The Faces of Unborn Butterflies

„I’m hungry, could you please bring some pizza for my little brother and me?“

This unusual plea arrived at two in the morning. The caller was a five-year-old girl with a name that carried depth and significance: Kendra. Knowledge.

Finding a good pizza at such an early hour was impossible, but the sweet, soft-spoken voice on the phone had placed an order, and the police officers were determined to fulfill it. They purchased several frozen pizzas from a nearby gas station and set off for the address Kendra had provided. Their GPS sys- tems led them to a single-story house, enclosed by a chain-link fence. To reach the house, they had to traverse an unnamed gravel path branching off from the neighborhood street indicated in the address. Darkness enveloped the scene, devoid of streetlights. The headlights of the police cars revealed an unkempt front yard, lacking a defined pathway. Two towering weeping willow trees on the right side added an eerie aura to the house. Right at the doorstep lay an abandoned, dark blue child’s bicycle with a deflated rear tire, while a rusted toy firetruck lay discarded nearby.

Adriana knocked on the door, but her hand recoiled in dis- gust as cobwebs and tiny brown cockroaches covered her uniform sleeve. These were the kind of roaches that usually concealed themselves in crevices during the day and emerged in search of food at night. This house seemed to host them in abundance. The door swung open abruptly, and around a dozen of the small insects spilled from the door frame onto a head adorned with curly blond hair.

The little girl let out a short „Phew,“, brushing off the audacious Blattella germanica representatives from her hair and fixing her round, blue eyes on Adriana.

„Do you have the pizza?“ inquired the young house hostess.
„Absolutely!“ replied the police officers with smiles.
„Where are your parents?“
„Dad came back from work but left again“, the child responded. „Where’s the pizza?“
„Here it is!“ Adriana picked up two plastic bags containing partially cooked pizza and handed them over to the little girl.
„What’s your name?“
„I’m Kendra, and this is Tod. He’s two and a half“, Kendra gestured somewhere inside the house.
„Can we come in to see Tod? We’ll help you with the pizza!“ one of the officers smiled, taking a step into the darkened home while scanning the surroundings.
„I don’t need help!“ declared the proud blond head. „And Tod is okay. I’ll feed him pizza now. But you must leave. Dad will be back soon. Dad doesn’t like strangers in the house...“
The child’s voice quivered slightly, but she quickly regained her composure, lifting her small chin decorated with a delicate dimple in the center. „Thank you for the pizza. Goodbye!“
„Kendra!“ Adriana gently rested her hand on the girl’s shoulder. „We can’t just leave you and Tod alone here. We need to contact your dad. Or your mom. Where is she?“
„Mama died when Tod was born. Dad doesn’t like visitors. He’ll be very angry if he finds you here. I’m not supposed to let anyone in. Dad will punish Tod too because of me. Please, go away!“ Kendra spoke rapidly and pushed Adriana toward the door with her tiny hands.

Adriana knelt in front of the child on the grimy cement floor, cupped the little face with both hands, and, without averting her gaze from Kendra’s deep blue, anxious eyes, softly uttered:
„No one will ever harm Tod or you, Kendra. You’re an incredibly brave and clever young girl. A true hero!“
Kendra chuckled, „I don’t think heroes look like me,“ and hurried toward the living room, where Tod’s cries could be heard. After a minute only, her delicate silhouette emerged, struggling under the weight of her nearly three-year-old brother. Tod was dressed only in a diaper, and one sock was torn. His face was smudged with dirt, which Kendra tried to clean with a wet wipe.
„On the contrary,“ Adriana whispered to herself, contem- plating. „Heroes look exactly like you!“ ......

The book can be found on Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/Faces-unBorn-Butterflies-Mariela-George/dp/9543503648/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2FQ1X5MXV4T6Q&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.5QZ1lbLN659qdaAq1YpDrQ.mIJZEfD6viHRa6koJ_qJRarw8fjo2fd1Q-xO44c2nTA&dib_tag=se&keywords=the+faces+of+unborn+butterflies&qid=1709066828&sprefix=%2Caps%2C322&sr=8-1