If I show you, then I know you won't tell what I said
Cause two can keep a secret if one of them is dead…
- Secret, The Pierces
Light floods the room and she stirs in her bed, the sheets falling to the side as her eyes flutter open. She groans, rolling over to escape the vexing sun, but sits up immediately when she feels the empty space beside her. Strange… Whenever he goes out to hunt, he normally wakes her up, or at least gives her a kiss goodbye and lets her rest for a while longer. Her heart begins to pound and she tells herself to stop worrying. There is no need to be so upset. He merely forgot this morning, that’s all.
He really should be home by now. What is keeping him? It isn’t long before her wandering mind takes over and a plate goes crashing to the ground. She huffs, grabbing a broom from the hook on the wall and sweeping up the mess.
“Alaina?” She hears a voice from behind her and nearly jumps out of her skin. Whisking around, she sees two violet eyes staring at her from a crack in the closet.
“Oh my goodness, Gavina!” she says, clutching her chest. “Please don’t ever do that to me again!”
“I’m sorry! I’m just hungry.” The creature recoils a bit and then cocks its head to the side. She immediately feels guilty for yelling at the poor beast. She almost forgets how young it is because of its large size.
“Alright, just let me-”
She is cut off by the sound of pounding on the front door. She thinks briefly that it is her husband, but her hope fades quickly as the hammering continues.
“Open up! It’s the raider!”
Her heart stops and momentarily goes into her throat. What is he doing here? She’s almost positive that it is Sunday, and unless she has been sleeping for three days, he shouldn’t be making his rounds until Wednesday. Is this some sort of nightmare?
He continues to beat the door as if that will make her respond in a more timely fashion. It does, however, wake her up to reality, and she begins to think and move at a lightning fast pace.
“Coming!” she yells, her voice shaky and high. She’s not good at this, not good at lying. Not nearly as good of an actor as her husband.
She grabs the broom and shoves it on the hook and then ushers the creature into the closet, trying not to be too panicked. The young animal probably has no idea what’s going on, and if it sees the look of terror on her face…
“Alaina, what-”
“Stay down!” she whispers, her hands sweating and her fingers slipping on the closet doorknob. She swings the door closed, but doesn’t notice as it ricochets and stays ajar. She’s already on her way to the front door.
She lets the raider in and gets yet another shock. He leads in a beautiful young woman with blonde hair. She is chained and gagged, horror written on her face. Tears stream down the woman’s face as she looks up at her elder sister in remorse.
She doesn’t know if she can take any more surprises today. “Deidra?” she inquires. It is painful to look at her younger sister like that… She tries to silently communicate with her, but all exchanges are lost as the raider speaks.
“I have reason to believe you’re hiding something in here that defies the king. Is this true?”
“No, sir. I have nothing of the sort.” She curses her horribly trembling voice and attempts a smile. The raider raises a bushy eyebrow.
“She seems to believe you do.” The raider points a bony thumb at Deidra and she looks down at the ground. “But if you still claim to be innocent, you wouldn’t mind if I have a look around, right?”
She nods and while the raider searches her house, she shoots Deidra a reprimanding glare. She promised never to tell. She-
Suddenly she hears a baby crying, and she never thought she’d be happier to heed that sound. Sighing in relief, she takes the opportunity and runs with it, only hoping that it will be a good enough excuse to save her and her sister.
“Oh, that’s my daughter, Cordelia. She’s only one. She really needs me, so if you don’t mind… I mean there’s obviously nothing here so…” She is already rushing to the bedroom, not even bothering to listen for the raider’s response.
“Wait. What’s in this closet?” he asks, and she closes her eyes and bites her lip before turning around to answer him.
“It’s just a pantry, where we keep our silverware and plates.” she lies, tasting blood on the inside of her mouth. She has to remind herself to breath.
“Alright, then.” She thinks she’s off the hook for only a moment, and then his hand reaches for the door. Time seems to slow as she watches the scene play out before her. A tear streams down her face as she realizes what is to come.
She would never get to see her baby, her precious baby girl ever again. Her husband was probably already taken prisoner or worse… She never thought this moment would actually occur. Sure, she had thought about the possibility, but would she have risked everything if she knew what would happen? And Gavina, the creature she had worked so hard to save, would lose all as well.
The closet door creaks open, and the raider peers cautiously into its depths. Then suddenly there is a rush of wings and he is knocked over as the creature flies past him and out the open window.
She smiles as she watches the beast fly away, free. At least it was not all in vain.
But her smile disappears as the raider stands up, absolutely livid. He takes her by the arm and drags her over to her sister, tying her up in the same fashion with the rope from his belt. She begins to sob, feeling more vulnerable than she’s ever felt in her entire life. The two captives are pushed out of the house and into their looming fate. The raider slams the door behind him.
I wake up screaming just as loudly as I did the day of my parents’ deaths.
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