Nikolai trudged through the forest, breathing heavily. Dozens of kilometers lay behind him, which he had overcome with great difficulty. He desperately wanted to eat and drink and forget about the pain in his feet. Yesterday, he had tripped over a stump in the twilight and scratched his legs. Now they were swollen. He had to endure unbearable pain and keep going. Otherwise, they would find him soon. Then he would never be able to prove his innocence and would languish behind bars until old age!
There was the lake, and the clearing, which meant his native forest was near. His ears rang, and his head buzzed continuously. Kolya wanted to collapse on the grass, but he forced himself to keep going.
“You can’t give up when things get tough,” he quietly told himself. “You have to fight for freedom!”
With these words, the man trudged on, carefully stepping on the mossy, branch-strewn ground. The lake was getting closer. Soon, the cabin where Kolya intended to go began to take shape. It was impossible to show himself in town because his photofit was surely plastered in all visible places.
«God, have I really made it?» he whispered, barely holding back tears as he approached the cabin. The man fell to his knees, thanked God for his salvation, and entered the dark house. He couldn’t light a lamp or a light because there was no kerosene or matches. Nikolai listened to strange sounds and froze. Someone was in the cabin. It was night outside, and it was impossible to see who exactly was there. Kolya stood for a minute and listened to the noise. «A woman!» he thought. Just then, the moon appeared in the sky, and its light flooded the shack. Nikolai saw who was sitting on the bed. It was indeed a woman. She was leaning over a child and whispering something to him.
«Hello!» Kolya finally said. The stranger flinched. «Excuse me, who are you? How did you end up here?»
«I… I won’t hurt you,» she began. «My name is Taisiya, and this is Nastya. We are hiding from my husband. Nastya has a fever, and I just don’t know what to do…»
«Do you have any fever reducers?» the man asked.
«Yes, there were a couple of pills somewhere. I need to look in my bag.»
«Then give the child half a pill now, and tomorrow…»
Kolya pondered. He wanted to help this unfortunate woman, but how could he when he couldn’t be seen by people? «What about tomorrow?» she asked. «Tomorrow morning we’ll go to the city.»
Nikolai was glad he had reached this shack. He tossed and turned all night, curling up his legs. The pain in his feet gradually subsided. It wasn’t as cold sleeping on the wooden boards as on the ground, so the worst was behind him. He fell asleep and woke up intermittently, thinking about little Nastya, thinking about himself, about how he would retrieve the video camera, and then he would be vindicated before the court…
The child’s temperature rose again in the morning. «There’s very little medicine left,» Taisiya told Nikolai anxiously.
Only now did he notice large abrasions and bruises on the woman’s neck. «Who hit you?» he looked at her in shock.
«My husband,» she replied. «I told you yesterday: we ran away from him.»
«Is he insane? How can one raise a hand to a woman?»
«In his opinion, everything is allowed,» Taya sighed.
«So, we mustn’t waste a minute, or else Nastya will only get worse,» Nikolai worried. «It’s a long walk to the highway, but that’s the only way we’ll get to the hospital!»
The woman was also curious why he was wearing prison clothes and not ordinary clothes. She tried to inquire about it, but Kolya quickly said:
«Later, later, Taya! Let’s get ready, and quickly!»
He carried the child in his arms because the girl couldn’t walk herself. Fortunately, his legs no longer hurt so much, and he could move easily. Taisiya walked beside him and prayed to herself that they would quickly reach the highway. Occasionally, she pulled pieces of bread from her bag and shared them with Nikolai. He devoured them eagerly, not remembering the last time he had eaten properly.
«So, you escaped from prison,» Taisiya realized, having listened to the story of the runaway convict. «You see, if I find this video camera, they’ll let me go,» the man shared. «The main thing is not to lose time now.»
He told the passenger how he ended up in jail due to an investigator’s mistake. A crime was committed in Nikolai’s yard. Some passerby had taken a life, but Kolya had to serve the sentence. It was a pity that he couldn’t find that video camera he had installed in a secret place. Only in prison did he remember between which bricks it was located.
