Promise: The Scarred Girl (21 page)

Nea listens to the silence and realizes they are probably an amusing distraction for the other prisoners.

The next day, the gates are opened again. Nea immediately runs to the bars. Maybe the guards will take her to Ereb. But when the guard stops in front of the cell and takes the prisoner who said he was next on the list, she realizes she will probably have to wait a long time. Nevertheless, she speaks to the guard, “Have you reported to Ereb about me?”

One of the guards turns to her and irritated, lifts his left eyebrow. Nea remembers him. He was also present the day before. “Sure,” the man replies and turns away.

“When can I see him?” Nea asks, even though she knows the man is lying to her face.

“When you're next in line,” he growls without turning around. He takes out the man and two other prisoners. All tall and apparently healthy men. Nea doubts Ereb will have them executed. The Carris have a need for slave labor. That makes her feel better about Arras' chances at remaining alive. She is also quite strong for a girl, though she does not look it.

More prisoners are picked up and more are brought in over the next two days. It is a constant coming and going, so now Nea and Arras are next on the list. In this time, Arras has still not exchanged a word with Nea. She tells herself that she does not care, but it hurts every time she looks at Arras. She felt so close to him and now he wants nothing more to do with her. Maybe she is selfish, but you have to be in order to survive in this world.

Additionally, she feels terribly weak. It has now been four days since she last ate something. The guards provide the prisoners with water, but they only eat when Ereb decides to feed them. It is a relief when on the third day; the guards open the cell doors and remove both Arras and Nea. They are carried through the courtyard of the prison and tied in a cage on a carriage and taken through the city. The eyes of the people are at times compassionate, and hostile at others, depending on whether or not they are slaves or members of Carris. They stop in front of the old town hall, a large Victorian building. It still exudes the splendor of the time before the disease. A warm red carpet paves the way for them to walk to the council chamber where every decision is made. The walls are high and made of precious marble. Each of their steps generates an echo. Nea would be impressed if she had not been so scared. It is unfair to let one man decide their fates.

The great doors of the council chamber are wide open so that they may enter easily. The guards force them to their knees and press their heads down before Nea can catch a glimpse of Ereb.

“Ereb is chaos, chaos is Ereb,” a voice not unfamiliar to Nea says. Startled, she raises her head and stares into the face of Urelitas. He wears a sunny yellow robe before her. Behind him is Kasia with a baby in her arms. She is guarded by several guards. At least she and her child are in good health.

“I remember you,” Urelitas continues slowly, threateningly, pointing an outstretched finger at Nea. “I knew something was wrong with you immediately.”

Nea would loved to have laughed out loud. He really had no idea! What is he doing here anyway?

“No one lies to Ereb! You have used his name for your dastardly plans,” he accuses. Nea looks inconspicuously around at the people present, but none of them seem to be dressed splendidly enough to be considered godly. Is their leader not here? If it wasn’t for Kasia, she would think this Ereb was nothing but an invention created by the Carris.

Urelitas now turns to the others present, “This traitor has kidnapped Ereb’ first wife and thus endangered the life of his child!”

Nea stares at Kasia stunned. Kidnapped! Nea saved her, even if she betrayed her later. Kasia makes no attempt to defend her. “That’s a lie!” Nea yells. “I did not know who she was!”

“How dare you, you accuse the first wife of lying?” Urelitas snaps back. His pale skin turns red and veins stand out on his forehead.

“She’s telling the truth!” Arras surprisingly comes to Nea’s aid. “I was there myself.”

“That’s her accomplice!” Urelitas now turns to Arras. His outstretched finger almost touches Arras’ nose.

“Kasia help us!” Nea calls pleadingly. Kasia shakes her head sadly. “You betrayed me,” she whispers so quietly no one can hear. Nea reads the words from her lips. She probably could not help them even if she wanted to. Like a coward, she doesn’t even try.

“Where is Ereb?” Nea calls. “I will speak to him myself!”

Urelitas laughs hysterically. “You do not deserve the honor of his presence. I will make the judgment in his name and will.”

Nea already suspects that this cannot end well. She knows that Urelitas is a cruel man.

