Escape
Elizabeth shifted in her seat and immediately regretted it. Pain shot through her side. She sucked in a breath and remained perfectly still until it faded again.
Across from her, a young couple sat shoulder to shoulder, sharing earbuds while the girl rested her head against the boy’s shoulder.
Neither of them noticed her.
For the first time in years, nobody was paying attention to what she was doing.
The thought should have been comforting. Instead, it made her nervous.
Her gaze drifted towards the window.
The city had disappeared completely. Fields had taken its place at first, but even those were becoming scarce. Forests now lined both sides of the tracks, thick enough that she could barely see beyond them.
She had no idea where she was any more.
The journey had been too long. She had changed trains too many times. Passed too many stations. And there were also many opportunities to change her mind.
Yet somehow she was still here.
Still moving further away.
Her eyes dropped to the sandwich lying untouched at the small table in front of her.
She had bought it hours ago. At the time it had seemed sensible. Now the idea of food made her stomach twist. The nerves wouldn’t allow it. Fear made sure of that.
A part of her still expected her phone to ring, expected to hear his voice.
The thought was ridiculous.
She knew he couldn't reach her on this new number. Only one person knew it.
Yet, every time the train slowed, her heart began to race.
Every time the doors opened, she found herself looking up.
Just in case.
The bruises hidden beneath her clothes ached.
The worst of them sat along her ribs. A painful reminder of how their last conversation had ended.
Elizabeth looked away from the window.
She didn’t want to think about that. Not when she was finally on her way to Emma.
A small smile tugged at her lips despite herself.
Emma.
Married.
The word still felt strange.
Two weeks had passed and Elizabeth still couldn’t quite believe it.
She had missed it. She had missed everything.
The dress.
The ceremony.
The photographs.
The moment her daughter became someone’s wife.
Months she had spent asking … begging. Trying to reason with a man who had made up his mind long before she ever opened her mouth.
And now it was over.
Gone.
A moment she would never get back.
Her throat tightened.
Emma had looked beautiful in the photographs.
Happy … so incredibly happy.
Elizabeth had cried when she saw them. Not because her daughter was married, not because she wasn’t happy for her, but because she hadn’t been there.
A mother was supposed to be there.
The train rattled softly beneath her.
She closed her eyes. Fighting the tears who pricked her eyes.
No … not today. Today wasn’t about what she had missed, but it was about what came next.
For months she had hidden money whenever she could.
Some loose change after shopping. The occasional note he wouldn’t notice missing. All of it stuffed into a small zip bag hidden beneath the washing powder.
For months she had convinced herself it was pointless.
That she would never actually leave.
Yet here she was sitting on a train. Travelling towards the only person who had never stopped loving her.
For the first time in a very long time, the future felt uncertain.
Strangely enough, that felt better than knowing exactly what tomorrow would bring.
The train began to slow. Elizabeth’s fingers tightened around the strap of her bag. Outside the window, the platform came into view. It was smaller than she expected. The station itself looked little more than a single brick building surrounded by trees.
And there were trees everywhere. Even from the train, she could see the forest stretching beyond the edge of the village.
Her heart began to pound.
This was it.
After months of waiting, of convincing herself she would never make it here, the train finally came to a stop.
For a moment, Elizabeth remained seated. The passengers rose around her. Bags were lifted, and conversations resumed.
Taking a steadying breath, she pushed herself to her feet.
She grimaced when pain immediately flared through her ribs.
Adjusting the strap of her bag on her shoulder, she joined the slow stream of passengers moving towards the door.
The cool afternoon air hit her face the moment she stepped onto the platform.
For a second, she simply stood there. Searching for her daughter. Her heart hammered so loudly she could barely hear anything else.
What if Emma wasn’t here yet?
What if something had happened?
What if—
“Mum!” The familiar voice cut straight through every thought.
Elizabeth turned and there she was … Emma.
She was standing halfway down the platform, waving both arms above her head like she hadn’t a care in the world.
A laugh escaped Elizabeth before she could stop it. The same laugh Emma used to pull from her when she was a child.
For one ridiculous second, she wasn’t looking at a married woman. She was looking at the little girl who used to run across playgrounds with scraped knees and tangled hair.
Then Emma started running straight towards her. Elizabeth barely had time to set down her bag before her daughter crashed into her arms.
Pain exploded through her ribs. She couldn’t stop the sharp intake of breath.
Emma froze instantly, and the excitement vanished from her face. Her arms loosened, her eyes widened, and suddenly, she knew.
“Mum …” The single word came out as little more than a whisper.
Emma’s arms loosened immediately. Her eyes narrowed.
Elizabeth forced a smile.
“I’m fine.”
The look on Emma’s face made it painfully clear that her daughter didn’t believe a word of it.
Before either of them could say anything else, a large shadow fell across them.
Elizabeth looked up. The young man from the photographs was somehow even bigger in person. He was tall, broad shouldered, built like someone who spent far too much time in a gym. Thick dark curls framed a face that looked far younger than a man should if he carried that much muscle. And Emma didn’t seem the slightest bit intimidated by it.
For a moment, Elizabeth found herself wondering if Emma had secretly married a professional athlete. The thought almost made her laugh.
His expression softened as he looked at her. Not the polite smile people gave because they felt obligated. It was a genuine one.
“Elizabeth,” he said with a surprisingly, gentle but deep voice. “It’s good to finally meet you.”
For a second, she stared at him. Then she remembered she was supposed to answer.
“You too, Kaelen.”
His smile widened slightly.
Emma rolled her eyes.
Elizabeth winced internally. She had practiced that name for several times. It still felt strange in her mouth.
Kaelen.
Not quite Caleb.
Not quite Kellan.
Just… Kaelen.
An unusual name for an unusual young man.
“Oh, that’s bad,” he said softly.
Emma laughed. “See? I told you.”
Elizabeth narrowed her eyes. “I think I said it correctly.”
“You absolutely did not,” Emma scoffed.
“I was close,” Elisabeth muttered.
“You weren’t,” Emma sang.
For the first time since stepping off the train, Elizabeth found herself laughing. The sound of it felt foreign. As though she hadn’t used it in far too long.
Kaelen reached for her bag before she could protest. “I’ve got that.”
“You don’t have to—”
“I know.” The answer came easily.
Before she could argue further, the bag had already disappeared into one of his enormous hands.
Emma slipped her arm through Elizabeth’s. “The car’s this way.”
Elizabeth glanced around the small station. “How much further is it?”
“About two hours.”
Her eyebrows shot up. “Two hours?”
Kaelen nodded. “The village is a little more isolated.”
“A little?”
Emma grinned. “Mum, we’re practically living in the middle of a forest.”
Elizabeth looked beyond the station, the road, and the handful of buildings scattered around it.
Trees stretched towards the horizon in every direction.
Endless shades of green mixed with the first colours of autumn. Here and there, patches of yellow and gold stood out among the darker leaves, as though the forest was slowly preparing for the colder months ahead.
For the first time, she wondered exactly where her daughter had chosen to live.
