She waved back, smiling, when she felt the burning on her legs.  She hold her breath, it was father, he had seen, and the horsewhip was slashing her tights, her breasts, her face, ripping off her skin, blood and water mixed together in a sweet pink, a devastated flower was written on the water, Mercy, papa, stop it, and he hit even stronger.

Elis, her sister, swallows her tears, better not saying anything or the spanking would be spread like the venomous plant. First time was not, they were always spanked in that cruel way, Iliam thought – it will be the last time when she looked at her legs, covered in flesh and blood. He just walked away, grabbing her by the hair, but she could look at her sister, and Elis read in her lips: I am leaving tonight.

Since that day three nights passed, and Iliam behaved so gently, father thinks that was a real good spanking, she has learned her lesson. Yes, father, I have.

Elis wakes up Iliam, both like cats on the roof, they go to his room, he snores, mama by his side, they never knew if she was awaken or not. Under the bed there was his handkerchief, tied with seven knots, Elis takes three heavy coins – it is time to leave. Elis had the idea: they would be dressed as leprous, nobody would stop them. Under the tree, just the moonlight as witness, they dress the rags and start the journey, as fast as they could.

Day and day, night and night, their way was walking,  people gave food, leprous were feared and respected, Iliam had fun, Elis said she feared, but she did not, they could  follow the car of oxen, but nothing could be touched by leprous, Elis had fear and shame, they even gained more coins; in that path they would get to the main city earlier than they thought.
Into the public bathroom, they had powder and lipstick on their baby faces and became women. They took the bus, the police for minors came, their make up disguised. Clowns, Iliam thought. She had in her hand a little iron Madonna. 

They  arrived in the city with the address, they nearly could not read that foreigner name of the street where the other sister, Maia, lived. She was a maid there. Mazes and hunger in a rock-cement city. 

Finally, they found the house. They called, Maia came out. She wore white maid uniform, so circumspect, so correct. No time for tears, they just said – we got away…What? That was insane! Papa will never forgive you…Forgive us, for what, thought Iliam. But that was Maia, she was like him. Wait. Take those coins. My boss hate beggars, leave. Find other house. People always need maids, especially the ones who just arrived – you always ask for less. Their hearts were frozen like Maia´s voice, who got into the house and did not look back.

Iliam and Elis already had knocked many doors, almost went to the  park sleeping on the banks, already they had cried, already they had fought, ah, already they had, but then Iliam saw a house, walls in  green,   the bell was golden, the face of a lion that laughs, let´s take the risk again sis,  God is Good, He exists, and He will help you, as their mother taught them to pray when fearing.

The  doors of the mansion  opened, and along the marble stairs she came down, with her auburn hair, wearing an angel black  peignoir,  clogs with pink feathers,  tak tak tak, her pair of blue eyes like the mantle of Madonna, Lady in Heavens, I have never seen a woman like that, a cigarette holder in ivory came out from her lips with carmine lipstick.

She looked at the tiny two ones, girls, what is going on, tell me, okay, carry on, she knew eyes who knew hunger, black bags in skinny faces, bodies without meat, and for a few seconds  girls thought to see tears humidifying those eyes, enter, come to eat. I am Madame Blanche.

Elis already had heard before about the women of life, would she be one of them, mother said never trust them, they were all Madame, but Madame Blanche seemed not be, because she only seemed to be happy.

Right, Madame said, the blond girl will be the baby-sitter of my daughter, and you, pretty brunette, can you cook? Oh, it does not matter, I will teach you. I eat very little, not fat food, never. My husband does not eat of our food, he eats a foreign food with a weird name oh never mind, you will learn. Oh, by the way, I am an aesthetician.

When Moshe arrived, girls had even lesser understanding:  a small hat in on the top of his head, sometimes he rolled two squares in his arms and waved his body. He was praying, they thought.

Madame Blanche spent her days giving orders to the employees, she also prepared cosmetics, received masseurs who touched her back while she laid   on a stretcher, naked, and she was so beautiful, Madame Blanche, always laughing with a pearl row coming out from her lips like petals of red roses, always with scent of French perfumes, her husband, a doctor, she said, oh, never mind, girls, he is a religious person, on Fridays doors could be not closed or opened, no food, nobody did anything,  Madame Blanche used to take them to the backyard, to the arbor shade, she seated with them and told tales,  Paris was so beautiful when she was young,  the War, her parents, also religious people, but she could not , she wanted to laugh and to make people pretty, look at my children, Esther and Isaac are educated in the Jewish college, we are Jewish, what is Jewish, Madame Blanche laughed, Christ was Jewish, but this is another history that one day I might tell you.  Our Lady also? Also, as me, she was Jewish. Now, go to bed.

By herself, Madame Blanche in the garden admired the stars, always wrapped in dresses of silk and she liked to wear jewels in the breakfast, then the fashion ladies designers used to come to learn with her, one morning, she called both girls, it is time for you to have descent clothes, not uniforms, but practical and elegant clothes, that you can wear on weekends, too. Next Sunday, they met Maia in the Main Square; what happened so pretty Elis and Iliam were, and Iliam showed her tongue to the older sister.

Madame, severe and generous, called a teacher to teach them the language and good manners, the most important weapons for a woman, ladies. Blanche taught them to take care of  their skin, it is the page where you will write your book, your best dress, do not judge the religions and appearances of other people, one day Iliam asked to Madame Blanche why she was not religious as her husband was. Madame Blanche stopped for a few seconds, where would be the mind of Madame Blanche when she answered: I knew a beautiful God who to everything illuminates. That was on the day we were released from a place far, far away from here. There, my father and my mother, uncles and two of my four brothers died.

One day, when they forgot to rape us, when troops came to rescue us, was on this day that I discovered: God is Everything. God is helping when somebody has to be helped, and God does not like cowardice nor sadness. God, girls, is the Sun shining, and It is in the heart of the ones who want to be with It. In Paris, I adopted this name, I became Madame Blanche, and I met my husband and he accepted me, as I am, Madame Blanche. One day, you will understand all this better. Iliam, so attentive, saw there was a tattoed blue number on Madame´s forearm.