He points to Arras. “I sentence you to twenty lashes.”

The memory of Arras’ completely scarred back flashes before Nea. Tears shoot out of her eyes and she looks at Arras and the scar that runs on the right side of his face. Tears roll down her cheeks. He has suffered enough already. Just the thought of it, the lattice of scars on his body, her heart breaks. It’s a pain that goes deeper than any physical suffering.

“No,” Nea screams before she can think.

Urelitas’ view darkens and condescendingly says, “Do not worry, you’re next.”

“I will take the lashes. Arras is innocent. He has done nothing.”

Now it is Arras who screams, “No! I can pay my own debt.”

“You’re not to blame,” Nea replies. “If you had not helped Kasia you would not even be in this situation.”

“If I had not helped you, I would never have met you,” Arras replies and looks at Nea in the eye for the first time in days. His eyes are full of warmth. For a moment she forgets about all of the people around them and their impending doom. It is an intensive exchange of glances that says more than words could. Their wordless connection is back. They have found each other. Two fragments arise and form a whole.

“That’s enough!” Urelitas complains, angry at the interruption.  “When you take your punishment, I will allow you to join the slaves.”

He says it as if Arras has a choice. But who would prefer death to slavery?

He turns to Nea. “You not only lied to the Carris and the first wife, but also to Ereb. For you there is no salvation and are condemned to death by fire. Before that, however, you will receive twenty lashes.”

Nea feels the color drain from her face. Her stomach rebels and her knees soften and buckle and she falls on her butt. She gasps, but in the next moment she vomits on the floor. It is pure bile. Nea gasps for air. Arras screams and thrashes around while Kasia sobs loudly. For Nea it is meaningless. She does not struggle as the guards grab her under the arms and carry her out of the hall.

N
ea sits alone in the cell. Arras is no longer with her. She needs his closeness now more than ever. Now that they have become friends again, he would surely close his arms around her and she could forget about how hopeless their situation is, at least for the moment. She tries to get used to the idea that she will die, but it is impossible. She talks to herself over and over again, but the spark of hope is not easily extinguished. She does not know who or what could rescue her. Nevertheless, she is certain that Arras is trying everything in his power to free her, but he himself is a prisoner, and no matter how strong he may be, has a small chance of succeeding against a city full of Carris. Not only that, but he has not had time to think about a plan. Even if Kasia helps him, it would be difficult, but Nea doubts Kasia will get involved.

She does not miss the curious gaze of the other prisoners. In the time since she was returned to the prison, none of the other prisoners have returned, which means they were condemned to slavery. Ereb and the Carris must be afraid of her, otherwise they would not have condemned her to death. Maybe Urelitas had a personal vendetta against her. She hoped she would never see the man again.

Nea wonders if her whole trip was a mistake. If she had never left her home, she would not be stuck in a prison. But she would have never met the twins. They showed her that she is able to make friends. She always thought she would live the rest of her life alone. She believed that after Miro’s death she would not be able to build an interpersonal relationship with another person. She was never good at it. She was always secretive and obstinate. After Miro’s death, she could not bear being near other people.

She thinks of Arras’ warm eyes that betrayed the soft core behind his hard shell. He was the first person she was close to since Miro. Not on a physical level, but emotional. Even she does not understand the bond that developed between them. She just knows that she feels comfortable in his presence. She feels less broken.

Maybe they could have been more. Maybe they could heal each other. If they had more time. If they had lived in a different world.

Nea looks up at the window. The first rays of sunlight barely penetrate into the cell. She is thankful that the sky is overcast and gray. In her position, she feels sunshine would be a mockery. Although she is tired and stuck in this cell with her thoughts and memories, she feels the last hours of her life are too precious to waste sleeping.

Soon the cell doors open and Urelitas walks in. He is accompanied by several guards. Nea is subordinate. Nea feels that to fight would be pointless at this time.

Urelitas tosses a black cloth to the ground at her feet. “Put this on!”

She looks at him questioningly. The cells are visible to everyone. Does he now want to take her last shred of dignity by forcing her to strip in front of all the other prisoners and guards?

