A Touch of Death

Three words (13)

Zahara looked at me questioningly and I nodded in confirmation. She dipped the wooden ladle into the cauldron and transferred the liquid into a small wooden, carved cup. She hesitantly handed it to me, “This will be painful Sterk een. You might not survive,” She warned.

My mind immediately drifted to Adrian and my family. I needed to do this for them; I couldn’t go on like this. I couldn’t drag them down with me, besides, nothing good comes free. I took the cup from Zahara’s hands and paused; I exhaled and brought the cup to my lips.

The drink was tasteless but as I finished the cup my body started to tingle, “Lay down child. I will be by your side the whole way,” She had told me softly before darkness stole my consciousness.

I started to fall. I shrieked but was cut off when I landed hard on the floor, I groaned but strangely, didn’t feel any pain, only a little breathless. I stumbled to my feet and looked around; I was in a white room. I tried walking forward to find the wall but the shade of white was endless.

“Delaney.”

I turned to see Adrian standing there in his normal, casual clothing, “Adrian? What are you doing here?” I asked.

“I’m your guide,” he answered.

I frowned, “My guide?” I questioned.

“Yes. Your guide, didn’t Zahara explain to you about guides?” He asked.

I got even more confused, “How do you know about Zahara?”

“I have my ways,” He replied cryptically.

I looked around to see if anything had appeared with Adrian but it was still its endless white. I turned to Adrian who held out his hand, “What are we doing?” I asked.

“You’ll see,” He smiled kindly.

I placed my hand in his and the white room vanished before my eyes and its place was a house, my old house where I used to live. Five kids that looked to be around ten were running around the yard. I caught sight of them and gasped, it was us when we were younger.

“We’re in the past,” I breathed as I watch myself play tag with my sisters.

“We’re in your memories,” He corrected,

I watched little me run around with my sisters. At the moment little I was chasing after Ariel and Ariel ran straight through me as did little I. I looked down at my torso in shock; they just ran through my body!

“Remember, we’re in your memories. There is no way you can alter or change it, we’re just here to observe,” Adrian warned.

I nodded. I smiled at how happy I looked just playing with my sisters, it was then I noticed I wasn’t wearing gloves yet. That’s when it hit me; I knew what was going to happen. I spotted the little run up to a puppy that had trotted up to our yard.

I went to stop her but Adrian stopped me. He gave me a warning glance and I understood, we were just observing. It still didn’t make it easy as I went to pat the puppy and the puppy started to seize up. The little me shrieked and jumped back, the puppy was dead thirty seconds later. The little me screamed bloody murder and my parents had rushed out. They stared at the puppy in shock and dad went to comfort me but I shrieked and shied away from his touch. I cried out what had happened and I saw something I didn’t see when I was little, my mums expression.

She was scared. She had put a protective hand over her inflated belly and stared at me with only one expression on her face.

Fear.