CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
"One, two, three, four, five,
Once I caught a fish alive
Six, seven, eight, nine, ten,
Then I let him go again."
I walk around in circles in the dark room, singing the words of the only song that came to mind. Boredom has come close to surpassing my hunger, leading me to occupy myself in ways I never anticipated.
"Why did you let him go?
Because he bit my finger so.
Which finger did he bite?
This little finger on my right."
I release a frustrated groan, tired of the colour black, sick of the constant deafening silence, and fed up with my own presence.
"One, two, three, four, five,
Once I caught a fish alive
Six, seven, eight, nine- Ow!"
My nose collides with the smooth wall, sending a small knock through my body. "Fucking piece of absolute shit," I curse mercilessly. I set my palms flat on the wall, staring straight at it as I all but yell, "Why can't you just fucking open?" I hit my palms against the wall as hard as I can, sending shockwaves through me. Ignoring the pain, I continue beating the wall, my rantings growing louder and louder by the second. "I hate this place! Stupid fucking wall! Why do you have to be here? Just let me out! I need food! I don't want to die in this shit hole! You stupid... I don't even know! Argh! Why..." I lower my voice as I slide down the wall, feeling my eyes beginning to water. "Why me?"
Yet as usual, I fight it. I wipe forcefully at my eyes, ridding of any tears that had been threatening to fall. I will not break. Not here, not now.
And that's how I end up lying on the cold, hard floor, once again staring up into nothingness. It's a never ending cycle and something that I'm beginning to do on a daily basis against my will. I can only assume I haven't been in here for merely one day. It has to be longer than that; it just has to.
I imagine life outside these walls. Staring up at the forest canopy, watching as the sun filters through numerous gaps between the leaves. I remember the feel of the soft dirt beneath my back, and of fallen dry leaves pressing into my skin. The sound of the breeze, of the crickets, of my own breathing, was enough to create a peaceful atmosphere.
As I allow the images to flow vividly through my mind, they begin to take shape before me. A low rumbling like that of a waterfall fills my ears, followed by a streak of sunlight that cuts its way through the darkness in the same way a knife slices apart two pieces of meat.
And then, as though by some miracle, the rumbling grows louder and the entire room is bathed in a vicious sunlight that hurts my eyes. I snap them shut, rolling over onto my side to shield my face from my consuming hallucination.
What is this place doing to me?
"Harper?"
The sound of a foreign voice initiates many reactions from my being. My heart jumps in my chest, blood pumping through my veins like there's no tomorrow. In an instant, I've sat up and twirled around, eyes wide and watering from the sting of the light. It takes me a while to fully comprehend what is going on.
The rumbling wasn't a waterfall; it was the door being opened. The light... the light was real.
"C'mon, we have to get out of here," the voice whispers, a silhouette walking towards me.
Slowly, I begin to back away, weary of the newcomer. I don't know where I am or why. I don't know who put me here. Who is this person? Is he here to take me to an even worse fate?
And then I pause. Because why would I miss an opportunity to escape this tomb? I'm not so sure a worse fate exists.
And just like that, I'm on my feet, stumbling towards the light like a zombie, as fast as my neglected form will carry me. The moment I step over the threshold, fresh air consumes me and grass appears under my feet, causing me to drop to my knees and press my face to it. The feeling of freedom is largely overwhelming, and right now, I couldn't care for anything or anyone else.
"It's alright, baby, you're safe now," a deep voice says nurturingly, crouching down next to my malnourished frame.
Something about the voice, about its tone, is all-too-familiar.
"Holy shit!" I exclaim, bolting upright and turning to face my saviour. "Kale?!" Immediately I throw my hands around his neck, clinging to him like he's my only connection to life; because that's exactly what he just was; that's exactly what he is.
"Shhh," he tells me. "Shhh, it's okay now. I'm so sorry about all of this. Shhh."
I pull away from him, my hand flying shakily to his cheek as I press my lips to his urgently. The prospect of being free is overwhelming; the fact that I have Kale in my arms, right at this moment, is even more so.
His lips respond to mine immediately, matching my urgency before he pulls back and states me in the eyes. It's when his thumb wipes at a wet spot on my cheek that I realise I'm crying. I take a few deep breaths, trying to compose myself, trying to take it all in.
"What has he done to you?" Kale whispers, pain and sadness shining through in his gaze. He cups my face in both of his hands, leaning his forehead against mine. "I'm so sorry, Harper. I wish I could have come sooner..." He presses his lips against my forehead as I merely relish being in his presence. As he moves away, he sits back slightly, staring vacantly somewhere past us. "I can't let him get away with this."
"Who?"
"I should have done something. I should have-"
"Kale." It's my turn to take his face between my hands, forcing his blue eyes to fix on me. "Who?"
Kale closes his eyes momentarily, releasing a deep breath. When he opens them again, they're full of nothing but apology and hurt. It almost makes me dread the answer.
"My father."
