A Warrior's Return (4 page)

“Clark.”

It wasn’t the kind of name I would’ve
pictured for him. I closed my eyes and sunk into the pillow all
thought drifting from me.

Clark continued deliberately pressing on
Evangelina’s pressure points knowing that he would render her into
a deep unconsciousness within moments.

He felt her breathing deepen and knew she
was asleep. He kept up his movements for a little while longer and
then stopped altogether.

Clark turned to the little boy watching from
the doorway and brought a finger up in the universal sign to be
quiet as he got up off the bed. Clark stepped out of the room
leaving Evangelina alone in the room and closed the door behind
him

I came awake with a start my head lifting
off the pillows. The shadows were long in the room. I sat up in
alarm.

I had slept the entire day away!

I got out of the bed and noticed immediately
that everything felt better, even my face. I opened the door, but
stopped when I heard voices. It was Rafael and the stranger. I
could see Rafael well, but I couldn’t see, what was his name,
Clark. I couldn’t see Clark, but I could hear him.

Rafael was asking a question, “Why do you
not use Evangelina for your pleasure? Other men do.”

I let my head fall against the doorpost as
my heart constricted painfully.

“Because I’m not a whore.” Came the deep
response.

I picked my head up slightly not sure I’d
heard Clark right.

Rafael’s voice was confused sounding as
well, “I do not understand? She is the whore, not you.”

“The man is as guilty as the woman is. There
both whores when they participate in activities meant for marriage
relationships only. My opinion is that the man is the worst of the
two, generally speaking.”

Rafael openly sounded confused now, “How is
that?”

There was a momentary pause, “There both
sinning, but the man is the one with the money usually. He’s the
one that seeks out the sin. He doesn’t need to, but he desires to,
when in reality the sin might never have to happen if he didn’t
give in to his own lust. Now for the woman’s part it’s not often
desire that’s the reason behind her choice, but necessity or so it
would seem. Let me ask you something. Do you think Evangelina
desires her line of work?”

Rafael’s response was quick, “No! She hates
it, but if she stopped we would starve!”

There was a pause and then Rafael asked
inquisitively, “Haven’t you been a man whore, as you put it?”

“I was at one time.” Came the deep
reply.

“It’s a time in my life that I’m trying not
to repeat. You see Rafael; a person can quit something they’re
doing wrong at any time.”

“There’s nothing else for her to do! She’s
tried! We would starve!”

“There can be consequences to doing the
right thing Rafael. Yes, you could starve, but perhaps something
unforeseen could occur and you might not starve. The important
thing is to not only die in honor, but also to live by honor. There
are other ways of dying than starvation. You can die inside before
your body does on the outside.”

“I still can’t see a way out! We would
starve!” Rafael exclaimed in puzzlement.

The conversation seemed to come to an end
and I waited a little letting some time go by, as the conversation
replayed over and over in my head.

I opened the door the rest of the way and
stepped into the other room. Rafael saw me and got up off the floor
quickly.

“Have you eaten Rafael?” He quickly nodded
and I said, “Then it’s time for you to go to bed.”

He started to argue.

“Don’t argue! Bed now!” I said motioning to
the other room and reluctantly he went.

It was hard to imagine, but I was
hungry.

“On the table.”

I glanced over and saw a plate full of food
all ready there.

“Probably a little cold, sorry. I didn’t
want to wake you.”

I sat down at the table and he got up off
the floor and sat across from me in the evening gloom.

“You heard all that didn’t you?” He
asked.

I looked up and nodded slightly.

“I’m sorry if I made you feel guilty. It’s
not my place to judge.”

“But it’s the truth.” I said softly before
finishing my meal.

After I was done I looked up to see him
watching me.

“Where do you want me to begin with Victor?”
I asked.

“Anywhere you want to.”

I began to talk and he would ask questions
that prompted me to remember things I hadn’t even thought of as
important, but that he seemed to think were. Two hours went by and
I felt the topic of Victor was completely exhausted of anything new
to say. We sat in complete darkness.

“That’s all I know.” And it was enough to
get me killed several times over, but I didn’t say that.

“Thank you Evangelina.”

I got up and started for the bedroom, but I
stopped and turned back, “Clark?”

“Yes?”

“I’m ready to die even willing to, but how
can I either live or die in honor when I know what will happen to
Rafael after I’m gone? How Clark?”

I left him with that question and continued
on to the bedroom closing the door behind me.

Several days went by. Clark would disappear
for long periods of time and then when I thought he had left, he
would be back, usually bringing more food with him.

