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Exactly, Clara. Imagine, if I’ve come here, it’s precisely because of that.

I’m going back now and I have to give a load of explanations

and they’re going to have to be very clear.

Yes.

Yes. But she didn't...

If she said otherwise it would be a different story, but she hasn’t.

She hasn’t clearly stated that she doesn’t want the position.

She hasn’t said "I don’t want the position."

Sure.

No… Yes...

If I come all the way here it’s not to be told no, it’s to get a yes.

Exactly. If she...

If she wanted to say "no", she’d say "no".

Well, exactly. A silence is not a no.

It's not a no. Take your coffee.

- No, I don’t want coffee. - Take it, take your coffee.

Clara, the situation here is very clear.

There is a person here who made a commitment to something.

And I’ve made a commitment, precisely because of her commitment. Yes?

So, what do I do?

I come all the way here so that that person can do what they have to do. That’s all.

That’s all. No...

But there are clues!

There are all kinds of clues. Like this guy’s car, yes.

No, but I have the keys now, yes.

No, no, he doesn’t know.

No, he doesn’t know a thing.

No, to be honest he looks...

He looks pretty lost.

And Laura… No, it isn’t a mystery.

Come on, let’s be logical:

she’s indecisive, she wants the position but I’m here in the middle.

And for some reason...

she doesn’t want to tell me because I’m involved.

So we can’t mix the academic side with a situation…

Wait! Wait a second!

- I’m going to get sugar. - We have to go to Fortín Olavarría.

Wait for me a second, please.

Can you wait in the car?

Yes, here you go. Listen…

Clara, to be clear...

this isn’t just a professional thing.

Yes.

That’s why I try not to mix things.

You can imagine that I would be…

Distraught.

Well, yes, I am a little distraught.

You know how things are.

Academia doesn’t prepare you for sadness.

Well, I don’t think it’s a good idea to stay there.

No, don’t feel sorry for me either.

Well, I’m very grateful to you, Clara.

Thank you very much.

Let’s do that. We’ll leave now and...

I’ll keep you up to speed on how it goes.

Perfect.

And let’s hope it will be.

Let’s hope so.

Let’s hope so. OK, thanks!

Thanks a million. Bye.

Bye.

Can you believe that she left the keys with a child?

A child?

A kid, a little gaucho from the area. A child, yes.

But the guy who called me…

No. The service station manager called you.

Who’s the boy’s dad.

Why? No.

The service station manager is the service station manager.

The kid’s dad left the keys

with the manager.

And also left your telephone number.

On this piece of paper.

I imagine you’ll recognise the handwriting.

Can I have that?

I was told she might be near Fortín Olavarría.

Do you know anything about that?

PART 1

I THE ADVENTURE

I think we’ve gone past it.

I know we’ve gone past it.

- So what are we doing? - We’re looking for her…

They told us to look in Fortín... So we look in Fortín.

But like this? In general?

Wait here.

Hi, good afternoon.

How’s it going?

Can I ask you something?

I’m looking for a friend, who’s probably been here the last few days…

I wonder if you recognise her…

Let’s see...

Ah, wasn’t this girl hanging around here?

Ah, yeah?

Maybe, but...

Did you call there?

I called but… He must be taking a nap.

- No one came out. - No, but he must be in there.

Yes?

- But did you see her? - Yes.

Thanks.

Hi, how are you? How’s it going?

- Pleased to meet you. - Pleased to meet you too.

Listen, I’m looking for a friend and I’m told...

she could have been here, these last few days.

She’s my girlfriend, so careful what you say.

No, because, you don’t normally get many people round here.

But she says she saw her, and maybe you remember…

Because the train goes by here, and there aren’t many folk about…

Now and again, and the weekend…

You know where you can search?

She's very similar...

Laura clearly was in the village.

- The lady saws she saw her. - She saw her?

Yes. I showed her the photo…

She says that...

last week or the one before...

a girl was wandering about all afternoon.

These are things that people notice more in small towns.

Do you have anything to say?

Like what?

I don’t know. Anything I should know.

I don’t think so.

Let’s go to Puricelli’s.

Who is Puricelli?

He’s a guy with a general store. And he rents rooms.

"That’s where all the out-of-towners go," the lady said.

She said "out-of towners"? She used that word?

"Out-of-towners" she said, yes.

Laura, an out-of-towner.

Did she talk to you about the position?

No.

She never said anything about the position?

I don’t think so.

But you worked with her at the council.

No.

Ah, on the phone you said you did.

I said I work for the Council but I don’t work with Laura.

I work in another department.

What department?

Transport.

Transport?

Transport of materials.

You transport stuff?

Yes.

And how do you know Laura if you transport stuff?

Sometimes we were sent together to 30 de Agosto...

to La Indiana, or the fields where she worked.

So you transported her?

Sometimes, yes.

Hang on, wait here.

- How’s it going? - Hello.

Hi, good afternoon. How are you doing?

- Rafael, pleased to meet you. - Daniel.

Listen Daniel, I'm looking for a friend...

from Buenos Aires. She might have come here to make a call.

I have a picture here. Let me know if...

if you saw her around.

No, I haven't seen her around here.

She's been trying to communicate, but we don't know where...

Where should I keep asking?

Maybe in the next general store, near by.

- But everything's closed. - No, not here.

On the road.

OK. Where should I make a turn?

Take a left here, and from there...

Let's go.

We have to go to another general store.

And we should start worrying if we find something odd on the way there.

Sure. I'll keep you up to speed.

Yes. OK, listen.

Send kisses to all the boys and girls from the Academia.

We’re going to have to wait.

Hi. Good afternoon.

How’s it going? My name is Rafael. How are you?

Listen, I’m looking for a friend.

A girl...

She’s my girlfriend, actually. We think she might have been here.

Do you recognise her?

Because she’s…

She works in the classification of plants, flowers…

Ah, yes.

There's a man in América who has...

an orchid plantation.

- Orchids? - Orchids.

- What's this man's name? - Abrante.

Give me a moment, please. I'll take note...

Abrante.

And this is in América, no?

FAREWELL, FAREWELL, I’M GOING AWAY.

We have to go to América.

We have to go and see a man called Abrante.

It appears that Laura was here...

it looks like they told her about him and I’m sure she went to see him.

With all the information I’ve got…

I can’t help but think about something.

