Spark

Chapter Two: The burning of Ms. Wenrick

"Burn her! Burn the witch!" They all shout. A mother tries to lead her daughter away from the chaos. The mother is wearing a black zip up sweatshirt and dark jeans. Her hair is up in a sloppy bun and her dark brown eyes are filled with regret.

Who the townsfolk now claim to be a witch is the old lady who lived up the street from them, Ms. Wenrick. A wooden post is slammed into the dirt and sticks and wood thrown all around. They drag a praying Ms. Wenrick through the crowd and to the pole.

The mother tries to hurry through the crowd, practically dragging her four year old daughter by the wrist. Her daughter cocks her head at what's going on, unable to comprehend it. "People of Solia, Ms. Wenrick has been accused of having the Spark!" There was an angry murmur from the crowd. "What do you do to people with the Spark?"

"BURN THEM!" The zealous crowd shouted. They were blood thirsty, it was plain for anyone to see. The man who spoke laughed maliciously as two burly men finished up tying Ms. Wenrick to the pole. The girl slipped out of her mother's grasp and hurried forward, her long dark hair bouncing as she ran. Her green eyes darted around anxiously.

Ms. Wenrick was muttering prayers under her breath. "Death to the Spark! Death to the Spark!" It was dark out and stars twinkled down, the girl usually loved the stars and would stare at them all night. But now her wild eyes were on Ms. Wenrick. The kind old lady who knitted the blue-gray scarf she was wearing now. The same Ms. Wenrick who brought freshly baked cookies over every Thursday, and looked after the girl when her mother was at work. The one who took care of the family like a nurse, she was like godmother to the girl.

The man held up a red hot iron stick with a star at the end, the sign of the spark. He pressed it onto Ms. Wenrick's collar bone. Ms. Wenrick screamed and moaned with pain. "Now if the witch does escape, we know who she is! We will kill her again and again until she can escape no more!" The girl's eyes were wide and full of tears. Her mouth was partially open.

The two men were holding torches. "And now..." The man gave a crooked tooth grin at the crowd. "BURN THE WITCH!" The two men dropped the torches and the kindling quickly caught and a fire roared at Ms. Wenrick's feet. The girl took out at Ms. Wenrick, she tried to get to her, tried to save her, but her mother caught her by the waist.

The girl struggled against her mother's grip. Ms. Wenrick's cries were permanently seared into the girl's memory. The girl cried out to Ms. Wenrick as she tried to get to her, but her mother dragged her away, crying. Tears dripped down her face. This was the first burning Kyra Evens ever saw, and it wouldn't be her last.