Eli

Chapter 11

Eli

It was a woman.

She was standing at the door, listening carefully to the noise behind it. She smiled and helped Eli to get up. Eli – exhausted of the recent actions – didn't resist and left whatever fate may come in arms of this mystery woman.

Wary of the debris, they walked out of the unsteady building through the back door and found themselves in a beautiful tiny garden. In the middle there was a big cherry tree and, attached to its strongest branch, two stripes of rope were hanging along its trunk and holding a tiny board. A swing. Blossoming and harvest time for cherry trees was no longer the manner of present and the tree had been left with barren visage and few trembling leaves on its surface. The garden was lined with beds of red roses bloomed in its full vanity and capricious beauty.

The whole picture of this little garden with cherry tree, red roses, grass and debris, surrounding this little treasure, made one to grasp for air and feel as if he entered a whole new world, where all of one's doubts, regrets, pain could disappear.

Slowly, Eli lied her bare feet on the grass stained with tiny little drops of dew, tasted the freshness of air and allowed herself for a split second to get lost in the luscious fragrance of blood-red blossoms and to feel bottomless peace flowing through her veins.

But then, a bunch of hard coughs had set off and, there was a presence of another woman, who was now observing the girl wrapped in a yet-not-so-white sheet marked with black and brown stains. A presence which couldn't allow Eli to let her guard down.

She looked at Eli's clothing and frowned.

"Oh dear, you must be freezing..." she said and disappeared in the shadows of the building.

Suddenly the utter exhaustion had finally caught up and devoured all the remaining flames of strength that were softly shimmering on the plain burnt-out-to-ash fire-place within her. Slowly she slid down on the grass with her head pointed to the sky. Numbly, tiredly she looked at clouds idly floating across the blue heavens up above, changing its form, smooth and velvet. If only I could be a cloud, floating lazily and weightlessly in the air, being carried away by good-old-friend wind and watch the distant wonders of this vast world from above...

Except for shivering with cold and occasional twisting under hard coughs forcing their way out to daylight, she was still, unable of any unnecessary movement. She felt a tremor of approaching steps and raised her head in a way of its owner. A middle-aged woman slightly malnourished with wrinkles in her face and grey streaks spreading through her brown hair was heading her way, carrying pair of shoes and stockings, linen dress and nice warm coat.

"It's not according to the latest fashion but it should get you warm," she said and helped Eli to sit up for her strength had evaporated with the last surge of adrenaline.

Eli stared bewildered at the bunch of clothes in woman's arms. She fetched this...for me?

"It's okay. She... She would have wanted you to have it. Please, take it..." she held her arms Eli's way, smiling warmly, but Eli could tell there was a vast grief hidden behind this glazed sight and sincere smile...

"Come on, take it...It's alright, dear," she comforted her and brought the clothes closer to Eli.

Slowly and warily Eli took the clothes while gesticulating "Thank you" and feeling gratitude from the bottom of her heart.

Partly in faint she managed to dress while her cheeks turned red, ashamed of her naked body and two blood stains wrapped around her wrists. Even though the woman must have spot it, she didn't mention anything and was quietly standing aside casting her mind back to the horrifying night when her daughter had lost her life...

People are dying, both young and old... One human life means nothing to the real vast world...And time, life keeps going on...

***

Garret

"Why didn't the help come sooner?!" a man shouted through the loud crowd gathered before his tent, and another voice followed.

"Our families could have been alive!!!"

"Why didn't the king bother to help us?!"

"Screw the king!!!"

"My whole family was murdered in front of me because of you!"

"How dare you call yourselves our saviours! Bloody murders!!!"

"Go hide your tail to your noble castles!!!"

"This wouldn't have happened if you set off when the message reached you!!!"

"Why would you...?"

"Why aren't you saying something!"

He stood fiercely in front of the furious crowd with his fists clenched tight, listening carefully to all objections and every desperate cry that leaked out. Making sure that everything had permeated to his skin and inscribed itself with infernal ink. Because this was all his and only his fault, and he was well-aware of it...

As soon as the people had found out that the message was delayed due to an internal matter, they had gone angry and furious finding out that mourning the death of their queen was more precious to their king than lives of their beloved.

Who could blame them for doing so? It's only natural for the humankind to search for the cause of its uneasiness, hardship, to search for someone to point their fingers at, someone at whom they can gather all the hatred, anger and desperation.

The least he could do was letting them point all their hatred toward him, even though it could not possibly make up for the sins he was forever indebted for to them, let alone a way to redeem himself...

He glanced through the angry crowd, through each and every one of the hateful stares.

So much hate and sadness...

It didn't take too long, and people started throwing anything they could grab at... A huge apple headed his way. He didn't dodge it... Soldiers immediately set off to protect their prince and tried to calm the tensed situation.

"My wife..."

"My children..."

"My husband..."

"They're all dead..."

"All of them are..."

"Dead..."

"Gone..."

"Because of you!"

"Murderer!"

"You have a blood on your hands!"

"Don't think you'll wash it so smoothly, you bloody murderers!"

Garret stood with his head bent low, repeating the same words over and over again... As if it would make any difference...

I'm sorry...so sorry...

***