It's been a week now since the wedding. The day after the wedding, Lila was rushed to the hospital. She was coming to the end of her long and weary days. Lila had little time left. We visited her twice in the week. Then a phone call came. It was Bill. "Hi dad, what's up?" Luca asked.
"Luca, you need to get down here. Lila is near her last breath. It's time to say final goodbyes," Bill stated solemnly.
"Okay we'll be there. We'll come as fast as we can," Luca replied in a monotone.
"Hurry my son," Bill said anxiously.
Luca hung up the phone. His face grew pale. "Lila?" I asked.
"We have to go. She's near death's front door," he answered.
The smile that once resided on my face disappeared in the blink of an eye. I grabbed the keys and went at a quick speed down the stairs to the truck. Luca pressed the gas and we drove off to the hospital. Minutes flew by and the anxiety crept up inch by inch from our stomachs to our tongues. Were we going to make in time? Will she still be alive upon our arrival? My heart raced millions of miles and ached as if it was being chipped away by an ice pick.
It felt like forever until we got the hospital. We rushed up the elevator to Lila's room. When we got to the door, Lila was nearly drawing her last breath. "Luca, Lexis, I'm so glad you came," Lila said with a struggle.
"We're glad that we made it in time," I replied.
Lila showed a smile and coughed harshly. Was she ready to go to the next step of life? "I see a white light. I see darkness. Goodbye everyone," Lila said softly.
Her eyes closed and never opened again. The heart monitor flat lined. She was gone. Tears were forming in all of our eyes. My sight was blurred by my salty tears. One by one, people who we hold dear to our hearts begin to die. I turned to Luca and buried my face into his shoulder as I wept.
"It's okay beautiful, Lila is in a better place where she won't feel or endure the pain and suffering that she had for many years" Luca said in a soothing and comforting tone.
Bill walked up to us and embraced us in his arms. I've never saw a man cried tears of such love and sorrow as much as Bill and Luca had shed. The number of my tears was equivalent to their tears combined. "I wish she had more time," I cried softly.
"We all wish that Lexis. We all did," Bill replied in between his whimpering cries.
"We all just wanted her to get better and the medical treatments were unsuccessful. It just caused the leukemia to increase and take over her body," Luca replied as he held my head against his shoulder and stroking my soft, silky hair.
I just lost my sister-in-law. My only sister now is little Pia. My family was slowly decreasing in size and numbers. My heart was breaking and each piece travelled with them as they moved on. "Let's go home. There's no need to stay here any longer" Luca said.
We slowly walked to the door with our faces painted with salty, watery streaks and solemn facial expressions. The whole ride home was silent. How will we cope? We never expected her death to come so sudden. We finally pulled into the driveway around noon.
The truck stopped. We both got out and I walked through that front door like a mummified minion. My feet carried me up the stairwell and to our room. When I got there, I put on a tank top with jeans and my riding boots. I had to clear my mind for a while. Diane stood in the doorway just staring at me. "Do you mind if I join you on the ride?" she asked as her voice cut through the silence like a knife.
"Sure, I honestly don't care. I just need to clear my mind," I responded.
So the both of us headed down the stairwell and I caught a glimpse of Luca. He was sitting on the couch watching television, holding a bottle of whisky in hand. I winced at the sight. Seeing my lover drinking reminded me of my father. He did the same thing when his little brother died when I was only four. I walked out that door with Diane and walked down to the barn. The wooden doors creaked at the hinges when we opened them. Diablo's head perked right up from just hanging there.
I heard him whinny and grunt with excitement. He knew it was me. I walked up to his stall and held out a hand. His soft nose gently nudged it as his deep brown eyes gleamed. "Hey Diablo. I missed you," I whispered to him.
Diane got the brushed for Diablo and her Kladruber stallion Angelos. Angelos was a remarkable stallion but was nothing compared to my special and magnificent Diablo. We put our brushes away at the same time and we got our tack. Within minutes, we were riding off into the woods. The sound of the hooves pounding the ground was like the rolling thunder. The manes and tails flew in the wind like flags on a flagpole.
It was like a race. Two magnificent stallions riding for the win. Who will win? Diablo or Angelos? It was a mystery. We continued on to the meadow. First trotting, then cantering, and then galloping. My hair was flying freely in the wind. It felt fantastic; the feeling of the wind blowing at a great force upon face. The wind was blowing away my problems.
It only took us about five to ten minutes to reach the edge of the meadow. The race was over. Diablo won by one league. Angelos and Diane were following not far behind. The sun was shining down upon the open terrain. We rode further into the meadow until we reached the pond. "Have you ever been back here Diane?" I asked.
"No. I would ride out to the center of the woods where a small spring bubbles that's surrounded by the moss covered rocks. The trees allow rays of sunshine to light the world below," Diane responded.
"You like it here?" I asked.
"Yes, I do," she replied.
I'm glad she enjoyed it. The only thing that Diane was worried about was the embryo that I was carrying. Travelling at great speeds may cause a miscarriage. Lucky thing I had my watch on me. It read 1:34. "Do you want to go back to have some lunch?" Diane asked.
"That sounds like a good idea," I replied.
