“Leave!” I hear my mother’s voice. “Don’t let Samuel kill you.”
“Kora, let’s go,” Tanya pulls at my arm. “More guards are coming!”
I can’t leave my mother behind. I love and need her too much. Gosh, I know I can’t just leave her here.
But I do.
Samuel’s guards are coming, and a survival instinct forces me to my feet. I grab Tanya’s hand and we run along the dark street toward the Field. Once we’re far away, I collapse to my hands and knees. Tanya sits down beside me, quiet and gloomy.
“Why wouldn’t she leave?” I repeat over and over. “The door was open. Why not get away?”
I lie on my side and pull my legs to my chest, rolling into a fetal position. I’ve lost my mother forever. Samuel will execute her for aiding the killer of his son. I’ve killed my mother by returning here.
***
A couple hours before dawn I leave Tanya concealed in the Field and head back toward the village. I stay hidden behind the piles of trash, lying flat on my stomach and watching as Samuel’s guards gather all the villagers outside. The servants look terrified yet nobody tries to resist, all heads lowered in complete submission. Everything happening here is because of me.
The guards herd the servants toward the meeting square. I wait several more minutes after everybody is gone before following. I realize how dangerous it is. I know someone could spot me. But how can I worry about my own safety when my mother is about to be killed?
Approaching the square, I conceal myself behind an abandoned shack. Samuel’s voice causes me to shiver. I recognize the voice, although I’ve only heard it once before. He informs the servants about my brutal attack on his son, demanding they reveal my location. The people in the crowd remain silent. They don’t know where I am. Samuel accuses my mother and Tanya’s relatives of aiding and concealing runaway slaves. Their punishment is to be death by fire.
I bite nervously at my lip till it bleeds. My head is dizzy. Everything happening seems surreal. I risk a quick glance from behind the shack. My mother and Tanya’s relatives are bound with rope to an old oak tree. The guards place more dry wood around them and splash them with gasoline. Tanya’s sisters and mother begin to cry. My mother is quiet, her face distant and relaxed. I don’t understand how she can remain so calm and indifferent. The horror makes my throat squeeze shut, and I feel as if Gabriel’s fingers are pressing into my neck once again.
“Where is she?!” Samuel asks, lighting a long match. “Where’s she going?”
Nobody answers. My mother smirks, looking directly into his eyes.
Samuel tosses the match onto the soaked wood and I watch in shock as my mother begins to burn.
I close my eyes tight and for a moment I feel as if I’m asleep. I just need to awaken and I’ll find myself back in my home together with my mom, safe and sound.
Their anguished screams force my eyes open. I turn my back on the meeting square and begin walking away. I stagger down a dark street, not seeing the road ahead of me or even bothering to watch for guards. I really don’t care if somebody discovers my presence. I have no fight left in me. I’m done.
A strong hand grips my wrist from behind. I turn to find Dimitri standing in front of me. He reaches an arm around my shoulder and covers my mouth. I don’t resist.
CHAPTER 18
Dimitri half leads, half drags me toward nearby brush, keeping his palm tightly pressed against my mouth.
“Keep very quiet,” he whispers.
I remain silent. I don’t really care so much what happens to me now.
Dimitri leads me into the brush, stopping often to check our surroundings. Nobody has noticed us so far. He approaches a long ago abandoned shack at the edge of the village, opens the door and leads me inside. I drag my feet, broken and indifferent. Dimitri closes the door behind us and takes me down to the basement, which seems to be too big and deep for such a small shack. My legs finally give and I sag to the floor like a rag doll.
Carrying me in his arms, he opens a door in the back of the room leading to an underground tunnel. I remember hearing rumors about secret entrances under the master’s mansion, so I’m not overly surprised. I’m too exhausted and devastated to feel anything. I let Dimitri carry me, my body sagging in his arms and my feet dangling. He holds a small flashlight in one hand, illuminating the way ahead.
Several minutes later Dimitri opens a heavy metal door and carries me inside yet another basement. It’s huge and reminds me of the place where Amy was killed. We ascend a staircase, pass through several passageways and enter a small room with a bed, table and dresser. Dimitri carefully places me on the bed and quickly leaves. I lie unmoving, staring into the high ceiling. I guess I’m inside the master’s mansion.
I wonder how I can remain alive after everything I’ve witnessed. My mother is dead, I think obsessively. I failed to rescue her. Grief swells inside, suffocating me, and I struggle to breathe.
The door opens and Lady Augusta runs toward the bed, Dimitri trailing behind her.
“Poor child!” She sits on the edge of the bed, touching my hand, but I don’t react. “Don’t be scared. You’re safe here. Samuel won’t find you inside our home.” She turns to face her husband. “Where’s the other girl? Go look for her right away! And don’t return until you find her!”
Dimitri mutters something and leaves, closing the door behind him. Augusta wipes her tears.
“I’m so sorry