Abrante is an orchid producer.

Abrante lives in América.

In América is the mark of the one remaining species.

Look...

You see?

Laura still had one species unclassified.

PENDING.

"Pending."

Here’s the thing:

Laura committed herself to finishing a job.

And that’s exactly what she’s doing.

No more, no less. Just finishing a job.

She went to América looking for a species she still has to classify…

Who knows why the hell…

It all adds up.

She’s gone crazy.

Well, like so many others went crazy:

Sinclair, Treviso, Paillán… Franco Vidal himself.

You see?

They all went after a species that they hadn’t yet classified

and threw their lives away looking for it.

You follow me?

Yeah, more or less.

We have to go to América to see Abrante.

That’s the answer.

Yeah, the thing is...

I really…

We can’t pass up this opportunity.

Laura is lost.

Her family are worried.

She’s destroying my career. She stole your car.

I know one version of Laura...

and you know another.

There’s no one but us two looking for her.

You see?

No, you know, like I said...

I know, I know. Yes.

It’s complicated with the kids, or with your ex.

But OK, we’ll work it out.

- Now on the way we’ll call… - Viviana.

Viviana and we’ll explain to her more or less.

Yes?

I’m going to use the phone that this Nereo told me he thinks he can get.

And I’m going to go to the toilet.

You should go too.

We’ve got about 25 miles.

II EZEQUIEL'S PART

God, or bad luck, punishes him by blinding him.

Hence the expression ‘Peeping Tom’...

which is what they call voyeurs in English.

Right, voyeurs...

There are a lot of Peeping Toms in this studio...

Look at Rodro…

They’re all wild with excitement about Lady Godeeva.

Thank you one again, Laura, for the section Women Who Made History.

Thank you very much.

And we are still here in A Sea of News...

with Patita's humour and...

much more news.

Radio is a blind media...

Until you watch with your ears.

The Station Broadcast. Unique.

Just like you.

LU 11 invites you to the first Journey to Italy Contest,

coordinated with the Trenque Lauquen Culture House.

Now, you too can change the course of history.

Because traveling is for everyone.

Hello.

Very good, I was listening.

Did you like it?

Yes, I didn’t know the story.

It’s fun, isn’t it?

Very good.

Do you have a map or coordinates?

No, but we’re going to La Indiana, close to 30 de Agosto.

OK.

What is it?

The farm close to La Querencia?

Right. On the way to La Querencia.

La Querencia first?

You think?

OK.

It seems like today we are on the subjects of nudes…

- Who is Anita Ekberg? - La Dolce Vita!

Don´t you remember that emblematic scene

of her bathing almost naked in the Fontana di Trevi?

- Just like Lady Godeeva! Naked! - Exactly.

Well, then, if the listeners want to participate in the contest...

Is it true that she rode naked on horseback?

Truly naked?

Looks like it.

Must be uncomfortable.

Yeah. It really must. I don’t want to imagine.

And the guy was crazy…

Forcing your wife to do that…

No, no. Technically he didn’t make her.

You reckon it was a game?

No, no. What game?

She did it so that he’d lower the taxes.

What?

I reckon it was an erotic game between them.

No. The legend says that she sacrificed herself for the people…

I reckon it was a game between them.

He loved the idea of his wife stark naked on a horse.

He had that fantasy.

Nonsense.

She was into it. They were both kinky.

I think it’s you whose making an erotic novel out of it.

I think it’s obvious.

Well, at least he lowered the taxes.

Is that your boyfriend?

Your mum?

No. My boyfriend. I’ll call him later.

OK.

He must be missing you, no?

Yes. We’re building a house together...

so he calls me a lot. There are lots of things to decide on.

Actually we’re renovating a house that was my boyfriend’s

and now it’s going to be our house.

- And it needs everything doing. - Right.

Doors, windows…

Yes. The colour of the wall in the bedroom. Everything...

Yes, I know what you mean.

I mean… You go home and you get married.

Yes. We’re moving in together, let’s say…

RAFA

Sorry, I have to get that.

Yes, sure.. Take your time.

Hello?

Yes, I was having lunch.

Go on, tell me!

Tell me!

There he is.

- Hi, Hugo. - Hi, Laura.

- How are you? - Fine, you?

How are you doing, Chicho?

Afternoon! How’s it going, Hugo?

All good. Here we are.

I came here looking for this one I had left.

I came to do a last search but…

You know, I'm still missing the one that looked like Like Symplocos Uniflora.

Look.

I was saying to Hugo that it could be in the…

Behind la Ollita or in el Molino.

Ah, yes, I know the place. Those could be good places.

Yes, because we’ve already looked in the bush and nothing.

- Coming, Chicho? - No, I'm staying. Do your thing.

We found some other things but not that one.

It’s playing hard to get.

Well, you have one left.

- That’s not so bad, is it? - No...

Are you busy this afternoon?

What do you need?

Go and see a farm.

- Where? - On route 33.

I’ve got a map.

An old estate. Martín Fierro, it’s called. Have you heard of it?

I think so.

I think I can find this there.

OK, let’s go.

The only thing is I have to pick up the kids.

Do you mind going with them?

- We found it! - Let's see.

It was there on the old map, but not in this one.

No, dad! It's in the other direction!

Quit it!

But we are telling you: it's in the other direction!

Quit it!

No! No!

Sit down.

Sit down, I said!

- No! - Sit here.

I think the Martin Fierro Estate is right there.

There. It’s that little house.

Is that it?

I think so, yes.

This estate burned down.

They must have got it wrong at the Council…

This estate burned down, you are right.

Yes.

It burned down.

Maybe they meant the village of Martín Fierro...

No, "Martin Fierro Estate"...

Sorry. Were you with the kids?

- No, they’re with their mum. - Ah, OK.

Here’s the thing.

I’ve made a discovery.

It’s silly, but...

But I wanted to know what you thought.

Sure.

You might not even be interested.

No, I’m sure I’ll be interested.

- Is it something to do with flowers? - No. It's something else.

I feel like a mad woman.

Look.

I found this.

Letters.

Exactly. Letters.

I think I’ve become the only witness of a little mystery…

Crikey.

Yes.

I feel like nobody else knows this. Just me.

Well. Now you as well...

OK.

Did you find them at the hotel or what?

