Among the Dead by Michael Tolkin

‘And it’s dark now, so the crews can’t search for clues.’
    â€˜They have voice-recorders on these planes, don’t they? And wasn’t the plane in contact with the ground? What were the pilot’s last words?’
    â€˜I don’t know.’
    â€˜Somebody does.’
    â€˜Sir, I’m here to help the survivors, I’m not here as a spokesperson for the airline.’
    â€˜You can help the survivors by telling them what the airline knows. Otherwise, the lawsuits are going to be even bigger.’
    â€˜Mr Gale, I can promise you the airline is doing everything in its power to help the survivors.’
    â€˜You’re a fucking corporate whore, you’re a fucking corporate liar,’ said Lowell. Lowell was used to making those who worked for him unhappy, but Bettina Welch worked for something else, not a man but a company with thousands of people on the payroll. Bettina Welch was not frightened of Lowell.
    â€˜Lowell,’ said Frank, ‘don’t.’ Meaning: don’t be your usual posturing, difficult self. Meaning: you have put this woman in an impossible position, she can’t tell you what you want to know, you have to speak to someone higher up. Meaning: apologize for your language.
    Frank had no real power; he was everyone’s buddy. When he was angry, when he yelled, there was a gracelessness to his rage, his energy was not contained, and he threw his arms into the air, awkwardly, and lost whatever little presence he had.
    â€˜Frank, she’s not on your side, she’s working for the airline. You can’t trust her.’
    â€˜I understand how you feel, Mr Gale.’ Bettina Welch was inharmony with the gods of public relations now, and she read her line perfectly. The way she said
1,
weighted with a penny, just enough to register her own ego but not so much as to compete with the corporation. And then
understand how,
a small break in the first word dropping as she spoke it, to say, I can’t possibly feel all of your grief, of course, but I know that your grief is making you not responsible for your actions, and so I cannot take your actions personally, and so I cannot take your promised threats seriously, because no one cares to listen to a lunatic, which is how I am treating you now, and which is how you will see yourself when you think about the awful things you said to me. And then after
understand how,
she said
you feel,
telling Lowell that the crash was not a matter for metal, flame, and flesh, but opinions.
    â€˜No, you don’t understand how I feel,’ he said, but he sounded nasal; the anger had drifted out of his belly into his head.
    â€˜Mr Gale, both of us are under a lot of stress right now, and I have to talk to some other families. If you want, we have psychological counsellors, and as I said, we also have religious counsellors here in the ballroom. Would you like to speak to one of them?’
    â€˜Forget it,’ said Lowell, backing away from the fight as though he hadn’t lost it. ‘I guess I am getting a little out of control here.’
    â€˜Let’s sit down,’ said Frank. Frank took Lowell by the arm and led him to a television set.
    â€˜I feel terrible,’ said Frank.
    â€˜I know.’
    â€˜I hope they didn’t suffer too much,’ said Frank.
    â€˜Well, if the plane blew up in the air, if there’s any consolation, they probably passed out.’
    â€˜If they weren’t killed immediately,’ said Frank.
    â€˜It’s probably a good idea to let yourself have all these feelings right now. Whatever images come to mind, I want you to talk about them with me.’
    â€˜I wish I didn’t feel so numb.’
    â€˜Would you mind if I had a drink?’ asked Lowell.
    â€˜Are you giving up the lawsuit?’ asked Frank. He meant this to be taken lightly, and his brother smiled.
    â€˜What the hell,’ said Lowell, but Frank didn’t know what