Empty Corpse of a Hound

Chapter 3

"MOM!" I'm sure someone can hear my curdled screaming, and I'm sure they don't care.
Her body is limp and cold, arms tucked carefully into her blanket, face pale but resting peacefully as if she was just sleeping.
I know she's not though, I've seen death a dozen times over. I shake her- no blood. Just… gone. She's just gone.
"Ma… No… please" I bury my face into her neck, trying to find any warmth, any pulse- But ultimately find none. Starvation I would assume, but now is not the time for assuming- I need help.
But her… Her body is already cold, it's too late. I don't know how long I was out but I'm sure she went soon after I left.
I don't know why I had to be so selfish to not share with her or to be quicker, faster, or to do more. But I couldn't 
I sit there, cradling her lifeless body, the weight of my failure crushing me. Tears stream down my face, mixing with the dirt and grime that has become a permanent part of my skin. I should have been there for her- should have taken better care of her. But instead, I was out searching for food like a selfish fool.
The bitter cold wind cuts through my threadbare clothes, but I hardly notice. All I can focus on is the still form in my arms, the woman who had sacrificed everything for me, only to meet this tragic end.
Eventually, the reality of the situation sinks in. I gently lay her back down, smoothing her hair away from her face one last time. Drawing in a shaky breath, I realize that I am now truly alone in this world.
With a heavy heart and a determined mind, I stand up and wipe away my tears. I may not have been able to save my mother, but I can maybe, just maybe, save myself.
…

I throw another pile of snow onto her corpse, watching the snow soak through her face as I imagine maggots resting in her flesh.
I stand, closing her eyelids so her blank stare doesn't bore deep into my soul—dead stare. I remind myself as I throw her thin blanket over her body.
I manage to force myself away from the scene, my tears freezing onto my cheeks as I walk away from the only person I could call family
The only person I loved.
…
I don't even notice the sun beginning to set as I walk through the sludge of snow and mud.
"Little girl!" I almost think I'm hallucinating before a hand grabs my wrist, I squirm, trying to get free but the calloused hand doesn't let go.
"Calm! Calm, I'm nice" I looked up to find a scraggly man before me, his shaggy brown hair falling into his charcoal gray eyes, which were lit with fire.
"What do you want?" I growl, still trying to break free of his hold.
He must have noticed my discomfort because he lets me go, a warm smile on his face.
"You homeless?" Which was a stupid question to ask, anyone who dared to look at my uneven hair, red face, and dirty clothes could figure that one out.
"Why?" He breathes in, eyes flicking from me to our surroundings. "Names Liam, I take in people with my twin sister Lia, as long as they agree to do a bit of work around the house in return" He gives me a sly smirk.
"We give you food, clothing, a roof over your head- it's not much and certainly not the most comfortable but It's somethin'. Plus, I heard that there was goin' to be a storm tonight, a massive deadly one too" Something tells me that's not the only deadly thing here but I shake it off, no need to be pondering about what lies in the shadows when I have a perfectly good deal here.
"Deal" Liam shakes my hand and begins to lead me along to the house I would be staying at.
"Smoke?" Liam asks me, holding out a cig and a lighter towards me, I quickly shake it off. "Y'know, I think you're gonna like this place, a bit crowded for sure but a lot of good people there and easy work." My mind shouts regrets of taking this mysterious man's offer but what else do I have to lose?
A lot apparently.
He stops me in front of a metal shack, the door is worn but sturdy, and no lights pouring out from the crack underneath it.
"Not much but it's somethin'." Liam reminds me as if I ever expected a princess castle to be presented on a silver platter.
"It's great, I haven't had a roof over my head in a while" He gives me a nod before ushering me inside with a grin.
"Fresh meat?" A voice calls out from inside the darkness, I let my eyes get used to it before noticing the bodies inside, curled against each other, the one that spoke- a girl with amber eyes and fire-red hair.
Meat? I repeat in my head as another girl speaks up. "Don't mind Anastazja, she's a bit worn after today" She takes my hand, giving me a warm smile. "Maria," She says, her black hair made into a poof on top of her head as she stares at me with taupe eyes.
"You've met Anastazja, that's Ela-" She points to a girl with skin as deep as her hair and eyes as wide and curious as a fawn. "Angelica" A girl with white hair down to her ankles and eyes a reddish-pink color, white eyelashes shielding them as she looks down at an array of colored yarn, knitting needles the same color as her almost stark white skin.
"And our only boy- August" He looks up from his black notebook, deep sapphire eyes fading into a mutant color of silver and sky-blue, skin a shade of bronze, complimenting his black hair.
"Hi- I'm Lena" I choke out, the mash of brown, black, red, and white churning into an abstract painting, with eyes scattered among it- staring straight into mine.
Liam smiles at us with his crooked, yellow, teeth, sanded down to nubs- I wonder what had happened to them- before rushing away into a room adjacent to the pile of kids, mumbling words to himself that I'm sure was supposed to be for me.
"How old are you?" Ela crawls forward, she had to be at most 11, the youngest.
"17- just turned it today" I croak, August's eyes still trained on me, I felt my face heat up. "August is the same as you, it's nice to have someone older around here" Maria chirps, I open my mouth to ask how old they are before she interrupts me again. "I'm 14, Angelica is 15, Anastazja is 16, and Ela is 11" Maria smiles at me.
"You shouldn't be here" Ela whimpers, bottom lip trembling as she speaks. "Why not?" She curls back into a ball, not answering me. "Why not?" I repeat, turning to Maria. "Nothing," Maria squeaks. "Maria, tell her- she got tricked like the rest of us." Anastazja growls, looming over Maria. "I don't want to scare her!" "She's going to get scared when she sees what she has to do to live" Anastazja is big and muscular, but her arms are a mass of cuts, and bruises circle around her neck and joints.
"What do you mean?" My chipped nails make red crescent moons in my palms, Anastazja glares into my eyes, grabbing me by the collar of my shirt. "They won't let you leave here, they'll give you food, water, a place to sleep, and some entertainment on occasions, but they won't let you leave- They'll whore you out until you can't walk anymore, and don't even try fighting- those men- those men have weapons, and don't think for a second you can go up against that" She growls, nails scraping against my skin. "No matter what you do- what you say- they won't let you leave"
Ela whines, clinging onto Angelica, who is still in her own world, humming a tune I didn't know, pinkish-red eyes flicking from yarn to yarn. "You shouldn't be here" Ela whispers over and over, rocking back and forth in her tattered dress. "Why?" I croak out, tears threatening to spill from my eyes. "Because they're greedy, those men pay a lot for treasure like us" Anastazja lets me go, flexing her used wrist. "I'm sorry" Maria tries to give me a comforting smile, guiding me towards the pile of kids on the floor.
"Sleep" She hands me a pillow and a blanket, Ela curling up beside me as Angelica hums a tune, knitting needles clacking against one another as she works.
"Those hands that had bloodied the sea, for those hands who had murdered me"