Chapter 28 Chapter 27
Alexis quickly set foot on the road back to Heraklion.It's already four o'clock in the afternoon.She had to slam on the gas pedal, trying to get there by seven o'clock, to catch the car in time for the eight o'clock ferry.
Alexis is driving on the flat road, which embraces the sea, and she can enjoy the continuous beauty of the sea, and she is in a happy mood.To her left was nothing but blue: azure sea, sapphire sky.Why is sadness called "blue"?Alexis thought.The bright sky, the sparkling water, seemed to be part of her extreme happiness.
After the car window was rolled down, warm air poured in, her hair flowed behind her head like a black waterfall, and the song "The Girl with Brown Eyes" was playing on the car's simple tape deck, and Alexis followed suit loudly. singing.It was the Van Morrison music that Ed hated.
This happy journey took more than two hours. She was in a hurry all the way, worried about missing a ferry, and kept her foot firmly on the accelerator. There is nothing more enjoyable than driving by herself.
Time was running out, and after returning the car, she suppressed the regret of not having a car, bought a ferry ticket, and boarded the steps leading to the cabin.The strong smell of gasoline that greets passengers on Greek ferries is so familiar to her that she will get used to it after an hour or two.The cars were coming up, the cargo was being loaded onto the deck, and there was a lot of mess here and there.A group of dark-haired men called to each other, speaking a language she was ashamed to not understand.In this particular case, it's probably okay not to understand.She sees a door that says "Foot passengers" and gratefully walks through it.
Alexis knew where on this ship she could find her mother.There are two lounges, one for smokers and a larger one for non-smokers.A group of American students occupied the latter, while in the former there were several families returning to Athens after visiting relatives in Crete.They're all yelling, they're all giving tirades when they're probably just debating whether to eat toasted sandwiches now or later.Alexis, not finding her mother on this level, went up to the deck.
In the dim light, she saw Sophia, at the far end of the boat, near the bow.Sitting alone, her small travel bag at her feet, she looked at the lights of Heraklion and the vaults of the great arsenal built by the Venetians.Standing guard over the harbour, this fortified 16th-century fortress has a rustic facade that looks like it was built yesterday.
Alexis had been surprised to see her mother the day before.This time it was Sophia's turn to be surprised to see her daughter.
"Alexis! What are you doing here?" she exclaimed. "I thought you were going back to Hariya."
"I was planning to come."
"But why are you here? Where's Ed?"
"Still in Hariya. I left him there."
No need to explain, but Alexis wanted to. "It's all over. I don't think it's interesting, there's no enthusiasm," she said. "When I sat there and listened to Fotini describe what your family went through, I was so shocked. What really struck me was each other. My love is so strong, through sickness and health, prosperity and adversity, until death can separate... I know that I don't feel that way about Ed - ten years, or even twenty years later, I am sure that I can't feel it for him. That feeling."
Sophia had never felt so clearly in decades past when she had abandoned the people and the places that had raised her.The daughter made her look at her elders like characters in a movie.In the end, she sees no shame, only heroism, no infidelity, only passion, no leprosy, only love.
Now that the truth is out, the wounds are exposed, but in the end it is possible to heal.They are no longer ashamed.Sophia no longer had anything to hide, and for the first time in twenty-five years she let her tears flow freely.
The heavy ferryboat sailed slowly out of the port, sounding its whistle in the quiet night sky.Alexis and Sophia were standing against the railing, with the sea breeze blowing their faces, they were arm in arm, looking back at the dark water.The lights of Crete faded into the distance.
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