The young woman walked as quickly as she could, dragging the four year old behind her. The little girl whined and coughed as the church tower in the distance tolled half past the hour; midnight was rapidly approaching. The woman knew the damp night air was not good for the child who was asthmatic, but she had little choice but to bring her to work with her. She lamented the fact that the child’s father had deserted the pair not long after the birth of her daughter. They had been on their own for nearly four years.
The man in the moon, peaking through the scant cloud cover, showed little more than half a face, as he looked down on the pair, hurrying along the Rue d’Anjou toward the Rene-Muret hospital. The young girl was still lagging behind, being half dragged by her mother. The twenty-three year old woman turned to scold her daughter, which prevented her from seeing the dark figure approaching them from the alley to their right.
“Bonjour, mademoiselle.” The woman was startled, but managed to say, “Excusez-moi monsieur, mais je suis pressé,” in a hurry to get to the hospital. She tried to pull her daughter away, but her abruptness angered the young man, who grabbed the woman by the wrist, breaking her hold on the child’s hand. The girl began screaming and coughing as the assailant pushed the four year old to the pavement.
“Laisser seule!” the woman yelled, imploring the man to leave the child alone, while attempting to break free from the grip of the young man in order to get to her daughter.
“Certes, mon cher,” the man offered sarcastically, as he put a booted foot on the young girl’s throat, stifling her screams and her coughing as she struggled with her breathing. The woman thrashed about, desperately trying to free herself, but could not break his grip. The man looked at her, then suddenly pressed his foot down with all his weight on the throat of the daughter, crushing her larynx. The girl ceased to move, allowing the man to give all of his attention to the woman, who was staring at the body of her daughter.
“Non, non, non!” the woman screamed, causing the man to become even more forceful. He pushed her to the pavement and began ripping at her dress.
He left her lying on the cold asphalt after he had finished with her. As he strode away, the woman tried to raise up to see her daughter, but passed into unconsciousness, alone on the street.
Friday, October 19, 1979
Sevran, France (Northeast of Paris)