CHAPTER 9

CHAPTER 9

DAVID HERINGER

THE CAR ROLLOVER at least nine times, David thought as his mind returned to its normal rhythm.

The newspapers said that the car had flipped twelve times in a row — because of their high speed — and by a miracle the car didn't explode.

Charles walked away naturally as if nothing had happened, it was as if the car had stopped normally on a shoulder without suffering any damage and he had opened the door to shop at a supermarket.

While everyone expected the same attitude from David, but the minutes passed and nothing happened.

The officers immediately arrested Charles, as he desperately yelled at David:

— Remember your promise, man, not for me... for Jennie... Remember...

David just managed to open his eyes at that moment, and with the rest of the strength he still had, he gave a small smile and blinked his eyes as if saying:

For my life, I will take care of your daughter as if she were my own...

And that's exactly what David was thinking at that moment.

THE THOUGHT OF EVERYONE who saw that scene was unanimous, they all thought of the same sentence:

Bad vase doesn't break easily...

Charles was taken to the patrol car while he waited for David to rescue him. Charles was looking closely at what was left of that vehicle, he wanted to know if everything was okay with the man who had saved his life — even though he was threatening his — not that Charles was sorry, no, any father in the world would do what he did, Charles knew it wasn't a bad character, it was just a moment of weakness...

I wish David had come into her life earlier...

Charles knew in his heart that it had not been in vain. All that happened with some purpose, now it was just a matter of waiting for time to show him the reason for it all.

The fire department arrived next — but with all the care in the world so that they didn't take any action that would jeopardize David's life.

It took a while, but David regained his strength and was able to follow his own rescue from that pile of ironwork that had surrounded him.

He hadn't broken any bones in his body, but he was wrapped in the wreckage of the vehicle, just waiting for the firefighters to cut the wreckage so he could finally be reunited with his beloved wife he hadn't seen in so long.

David got out of the car and was immediately attended by the doctor, at the same moment he recognized the skinny doctor, Dr. Burke, and found it strange:

Okay, David thought, I'm not that worried about that anyway...

David wanted to talk to Charles immediately after being released by the doctor. Everyone found that abnormal attitude strange, but they allowed the two to exchange a few words, surrounded by the police officers who had arrested Charles.

Charles smiled as if they'd been friends for ages.

— I promise — David said to his new friend before the man said anything — that I will take care of your daughter as if she were my own daughter, I will give her the best education she can and deserves.

— Thank you brother — Charles thanked happily, as they took him to the van and the car left soon after with a wave of goodbye from David to his newest and most unusual friend.

On the way to the hospital, David saw the firefighters attending to another accident very close to where the accident with his car had taken place, he felt something strange at first, an annoyance more in the soul than in the body, but how impossible it was to see what had really happened there., he was calm, knowing that they were already attending to that person, after all, his life had not yet been taken by God, on the contrary, he was more alive than ever, that's all he thought:

That's it... Ready for one more...

DAVID COULDN'T GO to his house, as much as he fought with the skinny doctor wanting to see his wife, he had to go to the nearest hospital and do some tests to make sure he didn't have any internal injuries, after all, that was a miracle, such an ugly accident and they both walked away with minor scratches.

David desperately wanted to get to his house and show everyone that he was okay and that nothing had happened...

But it had happened...

David had made a promise and he wanted to keep it anyway. He called his parents — since at home nobody answered the phone.

His parents were glad to hear that David was really okay, this is how they said:

That he well represented the name they chose for him...

The biblical David faced a giant and won a great victory.

David was just worried about little Jennie, her parents agreed to the promise and said they would pick her up immediately to fulfill the promise made to Charles.

Jennie was a girl's sweetheart, she had her father's eyes, but something told David that that beautiful little girl was just like her mother, after all, Charles was too ugly to be that girl's father. Jennie was a very outgoing girl, with the sweetest, most sincere smile she had ever seen in her entire life.

Her parents took her home and accommodated her in the bedroom that had been David's as a child, and soon asked permission from Charles so she could stay with them until he was released from prison.

DAVID SENT THREE DAYS of observation in the hospital, not understanding at all what was happening. Ivy hadn't gone to see him, nor her in-laws, much less her few friends, just her parents...

It was as if they were hiding something...

Something terrible, but without the courage to tell him everything that had really happened.

After the three days promised by the doctor, David was desperate to return home, after all, his return home had only one goal, and it certainly wasn't to stay in that hospital.

When David left the hospital, no crowds waiting for him outside, which was certainly a relief at that moment, the last thing he needed was more people other than Ivy around him.

Nobody really knew where he was.

David was at Dr. Burke.

At the same moment he thought:

This guy must be very rich to have a hospital of his own...

After all, that place was the calmest hospital on earth, it didn't even look like a space for the sick — if it was even a hospital there.

His own parents took him home.

It was the quietest trip they had ever taken in their entire lives.

Jennie and David were in the back seat of the vehicle, Jennie just showed the doll, saying that her name was Stefanni.

David said:

— Hi Stefanni...

