Chapter 3

4:30 am

Freya grasped Noah's little hand tightly, hauling him along with her.

A few steps more and they were gone from the dungeon which Desmond had originally referred to as a home.

With her other hand, Freya held a small saddle bag while Noah's favorite clothes could all fit into his little backpack, luckily. She also carried a small handbag along which she hung on her shoulder.

Before advancing further, Freya stopped abruptly and turned around to take the final glance at her soon-to-be ex husband's gigantic mansion.

The enormous white pearly building stood tall and majestic in the early morning moonlight and stared down at her as if judging her for summoning up courage to finally leave it.

“I'll miss this house”, Noah finally spoke up on seeing his mother steadily regard their house for an awkward amount of seconds.

Freya let out a dense sigh as she looked down at her tender son. The innocence engraved in his facial expression captured and softened her heart.

“Yeah. But we're never coming back”, she declared firmly with a tone of finality, stiffening her expression to seal her unquestionable statement.

“I don't wanna come back here, Mommy. Dad's a bad person”, Noah agreed, horror plastered all over his face.

Freya stroked his soft golden hair with her palm as a kind of acknowledgement for the fact that her son was quite sensible at his young age.

“Let's go”.

Freya turned to go and dragged Noah along with her, more briskly this time. They had to catch the first subway train departing exactly at the hour of five in the morning.

Luckily, a taxi was in sight and in no time, they arrived at the subway.

After purchasing train tickets, they boarded the train with Noah dragging his feet sleepily, yawning with each step he took.

Soon, it was half past seven in the morning. The trip was concluded as they had arrived at their destination.

Tennessee.

Not like Freya was quite familiar with the city or she knew anyone residing in it aside from her college friend. In her line of thought, fleeing to such a far away city was a perfectly normal idea. What could possibly go wrong?

“We have arrived at Tennessee. You can all alight now”.

The announcement from the pilot came booming through the speakers. But the raging sound didn't succeed in waking poor Noah up who was fully absorbed in a deep realm of sleep.

Freya patted him gently on his back to wake him up. When that method failed, she resorted to shaking him vigorously.

Noah finally woke up with a loud tired yawn.

“Have we arrived, mom?” He asked, peering around in curiosity.

“Yes honey. Get your backpack let's go”, she said softly, caressing his cheeks with her thumb.

Together, they alighted from the train and stood at the subway train station, waiting for the next transportation means to get them to the residence of her friend from college.

The warm early morning sunlight accompanied by the cool windy weather, acknowledged their arrival at the city of Tennessee.

Freya had to double check if Noah was indeed putting on his thick wooly sweater. He wasn't always a thick skinned fellow in such unfriendly weather.

They took their seats at the cab stand in expectation of a taxi. The seat was very tight as three other individuals were sitting as well. Freya had to make Noah sit on her lap while squeezing on the little space left on the seat.

Freya tried calling her friend on the phone once again to remind her of her impromptu visit.

Thankfully, while she was on the phone, the three occupants of the seat on which she was squeezed, left and boarded the available taxis that halted in front of them.

There was enough space to adjust and sit properly like a queen, or at least, an average human being.

The phone call was over and Freya wasn't ready to miss another taxi. Soon, a taxi halted in front of them and Freya jumped at it, seizing the opportunity.

“Noah let's go. Get your backpack…”

Just that instant, Freya froze as Noah ran to her in response. Her whole body went stiff and cold and she hoped she was imagining the horrible sight she was seeing. Shivers were sent down her spine and her heart skipped a bit. She gulped in fear at the possibility of what she was witnessing being the actual reality.

Her saddle bag and purse had vanished!

Freya's heart raced with panic as she darted towards the seat at the cabstand. She searched all around for her belongings. She squatted and peered under the seat in desperation.

They were really gone. No sign of them.

Goosebumps popped up on her skin as she recalled the contents of her purse — her debit card, a huge sum of money in cash, her ID card and a few other important cards. Her saddle bag, asides her clothes, contained a few important documents.

Who could have been so cruel as to rob her so early in the morning?

Her mind diverted instantly to the folks she had squeezed together with on the seat at the cabstand. It had to be one of them. Unfortunately, she took no notice of their faces.

The impatient taxi driver, who had been waiting for Freya to make a decision to board his taxi, finally took another passenger instead and drove off.

“Mom, what's wrong?” Noah asked, with a concerned look on his face.

It was quite odd to see his mother crouch down in front of the seat they had just left and stare blankly at it in absentmindedness.

“Honey, did you see anyone take my bag and purse?” She asked calmly, still trying to act cool and collected. She stood up to her feet and moved closer to him.

"No mom. I wasn't looking… I … I was playing with my toy… and I…”, Noah stuttered, fear creeping into his voice.

Freya, noticing his discomfort as though he felt guilty for what had just happened, enclosed him in her arms in a warm embrace.

“I'm sorry mom. I didn't watch over your bags. I shouldn't have lost focus”, he blurted out, shaking with fear.

His countenance depicted the verge of tears.

“It's alright. At least I've got my phone. We wouldn't be that stranded”, Freya comforted him, trying to act nonchalant.

A single teardrop fell from her eye that very minute, just in time to betray her true emotions. The fact that she couldn't decide whether to cry or shout for help or just compose herself made her feel more downcast.

To her greatest surprise, Noah stood firm and screamed at the top of his lungs, “Thieves! They robbed my mom! Help!”

Freya stared agape at her son wondering what went through his childish mind that moved him to yell like that. She couldn't figure out whether to shut him up or urge him on.

“Noah, it's okay. Don't cause a scene”, she shushed him, peeking around and hoping no one heard his cry.

“My school teacher said we should always yell when a thief comes to rob us”, Noah explained, justifying his action.

Too late, the spotlight of attention shifted and the mother and child found themselves at the center of an increasing gathering. Onlookers turned their heads to watch in curiosity and a small crowd began to form, driven by the desire to understand the matter at hand and perhaps offer assistance to them.

Noah's stomach churned with uneasiness as the crowd's collective gaze was fixated on the unfolding scene.

From within the swelling crowd, a mysterious masculine figure emerged, his gray eyes fixed intently on the duo in distress. He strode across and approached the mother and child, his long legs closing the distance with a sense of urgency, making Noah flinch in nervousness.

“You don't have to worry. I know how to get those thieves. Please, come with me ma'am”, he spoke with utmost sincerity in his tone.

Freya peered at the stranger who offered to assist, questioning what he could achieve for her that would invalidate the performance of the cops. But after inspecting him for a stretch, his physical appearance as well as his demeanor, she chose to surrender to his help. After all, she had no other option.

“Alright”, she breathed, clearly exhausted from the drama which the first morning in the city of Tennessee had in store for her.