No. Hang on. Let me explain.

I usually go to the library to look for material for the radio, for my guest slot.

- Usually the librarian… - Susi.

III THE LETTERS AND THE BOOKS

Susi! Is there a section on women in science?

Any fascicles?

- Women scientists? - Yes.

There are some things on scientists here.

But women scientists…

I don’t know if there’s anything. If it even exists.

Women scientists?

Right. Scientists, yes. But women scientists…

who discovered something...

Marie Curie.

- And the monkey woman? - Who’s that?

The one who writes about the chimpanzees. She's very good.

Ah, let me see.

She must be a scientist…

Look, "devoted to science and guided

by empirical facts of reality."

- She’s like a scientist. - Yes.

But lately she hasn’t been finding so much.

Different tastes.

She says things like Mercedes Sosa, or local things...

I’m looking for, you know, more universal things, scientists…

Or things that are more unheard of,

like Pope Joan, the Queen of Sheba, Mata Hari…

- Mata Hari’s very good. - Yes, Mata Hari’s very good.

And the local ones...

Alfonsina Storni, Evita, Mercedes Sosa…

Shall I get you the biographies that we have?

- OK. - Pepe!

We’ve got some.

If you like I can set them apart. You can then check them.

If it helps, you keep it...

One day Susi got together

all the biographies of women that there were in the library.

I took them to the hotel.

I started to read. Nothing convinced me very much…

until I came across the Russian woman.

A woman called Alexandra Kollontai.

And the book was called "Autobiography of a Sexually Emancipated Woman".

- What’s the book about? - It’s an autobiography...

- Of a sexually emancipated woman… - Right.

Anyway, I thought it would be good to do the guest slot

and also I really liked how she wrote.

Right.

What most caught my attention was one aspect of the edition:

every time Kollontai referred to a personal achievement...

there was a footnote by the editor

saying that Kollontai at the last minute had asked to turn

the first personal singular into the first person plural.

That is, every time the "I" had to be replaced with "We".

Sorry. What was that again?

- The "I" had to be replaced by "we". - Ah, OK.

The funny thing is that I then came across the notes

that someone who had also read the book had made

and they were surprised at this same aspect of the edition as I was.

That thing of changing "I" to "We."

That interested me:

someone had read the book and agreed with me.

Maybe at another time, in another place.

...BY US...

You lost me a bit with that last bit…

No, don’t worry. That doesn’t matter.

The thing is that we had both been struck by the same thing.

Both?

Yes, the two of us. Hang on...

AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A SEXUALLY EMANCIPATED WOMAN.

At the start of the book there was a stamp that said "Martín Fierro Estate".

And under that a note that said:

"Carmen Zuna, read for the first time in September 1962".

The ink from this Carmen Zuna

seemed to be the same ink from the underlining

that I found throughout the book.

Martín Fierro Estate…

Yes. I lied to you.

It wasn’t for work. It was espionage.

OK.

So this book belonged to this Zuma...

- Zuna. - Zuna.

Yes, but anyway. That isn’t important all the same.

When I got half way through the book...

I found that the pages jumped from 45 to 50.

And then I realised that between those pages

that were stuck together intentionally...

there was something.

A letter.

A love letter.

Yes...

Yes.

The letter was addressed to her.

To Carmen Zuna.

That was the first letter I found.

And then I realised...

that it wasn't the first letter between them.

That it was part of a correspondence that had started earlier…

The letter I found is dated 1962

and signed by someone called Paolo Bertino.

- Paolo Bertino… - Yes, Paolo Bertino.

The Bertinos are Italian, they had land here.

Exactly.

In fact, I think there are some left.

Yes, yes. A few.

And what were the letters about?

I’ll tell you later.

But were they love letters?

Yes, yes. Well...

The thing is that this is where the bees come into it.

The book about bees.

The letter ended with a promise to send a new book

in which another letter was going to be hidden.

And it referred to the "universe of the bees."

There I figured out that this whole correspondence...

all the letters from Paolo and Carmen...

could be among the thousands of books

in Trenque Lauquen Library.

But I only had to find them.

And to do that I had something, I had a clue:

The clue that the same letter was giving me.

Do you see?

I think so. The clue was the bees.

Exactly!

Check.

Check.

Check.

Check.

Check. "Autobiography of a woman"…

No, I’m keeping that one.

Kollontai, not here.

Susi, can I ask you a question?

Is there a record of donations? Does that appear anywhere?

Hang on a second because this is… I get lost.

What is it you want?

I want to know something, about a collection…

- Which? - Martín Fierro.

- Martín Fierro Estate? - Yes.

That’s an enormous collection.

Now, as for women and women scientists and all that, forget it…

No, no… It’s not that.

It’s because I was intrigued because I found a stamp that…

OK, hang on a second.

I went back to the library.

I asked Susi to let me see the whole record of donations that were in the library.

Could we see the records of donations?

OK.

Is the ladder safe? I mean, it won't kill us…

OK, we’re coming now.

Come with me.

Among the thousands of cards, I found a Martín Fierro Estate collection.

And then I started to look to see

if there was something to do with the universe of the bees.

Bees...

120...

THE LIFE OF BEES.

- And? - I found one. "The Life of Bees."

- Good! - Yes.

I found it in the children’s section. And mind you, it isn't a children’s book.

When I opened the book, there was no letter

but there was a note with a page number and several pages torn out.

I started to look for all the books that had Carmen Zuna’s signature...

which because of the stamp had been archived

in the Martín Fierro Estate Collection.

So I realised that all of Carmen’s books

had ended up in the hands of the Bertinos or who knows where.

But did no one ever find the letters?

It doesn't look like it.

THE PERSONALITY OF ANIMALS

THE GREEK CITY

Italy.

Rome.

Letters that come and go between Trenque Lauquen

and various Italian cities.

Several from Rome, some from Turin.

A lot from Quincinetto and Scalaro, I didn’t even know where they were.

“This is what I offer to you, love letters, coming and going.

It starts thus…”

I found a letter in every book.

I put together a map with all this.

I classified them, I ordered them by date, I studied them.

I read all the books. Well, not all of them...

Hang on, hang on. Sorry.

- Can I ask some questions? - Yes.

Apart from finding all those letters…

Which is no small thing…

Hidden correspondence among thousands of books.

- Amazing. - Yes. So... What?

