23. chapter: How it began.
Here comes 23rd chapter.
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Luise pulled Frank to the waterside of the river.
'What are you going to do?' Frank asked in a low voice.
Luise didn't answer. She closed her eyes.
------------------------------------- F L A S H B A C K -------------------------------------
'He's home! Dad's home!' 10-years-old Luise Walker yelled. She was sitting by the window and staring out like usually on this time of the day. It was raining this particular day.
Her sister who was two years older but could have been Luise's twin sister, smiled. They heard the key turned in the keyhole and the door opened. A middle-aged man walked in. He was rather tall with black thin hair which was starting to get gray. The serious, worried face changed to a happy smile when he saw his daughters. The younger one ran into his arms.
'Hello, princess! How are you today?' he asked.
'Fine' she answered.
'Where's your mother, Julia?' he looked at the other girl.
'Somewhere in the house, I assume. At least I haven't seen her go out (of it)' she answered.
Her father patted her on the head. His wife appeared in the hall.
'What took you so long?' she asked.
'I'm sorry, I got a little late' Mr. Walker excused and gave her a hug.
'Dinner is ready' Mrs. Walker said and went back to the kitchen.
Julia followed her and Mr. Walker and Luise came after Julia.
They ate dinner as usually. Then Mr. and Mrs. Walker watched the news and then they all did their use in washing the dishes, just as usually.
At half past ten the girls were sent to bed. Mrs. Walker gave them their goodnights and a kiss on their cheeks. Mr. Walker came into Luise's room.
'Goodnight, angel' he said softly.
'Dad...I know I'm getting too old for this...but can you tell me a story' Luise asked, 'Pleeeeease!'
-'All right, I'll try...em...' he sat on the bedside, 'What stories do I know? Oh, yes, I know! Ok.' He cleared his throat.
'Once upon a time, in Africa, there was big, big Lion...much bigger than me..., (Luise giggled) he was getting old...just like me...and liked to sleep a lot, especially after hunting 'cause it made he him tired to run after the antelopes. One day when he was asleep under a few big trees he suddenly woke up when he felt something crawl over his paw. He slowly opened his eyes and saw a little mouse standing on his paw and sniff at the thin fell on it (hvað meinarðu ?). He growled at the mouse. The mouse tried to jump off the Lion's paw but before she made it he put his other paw over her and held her between them... ('He can't eat her' Luise whispered) - Hey! Who's telling the story, me or you?...thought so, where was I? Yeah...-The poor mouse begged for her life, (Mr. Walker made his voice low and shrill) 'Please, please Mr. Lion. I don't taste well, honestly!' (Luise giggled more and her father spoke normally again) The lion wasn't really hungry so it decided to let the little mouse go. (He made his voice deep and lazily) 'All right, you can go this time...don't you tell anyone about it, someone could think I was getting soft...' (low and shrill again) 'Thank you sir Lion, you will not regret this, I promise you that!' (deep and lazily) 'Hmm. I don't know, we'll see' (normal voice) The little mouse ran away, never been happier. The Lion went back to sleep. A few days after this, the Lion was walking home after a hunting trip, He had completely forgotten about the little mouse. Suddenly he stepped on something. 'Ouch!' he thought. But he was more startled when a net fell over him from the air. It was a trap that hunters used. The Lion roared and tried to scratch himself out of the net. But that only tangled him more. At last the Lion couldn't move. After a while the Lion noticed someone small was moving near him. Oh, the Mouse! 'My Mouse! Please, help me!' the Lion cried out, ' Please, remember how I spared you erstwhile, please!' 'Yes, yes, easy. I remember, hold still until I've chewed the net apart' the Mouse said. She climbed upon the Lion and started to chew the ropes. When she had finished her work the Lion was free. He rose up. Then he looked down at the Mouse. 'Thank you, my Mouse! I shall always be grateful and I'll never eat mice again, you've saved my life' the Lion said thankfully. 'You spared mine, I paid my dept, sir Lion' the Mouse said. Then she ran off and the Lion walked slowly to his home. He kept his promise, never ate mice' Mr. Walker smiled.
'That was a good story, dad' Luise said and yawned.
'It was, from it you can learn: You should treat others like you want them to treat you, you understand?' Mm. Walker asked.
