She would not let herself cry when she was telling him that she believed in him, she trusted him, she loved him. He said to her simply that he would not forget this, by which he meant to tell her how grateful he was, especially then, especially now.

Then she put a finger on the handcuffs & said she wasn’t ashamed, there was nothing to be ashamed of. She took a corner of his lapel & gave it a little shake & this was when she said, “I’ll wait for you. Come back.”

After that, they pushed him into the car, & she spoke hurriedly, before the crying began that she could no longer hold back, & she said that what had happened between them was theirs, only theirs. No one could take it away. “It’s our secret,” she called out, in front of them all, just before the slam of the door.

“I won’t say a word,” he said.