That's what I'm asking you:

what?

What?

Well…

Let me put it another way.

Why are you so interested in all this?

I mean… Apart from the thousand books…

What's the mystery?

Read this.

Out loud?

Please.

"Carmen: I feel swept away.

I feel like until yesterday I was a child, and that you have made me an adult.

Something has just begun.

I have lost my virginity again...

this time definitively.

All the women I have been with before...

the woman to whom I was married for over ten years...

every one of my many lovers, appear before me like little girls.

Your vagina, Carmen. Your vagina.

Someone has given me a treasure map, and I have started to explore it.

I want to return to your vagina again and again.

Immerse myself in it, give my life to it.

If I could live there, Carmen...

if that devouring sex would accept me as a permanent inhabitant...

I would, after so many years, finally be happy.

My phallus is a poor innocent.

A poor blind man who has entered the jungle and cannot now leave.

I am crying. I am a castaway. I am lost.

Paolo."

The mystery is her.

Carmen Zuna.

Unbelievable.

Yes.

"Dear Carmen:

Yesterday I thought about you all day."

- He dropped the formalities. - Yes.

"That little hotel room, that staircase...

that table, will be little sanctuaries for me, little temples."

Hang on...

Interesting. A lot of information.

Yes. We know that they met in a hotel.

But the staircase... Who knows why he says that.

Maybe they always started on the staircase…

On the staircase of the hotel? You think?

I wouldn't be surprised.

What I don't understand is the table. Why does he mention the table?

"The table. That little wooden table...

and you on top of it.

Your eye, waiting, open like…"

"Your eye waiting open like an orange…"

Ah, OK…

"I want the summer to come now.

Please, beloved Carmen, let us meet again.

Let us set a time and place for our next encounter.

There I will be, always yours. Paolo."

"Carmen: I apologise."

He goes back to the formality.

"The student was not up to the task.

I failed. I failed you, and I deserve punishment.

I was foolish, I was weak.

To see you in that man’s arms, to see that man possess you...

to see you aroused, panting, screaming, surrendered...

rude.

Burning like a fire for that coarse man, that brutish, rough man...

for that animal who did not and could not know

who he had in his arms was too much for me.

The image tortured me and continues to torture me.

There I was, sitting, watching you...

The gaucho, watching me...

Laughing at me as he possessed you.

And you, Carmen, your happiness, your fury, your laughter...

looking at me contentedly like a child."

Blimey.

"I don't know if I will be able…

I don't know if I will be able to continue my education.

I don't know if this art is for me.

I don't know if I'm any use to you.

If I can cope with your fire, my lady, my queen, my priestess.

I am worse than you.

I do not deserve any of you, Carmen.

Nor do I deserve to be humiliated by you. Paolo."

- This is getting a bit weird. - Yes.

What do you make of it?

Her ladyship took the gaucho to the stud farm.

You think she’s a landowner?

I don’t know. That seems to be the case, doesn’t it?

Yes.

- Shall we go? - Yes.

"Carmen, my beloved.

A short note on this windy afternoon.

I'm so aroused that I don't know where to begin.

I feel like I am being examined on a new subject.

I write you letters and tear them up.

I can't find the words.

I don't recognise my handwriting on the paper.

Could it be that I am terrified by the idea of losing my place in your heart?

Whatever it is, I cannot wait.

I know he will be received as one of us."

I honestly don't understand a thing.

"Whatever it is, I cannot wait...

I know he will be received as one of us.

And you Carmen?

When will I see you again?

Will it be soon?

I miss you more than ever. Paolo."

"Dear Carmen: I no longer know why I write to you.

Three months have passed since you left.

Where are you? Who could you be with?

Who is in the place where I was for so many years?

Was it that easy to replace me?'

"Carmen, I no longer know where I find the strength to write to you...

but I feel that it is the only thing I can do.

I am not resigned to this being a farewell.

Oh Carmen, oh my traveller,

oh my adventurer, don't leave me this way!

After abandoning everything, this fire has left too many wounds.

- He left his wife? - Well, yeah.

- Paolo was married. - Of course.

Then I remember that your body is the map of my life,

and without your body I am lost.

Your letters reach me from the most remote places.

And your words become equally remote and vague.

Could it be that you wrote them thinking they would be your last?

I cannot accept that.

I deny those words, I impugn them.

They are the words of a little girl.

A little girl who repeats mechanically

the cruel verses of infantile games.

But you are not a little girl, Carmen.

And this is not a game.

Yours, Paolo."

He's losing her.

Yes.

I don't know why he insists so much on the words.

What words?

"They are the words of a little girl.

A little girl who repeats mechanically."

What could that be?

I'm leaving you!

To me, it sounds like a pat-a-cake.

I leave you, I leave you, I ditch you, I ditch you...

I kill you, I kill you, I bury you, I bury you...

Goodbye, goodbye, goodbye!

I don't know.

What do you think she said to him?

- Bye, bye? - Bye, bye.

Bye, bye, goodbye?

Farewell, farewell?

- I’m leaving! - I'm leaving.

Farewell, farewell, I'm going away.

Yes, that sounds mechanical.

Yes.

If you find yourself regretting I’m leaving, I’m leaving

Having given your love Farewell, farewell

It wasn’t my fault I’m leaving, I’m leaving

You gave me the chance Farewell, farewell

Jealousy weighs down on me I don’t know why

IV "FAREWELL, FAREWELL, I’M GOING AWAY"

All right, Abrante, thanks.

So I come out here where I came in and straight ahead to Piedritas?

Yes, yes.

Straight ahead, you’ll see a sign. OK?

I’m in a hurry. Excuse me.

No, no. Please. Thank you.

Thank you very much. Bye.

Nothing, mate. This Abrante hasn’t got a clue.

He doesn’t know anything about Laura...

or who this guy in the bar is... He doesn’t know a thing.

He hasn’t had any orchids for ten years.

He doesn’t know anything about plants. Now he has sows.

Mothers.

3 months, 3 weeks and 3 days.

In 114 days they get 8 to 12 suckling pigs.

So each sow could have up to…

About 30 suckling pigs a year.

Ten mothers...

300 a year.

Every suckling pig is 10 kilos, more or less 5000, 5500 pesos.

Good business, no?

What Abrante did tell me...

is that there’s a big nature reserve near here, near Piedritas.

