Borislava Borissova

 

 

The Sicily island: www.facebook.com/home.php

CHAPTER ONE 

At the beginning of a summer
It was the kind of day he loved since his childhood, bright, idle and carefree. Returning to his native land by bus after long absence that was filled up with student pursuits, just-graduated, Ralph enjoyed the wind, the serene Sicilian sky, the music in his car, and the sense of vacation.
Finally, he immersed himself in the spirit of long dreamt relaxation.

Countryside, an old historic place in Sicily
It was evening when the young man passed along the first houses at the foot of beautiful National Park called Etna. There Michael, a single architect, in his mid-thirties, with the same dark eyes and whitened hair, welcomed his brother with gestures while talking on his cell phone.
“Kate called me, Ralph. Her home is a living hell.”
The much younger and thinner boy became suddenly tired. He was bored by that story.
“It’s high time to stop meddling in her life, Mike. Love isn’t an excuse.”
He stopped giving advice. It was obvious that Michael had an ear only for the voice on the cell phone. Closing it, he jumped into his car in a furious spirit.
“I should make James stop bullying her!”
At the door Ralph made one more endeavour:
“What are you going to do to him? Mike?”
Overfilled with mixed emotions, his brother started the car, not answering.. The high speed on the road was driving his mind to some cardinal action despite his intuition which was telling him to master his impulses first.
Remaining behind him in their old parents’ house, Ralph took his baggage inside. He searched for some food and losing all inner peace minute by minute, he slipped into his jacket and took his old motorbike out of the garage. In the shadow of the mountain the night was hugging the town tightly.

A house near the road
In his boyish room, hid behind the curtain, Al peered into the darkness, followed the signs of the wind in the trees and the increased intensity of the moonlight. The ordinary evening with some pizza, a computer game and a movie suddenly turned into the strangest one with a message from his schoolmate. His impatience was growing but instead of the shadow of his friend, the 14-year-old Bob, only a car stopped nearby. Soon he noticed some signals produced by its headlights, brushing the windows and the walls of the house. A slight frightened figure emerged from the driver’s seat, appeared between the branches and Al finally realized what was going on. The next moment the boy was rushing outside, whispering:
“Are you mad? Whose car is this?”
“My mother’s. She is at dad’s business party so I decided to practice my driving.” Pale and trembling all over, Bob still felt determined in his decision. “I must escape from home.”
“What? With your driving? Better take a cab.”
“The cab-driver will give me up to my parents or police and even if he doesn’t, it will cost a lot of money for such a long distance.”
“When?”
“Any night soon. In the dark nobody will notice me. Will you come with me? Al?”
Usually expansive, now Al did not feel inspired or impressed.
“My parents will kill me.”
“They will not find us. We will be somewhere unknown.”
“Why? What shall we do there?”
“Work on a farm or something like that. We will be independent! And afield…”
A little away from the street’s lamp so not to be seen by his parents, Al stood in hesitation between his love of the familiar safety and the allurement to face an adventure. Different reasons led Bob to such an action. The time he thirsted for a peaceful home like Al’s was behind him. Now he desperately wanted to become more mature and stand on his own, and he also needed a friend on the road to deal with the tough face of difficulties.
“Leave your uncertainty behind, Al! Life will be ours to live.”
Al uttered dizzily as if he had taken some of the forbidden pills:
“We can try to scrape some money together…”
In the dark he could not catch the relief in his schoolmate and was too busily engaged with his own emotions to be able to think for Bob’s. Soon he just rushed home.

 
In the local hospital room at the same town there was a patient, lying alone in the bed while an intravenous system infused blood in the body.

The same evening
Parking his car in a street neighboring to her house, Michael called Kate Rule down. A woman in her late thirties, with a figure and face younger then her age, svelt, shapely, she was faced with the latest troubles of her family’s breakdown, along with the lack of professional opportunities going on for years. Full with despairs she drew Michael to a pub preferring a walk into the open cold air to refresh herself. While still on the road, not having the patience to clear up the situation, he asked.
“Kate, I have never supposed that you take your hobby so seriously.”
“No one knew until James rummaged my belongings this morning and found my letter to the publishing house.”
Michael’s pragmatic nature betrayed him that evening.
“What? Did he really rummage your handbag, your wardrobe and the pockets of your clothes?”
The woman got out of breath in a fury:
“And he forced me to give an explanation…”
“Poor you to allow it…” uttered his lips.
Before she could protest, they heard footsteps and sank into the darkness so not to be seen together. A tall, manly silhouette appeared, looked around and touched his forehead.
“This is strange! Whenever I am at this place I hear voices as if I am going mad, although my fever has gone down.”
Michael was very surprised and whispered to Kate:
“Oh, Ralph returned this evening. It is not your husband.”
“James is still at the party. I left faking a headache…”
At that moment Michael realized that Ralph followed at his heels because of the speculation if his brother being out of peace he would kill James. Michael could not. It should have only be experienced in his imagination. Irritated to the extreme he insisted:
“Ralph makes this place crowded. Let’s find some privacy.”
“He seemed odd speaking to himself loudly.”
Suddenly the rave melted and the older one advocated his brother loyally:
“Everyone has oddity. Ralph only feels his more intensely.”
The woman tried to say something and choked, tried to walk away and stumbled.
“He is like me!” Kate uttered suddenly.
 