I bumped into the landlady only to see from
her arched eyebrow look that she knew of my guest. It was from her
that I found out that Clark had all ready paid the rest of the
month out for my room and it was the beginning of the month!

I stepped into the apartment and was
surprised to see Clark there. It was midday; he was usually gone
around this time.

I made him and Rafael lunch and then I asked
a little breathlessly, “Could you watch Rafael for a little while
for me? I have an errand to run.”

He nodded and I slipped out the door
relieved.

Clark looked at Rafael, “Where is she
going?”

“Same place she goes every Tuesday.” He
mumbled out not looking up.

“Which is?” Clark pressed the little
boy.

Rafael looked up with pain in his eyes, “To
see my mother.”

Clark studied him for a moment and then
reached down to his belt and pulled a beautifully engraved dagger
out from it. He held it up in front of Rafael.

Rafael’s eyes practically glazed over with
love for the knife in the way any young boys would have.

“If you promise you’ll stay in the apartment
and not let anyone in but Evangelina or me I’ll give you this
knife.”

“I promise!” Came the rote answer.

Clark rushed out of the apartment only
pausing long enough to hear Rafael slide the locks closed shut.
Rushing down the stairs at breakneck speed he was in time to see
Evangelina up ahead of him and he commenced following her at a
distance.

She walked briskly for over an hour. Finally
it seemed that she reached her destination. It was a hospital.
Clark drew closer so he didn’t lose her.

It had to be at the very far end of the
hospital, when she stopped outside of a ward. The hospital was
rundown and showed its age. Security didn’t seem to be a focus of
theirs either.

Clark watched Evangelina slip some money to
an orderly to let her through a door. Clark decided to try the same
tactic. The orderly stared at him speechless wondering why he would
be in such a place let alone pay so much to enter.

Clark slipped inside the hallway and was
assailed by the unpleasant smells of neglected patients. As he made
his way down the hall he could see that it was more of a nursing
home than it was a hospital. He saw Evangelina give another orderly
even more money. She turned down another hallway and at the far end
she stopped.

A tired looking nurse saw her and gave a
brief smile before her expression turned serious. She laid a hand
on Evangelina’s arm and said something. Among other skills Clark
had learned in his life was the valuable asset of being able to
read lips.

“It’s her heart. It’s failing. I’m sorry,
but there’s nothing we can do. It’s good you came because she
doesn’t have long.”

The nurse walked on down the hallway and
Evangelina slowly entered the room. Standing in a shadowed doorway
Clark waited for over two hours before Evangelina walked by, her
face wet with tears and her steps listless and lacking of
energy.

After she was gone he went down the hall to
the little room that was as tiny as a closet and probably had been
at one time. It barely fit the bed and the still figure that rested
on it.

Clark had seen a lot of death in his life
and he recognized it now. He stepped into the room and looked down
at the figure of a person at rest. It was like looking into
Evangelina’s face. The woman on the bed had to be Evangelina’s twin
sister.

Preparations quickly made, Clark left the
hospital at a full run in an effort to get back to the apartment
before Evangelina did.

Clark sat in his seat at the table
masterfully trying to control his heavy breathing while appearing
to breathe normally. Rafael sat at the table with him in deep mute
satisfaction with his first knife. He had already nicked himself
twice with it, but he was careful to not let on to the injuries for
fear of having the knife taken away from him.

Clark was wiping some sweat off when
Evangelina entered the apartment. She didn’t even so much as glance
at them, but went straight to her room and closed the door.

Rafael looked as if he was going to follow,
but Clark stopped him, “I think it would be best if you let her
have some time to herself.”

The little boy looked puzzled, but he
obeyed. Clark got up and left the apartment.

I sat staring at the plate of food in front
of me lacking any desire to eat it. I should. If being a whore was
a sin then not eating good food, as hard as it was to come by, must
also be.

My hands didn’t move to the task though and
I continued to sit still. I’d sent Rafael to bed over an hour ago.
He’d been so excited over the knife Clark had given him that I
hadn’t had the heart to tell him that his mother was dead.

He had stopped going with me to visit her a
little over a year ago. The nursing ward with its strange sights
and bad smells wasn’t something a little boy looked forward to
seeing and I didn’t blame him. I’d hated seeing my sister in such a
place for years to, but it had been all I could afford, actually
more than I could afford really.

I had always hoped that one day Maria would
sit up out of her coma and come home with me, but that would never
happen now. Perhaps it was for the best anyway. Their situation was
dire enough here without adding another mouth to feed and take care
of.

