Is There Freedom?

Chapter 19

Minutes, hours, days, and weeks. Everyone was back home safe and sound. Diane has been at our house every day to see the girls. Dylan would always giggle when Diane played peek-a-boo. Brandi would dance when I played my guitar. They were perfect little girls. Luca has been working more to prepare the horses for shows, some for racing, and trail rides. Once his long day was done he would just sit on the couch and put on the sports channel on the television.

I would bring the girls in the living room and sit next to him on the couch. Their adorable faces would brighten Luca's face. "Hey beautiful," he would say to me after giving me a kiss.

"How was work today?" I asked.

"It was actually good. France's Destiny didn't give me any trouble while I was training her. Opal was a bit playful with me today on the lunge line. Waterfall's Mist was letting out her energy as she didn't listen to me. Then the boys were actually getting along when they got near each other. Hunter's Bullet is getting there to become a race horse. Master would be good for long trail rides," Luca said.

I always remembered that Hunter's Bullet would just give me a deep gaze every time I walked by the pasture with the girls. His face, his eyes, his entire appearance was like a reflection of Diablo. Did Diablo's son have a similar connection to me? Hunter's Bullet was a purebred Friesian. He was a magnificent colt. He had the potential as any stallion out on the race track, stables around the world, and in the wild.

It was about 6:05 already. "I'll go start making dinner. You don't mind watching the girls, right?" I asked.

"No, I don't mind. Then I get to spend some father-daughter time with them" he stated with a smile.

I kissed his soft lips. I walked into the kitchen and pulled out chicken, noodles, some herbs, olive oil, a pot and a pan. I remember this recipe from when my grandmother made it for my thirteenth birthday. Remi also gave me some recipes that he thought I would like to try. Half and hour passed by and I was done cooking our dinner. I had already fed the girls their baby food. Dylan loved it and Brandi was always fussy. "Dinner's ready!" I called.

"I'll be there in a minute," he called back.

I placed the plates on the kitchen table and sat down. Luca brought the girls in and placed them in their rockers. Dylan yawned wide and her eyes fluttered trying to stay awake. Brandi fell right asleep when she was placed in the automatic rocker. The silence of our girls was peaceful. In all of my years, I've never heard a baby that never cries out of the ordinary. Dylan and Brandi rarely cried ever since they came home from the hospital.

"Mmm... This is exquisite," Luca said.

"Thanks, it was a recipe that my grandmother used to make when I was younger. She even made this dish for my thirteenth birthday," I replied.

We continued to eat our meal. Once we finished we looked over to the girls and they were sound asleep. I washed the dishes while Luca put the girls in their cribs. It was about 7:30 when I finished cleaning up the table. When I found Luca, he was already asleep on our bed. I smiled and headed back to the living room. The television remote was in hand and then I put it back on the coffee table.

I grabbed my guitar and walked onto the front porch. My fingers lightly strummed the strings and let the soft, melodic notes float on the wind. My voice sang the word to Brand New Day by Forty Foot Echo. The lyrics floated softly into the distance. The horses could hear my words and they began to jump in. I laughed, smiled, and continued to sing.

Before I knew it, one of the girls started to cry. I leaned my guitar against the chair and went to see who was crying. When I got the top of the stairs, there was something disturbing the air. My heart raced and skipped beats. I ran as I nearly tripped over my feet. Now both girls were crying. Luca came running out from our bedroom. I got to their room before Luca. Standing over Brandi's crib was a man in a trench coat and a baseball cap. "They're beautiful girls Lexis," Tony said as he held Brandi in his arms.

"Put her down Tony! Get out of my house before I call the cops!" I raged.

"Um, no. These are my children too. Where else would Dylan get her diamond blue eyes?" he asked.

"No, you're not the father of my girls! I had blood tests done to prove Luca was their biological father. The tests for both of them came back one-hundred percent that Luca is their father. Now get out of my house!" I yelled.

Tony didn't believe a word I just said. Brandi and Dylan were crying up a storm. I was scaring them. I was trying to protect my family from Tony's horror show. Luca finally came running into the room. When he gazed upon Tony, rage filled his docile heart. "Put my daughter down you bastard" Luca growled.

Tony glared at us and then put Brandi down in her crib. Then he climbed out the window. He was gone. I ran to Brandi's crib and held her close. We tried to calm them down so they could fall back asleep. Dylan calmed right down and fell asleep in Luca's arms. It was adorable. Brandi was still crying, so, I took her outside with me. I pulled out a stroller that seats one and placed her in it. I picked up my guitar and strummed the strings. A lullaby.

... I had finished singing and Brandi was sound asleep. Finally. I put down my guitar and then took Brandi in my arms. I carried her back upstairs and placed her gently in her crib. When I left their room, I looked back to them. I hope Tony won't come back. Slowly I went back downstairs to get my guitar. When I set foot onto the front porch, Tony stood there waiting patiently for me. I began to scream but his hand muffled it. "If you scream, I'll put a bullet in her leg for starters," Tony said in a horrifying whisper.

He slowly took his hand off of my face. He had to be possessed or something. He had to be stalking me somehow. "Now that's much better. Now, down to business," he said.

I was scared. Was he going to torture me? What was he up to? Was he really Tony? "Who the hell are you?" I raged and quivered in fear.

"Don't you recognize me Lexis darling?" his voice echoed into my head.

I cried in fear. It can't be! It just can't be! I covered my mouth to prevent me from screaming. "You can't be him! No! No! No! You can't be my dad!" I whispered in complete fear.

My dad had possessed Tony! Great! Now my dad has come back from the dead. I wanted to flee to the barn for safety. Before I knew it, I booked it towards the barn. I was running bare foot and I was stumbling over all of the rocks in the path. Tony or whoever he was wasn't too far behind me. I was panting. I began to notice that my breath ceased to exist. I made it to the barn and near Hunter's Bullet's stall when I lost it. A gun fired. Pain swallowed me whole. Blood was pooling on the concrete. Hunter's Bullet smashed the stall door down.

He kicked Tony in the face causing him to fall hard on the concrete. Crack! Tony's head slammed so hard that he cracked his skull. He died instantly. My body temperature was dropping fast. Hunter's Bullet raced off to Diane's front door. He whinnied and grunted as loud as he could to get someone's attention. Diane was arouse from her sleep. She ran down the stairs to find him slamming his hooves into the ground. "What is it boy? Show me what you're trying to tell me," Diane stated as she approached him.

Hunter's Bullet galloped at a tremendous speed towards the barn. Diane was right behind him. When she got to his side, she lost her rhythm of breathing and heartbeat. Her knees buckled under her causing her to slam against the concrete. There we lay. Both lifeless and cold. We were dead...