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LOS 23
For a moment, my heart stopped.
Jet-black hair. Equally jet-black eyes. It was a face I knew. I could never forget his face. He appeared in my dreams whenever I was just about to forget.
I always dreamed of that night.
The dream of that night when he grabbed me by the hair...
Giles Hessen was staring at me. With the same face as then, wearing the same military uniform.
Without taking my eyes off him, I slowly stepped backward.
What did I do when I met him in my dreams?
“Anna.”
He called me. Giles knew my name too. He had clearly been watching me all this time.
Shamelessly, he crafted his voice to sound as if he cared for me.
“Let me see. Are you hurt anywhere—”
I remembered what I did in the dream. The moment Giles approached me, I hugged my bag tightly to my chest, turned around, and bolted.
“Anna!”
He shouted my name. The heavy thud of military boots chased after me. I intentionally headed toward a crowded area. My plan was to push through the crowd with my large bag to shake him off.
People gave me looks of annoyance, but that was the least of my worries. I looked back. Then, I realized my strategy was pathetic. People were far more willing to make way for a soldier than a civilian woman.
As soon as Giles appeared in his uniform, the crowd parted as if by agreement, clearing a wide path.
Breaking through the crowd, I ran blindly. I knew well that I couldn't beat him in a race. Even as I fled from him, I felt a surge of indignation rising in my throat. Why do I have to run? What did I do wrong? What on earth did I...
Just then, a tram about to depart caught my eye. I screamed like a madwoman.
“Wait! Wait a minute!”
Startled people stepped aside. I jumped into the tram with all my might. The bell rang, and the doors closed. The passengers looked at me—collapsed and drenched in sweat while clutching my bag—as if I were some strange animal.
Giles, who had chased after me too late, pounded on the exterior of the tram, but it had already departed. His footsteps gradually slowed and then came to a halt. His solitary figure grew smaller and smaller until he finally vanished from sight.
The first thing I did upon returning home was call for Albert.
I had barely managed to take off my shoes before collapsing onto the sofa, clutching a blanket. I had run so desperately during the chase that I was completely drained of energy. The groceries I had bought were scattered across the floor.
Of course, Albert had since tidied them all up. He was boiling soup in the small kitchen. Perhaps intending to cheer me up, he turned on the radio. A cheerful jazz song was playing on the channel.
“It’s ready.”
Albert's voice sounded somewhat languid, with a slow drawl. He possessed a fairly melodic voice. He brought the soup pot and placed it neatly on the table. The sound of clinking bowls tickled my ears.
“Anna.”
I slowly pushed myself up from the sofa. Albert was gesturing to me.
“Come here. You need to eat.”
I had no appetite at all, but I couldn't just lie there like someone who had lost everything in the world. In reality, my world was still safe. I sat at the table and watched him ladle out my portion.
“Aren't you eating?”
“I ate something else. I made plenty, so eat a lot. You need to keep your strength up. Right?”
I dipped a piece of sliced bread into the soup. I thought I wasn't hungry, but the moment the food touched my tongue, I realized I was mistaken. Albert looked at me with pity as I ate the soup like someone who had been starving for days.
“Does it taste alright?”
“That crazy bastard chased me.”
Despite my non-sequitur, he simply smiled.
“At least your energy has returned.”
“He suddenly appeared and chased me! I almost collapsed several times because my legs gave out.”
“Was it definitely him?”
I nodded. I might confuse other people, but there was no mistaking his face. It was indeed Giles Hessen.
“He hasn't changed a bit since then. Even though I've changed so much.”
“Was he with any colleagues?”
“No. He was alone. Except for the first time we met, Giles has never traveled with colleagues.”
While eating the soup, something occurred to me, and I slammed the table.
“Oh my.”
“Albert, come to think of it, that man...”
“Yes. Tell me slowly.”
“...He said my name. My name. He called me Anna. Not Lily, but Anna.”
Anna. The moment my common, new name reached my ears through his voice, my vision spun momentarily. I was the only one who thought I had been hiding well.
“He knew my name. He's been watching me for a very long time. I'm sure of it. I thought I was safe, but I wasn't. I don't even know how much he knows now. Maybe he even knows where I live. No, maybe he's listening to our conversation right now.”
