Manny wasn't the only who couldn't stop thinking about Frida, no matter how hard he tried Tito just could not stop thinking of her. He didn't know why but the young gypsy girl continued to remind him of the sin he committed twenty years ago. She reminded him of the last gypsy woman he had met and how he had killed her, but it wasn't his fault that Maria had died. She ran, if she had just stopped then he wouldn't have struck her. It was Maria's own fault that she had died that night and the her son had been orphaned. It was her fault. It was her fault that Rodolfo was dead. She was a witch, a temptress, a demon in the flesh, who had bewitched his brother and tried to be witch him too. He did the world a favor by ridding it of that woman.

He had been telling himself all those ludicrous things ever since the night Maria died. It was how he convinced himself he was guiltless. During the past few twenty years he hardly ever thought of Maria, not even when he watched Manny grow up. True he had noticed that the boy had his mother's eyes and facial features which sickened Tito to his core but most of his personality traits were inherited from his father but that made Tito even more sick. He hated it when his nephew reminded him of his brother because he didn't want to acknowledge that his brother whom he adored had spawned what he saw as a monster. He also couldn't accept that his brother loved a gypsy woman and a deformed child so much that he would die for them. But he did and he ended up dying for them. Which was why Maria had to die, to pay for the sin of taking his brother from him.

Tito had thought that he had made peace on that subject but now this new gypsy girl appeared and she had stirred up all his repressed guilt on what he did but he refused to admit that it was guilt. Nor would he admit that Frida was just a harmless young woman trying to make a living. It was no coincidence that this gypsy girl came into his life and suddenly he was starting to feel regret for what he did to Maria. There had to be a connection between the two. And he decided that there was. He convinced himself that Frida was an apparition of Maria who had come back to curse him with feelings of guilt over something he didn't do. After all Frida and Maria did have a lot in common apart from their looks. They both possessed tempting beauty, danced in a sinful manner to drive men to madness, and they both set out to bewitch someone of his flesh and blood.

"Evil like her doesn't stay dead forever." He told himself. "Of course she's come back. She's come back through that girl to torment me. I must be rid of her! But how?!"

Indeed how. When he killed Maria he did it in a way that could be interpreted as an accident which was why he had not be charged with murder and Tonio had been unable to get expelled from the church court. But he was just out right kill Frida without just cause it could ruin everything. Those fools didn't understand, they didn't see the evil in gypsies like he did, they would see him murdering an innocent girl instead of a damnable witch.

"Perhaps I don't need to kill her." He thought. "Perhaps I could purify her. I could convince her to forsake her life as gypsy and serve me. See me as her God and savior. Of course I would have to cleanse both her body and soul but in the end she would be free to live. She would just to do whatever I commanded of her and be confined to the cleansing chambers so she won't be tainted again."

He had to admit to himself he would enjoy watching the girl suffer under the torturous cleansing process and he would relish in hearing her scream in agony. Oh the joys of watching her perform exhausting labors for him during the day and the to be locked away in that cold, dark chamber for the night where the torture would continue. And she suffered then in some way Maria would suffer. In fact while torturing Frida he could fantasize that he was torturing Maria instead or some other gypsy he wished to punish. Such feelings and desires were called sadism by the common sensible man but in Tito's mind he was just enjoying justice being served to the sinner.

Knock-knock!

"Come in." He said in annoyance.

The door was opened by a soldier.

"Sorry to disturb you Judge Tito but the gypsy has escaped." The soldier said.

"What?!" Tito shouted enraged.

"We've searched the entire building. She's no where in the cathedral. She's gone."

"But how I- Nevermind! Get out you idiot!" He snapped.

When the soldier left Tito walked over to a drawer that was in the room. He opened it up and pulled out something he had shoved inside. It was the scarf Frida had thrown to him during her performance at the festival. He clutched the piece of cloth intensely while pretending that it was her beautiful neck.

"The clever little witch." He snarled. "But she hasn't escaped me. At least not for long. I'll find her. I'll find her if I have to burn down all of Spain!"

