Bella woke up and the sun was about to go down, Paolo was sitting next to her, Oh Paolo, thank God you are here I had a nightmare, I saw Vera, she was... 

 It wasn't a nightmare, Bella.

The miss handed her a cup of tea that she was carrying. Here you go, Bella. It might help you relax. Bella drank her tea and quickly returned to continue her journey, Miss Donatti this all gave me a headache, but  I want to get over it, that's better, I'd rather tell you everything at once.

  Don't worry, Paolo just told me everything, Bella, your brain is trying to tell you something, you don't have to be afraid of Vera, although it's not normal to see and hear someone like that you were under a lot of pressure, maybe that's the only way your mind has found to warn you from something unusual has happened, or it may happen sometimes that our mind is trying to protect us from ourselves or from something we have witnessed or committed.

 and that is the problem, not Vera. All that matters now is to find out what happened to you there, and to Stella too, all things trace back to Stella.

you said you saw a fox, Are you so sure? maybe you didn't see, maybe it's your brain again trying to send you a signal?  Do you have any cunning person in your life?

  Yes, Madam. Eve sure. 

 No, Bella, Mrs. Eve, though cruel, is plain, and from what I understand you pay her no attention, disobey her orders and such, she may hide things, we all do, but she is generally a good person, she can never be crafty, think a little.

I told you Madame Eve, but I don't know anyone else. I met PaoloLater, and the old man, yes the old man was kind to me though Madam. Eve used himFor all her threats, he would never do anything wrong to me, I'm sure of that.

 Paolo moved his hand across his chin and said only Stella left, from what I understood that you loved her so much that you would follow her into that forest. Is it possible that you lack memories of her because you did not know her that well?  Isn't that logical?

  Good Paolo, that's logical thinking.

  Bella agreed, yes, this is logical, my feelings always blind my insight, so this may be logical, but the most important question remains, what happened to Stella?? Where did she go? Why doesn't anyone talk about her? Anyway, Miss Donatti, Who is Stella?

 Sure, Bella, how can you ask that, everyone knows she's Madam. Eve's daughter.

Bella paced the room back and forth, I told you, Paolo, it was!! They are hiding something. Is she her daughter or not? She cannot be her daughter. If she were, I would not be there. I know for sure that I am not her daughter, and we have previously decided that it is a mutual benefit.

 She benefits from me and I do too. This is very understandable and acceptable. but that could mean one thing, Stella and I knew each other before Madam Eve, but how? 

Let's leave this question for tomorrow, it's late, don't stress your mind too much thinking come on Bella, I'll get you a place to sleep but Bella had one last question gnawing at her, if you think a fox is some kind of sign, then what is a snake, but that was real I know for surePaolo replied before Miss Donatti could answer, that it was a kind of snake that lives by the deserted bank of the river, I'll take you there tomorrow Bella, you might remember something.

Miss Donatti prepared a room for them, and she apologised that she had only one guest room.

The house is big and full of empty rooms and no one lives here but her. Is she afraid that I might see something I'm not supposed to? Bella wondered!

 Paolo, we have to get up early tomorrow morning and go to the river bank without missing a beat. 

Well, but why without her, even though she won't go because she only leaves the house for work or something necessary, but are you suspicious of her too, Bella?! You are unbelievable!

 I know you disagree with me but I don't trust her. I can't risk telling you yet you have to give me some time but I promise I will tell you as soon as I'm sure.

  The next morning Bella woke up Paolo and prevented him from having breakfast or any contact with Miss Donatti because that would raise questions and she does not have time to make up her answers. 

He quickly goes to the river bank. There is a man with a small boat sitting at the side of a small deserted port. He seems to be the only one working there. Finally, Paolo can concentrate a little. What are we doing here so early Bella, the sun hasn't risen yet Tell me why don't you trust Maria again? Paolo involuntarily stripped her of the title of Miss as a last attempt to prove to her that she could be trusted.

  I have the right to express my doubts and admit this to me, Paolo, at least, my suspicions are always in place, but if you think what you want, call it intuition. 

She thought to herself, Now Miss Donatti has done nothing but protect her privacy, which we already know she values ​​so much, and their great similarity may just be a coincidence, Miss Donatti looks too young to be his mother anyway. Now let's not waste any time. 

