SILVER MOON {COMPLETED}

CHAPTER 24

Forsaken...

Shaking her head frantically, she couldn't believe it, wouldn't accept it, he couldn't be dead. No!
She placed her head steadily on his chest again
checking for the normal *thud thud rhythm of a heartbeat, but like the first time, she heard nothing.
Miranda looked with horror at the ashen face of the man she had been attending to for the past hours, he looked like death itself. But she couldn't bring herself to believe it.

Standing up like the speed of light, Miranda moved to the end of the tiny room. Her heart beating wildly. What had just happened? She looked at her hands which were shaking terribly. Had she just killed a man?

Her whole form shaking from fear, she moved to her medicine cabinet and took a close look at all the herbs she had in store. Nothing was out of place and yet a dead man was lying a few feet away from her.

Miranda carried on, looking and smelling them one after the other, she had made them with her own hands, and had always took pride in doing a good job. She was confident and sure that nothing would go wrong.

But yet she looked at the still form of the man. Unmoving, cold. Miranda let the first tear drop, she slid unto the floor as she cried. What was she going to do? Who should she tell? Even if she told someone, would they believe her? She was sure that the people of Ponti would hang her without even giving her a proper judgement. Death had never been taken lightly by the villagers and she wasn't expecting them to understand a word of what she would say. That's if they even let her speak.

Standing up from the ground, feeling dejected and lost, Miranda moved closer to the body. She didn't know what to do so she placed a soft blanket over it. Putting both hands together and sniffing quietly, she said a prayer. Today she could die or she would stay alive, but one thing was certain she would have to determine which she wanted.

Moving over to the door, she turned and took one last look at the man's body, she knew he couldn't hear her, but she couldn't stop herself from whispering the words, "I'm sorry". She truly was sorry for ending his life, even though she still didn't understand what had just happened.

As she ran out of the door, a lone figure who had been watching from the window, turned and left with a satisfied smile gracing it's lips.

Miranda never stopped for once, she ran all the way home. She wasn't so much afraid of her fate, she was more afraid for her loved one, Mother.
Her mother would understand, she was sure.

Approaching the house, she slowed down a little, her legs were burning from exhaustion but she didn't care. Her chest heaved and her throat felt dry and patchy.

Miranda felt a sense of security wash over her as she pushed open the door. She didn't wait for the door to close as she shouted out for her mother, " Mother!, mother where are you? Moth.."

Maria who was at the backyard weaving a purple coloured basket when she heard Miranda's teary voice, flung her basket and dashed toward the open door leading to the little sitting room they had.

As she appeared at the door, Miranda who was coming out from the adjacent room was about to call out again, when she stopped her, "what is the screaming all about my dear? I've told you to not come in screaming like that."
She took a closer look at Miranda's disheveled form,
" What happened? why are you crying?

Miranda only sniffles harder at Maria's inquiry gaze.

" Mother, I killed a man I was supposed to heal. I couldn't save him, and now I'm going to face my fate when the villagers find out".

Maria eyes expanded in their sockets as she looked on in shock ."What a..re you talking about Miranda?" She asked so quietly, Miranda could barely make out the words.

"I said I killed a man". She replied whilst looking with teary big green eyes, at the brown grasses on the field surrounding their home.

Maria rushed over to her, taking her by the hand, she dragged her into the bedroom. " Tell me everything that happened ." she said.

Miranda recounted the events from start to finish. She told her how she had gone to administer herbs to the man following Lady Latisha's orders, and how the man had only gotten worse after taking the medicine.

Maria stood up from the bed and starting putting cloths in a basket. She arranged them meticulously as Miranda watched perplexed. "What are you doing mother?" She asked.

Maria stopped packing and looked up from the basket, "I know what you are capable of doing Miranda! I took care of you from childbirth, I watched you grow. Believe what you want, but I tell you, you're innocent, I won't let the people of Ponti misjudge you."
She put her hands into her pocket and fetched out a silver necklace. "Take this with you child, go far away from here, run to Navyria there, you will find the answers you need."

Miranda looked from the necklace to Maria's face and back to the necklace. "I don't under..stand." She stuttered.

Maria smiled lovingly, "Go my child, if the fates concede we'll meet again."
She pushed the basket into Miranda's hands and shoved her out the door. "I hear them coming, go now!"

Miranda started to reply, but Maria shut the door tightly at her face, She looked up and in a distance and saw the outline of people approaching at a steady pace, all shouting angrily.

Looking up at the sky, she realized that the night had come quickly, and the cold breeze was stingy. Beneath the silver moon Miranda ran away from everything she'd ever known.

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