«The return, episode 3

Le Regard Libre N° 83 - Elliot Mazzella

Each month, Le Regard Libre publishes young Swiss author Elliot Mazzella's novel Le retour, in the form of fifteen episodes. A return to fiction in these pages, a return to the old tradition of the serial novel.

After years away, Joseph returns to his native village. When he arrives at the village gates, things don't go as planned: nobody seems to recognize him. Thinking it's a joke, Joseph agrees to fight with his old friend, Pierre. The fight soon turns to Pierre's advantage. Joseph loses consciousness and, in the middle of the night, the men take him back to the village. The stranger is lodged with the widow, Agathe.

His eyes flutter open, then close again. Joseph feels heavy, as if someone had filled his stomach with stones the day before. His head is buried in a bolster; he doesn’t even