I closed my eyes. He
just pushed the speed pedal down harder and went up the ramp. I heard the noise
of something being hit and the sound of breaking glass and the man blaring his
curses against us.
I screamed in shock
and fear. The rain fell heavy and hard on the car when we hit the street.
- We’re OK
now. He was quick to jump aside.
- Where
did he come from, for heaven’s sake? Was he stalking us?
- I don’t
know…
- Fuck! I’m
really terrified now.
- Calm
down. We’ll be home soon.
- We
should have called the police… a long time ago!
- We didn’t
think it was necessary at the time. Maybe we should now.
- We must!
***
- What are
you doing? Let me go!
- Say you’re
going to have a coffee with me.
- You’re
scaring me. Leave me alone… please…
He held me tighter in
his grip. His eyes were like the ones of a madman. I tried to push him away,
but he was stronger than me. Then he pulled me closer and showed me a knife. I
could feel how strong he was by the way he held me, but I would not move an inch
away anyway.
And then it happened so quickly…
***
- What if
it did not happen?
- You
could be dead by now or…
- I know… I
owe you…
- You owe
me nothing. I’m glad I was there.
- I will
never be able to thank you enough. You were so quick and acted like a true hero.
- I just acted
by instinct. And I am so glad I was there at the moment I saw him forcing the
situation. When I noticed he had a knife, I just could not help but interfere.
You were in danger. But it was risky, although I never thought it was, before
later on. He could have killed you… or us. But he was a coward in the end, anyway.
He ran away as soon as he was unarmed.
- And then
you threw his knife so far away into the sea. It was like throwing the
situation away from us. And then now he comes back into our lives. Why?
- I have no
clear idea. But it’s known that he’s been following you since the day you
almost bumped into him at your door. And he probably have not overcome the day
I kicked his ass off. Revenge is, maybe, what he wants now. Let the police deal
with him from this point on.
***
The police could do
nothing in terms of security, as there was no evidence that we had been
threatened by that man. It was us who tried to run over him, so he could have
sued us for the attempt of murder, if he wanted to. Justice would not protect
us in any case.
We decided we would
have to protect ourselves on our own account and our safety and that could lead
to extreme measures.
For some time, we
were not threatened by him or anyone else though. He simply disappeared for
long. We were still being careful, but not paranoid anymore, almost relaxing
and coming back to our normal lives, wishing we were blessed by fortune.
***
- Are you
photosynthesizing?
He laughed. With his
face turned to the morning sun, he seemed to be having so much pleasure in
that. He was shirtless, showing off his shaped torso. His hair was shining as
was his pale skin. His eyes were as blue as the sky above us. I praised the
summer for that lovely vision and thought of a Greek god… Apollo, maybe, for
his fiery hair and beard, and…
He noticed my almost
discreet smile and I assumed he was reading my mind.
- I think
I am. It feels so good. It’s so good being home.
- I
totally agree. Take this…
He knew I was playing
with words, so he just accepted, smiling, the cup of fresh coffee I was
offering him. We sat outside, listening to the sounds of birds chirping and the
running water of the stream by the back of the house. It was a relaxing Sunday
morning and we were enjoying the company of each other.
After the nice
breakfast we had in the backyard, we decided to go for a walk in the woods
before lunchtime. It was a pleasant morning and we wanted to enjoy it the best
we could. Being in the woods would be fresher and we would not be exposed to
direct sun. We knew our skins would get sunburned easily, even with the
protection of sun lotion.
It took us about two
hours to come back home. As we were getting closer to the gate I noticed his
face changed.
- Did we
leave the gate that open?
- I don’t
think so…
- Shit! Be
careful. Stay here. I will check this out.
I tried to protest,
but it was of worthless. He was very serious and I knew why.
- Stay
here. Keep the phone. We might have to call for help.
- Who…?
He crossed the gate
and went inside. I waited out of the gate, as he told me to, but my mind was so
apprehensive I could not think.
I heard him shout. I
heard him shout again and then silence. Strange sounds.
‘Was that
a fight? What the hell?’
My heart sank when I
realised what was going on.
- Oh, no!
Oh, no!
I heard a thud and
then a shot.
- Oh, no!
Oh, no! Oh, no!
I crossed the gate
without thinking clearly. I felt as if my heart was in my mouth. Then I saw the
worst vision I could at that moment.
The blood was still
running fresh and sticky on the brownish tiles of the porch.
The two bodies were
still on the floor. I knew the man who was on top of him… both bodies
motionless.
Then I screamed. The
body on top rolled over to the side.
- He came
out from the house with my gun in his hand... and we fought… and…
- What?
How? Are you…?
He was covered in
blood but it was not his.
- Call the
police! I just killed the guy!
- Oh, my
goodness. This is horrible! We are so fucked! What do we do now? What are we
supposed to do now? The police will not believe us…
- Don’t
panic! Call the police! Now!
- And what
if…
- For
fuck’s sake! Call them! Now!!!
***
