The crisp October air sends flashes of yellow and orange dancing across the trail, parting like the Red Sea to welcome me back. Contempt for the patchouli that invades my senses distracts from the pain in my muscles.
Maybe I'm getting weak. She must've been this heavy the first time I took her, but I was relying on adrenaline and the elements to push me through. Now, she's pure dead weight and all that's left are marching orders. If her life wasn't enough for anyone, maybe her death will be.
I intend to make it happen.
Her grave is beautiful and serene. The forest has allowed me to grant my girls the gift of dignity and peace in death, a gift so few ever have the chance to achieve. Tranquility of the night will provide her with at least some bliss before the harsh light of the world comes back to collect her.
When I initially told her about this place, she kicked and screamed just like all the others. Eventually, she wouldn't stop asking me to take her here. Her poor, shrill voice bounces off the walls of my mind as I place her on the forest bed. Orange and yellow surround her petite figure while the glow of the moonlight illuminates her waxy skin. If it weren't for the rings of purple and blue around her slender neck and wrists, it might look like the milky nightgown was part of her.
She's never looked more beautiful than she does at this moment. Surrounded by nature and finally at peace, the soreness in my muscles dissipates with satisfaction. I make my usual adjustments of placing her hands on her stomach and fanning her hair away from her face before adding the finishing touch: a single white rose. It lies like a votive on her still chest, the soft petals as pale and delicate as the slope of her cheek.
I'm not a religious man, but I stand a moment in silence to hear the wind whisper through the trees, telling secrets about the past eleven ceremonies we have shared on this hallowed ground. The shadows linger to watch me extract a vial from my pocket to anoint her with the blood of all who came before her. The force of their combined lives mingle together to send her somewhere better, crimson dotting along my porcelain girl.
"Be free, sweet Sonya. May flights of angels sing thee to thy rest."
And it's done. I turn back the way I came.
It kills me to have to part with my girls, but I had no other choice. They left me with no other choice.
Better luck next time, I guess.
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Hope you like the new Prologue! Stay tuned for further edits on the following chapters as well as some new chapters! Thank you all so much for your patience and support through this process.
- L.D.
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Pure Obsession {WIP}
Mystery / ThrillerAmara has her whole life ahead of her. A smart and resourceful girl with opportunities she could only ever dream about will be just that: dreams. Lured by beauty and trapped by a man she should have been smart enough to see coming, she must perse...