Maybe there is the thing we’re looking for.

Laura?

Not exactly.

Laura’s unclassified species.

I think that could lead us to Laura.

Do you remember when the last time was that you saw her exactly?

I'm not sure.

Evidently with the car thing...

Ah, sure. When she came to borrow the car.

And when she stole your car...

Sorry, but I don't feel like she stole my car.

Well...

OK.

- You drove her around, right? - Yes.

OK.

How often? Do you remember how often?

Once or twice a week.

It depended on the work she had to do.

What was that like?

Tell me the routine… Did you meet at the council?

I usually picked her up at the radio.

The radio?

She worked at a radio station.

Who?

Laura...

Laura worked at a radio station?

She had a guest spot on a programme.

Juliana's programme.

Listen, did she tell you anything about me?

I mean, did she tell you she had a boyfriend?

- Yes, she told me. - OK.

OK.

So, the radio…

Yes.

Carry on.

I used to pick her up at the radio...

we'd go to the farm where she had to work...

Sometimes we had lunch...

then I left her at the hotel. That's all.

Right.

Right. That job was the first step to being appointed…

as department head.

We were joint chair.

I was the head, she hasn’t been appointed yet…

She was about to be appointed…

Right.

I mean, if she did that job well, the position was confirmed…

Right.

That's why I don't understand what's going on.

Right.

Can you tell me the name of the radio?

L, U.

L for "Laura", U for "unicorn"...

11.

OK.

Let's go.

You drive, I’m tired.

What happened?

Flat tyre.

OK, let’s get the jack.

- No. - No what?

No, I haven’t got one.

What?

I've just realised, the day Laura borrowed the car...

I took all the things out of the boot to clean it and left it all at my house.

No, I don't understand.

You go driving in the country without a jack?

I’ll remind you that it wasn't in my plans to drive here.

I have the worst luck!

We’ll call the breakdown service.

You sure about the jack? You don’t want to check just in case?

I’m sure, but I’ll check.

See?

Is that Laura’s backpack?

Call the breakdown service, please.

OK.

They’ll be here in an hour, hour and a half.

"Autobiography of a sexually emancipated woman."

Crikey.

So I can get some sleep...

Hey, could you give me a wake-up call at quarter to five?

Yes, of course. Girls, do you want to watch TV in the kitchen?

I’ll set my phone all the same…

but if I don't hear it I prefer to be woken by a professional.

Can I get breakfast at that time?

I'll find out, Sir.

If it's very complicated: A coffee, something quick...

so I don't have to go out on an empty stomach.

- Yes, sir. We'll get you a coffee. - Thanks, very kind.

Don’t worry about my friend here, he’ll probably keep on sleeping.

- Thank you, thanks a lot. - You're welcome.

- Mum, can we watch TV? - In a minute.

When?

In a minute when I’ve finished clearing the table.

- Good morning. - Morning.

- Will you have breakfast? - Yes.

Excuse me. Could I have some more croissants please?

But the butter ones.

I have sweet or savoury. Is that ok?

Sweet.

Sweet.

- Did you sleep well? - Yeah, yeah...

Good.

You didn’t shower?

- No. - The shower’s great.

Just so you know…

There’s a lot to do.

I was at the nature reserve this morning.

Very nice reserve, very well maintained, there was nothing there.

Not a trace. Not a trace of the unclassified species, not a trace of Laura.

There wasn't even a trace of the women who were working there.

Thank you.

So they sent me back here, to América.

To a municipal plant nursery.

They wanted to send me to a zoo. Nothing.

There’s nothing.

The thing is something else.

The news of the day is here.

"Man has always tried to impose his ego on us women

and adapt us completely to his ends.

Thus, despite everything,

the inevitable inner rebellion broke out

because love became a prison."

I'll read you another one.

"I had to go, I had to break with the chosen man, as otherwise...

this was a subconscious feeling...

I would have exposed myself to the danger of losing my independent existence."

One more… Underlined with pen.

"The decrease in our capacity to work was lost

in sterile emotional experiences."

And the ink matches the piece of paper where she wrote down your telephone number.

The piece of paper she left at the service station.

It's clear what is happening here.

Laura was making a house with me.

She was about to take a position in my department.

It isn't that Laura's gone crazy.

It's just that she's got cold feet.

Cold feet?

About what?

In general.

Love or work.

A man or an independent life. A career...

Laura needs to find that unclassified species.

Work out the enigma.

And feel...

like she did it herself.

That no one worked it out for her.

That I didn't work it out for her.

Only then will she be able to return to her usual life.

It's all here.

In this book.

Rafael...

I need us to go back to Trenque.

See the people who were close to this Laura.

I need you to come with me.

I'm going to pay for the hotel.

And pick up some regional products that I bought on the excursion this morning.

Shall I see you in the car?

I've already got petrol.

Excuse me, could I check out?

- Yes, certainly. - Thank you.

I'm going to the restroom. I'm leaving the credit card here.

Something I’ve never wanted

Is having ever been ungrateful

That’s why I’ve never forgotten

How much you’ve been there for me

I could say that you and I

We’ve been good friends

I don’t know if it’s fate

That parts the ways

You always go in such a hurry Hiding in your laughter

Maybe you never understood That I move slowly and sadly

I offered you my soul sincerely

And you weren’t even capable of taking my hand

I don’t know if it was in vain

I could hardly say that you feel it with sorrow

And don’t ask why

There’s no sense in knowing

Just sit in silence beside me

And don’t ask after me when I’m gone

V THE ROADS

LOVE LETTERS

PROPOSAL

MARTIN FIERRO ESTATE

I / WE

BEES (NO LETTER)

NO CLUES

“WHO HAS CHILDREN ACCEPTS LIFE” PAGE 48. PAVESE, LE AMICHE

NO REPLY

WALKING

MY ANSWER IS JUANA

It's the only note from Carmen signed by her.

I don't understand how I missed that detail.

If there is a note from Carmen among Carmen’s things...

it's because this note was never sent.

And it's because this name, Juana...

represents something that she wanted to omit.

Something that she thought, wrote, but then didn't send.

Mysterious, huh?

Is it the only time she’s mentioned?

Yes, the only time.

There's something curious about the Juanas…

There's a book about Joan of Arc, one about Sister Juana Inés de la Cruz.

