Gabby got up and combed my hair with her fingers. The sound was like sliding your nails against a smooth surface. Uncomfortable, unpleasant and sharp. I held her hand so that she would stop and closed my eyes.Sometimes I didn't necessarily need to be sleeping to have a nightmare. Right there, with the sun entering through the window and crawling on the floor as the world outside turned, and with the hands of someone else within reach of mine, I felt a strong smell of blood and heard a soft whisper that came from inside my mind.They said it was just a defense mechanism of my brain. A way to stifle repressed memories. But that voice has never been like the one we heard when reading a book in silence. It was something real, a request for help, a cry for help... Something real and disturbing."You don't need makeup, Suzy. You’re a survivor "she said, pulling my hand out of yours. He touched my hair again, but decided to make a braid with messy strands. "I know it's not cool that your fa
"Do you promise to visit me? "Asked Mikaela, with sparkling blue eyes and reddish by crying. She was a ten-year-old child with curly hair and a luminous face. I already knew she would be beautiful when she grew up.I used to take her in my lap to talk, but I still couldn't find the right way to bend down with the cervical collar limiting my movements, so I just made a small gesture with my head and smiled."I promise," I said, and she stretched her little finger, attaching it to mine. "Be good to mom.”Mikaela nodded and hugged my belly "it was the tallest she could get. I stroked her hair while Gabby wrapped an arm around my shoulders, sending positive energy so that I could endure the farewell. We were standing at the foot of the stairs, almost facing the entrance of the room, and my father came up with the intention of picking up my suitcase."You don't have to go there," he warned, putting the strap of the backpack on his shoulders. "Your mother brought those alcoholic uncles of y
The flashes of a dozen cameras blinded me as soon as I jumped from the car to the illuminated sidewalk. Dad slid one arm around my waist and another over Gabby's waist, attracting us closer while we posed for the photographers.According to my calculations, that should be the third party in a single weekend. And I was already tired with the lessons of good manners, the hours lost in a beauty salon, and the countless dresses that fit so perfectly into my limited curves, which showed in detail the severe level of my thinness. But I couldn't complain.Events of high society were the way of the rich and powerful to present their spouses and children "future successful professionals" to the world. A hierarchy needs to be maintained from good contacts. And Dad knew a lot of them.The truth is that it didn't cost me any sacrifice to adapt to that. I would like to know that the older men of each of the parties attended knew me by my name, although I was still not the daughter of a judge. Beca
While my low-heeled shoes screamed at every step through the polished floor, I noticed that I was attracting glances for each little one "and I need to say: very talkative "group of men. It was not easy to find someone who was not almost old or with gray hair lurking on their heads. Dad was one of the only ones who did not suffer from the exhausting effect of time, and the dark hair resisted like coal in a newly lit fire.The men tilted their heads lightly in a gesture of greeting and smiled, but those smiles were never genuine. Gabby instructed me about that kind of inconvenience. The more money a man has, the more he believes he can have the woman he wants, regardless of his age.It reminded me of someone else instantly.However, almost reaching the exit, in a passage with pilasters facing the horizon, a man with an appearance of just over thirty years stopped me.“Suzane Johnson? “He asked.I wasn't afraid. Right out there were security men walking from side to side, and my father
I had no idea what I was asking, but I just let the words form."Are you referring to a ghost company? “He questioned.“No. A company that may be being used for the sale of illegal things.”Anthony retreated from the balustrade, arching his thick eyebrows."Use the name of a company to have free import and export access. Is that what you mean? "I shrugged, but Anthony must have seen that I was more interested than I let it show. He made a gesture with his head. “Well... This would not only lead a company to bankruptcy, but would also lead its president and investors to provide clarification before the courts. If the veracity of the complaint were proven, the actions would fall absurdly, and anyone could buy them.”Without being invited, some nightmares ran through my mind like a breath from my unconscious. Jonathan's face. The sound of disconnected voices. A vaguely familiar face. The name of the company that Jonathan would inherit, Maxwell Enterprises, being repeated through a multit
“Is this the end you expected? "Questioned Jonathan in a tired voice and devoid of heat. “Are you satisfied, Suzy?”Between us there was a distance of approximately ten steps, whose vacuum was filled by the flow of salt air that came from the waters below us. We were over the bridge of a winding river, in which its turbid and treacherous waters formed small invisible whirls on its serene surface, swirls that met the water of a distant sea.A deadly beauty, by the way, since the waters of a deep cyan were so coldly calm that one could look for as long as it was without feeling any vertigo or sign that a fall would hardly end well."It's a beginning," I said, casting the shortest of glances at him.I never imagined that extreme suffering could change even the most basic physiognomy of a person until I see the sequelae with my own eyes.The dark and deep iris eyes that one day induced me to immerse myself in Jonathan's problems were no longer the same. I didn't have to wait for him to re
"Shouldn't you be inside? "I asked, subtly moving away from the concrete balustrade of the bridge. Jonathan had approached without me noticing. "As far as I know, there is still time for the end of your father's trial.”"There's nothing I can do for him now. It is obvious that he will lose the cause. The less involve the other family members, the better.”The cold morning wind sighed between us, and an unpleasant acrid smell of pus hit me. I looked at Jonathan's gloved hand, and noticed that he was massaging the wrinkled skin underneath. Frowning my nose, I moved away a little further, the smell seemed to chase me."It's a shame that all this is happening this way.”Jonathan raised his head and did his best to keep his eyes at the same height as mine. A thin yellowish crust surrounded the sides of the swelling, a constant alert of eye inflammation. In addition to the physical brand, I wondered if he was feeling as emotionally broken as I felt.“What is your real plan, Suzane?”"I don'
I tried to laugh with irony, but Jonathan was giving me back that feeling of inferiority that I hated, and I was barely able to smile with a soft mockery. He was staggering as he held me, had no balance even to maintain himself, and yet he kept threatening, oppressing, assaulting..."The real problem is that you are not a God and you can't control anyone's life," I pulled my arm with a jerk, and he tripped back. "You are dirty, impure, and have a soul as disgusting as your damn burned hand. What is yours is in jail, Jonathan, and I hope from the bottom of my heart that very soon you will get it.”I swirled and walked away, leaving Jonathan slightly leaning against the bridge parapet, but the traffic was chaotic and trying to cross away from a crosswalk forced me to walk almost the entire length of the bridge, waiting for a loophole to the other side. The security guard was willing to draw the attention of the drivers so that we could cross, there were only a few steps left for me to b