AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Thirteen?” I ask. She bites her lip, her hands shaking but she gets to her feet regardless. She’s exhausted, her skin pale, her eyes sunken from night after night of poor sleep because she’s been watching over me. Guilt climbs my throat. I grab her hand, squeezing it gently. “Stay here. Get some rest.” I can’t bring myself to say I’ll be okay because, truthfully, I’m not sure that I will. It doesn’t matter though, I have to see them.
“But—” she protests, glancing at Leon.
“We’ll be back within the hour.”
“Christy, I don’t know if this is a good idea.”
“Get some rest. It’ll make me feel better. You're exhausted.”
She nods, glancing at her watch. “If you’re not back by midnight—”
“You’ll turn me into a pumpkin?” Leon offers, a hint of a smile around his lips. Thirteen and I glance at one another, more shocked at his attempt at humor rather than the inappropriateness of it.
“I was going to say that I’ll come find you, but actually Ihavebeen working on this elixir…” her voice trails off as she smiles softly. That smile drops when she focuses back on me. “You’ve been through enough trauma, Christy, I’m not sure witnessing theirs is going to help you.”
“Staying here isn’t either. I needto see them.Please.”
“Then let’s do that,” Leon says, cupping my elbow gently and steering me out of the room before Thirteen can protest further.
The castle is like some great slumbering beast as we walk the hallways side by side. The only sound I can hear is my long skirt swishing between my legs and Leon’s shoes clipping over the tiled floor. The halls are dimly lit, the oil lamps turned down to a low flame, giving just enough light to illuminate the way. It’s as though the castle is aware of the cruelty that has taken place within its walls and can’t bring itself to brighten the hallways or rooms with more than a dull glow. When we step out into the courtyard that houses The Weeping Tree, I have the sudden, uncontrollable urge to stop and press my hand against the trunk.
Striding over to it, I trail my fingers against the rough bark, my eyes slowly lifting upwards as I search for the spot where it bled. It isn’t long before my gaze falls on a streak of liquid leaking from a gap between the bark further up the trunk. It’s too dark to tell what colour it is, the only light coming from the star-scattered sky above. Standing on my tiptoes, my fingertips graze over the liquid. Surprisingly, it’s warm. When I lower myself back down, and raise my hand upwards, I can see that it is indeed the colour of blood.
“So it’s true then?” I whisper.
A blast of cold air chooses that moment to rustle the remaining leaves of The Weeping Tree. One falls to the cobblestones at my feet, an answering message from a woman long since dead, the woman who’s kindness changed the course of her family’s life forever.
Yes.
I wrap my arms around myself, feeling cold to my very core. I sway on my feet and a sudden feeling of dizziness comes over me. The corner of my vision darkens and I know if I don’t hold onto something, I’m going to fall.
“No,” I whimper, pressing my body against the tree.
Vaguely I hear Leon call my name, feel him reach for me, but I can no longer see him as a vision barrels into my consciousness, knocking me out with such ferocity that I don’t have time to ward it off…
“You motherfuckers deserveto be hanged for what you’ve done to Christy. Stealing her from her family and peddling her to your fucking sicko clients like a piece of meat. She should be dancing for the Royal fucking Ballet, not for you bastards at this motherfucking ball,” Beast says, waving his knife in the direction of The Masks as Kate, and a man I don’t recognise, tie them to the bolts embedded in the trunk of The Weeping Tree with cable ties. None of them are wearing masks and all three are beaten to within an inch of their lives. Bruises bloom across their swelling faces, blood drips from numerous cuts, the clothes they’re wearing are dishevelled and torn in places.
They’ve fought and it’s clear who the victors are.
Of the three, Jakub looks to be the worst off. He’s out cold, his head lolling between his shoulders, a deep gash running from his hairline to his right eyebrow.
Konrad isn’t faring much better, the old scar on his cheek torn open and weeping blood. He coughs, and more blood releases from his mouth. “Do it. It’s no less than we deserve,” he mutters.
Kate grabs his face, her finger pressing into the newly open wound. “Get ready to say hello to your forefathers, prick, because they’ll be seeing you very, very soon.”
Konrad mutters something indistinguishable before his gaze lands on someone standing in the corner of the courtyard.
It’s me.
Or rather my future self.
I’m standing beneath one of the stone archways watching this all unfold. My arms are wrapped around my chest, and I’m shivering uncontrollably as more punches are thrown. Beast lands one on Leon’s stomach, making him double over and gag, his wrists pulling against the restraints. Kate raises her fist and hits Konrad on the cheek, the sound of bone breaking unmistakable, and the man I don’t recognise punches Jakub in the kidney before spitting at his feet.
“Please,” the future me whispers, holding her hand up for them to stop. There is pain in her eyes, such immense sadness that even though I’m yet to experience this moment, I feel what she feels.
It hurts to see them like this.
It’s… confusing, the pain.
