malcolm wouldn’t come without her. You didn’t need to invite Malcolm at all. You could have invited some of our other friends. No, you invited her because you thought she’d be crass and ruin Nancy’s function.”
“How can you say that? She wasn’t crass at all.”
“No, she wasn’t. So you invited Kim as your backstop. You know they’re both fiery and feisty and fond of a fight. If you couldn't set Elena up to fight, you’d set Kim up instead…which is what you’re talking about, right now.”
“So?” Again Kelly was tight-lipped.
“Right now, Kim’s terrified of fighting. You reminded her again of how Wendy Griffiths destroyed her She’s nowhere near getting over that humiliation.”
“So it’s about time she did!”
“You'll ruin more than Nancy’s party if you do this. You'll wreck their social life too…and maybe Kim's career.”
Kelly looked at me and I thought she was about to say “So?” again. If she had, I think I would have walked away right then. I don't know what that might have led to, but there was no way I wanted to be with somebody who was willing to jeopardize a friend’s career just for some petty revenge. Yes, I wanted to see a fight, not just because I liked seeing girls fight for all sorts of reasons, but because Kelly was all but insatiable after watching or being in a fight. Besides, I loved watching Kelly manipulate people. She never even suspected that I was even manipulating her at times – just mildly – by giving her a gentle push in the right direction. There were times though, when I had to give her a gentle push back – like now. I liked Kim and I thought Kelly did too. I didn’t want to see her hurt physically, emotionally or in her career.
Kelly looked at me for a moment and then, instead of saying “so?” again as I thought – feared – she would, she slipped her arm into mine. “Peter you have a lot to learn. Do you really think that the Trustees will be worried about a little tiff between Kim and some other woman? Kim's Irish temper is legendary. She’s often been in fights. They tell me her makeup artist is very experienced at masking black eyes, scratches and bruises. A win or even a close loss will rebuild her confidence more than anything Michael can do for her. Not that he hasn't done a lot, of course.
“No, not even a full scale brawl will damage Kim's career. In fact it might just make it. It shows spirit, especially if Kim’s enemy is a libertarian. After all, the Trustees rely on government funding too.” She smiled. “Even you wouldn’t object to seeing that bitch Barbara get taken down a peg. Go on…admit it.”
That was as near an olive branch as I had ever gotten from Kelly and she was right. I had no love for opinions like those Barbara held. I smiled and kissed her nose. “Yes, I guess I do have a lot to learn.”
I found something else to talk about. Thankfully we ran into Holly Davis who was there with other faculty members from the university- though not Kelly Rivers. Again I was struck by the difference between Appearance and Reality. Holly wearing a similar outfit to those I'd seen her in before- the leatherette corset and boots still looked to me far more like a D/s Mistress than an English lecturer who specialised in nineteenth century literature. This time though Holly was neither a Mistress nor a lecturer, she was a homesick mom-and very unhappy. “ The faculty banned all the staff from using skype. The memo said it used too much bandwith. It doesn’t. – it uses very little. It makes a mess of the distance education programme I’ m over here to develop. You people develop skype. Then you stop people from applying it.”
Barbara Castle said, “The ban’s to stop abuses. Too many people were using it for private purposes.”
“What do you mean abusing it? It’s the only way I get to see my child in England. I miss him –he’s only three. I’d not have come here if I couldn’t skype him and my husband. Damn bean counters. I’m getting a drink.” She walked off, her boots clicking on the tiles
I stood alone listening and watching the crowd. Kim was on her own- surprisingly, it must have been the first time she let Michael off the leash all night but I guessed even she might draw the line at following him to the bathroom. “Why hello angel. How are you?”Stewart James greeted her, wrapping an arm round her waist and drawing her into a kiss.
“Stu! Don’t do that it’s embarrassing. I've told you that before.”Kim protested.
“And I have told you that you look even more beautiful when you blush. ” My old friend drawled, taking no notice of Kim, kissing her again." It's so good to see you cheerful again. You were down for way too long."