I’d used all of Victor’s money just to get
into the ward. None of it was left!

I didn’t even have any money to see that
Maria got a proper burial. She’d be thrown into an unmarked
pit!

The thought of that brought fresh tears to
my eyes. I bent over keening softly in grief. She deserved so much
better!

I heard the door open behind me and I knew
somehow without looking that it was Clark. I sat up abruptly and
wiped my eyes quickly hearing him approach from behind.

“I made you dinner.” I said pointing to a
plate across from mine, “I can warm it up.”

He brushed past me, “No, this is fine.” He
said sitting down.

He brushed his plate to the side and I
looked at him questioningly. He reached across the table with one
of his long arms and brushed my plate to the side and laid
something down in its place.

“I followed you today. I hope you don’t mind
what I’ve done.” Clark said softly.

I looked down at what he had laid on the
table. It was a picture and I stared at it unable to comprehend the
enormity of what I was seeing on it. It couldn’t be!

My eyes drifted to the little white
lettering at the bottom of the picture that clearly displayed the
date confirming that the pictured had been taken today.

The grass was green and well taken care of
around the fresh dirt of a gravesite in the picture. A huge bouquet
of colored roses and lilies lay sprawled elegantly across the bare
dirt of the grave. There was a polished rose quartz granite
headstone, which clearly read, ‘In loving memory of Maria Celina
Frontao. Beloved sister and mother.’

I dropped the picture and stood up moving
toward Clark, who watched me, uncertainly. I fell to my knees
before him and would’ve kissed his feet, but he caught me by the
upper arms before I could.

“Evangelina don’t do that!” He
exclaimed.

I looked up at him completely choked up and
half screamed out, “Why? Why are you doing all this for me?”

I stared up at him beseechingly in search of
an answer.

“Because I can. Because I want to!” He said
simply and I read the honesty of his answer in his eyes.

He’d had no ulterior motive. He’d just
wanted to help. Help me of all people!

I lost it. I sobbed against his legs, as I
thanked him over and over. Eventually I just lay curled up against
his legs with my cheek resting on his drenched knee. It was like I
was in peaceful shock in the aftermath of my outpouring of emotion.
I didn’t want to move and he wasn’t making me.

The fingers of one of his hands stroked over
and over through my long black hair in a comforting gesture that I
had never thought possible of a man. Surely such a man as Clark
hadn’t been born in the same world I had been!

“Do you want to talk about her? They say
that helps sometimes with grief, but I don’t know for sure.”

I swallowed hard not knowing where to
start.

“You were twins?” He asked softly
prompting.

“Yes, identical twins. We did everything
together as girls. We could even feel how each of us was feeling,
when we were apart from each other. That changed when we were
eight. We both got sick. I got over it quickly, but Maria couldn’t
get over it. The doctors thought she would die, because her fever
was so high for so long. Eventually it went away, but she wasn’t
the same. As we got older it became more apparent. She was like a
little girl trapped inside. She never got any older, even though
her body did. Father was embarrassed by her and he wanted to send
her away, but I begged and pleaded with him not to, promising to
take care of her myself. I did just that until something changed. I
fell in love. I was eighteen, and the boy from another influential
family in town came home from school. We dated. We made plans to
marry, since the match was agreeable to both our families. Mostly
because it would match up the influence and wealth both of our
families possessed. I planned to take Maria with me, when I found
out that Philip was not the man I had thought he was. When I had
not been around he had taken advantage of Maria! Almost from the
moment I had met him! All through our year-long courtship! When I
found out about what he had been doing I confronted him. If
anything he was actually proud of himself! He told me he wanted to
get a taste for what I would be like so what better way than with
my twin sister. He said I was making him the envy of all men by
having two beautiful women at his beck and call. He even added that
it was a plus that he would only have to hear one of us talk. If
the servants hadn’t pulled me off of him I would’ve killed him. I
called the marriage off against my father’s wishes. He wanted me to
marry him anyway, saying boys will be boys. He only wanted the
money and influence the marriage would bring. A month later it
became clear that Maria was pregnant. Father was furious and in a
fit of rage at the apparent dishonor to our family name he hit
Maria. She fell hitting her head off a marble end table on the way
to the floor. She never regained consciousness. Father said that we
had both brought disgrace to his name and he kicked us both out.
Seven months later Rafael was born. After he was born the hospital
didn’t want to keep Maria alive, but I begged them to. Finally one
of the doctors said that he would if I…… I…..”