Here I am standing on new grounds, somewhere I've never been to.
My breathing is heavy, steps unsteady and my sweaty forehead is already bothering me.
I don't even know why am I in this land, Maybe I should leave, but what about him?
What about Fares? I need to find my child.
How can I turn back to where I came from knowing that the only family I ever knew is not there? My heart aches just at the thought of going back to an empty house. I must keep moving for Hajer, she wouldn't want me to give up if she was here with me today and I certainly wouldn't want to disappoint her.
I moved around this town, people didn't really pay attention to me but I felt someone's eyes following me. I kept walking even though I could sense an unwelcoming gaze falling upon me.
"Excuse me ma'am have you seen this little boy?", I said with a shaky voice and shaking palms as I stood in front of a woman holding her baby.
"Nyet, I have not seen him.", she responded in a thick Slavic accent.
"Thank you, I'm sorry for bothering you but that is my son. I've been searching for him for so long, please if you see him tell him to come home. Tell him that his father is waiting for him patiently."
I pulled myself together and kept up the search, I asked around and showed pictures of my boy in hopes someone could recognise him.
It was all in vain or so I thought, until a lady approached me saying she saw him.
That was the first spark of hope I had in ages, I almost cried when I heard his name coming out of her lips. I clutched his picture and ran towards her.
"Lady, have you really seen my child? How do you know his name?", I asked urgently.
"I saw him in this town with a woman a mothe ago, she seemed suspicious of everything and everyone. Once she saw the kid talking to me she came running and shushed him immediately as if hiding something.", the woman spoke while fiddling with the hem of her dress.
I felt my stomach drop, a woman? She took my boy? How dare she? How could she take my only son?
My face turned red from anger, I could feel the heat building up in my face that I could barely breathe. I held my heart as pain started pouring down my chest. The woman noticed my distress and tried comforting me. But I was in so much agony to even listen to her that I just collapsed to the floor.