Total pages in book: 20
Estimated words: 17648 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 88(@200wpm)___ 71(@250wpm)___ 59(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 17648 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 88(@200wpm)___ 71(@250wpm)___ 59(@300wpm)
I watched in awe as his blood stained the planks of the wooden floor.
I waited for the fear to settle in, the panic and horror that I’d just killed someone… my father. But there was no crushing weight of guilt. All I felt was a strange numbness, a cold, empty void where my fear had once lived. My heart slowed, my pulse steadying, and my breaths came in even intervals as I crouched and got a closer look of my father.
I didn't realize I was doing it until I had the handle in my hand and was pulling the blade out. It was harder than I thought it would be, and as soon as the metal was out, blood seeped out of the wound like an open line.
When I released the knife, the blade clattered against the floor. I stepped back, the blood starting to make a slow trek toward my bare feet.
Slowly, methodically, I wiped the blood from my fingers on the edge of my clothing. And then I turned, my steps slow and deliberate, the world around me moving in a strange, detached blur as I started to clean up. I grabbed a threadbare blanket off his chair, and without thinking, I draped the material over my father’s body as if that would conceal what I’d done.
With my mind still blurred and distant, I crossed the room, my bare feet whispering against the floor as I cleaned up, washing away any proof of what I’d just done. And then I sank onto my thin, straw pallet, the rough fur my only barrier, scratchy against my skin.
I lay down, my eyes staring up at the beams above, my heartbeat slow and calm, and my mind clearing the longer I lay there.
And when I finally closed my eyes, I realized—for the first time in my life—I felt… peace.
2
KATRINA
Ididn't know what woke me, but as I tried to wake, knowing it was still late and the sunrise was hours away, I knew something felt… off.
And then I heard it. Someone was on the other side of the closed bedroom door. The wood floors creaked under their weight. The splintering groan that cut through the room seemed so loud in the still quietness of the cabin, but it sounded louder than anything I’d ever heard.
My blood rushed in my ears and panic strangled in my throat. I hadn’t killed my father. He was up and coming to hurt me, to make me pay for what I’d done.
I pushed myself up on my straw mattress, the fur blanket slipping from my shoulders as the door suddenly crashed inward, the hinges screeching in protest as it was ripped from its frame.
I screamed and stood, scrambling back against the wall and trying to grab anything I could use as a weapon. My heart raced so hard it hurt in my chest, and all I saw was darkness.
Shadows flooded the small, cramped space, massive forms flooding into the room and blotting out the slight, pale moonlight that filtered through the thin material that covered the lone window.
They weren’t humans. They couldn’t be given their sheer size and distorted body parts, monstrous shapes with twisted, gnarled limbs, and eyes that glowed like the stars that dotted the inky sky stared right at me.
One of them hissed, and the longer I stared, the more my vision adjusted to the shadows. I made out jagged, yellowed fangs and skin that was rough, scarred, and an eerie shade of green. It stood just mere feet in front of me.
I tried to scream again, but when I opened my mouth, nothing came out. All was silent. Instead, what I heard next was a strangled growl as a massive body charged forward, and a scaled hand closed around my arm, its claws digging into my flesh. I did find my voice then.
The creature’s skin was cold and rough, and I thought the scales would be smooth. Instead, they were rough, almost sharp against my skin as the beast yanked me forward, my leg tangling in the fur I’d been sleeping with. I fell forward, my bare knees hitting the hard, wooden floor with a bone-jarring thud.
I choked on a sob as monstrous hands tightened around both of my arms now, lifting me as if I weighed nothing. I cried out, trying to scratch, bite, and fight for my life. My bare feet slid against the floor as I was dragged out of the bedroom and toward the front door now hanging by its hinges.
On the floor, still hidden under the blankets I threw over him, was my father’s corpse. Still unmoving and lifeless thanks to me.
Once outside, the chilly night air hit me like a slap to my battered body. The creature pinned me tightly to his side, guiding me quickly through the dense, marshy forest. I felt his scales and claws digging into my flesh, tearing at me like I was made of paper. My nightdress offered little protection against the cold wind that swept through the trees and slammed into me. The swampy mist curled around my legs, clinging to my skin like the devil’s fingers.