*
“He is a big coward. I really don’t know what we will do Amira, honestly.” Doloress said.
She and Amira were sitting on the little bench from outside of the house, under a cherry tree. Was night, and the moon was already present on sky, reminding Amira by that cursed night. She didn’t say a word, being too shocked to react. She only blows her nose once in a while, sign that the tears didn’t stop of flowing from her crystalline eyes, which expresses a dreadful pain.
“Tomorrow, aunt Creselda will come by. I have to discuss with her. Maybe it’s better for you to move forever at her place; here you will have a very bad reputation. I already hear the women how they gossip you.”
“But mother…” Amira said with a husky voice.
“No but! It’s your mistake! Only like this I can help you.”
In the courtyard, Mr. Veriss entered, swinging on two legs. After the girl’s father entered the house, and (at his wife’s insistence) went to bed, Amira came out from behind the house, fearing that her father might have seen her. She sat back down on the bench, starting to cry again. Was full moon and a crazy idea came by so fast, that she got up very imposing and left the courtyard, taking the road down town to the center. The crickets, like usually, were singing their unstoppable song, and for Amira in that moment they were like a scratch on the blackboard for her ears. She walked pretty fast to the center, seeing the Pepromeno Crossroad.
“That’s it! Destiny!” she said furious.
She went to the cross of the three roads, and she putted herself on the knee, closing her eyes.
“Please! If this legend really exist! Please take my pain away! I wish… I wish…”
But even she didn’t know what she wanted in that moment, crying.
“Mother.”
She stood up very fast, looking around scared, wanting to know the source of the echo and soft voice. She saw no one near.
“No. I am not a mother! I cannot be!”
She didn’t stand much time at the crossroad, and returned with the same soul pain back home, but surprise.
She saw someone on her house fence, who really was struggling to stand up on his feet, but his body no longer listens to him.
“Lovin.” Amira said frighten, going to him.
“A… Amira!” he shouted.
“Lovin, what are you doing here? Are you crazy?” the girl said, whispering.
“Amira… I… love… you… Amira please… listen to… me.”
“No Lovin. I’m sorry, you’re drunk. Go home!”
The boy logged a true effort to stand on his feet, but finally managed to do so, looking straight into the girl’s painful eyes.
“I hurt you… I deserve to die. I want… I want you. I want you… to be… my wife.”
“What? No Lovin. It’s too late now. Your wish came true. I will have a baby. Who will grow without a father.”
“No… No!” he said, grabbing her hand.
“Lovin let me go! You’re hurting me.”
“You don’t… understand what I want from… you and this child.”
“Lovin. Go away!”
“DON’T YOU UNDERSTAND?”
Because he refused to let her go, Amira applied on his face a very burning palm, making him to fall on his knee. The girl quickly entered the courtyard, walking towards home, with a bigger pain in her bleeding soul then before.
“AMIRA!” Lovin started to yell so hard that he could wake the all island.
“Who’s there!?” a rough voice could be heard, making Amira freezing.
The girl’s parents were on the porch, watching with not pleasant eyes at the guest who was making noise.
“MISTER VERISS… I WILL BE A FATHER!”
“Good for you boy, now get out of my propriety before I will shoot you!”
Amira was breathing accelerating in the same time with her mother, who was terrified.
“I wa… I want to talk… with your daughter!”
“Let’s go dear inside!” Doloress said, but instead her husband had other plans in his mind.
“What the hell you want from me, boy?”
“Your daughter… will… have a baby with… me.”
The news felt like a lightning above Mr. Veriss, who remained stoned. He started to shout like a mad man, making violent gestures in the air like he was beating someone imaginary, and without a warning he ran to Amira, with his hand raised.
“RUN AMIRA!” her mother shouted but was too late, because the girl was terrified, stoned, and her father was already clenched with his stumpy hand around the girl’s fragile neck.
“YOU BITCH! I MADE YOU, I WILL KILL YOU!”
