Hers Freely

14. About the morning

There was a gentle breeze skimming my face, so I cuddled deeper into my pillow. Surely one of the younger girls, Lisa or Abby must have left the door open. I wasn't one for mornings, I cherished the serenity that sleep offered. But then the sound of her heels clacking along the floor made me cringe. Ugh! This wasn't going too be a good morning.

"Hurry, up, up! I want all you older kids to make yourselves presentable and meet up in the dining room." I shuddered at the squawking of the Misses voice, and just ignored her by pulling up at the blanket.

Next thing I know the Misses yanked the blanket off and said angrily," Don't try me today Ella, get your lazy ass up, now."

I whipped around with a scowl, ready to sass her back but I saw how flustered she looked this morning so I let it go.

We all hurried putting on our best clothing which meant the ones with less holes, and scurried down to the dining room. Looking around the room, some of us were smiling brightly, probably expecting with excitement some kind of reward while others including myself had a more perplexed look. During the time spent here at the home and as far as I can remember, no one has ever praised or gifted us anything. Something wasn't right.

Through our chatter the Misses announces " everyone form a line and please be quiet." Despite her attempt, some continued to ask questions especially if we were in trouble. Then at one point a resounding bang of the door had us all stop in utter silence and stare, as two very tall bulky men walked in. I could feel their hard eagle eyes surveying the room.

The Misses greeted them with hand shakes and explained " These are all the ones from ages 9 and up."

Their intimidating glare had us standing next to each other focusing on our dirty worn shoes, avoiding direct eye contact with them. However, I couldn't help peaking through my limp straight hair questioning who they are and what they wanted.
All of a sudden, they started picking and pulling us to form another line of those chosen. It was horrible how they pulled down at our lips to examine our teeth, prodded at our bellies and shoved at our arms and shoulders. Dread twisted in my gut at the realization, they were assessing us, but for what. Soon one of the men appeared in front of me, and all I saw were heavy thick boots.

"Look at me." he tells me sternly.

Quickly obeying, I 'm confronted with a extremely tall man with inky dark hair pulled back into a ponytail. He considered me with his intense dark eyes, he stills for a second, then gentle caresses my cheek. "she'll do." He directs to the other man slightly shorter.
"But she's small for her age and a bit awkward, she won't survive for long." contested the shorter man.
"No one asked you. Now start getting them in the van." The ponytail guy instructs.
I stood there with a gaping mouth. They're taking us away.

Soon he was leading us outside, in front of me were 7 girls and 2 boys. The Misses was standing at the door entrance, watching us walk out, some with tear stained faces and others actually trembling and pleading to stay. All the while the Misses gave a fake smile without a word of comfort spoken.
This whole situation felt off.

Being the last to pass, she widens her smirking smile and sings " good luck Ella."
The Vile wretched woman was happy.

As I was catching up to the others, I
had to take a last glance at the only home I've known, there, I saw the tall ponytail guy hand a yellow envelope to the Misses.

At the same time, we were being pushed into a red dusty van, the shorter man says " Don't think about the life you've lived so far, that's over. So stop crying and bitchin cause that's gonna get you nowhere."

I paused my steps and at his words. I propelled myself to break the line, my gut was telling me to not get in that van. I tried running, but as I belted towards the road, instantly the tall ponytail guy was in front of me and grabbed me, pulling me up by one arm while I was crying and kicking. As he was dragging me, I bit down on his arm but there was no reaction when I looked up. It wasn't a man I locked eyes with but the contorting face of a beast with dark yellowish eyes and elongating canines.

Aaaah! Let me go! Let me go!

Jolting up quickly out of those memories, I found myself wrapped in the comforting sound of flowing water. Its soft murmur was gently tugging at me, trying to bring me back to the here and now. I felt hazy and confused. One moment I was trying to keep up, travelling through brushes and trees with that Wolf then nothing.
Blinking my eyes fully open, I'm presented with a breathtaking view: a clear, sparkling creek that ran through the scenery. The sun's rays played on the water, making little rainbows that danced around like glittering gems in the mild flow of the current.
"Water, thank goodness." I whispered, feeling a wave of relief wash over me.
Shaking off the last bits of my tiredness, I slowly made my way to the creek as I caught a glimpse of the incredibly clear water. Before I could even think about it, my hands scooped up some water, not even caring if it was drinkable. It was the most wonderful thing in the world. 

As the cool water hit my parched throat, I couldn't resist letting out a little sigh of happiness. It was exactly what I needed to restore my energy. Once I had my fill, I naturally reached down and splashed some of that water onto my face and neck. It felt amazing against my bruised skin, like it was washing off all the agony that had been sticking to me.

I took a deep breath and stood up, feeling more revived than I had been just moments ago. I casually wiped my face with the back of my hand and glanced around, noticing everything more clearly than before.

But then, as the peacefulness of the scene started to really hit me, I felt a sudden rush of worry.

Where's the Wolf?
...........

-Sooooo you just got a glimpse into Ella's past.

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