The Hangings

Chapter Two

I blinked twice as the sunlight peeking through the ragged, torn curtains shone into my eyes. Rolling out of bed, I stood up and shook my head. I had slept through most of the day. It was late afternoon, so the market should still be open. I threw on my worn and mud-covered hunter boots, grabbed my sack, and ran out the door.

For a steaming hot summer day, there were many villagers roaming outside. Various merchants and their carts of goods bordered the streets. A few people milled about, while the rest rushed to buy overpriced, overly-ripened fruits and hard, stale loaves of bread. All of the produce that was delivered to the Proletariats were leftovers from the harvests of the Valor food supply. Knowing that the Valors had their lives so easy, so full of lavishment, made flashes of hatred ran through me.

Valors were the "superior" people of Ranok, glorified only by their social rank. The Ranok government, the Insignia, and the Valor lords owned most of the nation's land. A sliver of barren, polluted land was given the rest of the common people, the Proletariats. While the Valors were surrounded with elegant buildings, their extravagant arches and towers of marble looming over the city, most of the Proletariats dwelled in the Slums, a branch of poorer towns that were occupied with old, ramshackle stone buildings. The chairmen of the government were pampered with servants waiting on them, both hand and foot, meanwhile Proletariats could barely function themselves, given their living conditions, yet they braved through the day all the while.

The twisted Insignia government, led by the wicked emperor Nare, favored only the Valors. The snobby and self-preserved chairmen cared little about the remaining citizens of the land, much less of their well-being and living conditions. They only paid attention to any form of rebellion against the government, forcefully shutting it down. Every year, they made sure that the Hangings were an example of anyone who disobeyed.

~

I walked over to a merchant's cart, where the line for produce was painstakingly long. Making sure that the vendor was occupied with his customers, I snuck to the adjacent barrel full of ripening apples. Whipping my head to each side, I searched for prying eyes. Once I was convinced that no one had paid any attention to me, I took an apple from the barrel and quietly put it in my sack. As I trudged along the street, I recalled the strange events from the day before. I remember the young girl, Yona, and pondered how she could have escaped. No victim had ever survived the Hangings, much less run off without any notice.

Nearing the edge of town, I glanced over my shoulder. No one was within sight of me. I made an abrupt turn into a narrow alley on my left.

Slinking down the dark alley, I made sure that I was constantly beware of all of my surroundings. A torn apart house here, an overflowing dumpster there. There was no other movement in the shadows but my own. This worried me- calm was dangerous in the backways of the Slums.

After what seemed like forever, I reached my destination. Approaching the cave, the entrance to the low tunnel loomed ahead of me, and I dashed into it. I was met with a cool breeze that rushed into my face, and a low, familiar voice.

"I had a feeling you'd be coming back soon. I know my favorite customer well, of course."

"Hey, Sal," I said.

Once I fully emerged from the shadows of the stone cave, I could fully Sal. His lean, muscular body was covered in tattoos, and he loomed over all of his customers, which gave him a rather menacing demeanor. However, Sal was one of my only "friends", as you could call him- although he was more like a partner in trade. He ran the Stocks, which was a chain of black markets in the Slums and other nearby villages. I approached Sal's cart, which was hidden by a dip in the cave from any keen eyes.

"What can I do for you today? Find anything nice?" Sal questioned, a hint of curiosity in his voice.

"Actually, I think I did. Could you have a look at something for me?" I rarely asked for favors, but today I was in dire need of one.

"Sure, no problem," he said as I reached into my bag, pulled out a small satchel, and handed it to Sal.

He peered inside, and, with a mixed expression of shock and interest, carefully dumped the contents onto the top of his cart. Two golden wedding bands fell out onto the wooden surface.

"These are beautiful... pure gold from the mines down south," Sal exclaimed, clearly amazed. "These are worth at least sixty pounds of silver! Lai, where did you get these?" he asked, frowning.

"You know that I have my ways, Sal. I wouldn't ask if I were you," I snorted. "But if you must know, these were my parents'," I said as I momentarily looked downwards.

Reaching into my bag, I pulled out the rest of the items of which I had mostly stolen... or as those in the black market would say, "gathered" or "found". I set down a few watches, some bracelets, and several coins onto the top of the cart.

"Ah, that seems more like you," Sal chuckled. "Never one to pass up an opportunity to snatch a few goodies, huh? Well, I'd say that the lot of this," he said, pointing to my pile of miscellaneous items, "is worth about three-and-a-half pounds."

"Only three-and-a-half? Sal, last week these would've been worth at least five pounds."

"I'm sorry, Lai, but you and I both know that the market is constantly going downhill, especially during this time of year," Sal explained. "However, I'm willing to make a deal with you. I'll give you eighty pounds for the entire stash, including the rings."

I hesitated for a brief moment. These were the only things of value that I had left of my parents, after all. The rest was gone or useless. Shaking my head slightly to clear my mind, I decided, "I'll take the deal. Thank you for all your help, Sal."

"Anytime, Lai, it's my pleasure," Sal said as he stuffed a large amount of silver into a sack, and handed it to me. "And this is just me being curious, but what are you planning to do with all of this money?"

"Not sure yet," I replied honestly.

Originally I had been going to stash the silver away, and save it for a time of dire need. However, after many hours of contemplation, I figured that I may as well do what I've always wished for, ever since I was a little girl- to get out of this hellhole.

Now I could.

And I'd never turn back.