Where the Sun Sets (2 page)

“I don’t know.” Antonia never took her eyes
off Josephine. Josephine was still speaking through clenched
teeth.

“Putting on a few pounds I see, is this the
kind of image you want our guests to see?”

“Joe what is your problem?” Antonia pulled
free of Josephine’s grip.

“My problem? You are my problem.” Joe’s tone
was rising. People were starting to stare. And Antonia’s eyes
remained fixed on Josephine.

“Look Joe, I seriously do not understand what
has gotten you so upset, but perhaps this is not the best time to
discuss it.”

“Perhaps?” Josephine stuttered incredulously,
“When then do you think it would be a good time? When do you think
you can chat with me, huh?”

Antonia finally broke eye contact when
something caught her eye. There was movement by the fence. The gate
was unlatched; it swung open to a stop. ‘Where is Billy?’ Antonia
thought. Her stomach twisted into a painful knot. Antonia turned
back to face Josephine once again and was greeted by a slap that
stunned her as well as several of the guests, whom had stopped
chatting and were now staring. Antonia did not move her hand to her
face as one would normally do in response to being slapped.
Instead, she starred directly at Josephine and asked, “Where is
Billy?” as she took a step backwards. Once again she looked to the
fence. And again back through the crowd looking for Billy. She
turned to search him out. She started to walk away from Josephine,
when Joe screamed at her.

“Where the hell do you think you are going?
Don’t you walk away from me!” Grabbing her arm, she swung Antonia
around to face her. Not a moment too soon. Antonia saw the gunman
by the fence. Josephine was in his sights. Antonia grabbed
Josephine forcefully and seemingly without effort, tossed her to
the left as gun blasts rang out. The first shot should have nailed
Josephine straight through her neck. But as it turned out, it
landed neatly in Antonia’s right shoulder.

“Where the hell is Bill...” she was cut off
as the second shot ripped straight through her abdomen, from the
right to the left. Still spinning from tossing Josephine to the
side, Antonia took one more shot in her back and another in her
thigh, as she covered Joe through her forward momentum. Everyone
was screaming and in the hysteria no one saw the gunman exit.

A crowd formed around the two women. Joe was
bleeding from her forehead.

“Oh, my God!” someone screamed. “Josephine’s
been shot!”

At first Josephine found it impossible to sit
up. She felt the wind had been knocked out of her and could not
fill her lungs with enough oxygen. She could not focus her eyes,
everything was a blur. When she had managed an upright position the
pulsating throb in her head sounded like a freight train. Josephine
managed a response, though she directed it at no one. “No, no I’m
alright. I just banged my head when she pushed me.”

People pressed themselves in-between
Josephine and Antonia. Someone was helping Joe to her feet. “Are
you sure you’re OK?” They asked her. She nodded her head a few
times and brushed herself off.

“Anthony...Anthony?” Joe could not see
Antonia, lying but a few feet away from her. She could not see
Antonia, lying in a pool of blood.

“Bernie is with Antonia.” Someone responded.
Joe heard the voices that tried to comfort her, but she did not
know where they were coming from. Everything was blurry. She put
her hand to her forehead. The pain was there and then it was gone.
“It will be OK; everything is going to be OK, you just relax.” A
voice assured her.

Barely audible and with a great deal of
effort, Antonia’s voice whispered out to the shadow loaming over
her, “Joe...where is Joe?”

“Don’t you worry love.”

“Is...she OK?”

“Sure she is honey,” The shadow returned,
holding Antonia’s hand as he held back tears. Bernie had seen the
whole event from start to finish. His eyes had been on Antonia
since his arrival. She was the only woman in the world who had ever
caught his eye. Shock was the first thing he felt. He couldn’t
move, for what seemed like forever for him. When he finally came
back to himself and understood what had happened, he felt anger.
Anger as he watched Josephine brush Antonia aside, without so much
as a glance to see if she was OK. Then an overwhelming sense of
fear that came with seeing the amount of blood that was coming from
Antonia. He looked up, angrily in Josephine’s direction.

“Josephine is just fine. You saved her life.”
He was cut off as Antonia squeezed his hand hard. Antonia moved her
free hand to her abdomen.

