Souvenir - Chapter 4.1

A few days later, the time had come for Alex and me to visit Vera’s apartment. Just as I arrived at our meeting spot, I received a call from him—something urgent had come up, and he’d be running late.

I considered waiting for him at a nearby café, but there wasn’t one in sight. Maybe a few blocks away, I’d find something, but I got the distinct feeling that outsiders weren’t exactly welcome in this neighborhood.

I knew rationally that I should wait for Alex. But something compelled me forward. The closer I got to Vera’s apartment, the stronger the unease in my chest grew. If I stayed put, I had a bad feeling something would go terribly wrong.

What was it?

A sense of foreboding crept over me. I rarely relied on intuition—I was a man of logic, of facts—but ever since I had met Vera, something had been off. That same inexplicable force now pushed me forward.

I decided to go to her apartment alone.

As I neared the building, I heard voices coming from three doors down. Shouting. Screaming.

I stopped in my tracks.

My bl00d ran cold.

A fight? Or something worse?

A sickening memory flickered through my mind.

Then, I recognized the voice—Vera’s.

The certainty of it deepened my unease. It wasn’t the laughter I had heard before, nor the cheerful chatter of a child. The voice was hoarse, panicked, desperate. It was her.

I quickened my pace.

I reached the building and pushed through the door. The stairwell was dim, thick with dust. Only the places where feet had tread were clear of grime. Empty cans, food scraps, and other trash littered the steps, but I had no time to think about the filth.

The shouts grew louder.

I reached the door where the noise was coming from. Just as I went to knock, it creaked open on its own.

My heart pounded.

“…Ah.”

There she was.

Vera, up close, looked nothing like the woman I had met before. Her cheeks were hollow, her hair disheveled, her skin dry and dull. Her eyes—red and swollen, as if she had been crying for hours.

“Tommy…?”

She stared at me, wide-eyed, then quickly shut the door behind her, lowering her voice to a whisper.

“I wasn’t expecting you… I didn’t think either of you would come anymore.”

“I brought the documents. Alex will be here later.”

She shifted anxiously, glancing over her shoulder. The heavy thud of something slamming against a wall made her flinch violently.

“He… he wasn’t supposed to come today,” she murmured. “But then he just showed up…”

“Are you alright?”

Her expression softened, if only for a moment. She met my eyes as though she wanted to believe I could help her.

“I know I have no right to ask this of you. We’ve only met once…”

Her voice was low, urgent, desperate.

“Do you remember? I told you I have a daughter.”

“Yes. You said she looks just like you.”

“She does. She’s quiet, well-behaved, a smart little girl…”

She spoke like a woman about to make a decision she couldn’t take back.

Then—

“Hey! What the hell do you think you’re doing out here?!”

The door burst open.

A man stepped out, his face flushed with rage. He was shorter than me but broad-shouldered, built like a brawler.

“This b1tch! This is the guy? Goddamn it, you lied to me, you—”

“It’s not what you think! He has nothing to do with this!”

“You fucking whore!”