The Mistery of Belicena Villca something , as a secret voice , warned that this might be the last breakfast eaten in that pleasant way . And then I was struggling to chase away such gloomy omens fiercely chewing the roasted sausage ... – See you soon Arturo --my father said goodbye-- I ' m going to walk along the irrigation canals . – Ciao Dad – I accompanied him to the back door and I stared at him as he wandered off to the stable in search of his old bay . Minutes after I would see him trotting away along the path that runs from East to West , parallel to the main canal . I should have already left but I was deliberately delayed because I wanted to talk to Mom alone .
I was still in the kitchen and a signal was enough for her to come solicitously , next to me . This attitude would not normally have attracted her attention , but when I put a hand on her shoulder and began to speak , a gesture of surprise was painted on her face .
– Dear Mommy – I said flatteringly – you should forgive me if what I ' m going to ask you causes you some pain ...
– You know son that what I have is yours ... --she noticed I wasn ' t requesting anything material and her face was now frankly alarmed-- what can I do for you Arturo ?
– Relax Mom , you know that I would not cause you any concern if I didn ' t think it was absolutely necessary .
– Stop beating around the bush and tell me what the hell you want --said my mother , who was starting to lose her cool . – What year was I born Mom ? --I asked , getting to the point . – You know it well ; in 44 . January 30 , 1944 . You are now 36 years old . – Well Mom ; listen carefully . We never talk about it but I want to tell you that I remember one night , more than thirty years ago ; I would be three or four years old and something , a noise , I don ' t know what , woke me up . It was late , Katalina was sleeping in the adjoining bed and through the window you could see the moon falling from the West . I think that I heard voices because I got up without dressing and went down the hall stairs , struggling between the dream that closed my eyes and the curiosity that opened them .
There was Dad , you , and someone I ' d never seen before ; a tall man , sharp-eyed . I still remember today his penetrating gaze and his height bigger than Dad ' s , who is 1.80 meters tall . It was he who discovered me in the stairs and he laughed uproariously at your anguished glance . In short , there is not much more that I retain in the memory . Seems to me to be in his arms and I think I remember that he gave me something shiny that attracted completely my attention . Then you put me to bed again and the next day the stranger was no longer there , nor did I see his gift again .
Mom had turned pale . We stopped by the garden set and I made her a silent indication to sit under the oak tree .
– As the years went by --I continued-- I used to remember that night but without giving it major importance . Just once , I would be about nine or ten years old , I dared to ask Dad and his reaction was very strange : he suffered a great confusion and he forbade me to talk about it again , but a few minutes later he changed and tried to convince me that I remembered a dream , a bad dream , that I had as a boy .
Therefore I never mentioned the matter again . Until today . --Mom sighed and shook her head as if she woke up from a nightmare .
– Why Arturo , why thirty-two years later , do you still remember that night ? – she asked more to herself than to me – why do you insist to relive a brief memory that means nothing to you ?
– Mother , I repeat that I do not wish to cause you pain ; wait , I haven ' t said yet what I want to know --I said in a soothing voice-- . Tell me only two things : if that man was from our family and if he had to do with the war . I used a firm tone here that convinced Mom how pointless it was to refuse to answer . – Look Arturo , you are already a grown man and you do not ignore how atrocious the war has been . In the years after 1945 , tempers were running high and many people had to live on the run . But now it is different ; much time has passed ... no one should dig into that ...! --there was a plea in the voice of Mom .
– Mom , you do not answer my questions and that is wrong , is it that you don ' t trust in me ? – . . . --Only just a mute look for an answer . – You must tell me what you know because it is very important for me , for my future , you understand ? --I assured firmly . It was evident that she did not understand and I decided to be more convincing . – I ' m going through a terrible spiritual crisis , Mom . Fate has placed me in front of a diabolical crossroads , where an error of choice , means straying down the wrong path , full of obstacles and real dangers . Your answers would help me not to fail ; believe me Mom . --I took her hands with mine in a desperate effort to instill her confidence .
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