Verna.
 
At night in Vietnam I would often frequent a bar called Sooks.
I usually met an ex-army buddy of mine there, Del.
Del made his drink money from illegal importing.
Birds, reptiles, eggs, tight spaces - you get the picture.
Anyway Del hadn’t shown and I was getting restless.
But just as I was about to leave, a stunning woman walked in.
I could tell she wasn’t in the military. Not American.
Maybe Russian or one of those eastern block girls.
Very tall. Severe. Lizard skin hand bag. Maybe she’d be talking to Del.
She hadn’t. Her name was Verna and, sure enough she was Polish,
at least that’s what she said. Her accent didn’t sound too Polish.
Anyway, after a few drinks I asked her what the most
interesting thing about her was. She said she had two hearts.
Good answer. Inventive.
I asker her to let me hear the two hearts. Who wouldn’t?
She laughed and pushed me away,
Then she said I’d have to come home with her if I wanted to hear them.
The night was getting more interesting all the time.
I accepted immediately. Outside in the streetlight,
Verna’s eyes were green.  I think it was raining.
Her home was a little makeshift. Didn’t quite go with the lizard skin bag.
Her bar was full though.
Verna and I went to bed. We made love. Her polish got worse.
Fantastic night.
I wake up at about 4am because I always get thirsty after drinking gin
and I noticed Verna lying there in the half-light.
Extremely beautiful. Her skin was blushed like rose.
Then I remembered what she said... about the two hearts.
I leant down and listened to her chest...
Thumpthumpthumpthump... ...thumpthumpthumpthump...
Strange.
I wanted to compare it to mine so I put my wrist up to my ear for a pulse...
Nothing. No beat.
So she does have two hearts, I thought.
But did she before tonight?