“It hurts... It hurts real bad.” Antonia
whispered.

“I know honey, but it will be OK, everything
is going to be OK.”

Antonia tried once again, “Where...the…
hell...was...Billy? Joe...Jo.” Her hand fell to her side. Darkness
overcame her.

The boat on the water sat empty now, faintly
rocking side to side, barely causing a ripple. The fishing pole,
still extended fought to stay in the boat as the fish on its hook
tried desperately to escape his fate. The tackle box, still open,
was now abandoned. There was no sign of the man with the video
camera. No sign of the camera. No sign of Billy.

Everything was happening so fast. The
ambulance arrived, followed by a single police vehicle. People were
pushing and shoving to escape any residual danger.

“Go on Josephine, we’ll take care of
everything here.” ‘Who said that?’ Someone was grabbing Josephine’s
elbow. ‘Who?’ She couldn’t seem to find a face. She scanned the
yard with her eyes. Searching for what, she had no clue. She felt
nothing. All she heard were mumbles, people talking but she
couldn’t understand what they were saying. She strained her eyes,
looking to hear better but she knew that wouldn’t help at all.

She stepped up into the ambulance with the
help of a steady hand. It was dark inside. She was escorted towards
the front to sit away from the doors. ‘What is happening?’ Slam.
The doors slammed shut. She suddenly felt crowded as the siren
wailed. ‘Oh my God, that hurts.’ she thought to herself. Covering
her ears with her hands, she tucked her chin to her chest. ‘What
the hell is happening?’ Josephine was losing control and she could
feel it tightening around her chest.

“Miss.” Someone was talking to her. “Miss,
here.” They placed oxygen in front of her face. She bent her head
back and let it rest on the wall of the ambulance. She breathed
deeply and slowly filling each fiber of her lungs with the much
needed oxygen. As she finally felt herself coming back, she lifted
her head back up and removed the mask.

And then she saw her. She saw Antonia laying
not even two feet in front of her. Blood. There was so much blood.
‘What the hell happened?’ She couldn’t remember. There were two
people standing between her and Antonia. They were working
frantically. ‘Why? What was wrong?’

“Anthony...” Joe called out in little more
than a whisper.

The ambulance pulled into the hospital
parking lot.

“Anthony…” This time a bit louder, as
Josephine tried to stand a hand grabbed her arm.

“Sit down miss. Miss, you need to sit down.”
she dutifully responded as the ambulance came to a stop and its
doors were thrust open.

“Wait. Where are you taking her?” she asked
desperately as Antonia was whisked away. Through the doors, the
hand came again and gingerly helped her down out of the
ambulance.

“Come miss. Miss, you need to see a doctor.”
There was no response as Josephine dutifully followed the
stranger’s lead. Her eyes were searching frantically for Antonia.
‘What the hell happened?’ She thought as she struggled to make
sense of the manic scene playing in her mind. The stranger led
Josephine into a waiting cubical in the emergency room of St.
Bartholomew Hospital. With the exception of a few employees, this
part of the hospital seemed vacant. With the majority of the staff
running to the aide of Antonia, Josephine was seen by the local
pediatric doctor, who happened to be in the hospital checking
patients.

“Hello...Ms. Ferrero, isn’t it?” The good
doctor inquired, nervously.

“Am I?” was her only response.

Slightly irritated by her attitude, the
doctor turned on the bright overhead light with a snap. “Please lay
back, ma’am.” Josephine did as directed. The bright light now
glaring into her eyes caused a sharp pain to cross from temple to
temple. Her hand involuntarily came to her forehead. “Please, you
have to try to keep your eyes open for at least a moment.” He took
out his pocket light and flashed it on and off in her eyes. Then he
touched her face and neck gingerly as he watched for her reaction.
He moved her head, slowly, in a circular manner. Again he shined
the light into her eyes. Again the pain shot across her head. He
gave her a shot in the arm, of what Josephine had no clue. The good
doctor was explaining to her as she drifted out of this world and
into her past.