The girl started to get dizzy, coughing, trying to escape from the death.
“LEAVE HER ALONE YOU PIG!” Doloress shouted, but in vain. Was like the man just loose his ability to hear, being too busy killing his daughter, which she tried desperately to escape, struggling like a chicken from the axe.
A horrible pain crushes the man’s head, and he collapsed on the ground, in a ruby puddle, in the same time with Amira, who was coughing and drinking thirsty the air around, freshly escaped from the death’s hand. Then she looked up to see Doloress with a shovel in her hand, being horrified by what she has done.
The girl got up easily, watching frighten her father, who was seating in that blood puddle, without a breath, like a useless stump, defeated by his own family. Doloress dropped the shovel, shaking uncontrollably, putting her hand to her mouth.
“Mother… you murdered him.” Amira whispered.
“N… o… No.”
The woman ran into the house. Lovin was sleeping at the fence, still hoping.
Only then, the girl realized what was going on, and she ran outside of the yard, going for help. When she exit, accidently step on Lovin’s hand, and he just woke up suddenly.
“Run Lovin! LEAVE!”
“I love you. I’m sorry.”
He ran to his house in the forest, tripping on his crazy running way. Amira did not stand to watch him leave and ran to the center.
In a half hour, all Sunshine was in Veriss family courtyard. The police lifted the massive body of Mr. Gefred, while a neighbor was holding Amira to not collapse.
“Where is your mother, Amira?”
“I don’t know. I really don’t…”
But then she made big eyes, running into the house, searching for her everywhere, but no sign of Doloress. The intuition was pushing Amira to search the backyard, and exactly this thing she did. She ran to the back of the house, and the horror came back to her. An inert body was swinging easily in the air, hold by a tree.
Amira screamed, gathering the people at the place where she was. Doloress Veriss hanged herself in pain and fear.
The world around started to lose its contour, spinning and with a softly boom, Amira collapsed on the ground, and the world entered in the dark.
Everything came back. The world regained its contour. She was lying on a soft and big bed. The room was small but beautiful, having floral wallpaper. In the front of the bed was a door made of wood, probably of oak, very beautiful masterpiece, and in the left was a huge wardrobe, made of the same wood as the door.
The window was large opened, and the sea breeze waved the pink curtains. She wasn’t at her house from what she saw around. She had a bandage around her head, feeling it heavy. She was dizzy, wanting to rise in the head bones. Then every memory came back to the poor girl’s tired mind.
Lovin, who came drunk at her fence, telling her his feeling and putting the hardest question ever. Her father who tried to kill her, but the death had mistaken the target, hitting him with the help from Doloress, who frighten by what she did, hanged herself.
“Mother! Father!”Amira shouted scared.
And then the door opened, and a curvy woman came inside the room.
“Amira! There, there, calm down.”
“Aunt Creselda. Where am I? What happened?”
“You are at my
place in Moonlight, dear, relax. Your parents were buried now two days ago, God forgive them.”
The women’s brilliant blue eyes, flashed gentle the girl.
“What!? How long have I stood here?”
“Almost a week. Don’t worry. You are safe, and fortunately your baby is too.”
“How do you know…”
“My dear, trust me. Your belly it is a little too big and of course a doctor consulted you. You don’t have to be an expert to figure out.”
“So… it is ok?”
“Of course, a child is a blessing.”
“Dear aunt.” Amira said. “Do you believe in legends?”
“The legends come to life in the moment when you put your soul in.”
“I didn’t believe in them. But because of them I am cursed.”
“Come on! Don’t say that, everything will be fine. Anyway, did you thought at a name for your child?”
“Well, if the child will be a boy, I should name it Gefred, after my father. And if will be a girl…”
She thought intensely. But then she smiled, like someone just whispered the name at her ear, agreeing, watching the sea from the open window.”
“Angell.”
“What a divine name.”