"I'm glad the season is almost over, I'm sick of playing Paula Tanqueray."
"Angel, don't kid me." Stu pulled her close. "You've been petrified, ever since that slut Wendy Griffiths smashed you up, you've been scared to say boo. It's good to see you back again."
" Stewart James! Don't say such things. I can handle myself." Kim pushed away. "I'm not scared of trailer trash like that." She flounced away.
Stu turned to see me looking on. "Poor Kim, I think she's going to get into trouble again..I hope Michael will look after her."
***
About a half hour later, Kelly got her opportunity to make mayhem. We had run into Kim and Michael snuggled together in a corner over drinks. As we joined them, Kelly spotted Barbara Castle and waved her over. “Barbara…meet my friend Kim. She’s an actress and she’s just finished a successful season in The Winslow Boy and now she’s playing in title role in ‘The Second Mrs Tanqueray’.” It was Kelly’s turn to lob a grenade now. “Kim’s also been in several PBS TV shows.”
I looked a little more closely at Barbara. She was a slightly plump but not unattractive blonde with a huge bust – the sort that guaranteed lower back problems in later life. Right now though, her bosom was the sort that guaranteed plenty of attention from men, so she was probably less concerned about later life. I could hardly tear my eyes from her chest to look at her other features, and they were features that would turn enough men’s heads anyway. Barbara’s corn coloured hair floated down to her shoulders and set off her lightly tanned skin to perfection. Her full figure was encased within a lady’s suit – fawn jacket and skirt over a cream coloured blouse. The outfit was slightly old fashioned but unmistakably expensive and elegant. It spoke of old money. So did her pearl necklace and matching ear rings. She looked just like the majority of those associated with the University of Chicago’s Trustees – the epitome of ‘establishment’, pampered and used to getting her own way. She had the air of someone who got what she wanted, whenever she wanted it, without needed to try too hard.
Barbara looked at Kim and the grenade went off. “Why do you think that PBS should get any money from the government?” she asked directly. “People like you should be able to raise money for the types of shows PBS puts on. For that matter, you should also be raising enough money for your stage shows. Why should my taxes go to support you? Why should someone who likes Hollywood films be made to support you?”
Kim coloured, obviously not expecting this kind of confrontation. She stood up, drew on her cigarette and looked at Michael, then at Kelly and me . “It’s important to have a vibrant arts community,” she replied levelly. “People learn more. They benefit from the arts. They benefit from paintings and from cultural experiences.”
“True,” Barbara retorted, “but those who benefit from them should pay for them. They shouldn’t expect other people to pay for their own entertainment. After all, I don’t expect you to pay for the Cubs or for Wrigley Field. Why should I pay for what you offer?”
“It's also educational. Look at the PBS series on Secrets of the Dead. People learn so much from the documentaries.” Kim drew on her cigarette and exhaled smoke – right at Barbara.
When she stopped coughing, Barbara continued. “If people want education they can subscribe to the History Channel. Anyway, it’s a non sequitur. You don't appear in documentaries. You appear in drama, which is what Hollywood does. I’d like to watch Hollywood movies. I don’t want to watch PBS. I pay to watch Hollywood movies but my taxes pay for PBS.”
“We don’t compete with those sorts of things. The live theatre can’t compete with Hollywood movies.”
“You could if you were good enough. Broadway isn’t subsidized.”
Kelly fanned the flames. “Barbara’s saying you're not good enough.”
For once Kim didn't take the bait. “Hey, I'll never be Judi Dench or Keira Knightley.”
Kelly tightened her grip on my hand. She was furious. She could see the fight she so badly wanted, slipping away.
She need not have bothered. Barbara wasn’t as gracious as Kim. “That’s obvious, princess. If you were half as good as Judi Dench, you’d be able to draw an audience and you – and all your wannabes – wouldn’t need my taxes to fund you.”
Kim hissed in anger. Her ‘Irish’as Kelly called it, had got the better of her fear. I just hoped Kelly was right about a win or a close loss. I didn't want to see Kim heaving her guts out again.