Luise thought and then nodded. 'Yeah, I think so. Like, if Julia wouldn't borrow me something then I should not borrow her anything when she needs it, hehe!'
Mr. Walker sighed. 'That's not exactly what I meant, oh, never mind. You should be asleep long time ago. Good night, now sweetheart.' He kissed her on the forehead and tucked her in.
'Good night, dad.'
Mrs. Walker came to the doorway. 'Good night, honey.'
'Good night, mom. Good night, Julia!' Luise yelled.
Her sister didn't answer.
'Uh, Luise, don't yell like that so late in the evening. The neighbours could wake up' Mr. Walker reminded.
-'Sorry, mom.'
Her parents went out of the room and leaned the door back but didn't close.
--------------------------------------------
Luise woke up. She didn't know why. She looked at the alarm clock. 00:24 a.m.
She sighed and laid back down. She heard the sound of her parents voices. They were fighting. Luise couldn't hear what exactly what they were saying. She got curious. She jumped out of her bed and went out on the hallway. Julia was there before. She stood outside her fathers study with her ear against the door. She lifted a finger to her lips. Luise nodded but moved her own lips. 'What are they saying?'
Julia pointed at the door. Luise put her ear against the door like her sister.
'What have you gotten yourself into?' Mrs. Walker's voice asked loudly.
'I don't know, Jane! Besides, maybe they weren't talking about me' Mr. Walker said and tried to calm her.
-'Well, how many are they who know much of what you are doing and could be dangerous for Mr. Jennings?'
-'It could be anyone. I heard him say: We'll get rid of him...'
-'And you also heard him say something about there was only room for one boss. How many bosses are there? You know how the Jennings family gets rid of people who they think are threat to them.'
-'That was then.'
'And this is now. I'm only suggesting you'll go to the police and ask for protection...' Mrs. Walker began.
-'NO!' Mr. Walker said, 'No police! End of discussion!'
-'But why not...'
-'I said no police, I'm I making myself clear?'
Julia and Luise looked at each other.
'I don't like this' Luise whispered.
Julia shook her head. Then they heard footsteps on the way to (coming towards) the door.
The girls ran quickly to Julia's room. Julia shut the door after them.
'That was close' she said in a low voice.
'Oops' Luise muttered.
-'What?'
-'I think I didn't close the door when I went out of my room.'
-'What? You idiot. Damn. Ok, let's lay down, you got cold and sneaked to me, all right?'
Luise nodded.
They threw themselves onto Julia's bed just in time before Mrs. Walker opened the door to take a look at them. She smiled and closed the door again.
The sisters both let out sighs of relieve.
'Actually, Julia, I am kinda cold, can I stay?' Luise asked and put up an innocent face.
-'Fine, but give me my half of the duvet.'
-------------
The lock was broken from outside. The door opened quietly. A man stepped in. He looked around. He was wearing jeans and a black sweater, latex gloves and a mask covered his face. He had rubber soled shoes on his feet which muffled all sounds when he walked on the tiled floor. He took a cloth from his pocket and a little bottle. He found the room he was looking for, he stopped in front of the door. He heard heavy breath from inside the room. There he poured some of the bottle's contents to the cloth. He opened the door carefully. This was a bedroom, like the uninvited guest had known before, on the bed two persons laid fast asleep. The man raised his hand that was holding the cloth and placed it on the sleeping man's mouth and nose. When he woke up the man held the cloth tighter to his respiratory system (mouth and nose ?). His victim grasped his wrist but the grip got lighter as he got unconscious, the terrified eyes closed. He took the cloth away. He worked fast but quietly and carefully to not wake up the woman beside the unconscious man. He took another bottle from his pocket and a thin, long pin. He put the pin down to the man's pharynx ( throat )to
keep it open while he poured the fluid down to the throat. Then he took the pin up and put it to a plastic bag that he had also taken from his pocket. He held the man's jaw's together so he'd swallow the fluid. Then he walked out without looking back. A hit man had finished his job.
------------
A loud scream did wake Luise Walker up. She sat upright.
'Mom!' she thought.
Her sister had woken up by the scream too. They hurried out of bed to their parents bedroom.
Their mother stood over their father who laid still in the bed, rather pale, she was shocked. Tears streamed down her cheeks.
