Berceuse for The Suffering (Complete)

5. {Severance}

As the van pulled to a stop in a clearing deep in the woods, Lyli's heart raced with fear. She looked at her companions and into the girl whose face was familiar, seemingly asking them to comfort her, but no one threw her a glance. The van door creaked open and revealed the outside to her. The harsh light illuminated her pale, frightened features as she stared out at the unfamiliar surroundings and the face of her captors. There were two of them. One was lean and tall. The other was shorter by a few inches and had a small build like that of a teen.

They were both wearing ski masks and black overalls, and their hands were covered with black gloves. Lyli watched in horror as they yanked one child after another out of the van and then loaded them to the other van that was parked just across the opened door of the van she was in. Lyli couldn't tell how long it took those men to get the other children out but soon, there was only her and the girl with a familiar face left inside the van. The taller and lean one yanked her out of the van and attempted to throw her inside the waiting van, but the other man, the smaller one screamed, "No, she is ours." After those words were said, the man who held her began dragging her through the underbrush, ignoring her cries for help.

She stumbled and tripped over the uneven ground, her hands scraping against rocks and thorns as she struggled to keep up with her abductors. The familiar-looking girl who was with her inside the van was being dragged by the smaller man. She too was screaming and crying out for help. Lyli watched how she struggled and tried to break loose from the man that held her but he was larger than her so her struggles were futile. When the familiar-looking girl bit the arm of her captor, Lyli watched, petrified, as the man screamed and with rage, he twisted the girl's arm and it snapped.

An agonizing scream rang throughout the forest.

But the forest was thick and dark, the trees loomed overhead like shadowy sentinels. Lyli understood that no matter how hard they cried out for help no one will hear them. So she tried to keep track of where they were headed, hoping that if they do find a way to break free they'd know where to go. But the twisting paths and dense foliage made it impossible.

The minutes dragged on and Lyli was continuously and mercilessly yanked like a doll. She felt the sweat pouring down her face and heard her own ragged breathing as she gasped for air. Despite her need to keep track of every bush and curve they passed, she kept her eyes on the familiar-looking girl who was abducted with her. She was slumped on one of the man's shoulders now, crying, squirming, begging to see her mom, and screaming that she was in pain.

Lyli wanted to touch her and comfort her, but she couldn't. The man who held her had a firm grip on her wrist and he was dragging her with a speed her small feet barely managed to match.

Finally, after what felt like hours of being dragged through the wilderness, they arrived at a small, rundown cabin. The men forced her and the other girl inside, shoving them down a set of creaking stairs that led to a dank, musty basement. They stumbled unceremoniously down the stairs. Her companion groaned and screamed in pain. She too screamed when her shoulder hit something hard.

The men laughed as they locked the door, leaving them alone in the dark. Despite her own pain, she blindly crawled toward where the other girl had fallen. She could barely see in the gloom, but she could feel the cold stone floor beneath her and the damp walls pressing in on all sides.

When finally her hand landed on a soft bump on the ground, she whispered, "Are you okay?" The other girl groaned. Lyli knew that she must be in terrible pain. But there was nothing she could do but grab her waist and pull her toward her own body. The girl screamed and Lyli chanted words of apology. They huddled in a corner, her arms wrapped tightly around her companion's body as she tried to make sense of what was happening. She could hear the sound of footsteps overhead, and the creaking of floorboards as the men moved around the cabin.