She stubbed out her cigarette with a single stabbing gesture and stepped forward, slapping Barbara’s face with her left hand and seizing the blonde’s hair with her right. She jerked Barbara’s hair back, swinging the other woman’s head around. Disorientated, Barbara lashed out with her left hand but she merely hit empty air. Kim tugged harder on Barbara’s hair and unbalanced the bigger girl. She slapped her left hand onto Barbara’s back and shoved, putting her whole body behind the push. Barbara wailed as she stumbled forward and struck a table. Kim was onto her instantly, slapping and pummelling the blonde’s back with both hands.
Kelly smiled. “There’s no security here. There’s no-one to stop this.”
Michael stared at her, incredulous. “You mean you want them to fight?”
I came to Kelly’s defence. “Don’t be so innocent, Michael. You loved seeing that fight between Margot and Elena at the H H Richardson, a few months ago.”
Michael had the decency to look abashed. “What if someone gets seriously hurt?” he muttered, more to the floor then at anyone in particular.
Kelly smirked. “Looking at these two, the worst will be a few scratches and bruises…maybe a broken arm. Nothing more.”
“A broken arm is serious enough!” I hadn’t seen Nancy since she introduced us to Barbara, but now she appeared right behind us, her eyes fixed on the fight. “You’re a callous bitch, Kelly Baldwin.”
Barbara’s hands groped on the table. Placing her right palm down, she pushed upward and regained her feet. With her left, she grabbed for a glass and threw its contents blindly over her shoulder, guessing rather than seeing where Kim was. She was lucky in her guess. The drink – probably a vodka and orange – struck the actress full in the face.
Momentarily blinded, Kim fell back, her hands frantically wiping her eyes.
Barbara was onto her before she had fully recovered her sight, crashing into Kim who barely managed to sidestep and avoid being bowled over completely. Even so, she was flung a few feet to her right by the force of Barbara’s charge.
Michael gaped. “That was below the belt!”
“Nonsense,” Kelly retorted, “all’s fair in these fights. The golden rule is ‘do unto others as they do to you – only get in first.’ Just then, Barbara got in first. She deserves her success.” She turned to Nancy and smiled as if to say, “There…I’m even supporting your friend.”
I was surprised. I thought Kelly wanted Kim to thrash Barbara. Wasn’t Kim her proxy here, just as Barbara was Nancy’s proxy? This was about more than just the two women who were now attacking one another. What was Kelly’s game? I knew her well enough to know she had one.
Barbara turned to face Kim. She snarled as she closed on the red-haired actress. Kim edged back. Seeing that as weakness, Barbara rushed forward. Kim sidestepped and Barbara blundered a few paces past her before she managed to stop. Kim fired a solid roundhouse punch into Barbara’s side as the bigger woman swung around to face her. Barbara groaned but fired a punch back. It connected, a glancing blow to Kim’s side, but even that glancing blow did damage. Kim whitened, gasped and stepped back.
Again Barbara attacked. This time, when Kim sidestepped, Barbara turned too and fired a heavy uppercut. Kim scurried back but Barbara’s blow hit her shoulder. The redhead gasped, then squealed in pain and rage as Barbara barged in close, hooked her right arm behind Kim and raked her nails down the actress's back. I didn't need to see the livid red marks that those nails left. The dots of blood on Kim's dress told the story.
I looked past the fighters. There was a circle of watchers now, including the English lecturer Holly and, next to her, Nancy. None of them could take their eyes off the fight.
Kim broke away. Barbara came after her. Kim circled, keeping the blonde at bay with jabbing punches whenever her enemy came too close. That worked for perhaps thirty seconds, but then Barbara charged. She took a heavy punch to her face that staggered her but she grappled and went to whip her arms around Kim. Kim reacted, ducking out of the attempted bear hug. She swung her head back, then forward, trying to head butt Barbara's belly, but the blonde was too quick and sidestepped. Kim, committed to her attack, almost fell headlong. Worse was to come as Barbara stepped to her side and got behind Kim. Again she wrapped her arms round Kim, but this time she trapped Kim's arms in front of her. She squeezed, pressing her chest into her enemy's back. She groaned as she heaved, squeezing the air from Kim's lungs, straining her arms and shoulders, weakening her with pain.
