The Price of Redemption

Chapter 1

Chapter 1

The heavy rain pelted the umbrella that protected the short, pale girl underneath. Her hands shook as she gripped the umbrella tightly, attempting to hold it up despite the heavy down pour. Elizabeth was soaked to the bone, her long, simple black dress clinging to her like a second skin. Hair fell in a mass of frizzy golden locks down her face, stopping at the bottom of her waist, with split ends coming in front of her face and sticking annoyingly to her dress.

Elizabeth was shivering so badly. She wanted to move but her feet were rooted to the ground. It was almost as if an invisible force was keeping them planted their. So she just stood their, gazing at the grave in front of her with dead eyes. Any bystander would have thought that she was simply doing what people usually do in grave yards. Mourn. How wrong they were. Instead of mourning for a life lost, she was selfishly thinking of what would become of her.

She knew that she was probably the most despicable human being on the face of the planet for not shedding at least a few tears for her Aunt's death, but she couldn't bring herself to care. Aunt Clarrise was solely responsible for her own death. Years of drinking ad smoking had put her in an early grave. At forty five years of age she should not have had a heart attack. But she did. Her kidneys had failed her and now she had vanished. There one day and gone the next. Just like that. Although Elizabeth tried to convince herself that it wasn't a big deal, which it wasn't to her, but at the same time it was. Aunt Clarrise had been the only family she had left so she guessed that was reason enough to feel sad. Of course, there was the other side of her that was relieved that her aunt wouldn't be weighing her down anymore. It felt like a heavy burden had been lifted off her shoulders. Now there was no one left except her. There wasn't even a pet to keep her company.

Sometime between her thoughts, she had come to the conclusion that she was going to live her life as before. She had, after all been the one to take care of herself during all of her years of living. Aunt Clarrise's death wan't going to change much. She would still go to college four days a week. She would still alternate working at Starbucks and the Minnie mart after school and on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Nothing had to change. The only difference would e that instead of feeding two mouths she would only be taking care of herself. Free to stop constantly worrying about her aunt. Free to spend the money she earned the way she wanted to. Elizabeth almost felt a smile pushing its way onto her lips but then she was reminded of her loneliness.

With conflicting emotions, Elizabeth made her way out of the graveyard and in the direction of the forest. It had always been her safe haven when the sun was out and the birds would flutter through the trees, emitting a sense of peace and calmness, emotions she rarely felt because she was always in a hurry. Although now without the sun shining through the trees, the forest suddenly had a very dark and scary feeling coursing through her spine. This caused her to swiftly make her way through the forest, not looking anywhere but the way ahead. For some reason she now realized how cold it was. Elizabeth noticed the shaking of her numb hands and feet. This caused her to break into a jog, her wet dress slapping against her skin. She cursed herself for being so stupid. She couldn't afford a cold right now.

She stopped jogging when she saw her little trailer home come in to view just at the edge of the forest. She quickly unlocked the door and walked inside, thanking God that she had remembered to pay the heater bill. She started peeling off her clothes as soon as she got in, stumbling to her small one bedroom. Deciding to let her clothes dry on the heater, Elizabeth quickly changed into sweats and a hoodie. She then headed out into the living room, consisting of a small, brown couch, a wooden coffee table, and a small boxed tv in the corner. She switched on the TV, flipping through the few channels she had since she had no cable. Less than twenty minutes later she was asleep.