THE CRYSTAL CUP - Chapter Sixteen

 THE CRYSTAL CUP

Chapter Sixteen

It was seven o'clock at night when Roseli finally finished her work shift. She had to fly home, as she would have to pick up Letícia at her friend Bernadette's house. Thankfully, Bernadette liked the little girl and took care of her with all the pleasure in the world. But Roseli didn't like to abuse her friend and neighbor. That's why she's in a hurry to go home soon. Her friend was married. And her husband was also very fond of the child, which was a relief for Roseli. When she happened to be late to pick up the girl, the friend's own husband would be ready to pick up the little one from the daycare center...

When he was heading towards the point, he got scared… Ricardo was waiting for her at the exit. He didn't like the surprise very much. Not in the current situation. Until it became clear what actually happened to Cecília, she did not want to be seen together with her lover. Go what...

Ricardo hugged his girlfriend, she broke free of the embrace. He found the girl's attitude strange, but remained silent, thinking with his buttons. “What the hell… first Cecilia, and now Rose? What the hell is going on in my life?” He remained silent, walking beside his companion. They arrived at the stop, the bus was pulling over. They entered, sat down on one of the benches and remained silent throughout the trip. Every time he tried to bring up the subject, Rose would signal for him to be quiet. When they arrived at the terminal, Roseli told him that it was better for him to go to her house, as she didn't intend to keep him company for the rest of the trip. Ricardo shook his head, discouraged… all he needed at that moment was someone to talk to… but apparently, he would have to be content with talking to himself…

Drinking was out of the question, as all the trouble he was in was due to drinking. And now he had to take care of himself, because no one wanted to believe that his wife just disappeared. If they knew her as he knew her, they would certainly understand... Cecília was itchy, and she certainly decided to punish him in a way that no one could think of... disappearing after a fight, and not leaving any sign of life was, without a doubt, a nice move. If they didn't know where she was, that could only mean her husband had gotten rid of her. And now it was up to him to prove that he had nothing to do with this story. But how would he do that, if he didn't even remember what happened on the day of the fight? And, worse still, he couldn't even say with certainty that she was at home when he left for work… He knew that when night came, she wasn't there… but in the morning… well, he thought he'd seen her, but who could say for sure? ? Drunk as he was, he only remembers that the alarm clock went off, he got up, took a cold shower to wake up and ran out without even having breakfast… Cecilia? He couldn't say for sure if she was home at dawn...

When he got home, discouragement took over Ricardo. He had little time to resolve his situation. Of the week the boss had given him, only three days remained. And he still didn't have the slightest idea what had happened to his wife. He noticed that a few different people were hanging around his house. It soon occurred to him that they were investigators, trying to find out what had actually happened there. Well, he didn't know either. But he was sure of one thing... he had nothing to do with Cecilia's disappearance...

Lying on his bed, Ricardo began to wander. And he went back to the past, when he had met his wife. He remembered the first walk they took in a park. And it wasn't just any park, it was the Jardim do Parque da Independencia. That well-tended square, with its beautiful flowers, enchanted Cecília. Walking through those streets was like stepping back into the Empire. They could almost see the aristocrats walking along that lane. And when they entered the museum, then… he couldn't contain a laugh when he remembered that one of the security guards at the place came to call their attention because the two were in a corner of the room where the litters were exposed, exchanging passionate kisses… Well , the visit to the museum was really interesting. From the clothes used by the royal family to the money used by São Paulo's constitutionalists, many things on display told the country's history. A model of the city of São Paulo, from the Independence era, was one of the highlights of the visit. Of course, the Emperor's bed wasn't far behind either... He remembered that day well. It was a sunny Sunday. They ate ice cream after the visit to the museum, and spent some time in the shade of the trees that are next to the museum. They sat for some time at the feet of a yellow ipe tree. Then they got up, and headed toward the city center. They wanted to watch a movie. And that's what made.

When, that night, Ricardo delivered his girlfriend to her parents' house, they were both beaming with joy. Cecília won a treat from her boyfriend…he had given her a teddy bear. It wasn't big, but size didn't matter, what really mattered was the affection that her boyfriend dedicated to her... every now and then the treat came in the form of a book, because he knew she was a voracious reader... she liked the most was “O Xangô de Baker Street”, by Jô Soares. She read and reread it at least ten times...

And her whole courtship was like that… walks and little gifts. Sometimes a simple rose bud, sometimes a book she really wanted to read. And so the days passed. He was sure of one thing… he was very fond of that fanatical girl for flowers and books. And he didn't know how to be without her in his life anymore. Well, he was sure he had found his soul mate… that girl completed him in every way…

And with those sweet thoughts, Ricardo fell asleep. And in his dreams he was beside Cecília. Not the adult, cold and calculating Cecília of a few moments, but the pure and innocent girl of a few years ago. He walked through the neighborhood square, and saw the girl sitting on one of the benches, reading a book. He already knew what it was… “The Mists of Avalon”. He sat down next to her and started to strike up a conversation with her. At first the girl didn't seem interested in talking, but then he started commenting on the book she was reading. The girl was enchanted, and began to pay attention to the boy… it is true that, in order to strike up a conversation with her, he read the book in two days. He knew it was the best way to captivate her. When he invited her to see each other the next day and she accepted, he almost couldn't believe it… damn, the sacrifice of “reading that boring book was worth it”, he thought. And he went home happy, because he had finally managed to get close to his muse, after several unsuccessful attempts…. Some time later he found out that she didn't even remember that episode...

The alarm clock rang, taking Ricardo out of the dream world. And the memories were covered by the fog of time... Ricardo looked at his watch... it was five o'clock in the morning... it was still early. Not as much as he used to get up to go to work, but it was still early. Well, as he slept with his clothes on, he got up and went to prepare his coffee. He took a loaf of bread, there were cold cuts and milk in the fridge. He ate and mulled over what he had missed all these days. And, suddenly, in a snap, he remembered something already forgotten in the back of his memory… The manager of the store where Cecília had worked had said that she resigned by email… but she would sign the papers in person. But when was it, my God? He had to know the day, because otherwise it would be difficult to find her later… he thought, he thought… and then the date came to him… “but it was today”, he almost shouted! Well, as she was a former employee, her approval would certainly be with the union. Therefore, she would only have to head there.

About eight o'clock in the morning, he decided it was time to go. Upon arriving at the gate, he noticed a young man watching him. She had no doubts, she went to him and invited him to follow him, as he was going to meet his wife. After all, he knew that the guy in front of him was a police investigator, and therefore, he would be as interested as he was in solving that problem once and for all. They ended up going to the Union together. Arriving there, the policeman decided to check if Cecília was really going to appear at the scene, or if it was just a move by Ricardo. She would be seen at ten o'clock. The agent looked at his watch, it was just past nine. Therefore, if she was going to attend, she should be arriving. They sat on the bench and talked for a while. The policeman was no longer as reserved as he had been in the beginning. They exchanged some ideas, while the hour went its way, inexorably. Until, suddenly… Cecilia entered the room. Ricardo identified her to the policeman who went towards her and questioned her. They talked for a few moments, he explained what was going on, the suspicion of murder that fell on her husband... the girl looked at him, with a look of pity... Ricardo felt small, at that moment. After some time talking with the law enforcement officer, Cecília agreed to follow the two to the police station, to clarify the events once and for all… and they did.