'Mom, what's wrong?' Julia asked.
Mrs. Walker moved her lips but no words came. She tried again.
'You...your...father...he...' she couldn't finish, she start crying. She bent down and put her arms around Julia.
Luise walked to her father. 'Why don't we wake dad up, he can make you feel better, I'm sure he can.'
She shook her dad, tried to wake him up. 'Dad, dad! Wake up!' After a few attempts and he still wouldn't wake up, Luise got afraid .
'Mom, why doesn't dad, wake up, mom?' She felt that her father's hand was unusually cold when she touched it.
Mrs. Walker forced the words out. 'He...can't...he's...ah, oh, God!?' And she cried more.
Luise felt tears on her own cheeks, she didn't know why.
Julia was silent. She walked over to her sister, past her and to their father. She shook him.
'He's dead' Julia whispered sobbing.
'What?' Luise didn't realize what her sister was saying. She looked at her mother.
She nodded.
-'Like...he'll never wake up again...?'
Her mother nodded again.
Luise looked at the corpse again before falling to her mothers arms. She didn't cry, she was still trying to understand this.
Her sister and mother were both crying but she just couldn't.
---------------
The house was full of police officers and their assistants. They investigated the whole house, trying to find any signs of the murderer. The corpse had been moved to a mortuary for further investigation.
Drops of chloroform were on the pillow and on late Mr. Walker's skin, and poison in his blood.
Mrs. Walker was questioned she told what she knew and thought.
An officer sat in the sofa with Julia and tried to cheer her up, knowing that there was no way he'd succeed.
Curious neighbours went out of their houses and gathered in small groups, they whispered about what was happening. Some only looked through their windows.
Luise sat by the window. Tears were still streaming down her face...
------------------------------------------------------------
They streamed silently, her body was shaking because of the memory.
'Sorry, dad...' her lips shaped the words but they couldn't be heard. Frank was uncomfortable and glared consistently at the gun, he felt like someone was trying to rip his guts out of his body when he heard the gunshot and felt the twitch from it. It resounded. He didn't know if he was alive or if he would drop dead next moment.
Here comes 23rd chapter.
--------------------------------------------------
Luise pulled Frank to the waterside of the river.
'What are you going to do?' Frank asked in a low voice.
Luise didn't answer. She closed her eyes.
------------------------------------- F L A S H B A C K -------------------------------------
'He's home! Dad's home!' 10-years-old Luise Walker yelled. She was sitting by the window and staring out like usually on this time of the day. It was raining this particular day.
Her sister who was two years older but could have been Luise's twin sister, smiled. They heard the key turned in the keyhole and the door opened. A middle-aged man walked in. He was rather tall with black thin hair which was starting to get gray. The serious, worried face changed to a happy smile when he saw his daughters. The younger one ran into his arms.
'Hello, princess! How are you today?' he asked.
'Fine' she answered.
'Where's your mother, Julia?' he looked at the other girl.
'Somewhere in the house, I assume. At least I haven't seen her go out (of it)' she answered.
Her father patted her on the head. His wife appeared in the hall.
'What took you so long?' she asked.
'I'm sorry, I got a little late' Mr. Walker excused and gave her a hug.
'Dinner is ready' Mrs. Walker said and went back to the kitchen.
Julia followed her and Mr. Walker and Luise came after Julia.
They ate dinner as usually. Then Mr. and Mrs. Walker watched the news and then they all did their use in washing the dishes, just as usually.
At half past ten the girls were sent to bed. Mrs. Walker gave them their goodnights and a kiss on their cheeks. Mr. Walker came into Luise's room.
'Goodnight, angel' he said softly.
'Dad...I know I'm getting too old for this...but can you tell me a story' Luise asked, 'Pleeeeease!'
-'All right, I'll try...em...' he sat on the bedside, 'What stories do I know? Oh, yes, I know! Ok.' He cleared his throat.