“Well, come on! We haven’t got all day!”

Nea bends down and lifts the black fabric. It is a simple dress whose back is uncovered. She knows why. She swallows her tears and unlaces and removes her boots. Then she removes her pants and top so now she stands in her underwear. She turns her back to Urelitas and removes her bra. Quickly she pulls the dress on. She closes her eyes for a moment and takes a deep breath. He can take her dignity only if she allows it.

With head held high she turns to him and smirks at him, challenging him. She thinks, ‘
You cannot break me!
’

The guards grab her and lead her barefooted from the cell.

Nea is taken to the large square in front of city hall. It was empty the day before, but today it is full of people. Most of them are slaves. The guards form a pathway to allow Urelitas and his entourage through. A platform has been built directly in front of the town hall and next to it is a stake and pyre. She will soon be strapped to it and set on fire. Everything seems so surreal that Nea almost expects to wake from the nightmare at any moment.

On the other side of the platform are guards, other Carris priests, and Kasia, holding a child in her arms. Nea does not know if it is a boy or a girl. Despite all that has been happening, Nea is suddenly overcome by a feeling of affection for Kasia and realizes that she would have never had the heart to betray Kasia had her child been born under her and Arras’ care. Kasia appears to be crying and is very pale. The slight rain causes her blond hair to stick to her forehead. As Nea enters the platform, she sobs loudly. The attending priests admonish her to maintain posture, but Kasia cannot control her tears.

Urelitas forces Nea to kneel on a wooden block in the center of the platform. For the first time, she directs her sight at the crowd and finds Arras immediately. He stands in the front of the crowd and is held by several guards. He is being forced to watch. His anger is apparent. His whole body is under stress, like he is readying himself to fight back at the slightest opportunity. Seeing Arras makes Nea so happy that a tiny smile flits across her lips. Arras’ eyes water and a single tear rolls down his scarred cheek. Nea would like to wipe away his tears, to touch him and show that his scars do not repel her, that she admires his will to survive. She wants to show and tell him so much, but she will not be able to. It will be one of the many things in life she will be unable to do.

“This woman is a traitor!” Urelitas screams at the crowd. There are no calls. No murmurs. It is dead silent.

She kidnapped Ereb' first wife. She lied to us. She betrayed us. She wanted to take the Holy Child.”

His words move the crowd. Most of the crowd appears to be slaves who are only there under duress, and must go along with the spectacle. “You will regret your deed as you receive twenty lashes and then burn at the stake. Only in your death will Ereb redeem your unworthy life.”

Nea’s heart is racing. She is afraid of the pain the first blow will trigger. She has survived a fight with a bear, but this will be completely different. She is defenseless.

“You may begin,” Urelitas commanded. To Nea, it sounds like a man entered the stage from the rear. She cannot see him. Her hands are sweaty as she tries to hold onto wooden block for support. The slight rain covers her back and she hears the crack of the whip before it hits her. She has nothing to compare the pain to. Nea tries to be strong. She does not cry or scream, but the impact pushes tears to her eyes. It feels as if someone has taken a knife and slashed her back. Even the wind that sweeps over the wound hurts.

The next strike is even worse as it touches some of the soreness of the first strike and robs Nea of her breath. She can only scream. Every other thought is wiped out, even today, the day of her death.

After the eighth blow, Nea’s strength is gone. She can no longer cling to the wooden block. Her head falls forward as she gasps for breath. It’s hard for her to keep her eyes open. She moans in pain as the ninth blow hits her back. She gazes out to the crowd and sees two familiar faces. The twins. They wear the dark red vest of slavery as they stare up at her crying. They hold each other and shake all over. Nea is not sure if she is hallucinating. It makes no difference, because she will soon die.

The tenth blow hits her bleeding back and Arras’ cry breaks through to her. His scream is louder than hers. The Carris guards holding him act like they are trying to keep a wild animal at bay. Nea does not regret her decision. She does not want to change places with him. It would kill her to see a man she loves suffer so much. Love? Does she love Arras? She barely knows him. It is meaningless. Nea loses consciousness.