And the book about Joan of Arc is also translated by a Juana, Juana Castro.

Right.

Right...

- A thousand Juanas. - Yes.

I don’t know. Just to bear it in mind. Maybe it'll help us to think.

Right.

Right...

- What's up? - Nothing.

- What's up? - Nothing.

I found something.

- Carmen Zuna. - No!

The first thing that caught my attention about Carmen is that no one knew her.

I grew up in this town.

Everyone knows each other.

A woman like that would never go unnoticed.

Even less with Carmen’s profile.

How could it be that no one noticed her?

It had to be someone who came to the town now and again.

A doctor, who came to work at the hospital.

Or a nun.

But at that time there were no convents.

I looked in all the registers I could find.

Locals guide, Kraft guide...

phone book, book of trades...

professional services, electoral registers.

Not a trace.

Until I had a revelation. An intuition.

Since they played so much with the idea of the student,

the teacher, learning...

- Perhaps I had to go and see… - You went to the school?

School Number 1. I’m a former student.

At the school I met everyone.

Chicho! Long time no see!

Tito the caretaker.

Lelia, my second grade teacher.

Graciela, the librarian...

and Mary, the principal.

I asked them if they had a file from that time...

From 1960.

I didn't tell them exactly what it was for.

I simply said that I was interested in the school’s file.

The first thing they showed me was a picture from "The Golden Decade".

It was the era of the great schools.

I found that the teaching stuff from '60 to '70 were outstanding.

In those ten years, the teachers were almost all eminences.

It was the time of the great schools, I'm told.

Do you know who all of them are?

Some, yes.

This is Ana María Sastre.

The thing is that Tito, Graciela, Mary and Lelia...

spent some time putting names to the teachers.

They recognised them all.

Ana María Sastre, Leoncia Garro...

Silvina San Miguel, "la Bergamasco"...

Ulda Saenz de Fosatti...

Piaggio, Trotta, Barragué, Muñiz.

They all have a name.

Longobardi… And this one…

Who is that one, because this one we know up to here, but that one?

I don't remember that one.

I can't place her.

No. The other ones, yes.

Everyone had a name except one.

- Beatriz Del Sarto. - Del Sarto...

- And this one? - Is she Barragé?

Hey, what about this one with the long hair?

Isn't she the same one we don't know from there?

It was always the same woman: a teacher who they couldn't place at all.

This is the same photo from…

This is the photo from there. Exactly, it's the same person.

The magazine of the school’s centenary.

Look, 100 years.

This same photo even appears in the magazine of the school’s centenary.

Let's see if we can find her here.

With all the names of all the teachers, except hers.

But you see, here is she is.

Ah, look. It’s the same photo.

There she is.

Garro, Scuderi, San Miguel...

I have a hypothesis.

- Teresa Trotta… - Yes.

Piaggio...

If they all have a name except one…

And this one?

Is Carmen Zuna.

Carmen Zuna was a teacher.

- Supply teacher. - How do you know?

I checked in all the registers from '60 to '70.

Once a month a signature appears and, beside it: Supply.

The name never appears.

I started to ask questions.

Specifically I asked them about Zuna.

Do you know a "Carmen Zuna"?

No... I don't.

Mary says "It doesn’t sound familiar."

I asked her about the supply teachers at that time.

She tells me there were several.

I ask her: where did they come from?

She says...

Well, most of them from La Pampa.

"Almost all of them from La Pampa, from Santa Rosa".

Right, you went to Santa Rosa

and looked for the records of Zuna as a supply teacher who came from Santa Rosa

when a teacher was absent.

No. I asked Grace, at the council

and she looked for it on the internet.

- And? - Carmen Zuna.

But the photo was the same as this one?

No, there wasn’t a photo. But all the same:

There was a teacher called Zuna.

Supply teacher.

In that photo everyone has a name.

There is only one who doesn't have a name.

- I think it's clear… - Yes, it's clear.

- Carmen Zuna! - Yes, yes.

VI CARMEN ZUNA

- There's something else. - What?

I looked at the records of students from '65 to '69 at the school.

And?

Mario and Marcelo Bertino.

- She was the sons’ supply teacher. - Exactly!

Mario and Marcelo Bertino.

- Do you have any more photos? - Yes, keep looking.

Is this her?

That's her.

OK…

But wait, wait. This gets better.

I carried on reading the letters you gave me.

From the first half of the year, Bertino is the same as before.

He's like a kind of lover who is learning. She is his teacher.

But at one moment something happens.

An event.

In the letters he starts to sound worried.

He starts to speak about someone else.

He says: "He will be received like one of us."

Who is he?

Is it the gaucho? From the stud farm?

At one stage, she leaves.

He keeps writing letters to her, completely despairing...

but she disappears.

He blames the other one.

He feels that she abandoned him for the other.

But at the same time he can't speak about the other one with hatred.

As if he too loved that other one.

There are three, and the two of them love Zuna.

And Carmen...

Who does she love?

Time passes. Finally, in the last letters, Zuna reappears.

And listen to this:

He is no longer he.

He is she.

The third party is now female.

That's as far as I've got.

Can you hold on while I go to the toilet?

Clearly, there is an event. But it is not a lover.

Look at this photo.

It is from late '68, a few months before Carmen disappeared off the map.

So?

Her face has changed.

- Does she look sad? - Tired, maybe?

She’s fatter.

- She’s pregnant. - A daughter?

Juana.

It’s like this…

The letters from '69 reconstruct all the mystery of '68.

At some stage in '68, as you read,

Carmen gets pregnant by Bertino.

Suppose Bertino receives the news of the pregnancy while in Italy,

on a business trip.

Bertino doesn’t understand, he doesn’t know what to do.

At first, he writes things like:

“I will take care of everything”, "Don't be afraid",

"You are not alone."

Comments of a married man to his lover in this situation.

He wants to behave like an adult.

I guess he found leaving his family a scandalous thing.

But an answer from Carmen,

we don’t know which one is, surprises him.

Something happens.

Something changes within him.

For example, look at what he writes in this letter:

“Your answer has given me hope.

I never thought having a child with me was a possibility for you,

in the same way a Goddess doesn’t have a child with a simple mortal.”

That’s the sort of things he writes.

He’s out of control. In love as he has never been before.

