It was a very cold and wet morning. Thick mist covered the marshes, and drops of water hung from every tree and gate. As I walked, I felt so guilty about stealing the food that I imagined the whole world was watching me. The wooden gates and the dark cows seemed to appear suddenly out of the fog, as if they were shouting, "Stop, you young thief! You have someone else's pork pie!"
I hurried towards the river. I knew the way to the old wooden building on the marshes, but in the thick mist, I got lost. I walked along the riverbank to find my way back. Suddenly, I saw a man sitting on the ground in front of me. His back was turned to me, and he was sleeping heavily.
I thought he would be happy to wake up and see his breakfast, so I walked up quietly and touched his shoulder. He jumped up immediately. To my surprise, it was not the same man!
However, this man was dressed in the same rough grey clothes. He also had a heavy iron chain on his leg, and he looked freezing cold. But he had a different face, and he wore a flat hat. He swore at me and tried to hit me, but he missed and almost fell over. Then, he turned and ran away into the mist.
"It is the young man!" I thought. My heart beat very fast.
A few minutes later, I finally found the right place. The man I was looking for was there. He was hugging himself to keep warm and limping up and down. He looked so cold and hungry that I thought he might drop dead in front of me. I opened my bundle and showed him the food.
"What is in the bottle, boy?" he asked.
"Brandy," I said.
He drank some quickly, shaking violently from the cold.
"I think you have a fever," I told him. "It is bad to sleep out on the wet marshes."
"I agree with you, boy," he answered. Then he began to eat the food as fast as he could. He ate the mincemeat, bread, cheese, and pork pie all at once. While he ate, he looked around nervously into the mist. He stopped often to listen for noises.
Suddenly, he looked at me carefully. "You are not tricking me, are you? You didn't bring anyone with you?"
"No, sir! No!"
"And you didn't tell anyone to follow you?"
"No!"
"Well," he said, rubbing his tired eyes, "I believe you."
I watched him eat. He took quick, sharp bites, just like our large dog at home. He looked left and right, as if he thought someone might come and take his food away at any moment.
"I am afraid you won't leave any food for him," I said quietly.
"Leave some for him? Who is him?" the man asked, stopping with a piece of pie in his mouth.
"The young man," I said. "The one who is hiding with you."
He gave a short, rough laugh. "Him? Yes, yes! He doesn't want any food."
"I thought he looked like he was hungry," I replied.
The man stopped eating completely and stared at me in great surprise. "Looked? When?"
"Just now."
"Where?"
"Over there," I pointed. "I found him sleeping in the mist. I thought he was you. He was dressed like you, and he had an iron chain on his leg too. Didn't you hear the warning guns last night?"
"So they were firing a gun!" he whispered to himself. Then he looked at me again. "Did you notice anything about his face?"
"He had a badly bruised face," I said.
"Here?" the man shouted, hitting his left cheek hard with his hand.
"Yes, there!"
"Where is he?" the man demanded. He pushed the last pieces of food into his pockets. "Show me which way he went! I will find him and pull him down like a hunting dog. Curse this iron chain! Give me the file, boy!"
I pointed to where the other man had disappeared into the mist. My convict did not look for long. He immediately sat down on the wet grass and started to file the heavy iron chain on his leg. He worked like a madman. He did not care that the metal was rubbing against his sore leg and making it bleed.
I was terrified of him again. I also knew I had to get back home before my sister woke up. I told him I had to go, but he did not listen. So, I quietly slipped away. The last time I looked back, he was still working hard. As I ran home through the thick mist, I could still hear the sharp sound of the metal file.