He then glanced over the fire burning in the fireplace. Watching the flames rise and burn around the stone and marble. Burn. Yes burn. Maybe he wouldn't be able to cleanse her but he was sure that he could convince the court that she was a witch. So if the little tramp wouldn't give into him then she would burn. She would burn to death while he watched. Watch her beauty blacken as the flames scorched her skin, hear her voice cry out as the smoke suffocated her, watch her burn and burn until nothing remained of her except ashes. A slow and painful death. Oh if only Maria could have died that way.

He threw the scarf into the fire and as he watched it burn he imagined that it was Frida being destroyed by the flames.

Meanwhile that same night when T.J had finished his duties of being a soldier he decided that before going to bed he would have a little fun first. He heard through the grape vine there was a tavern down town where the gypsies, beggars, thieves, and peasants would go to relax, drink, and party. It sounded interesting so T.J decided to take a look.

Inside the tavern there were plenty of men and women either drinking at the bar or dancing to the mysterious but exciting music playing. Among the ones dancing were Davi and Andrea, the beggar girl he had helped the other day.

"I'm sorry." Davi said approaching T.J. "But soldiers are not welcome here. They tend to spoil our fun."

"Relax." T.J said. "I'm just looking for a little rest and recreation."

"I'm sure you are." Andrea said. "Get back to the party Davi, I'll take care of him."

"Alright but be careful Andrea. This one looks shifty."

Davi then gave T.J the "I've got my eyes on you." gesture before going back to celebrating with his comrades.

"Nice to see you again." T.J said smiling at her. "Though I must admit I didn't expect to find a nice girl like you in a place like this."

"It's not as depraved as most people think. We're not doing anything wrong just letting off some steam from a hard day of work."

"You mean thievery?"

"I don't steal."

"But I'm sure a lot of the people here do."

"Perhaps but it's not my place to judge neither is it yours."

"I must admit I respect how you gypsies defend each other and are loyal til the end."

"Gypsies are extremely loyal but that loyalty is not excluded to their own people. It stretches to anyone who will help them and show them compassion. Also I am not a gypsy."

"You're not."

"No. I merely just the daughter of a poor miller who sometimes has to beg for scraps to feed her starving family."

"Then if you don't mind me asking how are you so acquainted with gypsies?"

"My father is a kind and unprejudiced man. He will often allow weary travelers to stop and rest at our home. Gypsies are among the many travelers we grant hospitality to."

"No wonder they're so fond of you. You know I wish your father had been around when I was recovering from the war. I could have really used a kind face."

"Yes. Especially after burying your comrades in unmarked graves."

T.J looked at her stunned, surprised that she had correctly deduced one of the many horrors he had to suffer through during the war.

"Your hands are callous." She said. "And if I'm not mistaken you have bits of graveyard soil in your nails."

"Smart girl." He observed. "Are you familiar with battle and bloodshed?"

"No but I am familiar with struggling for survival. i work to help support my father and family however I can but those greedy soldiers have tendency to steal our hard earned profits which leads me to perform the humiliating act of begging."

"The soldiers steal money?"

"Not from the rich and powerful obviously but from the starving peasants who desperately need it yes. You didn't know?"

"No. I was trained and taught the soldiers are to be honorable. To protect and serve the innocent. Theft is not what a good solider does."

"You haven't been stationed here long have you?" She asked.

"No. Just for about a month or so."

"Then you don't know what soldiers in Spain are really like. Greedy and prejudiced. They bully people and steal their money and they ignore people who come to them for help."

"Huh...No wonder soldiers aren't welcome here."

"Indeed."

T.J was shocked by these news. Was it true? Did the soldiers here really have no honor? He did witness two of them try to steal from Andrea when he first arrived here. First the judge turns out to be a maniac who gets off on watching an innocent boy be cruelly tortured, now the soldiers steal and harass harmless but hungry peasants? Just how corrupt was this country?

"Listen if any of the soldiers give you or your family any trouble please let me know." He told her. "I'll fix them good I promise you."

"I don't anything can fix these heathens but I guess I could use some inside help. Thank you."

"You're welcome."