The wind was blowing very hard, knocking over objects, making many hats fall off people’s heads and roll as they hit the ground, revealing the ruffled hairs of their owners. Men in jeans walked proudly showing off their best pair of well-polished boots. Women wore well-applied make up, perfume, and their best dresses in bright colors which outlined their figures when walking. The atmosphere was full of laughter, flirtation, puppy-love, and the disposition to enjoy the fair. Nobody cared that the tin roof sheets resounded with a crash every time they were tossed by the wind. Suddenly, the rain fell cruelly on the entire town of Jutiapa and the people who were in the field of the fair ran in different directions, trying to find a place to protect themselves from the rain so as not to get wet.
THE LARK OF THE EAST. (Part X)
Lark went to sleep that midnight with a smile on her lips and joy in her heart. The satisfaction she felt for having won the singing contest made her thoughts race, as she remembered how the audience applauded her with admiration and gave her a standing ovation as a show of respect. Lark stayed awake watching the moon through the window of the truck cab until her fatigue overcame her, forcing her to fall asleep deeply.
In the days that followed, Hilda bought a dress with long lace and colored ribbons for Lark. The whole family participated in the preparations for the trip. For Lark, that family trip was no longer part of her routine of visiting fairs. She felt a very strong emotion pulse inside her body every time she remembered that she would participate in a singing contest.
In an instant, their gazes intertwined. Manuel said nothing when he was discovered by Lark. The strong impression that Lark received when seeing her father cheat on Hilda, caused her heart to clench full of disappointment, wrapped in an unpleasant acidity that ate away at her feelings.
Lark had a resentful expression on her face. Resentment that penetrated her skin, traveling rapidly through her veins until it reached her heart. Transforming her in a dramatic way, until she stopped looking like a girl and became a harpy capable of hurting with a vehement desire.
It is very common to hear people say phrases that they do not fully understand. Phrases that are created with words that are easy to memorize. And because of the simplicity with which they are written, people do not fully understand the complex meaning the phrases have or the psychological damage can cause when they are unconsciously spread, or when they are repeated irresponsibly.
The gray night heralded a brutal event, beginning with chilling screams of pain coming from the old adobe house at the end of the street. The house of the Sombrerón, as it was known, had recently been rented and was in one of the most popular neighborhoods in Jutiapa. At the end of the courtyard of the house, was an imposing ceiba tree, whose branches were being used as torture arms.