Then The World Spun

Chapter 2: Like It Always Does

The world continued to turn, days turned into months and then into years. Life went on, like it always does. Clarice watched her son and her granddaughter grow, and her son-in-law succeed. They had finally settled down in Lithuania, where the story had first begun and where it was finally put to rest.

The FBI had released the bodies to a cousin or something along those lines and both were buried, side by side, in the family's graveyard. She never could bring herself to visit their graves, she knew that it would only further her heart ache, and she couldn't take much more of that.

Katie had just turned 10 when Clarice came down with an illness. She became bed ridden, and grew even sicker. The doctors said that she had just lost the will to fight, and that it was only a matter of time. Clarice accepted that, Katie did too.

"Grandma."

"What is it, sweetheart?"

"Are you gonna see Mommy and Papa?"

"I hope so, dear."
Katie nodded as she crawled onto the bed and laid down next to her grandmother.

"I want you to have something, Katie. Look in the drawer on the bedside table."
Katie crawled over to the other end of the bed and pulled out a wooden box, "What is it?" she asked as she put it in her Grandmothers hands.

"It belonged to your Mother, your Papa gave it to her many years ago."

Katie nodded and watched as Clarice opened the box and pulled out a white cloth, she unwrapped it and smiled at the golden bracelet that was still as beautiful as the day Mischa had received it, many years before Hannah did, "She never took it off, until she knew she was about to die."
Katie nodded slowly, she had long held back the memories of that night. Unlike her uncle who constantly remembered, refusing to Forget and Forgive.

"I want you to have it." Clarice said, pulling herself from her memories and looking at Katie, "Your mother would want you to have it."
Katie smiled as she accepted it and slipped it onto her hand.

"How come Hamal didn't get anything?"

"I don't know, maybe his will come later."

"It's pretty!" Hannah said with a smile as she turned it on her wrist.

"I wouldn't want something like that anyway! It's girly!"

"You're just jealous cause it looks better on me."

Hamal and Hannah laughed as Hamal tickled his sister, who tickled back. Their laughter echoed through the house.

Clarice smiled as she watched the memory clearly.

Katie tilted her head to the side, "Something wrong, Grandma?"
"No, it's nothing. Why don't you go play."

"Okay! I love you!"

"I love you too." Clarice said gently as she watched her jump off the bed and run out of the room.

"Katie, is that you?"

"Yup. Who else would it be?" she asked looking at her Uncle with a smile before she saw his face, "Uncle Matty, what's wrong?"
"Come here, kiddo."

She walked over to him, he was sitting in a chair in their den. He pulled her into his lap and hugged her tightly.

"What's wrong?" she asked pulling back.

"Grandma passed away today."
"What?" Katie asked shaking her head, "You're lying!"

"I'm so-"

"You're lying!" she said before she jumped out of his arms and ran upstairs, she rushed down the hallway and threw the door to her grandmothers bedroom open.

It was empty, the bed was made, and it was dark.

Katie's eyes filled with tears as she looked around the room, shaking her head.

"Katie..." Matthew asked a few minutes later, when he had finally regained himself enough to talk to her. He gently pushed open the door to his mothers room and saw Katie lying on the bed, hugging a pillow tightly to her chest, fresh tears rolling out of her eyes and over her stained cheeks.

He silently walked over to her and rubbed her back, waiting. A few moments later she let go of the pillow and turned around, wrapping her arms around his middle and crying into his chest. He gently rocked her back and forth until she fell asleep.

`Katie let out a sigh that the warm fall wind quickly carried away. She looked different in a black dress. The young girls blond hair fell straight over her shoulders, being held out of her face by a headband. Her scarlet eyes watched the leaves on the ground dance in the wind. Her golden bracelet being twirled around her right wrist by her left hand.

A warmth engulfed her shoulders and she looked up at her Uncle. He knelt down beside her and held her close. She sighed again and leaned into his comfort. A hand found her shoulder and she reached up, her hand over lapping her fathers, the chill from his wedding band giving her an odd sense of being complete, even though so much was missing.

"They're together. I know they are." Matthew said silently.

Katie nodded, "We all do."

"Where ever they are, they're all together." Anthony said gently squeezing his daughters shoulder, "Come on, lets go."
Matthew stood up and took Katie's hand.

As they walked towards the gate, Katie looked back and paused. "Hey, who's that?"

Anthony, who was too far ahead to hear didn't stop.

Matthew did, he turned and looked. Cocking his head to the side, watching.

A man in a black hat, a black coat, and black pants was standing in front of the graves. His hands gently resting by his side. The man knelt in front of Mischa's grave, his hand gently resting on the top. His hand slid down the stone and over the words. Before he stood back up and nodded to the other two graves, he turned slightly towards them and waves once. His right hand had a circular scar right in the center. He turned and walked the opposite way.

Matthew waved back a moment to late and let his hand drop, he blinked a few times, "I think.... I think that was your uncle."

Katie glanced up at him, then back at the figure who had already disappeared through the gates.

"What are you two waiting for?" Anthony called by the gates.

"Nothing!" Katie said as she turned and ran towards her father.

Matthew smiled a little and nodded, "I'm proud of you, Mischa." He said before he turned and left the graveyard as well, smiling with the knowledge that after all Hamal had done to them.... She still loved him too much to kill him.

And the World Spun.

Like it always does.

People live and love and loose, but the world keeps spinning.

And Life.... Well, it just goes on.


Thank you All for reading! I hope you liked the ending.

I have a video up on youtube for Hamal and Mischa.

Just search Hamal and Mischa and it should come up, if not send me a message and I'll give you the URL. 3 Thank you all soo much!