Together, we walked the whole way back. It was peaceful. After the ride, I felt better. My mind was cleared finally from earlier events. When we set foot back on the grass of the estate, it was already a quarter of two. When we got closer to the barn, we dismounted our stallions. When Diablo gazed at Angelos, he went crazy.
Diablo was bucking and stomping his hooves. Angelos began the same actions after Diablo started. Were they going to fight? I tried calming Diablo down, but once he started, there was no stopping. Diablo was so wild that the reins were pulled out of my hands. Everything was in chaos. Angelos followed Diablo's actions. We were afraid and worried. They were going to fight. There was no doubt about it. The loud whinnying; their nostrils were flaring in fury.
Up they went. Standing on their hind legs and their front hooves were flying and flailing in the air. Then they began. It was full on fighting. It was the fight for domination. Eventually, Luca came running out of the house full on yelling. "Get out of the way! Diablo! Angelos! Knock it off!" Luca screamed.
When Diablo heard the enraged voice, he slammed his hooves on the gravel. Hes eyes lost the fury and gave the impression of the puppy dog eyes look. Diablo felt ashamed after his fiery actions. Angelos never stopped. Diablo was unable to defend himself from the powerful blows. Angelos drew blood. "Angelos!" Diane cried.
Luca ran over and grabbed hold of the reins. I managed to get the reins and lead Diablo away from the others. I brought Diablo into the barn and quickly took off his tack. "It's going to be alright Diablo. Everything is going to be okay," I said calmly to keep him calm.
Luca brought Angelos in and put him in his stall a couple aisles down. I could hear Angelos grunting and breathing in frustration. I kind of hope that he gets castrated or something. Then I saw Luca come by again with Angelos on a halter and lead line. In hand, Luca held a lunge line and a lunge whip so he could train him to calm him down and to teach him a lesson or two about his behavior. I glared at the stallion as he passed by.
Once I put away the tack, I found the first aid kit. Lucky thing I remember how to treat injuries like this. Although, it was two mares that got into a fight. That was nightmare trying to separate them compared to Diablo and Angelos. Stallions are very unpredictable but there was something about Diablo that made him appear docile. "Hey Diablo, this may hurt a little bit" I warned him beforehand.
I poured rubbing alcohol on gauze pads and gently applied it to the wound. Diablo's ears jerked up in shock to the stinging from the alcohol disinfecting the wound. Then he relaxed. The alcohol didn't faze him anymore. Slowly, the wound cleared up in order to examine the wound's shape. It was starting to swell. Once I finished disinfecting the wound, I carefully applied ointment to it to hopefully prevent infection. "You're a good boy Diablo," I whispered.
Diablo whinnied softly. Then he slowly placed his head on my shoulder. I gently stroked my hand on his face until I met the end of his nose. The joy in his eyes glittered and shone brightly once more. It comforted me. All the hatred I once had resided in my heart ceased to exist. Then I heard footsteps on the concrete aisle in the barn.
"Lexis... Lexis, I know you're in here," Tony called.
My heart stopped. I couldn't breathe. Was he going to kill me? Diablo sensed my fear. My head was spinning out of control. My sight began to blur. Everything went black. I could hear yelling, Diablo whinnying and slamming his hooves onto the concrete underneath the bedding, and screaming.
The next thing I remember was waking up with Diablo lying by my side, protecting me from further harm. "Hey Diablo. You're a good boy," I whispered with dryness in my voice.
"Lexis? Lexis, where are you? Oh my god!" a voice screamed.
I looked out of the stall door. I managed to crawl and see all of the blood spilled all over the concrete. Diablo's eyes began to close. I looked back at my savior and saw the amount of blood that travelled from the aisle, into the stall, and spread onto throughout the bedding. Diablo was injured severely. I looked towards the aisle once more and found bloody footprints heading out the barn door. Tony escaped so he couldn't be seen. "Who did this?!" Diane exclaimed.
"Tony. Tony was here looking for me. Then I blacked out in fear. This is all my fault! I'm so sorry Diablo!" I cried.
Diane couldn't believe it. I crawled back to Diablo's side and cradled his head. My tears shed. It was like falling rain onto Diablo's sheen, black coat. His deep, majestic brown eyes opened once more. They expressed gratitude and sorrow. He did his best to protect me. Diablo slowly inhaled and exhaled until his eyes closed forever, his heart gave out, and the gentle breeze from his breath ceased to exist. Diablo was gone. He was gone!
I wept a million tears. My majestic stallion died saving my life. "Lexis, it's alright. I'm here sweetheart," Diane cried along with me.
Diane walked to my side and pried my fingers from Diablo's sweet face. Her arms embraced me. Her voice was soothing like always. She was magical... She knew how my emotions worked. Her voice, touch, and gaze were the triggering point for the off switch located in the center of my brain. "Let's go Lex. Luca can take care of the bloody mess and Diablo," Diane stated in a depressing tone.
I didn't want to leave. My feet were glued to the ground. My muscles ceased to function. "I don't want to leave him! I don't want to leave his side! He was my friend!" I screamed and cried.
"I know sweetie. I know. He loved you just as much. You could see the gleaming passion and kindness he expressed only to you. You completed his world. You were his rider...," Diane whispered into my ear as she wiped away her tears.