'Once upon a time, in Africa, there was big, big Lion...much bigger than me..., (Luise giggled) he was getting old...just like me...and liked to sleep a lot, especially after hunting 'cause it made he him tired to run after the antelopes. One day when he was asleep under a few big trees he suddenly woke up when he felt something crawl over his paw. He slowly opened his eyes and saw a little mouse standing on his paw and sniff at the thin fell on it (hvað meinarðu ?). He growled at the mouse. The mouse tried to jump off the Lion's paw but before she made it he put his other paw over her and held her between them... ('He can't eat her' Luise whispered) - Hey! Who's telling the story, me or you?...thought so, where was I? Yeah...-The poor mouse begged for her life, (Mr. Walker made his voice low and shrill) 'Please, please Mr. Lion. I don't taste well, honestly!' (Luise giggled more and her father spoke normally again) The lion wasn't really hungry so it decided to let the little mouse go. (He made his voice deep and lazily) 'All right, you can go this time...don't you tell anyone about it, someone could think I was getting soft...' (low and shrill again) 'Thank you sir Lion, you will not regret this, I promise you that!' (deep and lazily) 'Hmm. I don't know, we'll see' (normal voice) The little mouse ran away, never been happier. The Lion went back to sleep. A few days after this, the Lion was walking home after a hunting trip, He had completely forgotten about the little mouse. Suddenly he stepped on something. 'Ouch!' he thought. But he was more startled when a net fell over him from the air. It was a trap that hunters used. The Lion roared and tried to scratch himself out of the net. But that only tangled him more. At last the Lion couldn't move. After a while the Lion noticed someone small was moving near him. Oh, the Mouse! 'My Mouse! Please, help me!' the Lion cried out, ' Please, remember how I spared you erstwhile, please!' 'Yes, yes, easy. I remember, hold still until I've chewed the net apart' the Mouse said. She climbed upon the Lion and started to chew the ropes. When she had finished her work the Lion was free. He rose up. Then he looked down at the Mouse. 'Thank you, my Mouse! I shall always be grateful and I'll never eat mice again, you've saved my life' the Lion said thankfully. 'You spared mine, I paid my dept, sir Lion' the Mouse said. Then she ran off and the Lion walked slowly to his home. He kept his promise, never ate mice' Mr. Walker smiled.
'That was a good story, dad' Luise said and yawned.
'It was, from it you can learn: You should treat others like you want them to treat you, you understand?' Mm. Walker asked.
Luise thought and then nodded. 'Yeah, I think so. Like, if Julia wouldn't borrow me something then I should not borrow her anything when she needs it, hehe!'
Mr. Walker sighed. 'That's not exactly what I meant, oh, never mind. You should be asleep long time ago. Good night, now sweetheart.' He kissed her on the forehead and tucked her in.
'Good night, dad.'
Mrs. Walker came to the doorway. 'Good night, honey.'
'Good night, mom. Good night, Julia!' Luise yelled.
Her sister didn't answer.
'Uh, Luise, don't yell like that so late in the evening. The neighbours could wake up' Mr. Walker reminded.
-'Sorry, mom.'
Her parents went out of the room and leaned the door back but didn't close.
--------------------------------------------
Luise woke up. She didn't know why. She looked at the alarm clock. 00:24 a.m.
She sighed and laid back down. She heard the sound of her parents voices. They were fighting. Luise couldn't hear what exactly what they were saying. She got curious. She jumped out of her bed and went out on the hallway. Julia was there before. She stood outside her fathers study with her ear against the door. She lifted a finger to her lips. Luise nodded but moved her own lips. 'What are they saying?'
Julia pointed at the door. Luise put her ear against the door like her sister.
'What have you gotten yourself into?' Mrs. Walker's voice asked loudly.
'I don't know, Jane! Besides, maybe they weren't talking about me' Mr. Walker said and tried to calm her.
-'Well, how many are they who know much of what you are doing and could be dangerous for Mr. Jennings?'
-'It could be anyone. I heard him say: We'll get rid of him...'
-'And you also heard him say something about there was only room for one boss. How many bosses are there? You know how the Jennings family gets rid of people who they think are threat to them.'
-'That was then.'
'And this is now. I'm only suggesting you'll go to the police and ask for protection...' Mrs. Walker began.
-'NO!' Mr. Walker said, 'No police! End of discussion!'
-'But why not...'
-'I said no police, I'm I making myself clear?'
Julia and Luise looked at each other.
'I don't like this' Luise whispered.
Julia shook her head. Then they heard footsteps on the way to (coming towards) the door.
