Shadows

“And so I repress

myself, and swallow

the call-note

of depth-dark sobbing.”

~ Rainer Maria Rilke

Wind blew inside the quiet house through the broken window, whirling the half burnt curtain. The floor was covered with the ashes of the wood and furniture. The walls had their own scars, reaching till the ceiling where the cracks were formed. Pictures burned and broken lay on the ground. The doors were barely hanging onto the last piece of charcoal wood, but another strong gust of wind and it will fall down too. The smell of burn lingered in the air, so strong breathing was impossible. Where she stepped, everything was dark and charred to dust.

Katherine walked through the house, carefully stepping on the floor. It creaked with every step that she took, she was afraid one misstep and she would go down along with the floor. She could not understand why she was back in this place, every time. Every time it’s the same dream? She is a burnt house. Whenever she closed her eyes, she was back to the burnt house. And every time there was a woman. A woman called her. Just then a humming voice inside stopped her tracks. It’s that voice again. A woman singing in her dreams. She followed the sound of the humming, as her foot creaked against the floor. She wants to know who this woman is, what she looks like, what is her relation with her.

Reaching the room, she stopped at the door. Gently she pushed it open. It was normal. The room was bright and clear. There was nothing burnt in here. There was no sign of burned wood or ashes lingering on the floor. Everything was in its place. It was warm. It felt like home. The white curtains are drawn aside to let the sun rays come in. Toys were scattered on the floor, the polished marble staring back at her.

At the side of the bed sat a woman, with her back towards the door. She was saying something. But it was inaudible. She was wearing a white gown, and her dark brown hair was tied in a ponytail.

She moved forward. Slowly, she walked until she reached the head of the bed. The woman was waking someone.

In a sweet voice she said, “Wake up, my principessa. Wake up.” The voice grew louder echoing in the room. The woman looked up at her. “Wake up, it’s time for you to wake up.”

Wake up, Wake up…...

Katherine Roselli opened her eyes. Another dream. Another nightmare. Another question. Who was this woman, and why was she appearing in her dreams? Her dreams would always surround this mysterious woman. And then there was fire and the screaming. There were so many questions she had in mind about them, but she never got the answers. Her parents said it was just a dream, she didn’t have to be worried about it. But she wasn’t stupid. She knew they were hiding something from her. She tried many times prying on them to find the answers but she never got a lead. She knew these dreams weren’t just dreams, more like they were memories. After a while she stopped asking, knowing her father would probably dismiss her again. He always does.

She let out a sharp breath. She is here to complete her job, not sulk about herself. She can’t get distracted.

She got up from under the shade of the tree. As far as she could see, snow had fallen on the ground. And it kept falling. She wiped some of it that had fallen on her shoulders and head. She had been sitting in the snow for so long, snowflakes had settled on her lashes. Moving in winters is hard, but she doesn’t have a choice. Work is work. Her muscles have become numb from not moving for a long time. Her hands had turned ice cold, she should have worn gloves.

She looked at her watch, it wasn’t time to complain, it was time to complete the job. Her eyes scanned the area checking for anyone, this was the right time. The streets were empty with no person in sight. Pulling the cap of the hoodie she is wearing, she rubbed her hands. She walked slowly, her deep footprints in the snow were covered by the strong snowfall. She climbed the large rusted gate, no guards around, she quickly hopped to the front door of the house. Before opening the door, she put her mask on, leaving only her black eyes exposed.

The mission was simple; go inside the house, disable all the cameras and security, kill the traitor and delete all the files in the computer system. Katherine looked at her watch, 12:18 am. She has only forty two minutes left to complete the mission and get out of here alive. She set the timer on her watch.

“Alright, let’s get this show started.” She said to herself. Unzipping her jacket, she pulled two guns from her vest. She gripped them both tightly in her hands, ready to fire. Ringing the doorbell, she waited. One second, two seconds, and she turned the knob to get inside. The door opened without any hustle. She could sense people inside ready with their guns aimed right at her. She turned around, and closed the door. A moment later only the noise of gunshots were heard.

The sun had shone when Katherine reached the house. Her muscles were sore, and her fingers were still ice cold. No matter how many times she rubs them, the coldness doesn’t go away. Stamping her shoes on the wild grass to rub off the snow. She walked to the house. Getting inside, she removed her mask. She took a deep breath, gods, she can finally breathe. Another aroma hits her nose, a wide smile comes on her face. The scent of freshly baked pancakes, with honey on top. Her mouth had already watered, so she couldn’t resist going to the kitchen. Katherine saw a female standing near the stove, preparing another set of pancakes all the while humming to herself. It was their maid. She was humming probably one of the old lullabies she used to sing them when they were small. Then her eyes landed on the plate full of pancakes kept at the dining table. Tip toeing, she quietly grabbed one piece, before sprinting upstairs to the office.

“Katherine.” The female shouted, but she kept eating the pancake with a smile. She knew she should have washed her hands first, but the craving was so strong, she couldn’t resist.

Despite wanting a hot bath, she went to her fathers office to report about the task. Even though her father loved her, he was strict when it came to business, and does not tolerate any mistakes. She stood in front of his office, gave herself a glance, licked her teeth clean of any pancake, and lastly knocked. There were voices coming from inside.

The door was opened by his bodyguard, Joseph. She gave him a victorious smile. She had completed her task. He returned it with a small smile. Years of living with him, she understood, he wasn’t much of a talker, so she learned his silent language.

Her father, Hector Roselli, was standing by the window, talking to someone in Italian. It was probably her fathers boss. He is the only person he talks to in Italian, mainly to keep the conversations a secret. She tried asking him once who he was, but he always dodged the question, or said it wasn’t her business. Her business is to eliminate people who are a threat to the family. And by family he means the Mafia.

Standing in the centre, she was facing his empty chair, waiting for him to end his call. Watching straight ahead, the shelves had various books stacked, but they were just a ruse. Behind those books were weapons hidden, and an exit door. Only her father, Joseph and she knew about them. They were her fathers personal collection. Even she was not allowed to touch it.

“Did you do the job?” Hector asked, sitting down.

“Yes.” She placed an object covered in black cloth on his table. Uncovering it, he smiled.

“You didn’t have to bring me any proof. I know you would do your job, or die trying. But still a good job. Now pack your bags, we have to leave by midnight. Don’t forget to dispose of it.”

“What do you mean leave, are we going somewhere?” She asked curiously, taking back the unknown object. It was rare of him to call her on any of his trips. It was always him and Joseph. She always stayed behind to make sure everything was going smoothly in New York. He said it was too risky to bring her with him. In other words she was a baggage he couldn’t afford to carry with him.

“Yes, in fact everyone is going. I’ll explain to you later on the plane. Go pack your bags, we don’t have much time.” Before she could ask another question, he raised his hand, cutting her off. She frowned in discontent. She wanted to know more. But stopped herself. He would never tell her his secrets. Quietly she walked out of his office, giving a small wave to Joseph. She sighed deeply, she never understood what was going on in his mind. Her father has secrets she knew, but would it really kill him if he shared some of them with her.

She dragged herself to her room, immediately going for the bath. Sinking herself in the bathtub a weird feeling swells inside her. Her gut was telling her something, warning her about something, but she ignored the feeling away. She wanted to relax for now.