I didn’t come to this city for good reasons. After the divorce, I had to sell my apartment and rush to my sister’s house, just to get back on my feet, at least temporarily. A suitcase, hardly any money, and total chaos in my head. I even took the cheapest ticket, for an open sleeping car, just to get away and not have to see the familiar streets anymore.
When I stepped into the compartment, I saw her immediately.
An older woman, around seventy-five years old. A headscarf tied in an old-fashioned way, a warm knitted cardigan, a dark skirt. And this mesh bag in her hands – old, practical, like something from the nineties. She sat by the window and held the bag so tightly, as if someone was about to try to snatch it from her.
I greeted her. She nodded, but her look was suspicious. As if I already had something bad in mind.
The train started moving. I tried to distract myself with my phone, but I felt her watching me from the corner of her eye. Every time I moved, her fingers gripped the handles of the bag even tighter.
After a few hours, I couldn’t take it anymore.
— Don’t worry, I won’t touch anything, — I said, trying to smile.
She abruptly looked up.
— MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS…
Her words sounded like an accusation.
I was hurt. And I stayed silent.
The old woman sat the whole trip in the same position, didn’t eat, didn’t sleep, didn’t even acknowledge the other people around her. And that was more than strange.
In the evening, the train suddenly jerked at a switch. The mesh bag slipped from her hands and fell to the floor. Something heavy fell out and landed with a dull thud.
I instinctively bent down to help pick it up – and froze at what was inside the bag 😨😱
Bundles of banknotes slipped out of the bag, held together with rubber bands. Several thick stacks. For someone traveling in a simple sleeper car with an old shopping bag, this seemed… completely unreal.
I looked at her. She had turned pale.
— IT’S NOT MINE, — SHE WHISPERED. — I JUST HAVE TO DELIVER IT.
The wagon was noisy, but to me, it felt as if everything had suddenly gone silent.
— Where to? — I asked.
She stayed silent for a long time, then said:
— To the hospital. To my grandson. If they don’t get the money for the surgery tomorrow, they won’t take him in.
I looked at the money and didn’t understand why she was traveling alone. Why without company. Why with such a sum – in an ordinary train.
— And what if someone finds out? — I asked quietly.
She looked me directly in the eyes.
— THAT’S WHY I KEEP THE BAG SO TIGHTLY.
And in that moment, I understood why she had looked at me so suspiciously all day. She wasn’t afraid of me – she was afraid of losing the only chance to save a child.
That night, I hardly slept. And in the morning, when the train arrived, I got off with her and walked her to the exit. Only when she got into a taxi did it suddenly occur to me: A very bad person could have been sitting in my place.
And with that thought, I really felt uneasy.
