Momentarily, I heard footsteps exiting from the gate, and I rushed to investigate. The culprit noticing my approach began to run. I saw a flicker of black, a black floor-length leather jacket, a pale face obscured by a large black hat. As i gave chase, the figure escaped onto a black car, a Mercedes without a license plate, and then he was gone.I tried following, but the vehicle sped off. I returned home, both relieved andfrightened. Firstly I knew for a fact I or we were being followed that I hadn't been paranoid about feeling watched though it was unclear to me why?, secondly I was frightened why were we being stalked, harassed and vilified by the individual or individuals?, what did they want or how far were they willing to go to get it?. I returned back home with these questions plunging on my consciousness. My abuela was awake from her short rest. She was looking around the yard searching for something when she spotted me relief flooded her face "Oh, there you are," she said.

Two major things occurred after that threatening telephone call. The first was my abuela called Advocate Gomez and informed her about everything that had just occurred. The advocate promised to take care of it.A few hours later I heard the chit chatter of the neighborhood kids, kids playing outside, others doing their chores and then the sound of a car pulling over outside and than the unmistakable honking of a car horn.This time, I didn't dare run first to investigate lest it be that dreadful man. My abuela was using the bathroom. Andrea ran outside to investigate "daddy,daddy " she cried as her screams faded to thy outside.My father, my father, was here. He was back. My first instinct was not to run up and meet him like I had usually done whenever he returned from his business trips, back home in San Juan. When everything used to be alright, when I was still an ordinary boy who thought he owned the sun, sky, and the moon.When I always got what I wanted, when my mother was stil

The front door flung open, and the medical personnel ran into the room, brushing me aside. "What's wrong, baby?" My abuela asked.But Andrea just kept screaming and fidgeting as the medical personnel administered help to her. They injected her with something and soon calmed down and fell asleep. They then shone a flashlight in her eyes. Her eyeballs still remained frozen. "We need to take her to the hospital soon,"The medical personnel announced as they bundled Andrea's tiny body onto a stretcher. My abuela instructed me to wear something warmer. "The boy must stay. The hospital is not a good place for a child," One of the medical personnel insisted, so my abuela called Advocate Gomez for help. The advocate talked with one of the paramedics on the phone, who agreed for me to go along with the promise that the lawyer would be there, at the hospital, to fetch me. Just like that, I was allowed to go along. I suddenly felt anxious to see the lawyer again, mindless to the fact that

The blinding light and my covers were roughly yanked off me, where my first signal was that it was morning. My abuela had a peculiar way of waking me up if I overslept and ignored her, waking me up first. My eyes were swollen shut as if I had gotten in a ten round bout with a heavyweight boxing champion. "It's time for school, Matteo,"my abuela promised. School was the last thing I wanted, then"No, I can't go. What about Andrea?" I asked.Of course, I loved Andrea, but I loved being asleep a little longer, too. "Since when do you care about Andrea?"My abuela asked as she began ironing my school uniform. Her crude words hurt my feelings and I just fell apart, it was true by the looks of it ,it appeared i didn't care but up to now, out of all people she should've known. I didn't realize now my abuela had paused and looked at me solemnly and remorsefully "oh am so sorry, Matteo," she said "I didn't mean it like that," She placed the ironed items on the ironing board and sat ne