Shadow In The Woods

4-Dark Soul

🥀Ayla's POV🥀

In the eerie silence I stared at the oak tree. Feeling empty, lost in a sea of emotions. My mouth was filled with the acidic taste of loss and rage.

A heap of bodies lay by its trunk.

A part of me wanted to run forward, to see if anyone was still alive, to see who of my friends had been killed due to my idiotic, temper tantrum

But I remained frozen in absolute horror. Scared to take a step. Scared to breathe. Perhaps if I remained inconspicuous enough the pain and sorrow would pass right over me.

My attention was drawn away from the tree of death by two Grisha dragging a unconscious man towards the Darkling and I.

It took me a while to recognize Mikhail beneath all the blood and bruising. His light blue eyes were swollen almost completely shut and his light brown hair was stained a dark auburn by blood. Mikhail was a migrant farmworker, who had become a close friend.

One drunken night he had been my first kiss. My relief at seeing him nearly made me want to rush to him and repeat the mistake.

The Darkling's jaw clenched when he saw him. He lifted his hand and a Heartrender came scurrying closer.

"Wake him" He said coldly

The Heartrender's hands danced over Mikhail's chest and I could see the pulse in his neck speed up.

Mikhail gasped for air and his eyes flew open. He immediately started struggling. "Let go of me !" He tried to sound angry put I could tell he was absolutely petrified.

"Where are the people who did this ?" The Darkling said folding his hands behind his back

"How the hell am I supposed to know ?" Mikhail said his eyes darting towards the Darkling before settling on me.

"Ayla, what are you doing with..."
The Darkling roughly grabbed his chin forcing him to look away from me.
"Don't look at her, look at me. I'll ask you again. Where are the people who did this ?"

"I don't know." Mikhail said meeting the Darkling's eyes.

"I don't believe you." The Darkling said narrowing his eyes.

His grip on Mikhail's chin hardened, his knuckles turning white. "Things are going to become rather unpleasant if you continue lying to me." His voice was laced with so much venom.

I stepped closer and grabbed the Darkling's arm. He looked down at where I had grabbed him before meeting my eyes. I was momentarily at a loss for words as I looked into those stormy, quartz eyes.

"He's not lying." I finally blurted out.
The Darkling dropped his hand from Mikhail's chin and turned to fully face me.
"Look at him, he's lucky to be alive." I said softly.
"A few superficial wounds are enough to convince you ?" He said mockingly.
"He's not lying. I know him." I said passionately.

The Darkling's face contorted into a sneer. "Do you, now ?" he growled.

"Yes, I do." I said angrily.

It was all becoming overwhelming his stormy eyes, this odd bond that seemed to pulse between us, the odd twinge in my veins everytime he looked at me. Mikhail looking to be on the verge of joining the heap of corpses beneath the tree. It was too much to face.

I suddenly turned on my heel and stormed off. Leaving my storm of emotions behind.

I felt myself slowly moving to the oak tree in some sort of trance.
I realized that all of the bodies were headless as I reached the trunk. I looked around recognizing a few of the farm workers by their clothes and hands.