chapter 4a 

(A Marriage Proposal) 


Moïse Berri 
and the Reconstruction of the Haitian 
Space Agency 


by Jude Jarda 


4a 
A Marriage Proposal 

Lieutenant Robin Monarque is walking recklessly on Jean-Léopold-Dominique Street. Right in the middle of the road and in danger of being hit by passing cars and motorbikes, he seems troubled. The look in his eyes belongs to a man who needs a rest and some urgent psychological support. The Canadian officer is heading straight to the Mission Baptiste du Calvaire Clinic, the biggest American GNO in Mizerikod, and the only one under investigation by the United States Internal Revenue Service. Robin Monarque is holding a nine millimeter Winchester bullet between the fingers of his left hand. He found the projectile on the site of the gun battle that he miraculously survived earlier. The image of Sergeant Pyram Malvenu, both eyes popped out like if he was possessed by some evil spirit, blindly firing his gun in every direction, still haunts the shaky lieutenant. Robin Monarque can't take anymore of this bullshit. He is going back to Winnipeg as soon as possible. It shouldn't be a problem for him to get a post-traumatic syndrome diagnosis and be transferred to an office post or be sent home to recover completely from this Haitian experience. The decorated policeman must nevertheless announce his noble intentions to his girlfriend, Marguerite, before he takes any further decisions. 

The Baptist Mission is managed my Immaculée Lamisère, an American nurse born of Haitian parents in Camden, New Jersey. Those who refuse to work under her command describe her as tyrannical, uncompromising and, without a doubt, seriously deranged. Those who fight poverty, misery and illness every day by her side are convinced that she will someday be canonized. People say that Immaculée Lamisère protects her employees and her volunteers just like a mama bear shields her cubs. So Robin Monarque is fully aware that he must avoid her and hit the road fast after he tells Marguerite about his plan to go back home in Manitoba before sundown. If Marguerite doesn't consent to his marriage proposal immediately, Robin Monarque intends to break up with her on the spot. The Canadian lieutenant finds his girlfriend in the partially submerged interior court of the clinic; busy taking care of a young man with an open wound to the tibia. Marguerite comes to Robin once she is done changing the bandage on the patient's leg. 

“How come you're still awake, my love, it’s only a quarter past eight?” 
“I can't sleep.” 
“Do you want me to get you some sedative pills?” 
“No way, I must be alert. I’m in great danger, Margot. I'm going back to Canada before nightfall if it's possible. If you say yes and accept to be my wife, I'll fix things with Immigration and fill up the paperwork.” 
“Marrying you is my dream, my dear. You make me so happy. It's going to be the greatest celebration Mizerikod has seen in years.” 
“No party, no guests, no priests,” Robin protests. “All we need is Judge Campbell, you, me, a legal contract and that's it.” 
“You want us to unite our souls in front of this corrupted and immoral old man? Campbell married his adopted daughter just like that neurotic short-sighted Hollywood filmmaker with the thick glasses.” 
“It's that or nothing, Margot. I will turn in my resignation before noon.” 
“You're trembling, sweetie pie. Are you feverish? Tell me what is bothering you, I don't understand?” 
“That stays between us, okay? Pyram Malvenu tried to kill me earlier today. I kept repeating to myself that he was just an awful shooter, but that was before consulting my electronic mail. I got an anonymous tip. It was not an accident or a consequence of bad training. Everything had been planned to eliminate me. The sergeant and his father are afraid I might know too much about their schemes. Do you know how often, Chief Malvenu, goes by the cemetery to put flowers on his parent's grave? He was there on Tuesday, during the hurricane, even after the weathermen and the government’s multiple warnings. I always looked the other way at the station to avoid trouble, even when it was obvious that something fishy was going on. Now, I know that they know that I know. I hold a load of proof against them. I'm nothing more to these guys then a very inconvenient witness. I'm going right now to the Canadian Embassy in Port-au-Prince to arrange our departure. If they can't hurry things up, we'll cross the border and leave by sea from the Dominican Republic. I know a compatriot in Fort-Liberté who can help us reach San Fernando de Monte-Cristi before dawn.” 
“I want to leave with you, my precious, but I still have to tell my family. And there is also that arranged marriage with my ex-boss. You know it was only to get my visa, but even if it failed, we've got to make sure that it has been invalidated.” 
“I'll come back to get you around noon, Margot. I must go now. I'm so fucking scared. I have no idea if Pyram is crazy enough to shoot me in public.” 

The assistant-director of the NGO makes her way amidst a group of patients to reach the couple. Lola Sauvegarde is wearing a stained lab coat, a procedure mask, blue vinyl gloves and a yellow surgical cap. She is heavily sweating. At first glance, Laura looks as white as a Scandinavian female. Only her nose reveals her Mandingo roots. When she was a kid, her class comrades used to bug her so much about her pale complexion that she started considering herself White for real at some point. She ended up marrying a man from Belgium and became fluent in Flemish and Dutch. Doctor Sauvegarde loves to surprise and spy on people who have no clue that she is Haitian. 

“There you are, Lieutenant. Are you aware that you are in deep trouble? One of our patients; he doesn't wish to see his name or his case go public, wants to press charges on your police unit.” 
“Tell him to fuck off or go file a complaint at the police station. I'm off work and on my way to retirement.” 
“The plaintiff can't walk, Lieutenant. Reggie removed a bullet from his coccyx this morning. You should be very concerned. My patient named you as the principal witness of the unfortunate incident.” 
“What the hell are you talking about?” 
“He told us that Pyram Malvenu tried to assassinate him. He said that he was just minding his own business on the other side of the bridge, when he heard noises, people yelling and scuffling. He came out of his tent to see what was going on. One second later, he was down on the ground with a small missile up near his sorry ass.” 
“I've got to get out of here.” 
“You're going back home, my love?” Marguerite asks. 
“I just told you I was heading to the Canadian Consulate,” Robin Monarque yells out. 
“What about the charges, Lieutenant?” 
“Leave me alone, you stupid skank! Don't you see what is happening here, Lola? They want me to lose my head, so they can keep me here in that furnace you call a country, locked and strapped in a mental institution with no doctors or any medication. I heard them conspiring behind my back the other day. Sorry for calling you names, Doctor Sauvegarde, but it's not my imagination playing tricks on me. So for Christ's sake, get the hell out of my way!” 

Robin Monarque then starts running like a man who has lost the ability to reason properly. His pupils are dilated, his mouth is drooling, and he keeps mumbling over and over again the same prayer in Latin.