(3/3) “The killers formed a search party the next morning....

(3/3) “The killers formed a search party the next morning.  They gathered at the top of the hill.  We could see them coming toward us, searching every house along the way, and pulling out more people to join the hunt.  The mob was growing very big.  I knew that the end was upon us.  But the fighting was very intense that day.  Rockets were flying over our head, and some of them began landing on the hill.  One landed so close to the search party that they scattered in different directions.  I pulled everyone out of the hiding place and moved them to the forest behind our house.  Every night I’d wait until the streets were empty, and I’d bring them food.  For two weeks it went on like this.  I rationed what little we had. I lost all my weight because I was too scared to eat.  My breasts completely disappeared.  I didn’t even feel like a woman anymore.  I’d nearly given up on life.  Every morning I’d pray for the day to finish.  And every night I’d pray for the morning to come.  My husband wanted us to escape.  The only reason we remained in Kigali was to feed those people.  And after three weeks the capital finally fell.  The Rwandan Patriotic Front was advancing, and the Hutu boarded busses to flee the city.  Even the people who were hiding told me to abandon them.  So I gave them each a final ration of food and escaped.  But all of the people hiding on this property were rescued.  And every single one of them is alive today.”
(Kigali, Rwanda)