And he refers to that child as a miracle, a present form destiny.

That kind of cliché.

And that’s where the problem begins:

Carmen's letters stop arriving.

Nevertheless, Bertino keeps writing to her.

He keeps the ritual going...

a little resigned.

For long months, apparently, Carmen doesn’t reply.

Nothing, not a single letter, not a single word.

Bertino suffers, fears, waits.

Finally Carmen’s long-awaited letter arrives.

And what can be read in that letter is even more disturbing for Bertino.

Once again, Carmen doesn’t behave as he expects.

Something is off.

Carmen announces she’s leaving.

Where? I don’t know.

And Bertino doesn’t know either.

Carmen simply tells him that: I’m leaving.

What I understand is that Carmen starts to walk…

What do you mean to walk?

To walk across the fields…

How do you know she starts to walk across the fields?

How could you know that?

He says he doesn’t know where she is.

He wants to find out, but in the end he gives up.

He tells her:

“After days of trying to find out where you are,

I’ve realized you are nowhere.

Or rather: you are everywhere.”

I don't buy it.

Wait! She starts walking. There are more clues.

Which clues?

Look at these letters.

If you follow what he says

it is as if she has become a wild creature, almost an animal.

He writes things like:

“Pilgrim of the pampas”, “lonesome explorer”,

“adventurer”. Even "vagabond" …

Carmen, a vagabond...

- He writes "vagabond"? - Many times.

OK. Let’s picture this.

Carmen walks the province of Buenos Aires for months, as her belly grows.

It’s as if he’s seeing her:

walking along dirt roads,

walking into a farm every once in a while, to ask for food.

Alone, somewhat lost.

But at the same time determined not to turn back.

And Bertino?

Bertino meanwhile is in Italy.

All his letters are stamped there:

from a remote village where he takes refuge.

And there he stays.

Bertino waits for her.

He knows about the pregnancy.

That pregnancy is what Bertino tries to imagine in his letters.

Where is she?

Where is she going?

Is she okay?

Does she know what she’s doing?

Or has she gone crazy?

What is she worried about?

Is she worried about something?

Will she return?

At that time he thought it was going to be a boy.

Look, he writes:

"He will be received like one of us".

He confirms to her that he will be there with her...

to look after him.

But it doesn’t seem to be enough.

Something in Carmen has changed.

Something’s happened to her.

He fears for her.

He is afraid that she is lost.

Carmen replies only sporadically.

And, from what Bertino says in his letters, her notes are erratic and bitter.

But Carmen is all right.

She is better than ever.

She has found on that walk something that she had always looked for…

For some reason, she cannot stop walking.

She crosses the whole province and does not tire.

She walks so much, she even reaches the sea.

And there she stays, waiting.

Let's suppose that some time later, at some seaside town,

the baby girl is born.

Thanks.

"My answer is Juana" is the answer to why she gives up the life with him.

That life full of love and adventures.

That life is no longer possible.

And there is no way they can be the same again...

love each other equally.

The letters from Paolo from that period are the letters of a sad man.

He misses her.

He thinks about her all the time.

He travels here and there, like a lonely shadow.

He thinks about her, as he travels around Italy

as if trying to find something.

As if he were trying to replace her.

And this is were a new mystery appears. Listen...

At some stage, I don’t know how,

Juana appears in Italy, living with her father, with Bertino.

"We continue to wait for you here, Carmen. Always in the same place,"

he tells her in one of his last letters.

How does she get there?

How is it that Carmen lets the girl go? Does she abandon her?

Do Carmen and Bertino meet again?

If they don’t, how does the girl travel to Italy?

Here we are at the very heart of the enigma.

The great mystery of the love story between Bertino and Carmen Zuna…

Juana.

- "The answer is Juana." - The question is Juana.

The girl grows up.

He raises her on his own.

She is the only thing that keeps him close to her.

The only guarantee that Carmen might return one day.

And then what happens?

I don't know.

All we know is that at some point he returns...

and almost like a ceremony, like a ritual, he leaves the letters in the same place.

He knows that she will not return...

but he prefers that the letters are there:

in the same place where I found them.

He writes letters to nobody?

Something like that.

Bertino talks about her as if she has got lost on the roads.

He accepts that she will not return.

Did Carmen go crazy?

Or is it he who went crazy?

Imagining her as a kind of legendary character?

That is something we will never know.

What we do know is that they did not see each other again.

And he never stops thinking about her.

His life is her.

And he thinks about the years they spent together...

as the only moment when his life made sense.

VII RAFAEL'S PART

...Rome is one of the most beautiful cities in the world, right?

- You had already gone. - No, we hadn't Juliana...

And we loved it. It was like a dream to us.

When I was a boy they spoke to me a lot in Italian,

because my family was Italian.

So I was able to communicate. I was able to be in contact, let's say...

What do you want me to say? I can't explain it either, Clarita.

I don't know.

No, no. Rude. Chip on his shoulder.

No, whatever you like, but you just don’t do that.

You don’t leave someone stranded in Piedritas...

You just don’t do that.

No, no!

That’s right.

He hates me.

I said: he hates me.

He hates me!

Nothing, nothing. Don’t worry, Clarita.

I’ll call you when I arrive.

See if you can arrange that ticket for me.

I said check…

The ticket…

I said…

I said check…

Nothing...

Bye.

Bye. Bye. Yes.

Let's go to a commercial break and we'll be right back with "A Sea of News".

Radio is a blind media...

Until you watch with your ears...

The Station Broadcast. Unique.

Just like you.

Hello. How can I help you?

Hello, yes. Norma?

Normita…

Ah, how are you? I’m Rafael.

Rafael?

I'm the person who you arranged Laura’s transfer with.

Laura?

She's...

Laura?

Ah! Laura! Of course! Laura!

Sorry… Sit down, I'm a bit disoriented…

wrestling with this wrapping paper

to wrap this for my godson.

Rafael! We know each other well but by email!

Yes. But not in person...

You received the project completed and signed by me, didn't you?

Perfect, yes.

Would you like anything, a coffee or something?

No, thank you. I'm fine.

And what brings you here?

- Here we are… - Is something the matter?

No, no...

Truth is...

I just wanted to come in person, to see to some matters that

Laura kind of left in a mess.

- You're her partner, aren’t you? - Exactly.

You're getting married.

