Chapter 4 The Flight

They left before dawn.

The city was still suspended in that fragile in‑between, where night refuses to give up its place entirely and day does not yet dare to assert itself. Streetlamps cast a pale, almost sickly light, and the sidewalks gleamed with dampness. Claire didn't turn on a single lamp. She moved through the apartment as if she had never truly lived there, brushing the walls, avoiding objects, alert to the slightest sound.

Every step was measured. Every breath held.

Anna watched her from the hallway. She stood straight, her coat already on, too big for her. She wasn't crying. She didn't ask anything. She had understood, without being told, that silence was a form of protection. That speaking could be dangerous. That asking a question that night would mean breaking something fragile.

Claire opened a cupboard, hesitated, closed it again. She pulled out a drawer, took a wallet, emptied it of anything unnecessary. She left behind photos, papers, traces. She took nothing of sentimental value. Only what allowed them to survive.

She froze for a moment in front of a shelf. Her hand rested on a frame, then withdrew at once. The past would stay there. They would not.

"Put your coat on," she finally whispered.

Her voice trembled-barely. Anna obeyed without a word. She slipped on her shoes, too thin, felt the cold tiles bite into the soles of her feet. The sensation dragged her abruptly back to reality. The outside world would not wait for them. It would not be gentle.

When the door closed behind them, Anna had the clear sensation that something had snapped. Not with a sharp sound, but through a silent, irreversible break. She instinctively turned back toward the building. The windows were still asleep. Nothing marked their departure.

No one was watching them. No one was stopping them.

That absence was more frightening than any pursuit.

They walked for a long time. At first quickly-almost too quickly. Claire moved with a determined stride, her bag clutched tightly against her, throwing quick glances over her shoulder. Anna followed without complaint. She had learned that survival did not always mean understanding, but keeping pace.

The streets gradually changed. Elegant shop windows gave way to dull façades. Sidewalks cracked, signs flickered weakly. The city Anna knew dissolved, replaced by another-harsher, more indifferent.

They boarded an almost empty bus. Claire paid in cash. Always cash. She sat by the window, placing Anna against her like a shield. No one asked them questions. No one really looked at them.

Anna fell asleep without realizing it, rocked by the jolts of the ride. When she opened her eyes again, the light had changed. The sky seemed lower, heavier. The air smelled of dust and approaching rain.

They got off near a small secondary station. Nothing suggested a city center. Nothing invited them to stay.

"We'll stay here for a while," Claire said.

She didn't name the place. Anna understood it didn't matter. It was only a stop.

The days that followed stretched painfully. Money ran out quickly. Claire found small jobs, always temporary. Cleaning at dawn. Kitchen work in anonymous restaurants. Occasional help, without contracts, without promises.

She came home late, shoulders heavy, sometimes unable to speak. Anna learned to recognize silences-the ones that soothed, and the ones that announced deeper worry.

She occupied herself alone. She watched. The habits of the neighbors. Lingering looks. Visible dangers and those hidden behind smiles that were too wide. She understood quickly-too quickly for her age. She knew when to come home early, when to avoid a street, when to stay quiet.

At night, she heard her mother cry.

Always softly. Always when she thought Anna was asleep. Anna said nothing. She stared at the ceiling, counted the seconds between sobs. She knew some pain cannot bear to be named.

One evening, Claire came home later than usual.

Anna was sitting on the bed, upright, her hands resting on her knees. She hadn't moved for hours. When the door finally opened, Claire entered hurriedly, locked it, dropped her bag to the floor as if it had become too heavy.

"We can't stay here," she said.

Her voice was low, but firm. Anna immediately felt a different tension-sharper, more urgent.

"They know?" she asked.

Claire lifted her head abruptly. She seemed surprised that the question already existed.

"I don't know how," she replied after a moment. "But I feel it."

She ran her hands over her face, as if trying to erase an old fatigue.

"They won't leave us alone."

Anna lowered her eyes. She had never truly believed otherwise. Since the men's visit, that certainty had followed her. It wasn't a precise fear-more a constant, invisible presence.

"We're leaving again?" she asked.

"Yes."

Claire pulled her into her arms. This time, the gesture was gentler. Careful. As if she were afraid of breaking her.

"I'm sorry."

Anna stayed still for a few seconds. Then she lifted her head.

"It's okay," she said simply. "We know how to leave."

Claire closed her eyes. She didn't answer.

The next day, they left again.

The following years blurred into one another. Cities passed through without roots. Temporary homes. Schools abandoned before the end of the year. Friendships sketched, never deepened.

Anna learned to become discreet. To fade into the background. To leave no trace. She knew when to speak and when to remain silent. She knew that attachment was a risk.

One day, Claire fell ill.

It wasn't sudden. Not immediately alarming. But Anna noticed the signs. Fatigue that clung on. Longer silences. Slower movements. And above all, that familiar fear returning to her mother's eyes.

They couldn't go on like this anymore.

One evening, Claire spoke of a man.

"His name is Paul."

Anna looked up. The name echoed strangely.

"A friend?" she asked.

"Someone I knew a long time ago," Claire replied. "Someone reliable."

She hesitated.

"At least... I think so."

The doubt was there, palpable. But there was something else too-a fragile glimmer.

"He lives far from here," she added. "In a quiet city. Discreet."

Anna repeated the name silently. Paul. She didn't like strangers. But she understood the necessity. Constant flight had a cost. They had paid it for too long.

"We'll go see him?" she asked.

Claire nodded.

"Yes. And this time... I hope we can stay."

Anna turned her gaze toward the window. The sky was dark. The road would still be long.

But for the first time in a long while, the flight did not feel like mere escape.

It was an attempt.

And perhaps, at last, a refuge to come.