The Vegetables Garden

By: Kaynil Roczuz

The Vegetables Garden


It was Père’s favourite flower, so he was specially cautions and caring of it.
Ruelov seemed to be around five or six years old, though he had only lived there
for the last three years. They lived inside a huge vegetable garden; Many
different families lived and worked together there. Harvest time would bring
fruits for them and to sell, that’s how they make their living.

It was not only Ruelov’s young age what set him apart from the rest of the
people living there; Ruelov was a Soanuish. He was constantly reminded about his
purpose in life: Enter the Alventilla militia army.

Ruelov presence in that garden was a big honour, they were directly contacted in
behalf of the King of Alventilla, entrusted with the mission to raise a young
‘French’ Soanuish. Like every Soanuish, Ruelov had his own unique magical
ability, which many named it “touch of death”.

Ruelov seek only one person’s company, and would avoid the rest; The kid’s
‘father’ was already an old man. He used to walk a lot but his health was being
badly affected during the last months. Now he spent his days mostly inside his
room, gazing outside the window.

In order to control better his ability and to keep on growing as a responsible
person, his ‘father’ gave him a very special mission consisting in taking care
of his most precious possession: His favourite flower. It was a beautiful daisy.
Since that day, Ruelov kept the flower next to him all the time.

Today, he brought it back to the old man’s room; Ruelov was very sad. As soon as
the door opened, he shows the flower completely withered.

“Last night was all right…I don’t know what I did, Père”

The old man, stared at the flower, offered from those little hands and the
worried stared behind it, gently, he takes Ruelov head and tilts it close to
him, where he caresses the boy, saying this:

“It is all right, I know you did your best”.

However Ruelov was not capable to forgive himself and admit to himself justify
failing in something that was so important to him. It was Père’s precious
possession and he let it die!

The old man opens the door for his ‘son’ to enter.

“Put it next to the window, Ruelov… perhaps receiving sunshine will help it”.

Ruelov obediently and in silence did what he was asked to do then ashamed left
the house. Once outside he walked fast, almost trotting through all the place,
he only stopped when he reached the opposite end. Something was not right and he
could feel it, his chest became tight. Then he heard them yell, saying things
like…

“An attack, Pietro had another attack.”

Pietro, his Père’. Ruelov runs back as fast as possible. Shaking and
apprehensive enters the house, some people are gathered around, he enters the
old man room. He’s lying on the floor, as soon as he recognise Ruelov, he asks,
not without effort, everyone else out.

“They are coming… for you today.” Ruelov nods briefly and Pietro moves his right
hand to reach Ruelov, as soon as Ruelov intercepts it with his own right hand,
he gently adds “Make me proud, ‘fils’.”

He was afraid to lose his ‘father’, that was all he could think, while he saw
him gasping for air and mumbling softly things to him.

“I-It’s a beautiful day… Observe, Ruelov… notice it.” Ruelov turned to see the
window, the sky was clean and blue, the weather was warm, it was indeed a nice
day out there.

“You… you can h-help me… you…”

“Anything, Père”, Ruelov turns his head quickly to see him in the eyes “I’ll do
anything to help you”

“Notice, Ruelov… you can… you have it in you… help me...”
Pietro starts coughing and curving in the floor from the pain; Ruelov is staring
at nothing, he feels clearly the old man's face reaching for the hand holding
his. He felt tears. “Just do it” he could hear him murmuring over and over.

He never mentioned ‘the word’ but that is the only action the boy could
understand that was asked from him: What else could he do? That’s all he was
good at: stealing lives.

The old man relaxes his body and turns once again to look at the window, a small
smile seemed to show for a few instants while Ruelov feels his hand being
pressed every few seconds, it was some kind of signal, the signal that he was
ready.

“I-It’s a beautiful day…” He said and closed his eyes.

Ruelov’s heart was racing. He didn’t care at the moment what would ‘the rest’
think of him, he didn’t care if they hated him for what he was about to do, his
mentor words where clear enough for him and still resonating inside his head
“Make me proud, fils.” , “you have it in you… help me...”, “Just do it”. That is
what he wanted, that was his last mission, he wanted his father to feel proud of
him. Never disappointed.

Closing his eyes too, Ruelov takes Pietro’s hand and moves it towards his lips,
giving it a long and bitter sweet kiss. That was the moment Pietro stopped
breathing. Tears were now falling from the kid’s cheeks.

He looked once more in the windows direction, the planter was still just like he
left it some hours ago, but the daisy looked fresh and radiant. Incredulous of
what he was seeing, Ruelov gets up and approaches the window. It was alive, no
doubt, as if it somehow got life. Then he understood: “Observe”; If only he had
observed what he did, “Ruelov… you can… you have it in you… help me”. He
understood in that second he failed his last mission.

This is the guilt that still chases Ruelov till this day.