Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 85569 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 428(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 85569 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 428(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
“Mama, why were you so terrified of him?”
Her eyes clouded over. “Because he killed your sister.”
“What?” I barked in shock. “I had a sister?”
“You never met her. Her name was Rosella. You were only three months old when he murdered her. She was only a year old. He smothered her with a pillow. The doctors thought it was cot death. I did not see him do it, but I knew he did. An hour before he went into her room, she was alive and healthy.”
“Why?” I whispered in horror.
Her voice became hard. “He was obsessively particular about the way a bed must be made. The night before your sister had colic and she had cried all night. I was tired and I got careless. I did not make the bed exactly in the way he wanted. There must have been creases, or the ends were not perfectly folded over, I don’t know what I did wrong, but he was so furious his whole face changed. He looked evil. It was as if he was possessed by a demon. I’d never seen anything like it in my life before. I was terrified. When he turned away from me, I couldn’t move. My limbs wouldn’t move. By the time I could, it was too late. He had already killed her.
“In his mind, Rosella had kept me awake, had distracted me from my duties, so she had to be removed. And that would also serve as my punishment. He destroyed every trace of her, her clothes, her toys, any photos with her in them, her birth certificate, even the lock of hair I had kept hidden away. He threatened to kill you too if I told anyone or I tried to escape. He told me in that cold, quiet voice of his that there was nowhere on earth I could run to hide from him. He would always find me and kill you as he had done with our firstborn.”
“Christ, Mama! We could have gone to the police.”
“I had no proof, there were too many crooked policemen and he knew them all. I couldn’t take the risk. I love you, Luca. There is nothing I will not suffer to keep you safe.”
Tears of pity filled my eyes and ran down my cheeks. I never understood. I never knew. Her sacrifice was immense, unbelievable. I enveloped her inside my arms and held her thin body close to me.
“It’s okay, Mama. He will never be able to hurt you or me, ever again. He’s gone back to hell.”
She stroked my hair. “Shhh … my darling boy. Don’t cry, I am so proud of you. I couldn’t have dreamed of a better son than you. You make everything I’ve gone through worth it. I would do it all again for you. Don’t cry, darling. It’s over and you have come out of it with a pure heart.”
“I killed nine men, Mama.”
She froze inside my arms. Then, very slowly, she pushed me away from her so she could look into my eyes. Her eyes were shining with love.
“Those were not men you killed. They look human, but don’t be fooled. They are a species apart. They shouldn’t even be allowed to live amongst us humans. Your father was like them, an evil monster. Many times, I wanted to kill him, but I was not brave enough. I was afraid I would be caught and you would go into foster care. You didn’t do anything wrong. You did the world a favor. I’m so, so, so proud of you, Luca. Well done, my beautiful son. When you stand before your maker, you will see, that he will not condemn you.”
“I hope so, Mama. Like you, I did it to protect my child.”
She nodded. “Yes, there is nothing I would not have done for you too. When are you bringing Bianca to see me?”
“I will bring her tomorrow. I will also bring a woman I want you to meet.”
“Ah, is that horrible woman, Arianna gone?”
“Yes. She is gone.”
“Good. I hated her. Are you in love?”
I smiled. “Yes. I’m in love.”
She smiled back. “Then I will love her too.”
“When is your father’s funeral?”
“Next week. But you don’t have to go.”
“I must go,” she said instantly. “For years I prayed for the day I could see his dead body inside a coffin, and now God has answered my prayer. I’d love to see him, finally, cold and deceased.” Her eyes were twinkling.
I stared at her with fascination because I realized I’d never seen my mother so happy. This was the first time in my life I was seeing her truly happy.
After I left my mother I went to her old care home. It was evening and I sat on the stone wall outside and waited. Eventually, I saw her coming. Mabel was the quintessential black mama. She was a force to be reckoned with. She must have been in her seventies perhaps. I remembered my father telling my mother, ‘We are Italians. We don’t befriend blacks.’ I smiled. This was my mother giving my father the finger.