Chapter Two

They met the second week of September, 1970
on a gray, windy and very damp day. They met at Saint Agnes, school
for girls. An exclusive private school limited to six girls per
grade, first through tenth. Students were expected to excel
academically and reach college level by the age of sixteen. To
outsiders it looked more like a reform school. It had high walls
and fences which refused admittance. Very narrow windows allowed no
insight, no distractions. But to the girls it was home. It was a
very strict, but loving home. Most students only went home for
summer vacation, limited to six weeks. But not everyone did, there
were several who stayed all year, every year.

The large wooden doors squealed with the
excitement of being opened. Or so it seemed to Antonia, who had not
seen them open once since arriving last week. A family of three
walked in. Antonia looked back to the book she was reading. Volume
S, of the school’s only encyclopedia set. Hand in hand, the family
walked past along the marble floors into the main hall. Sister
Ursula, all four feet three inches of her, greeted them with a
fevered cheerfulness. As she led them away, Antonia looked up once
again and watched the father holding the child’s hand and the child
holding the mother’s hand. She watched until they reached the door
into the Office of Acceptance. She watched as they were beckoned to
sit. The father placed a single suitcase on the floor and pulled
out the chair for the mother, who seated herself ever so
gracefully. He then did the same for the daughter, who turned and
made eye contact with the eyes in the hallway.

Sister Ursula closed the door leaving the
family alone with the Mother Superior, Sister Katherine. As she
exited the room, she walked toward Antonia, who was still watching
the loving scene playing on in her mind’s eye. Antonia was startled
when Sister approached her and jumped, dropping the book. “It’s all
right.” The Sister comforted her. “Calm down, Antonia. Calm
yourself child. Let us get out of this hallway and find something
to eat OK? Come on child,” she said as she pulled Antonia into her
embrace. The hug was one sided as Antonia was stiff and protective
The Door of Acceptance opened once again, and a very stout
authoritative Sister Katherine appeared. “Is everything OK out
here?”

“Yes, yes, fine. We will go to the kitchen
now, forgive our interruption Mother. Come child.” And Sister
pulled ever so gently on Antonia’s arm. The two left without
another sound.

Sister Katherine closed the door and returned
her attention to her new fledgling and financial supporters. She
prided herself on being the best sales-person the Catholic Church
had ever been blessed with. It wasn’t always easy to convince
parents to part with their cash, especially when their emotions,
their thoughts were wrapped up in parting with their own child.

Sister Katherine was quick to restart the
conversation. “Pardon the interruption, please, go on Sir.”

The mother interrupted, “The child in the
hallway...”

“Oh you needn’t worry ma’am, she will not be
here long. We are currently waiting for her placement in foster
care.”

“So she is not a student here?” Inquired the
father.

Seeing the opportunity to play upon the
hearts of those more fortunate financially than she, Sister took
the time to explain. “Antonia came to us from the state. Her
upbringing was far less than acceptable. The authorities said she
had been severely abused, physically, mentally, verbally, for her
entire life. Or so it would seem.” The mother winced and brought
her hand to her mouth. “While it is not the purpose of this
facility to take in orphans...”

“The child’s parents are both dead then?” The
father interrupted.

“No, sir, they are not. The mother has passed
away but the child’s father is presently incarcerated.”

The mother looked as though she may faint.
Sister Katherine walked to the water dispenser and poured a cup
full. She then offered it to the mother and without missing a beat,
continued on with her saga. “You see, apparently, for the past few
years, the father had been forcing the mother to prepare the child
for him.” Sister glanced at Josephine, who was watching her shoes
bang into each other. “When he would come home from work at night,
he expected the child to look every bit like the mother. He wanted
Antonia to perform unspeakable acts. He made her do things, no
woman, certainty no child should ever be forced to do. And he
would...” the Sister broke from the sentence. She took a measured
glance at both parents in the room. “Apparently the mother could
not take it anymore and finally came to her senses, and decided it
was time to put a stop to it. She hid the child in a closet and
when the father returned home from work, she met him at the door.
There was a very big fight. It ended with the father smashing the
mothers head in with his own fist. Fortunately the mother had the
good sense to call the authorities before the arrival of her
husband. However by the time police had arrived, it was too late
for the woman and the father was then taken away in handcuffs. He
was incarcerated and the State is secure in their belief that he
will, upon sentencing receive twenty- five to thirty years without
parole. The child was later found hiding in a closet but it is
believed she witnessed the whole incident.”