Always before a new life, a death is necessary, not necessarily physical, but deeply existential, either to say goodbye to what is no longer part of our days or to what we once were and can never be again. “ Would you recognize her if you met her?”, Luigi is the first to throw away the silence that has prevailed since we left the Calderone mansion and drove to the cemetery. The normal thing is to bring flowers, but I carry with me a suitcase with my favorite belongings, used when I was Francisca. However, it's not me he's talking about, it's the photograph of Lorena Tatiane Calderone, still at the age of 17, very well preserved next to my father's photograph and both fixed on a cross.
Paris, present“Is that his house?”We had to blink a few times to believe it. Either Adam Arnault is a man who invites danger into his life or an idiot who denies to himself that nothing can happen to him. Only one of these options would explain the fact that his huge residence does not have cameras or multiple security guards as was the case in Jean's house.The modern architecture alternating in glass, wood and perfectly finished walls that confuse any pair of eyes that it is wallpaper and not paint and cement, accuse it of being his own house and not one he inherited from his family.
Luigi didn't have much baggage beyond the essentials. Always very practical and objective. He didn't bring his weapons or ammunition. That he could take care of once he arrived in the United States. So all that was left was a backpack with a modest amount limited by the legal restrictions governing the amount to be carried on trips.“ It's not goodbye!”, I speak excitedly, spicing up my promise to take my future business there.“I hope that in your case you can buy a couple of guys in uniforms”, he refers to the policemen, “Traveling as a good man does not suit an almost Calderone.”“ Not almost, you are a Calderone. M
“ Bonjour, un café, s'il vous plaît!”I am the first to arrive at the café in front of the newsstand where newspapers and magazines are sold. Unfortunately, it is still closed, which suggests that my anxiety has managed to beat even the sun this morning. I sip my coffee while my fingernails are tapping on the small wooden table, marking the seconds that this employee is late.It is already the second cup of coffee and nothing from him. I take a deep breath, mentalizing that I cannot behave like a stressed-out boss who converts every minute into money. Because anyway, the people I care about reading the fantastic good news are still sleeping wrapped in their imported sheets. And thank heavens I don't have to order a third cup of coffee, the clerk arrives and with him
“ Monsieur, Monsieur Adam Arnault is waiting for you in the living room. He sends word that you are running late”, Marise enters the scene, saving the day.“ I heard some noise from a cell phone ringing. It may have come from the garden.”“ Non Monsieur, it's mine. Sometimes I forget it, in the rooms of the house. Age is a fulminating thing for our minds. Please don't say anything to Monsieur Arnault.”“ D'accord, don't worry!”He decides to leave the room accompanied by the lady, but it is not safe for
The place where nobody wants to be found is not only a neighborhood, it is a hiding place for those who wish to escape from the light of the city, the rules, and who knows about themselves. Coming here in broad daylight exposes the cries of revolt left as soon as night falls, the mother of the lost and of those who find in darkness the best place for their demons to shelter. The graffiti resembles portraits of rebellion, where disorder is the only rule to follow. Smoke stains also bid Welcome, and bottles shattered across the floor are traces of a map of those looking for a hand-to-hand adrenaline rush. Because no matter if it's Paris, deep down, we are all human and it's enough to feel excluded enough to create our own underworld that opposes the perfect ideal from which we were rejected... “ So, this is it!”, warns Larissa as soon a
Refreshed walls, renovated furniture, and even a false bottom cabinet. Nothing too extravagant to arouse suspicion about my real financial situation beyond a mere saving that I will use as justification for this renovation and to have something to eat.“ There you go, mademoiselle! Lock changed. This is a good one, it will be difficult to open. Only if the door is knocked down.”“ I will test it…”, I speak to the locksmith and he looks at me with an incredulous look: "You think a mademoiselle can't open a door without a key?“ I, I…”
Amélia's residence is what you might call a real apartment. With four spacious rooms and a failed attempt to imitate Adam Arnault's decoration, in a version in nude colors and a gray belonging to occasional objects such as sofas, pictures, and carpets. However, the bills left under the door deliver that everything here is not yet entirely hers. There are a lot of installments missing and some are overdue. But, the need to keep herself on another level puts what is essential in second place and drowns her in a sea of debts, which are not worse than the ones she will have to pay for me.After a brief reading, I put the correspondence on the glass table in the dining room and go to find the refrigerator in the kitchen at the other end of the house. It is as well equipped as Jean's, but a complete waste confirmed by my disappointment when I open