Ralph did not notice the lovers. He really got the road just to prevent a possible involvement of Michael in case of violence between the Rules. However, passing along their house, he found it quiet and dark and in relief his mind called back his yearning to fall asleep. So worse when, coming from a near street, two men startled him. Arguing, they followed the direction of Kate and Michael.
“You owe me more money.”
“No! It was all that was received for the antiques we excavated from the hotel complex.”
The croaking voices annoyed Ralph and mentioning the hotel of the big chain put him on the alert immediately. Stooping down so not to be caught, he saw how the other man put a pocket-knife to the throat of his fellow:
“Liar! I have an informant about your rituals in the cloister at the ancient ruins. You brought some things there from time to time. I can reveal your secrets to the others.”
“Let me to explain…”
Before having a chance to do something, Ralph hardly avoided an accident with a lonely car, erratically driven out of and back on the road, as if the most unskillful driver was struggling with the wheel. When got his wind the street was deserted.
His summer’s return home appeared more unusual than ever.
 
Passing through the grass Kate and Michael reached the pub. It was crowded and they had a hard time finding a free place, and had to wait before ordering salads and drinks… Their voices became loud to overcome the noise and the tinkling glasses.
“Kate, make some priorities, deal with the family first and leave the change of work for the future.”
“No! I cannot miss the most important chance in my life. When I chose my studies at the university in my twenties how could I know what work I would love years later? Since then I have been doing translations against my will because I need money so it is impossible to quit but my heart is in photography…”
“Be realistic! Who will give a permanent job to a thirty-five-year-old freelance business translator with experience in photography mentioned in the column of “Hobbies and interests” in her C.V.?”

The two men entered, took a table near Michael’s and nervously scanned the visitors. Their argument attracted his attention and he made efforts to concentrate on the woman with whom he had been in love during the last months.
“Listen, Kate, in every company younger people are preferred. After a certain age it is extremely difficult to start in a new field.”
“Rest assured that I know I have to be younger to entertain such ambitions…” Her sarcasm turned into pain: “And I am too ordinary person for my dreams… “
Her bruised soul received new blows from the one she expected warmth and understanding. Feeling upset, Kate drained her glass of wine as fast as possible. She wanted nothing but to leave and be alone with her pain. Instead of any ideas for help, Michael offered his cold logic in a too chily chat.
"Some dreams put us out of peace so if you have no big expectations, your disappointments will be fewer.”
Good, smart, realistic but not useful for a woman, led by her inner necessity to find a meaning in her days other than the usual ambition for a great career. She had had many interests before she met James and did not notice their loss during their marriage while at a moment she could only remember a few of them to gain pleasure.
“My expectations keep me on the surface, otherwise, you would find me at the bottom of depression by reason of routine…”
The woman just perceived how wrong she was seeking for comfort and support that night, even worse, Michael sounded like James: “Without having important connections, you are a dreamer. In our world what matters most is not your erudition or how well you work but who you know in any business! Or having your own money!”
“James constantly repeats the same. At our age people are settled down, I am the only one not grown up yet. But I do not want to become a world-champion in some discipline or to conquer the Cosmos so late. My wish is simple, to do what I love for a living. Why should I give up on it as if my forties are any deadline?”
Michael was not listening to her anymore. He had noticed the exchange of a gun for money under a newspaper between the two men and feeling too worried, rose quickly.
“Kate, come on! I need some fresh air! And I should take the pills for my high blood pressure in the car...”
Leaving a tip on the table, he nodded to the dizzied woman to go outside. Feeling guilty, Kate followed him.
“Are you well? I am sorry that I burdened you…”
“No, the night is wrong.”

After all events for only an evening, alone in the house, Ralph opened his brother’s strongbox, took out his gun and put it under his pillow just in case.

At the local hospital
An elderly woman ran apprehensively through the hospital entrance. On the staircase she noticed silhouettes chasing her. She rushed up the stairs and cast back a furtive glance. In front of a room she took a breath and tearfully peered inside. A shadow appeared behind her.

About midnight
There was crackle at first, rumble and a slight quake. The dark sky exploded in all colors of the rainbow. Everyone could hear the breathing of Etna volcano, surrounded by the unique National Park, panting intensively before clearing its lungs and snow-covered throat. After the awful driving, Bob did not waste time to park the car properly and rushed into the house. Shortly afterwards, like many of his neighbors, he was outside, taking a position on the terrace and snapping with his mother’s camera. The scared dog standing at his feet barked frantically.
Excluding him, people could enjoy the irresistible spectacle of remarkable fire, black ash and yellow brimstone on the horizon. The earthquake was not too strong and the enraptured residents were never tired of the immortal presence of the most active volcano nearby. Its performace were never boring. If one day its voice was silenced, the agitation calmed down, and the sky illuminations ceased, the life of everyone there would not be the same.
Despite its danger, the island remained the land of Etna, the world of legends.