“What are you going to do if Barbara wins?” I whispered to Kelly.
“It won’t happen,” Kelly snapped back. She didn’t sound convinced.
“She's a lot more powerfully built,” I whispered again, throwing another grenade.
“Maybe, but –” She stopped suddenly as Kim jerked her head back sharply. Barbara swung her own head, saving her nose, but the back of Kim's head slammed hard into Barbara’s cheek. Barbara groaned, her grip weakened and Kim squirmed free. She spun to face Barbara and grabbed a fistful of blonde hair, while Barbara grabbed at Kim's dark red locks. For a moment the two women stood, swaying, each gripping the others' hair with one hand, punching and slapping at the other's body with their free hands.
Barbara tried to use her size to force Kim back and for a moment it seemed she had succeeded, until Kim stepped to her left, hooking her right foot out in front of Barbara who stumbled over it. With a wail, Barbara let go of Kim's hair and the actress swung her foe by the hair before slamming her shoulder into Barbara's chest. Barbara staggered back. Kim pressured the blonde with hard jabs into her midsection and upper body. Barbara gave way before a triumphant Kim. “Can't take it, princess?” Kim chortled.
Kelly turned to me. “Kim’s right. Barbara can’t take it. Like I said, Kim’s improved.”
Kim pressed her attack and Barbara's longer reach didn't help her. Kim was faster. She ducked and weaved, avoiding Barbara's attempts to drive her back. Kim's own punches were solid blows. Few hit – Barbara blocked most – but those that hit, hit hard. Each smack of fist on flesh elicited a groan from the blonde. Kim concentrated her punches on Barbara's midsection. It seemed as though she was softening Barbara up. “Come and get it, princess!” Kim crowed.
Barbara at last responded with a heavy punch that this time, Kim did not avoid. It hit the redhead’s chest hard and all but lifted her off her feet. Kim’s eyes went wide as she groaned. She stumbled backward, hitting a table as she tried to avoid Barbara, but Barbara was ready for her with another punch. This one hit the Kim’s shoulder and again she retreated as Barbara chased her, smelling victory.
Kim ducked so low, she almost dropped to her knees. Suddenly she swung her head forward, straight into Barbara's stomach. Barbara gasped and reeled back. Kim stood upright, pummelling the all-but-winded blonde. The bigger girl groaned. Again she defended, deflecting many of Kim's blows but again, each of the heavy punches that broke through hit hard and wrought damage on Barbara. Now it was Barbara who retreated as Kim pushed on. A dour smile flickered on her lips as more of her punches began to break through the seemingly tired and weakening Barbara’s guard. Barbara brought her hands down to protect her belly so Kim switched her attack, firing blows at Barbara’s breasts. “I'll flatten them, princess!” She steered Barbara against the wall. Barbara seemed to slump forward, trying to close with Kim, to clinch.
I looked across the room at the English lecturer, Holly. Her mouth was open and her tongue was licking her upper lip. She was totally engrossed in the fight, her big blue eyes glancing from Barbara to Kim, then back to Barbara. I nudged Kelly. She smirked and turned to Nancy. “Admit it; you’re enjoying the show as much as your other friend from the U is.”
I stole a glance at Nancy. It seemed true. Her face was flushed, her eyes fixed on the women fighting before her.
