Two Pieces of a Broken Heart | Edmund Pevensie

Chapter. 7

“Darling, I need you to be really quiet.” Josephine hushed the crying daughter in front of her as her heartbeat raced against the clock. She was aware that she had little time left and decided against taking a chance by postponing it any longer because doing so might endanger the life of her child.

Aliyah looked at her mother with tears pouring down her delicate face as she was put inside a cramped underground hideout. She was astounded by how chaotic her home was and by the loud gunfire that could be heard from the streets. Her father was nowhere to be found.

“What’s going on mommy?” Aliyah asked timidly, clutching onto her mother’s arms, not willing to let go.

Josephine forced a reassuring smile at her daughter, wishing time would stop because she knew what was about to happen. She would do anything to have more time just to remember her daughter’s look for the last few moments of her life.

“Promise me Aliyah.” Josephine kissed her forehead, staining it with her tears. “No matter what happens, do not come out here. Do you understand?”

Aliyah nodded her head obediently and she asked innocently. “What about you mommy?”

Josephine gave Aliyah one final hug before unclasping her necklace and placing it around her daughter’s neck. “I will always be with you. Promise me that you’ll be a strong girl.”

“I promise, mommy.”

“That’s my daughter.” Josephine smiled as reluctantly close the wooden door with Aliyah looking straight back at her. Her small hand reaching out and waved at her depressed mother, not realizing that is the last time she will be seeing her mother, alive.

All she remembers after that is a barrage of gunfire that echoed loudly throughout the house as she buried her tiny frame in the basement chamber and muffled her cries with a teddy bear she was carrying. As much as she wanted to go out there, she remembered what she had promised her mother. She could only pray and hope that this nightmare would end soon.

The sound died down after a while so as the dried tears on her face. She sobbed quietly as she climbed the ladder and carefully placed her ear against the wooden plank; dead silence.

Aliyah pushed the heavy wooden plank upwards with all her might as a ray of sunlight sipped through the opening into the basement chamber, revealing the rest of her house into her sight. She felt something moist on the floor, sipping through the gap and dripping on to her face as she carefully climbed her way up. Her face turned into terror upon realizing what it is.

Blood everywhere.

The young girl frantically searched for her mother for comfort as she ran around the kitchen, realizing she was nowhere to be found. She quickly made her way to the living room, where she came to a halt when she saw what was in front of her.

“No!” Aliyah screamed as she shot opened her eyes and sat up with sweat pouring down her face. She breathed heavily as the same memory haunts her from time to time, reminding her of her mother’s death.

That is something a child should not witness at a very young age. She was seven years old when she saw her bloodied mother’s lifeless body lying dead in the living room, and it scarred her for the rest of her life.

She desperately looked around, slowly acknowledging that she was back in one of the quarters at Aslan’s How but no one was in sight. She was rather relieved that she was alone so no one could see her in this state. Her hands quickly reached for her neck, searching for something, but pain grew in her heart even more as she figured that the necklace her mother had given her was no longer there. She buried her head in her hands before letting out a loud agonizing cry.