We're moving in together.

Right, that’s right. Well, it’s the same…

Yes, it’s the same.

- Sure you don’t want coffee, nothing? - No, no. Thank you.

Actually I wanted to ask you if you remember the last time you saw Laura.

Laura? Has something happened to her?

No.

Not at all.

Thing is...

She went on holiday and after a while

I didn't hear from her, but it's nothing…

That's odd.

She came to the council to finish her job. She signed everything.

Did she complete everything all right?

Yes, fine. She did an excellent job. Great.

The team adored her.

But I think she was missing something, she said to me…

She finished everything and I speeded things up

so that they could advance with the university position.

Right. I'm very grateful to you...

I don't know. She surveyed one last field

and she told me that she would take care of the remaining one

and that in any case she would come back.

I don't exactly remember what we agreed.

Right...

- The unclassified specimen. - Sorry?

The unclassified specimen, the remaining one.

Ah, yes. A pending one.

The pending one.

That’s what it says on the file.

Yes, but that’s just bureaucracy.

"The" pending one, "the" remaining one...

Right.

You don't remember how long she stayed in the hotel?

This is very strange... Have you been jilted?

Did she go off with a local man?

No, no, not at all.

I have to take precise information for the department

and now Laura doesn't… A load of things.

How strange!

She has a ticket.

- Who? - Laura.

She bought a ticket…

For Monday.

And how do you know?

Because I'm her boss.

She's going to come back. Don't worry.

No, yeah. I know she's going to come back.

Have you fallen out?

No…

Now that I think about it, maybe there was a small misunderstanding, but...

I think I will have a tea now.

Look...

No, I know what you're going to say, but it isn't that.

Laura doesn't do things like that.

She hasn't left me for someone else.

So wait for her, she'll be back.

Thanks.

What I wanted to tell you is something else...

Laura did a very good job…

I know…

But at the end she went off the tracks.

She went off the tracks?

Yes. Maybe it’s nothing but...

she forgot to pay for some things in the hotel…

A bit irresponsible.

Sloppy, you know.

A lot of minibar, a lot of room service…

And she didn’t even say, if she’d told us we’d have fixed it…

Of course.

Needless to say I can take care of that.

And I apologise on behalf of the whole department.

She became an unfriendly character, you know?

So she had to leave Trenque...

and I don't know why but she decided to stay a few more days

but the council couldn't keep paying for the hotel

because her contract had already ended.

So, being so friendly...

I offered her a room that my grandmother rents out.

And not only did she not pay her...

but she didn't even leave her a box of chocolates.

My grandmother is retired, you know.

Well, once again...

I'll be sure to get a good gift for your grandmother.

She took a pair of wellies of mine as well, and a raincoat…

A Perramus.

I'd like to offer to pay for that as well, Norma.

She became quite rebellious.

She left the room in a mess. We had to call someone to clean it...

And she had set up a kind of dirty and smelly habitat…

What about her things?

No, she took them, I suppose.

And the rest was returned.

What do you mean returned?

To the library. She went to the library a lot

because she had a radio programme, you see?

Yes, yes…

And there were maps and things of the council…

But all that was returned as well.

Right, you returned it.

No, Chicho returned it.

- Who’s Chicho? - Chicho, the transport guy...

Ah, yes… Chicho.

Yes, I know who you mean.

I'm going to have to get going because my coach is leaving.

You're leaving already?

Yes, I didn't even bring any clothes.

I came for the day and ended up staying.

OK, but you’ll be back.

Sure. Yes, sure.

Besides, if Laura doesn't come back in a couple of days

maybe I'll start to get worried...

I don’t think so. She’ll be back.

Yes, of course she’s coming back.

Shall I take you to the bus station?

I’m at a loose end. And I’ll drop off this gift for my nephew.

Go on, go on. Go on, that's handy.

- Can I help you with that? - OK.

You already know the town hall…

It’s a monstrosity…

This is where Lau started working.

And this is the main street… Villegas.

You see how it’s a boulevard?

Well, all the streets in Trenque are boulevards.

This was “the” bar for Laura.

This is Kalos.

She came here a lot. She spent her time here.

I guess she used it as her office…

Right.

This is where Laura moved to when she left the hotel…

Right.

This is my grandma Telma’s house.

The one with the bench.

As I said, that’s where she left all her things.

Looks like a UFO.

Yes…

A flying saucer.

More boulevards…

All boulevards.

This is the lake.

Trenque Lauquen means "round lake."

You see that room with the blind up?

Laura stayed there for the first six months that she was working in Trenque.

Your coach to Buenos Aires is here.

Give her time, Rafa. Maybe she's confused.

Yes.

Maybe I'll get home and she'll be waiting for me there.

It goes without saying that I can sign the completion of the project...

take responsibility for the remaining one.

I don't know, I can also send someone to finish this business next week...

so it isn't left half done.

No, don't worry, Rafael, thank you.

Besides, the project is on hold

and we won't get another allocation of money for it.

No, of course, yes.

This has been a tough year.

All the budget cuts went to health when the monkey thing happened.

And now with the elections and the re-election of Pérez Fox

you can't sell a project to classify local flowers to anybody.

Not a soul…

What’s the monkey thing?

The monkey thing… Well, I call it the monkey thing.

Didn't you read the news about an apparition on the lake,

a while back?

No, no. I'm not aware of it.

This thing appeared and we don't know what it was, on the lake in the park…

there were thousands of theories.

The whole business with a doctor from here

who was kind of controversial who took it to her house…

Madness.

- And what happened? - Nothing…

It died down in the end.

It was a big fuss until it got out

That it was a fairly normal animal.

An alligator or something.

An alligator? Alligators here?

It was a scandal.

There was this whole science fiction story...

and then they said it was all a trick, a screen.

A trick?

Yes. To keep people entertained and scared

while the lake was taken over in a privatisation project.

An artificial beach.

An artificial beach in Trenque Lauquen...

- With artificial waves. - No...

Nothing new, Pérez Fox’s idea.

It’s leaving now.

Well, nice to meet you.

Likewise. Yes…

Keep me updated and let me know.

If you come I’ll book you a hotel through the council.

Ah, OK. Sure, sure, of course.

Well...

- Very nice to meet you. - Likewise.

- Bye. - Bye.

Thank you.

Good journey!