Kim suddenly screamed in pain. I blinked and snapped my eyes back to the fight. Barbara had buried her hand beneath Kim's top, digging under the bra and ripping into the soft flesh beneath. Kim must have realised that to try to escape by breaking way would risk tearing her top and bring even more pain to her breasts so she did the opposite, shoving hard, slamming her body into Barbara's. Again she drove Barbara back. Unlike the last time though, Barbara wrapped her arms around Kim, squeezing her. Kim's fists thudded into Barbara’s sides as she fought to break the hug. Her face reddened as the bigger blonde crushed the breath from her lungs. She strained, trying to break Barbara’s grasp. She pummelled her sides and raked her fingers down Barbara's back. It was all to no avail. Barbara seemed to have the battle won, until Kim drove her fingers into Barbara's armpits. Barbara groaned with pain and frustration. Her arms slumped to her sides, giving Kim the chance she needed to escape.
Barbara went after her again and tried to regain her hold, but Kim ducked and dropped to her knees. Lunging forward and grabbing Barbara’s knees, Kim tackled the blonde to the floor. Before Kim could capitalise however, Barbara rolled away.
The two women scrambled to their feet. Both were tired, both were sore, both had been hurt badly. The back of Kim's dress was now stained with streaks of blood where Barbara's nails had rent her skin. She had a bruise forming on her cheek and another around her eye. Barbara was, if anything, worse off, with several visible bruises. She hobbled as she walked, favouring her left leg.
Taking advantage of her enemy’s limp, Kim stepped to her right, firing light jabbing punches. Barbara followed but could not turn fast enough on her weakened leg. Kim’s jabs began to hit repeatedly again, and Barbara started to back away. Kim pressured her and Barbara tried to kick with her damaged leg, perhaps because she couldn't rely on it for support. She aimed it at Kim's middle but the actress swung away and took the kick on her thigh with no effect.
“You'll have to do better than that, princess!” Kim taunted the blonde. She struck again, her powerful punches pounding Barbara who reeled back, trying but failing to stem Kim's attack. Kim landed punch after punch, scoring almost at will. She finished the blonde with an uppercut which slammed into Barbara's chin. Barbara's head snapped back and she staggered back a step. For a moment I could see her eyes – they were distant, glazed, all expression gone. As her knees finally gave way, she crumpled to the floor and lay still.
“Suck it up, princess,” Kim sneered as she stared down at her vanquished foe.
Again I looked at Nancy and her English friend. Holly was flushed, panting. Her body trembled. Nancy was wide eyed.
“See how much they liked it?” Kelly’s whisper also bordered on a sneer.
Kim prodded Barbara with her feet. She walked over to Michael, holding his waist lightly, and kissed him. When she finally broke the kiss, she reached for her purse and got out her cigarettes and lighter. Michael helped her light up. She put her cigarette to her lips, exhaled and said with a smile, “All's well that ends well.”
Holly smirked. “There’s a good Shakespearean quote for any conceivable situation.” She promptly proved her point. “The whole fight was 'Much ado about nothing.’”
Kim looked steadily at her. “As you like it.” She turned again and wrapped her arm around Michael's waist. “Let us 'stand not upon the order of our going but go at once’.” They walked off holding one another as we helped Barbara up.
Holly turned to Nancy. “Barbara did provoke the fight. She should know better than to tell a thespian she can’t act.”
“That doesn’t matter now.” Kelly surprised me. “What matters is helping Barbara.” She put her arm round the battered blonde. “Peter, help me get her as far as the bathroom, then go find some first aid stuff.”
I did as I was told, smiling inwardly. Kelly had wrong-footed Nancy. It was Kelly – not Nancy – who was helping Nancy’s friend. It was Nancy – not Kelly – who seemed to want to debate the fight. And it was Barbara – not Kim – who was getting the blame for the fight.
Eventually, at Kelly’s request, I called a cab to take Barbara home. We both helped her into it. She thanked us weakly and left.
“That couldn’t have gone better,” Kelly sighed with satisfaction. Barbara thinks we rescued her, Kim won the fight and Nancy has egg on her face.” She kissed me lightly. “Let’s get some champagne on the way home. We’re going to celebrate.”
I smiled with anticipation.
My thanks to the stars of this story Elena and Kim and for those others who like Elena and Kim helped me with the story. 