«How much longer do we have to walk?» Taya asked, carefully stepping over clumps.
«Yes, about five kilometers, no more. About an hour,» Kolya replied. «We’ve already walked half the way. We need to rest a bit, or my legs will start hurting again.»
«What’s with the legs? Let me look.»
She sat down next to him, took a bottle out of her bag, and treated the scratches on the man’s feet.
«It would be good to apply an aloe leaf,» she sighed. «But we don’t have such a flower.»
«Thank you for this,» the man thanked her. «You won’t turn me in, will you?»
«No, what are you talking about!» she objected. «You are helping us. Why would I betray you?»
«And my wife didn’t care. I don’t know why she told the police I was guilty of that crime… Maybe that’s how she wanted to get rid of me?»
«Only she knows that, apparently,» Taya said. Then she touched her daughter’s forehead and gasped: the temperature was rising more and more. «Let’s go quickly!» Nikolai commanded, grabbing the child in his arms. «Otherwise, we may not make it in time.»
Upon reaching the highway, they flagged down the first car they saw, and after some time, they found themselves in the city. The woman went to the hospital, and Kolya trudged to his house, pulling the hood of his face lower so no one would recognize him.
Unfortunately, the police were already waiting for him near the house. «Great! He’s coming to us himself!» the man heard as he approached closer.
Nikolai explained the reason for his escape, and soon managed to pull out the video camera, from the viewing of which everyone understood who was really involved in the crime. It turned out to be the lover of Kolya’s wife.
«So that’s why she accused me so vehemently!» the escaped convict guessed. He was acquitted in court a few months later. Those days were especially long for Nikolai. He was released, and Taisiya and Nastya were waiting for him at the entrance.
«I’ve been thinking: you’ve done so much for me, so I decided to thank you.»
The woman was an excellent seamstress, and as a gift, she presented Nikolai with an elegant jacket. «It suits you very well!» she exclaimed. He admired his reflection in the mirror and said, «Just think, you are also a skilled craftswoman!»
Then he looked at Taya’s face, lowered his gaze to her neck. «Have the bruises gone?» he asked.
«They’ve gone,» she sighed.
Taisiya’s husband, Edik, had long tried to «put her in her place,» believing that he should maintain strict control over his wife. Otherwise, who knows, she might want to run away or cheat on him. So it wouldn’t hurt to beat his wife occasionally for prevention. Edik didn’t care at all about Taya’s emotional state.
«They always used to beat wives, and nothing, they lived together until old age,» he would often say if she suddenly started crying. «And anyway, you gave birth, so sit and don’t budge anywhere. Obey your husband, and you’ll be happy!»
Taya was like a punching bag for him, on which Edik could express all his emotions. He also sometimes beat and intimidated his daughter.
«Did you really go back to him?» Nikolai asked the woman.
She shook her head. «No, we rented an apartment. I work,» she confessed. «True, I’m afraid to file for divorce. I know that it will become a ground for persecution. I don’t even know how we’ll live from now on.»
Kolya pondered. «Listen, I have an offer: do you want to not pay for the apartment and be under protection?» he asked her.
She looked into his eyes questioningly, and he continued: «If you move in with me, you and your daughter will have a separate room. Payment by piece: cook food for me. And of course, you and your child will benefit too.»
Taya smiled. «Can I bring my dolls, Uncle Kolya?» Nastya chirped.
«Not just the dolls, but all your toys too!» the man answered her.
Half a year later, Taya and Edik were divorced…
Nikolay returned home in high spirits. He had long wanted to do it but had not dared. Maybe Taya just wasn’t officially divorced until that moment. But now he knew exactly what he would tell her that evening.
After taking off his outerwear, Nikolay walked into the kitchen with a glowing look, where a delicious dinner awaited him. His wife and daughter were waiting at the table. «My dear Taechka,» he began. Pausing a bit, he continued: «Wait, I forgot everything I wanted to say. In short, will you marry me?»
With these words, he knelt down and presented the woman with an open little box containing a beautiful gold ring.
