Prism - By Rachel Moschell Page 0,73

him to the heart. He hadn’t been around so many Christians since he was a kid, and the experience had been overwhelming.

He thought about what his father had said back at the Hostal Salta: Noah would have forgiven you.

It didn’t seem realistic to imagine Noah just punching him in the shoulder with a, Hey man, don’t worry about it. It’s all good.

But he was supposed to believe God would forgive him, just like that?

Another comment Wara had made sometime during their last few days flashed through his mind: “Jesus said to love your enemies.” That was very true—Jesus had even said to turn the other cheek when someone hits you. But did that mean standing there and watching while someone hit a helpless woman or child?

God, I need help, Alejo groaned out loud. I’m a mess. I don’t even know how to talk with you. I keep thinking I need to go wash the right way before praying and prostrate myself on the ground. But here I am, without washing, not facing the right direction, just talking to you, slouched on a chair at some gringos’ house.

I need help.

But the chances of Alejo meeting someone soon who could help him figure out who he was and why were pretty slim, since he and Wara were in the middle of running for their lives. The funeral was over, and it was time for them to leave Bolivia and go to Alejo’s family, so they could all start their lives over.

Just like that.

Alejo realized that the phone was ringing somewhere in the house, one of those annoying, electric sounds that beeped through the air in waves. It finally shut up, and Alejo leaned forward in his chair to peer into the room where Wara had collapsed on the couch. She was still there, facing the wall, huddled inside the long sleeves of her black sweater.

The phone started ringing again, only seconds after it stopped, and it was annoying as heck. When the caller rang a third time, then a fourth, Alejo’s adrenaline picked up. He rose from the chair on the balls of his feet, doing a quick sweep of vision around the windows of the house. Nothing appeared to be out of the ordinary in the empty yard. He had already made sure all the doors of the house were locked.

When the sixth, seventh, then eighth call came in, Alejo had a sinking feeling that the caller might possibly not be someone looking for the Bennesons. All the phones downstairs appeared to have been disconnected for the funeral, as the only ringing came from somewhere upstairs.

Just to be on the safe side, Alejo decided to answer the phone. Maybe he could just give some poor gringo directions and put an end to this. With a last glance at Wara, he bolted up the stairs, two at a time, and across a parquet wood floor to where a cordless phone was flashing on a desk. Alejo marched towards the desk and snatched up the receiver, punching the talk button.

“Alo?”

“Oh, good, thank goodness!” The cheerful voice on the other end appeared to be speaking around a mouthful of food. “Alejo, I’m so glad you finally did me the favor of answering, che. I was beginning to think I was going to have to come over the walls and risk getting bit in the rear by that yappy white dog in there. Those little poodle things can be quite mean.”

Alejo’s blood chilled as he recognized the voice of Gabriel. “Che,” he said calmly. “Where are you?” Alejo moved in a crouch towards a plate window overlooking the quiet cobblestone street in front of the house. A small dog, white curls graying where its belly scraped the grass, was trotting calmly around the spacious front yard. Nothing else in sight was moving.

“Oh, just outside the wall, having a snack. Here, let me move a little bit, there, ok, do you see me?” A pale hand waved into Alejo’s line of vision from above the thick concrete wall surrounding the house, and then all of Gabriel came into view, backing up farther across the road so he wasn’t hidden by the wall. A cell phone was plastered to one ear, and he squinted up at the window where Alejo stood. “I figured it might take you guys a while to come out,” he said with a grin, “but I really didn’t feel like waiting any longer. It took me a little bit to get this number,