“Hey wake up… miss?” “Are you certain she is alive?” I heard voices from a distance, they sounded like whispers.
I tried to open my eyes, but the harsh light from the sun hurt them,
I attempt to recall all that happened yet my head hurts in the process.
“Are you alright Miss?” I heard the voice again, and this time it was clear, I managed to glance around then I realized I was on a bed in an open field.
Memories come flooding back; I managed to escape my Father’s men, and Granch helped me and Daryl escape, speaking of my child where is he?
Immediately my eyes shut open, I woke up fully now searching for my son.
“My baby? Where is my baby?” I yell attempting to stand back on my feet.
I notice two girls with an aged woman standing in front of me,
“My son?”
“Molly go bring the baby,” I heard the old lady say to one of the girls, and she ran off.
“You should sit down to rest, to regain your strength,” she says to me,
seconds later the girl returns with my Daryl, he was dressed in different clothing than the one he had,
He stretches his little arms towards me in excitement the minute our gaze locks, so I hurriedly take him from the girl.
“Oh my sweet child, mama is sorry…” I say as I embrace him closely, placing kisses all over his face.
“I had one of my daughters give him a bath and change of clothes,” the woman speaks up,
“I’m sorry where are we?” I asked glancing around, the last thing I remember was running without looking back, until I eventually got tired and decided to sleep beside a lake in the woods.
“We found you out cold in the woods, your temperature was high, and your baby was crying non-stop. So my daughters and I brought you back to our farmhouse,”
That meant I was still in the country, I needed to leave as soon as possible; however, that seemed a little impossible as Daryl and I had no passport or money for air tickets.
“Thank you so much for saving me and my child,”
“You can thank me when I know you are perfectly fine. You’ll need to shower and get enough rest, you slept for twenty-four hours.”
That long? Oh, goodness now was not the time to sleep that long. I shrugged knowing my body needed as much rest and seized the opportunity.
“Come, this way,” one of the girls ushered me behind the little cottage where fresh water flowed from the mountains,
“You can take a shower here it’s safe no one will see you,”
“Thank you,”
“You are welcome. I’ll go get you clean clothes,” she says before leaving.
Daryl refused to leave my body as he clung to me, I know he missed me, and I him.
I take both our clothes off, before stepping into the water, a whiff of relief escapes my lips as the thoughts of the other night replay in my head. All thanks to the goddess and maybe Ana’s God too for adhering to my cries and eventually saving us.
After a long bath, I got dressed in the spare dress Molly had brought me earlier.
Daryl clung to my nipples afterward, sucking my breast as if his life depended on it, he was starving of my milk.
“You need to eat more, I noticed your baby eats a lot.” Marjorie the woman who saved my life says while she watched me feed Daryl.
“I’m not much of an eater. Um Marjorie did you retrieve my belongings when you brought us here?”
Luckily she was able to pick my bag along, it made my heart relax a bit. I thought I had lost everything.
The bag pack was locked as it was, of course, they were genuine people and did not even try to check out the contents of my bag. Even my spare cash was nearly folded.
I found the box gift given to me by Ana, I still did not open the box as it scared me. I missed Ana so much it hurt, this might be the only forte I remember her with.
Furthermore, I decided to stay another night to get back my strength before continuing with my journey. At first, I had no idea where I was headed, however, the only way out of this mess was to locate Derick.
My mind was made up, I was going to travel to the States to find him, Daryl and I could not continue this way.
“Thank you for all your help, this kindness shall never go unrewarded,”
“Are you certain you do not have to rest for a few more days,” Marjorie insists, causing me to smile.
“It is time we continue our journey,”
Luck was surely on our side when Marjorie’s son who came visiting from town, decided to drop us at the nearest train station.
The entire ride he tried to strike up a conversation with me, but I chose to stay mute, merely giving a yes or no to his questions.
When we arrived in the bubbling town, I found my way to the train station and immediately got a ticket to the next city, where I would then grab another train.
It was going to be a long and hectic journey, but I hoped it would be worth every stress, I needed to find Derick as he was our final hope.
“The gift is your key…. unlock it,” Someone whispered those words to me,
I woke up panting, sweat trickled down my head, it must have been a dream. Can not believe I dozed off on the train.
“The gift is your key…. unlock it,” the voice says again but this time not in a dream but inside my head, what on earth was happening?
“The gift is your key unlock it…” I murmured the words to myself again and again, until it dawned on me what this meant.
The gift! Unlock it, there was only one gift I failed to unlock and that was Ana’s gift.
Immediately I searched for the wooden box, my breath harsh with each intake of air as I opened the box.
My heartbeat increased at the content of that box, tears streamed down my eyes at its numbers. Ana? What the fuck!