Long story - Introduction - Drizzle

On an ordinary Thursday in February, during the dreadful summer of Santiago de Chile, Mrs. González walked cheerfully down Los Quillayes street while sipping a can of sugar-free Coca-Cola. On her arm, she carried a bag with bread and cookies, as she always did when visiting her niece’s house. Every Thursday, they had tea, or “once,” with the cookies from the bag, while watching the latest soap opera or discussing the latest family news.

Mrs. González was a hardworking woman. She had mostly managed on her own and didn’t think that would change for the rest of her life. From a young age, she held several jobs, taking every opportunity she could find, since she lacked formal education and had to make do with whatever she could. Thanks to the connections she made over the years, she now worked as a cleaner at a metro station near her home. Her schedule allowed her to have a couple of days off during the week, and one of those was always dedicated to visiting her niece, who lived on the other side of the avenue. Though, it must be said, her recent visits hadn’t been as fun as they had been months ago. Mrs. González’s niece was going through a tough economic and family situation—or so it seemed. Mrs. González often thought to herself that they were in this situation because they wanted to be, as she had heard from other relatives that her niece and her husband had turned down several offers that could have easily solved the issue. Even so, Mrs. González wasn’t going to reprimand them, as she didn’t consider herself in a position to give an opinion on a matter that honestly didn’t affect or interest her much.

Mrs. González married young, to her childhood sweetheart, despite objections from both families. The only thing the families agreed on was not supporting their decision. However, the one person who had supported and respected Mrs. González’s marriage from the beginning was her sister, who became her only close family until her niece was born. Unfortunately, Mr. González passed away a few years after they married, and since then, she decided it was better to remain alone. Her family consisted of her sister and her niece, to whom she tried to dedicate as much time as her job allowed.

Mrs. González continued sipping her Coca-Cola as she walked and thought. One of the things she liked most about her job was that no one bothered her while she worked—or rather, no one saw or noticed her. She was an anonymous and invisible presence to the metro users, while she could observe anything she wanted to the rhythm of the songs playing on the radio she listened to through her headphones. The pay wasn’t great, but it allowed her to live comfortably and enjoy small luxuries like the cookies in her bag.

All these thoughts crossed Mrs. González’s mind as she walked and turned the corner, where a light mist began to appear. The day had started out quite pleasant, but as she walked, it started to cool down, and along with the mist, a light drizzle began to fall. Mrs. González was always prepared; her bag carried all sorts of things, including a light sweater, which she now put on to protect herself from the cold and damp as she quickened her pace to her niece’s house.

***

At the Northanger estate in the English countryside in the year 1816, Elizabeth woke up. Just a moment ago, the weather had been fine, but now a light rain was falling on her face.

Miss Bergstrom had sent her an invitation letter for dinner to celebrate the arrival of her niece in town, which, for Elizabeth, wasn’t exactly the most appealing plan for a summer day. She politely offered to swap the invitation for a picnic on her own lands instead. They could enjoy the sun, and if she got bored, she could play with her dog, Oliver. Miss Bergstrom accepted despite her near lack of love for animals, as the idea of being at the Knightley estate absolutely thrilled her, even if it meant sharing the day with a Labrador.

Now Elizabeth was alone, lying on damp blankets and leftover food. She stood up and began calling out for her dog through the rain and thickening mist.

• “Oliver!”

• “Oliver!”

She kept walking as the hem of her dress became muddied from the rapidly forming sludge in the grass. Elizabeth had a strong sense of fashion, but she never understood why, in this place and weather, she had to wear such dresses that always ended up covered in mud up to the knees.

Elizabeth was a graceful young woman from a family with certain comforts. Not too many, but enough to make a good match. She was well-educated and knew how to contribute her knowledge when appropriate. Her delicate features made it easy to find a suitable husband in a short amount of time.

Her husband and master of the estate was Mr. Knightley. He looked the part of a fine gentleman: a tall man with a pleasant demeanor and good manners. In his family, he was the only man, as he had two sisters—one older and one younger—so he knew how to interact well with the women around him. The young ladies sighed upon seeing him, and the gentlemen admired and praised his class. Through his brother-in-law, his older sister’s husband, he had met Elizabeth’s family, and after a few months, everyone knew a prosperous wedding awaited them.

Oliver was the puppy Mr. Knightley gave Elizabeth a few days after their wedding when he had to leave for the city on urgent business. Elizabeth had never had a dog before, and this one had the energy of ten horses, though he had won the hearts of the entire household. Now, his disappearance into the mist was the worst thing that could happen.

The Labrador could hear his owner calling but decided to ignore her for a while. He had found something far more interesting that required all his attention. Since living with the Knightley family, he had traversed the estate and paths many times, knowing and recognizing everything within them. But what lay before his eyes now was something no Labrador retriever had likely ever seen, and probably none would ever see again.

***

In 2019, Ana worked at a bookstore in a small town near Barcelona. Her greatest companion among all the books was a chubby cat named Tomate (so-called due to the resemblance between his body and a tomato). Ana loved her job; she was an avid reader, and the bookstore’s low traffic allowed her plenty of time to read. You could say her primary job was reading. Today, she closed early to take stock of the store’s inventory. The drizzle from earlier had now turned into rain, so the streets were empty, and no customers were likely to come in, making it the perfect time to focus on another task.

Ana was a mature woman, though far from the image we typically have of a mature woman working among books. She was around 40 years old, with a round body, curly short hair, and large glasses. She lived with her husband, and thanks to his job and her current one, they could lead a comfortable life, occasionally enjoying certain luxuries. Since her job at the bookstore didn’t demand her full attention during the day, aside from reading, she ran a blog where she shared anecdotes from her life and reviewed and recommended authors and books available at the store.

The bookstore had three main sections. The first, which kept the business alive, was for school texts and books. The second was for “new” books, both fiction and non-fiction. The third was a section of old and used books the store owner had collected throughout his life. This last section was Ana’s favorite. She particularly enjoyed reading the dedications or notes in these books; they were stories within stories.

Despite being excellent at her job, that day, Ana didn’t notice that one of the oldest books in that section was missing.

…