To which the doll returned the greeting disguised in Jennie's voice.

But his parents... Not even a sound, just that silence that bothered even God...

Arriving at his house, they opened the door and David came running towards his room shouting Ivy's name.

He shouted:

— Ivy, my love, I've arrived... Ivy...

But the only thing David saw were the tears in his parents' eyes.

David said:

— Are you hiding something from me? — For God's sake... — his voice was distressed at that moment — The same God you preached all your life... tell me what's going on?

At that moment, Dr. Burke and his parents left the room crying.

That's when Carlisle Burke said:

— I'm sorry, David, Ivy is dead.

An enraged David jumped on the scrawny doctor and picked him up by the shirt collar as if he were a child, which actually wasn't very difficult at all, as Dr. Burke was a scrawny man, weighing in at ninety— nine pounds.

David desperately yelled at the poor doctor:

— Where's my wife, you bastard? What did you do to her? Tell me... what did you do to her?

Just then Ivy's parents walked in.

His father— in— law told him in a voice as cold as arctic ice:

— What did we do to her? That's what you made her do, David.

David not understanding what his father— in— law said, his former famous mother-in-law said:

— That's right, David — Catherine said in the same cool, calculating tone as her husband's — as soon as Ivy saw the car you were driving on television, she desperately chased after you, I even tried to stop her on the phone, but when I arrived, it was too late, Ivy had already run after you... And there, close to where you flipped the car, she was closed by another car and hit, she died on the way to the hospital.

David approached his father-in-law and said:

— How dare you say it's my fault? — You miserable pig... It was the two of you who always shied away from the responsibility of giving love to your daughter. You always thought you could buy her with the fucking money you managed to amass during your petty lives, she died and I'm sure no one can take her place in my heart, but at least she was loved, that's not the fault of God you can judge me. God knows I would give my life for her if I had to, how dare you walk into my house and accuse me of such a thing?

William Johnson with the greatest calm in the world, as if nothing had happened, said looking into David's eyes — with the coldest look in the world, as if the deceased in the story were him:

— First of all, this house is ours, we bought it for our daughter, and I gladly hope you'll get your junk off as soon as you can… if possible today. Your parents have already taken some things, but you have to take the rest of the things, secondly... everything I've done in my entire life has been thinking about my children, neither you nor anyone can accuse me of being a neglectful parent.

He looked at the ceiling trying to stay calm and continued.

— She always had all the best and the best, something you could never give your son, if you had the courage to take care of someone in this life, after all, she lives traveling, entertaining people and leaving the person you love at home "says" love, spare me your selfish comments, keep it to yourself and your God while you're regretting not being by her side when she's gone.

William looked at his wife and said:

— Let's go, he's already ruined our lives too much for us to stay here with this riffraff, have a good time.

His wife accompanied him silently.

His father hugged him as tears flowed from his eyes nonstop.

Suddenly, the world fell on David's shoulders, he found himself in the same condition as his father-in-law had prophesied, he felt he had really abandoned Ivy, how could he be so mean not to call her to come get him?

Even though her parents knew that wasn't the truth, Ivy wanted David to be the best for her, he would be a better husband if he was successful, and it was the great truth of their relationship, as he thought exactly the same way. about her.

DAVID WAS FURIOUS WHEN HE FOUND OUT that his mother-in-law had stolen the manuscripts of Ivy's latest novel and put her name to go back to being the "grand lady of literature" a position Ivy took from her with her eyes closed.

The novel was called "Beyond the Heart Can See", it was on the bestseller list for two years in a row, a sales record, millions and millions of copies sold all over the world, but David decided to speak to the entire press. the truth — which boosted sales even more.

In the will, Ivy left the copyright to David, which he donated all proceeds from the sales to charities, he didn't want Ivy's money, he wanted her to be by his side at that moment, his desperate heart howled in pain. David knew that doing this could help a lot more than keeping it in his bank account, he was sure Ivy would do the same thing if it was the other way around, since their fortunes were practically the same, a few million more in their account. David wouldn't make any difference, but his great love away from his arms, that would make all the difference in the world.

DAVID WRITTEN HIS LAST ALBUM announcing the end of his brilliant career, as he had no incentive to continue touring, nor would he go on stage, he just wrote the songs from that album to honor his wife who died in that tragic accident.

The album was called "Ivy", it didn't have David's name on the cover, just her name in blue — it was Ivy's favorite color — with a white background, she always wanted one of her book covers to look like this, and he would finally do this little homage to the woman of his dreams. The theme was none other than "goodbye". The goodbye that they couldn't have, but that they knew that God would one day give a reunion, nothing better than a reunion without having said goodbye, would just be the continuation of something without end.

The album was the biggest sales phenomenon of the last fifteen years, winning several "Grammy's", which, who received it was its producer, since David did not want to appear at the awards ceremony, which earned him at the same time as the most unsympathetic artist in the world, as well as the simplest, since that was every person's dream and he no longer cared about worldly riches, but he desperately wanted what he had lost...

