The Crimes of Silverian Wolves

Chapter One: A Town of Outcry

Astrid

Home has a bitter taste. So, when I reached the legal age, I strived to get a life for myself. Home was a prison. As bitter as it sounds, my childhood memory was filled with suffering. Some of which I could recall while some were too dark to relive.

My father had an obsession with politics. All he cared about was his political position and how he could build his own dynasty in Silveria. With that ambition, our family must hold a perfect image in the public eye.

Home was hardly a place of comfort. I didn't like the political talks over dinner and my father's constant push to become like him- a filthy, corrupt politician. He taught us a lot of things about plunder and how I could mask graft in the form of infrastructure projects. We had all the procedure guides. My father was a weaver of them.

There was a time when we resisted against him, and we ended up starving the whole week. As a vulnerable teenager at that time who depended on his money, I was forced to follow his demands. That cycle continued until Uncle Dominic, my father's brother, brought me downtown, where I saw the realities of the town. The effects of corruption on the townsfolk.

In downtown, food was a privilege. Workers barely had time for their family as big businesses kept them overworked with a little amount of salary. Hungry, deprived, and unattended children wailed across the streets, women turned into beggars, and breadwinners couldn't even buy a single bread.

Shame swallowed my system. I couldn't look myself straight into the mirror because what I had; from the clothes I wear and the food that nourished me, came from the sweat of Silverians. Although I couldn't make my own money yet, I was ashamed to live in town, and I'm sick with my father's control over us.

So, I sought Uncle Dominic's help to get away from my father's tight grip. My father feared his influence downtown, and I used that card as a ticket away from home.

Two years in Mirth, a town far from Silveria was peaceful. Not until I received a text message from Mom.

She's the walking definition of a dying martyr. I love her. Of course, she's my mother, but I couldn't comprehend why she still stayed with my father after all the abuse. Last week, I heard her voice again- soft but trembling. She said, "Your father has been receiving death threats. I'm afraid, Astrid. I'm afraid of his safety."

Even in life-threatening moments, she's putting my hideous father on top of her priorities. I had to go home and pull my mother away from danger. Perhaps, it's about time to bring her with me to Mirth and leave Silveria behind for good.

"Miss Astrid, would you like us to take a stop for a bathroom break?" My train of thoughts halted when Mr. Benjamin, our driver, asked. The long road of Silveria, which would take us an hour of drive, stretched before my sight.

"I'm fine, sir, but if you wish to take a break, it would be okay," I replied.

"Alright, miss. I'll be quick."

My sight followed him to the small convenience store beside a gas station until a swarm of people seemed to engulf him as they paraded down the street. They carried colourful banners above their heads. Pictures of politicians, my father included, were painted in mockery. I lowered the tinted glass window and listened to their plea. The town never changed. This was also the same sight when I left, except that they were fighting about taxes before.