section>Dedication
To my dear family – for constant support, faith and love.
To my Dear Mommy – for the endless warmth and light that you give.
To my Dad – for a kind heart and a strong shoulder.
To my beloved daughters – for the happiness that you bring into my life daily.
To my sister – for always inspiring me with optimism and self-confidence.
To my true friends – for the fact that, no matter what, you are always there for me.
“Fearlessness is a more than ordinary strength of mind, which raises the soul above the troubles, disorders, and emotions which the prospect of great dangers are used to produce. And by this inward strength it is that heroes preserve themselves in a calm and quiet state, and enjoy a presence of mind and the free use of their reason in the midst of those terrible accidents that amaze and confound other people.”
François La Rochefoucauld
Chapter 1
So it all happened…
Sabrina woke up in a strange daze. “What’s that noise?” echoed quickly in the depths of her foggy consciousness. Rising abruptly from the bed, the girl absentmindedly brushed her hair from her forehead and, trying to shake off the heavy sleep, glanced out the wide-open window. Nothing out of the ordinary. Just the dim light of a street lamp desperately trying to penetrate the gloomy haze. Another crash in the depths of the hall finally dispelled the remnants of her sleep and brought the girl back to the cold reality.
“Eric!” she exclaimed tiredly. “I’ll kill you! Four in the morning! Why the hell aren’t you sleeping? ” With a careless gesture, Sabrina threw a robe over her shoulders and briskly headed for the hall, trying to make herself look as menacing as possible, while trying to remember where she had hidden the baseball bat. She stepped into the hall and instantly froze, noticing in the far corner a rather intoxicated-looking young man. The guy was squatting, clutching his head in his hands, and groaning loudly and mournfully.
“Eric, you’re at it again,” the girl said dolefully as she sat down next to the the young man’s almost immobilized body .
“Hey, sweetheart!” he whispered softly in a gentle, melodious voice that suggested he had consumed more than a shot of tequila. “I’ve come home,” he said, hiding his drunken gaze. “Tell me you’re at least glad to see me. You are glad, aren’t you?”
The young man, his eyes glassy and expressionless, stared at Sabrina, gave up trying to say another word, and only raised his hand, covered his eyes, and let out a hollow, despairing groan.
Concerned to the core, Sabrina reached out to her brother’s alcohol-saturated body. Before she could say anything in response, a loud click of the opening front door shattered the almost quiet idyll of the cool southern night. Sabrina looked, puzzled, at the door, through which appeared a tall, dark figure. She squinted angrily and remembered the baseball bat again. Suddenly, the figure, clearly trying not to make any unnecessary noise and move as quietly as possible, stumbled over a nearby basket containing umbrellas, canes, and various paraphernalia, among which, incidentally, was the fore-said bat.
“For heaven’s sake, Eric, are you trying to save on electricity?” the newcomer grumbled in a low, raspy voice and, muttering under his breath, flicked the switch.
With a preconceived hatred, Sabrina glared into the green eyes of a young man, who suddenly froze at the unexpected encounter. Sabrina was ready to pounce on him and tear him to pieces, just so this spawn of hell would never approach her brother again or even come near her house. However, she soon realized it wasn’t the best idea. The unwanted guest’s towering figure and well-developed muscles would not allow her to successfully carry out her plan. All she could do was put her hands on her hips, furrow her brows menacingly, and listen to yet another improbable tale of her brother’s misadventures. The young man momentarily closed his eyes as if trying to dispel the frightening sight, and when he opened them again his, entire demeanor expressed humility and the inevitability of the impending argument. He slowly shifted his gaze from Sabrina’s angry face to the peacefully snoring body of his friend and prepared himself to endure another tirade in his honor, which didn’t take long to arrive.
“What a wonderful opportunity to knock you out, Jack. And strangely enough, the reason presents itself,” Sabrina muttered in a quiet, angry voice, once again assessing the tall stature and athletic figure of the uninvited guest. The guy clearly didn’t expect to encounter a girl, let alone find himself almost tête-a-tête with her.
With a nimble movement of his hand, he brushed away a fallen strand of dark hair from his face and smiled innocently, trying to find support from his “tipsy” friend.
And despite Eric miraculously coming to his senses, his attempt to seek help from him turned out to be utterly hopeless.
“Oops, Sabi, what a surprise meeting! I suppose Eric went a bit overboard today.
But as they say, anything can happen, right?” the guy said softly, glancing intently at the hostile figure before him and smiling innocently. The anger reflected in the pre-dawn blue eyes, and apparently, this anger was about to pour down on him, poor hapless Jack.
“Oh, come on!,” he conciliated. “Smile!”
“I’ll smile only when I knock you out, Jack! I’ll grab that bat and fix your nose!”
Sabrina growled angrily, crossing her arms over her chest, awaiting explanations for the unwanted arrival. “What did you do to Eric? You got him drunk!” Sabrina interrogated without giving him a chance to recover.
“Yeah, yeah, go ahead, blame me for all mortal sins! But it’s not my fault your brother can’t handle his liquor,” Jack teased and looked towards the kitchen, where during their short altercation, the slightly subdued Eric was now avidly rummaging under the kitchen table.
Jack took a deep breath and turned his gaze back to the girl.
“Hey, I’m as sober as a judge. And don’t look at me like you’re holding a golf club and are about to use it. And not for its intended purpose. He called me and
started mumbling something about Sara not understanding him and… and all that jazz…” Sabrina continued to look at Jack with theatrical indifference, listening attentively to yet another story of her brother’s misfortunate adventures.
“Could you switch anger for mercy? By the way, I’ve scoured almost every bar in town looking for your dear brother,” Jack said nervously and with obvious exaggeration , pushing car keys into Sabrina’s hand. “Here, hold onto these while I drag your brother to a more convenient place for him to come to his senses.”
“Yeah, I have to give Jack credit, If it weren’t for him, Eric would be spending the night who knows where and who knows how this would have ended,” that’s all Sabrina could think, and slowly she headed to the kitchen where Jack was trying to at least slightly sober up the drunken youth who was already snoring loudly on the floor.
“Well, what can I say? Your little brother broke all records for drinking in some insanely extreme competition with himself. The desperate psycho,” Jack said with a laugh and, lifting