Your great love...

DAVID DIDN'T KNOW WHAT TO DO with his life anymore... he didn't want to play anymore, he had totally lost the desire to be on stage again, he didn't want to go live with his parents — because he knew they would keep insisting that David needed God...

David knew that, he just didn't want to give up his own choices, in certain things he really agreed with his father-in-law:

God protects weak people a lot...

Often, we are strong and play the weak, accommodating ourselves with God's goodness and love. But the last thing he needed was another culprit to vent his fury.

David went to live in an apartment near Central Park, it was quiet there, he could walk without anyone bothering him, without reporters wanting "exclusives" about his misfortune.

It was funny... — thought David, reflecting — Nobody asked how he felt about his wife's death, they just wanted to know why he had left the stage... — since he was the highest paid artist at the moment...

No one leaves their career at their peak...

Just him...

Other people thought it was a marketing ploy, but over time, everyone forgot about David Heringer, just as they forgot about many other stars in music, theater and film.

From time to time, David still saw his electrifying shows being replayed on some channel.

DAVID HAD TO GO TO Ivy's TOMB to take flowers, he wanted to escape that harsh and unrelenting reality, he wanted to believe that Ivy had gone on a trip and that soon she would be knocking on the door with that charming smile that only she had.

David remembered the day he asked Ivy to marry him, how he rehearsed all day in the bathroom mirror, how they had some difficulties at first, but then it all came together naturally. He even remembered when he'd rented a truck from the fire department and serenaded Ivy outside their apartment building.

She threw a bucket of cold water on him, saying it was a dream to do this with someone who would one day serenade her. Even though David played his favorite song, the firefighters laughed and continued to serenade completely wet, only this time, with the firefighters' choir and the undivided attention of that woman who in the beginning, was more coveted than fresh water in the desert.

When David finally took that bouquet of red roses-which were Ivy's favorites-right on the day they would be celebrating their fifth wedding anniversary.

David was surprised by Dr. Burke right in front of Ivy's grave:

— I knew I'd find you here, David.

Not understanding the skinny doctor's speech he asked:

— I'm here because I was married to Ivy, but what about you? Why are you here?

It was the most natural question in the world, after all, the doctor was just a friend of the family, he had no obligation to Ivy, but David was surprised when he learned the truth about their relationship.

The Doctor. Carlisle Burke told David that Ivy was the fruit of the affair with his wife's mother, the famous frustrated novelist. And that he was the one who wrote Catherine's greatest hits — since she didn't have the slightest talent to write a single essay, she was more ignorant than a door.

David didn't understand the reason for all that confession, after all:

What would change in his life knowing all that? Ivy wouldn't come back anyway...

Carlisle Burke continued his account without pause, saying that Catherine was a fantastic woman in her teens, that the two fell madly in love with each other, but she chose William over him because William was much more financially structured than he was.

Catherine never dreamed of being a writer, but she saw opportunity knocking on her door when the doctor showed her a draft he had written. She bribed him with money and nights of love if he would give her that romance, and others if possible.

Bankrupt and in love, he accepted the proposal immediately, which was comfortable for Catherine, since she was making love to the man she loved, and still earning lots of money with the genius of that little doctor who had just left college and needed resources. funds to start.

David knew Catherine was no saint — quite the opposite — the curtains were blatantly open now, David clearly saw who was who in that family.

Carlisle Burke has never married anyone...

Marry for what? Since he made — love — with the woman he loved, everything was more than perfect...

Not even Catherine would let him marry, after all, she supported him financially in everything, especially when the doctor needed funds for his new research, all it took was one night of pleasure and two hundred sheets written by the doctor, and everything was resolved in the best way. that they both thought...

On a warm bed and on a desk...

The incredible thing was knowing that William Johnson knew everything.

Carlisle Burke said that from the beginning, Willian knew about the relationship between the two "and even gave support", he just didn't want it all to come out and the children never know the truth — that Ivy was his daughter and not Johnson's.

David didn't know what was ahead after so many confessions.

Carlisle Burke said that Charles Wilburn was formerly his assistant, and he had to send him away because he was suspicious of everything, but David thought that was too much of a coincidence.

Even Charles involved in that whole plot, what else could happen there?

David didn't know what to make of it anymore...

That's when the doctor said something completely unexpected to David.

— I just hope you'll forgive me David.

But forgive what? — David thought without understanding why.

The doctor smiled to himself and continued.

— David... Forgive me for what I have yet to do...

But do what? — David said to himself, trying to understand the direction of that meaningless conversation.

That's when David felt a needle prick him in the back of his neck.

Suddenly, everything around him began to spin, as if he was falling asleep — falling asleep against his own will.

And that's exactly what was happening.

DAVID WAS TAKEN to Dr. Carlisle Burke unconscious, and completely unaware of what was happening to him.

David didn't know it, but he had a whole commission spying on their conversation from the start.

Although the account of the then true father of his beloved is true, he was not alone, the doctor had other plans for David and his incredible "gift" that not even he knew he had.