Unbroken

Chapter 15

I stood in front of the girl with my mind racing. Tarra and Ruben sat behind me waiting for me to do something to her. The girl wouldn't meet my eye. She knew what was coming. I wanted her to look at me so she could see just how badly I didn't want to do what I had to do.

I couldn't imagine what events had landed her here. I wished for her sake that she hadn't ever come here. I thought of what I was doing when I was her age. Roaming the gardens and discovering secret books in the library. Against my will I was having lessons with various instruments and learning how to sew. Hour after painful hour was devoted to dance lessons. I imagined this young girl would much rather suffer through a dance lesson than be my personal punching bag.

"What are you waiting for sister?" Tarra whispered in my ear. I hadn't even noticed her come up behind me.

"I can't do it," I said without turning to look at her.

"Of course you can," she said sweetly as she laid a hand on my shoulder.

"I won't."

Tarra's had flew faster than I could register and the next thing that I knew I was on the floor with my face throbbing. Tarra crouched over me with a murderous look in her eye. "What did you say?"

"I won't do it." I repeated.

"Guards!" She yelled over her shoulder. Two burly men entered the tent at her call. "Get her up," She ordered and they pulled me to my feet so I was suspended between them. "Take her to the cave."

The two guards were pulling me along until I managed to free myself from their grasp. "I can walk just fine on my own!" I growled at them and they released my arms. I had a guard on each side as we walked through the camp. I held my head high despite my throbbing face. I didn't see Grant anywhere and that caused me to worry. I hoped that he was still in our pitiful shack with dirty sheets. I hoped he was there and not somewhere doing back breaking labor. I hoped that they hadn't sold him to the highest bidder. I hoped that he wasn't in some hole in the ground in an unmarked grave. I was selfish and hoped that he was somewhere nearby that he hadn't left me all alone in this horrible place. It would be better for him if he were dead.

I was expecting the guards to take me back to Tarra's place but instead they took me in a different direction. Sure enough, there was a cave. One guard pulled a lit torch off of the wall. They took me inside and I saw a chain coiled on the floor it extended up into the dark ceiling. There were two wrist shackles on the end of the chain which they clasped around my wrists. Once they were sure that I was secure they left me alone in the dark. I watched as the bright light giving torch went around the corner and my cave was cast into darkness. I couldn't even see my hand when it was just inches away from my face. I couldn't understand what Tarra was trying to do. Locking me in this cave wouldn't do anything. I wasn't afraid of the dark. Maybe she was going to try to starve me to death? Maybe she was waiting for the next rain storm to fill the cave with water and drown me because I couldn't swim? Maybe she was waiting for a bear to come along and find me in its den? Maybe she was just trying to drive me insane like her?

I walked around the cave as far as my shackled hands would allow. The cave wasn't very big and there were rocks on the floor. Occasionally I would stumble on a rock underfoot and have to catch myself against the wall before I fell.

A distant sound reached me and I paused. I stood there not even breathing as I tried to hear what had made that sound. My mind started racing through possibilities of what it could have been.

I strained my eyes trying to spot anything in the darkness but it was of no use. The cave was too dark to see anything. I was completely silent as I tried to hear something that would let me know that someone was nearby. There was nothing. I sank down and sat on the floor as I tried to hear if someone was approaching.

Eventually I heard a sound that terrified me.

It was the little patter of feet. The sound of grinding teeth. The occasional little squeak. I shivered and launched to my feet. The squeak of the approaching rodents made me want to crawl the walls. I felt a little body scurry across my feet and I screamed at the top of my lungs. The sound nearly burst my eardrums. I kicked my feet in hopes that I would send the rat flying. My toes collided with one of the rocks on the floor and I felt the skin split. I cursed to myself as I felt the blood flow.

If I sat down to check the damage I would surely have a rat in my lap. They would be able to reach me easier and that thought kept me upright. I could hear several of them moving around the cave. The only sound was the patter of feet and my heart pounding.

This went on for hours like it was a game to them. The rats would crawl across my feet and I would kick at them. My screams pierced my ears but didn't scare the rodents away. I couldn't ever sit down or rest from the constant standing. My chain would only allow me to go so far. Hour after hour went by. I could tell from the dull ache in my stomach that time was passing. I was so exhausted and eventually I had to sit down to relieve my tired legs. I rested my back against the wall and swatted at the disgusting rats with my hands. I tucked my legs up into my dress as far as I could so the rats wouldn't gnaw on the exposed skin. The dress only offered so much coverage and I soon felt the little teeth before I could swat them away. All I wanted to do was go to sleep. It was so much effort to stay awake. If this went on much longer the rats wouldn't fear me anymore. I wouldn't be able to scare them away. I could feel my eyes drooping and all I wanted to do was sleep for an hour or two. Even twenty minutes would have made all the difference.

When I was just about ready to give in I saw a light at the end of the tunnel. Literally. The glow of the torch seemed to bring warmth into the cave and give light to the horror that had been my reality for too long. As the light flooded the cave I sagged back in relief. The sound of little footsteps let me know that the rats had seen the light too. They scurried back into their little tunnels and left me alone.

"Sister!" Tarra gasped and rushed to my side. She threw her arm around my shoulders and pulled me into her lap. I laid there feeling her fingers gently brush over me to see if I was alright. "I didn't know where you were!" She said as she combed my hair away from my face. "Oh, are you alright?" She asked as she looked at the little bite marks which were on my hands and arms. She put an arm around my back and helped me to my feet. I let her hold me upright as I tested my foot against the floor. I wanted to scream as I felt the cut on the bottom of it open up again.

"When I told the guards to take you to the cave I thought they were taking you to my cave." She reached down with a key and unchained my hands. "I looked for you and looked for you! Ruben thought you had run away but I told him you were my sister and you wouldn't do something like that to me." Her fingertips brushed over the raw skin on my wrists that was from pulling at the shackles. "You poor thing!" She crooned as she pulled me from the cave.

"I just want to sleep," I said as she led me out of the cave. I tried not to limp on my foot. We walked into bright sunlight that let me know that the sun had just come up. The air was crisp and clean. When the guards had taken me to the cave it was still light outside. I had been in the cave all night long.

"Of course you can rest, I'll take you back to my room." She helped me along and eventually I recognized the path. The entrance to the cave came into view and eventually so did a bed. She helped me to the bed. As I swung my legs up she gasped when she saw the bottom of my foot. "Why didn't you say anything?!" She rushed out of the room. I assumed she was going for some medical supplies to tend to my foot with. I was asleep before she returned.