Free Home to Italy by Peter Pezzelli Page A

trip.”
    â€œDon’t worry, my friend,” laughed Peppi. “I’ve brought next to nothing with me. I could carry it all here by myself on my bike. Andiamo!”
    Luca sighed. “Whatever you say.”
    Peppi could feel his heart pounding as they rode on. It was all coming back to him and soon he realized that he recognized the twists and turns of the road. So much had changed, but so much had stayed the same. Before long the road straightened and gradually began the long climb that Peppi knew would crest at the mulino. He could contain himself no longer, and with a burst of energy that he had not felt in months, he rose off the saddle and sprinted ahead of Luca.
    â€œWait!” Luca cried after him. “Not so fast!”
    But Peppi raced on toward the top of the hill, eager to see the roof of the mulino come into view as he drew near. He pedalled and pedalled as hard as he could until he felt the road starting to level off. He was near the top of the hill, but still the roof of the mulino was nowhere in sight. He was certain he should have seen it by now. Had he been mistaken that this was the road? Was the mulino farther along than he remembered? Peppi had his answer when he coasted over the crest of the hill and came to a stop.
    His heart sank.
    Peppi had not been mistaken, the mulino was right there, just where he remembered it, except what was once a proud, strong building was now nothing more than a pile of rubble. Peppi laid his bike down and stood there gaping at the scene.
    Luca rolled up behind him and laid his bike next to Peppi’s. “I didn’t have the heart to tell you, my friend,” he said sadly, patting him on the shoulder. “None of us did.”
    â€œBut what happened?” said Peppi, bewildered.
    â€œTerremoto,” sighed Luca, shaking his head. “An earthquake, the same one that knocked all the frescoes off the ceilings in Assisi. Around here it was next to nothing, a little rumble in the ground, barely an echo of the big one. But for some reason it hit this spot just right. Who knows, maybe the stream made the earth settle deep underneath the house. Or maybe there was a crack in the foundation. But whatever the reason, when the ground shook just that little bit, one wall fell and the rest caved in like a house of cards. Just incredible.”
    Still stunned, Peppi wandered closer, trying hard to rebuild in his mind the image of the mulino out of the shattered ruins that lay before him. Try as he might, Peppi could not force his imagination to do it, for his home was now nothing but a pile of rock and splintered beams. Even the great stone wheel of the mill was toppled over and half-buried.
    Peppi walked to the back and gazed out toward the stream that still flowed lazily past the site. He sat down on the dry earth and leaned back against part of the crumbled wall. Closing his eyes, he thought of his childhood and he thought of Anna. He thought about how his life had brought him full circle to this spot and how everything he once cherished had now been destroyed. Peppi wanted to cry, but there were no more tears left in him.
    Luca came to his side and sat down next to him. He said nothing, for he could think of no words that would comfort his friend.
    Peppi opened his eyes and gazed off into the distance. “It’s all gone now,” he said, his voice heavy with the feeling of surrender. “Now what do I do?”
    Luca looked off with him into the distance. “You come home with me,” he said finally. “You sleep and eat and rest, and then you figure out a way.”
    â€œA way to do what?” said Peppi.
    Luca stood and tugged on Peppi’s arm. “A way to start over again,” he said. Then he pulled Peppi up and led him back to his bicycle.

CHAPTER TWELVE
    It was a little apartment, just one small bedroom, a kitchen, and a bathroom with a shower. A heavy, musty smell greeted them when Luca opened the door, for