Going Home

The question isn’t why she did it, but how? Her scrawny arms hung slack at her sides as the bloodied sword fell to the floor with a steely clang.

Her tiny chest still heaving, her eyes wide open and glossy with shock. She heard the clamoring of more men approaching, but she was helpless to move.

In the distance she could hear more screams, her thin and bloodless lips mouthed the word Mommy. She was paralyzed, as the sounds of chaos and murder permeated the thin mud walls.

Suddenly wood door splintered upon its hinges, forced open by a thick leather boot. The girl scrambled towards the sword on the floor before her, but before she could reach it a boot caught her with a swift kick to her boney shoulder.

The savage force sent her reeling backward and she crawled upon her hands and knees, retreating to the corner of the room.

A few more men entered, their blades drawn and grasped tightly. The men looked about the room in utter horror.

The bodies of 6 of their men lay strewn about the room, missing various appendage. One corpse lay with , his pale lifeless fingers splayed open upon the dirt floor, as if he were groping about for his head, which laid several yard before him, cleanly cut from his neck .

Their attention was then drawn to the tiny girl cowering in the corner, her bare feet coated in a thick layer of gore. A shout from behind caused the men to part, “Make way for the Captain!”

The Captain ducked to enter the small dwelling and then erected himself to his full height, a towering 6 foot 9 inches. His dark eyes narrowed as he surveyed the carnage, “My god this is truly magnificent!”

He stepped over a severed arm, his boot squishing a few random fingers beneath his sole as he drew near.

She wrapped her arms around her knees and pulled them against her chest as he crouched down before. He leaned forward so that they were eye level to one another, “Do not look so surprised, you know I have been looking for you since the day you were born don’t you?”

He gripped her chin and tilted her head up to examine her sallow face, “ Now be a good girl and tell me where the book is.”

She jerked her head from his grasp, “Where is my Mother!” His expression darkened, she was an insolent little thing, “You mother is dead.” , he replied with brutal honesty.

His sharp white teeth tugged at the fingertips of his gloved right hand, “That was a very naughty girl, killing 6 of my men, however useless they may have been.”

“ I’ll do it again too!”, she shriek as spittle flew from her mouth.

The man bestowed upon her a conspiratorial smile, “I know you will love, I am counting on it.”

He finished removing the glove and held his hand out for her to take. Her eyes were drawn to the mark upon his palm.

He grabbed her wrist, wrenching her arm away from her knees and unfolded her fingers, “See…it is the same as yours…is it not?”

She looked from mark on her palm to his in disbelief. His fingers tightened around her wrist as he shoved her open hand in front of her face, “See we are no different darling…you do not have to hide the book any longer…it belongs to both of us!”

Her voice was strained by the sudden tightness in her throat, “What am I?”, she croaked out.

He brought her hand to his lips and press a kiss to the mark in her palm, “You are mine…you belong to me…that is all you need to know…now hand it to me!”

She reached beneath her tattered and blood soaked dress and pulled out the small book, placing it in his awaiting hand. “Yes..”, he crooned, “…that’s my girl.”

He scooped her up in his arms, cradling her tiny frame against him as he swept her away towards the door. She instinctively wrapped her arms around his thick neck, “Where are you taking me?”

He inhaled the familiar scent of her dull brown hair, “Home, my love… I am taking you home.”