THE CRYSTAL CUP Chapter Seventy

THE CRYSTAL CUP

Chapter Seventy

Estela watched her daughter, who, despite all the confusion that had occurred in the place, continued to play calmly, as if nothing had happened. Suddenly, in a snap, the girl stood up and spoke to her father...

- Dad, would you mind taking care of Selene a little?

Mario looked at the girl, not understanding anything...

- Dad, I can't explain it... I don't know how to explain it... but I feel that Cecília is in danger! And I have to help her...

- In danger?! But how...?

- I already told you, dad... I don't know how to explain it, but I'm feeling it...

- So... I... I have to...

- No... right now, the only help Cecí needs is mine and Helena's...

- Like this?

-It was something she said to me, when she gave me that pendant...

- And what she said?

- "Separated, we are weak... together, we will overcome all obstacles that appear in front of us..."

- And that means...

- It means I have to find Cecí as soon as possible... she's in danger!

- But how will you find her? She and Helena were going to stop somewhere to eat, since things went downhill here...

- Dad, please... I can't waste time making small talk... Can you take care of Selene, please?

- Okay... but keep me informed....

And Estela took her purse and hit the street... a little while before, she had asked for an Uber... and, like her sisters, she disappeared into the night...

Janete was still sitting in the same place, looking lost somewhere... Mario looked at his wife with a mixture of anger and pity... anger for everything she had done that night and pity for the situation she was going through at the moment. In a way he managed to understand his wife's action... putting himself in her place, understanding how much the woman believed in the dogmas of her religion, all her actions were excusable, because her only intention was to save the soul of your daughter... and is there any higher purpose than wishing the best for your offspring in the Hereafter? The devil is that in her eagerness to "save her daughter's soul" Janete forgot to examine the whole picture and understand that not always what seems right for one person is really the expression of truth for everyone... and the situation of Cecília and Ricardo's marriage was only one... with no possibility of returning, as the young man had even formed another family while he was at his wife's side... how could Cecília be at the side of a man who had another woman and, on top of that, a daughter resulting from this union? No, Cecília was not a woman to accept a marriage of that kind...

The clock showed ten o'clock at night... Mario thought it best to take the little one to sleep... by the looks of it, Estela wouldn't be back so soon. He left Janete where she was and went up to the bedroom with the baby. He changed her, put her in the cradle and sang a song to the girl, who was soon snoring. Now it was time to bring the wife upstairs... the dinner pots and crockery left where they were... in the morning, before leaving for work, I would think about it... or, suddenly, I could have a little mouthful during at night. Now, he knew he wouldn't be able to eat anything.... all this confusion had attacked his gastritis, and he would have to take medicine to ease the pain he felt in his stomach...

Mario put two Pepsamar pills in his mouth and let them dissolve... Little by little, the discomfort went away. Not enough to attack dinner, forgotten on the stove, but at least the urge to vomit what he didn't have was gradually passing... the tension suffered during that night really almost ended him. The worst thing was that he couldn't even afford to say what was happening to him... he had to let the girls know that everything was under control... of course they knew he wasn't... the biggest proof of that is that, if it weren't for Helena and Estela's agility, they would probably now be receiving a visit from the Scientific Police to collect at least two corpses... until now he was impressed with the action of his girls... while he simply froze, unable to take any action, the two avoided the impending tragedy...

And it was with all these thoughts that Mario finally put himself in front of his wife. She was still in the same position since everything unfolded... sitting, hands in her lap, staring into space... normally she would be praying, rosary and Bible in hand, but not tonight... tonight she was lost in her own thoughts ... she still couldn't process everything that had happened, since inviting Ricardo to come to her house that night, for a family dinner... all she wanted was to save her daughter's soul and, in extension, your son-in-law's, too... but things never go as we plan, do they? She had taken care of the menu so that everything was perfect that night... perhaps the couple resolved their differences during the conversation at the table and would not go home together, where they built a history... perhaps they even felt ready to increase the family... yes, suddenly what was missing to reconnect the two was a child... and she intended to broach the idea over dinner... but...

- Janet...

The woman heard someone calling, far away... she couldn't recognize the voice of the one calling her...

- Janete, for God's sake... wake up!

Mario held his wife by the shoulder, in an attempt to wake her up from her torpor. Little by little, the woman came back to reality, as if waking up from a dream... she looked at her husband, and only his look, a mixture of sadness and despair stamped on her face, was all she could convey... she didn't say anything. not a word since he had wrongfully accused Cecilia of trying to kill her. Mario hugged her and refrained from saying anything to his wife, as he realized it wasn't the time. Whatever thought was going through his wife's head, this was not the time to confront her. It would be better to wait for the night to pass... in the morning the perspective of the world would be different... he took his wife by the hands and led her to the bedroom... he put her on the bed. Janete was very passive. At no point did she protest against her husband. She simply let herself be guided, like when her father led her as a child...

Mario covered his wife and, without saying anything, started stroking her hair. The woman closed her eyes, accepting the affection offered by her husband. She soon fell asleep ... what would she dream of? Who knows, right? Mario kissed his sleeping wife on the forehead, turned off the light and went down to the living room. He sat on the couch and thought about everything that had happened that night... how strange life is... a simple thoughtless action triggers actions that no one expects... and now... well, actually, now he was more worried about Estela's words... that Cecília was in danger and that she would have to help her sister...