"So father, what happened after that?" They boy asked, staring into the slightly murky lake. The man beside him smiled this son's curiosity.
"No one knows, they never found the girls body. Some say that she rotted away and her bones are still buried beneath the sands undisturbed, others say that she used magic and disappeared an non-believers say that she found a way to get to shore and ran away. No one can be sure."
The two sat in complete silence. Water gently lapped against the riverbank and the sounds of the forest seemed louder thank before. Os days like this boys and girls would be heard laughing and joking around while adults scolded them for straying too far. That was not the case here. No one dared venture into the forest or anywhere near it, just in case the angry spirit of the girl still resides in the waters. Nature had completely take control. Trees sprouted very close together as there was no one to cut them down. Their branches wove together to create a type of huge umbrella blocking most of the light and giving the place a bit of a gloomy feeling.
The felt uncomfortable in the silence and looked up at his father. "Do you know who the girl was?" He asked in an attempt to start another conversation. The man didn't take his eyes of the ground but replied,"indeed I do. Her name was Lilura."
At the mention of the girl's name a rather strong breezes ruffled the man's grey streaked hair. The boy looked around, slightly unnerved. The man however was unfazed and kept on going.
"She was a petty, young girl with beautiful brown hair and sparkling blue eyes. She thought to be the perfect child, hardworking, compassionate and kindhearted. Her parents were extremely proud to have her but there is a small detail that they kept to themselves: Lilura was not their daughter by blood. The couple, the Dantermans, always wanted a child. But no matter how hard they tried, the woman could not bear a child. Doctors said that there was something wrong with the woman's womb which stopped her from becoming pregnant. The couple were devastated and prayed for a miracle.
"One day a cart made its way into town. On it was a tradesman, his wife and their baby girl. The infant still under a year old and the tradesman knew that they were unable to keep her. The child required a familiar environment which the two couldn't give her due to their lack of home and money. As the sun set the tradesman decided to park his cart in the outskirts of town, nearby the Dantermans home. Just after midnight the baby girl started crying. The tradesman and his wife were unable to calm her and she probably awoke half of the town. The first to waken were of course the Dantermans and they immediately made their way to see where the noise was coming from. They soon found the tradesman and offered to help. In Mrs Danterman's the baby girl stopped crying and fell sound asleep. The tradesman's wife knew that these people could take care of the child.
"On the day they left a knock was heard on the Dantermans' door. Sitting on the porch step was a basket with the baby girl safety cradled inside. There was a small slip of paper amongst the blankets. On it was written one word, "Lilura". The couple took Lilura in as their one and cared for her, giving here everything she wanted.
Lilura grew into a stunningly beautiful but modest girl and the Dantermans knew that this was simply a blessing. However the rest of the town did not. Maybe it was the jealousy of the local women or maybe it was the superstitious elders, who knows but one way or another the townsfolk started believing that Lilura had put a spell on them which would describe the strange positively that she brought. The angry townsfolk started threatening the Danterman couple but they refused to believe that their daughter was a witch. One night a group of men came to one of the local barns, not far from the Danterman household, and set it on fire. as soon as she smelled the smoke Lilura ran to rescue the animals inside. But the flames had trapped her and now the frightened child could do nothing but wait until the fire took her life. However that was not the case. The townsfolk managed to douse out the flames with buckets of water before Lilura was harmed. They found her in the corner completely unharmed besides of few red marks.
"The townsfolk stated that Lilura had started the fire but had gotten herself trapped inside. After many raves and arguments the Danterman couple bowed their heads in shame and agreed to Lilura's death sentence. As she slept they bound and gagged the girl and threw her into this very lake. The last thing they saw was bubbles rising to the surface, brining with them Lilura's last words: a terror filled scream."
The man hung his head low, taking deep breaths. As recited Lilura's tale, he hardly took pauses, leaving him slight puffed out. The boy, on the other hand, sat there with his jaw hanging open. Never in his life had he heard such a saddening tale. The two say there before the boy asked,"father, why did you bring me here? Why did you tell me this?"
The man straightened his back and looked at his son. His voice was cracked and it looked like he was holding back sobs. Yet in his eyes the boy saw something that looked like relief. "Lilura died not knowing why. I am sure that it prevented her from passing on. Do you feel it? It's her presence, she is here in the water, among the trees, beneath the earth. I came here to put her at ease to tell her the truth. I brought you here so that you also will know the truth. Lilura was not and never would have been a bad person. She was innocent, a lamb for slaughter."
The man shakily got to his feet and started walking away from the riverbank. "Come on, it's getting late."
The boy stood up and started following him. Out of curiosity, the boy looked over his shoulder. Back at the lake waters which seemed clearer than ever.