For a moment, I sit stunned, until I remind myself that this is Ashleigh that we're talking about. I just didn't think he'd have it in him to let me die in a dark, empty room. Yet if he was capable of shooting my parents at point-blank range, I probably should have guessed he was more than capable of locking me in a room.
Kale pushes himself up, walking away a few steps before stopping with his back facing me. He laces his fingers behind his head, figure appearing slumped and drained.
"Why?" I question quietly. "Why would he lock me in there and not just kill me?"
"Why does my father do any of the things he does?" Kale asks rhetorically, by way of explanation.
"How long has it been?"
"Three days."
"You're bullshitting me."
At this, Kale turns around, dropping his hands and staring at me inquisitively.
I shakily stand to my feet, struggling to support myself in my weak and deprived state. "I felt like I was in there for an entire week. It was nothing but pure blackness, Kale. The only sounds came from me. I didn't know what was going on or if I'd ever get out. I was beginning to lose it."
Kale walks back towards me and hugs me tight, pressing his face into my hair. "You fell unconscious after Kat..." Kale trails off quietly, murmuring into my ear. Having him so close does wonders to my attachment, and to my heart. "The Shadows brought us both back here, to the castle. They took you away. I tried to stop them but there were too many. I had no idea where they'd taken you or what they'd do."
"What happened to you?"
"My father did what he always does to those who betray him, and who he wants to suffer; he threw me in the high-security cell. Fed me nothing but scraps. He tortured me by talking about you; hinting that he'd killed you. knew I couldn't live with myself if that was the case; he knew that.
"Eventually I managed to escape. I got word of where you were but knew I'd need help to open the stone door."
"Help? Who...?"
A small smile curves it's way onto Kale's lips as he pulls back to look at me, tucking a stray piece of hair behind my ear.
"Of all people, it was Blake. He broke me out of the cell and told me where you were. He then got a pair of trusted soldiers to come with us here today to assist with opening the door."
I begin scanning my surroundings for the first time since I stepped out into the light. I can't place where we are.
Although Kale has filled in many of the gaps, numerous questions still plague my mind. And so I ask what would appear to be the question of the hour, and perhaps the question of my life:
"Why?"
"I... I'm not sure."
My head begins to spin, a lurching feeling swirling around in my stomach. The power of it causes me to drop instantly to my hands and knees, my gaze fixing on the grass once more. I close my eyes momentarily, allowing the pain to subside; however the minute I see pure blackness, I open them faster than I ever have before. Instead, I focus on the various shades of green upon the thousands of blades.
"You need to rest," Kale states, by my side straight away with a hand resting gently on my back.
"No-"
"Harper, you're weak. You can't continue on like this. We need to get you help. Food, water and sleep. Don't keep pushing your health to the side."
"We don't have time for this," I tell him quietly, willing him to understand. "There are more important things we need to be worrying about-"
"Harps, you are the most important thing I need to be worrying about. Come on, we need to get out of here before someone discovers us."
It's only just now that I realise how sore my parched throat is. In the rush of seeing Kale and talking to someone that wasn't myself, I forgot about my neglected state. Gently, Kale lifts my hands up off the ground, placing them around his neck. I grab on as he then lifts me up off the ground, sliding his hands under my legs to carry me bridal-style. I rest my head on his shoulder, willing my head to stop spinning and using everything I have to keep my eyes open.
"Where are we?" I murmur.
"Not far from the castle."
"Where can we go?"
"I'm not sure yet. You let me figure that out; just rest."
As Kale carries us down towards the Shadow town, I feel myself drifting out of consciousness. One minute I'll be facing a large tree, and the next thing I know I'm staring at a rock. I don't make much sense of what's happening around me, but no matter what I don't dare let go of Kale.
At last we come to a house, sparking my fear. Kale knocks quietly on the door three times.
"Are you crazy?" I hiss worriedly, head still resting on his shoulder.
"Shhh, just relax. I know what I'm doing."
The dark green door before us opens, revealing a forty-something year old woman. Instantly, her eyes widen, fear ravaging her face the moment she lays eyes on me.
"You shouldn't have come here," the woman tells him. "Are you trying to get me and my family killed?"
"I am your family, Claire," Kale says, "please, we have nowhere else to go. She needs help."
"Not from me she doesn't."
"If you turn us away, no one will be able to help this world."
"Is she really the Saviour?"
"Only time will tell."
The woman's blue-eyed stare is calculating and fearful. She's clearly torn in two. I realise that Kale is right; if Claire doesn't let us in, we're done for. There's no telling what Ashleigh would do to the both of us upon noticing our escape.
After what feels like an eternity, Claire steps aside and holds the door open, ushering us inside as quickly as she can manage.
"Thank you," Kale says sincerely.
The woman looks both ways down the street before closing and locking the door, and sliding two additional latches across the frame.
Her frantic movements and wary gaze are the last thing I see before I unwillingly succumb once more to the darkness caused by my state of deprivation.
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- ConfusingIllusions