The Winner Stands Alone by Paulo Coelho Read Free Book Online Page A

her
     away. Someone attempts to sit the body up, and someone else tells them to lay her down
     again because its too late to do anything.
    Its probably a drug overdose, the person next to him says. Young people today are a lost
     cause.
    Those who hear the comment nod sagely. Igor remains impassive while he watches the
     paramedics unload their equipment from the am- bulance, apply electric shocks to Olivias
     heart, while a more experi- enced doctor stands by, not saying a word, because although he
     knows theres nothing to be done, he doesnt want his colleagues to be accused of
     negligence. They place Olivias body on the stretcher and put it in the ambulance, the
     mother still clinging to her daughter. After a brief discussion, they allow the mother to
     get in too, and the ambulance speeds away.
    No more than five minutes have passed between the couple discov- ering the body and the ambulance leaving. The father is still standing there, stunned, not
     knowing where to go or what to do. Forgetting whom hes speaking to, the same person who
     made the comment about a drug overdose goes over to the father and gives him his version
     of the facts:
    Dont worry, sir. This kind of thing happens every day around here.
    The father does not respond. Hes stilling holding his mobile phone and staring into space.
     He either doesnt understand the remark or has no idea what it is that happens every day,
     or else hes in a state of shock that has sent him immediately into some unknown dimension
     where pain does not exist.
    The crowd disperses as quickly as it appeared. Only two people remain: the father still
     clutching his phone and the man who has now taken off his dark glasses and is holding them
     in his hand.
    Did you know the girl? Igor asks. There is no reply. Its best to do as everyone else has
     done, keep walking along the Boulevard de la Croisette and see what else is happening on this sunny morning in Cannes.
     Like the girls father, he doesnt know quite what he is feeling: he has destroyed a world
     he will never be able to rebuild, even if he had all the power in the world. Did Ewa
     deserve that? From the womb of that young woman, Oliviathe fact that he knows her name
     troubles him greatly because that means shes no longer just a face in the crowdmight have
     sprung a genius who would have gone on to discover a cure for cancer or drafted an
     agreement that would ensure that the world could finally live in peace. He has destroyed
     not just one person, but all the future generations that might have sprung from her. What
     has he done? Was love, however great and however intense, sufficient justification for
     that?
    He had chosen the wrong person as his first victim. Her death will never make the news and
     Ewa wont understand the message.
    Dont think about it, its done now. You have prepared yourself to go much further than
     this, so carry on. The girl will understand that her death was not in vain, but was a
     sacrifice in the name of a greater love. Look around you, see whats happening in the city, behave like a normal citizen.
     Youve already had your fair share of suffering in this life; now you deserve a little
     peace and comfort.
    Enjoy the Festival. This is what you have been preparing yourself for.
    Even if hed had his
    
    
     swimmingthingswithhim,hewouldhave found it difficult to get anywhere near the seashore.
     The big hotels had, it seems, acquired the rights to great swaths of beach which they had
     filled with their chairs, logos, waiters, and bodyguards, who, at every entry point,
     demanded the guests room key or some other form of identification. Other areas were
     occupied by huge white tents, where some production company, brewery, or cosmetics firm
     was launch- ing its latest product at a so-called lunch. People here were dressed
     normally, if by normal you mean a baseball cap, bright shirt, and light-colored trousers
     for men, and jewelry, loose top,