Deadly Nightshade

Anna Willis lived in a fancy apartment on the outskirts of town. She didn't know much about his father, who died before Anna was born. She graduated from New York University with a degree in economics and parallel psychiatry.

She had never worn make-up. Long black hair. A subtle, even mischievous smile and perfect teeth. Despite her discretion, she was a beautiful woman who always attracted attention with her simple presence.

A park bench and the first kiss. First love, first affair, first breakup.

Young men, or not so young, always revolved around her. She crushed them with her black eyes, ravaged them with her mind's eye to understand something about each of them. And she succeeded.

She did this with great passion. Surprise at first. The satisfaction and refinement.

She hunted love like a wild animal. She caught it, tamed it, studied it in every detail, then set it free. Maybe she's always been passionate about what she doesn't understand.

She always enjoyed mind tricks. She walked to the coffee or the decked terrace where people drank beer, looked at gestures, and watched faces, feet, and hands. She then connected these motions and their later actions and realized some remarkable things.

Anna already knew her secret. Which he carefully guarded and treasured.

She had a few flings—just that, even though she wanted so much more from every start.

From everything, she had wanted more and learned the most valuable and astonishing things in the hospital where she worked. The bank where she now worked was insignificant. Her duties could have been more varied and required more intellectual effort.

This city, this place, everything had become too small for her.

She recently lost his mother, too, to a persistent disease.

Anna decided to leave.

He never looked back.

The train station where no one had driven her to leave got smaller and smaller until she disappeared.

Will be born at the end of this road—a road like a disordered pulse of chance, a madness of flight without wings and no return.

Around midnight, Anna arrived in New York. She had studied here. Here she had loved and been loved. Here the world had collapsed on her. Is life strange? Sure you do. Otherwise, why would she have come back here? She didn't know the answer.

She knew him too well.

Anna searched for a motel where he could eat, shower, and rest until the next day.

A torrential downpour began that soon soaked her to the skin. The night had become hazy and forbidding.

Anna continued walking, concentrating on not tripping over anything.

It seemed to her that the other sidewalk was brighter; she looked left and right, preparing to cross to the other side.

On the left side, she saw a man bent under an umbrella, hurrying to cross.

A car coming out of the darkness hit him, throwing him back onto the pavement. The car braked and stopped a few feet away from Anna. She looked at the license plate number, backed up, and leaned against the wall of a house.

After a few moments, the car's lights went out, and sped off. She turned to the stricken man.

He was motionless, face down in the water. Anna pulled him out of the way and propped him up against a wall.

"You hear me?" Anna asked him, trying to be calm.

"What happened?"

"You were hit by a car. I don't know if you should go to the hospital."

"I live nearby. Please help me go home. I'll see if I need medical treatment there," the man said.

He relied on Anna until they got to his apartment. He walked over to Anna and held out his hand.

"Thomas Hill" introduced himself, smiling.

"Anna Willis" delighted.

"Anna, you can change in the bathroom if you want."

"I'm sorry, I have to get to a meeting," Anna lies.

"Are you leaving? Don't you want to stay?" He asked her awkwardly.

" Maybe we'll meet again on another occasion, and we'll talk more," Anna told him bluntly.

"I remain in your debt," Thomas said, handing her a business card. "Did you see the registration number?"

"No," she said in a firm voice.

"I'm considering investigating who was driving that car and why he fled the accident scene."

"I wouldn't advise you to do this."

"Why?"

"Because you got into that car more than he hit you. That's why you're not hurt more seriously. I saw exactly how it happened."

"I understand. Thank you very much once again. I would be happy to be of service to you."

The rain had stopped in the meantime. Anna walked a few blocks until she found a motel.

She ate something, took a shower, and fell asleep while thinking about what she would do the next day. She had to find a job.