Hollow Souls

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Lilah

It took a week and a half for my back to heal. In that time no one came to me, save for the guard who gave me food and water. It wasn't enough. The food was mostly spoiled. The water I could manage, despite its warm temperature. My stomach ached as I drew my knees to my chest. Every bone, every muscle in my body ached. I yearned to see the sun, to feel its warmth again. But here, the sun wasn't visible. Every door and every curtain tightly shut, cutting out any sunlight that may try to slip through. I hated darkness, hated shadows. Yet it consumed me. I didn't really know who I was anymore. The girl who yearned to fill her hours with drawing and reading, she was dead. The scream sent a jolt through my body. High pitched screams echoed, like it was a younger fae. I threw my hands over my ears, pressing my forehead to my knees and trying to shut it out. My arms started shaking and I bit my lip. Gods please make it stop. This is my fault. My fault. My fault. Those words rang through my skull. Two, three times. Tears fell from my eyes as I squeezed them shut, cutting through the dirt on my face. A scream sounded from my own throat and I bit down on my lip. The sound came out muffled. My hands shook as I moved them, bracing them on the floor. I need out I need out I need out. Please. Please. The only thing I felt was fear. It coursed through my veins and through my heart.

A voice filled my head. 'Stand up.' I was so shocked that I obeyed. 'Dry your tears. They're coming for you. Chin up. Back straight. Don't give in to your fear.'

The voice was distorted enough I couldn't tell who it was. I wiped my eyes and leaned against the wall. I shuddered when another scream echoed through the palace. My arms tensed when the sound didn't subside, even as two guards pushed the door to my cell open and pulled me out. They didn't bind my arms. No, one just kept a tight grip on my arm. Which he tightened whenever I flinched at anything. I curled my hands into fists to keep them from shaking as we walked, nearing the ballroom. There was a crack, followed by a scream and I flinched back.

That voice filled my head again. 'Don't flinch. Neutralize your face and don't let her get a reaction. She wins that way. Relax your body. You'll be alright.'
I took a breath and let them lead me in the room. In front of the dais that the thrones sat on was a girl, her back bloody and her skin pale as death. No one stopped me when I moved forward, kneeling in front of her. She lifted her head, her bright blue eyes dancing in silent terror. I set my forehead against hers gently, brushing my fingers through her dark red hair gently. She gripped my wrist and my hand stilled.

Two words left her lips in no more than a rasp. "It hurts."

"I know. I know." I shut out everyone else in the room, murmuring those two words to her. "You'll be alright."

"She took my wings. Ripped them off." She murmured, her eyes staring into my own.

"You'll get them back." She'd die. She'd lost too much blood already.

"You promise?"
"Yes." Her hand gripped mine, only loosening when the light left her eyes. I swallowed and released her hand, slowly standing and looking straight at Deiamia. "You're a monster."

Spencer

"You're a monster." Those three words drew a memory to the front of my mind. A memory I'd pushed to the back of my mind.

"You're a monster!"

Those where three words I myself had uttered. Words I'd uttered just before my face was sliced not by a blade but by a long, sharp nail. Blood dripped from my face, the same color of the eyes of the woman who stood in front of me. And I'd realized one thing. Deiamia had known the woman I'd killed. The woman who had given me ny scar. Perhaps they'd even been sisters, I didn't know. I took a breath, shutting my eyes for a moment. I wouldn't let knowing that stop me from doing whatever it took to keep Lilah and her family alive.

Lilah's hands were covered in the blood of the young fae she'd sat with until death. The girls bright eyes were forever set in silent pain and terror.

"You will never win. All you are is a cruel woman who craves power. You think that harming people, killing them, is going to get anyone to side with you." Her eyes were full of pain and fury. Nothing like the girl who I had met at first. No that girl was gone. "All you do is cause pain. All you do is hurt people. If you think for one second you're going to win, you are sorely mistaken." She stepped up towards Deiamia and slapped her, leaving a bright red mark on the womans cheek. The room fell dead silent when the sound of skin on skin sounded. At that same moment, the ink on Lilah's arm turned from its original pale pink to a deep purple. The same color the tattoos that curled over my chest, shoulders and arms were. I tugged up the collar of my jacket, hiding the edges of the tattoos that slightly curled onto my neck.

Deiamia caught her wrist as Lilah made to move back, looking between me and the ink covering Lilah's arm. She knew about the ink that covered my own skin, knew that Lilah's tattoos were there because of me. She growled, the sound rippling across the room. Many flinched. Some, myself included, did not.

"And what is the meaning of this?" She gripped Lilah's wrist tighter, turning to me.

I stepped towards her. "We made a bargain." I shrugged, slipping my hands into my pockets. "And truthfully I believe you should be thanking me. Had I not healed her, she may have died from infection or something else. Then she wouldn't be able to do her tasks. Or give you the entertainment you seek." I relaxed my shoulders, letting myself slip into that mask I wore to keep Lilah, my parents and her family alive. "She owes me a weekend a month as long as she lives. If or when we get out of here, that is." I shrugged.

"Hmm." Deiamia looked at me and released Lilah's arm, a red mark on her skin. "Fine." She snapped her fingers and a guard stepped forward. "Take that away." She waved a hand at the body of the faerie that couldn't have been older than sixteen. She'd keep the wings she'd ripped off as trophies. Pin them to the wall above the thrones. The blonde girl who had sat with the girl until death, who had made a bargain with me, didn't look at me. Though if she had, I know what I would've seen. Pure hatred.