Do you know that guy over there by the side port?

  Yes, he is a senile hunter who wasted his years in search of a legend that may never exist.  Do you know the legend of the pirates?

 No, tell me about it quickly, I want to know what kind of human he is.

Well, it is rumoured in this town that this small lake was a big sea before it dried up and became what it is now and that a group of ruthless pirates was roaming the seas collecting everything they could lay their hands on, but they always returned to this sea despite its many raging hurricanes, one of which was their end. Their ship sank, as did the entire crew, except for the ship's chef, who is the great-grandfather of this man. It is said that all their treasures, which took them 22 years to collect, sank with them that night. Since that time, the family of this man inherited the habit of searching for the lost treasure, but no one found a penny of it.

Well, someone like him who spends his life chasing illusions and superstitions like that doesn't seem very reliable, but he might be our only hope, if he works here at this hour in the morning he sure works late and he also lives here he sure knows something, Bella got a little closer to the man She recognized him immediately, as he also recognized her, the old man who showed her the way home when she came out of the woodsBella, here you are again. 

What are you doing here at this time of day? I warn you, you miraculously survived in the woods last time, you might not be so lucky this time.

  Luck has no hand in my survival, I assure you, nor do I come for the woods, if you don't mind I want to ask you a few questions. 

 Good for you,  but as you can see work piles up here because of the storm, you show up and storms come with you He said that jokingly, but Bella wasn't in the mood to compliment a stranger, would you wait for me a bit, he started dragging the branches of trees that had fallen from his yard.

 Bella replied, "No, sir, I can't wait, but I can certainly help you. me and my friend. Paolo was far from checking the place. do you him over there, Paolo Come quickly...

 Paolo approached, and said hello, Hello serum have I seen you before I don't think so, sir. I've never been here before. I think I got it mixed up, a lady I know looks a lot like you, if she were a little older I would say she is your mother.

  Paolo got angry, but he held himself together, as Bella is looking for answers, and he will not make anything stand in the way of that. My mother died a long time ago, sir, it cannot be her.

  I'm sorry son. At my age, one gets everything mixed up.

  Bella told Paolo that they should help the poor gentleman, as she described it, and she was buttering him up so that he would answer her truthfully, and now, sir, we will help you move those branches, a respectable old gentleman does not have to carry these burdens, now, sir, you can answer my questions while you lie on that wooden chair.

  Well, miss, that's very kind of you.

 Have you been working here sir for a long time? 

 That's right, Miss.

  Then you must have been here about a month or two ago. I've been here every day, miss, for at least twenty years. As you can see, hunting here isn't what it used to be, but it's the only job I can master. 

 So if something strange happened here,  you probably will remember it? Why do people come here anyway?

If it happened this year, my memory is not be as it was, and it saddens me, miss, to say that people come here for two reasons only, and the first is to dump waste, see how they turned this place into a dumpster, while others come here to escape from this town, this way It is safe for them to disappear, their reasons however strange does not concern me. They take the boat and it brings them to the other bank. They pay me, and that is all that matters to me. 

 Well, sir, did something strange happen here? You didn't answer me.

  I've seen a lot of wondrous things in my life, but I understand your question, miss. Almost a month ago, a young lady came here, I think her name was Stella. She asked me to leave as soon as possible, but I refused because it was windy, although the lake is not very big, a storm like that would have drowned us in it, without a doubt, I would not have risked it if she had come an hour earlier, the storm wasn't here yet, but she insisted on waiting for someone, but no one came, and once the storm started I couldn't navigate.

Well, where did she go later? Did you see that at least?

  I saw her enter the forest and quickly disappeared, but I do not know where she went. I tried to warn her, but she disappeared quickly, as I said that my work requires not asking questions. All that matters to my customers is that they leave quickly and in complete secrecy from here. That means that I don't even know their names and all that matters to me is that I get paid. !?

 Um, then how did you know, sir, that the girl's name was Stella, huh?

 After she decided to leave in that stormy weather, even though I offered her to stay at my house, she refused and insisted on leaving, and since she was no longer technically my client, I asked for her name. I was sure someone would come and ask about her. ?