Nymphix

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Thirteen 

Katerina shot up, her eyes locked on Otis’ but all she saw was the dark room, the chains that held her... and his face.

“I mean he was a hunter. His family. He comes from a long line of strong Hunters, his father was the leader of one of the biggest groups.”

Kat was only half listening; the other half of her was fighting down the sick in her stomach that burned her throat.

“I had a sister... Leah. She was a witch too, but the way she acted I wonder if she should have been born a healer – I mean she was always helping people, even complete strangers and by the end of the day they’d be best friends. Which is why when the hunters came, instead of staying inside with the doors locked like everyone else she was out trying to rescue people. She was only 14 when they took her – when Felix’s family took her.

My parents... they didn’t take it too well. She was everything to them – to us. She didn’t deserve it; she was too innocent for what they did to her. I mean when we found her a year later I couldn’t recognise her. Her face was so...so gaunt it was like looking at a skeleton. Her eyes were”

Otis gestured widely but couldn’t seem to form the words to describe what he had seen.

“Her hair was falling out in patches, and no matter how many times we washed the blood and dirt off her she just looked so dirty all the time, like it was a part of her.”

All of a sudden the sun felt too hot on Kat’s head and arms, like she was slowly being roasted in an oven. She closed her eyes slowly, no longer seeing the grass that looked too green to be real, or hearing the birds. Instead she saw her, a small girl with wild chocolate brown hair tangled around her wide golden eyes – the same as Otis’.

“They did something to her so that her wounds wouldn’t heal, and not long after we found her she...didn’t survive.”

 Otis’ voice caught and he sat silently for a while, simply staring at Kat but not seeing her. Kat could almost see Otis' thoughts in the reflection of his eyes, the loss he felt. Finally he blinked and cleared his throat before continuing.

“It was Felix who brought her to us. He found her one day and discovered that she wasn’t evil like he had been taught, and trusted her enough to tell her that he was also a witch.” Otis laughed humourlessly and looked up at the sky

“Imagine that. A hunter who was a Nymphan. He was hiding it from his family, and Leah ­helped him. Leah who was trapped in a cage and being tortured ­helped him use his magic, and what does he do? He brings us back her dead body. Leah was a child and even she was brave enough to risk her life to save complete stranger, and Felix was a coward who couldn’t save one girl.”

He looked back at Kat, a fierce hatred so strong even she could feel it burning in his eyes as he spat out his next words

“And it was all Felix’s fault.”

“You’re wrong” Kat looked up in surprise upon hearing Lacey’s voice. Caught up in Otis’ story, she had never noticed Lacey come and sit down with them.

“What?” Otis snapped at her, and Kat saw the smallest swirls of magic starting to grow out of his clenched fists.

“Felix may have been scared – I mean stop and think about it realistically. He was raised his whole life, with every single member of his family a hunter, he was practically bred to believe that we were evil – the same way we view them. Discovering that he was what everyone around him hated? What do you think that was like for him? If he told ­anyone they probably wouldn’t have bothered with the torture, they’ll kill him on the spot.”