There was so much to plan and do and I felt the tension thrumming through me. Every nerve inside of me was on fire as every possibility ran through my mind.
The weight of the jewels around my throat and ears felt comforting as I moved as fast as I could with the ridiculously heavy lilac dress I had on. I needed to grab a bag I packed from my room now that my father was gone. As I walked through the kitchen, my eyes instantly slid over to the door that lead downstairs. There was no time to check on them, and yet my feet stopped in their tracks.
Since there was a festival, the number of guards around the property were only a few and they were all outside.
Chewing on my lower lip I turned away back to the stairs.
And felt a heavy feeling in my gut. With a gasp, I spun and ran for the spare keys, knowing I didn't have time to worry about these shifted when there was one I had in mind that I desperately wanted to get to.
Still, I opened the door and made my way downwards. The heavy feeling in my gut growing. And i knew before I saw. There was a certain emptiness in the air. A certain smell of rot and decay.
"No,no," the words tumbled out my lips as I glanced around, peering into each cell, "no, no, no, no."
Horror filled me as I stood frozen in the middle of the room.
Empty. It was empty. All empty. With smeared blood everywhere.
There had been an execution. Recently. And I hadn't even realized. My mind flew.
Why didn't I check on them sooner?
I wanted to save all shifted and couldn't even keep a few alive.
Falling to my knees as the weight of guilt started crushing me, I let out a bowl of pain, not caring any longer if I ruined my image of a daughter falling in line. Not caring if my father or the guards came running. I howled and howled.
Because I knew.
They were all dead.
And it was all my fault.
With shaky knees, I stood back up, even as my stomach turned at knowing what I had to do now, I moved towards the stairs.
The barn. I had to check the barn. Because there wasn't enough blood to indicate death in here, just a hint of the beginning of death. And the barn is where he drags them to die. I had to know.
Even as my body vibrated with fear and images of poor Lilac. I even chose my dress color today to honor her. It felt like a full circle as I raised my hand to the barn door. It looked so innocent from the outside, well besides the bloodied pole a few feet away. This whole property would surely be cursed for generations. Before I left this forsaken town I imaged burning it all to the ground.
Sucking in a breath, I pushed open the wooden door.
YOU ARE READING
Shifted
Fantasy(lesbian romance) (This is NOT a werewolf story it's a shapeshifter book) Kalaya must lead her people to freedom; humans have kept her kind enslaved with the propaganda that they are less than and should be treated like animals. Shifted are people...
