The Unforgiving Moon

Prologue

My eyes fluttered open, slowly waking to the sounds of people walking closer. I was surprised I'd even been able to sleep. My arms were hurting, straining against themselves. My knees were cracking under the pressure they were constantly under.

I slowly tilted my head at the sound of footsteps nearing me. Angry footsteps. The nervous ticking of the shoes on the floor echoed through the hallways, bouncing off the four walls that surrounded me.

My neck ached, too.

I was cold, but my body was too exhausted to shiver. Did this mean it'd be over soon? Was the end finally near?

I heard the creaking of the iron door open before I saw the wrinkled face appear through my swollen eyes.

She was here again. How many days had passed by this time? Or had it been none at all? Time was lost to me.

"Are you finally ready to give back what you stole?" her fuming voice asked.

I didn't steal anything, I thought, but I knew better than to speak. She'd only take it for a lie, and lying would be punished.

"Well," the old woman demanded. Her claws abruptly grasped my chin, piercing my two cheeks. Blood slowly ran down my face, the dripping when it finally met the floor silently echoing in the small, humid room.

It was given to me. I didn't want it. Take it back.

I'd forgotten that my silence never went by unpunished, either.

"Looks like we've gotten too loose with you once again," she threatened, rattling the chains that were holding my arms up.

My left arm forcibly moved along with the movement of the chains, straining my already overworked muscles.

In the corner of my eyes, I saw her grey hair bounce in the direction of the wall, before I saw two men walk in.

I recognized their smells--both guards were regularly stationed outside my cell.

As if I would try to escape. As if I would want to escape.

As if they could stop me if I tried to. Even Death had rejected me, and wanted nothing to do with me.

One of them pulled the iron chain my left arm was attached to, while the other one walked over to the opposite wall and did the same to the right one.

My arms were forcefully stretched upwards, dragging my body up and scraping my bruised knees on the damp floor of my cell.

I couldn't help but grunt at the ache that was spreading through my limbs.

After a nod from the vile old woman, the two guards secured the iron chains in their new tension, making sure my unwilling body would continuously drain and hurt itself.

The woman's face inched closer to mine, as she breathed, "You will change your mind. Perhaps another lesson will help you with that."

Chills ran down my spine at the mention of a lesson.

The woman laughed as she saw the terror in my eyes. "Pathetic."

The guards stayed quiet. Even when on duty, they never talked much.

On my second day here, one of them calmly asked me why I had stolen it. But they had already made up their minds about what happened that night, so they didn't believe my truth and never bothered caring for me or my story again.

Most days, all I heard was some dampness dripping off the wall and splashing on the floor. The sound got louder the more I listened to it, and I didn't know if that was partly the reason for my headache. Even now, I could hear it dripping in the background, in between the flames of fury the old woman was spitting.

"Unfortunately, today I do not have the time for your... education," the woman continued, her voice mocking sadness. "I will come back later, perhaps tomorrow."

I didn't bother raising my head all the way to watch her walk out of my cell, followed by the two guards.

"Keep her weak," she ordered them as they locked my cell door.

"Yes, Alpha," they answered, and through the iron bars of my cell, I could see them lower their heads.

As soon as I heard her leave, I shut my eyes again. Once again, I was alone in this cell, with nothing but my thoughts.

It was no different than outside of the cell. I was alone there, too. I was the only one of my new family who'd returned to Rahas. The only one who got to leave Spitta.

I was entirely alone. A loneliness that was endless, consuming me entirely.

Everything was different.

I was different.

Yet I was back to where I started, broken and alone.