How To Capture The Crow

Chapter Five

Chapter Five

Raven

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The old trailer is thick with the smell of mold. Her fingertips drift across the dusty table top as the faint sound of screams fill the air.

"Get off of me!" The trailer shakes and the sound of broken glass shatters her sense of serenity.

The screaming begins to fade as Raven walks in the room slowly and stares at her brother who has blood dripping down his hand from the tip of a glass shard wedged in his palm. Her eyes immediately move to the ground where the feet of an old man are barely visible behind the edge of the bed.

"What did you do Daniel?" her raspy voice echo's in the silent home.

"He fought back. I didn't have a choice" he says pulling the glass out of his palm without anything but a faint grunt as it pulls out of his skin.

"Did you get what we came for?" She says standing still as her eyes are glued to the deceased mans feet.

"Of course" He says shoving his way through the doorway where Raven stood.

Raven takes one last look and makes her way out, jumping out of the living room window where they snuck in and disappearing into the night.

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The trickle of water slowly drips into the moist cave where she and her brother slowly make their way deeper and deeper.

Daniel pushes away some vines and walks into a chilly stone room lit by candles on the wall and centered on a stone table.

"My boy!" A jolly old voice comes echoing into the room.

"Father..." Daniel and Raven kneel down on their knees.

"Come now, let's see what you have brought me" The old man says as he makes his way over to the stone table.

Daniel and Raven get up and walk to the table. Daniel takes his leather bag off his back and pours the contents onto the table.

Smalls bills and jewelry glisten from the candle light and Raven stares up at Daniel.

"Where is it?" She says in anger.

"It was right here" Daniel says swirling his hands around in the mess of gold and jewels.

"You took it for yourself didn't you!" She screams and pushes Daniel to the side.

Her eyes become a light grey and she wraps her fingers around his neck squeezing till she can feel him struggle to swallow.

"Tell me where it is!" She demands.

"Raven!" The old man screams.

Raven loosens her grip and pushes Daniel onto the floor. Staring at him with her now silver eyes and clenching her fists.

Daniel gasps for breath and slowly makes his way back to his feet.

"I... didn't take it." He coughs as he struggles to speak.

Raven bows her head and lets her bangs drift onto her face breathing as if to sooth herself back into a state of calm.

"Father..." Daniel says and walks over to the stone table.

"She can't be trusted. I had it in my bag for the entire journey, I swear. She must have taken it from me on our way here..."

Raven looks up at Daniel and grinds her teeth.

"Why would I take it? The only thing that can fix this stupid curse for all of us!"

The old man becomes quiet.

"No Raven, for only one of us." He says and walks closer to her.

Daniel watches closely from a corner.

"Give me your hand" He says and holds his out to her.

Raven stares at his debating whether she should or not and then hands him her hand and falls to her knees.

"Argh!" She screams and feels her mind begin to burn. Images of crows picking at dead carcasses fill her brain as the room begins to spin.

"Please, no..." She says quietly.

"Find the cure once and for all. If you don't, don't bother coming back" The old man says.

Raven can feel her body becoming stiff her mind fails to think and suddenly she's gone.

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Tears burn her sun burnt cheeks as she crawls through the gravel of a city dump. She slowly stands up and tries to swallow her stone like tongue to only realize she has nothing to swallow. Her mind stills burns from the images blasted into her brain. She can't help, but to remember them. The dreadful memories, the uncontrollable curse she can't seem to be rid of.

She slowly touches her waist and feels a gushing wound on her stomach she cringes and makes her way through the dump and into city to find shelter so she can heal and find the cure, before anyone else does.