After driving for a few hours, he stopped the car. Anna woke up.
"What happened?"
"I just stopped the car to let it cool down. We have a long way to go."
"Do you know where is the next clinic?"
"We have to pass the other forest then we'll reach the city. At the entrance, there's a clinic."
"How long will it take?"
"I don't know. With this, we have to make stops after going for a while. And we are short on fuel as well."
"Uh! Dang it. Eden has to get treated or he's gonna die from fever."
"What has happened to him?"
"He lost his hand, you know when a wound is not cleaned, it'll end up like that."
"Have you applied anything on the wound?"
"No, I just covered it with a cloth. We didn't have much water to clean it."
"You should have told me sooner; I have brought a first aid kit."
"I didn't know you had one. Come on, we have to help him."
Nodin took out the first aid kit he had brought from home and gave it to Anna. They tried to put him down, but he woke up.
"What is it?"
Anna said: "You fell asleep, we met up with new people, they have medicine. We're gonna treat your wound."
Eden looked around as if he was searching for something.
"Where's the child?"
Anna was confused.
"There was no child. You must have dreamed about one."
"But I saw him."
"Eden, if you're gonna waste more time and put yourself in more danger, feel free to talk until your throat gives up. I finally got my hands on medicine for you, so stop messing with me for just a few minutes."
Anna and Nodin cleaned his wound, applied the available ointment and covered it.
Eden wanted to talk about the child but Anna didn't seem to have allowed him to speak about it.
Nodin who was sitting beside him, said: "Mr. Eden! You don't seem to be a local. Am I right?"
Eden had forgotten that there were other people with them.
"Yes, I'm from another country."
"Wow! That's surprising."
"I know, I had absolutely no reason to come here, but I came and got myself entangled in this brutal war. I had no idea things will get like this."
"If we find a good doctor, maybe they can make artificial hand for you."
"You're saying if."
"Well, I can't say for sure, who knows what's waiting for us out there."
"Anna looked after me, even though she could abandon me and I was mean to her. If you see I'm on her nerves tell me. I don't want to lose her."
"I think you're old enough to get that, but since it's Ms. Anna we're talking about I don't want to lose her, either. You know that little girl. I found her on the day the explosion happened. Ever since that day she hadn't talked, even a word has not come out of her mouth. Then I saw Ms. Anna. It felt great to be able to speak with someone who replies."
"That must have been hard."
"It wasn't as hard as what you went through."
"But I had Ms. Anna with me. She's just too perfect. Maybe it' because she's a mother. Oh no! she was a mother."
They both were looking at Anna who was helping the little girl.
"Do you want me to braid your hair?"
Anna told the girl.
She nodded.
"What's your name, sweetie?"
.
.
.
"So you want to stay silent. It's okay, no one forces you to talk. You can talk when you're ready. But keep this in your mind, at some point you have to talk. So don't get used to saying nothing. Okay, my dear?"
She turned towards Anna and nodded.
They got in the car and Anna drove to their next destination.
They had passed the forest. And around them was the fields which people used to grow wheat in. It felt like ages ago when Nodin last saw it. He barely had the time to enjoy the landscape. Despite the enemy's attack, the fields were left unharmed.
"It's weird."
Nodin said aloud.
"What?"
Anna said.
"The fields are the same as before, there are no footprints on the road, nor any trace of vehicles moving. How did they manage to get to our homes?"
Anna looked on the ground as she was driving.
"If I hadn't seen my house got destroyed in front of my eyes, I would have thought I was imagining. Even if they got here by plane, they couldn't move the tanks without leaving any trace behind. The enemy must have underground tunnels to use."
Eden joined their conversation as well.
"I don't think that's possible. Even if they had tunnels but there's no entrance on the ground."
Anna laughed.
"You were asleep the whole time; how could you witness everything?"
Eden: "Yeah, I know. But I've been living in this area for a while now, and tunnels can't be built just in one night. I've searched the area before for my researches but there was nothing. Even there was no sign of underground passages."
Nodin: "What are you trying to say?"
Eden: "I'm not saying anything just stating what I've seen."
Anna: "If they haven't used both ways, then how did they come? There's no other way."
Eden: "Something's off. I mean look at the road. There's no one beside us. Not in the town, not in the forest. Even the animals weren't there."
Nodin: "In case of the animals, they all have escaped due to the explosion and other people, well they all died. Didn't you see?"
Anna: "Yeah, he's right. We're so lucky to escape death."
Eden: "But why didn't help come? Why aren't I seeing other people on this road?"
Anna: "I didn't want to say this but we were attacked, they killed everyone. It must have happened to others, too. Everyone's dead."
Eden: "But that's absurd. How can everyone die? Even in the world wars, it didn't happen."
Anna: "How are you so sure? Were you there? Did you witness everything? Don't trust what just the books say. Many nations ended up dead and the history forgot about them."
Nodin who had suspected the whole thing, said: "He's right. It is strange."
Eden: "Yeah, he knows what I'm saying. Even that kid was weird."
Nodin: "Who do you mean?"
Anna: "You were seeing illusions, there was no one there."
Eden: "No, the boy was there but then disappeared. He told me something."
Nodin: "What did he say?"
Eden: "I can't remember. My memories are not clear."
Anna: "That's because you were not seeing anyone but the illusions arose from your pain."
Eden: "Why don't you trust my words? If you're still angry at me, I understand but don't let it change the way you judge."
Nodin: "What has happened between you?"
Anna: "Unlike you, he's a real pain to converse with."
Eden: "Anna! I told you I'm sorry, what else do you need?"
Anna stopped the car and turned towards Eden.
Anna: "You really are …."