Juson drove without speaking, allowing the steady hum of the engine to fill the silence that had settled inside the car. The road stretched ahead beneath the clear morning sky, its gentle curves passing one after another while his thoughts remained hopelessly tangled. Every few moments the image of the policeman returned to his mind, followed immediately by the memory of the maid dissolving into dust before his eyes. The bundle of clothes hidden inside the trunk seemed to weigh far more heavily than its actual size, as though it carried every unanswered question that had entered his life since Herik's birth. His fingers tightened unconsciously around the steering wheel. If the investigation continued, the police would eventually begin connecting ordinary details that no longer felt ordinary at all. He could not allow anything linked to the maid to remain in his possession. That single decision repeated itself again and again until it drowned every other thought. Without realising it, he pressed harder against the accelerator. The buildings gradually disappeared behind him, giving way to the quieter riverside road where traffic became almost nonexistent. Cool air drifted through the narrow opening in the driver's window, brushing gently across his face, yet it did little to calm the growing uneasiness inside him.
The river eventually came into view beyond a long concrete bridge that stretched across the flowing water. Juson guided the car onto it, the tyres humming softly against the smooth surface while sunlight reflected from the river below. His eyes remained fixed ahead, but his mind had already moved to what he intended to do once he reached the other side. He would throw the bundle into the river. The current would carry it away, leaving nothing for anyone to find. That thought had barely settled when everything changed in an instant. As he reached the far end of the bridge and turned the steering wheel left toward the quieter road running beside the riverbank, an elderly woman suddenly stepped directly into the path of the car. She seemed to appear from nowhere. For the smallest fraction of a second Juson's mind became completely blank. Then instinct finally overtook shock. His foot slammed violently onto the brake pedal. The tyres screamed across the asphalt, leaving dark marks behind them as the vehicle lurched sideways. It slowed dramatically, but not enough. The corner of the car struck the woman before throwing her several feet away toward the roadside barrier.
Silence swallowed everything. Juson remained frozen behind the steering wheel, staring through the windshield with wide, unblinking eyes. His breathing became shallow while his entire body trembled uncontrollably. "No... no..." The words escaped almost without sound. For several seconds he could not force himself to move. Then reality returned all at once. He threw open the driver's door and stumbled toward the woman as quickly as his shaking legs would allow. She lay curled near the roadside railing, her body trembling with pain while faint whimpers escaped her lips. Relief and horror collided inside him the moment he realised she was still alive. Blood trickled slowly from a cut along her forehead, and one hand remained pressed tightly against her waist where the impact had clearly injured her. "I... I didn't see you..." Juson whispered helplessly, though the apology sounded meaningless even to his own ears. He looked around instinctively. The road remained completely empty. No pedestrians. No passing vehicles. Only the quiet river flowing beyond the barrier accompanied the woman's painful breathing. Kneeling beside her, he carefully helped her into a sitting position. She cried out softly as pain shot through her side. "You'll be alright," he insisted, though the words carried far more desperation than certainty. Supporting most of her weight himself, he slowly guided her back toward the car before helping her into the rear seat with as much care as he could manage.
Only after closing the rear door did his attention shift once more toward the passenger side of the vehicle. The bundle still rested exactly where he had left it. He stared at it silently for several seconds. The hospital would ask questions. The police might arrive. If anyone opened the trunk... His decision came immediately. Grabbing the bundle, Juson hurried toward the river barrier. Standing at its edge, he looked down at the rushing water below before throwing the clothes as far as he possibly could. The bundle disappeared into the river without producing anything more than a dull splash that vanished beneath the current almost instantly. Juson remained standing there for only a heartbeat longer before hurrying back to the car. Another weak groan escaped from the injured woman. That single sound shattered whatever hesitation still remained inside him. He climbed behind the steering wheel, started the engine once more and drove directly toward the nearest hospital, this time far more carefully than before. Every minute felt painfully slow. His eyes remained fixed on the road while guilt pressed relentlessly against his thoughts.
The familiar hospital where Herik had been born finally appeared ahead. Juson brought the car to a stop outside the emergency entrance before rushing inside without even turning off the engine properly. "Help!" he shouted, his voice echoing across the reception area. "Someone's injured!" Within moments two nurses and a ward boy emerged pushing a stretcher. Together they hurried back outside, carefully lifting the injured woman from the rear seat while asking him hurried questions he barely processed. "Road accident?" one nurse asked. "Was she conscious the entire time?" another added. Juson answered automatically, hardly hearing his own voice as they wheeled the woman through the entrance. The stretcher disappeared rapidly down the corridor, its rattling wheels fading into the distance until only silence remained around him once again. He stood motionless near the entrance, trying unsuccessfully to steady his breathing. A nurse soon approached carrying a clipboard. "Sir, your name?" she asked professionally. Juson hesitated for only the briefest moment. The policeman's face flashed through his mind. Then he quietly gave a false name. The nurse wrote it down without suspicion before continuing. "Phone number?" Another lie followed. "Address?" Yet another. Every answer came more smoothly than the one before, as though fear itself had taught him how to deceive without hesitation. When the final question had been answered, the nurse thanked him politely before hurrying away toward the emergency ward. Juson watched her disappear through the swinging doors. He remained standing there for a few silent moments before turning around and walking out of the hospital without looking back even once.