Scene 15

Suddenly there was the sound of a shot. Then, within a second or two, the airwaves quietened. A few seconds later, Maille noticed something peculiar in a corner of the pond: near a blooming white waterlily was visible the bright wing of a white dove rising out of the water. Maille had seen the most varied birdlife in the park but not a single dove. Was it the shot that had brought the dove down from the air? Had it fallen prey to a vulture? Did vultures seize doves and devour them? Or was it a sign? There was total silence in the swamps now; there was nothing to draw attention to the fact that a shot had just disturbed the peace of the forest. It had been akin to a sudden, acoustic nosebleed.

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