The girls ran quickly to Julia's room. Julia shut the door after them.
'That was close' she said in a low voice.
'Oops' Luise muttered.
-'What?'
-'I think I didn't close the door when I went out of my room.'
-'What? You idiot. Damn. Ok, let's lay down, you got cold and sneaked to me, all right?'
Luise nodded.
They threw themselves onto Julia's bed just in time before Mrs. Walker opened the door to take a look at them. She smiled and closed the door again.
The sisters both let out sighs of relieve.
'Actually, Julia, I am kinda cold, can I stay?' Luise asked and put up an innocent face.
-'Fine, but give me my half of the duvet.'
-------------
The lock was broken from outside. The door opened quietly. A man stepped in. He looked around. He was wearing jeans and a black sweater, latex gloves and a mask covered his face. He had rubber soled shoes on his feet which muffled all sounds when he walked on the tiled floor. He took a cloth from his pocket and a little bottle. He found the room he was looking for, he stopped in front of the door. He heard heavy breath from inside the room. There he poured some of the bottle's contents to the cloth. He opened the door carefully. This was a bedroom, like the uninvited guest had known before, on the bed two persons laid fast asleep. The man raised his hand that was holding the cloth and placed it on the sleeping man's mouth and nose. When he woke up the man held the cloth tighter to his respiratory system (mouth and nose ?). His victim grasped his wrist but the grip got lighter as he got unconscious, the terrified eyes closed. He took the cloth away. He worked fast but quietly and carefully to not wake up the woman beside the unconscious man. He took another bottle from his pocket and a thin, long pin. He put the pin down to the man's pharynx ( throat )to
keep it open while he poured the fluid down to the throat. Then he took the pin up and put it to a plastic bag that he had also taken from his pocket. He held the man's jaw's together so he'd swallow the fluid. Then he walked out without looking back. A hit man had finished his job.
------------
A loud scream did wake Luise Walker up. She sat upright.
'Mom!' she thought.
Her sister had woken up by the scream too. They hurried out of bed to their parents bedroom.
Their mother stood over their father who laid still in the bed, rather pale, she was shocked. Tears streamed down her cheeks.
'Mom, what's wrong?' Julia asked.
Mrs. Walker moved her lips but no words came. She tried again.
'You...your...father...he...' she couldn't finish, she start crying. She bent down and put her arms around Julia.
Luise walked to her father. 'Why don't we wake dad up, he can make you feel better, I'm sure he can.'
She shook her dad, tried to wake him up. 'Dad, dad! Wake up!' After a few attempts and he still wouldn't wake up, Luise got afraid .
'Mom, why doesn't dad, wake up, mom?' She felt that her father's hand was unusually cold when she touched it.
Mrs. Walker forced the words out. 'He...can't...he's...ah, oh, God!?' And she cried more.
Luise felt tears on her own cheeks, she didn't know why.
Julia was silent. She walked over to her sister, past her and to their father. She shook him.
'He's dead' Julia whispered sobbing.
'What?' Luise didn't realize what her sister was saying. She looked at her mother.
She nodded.
-'Like...he'll never wake up again...?'
Her mother nodded again.
Luise looked at the corpse again before falling to her mothers arms. She didn't cry, she was still trying to understand this.
Her sister and mother were both crying but she just couldn't.
---------------
The house was full of police officers and their assistants. They investigated the whole house, trying to find any signs of the murderer. The corpse had been moved to a mortuary for further investigation.
Drops of chloroform were on the pillow and on late Mr. Walker's skin, and poison in his blood.
Mrs. Walker was questioned she told what she knew and thought.
An officer sat in the sofa with Julia and tried to cheer her up, knowing that there was no way he'd succeed.
Curious neighbours went out of their houses and gathered in small groups, they whispered about what was happening. Some only looked through their windows.
Luise sat by the window. Tears were still streaming down her face...
------------------------------------------------------------
They streamed silently, her body was shaking because of the memory.
'Sorry, dad...' her lips shaped the words but they couldn't be heard. Frank was uncomfortable and glared consistently at the gun, he felt like someone was trying to rip his guts out of his body when he heard the gunshot and felt the twitch from it. It resounded. He didn't know if he was alive or if he would drop dead next moment.