“Anna, calm down. Tell me what you want me to do.”
Giles might not have needed one, but I desperately needed a companion.
“Stay here until I take the train. I don't want to be alone.”
“Alright. I understand. Don't worry.”
“And... could you buy some alcohol for me?”
“The usual?”
“...Yes.”
As I went back to my soup, I quickly added,
“You have to come back quickly.”
“I'll keep that in mind.”
Albert put on his coat, passed by me, and stepped out the front door. Click. I heard the sound of him locking the door.
Left alone, I mechanically ate the cooling soup and wondered. Why was Giles so obsessed with me?
I wasn't a great beauty. At least, that's what I thought. There must be plenty of women better than me around him, yet Giles had not forgotten me and was persistently pursuing me.
Was it out of revenge? Because he thought I betrayed him? He had shown me kindness and even saved my life, yet I fled without even saying thank you.
No, that's not it! I told him thank you hundreds of times. Could he really harbor a grudge just because I didn't say a formal goodbye?
Or perhaps, was a thank you not enough? Did he help me expecting something in return, and I failed his expectations? But what else could I have done? There was nothing he could have taken from me.
I truly could not understand why I was being hunted.
Regardless, leaving for Vittelsden was the only solution. There were only a few days left. If I could just hold on for a few more days, I would be abroad, and he wouldn't be able to touch me anymore.
It was then. The silence of the house was filled with the ringing of the telephone.
Startled, I froze with my spoon in hand. The phone was ringing. Who could it be? There was no one who would call me. I looked toward the entrance. Albert had not yet returned.
I stood up and slowly approached the phone. The telephone continued to ring persistently and loudly.
I stared down at the red telephone for a moment and then reached out.
And I pressed the receiver to my ear.
-
Giles stepped into a red telephone booth and closed the door. He inserted a coin, dialed the number, and listened to the ringing tone.
His goal was to meet and speak with Anna directly. However, Anna had fled in terror, like someone who had seen a ghost. It was utterly incomprehensible, but for now, it was more important to inform her of the situation she was in.
Anna did not answer the phone immediately. However, Giles waited calmly. By now, it was the time Anna would be at home.
After waiting for a while, the ringing suddenly stopped.
There was silence. Anna was waiting for him to say something.
“Anna.”
She did not answer. Giles added hurriedly,
“Please, don't hang up and just listen. There is something I have to tell you.”
“....”
“Starting with what happened not long ago... I didn't mean to scare you. Actually, this was something I should have told you in person. It's about Albert Shaw.”
“Why...”
Anna's voice was trembling.
“Why are you doing this to me...?”
“Anna, listen. That man is—”
“Why should I listen to anything you have to say?”
She suddenly asked. Now it was Giles who was at a loss for words. He did not know why Anna was treating him with such hostility.
“Giles, tell me. Why are you doing this to me? What did I do so wrong to you?”
“Anna.”
“Yes, I left without a word. But what else could I have done? I just wanted to live freely. What sin have I committed against you that you keep following me? Tell me, you've been monitoring me until now, haven't you?”
“Anna, you have something wrong.”
“How did you know my name?”
“That is—”
“You've been tracking me since that day. How much do you know about me? Why can't you just leave me alone? I'm just an ordinary pianist. If my thanks weren't enough, I'll say it as many times as you want right now. Please just leave me alone. Please...”
“Anna. You are currently in a dangerous situation.”
Anna let out a hollow laugh over the receiver.
“I know that very well. Thanks to you!”
“Please, just listen to me for one minute. Your patron, Albert Shaw, is a man of unclear identity. He has a plausible background, but he is a man about whom no information beyond what you know can be found. I believe you should not trust him. And the train he is trying to put you on...”
“You really do know everything, don't you.”
“I'm sorry. It's true that I investigated your surroundings. But I had no choice. You disappeared so suddenly...”
“Yes, I was wrong. I was wrong to leave without a word... so can't you just forgive me now?”
Giles could not give any answer. He could not understand why Anna was saying such things.
“I'll remember your name until the day I die. So...”
“Anna, what are you talking about?”
“If you have even a shred of sympathy left, let me leave.”
“Wait—”
The line went dead.
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