She could almost taste freedom

Her steps faltered as the grim looking forest stretched ahead of her. She could make it. She was so close that the smell of freshly wet soil knocked the wind out of her lungs. It smelled like home, her home. But she couldn’t indulge in that feeling anymore. She won’t. Every step brought her closer and closer to those shadowy standing figures, like parents stretching out their arms to welcome back a long-lost child. The autumn wind seeped through what was left of her raggedy old nightgown. Her pounding heart made it almost impossible for her to hear the crunch of the leaves as she stepped past the barricade of trees. The cuts and scrapes that started to pepper her moonlighted skin were not enough of a hindrance for her to stop and catch a breath. She could feel the pungent bitterness in her mouth and the knot that was lodged in her throat. A few more steps. She would make it past the sheltering forest. She couldn’t risk getting caught. The beads of sweat on her forehead made their way past her eyebrows and into her eyes. There. She could see a shape starting to take form with every shaky, painful breath, right before her eyes. A shake of the head and her sight was clear again. She now reached the outskirts of the forest. With one hand on the rough prickly bark and the other one on her knee, she tried to steady herself and ease the stinging pain that spread through her lungs. After a few deep breaths she looked up and saw a weathered fence surrounding an old barn. She listened closely for any sounds that may reveal a human presence. It seemed it was a forsaken place, just the right thing for her. She closed the distance to the fence and with both hands on the putrid wood she lifted herself up and was now on the other side. After a few shy steps she begun to run towards the shabby barn. The entrance was guarded by two massive wooden doors that wouldn’t budge, not even after a few attempts to open them. Mere moments later, she was circling the impenetrable structure. She finally found a way in. In the northern side of the building a couple of wood boards were ripped out of the walls. Maybe not ripped out. Hopefully they were just rotten by time. She barely squeezed through that little gap. “We’re safe”, she whispered between shallow breaths while leaning her head on the wooden wall and closing her eyes. Somewhere in the distance outside, a dog was barking. She jolted up right, dread starting to pool in her gut. It couldn’t be. There is no way they found her this easily. “No, no, no…this can’t happen.”. She hastily looked around her and saw and old truck covered in dust at the wall furthest from her. She tried the door and luckily it gave in. The bench was torn in various places and had what seemed like scratch marks all over it. It wasn’t enough room for her to safely hide there. She carefully closed the door and checked the back of the truck. She found there a tool box with a hammer and various screwdrivers in it. She picked one with a cross head and popped in the back where she laid flat on her back waiting. The barking rang in her ears louder and louder. She closed her eyes and rested one hand on her stomach while clutching with the other one the screwdriver. A murmur of voices was making its way into every abandoned nook of the barn. As they drew closer, she could hear them better, but not quite good enough for her to understand if she will be captured or if this will be one of those near miss situations. “Check it and report back”. She heard that loud and clear. There was no escaping this time, no better life waiting for her far away from this retched place. This will be the end for her. The doorway creaked open and moonlight poured in. The man’s steps were getting closer. She held her breath but it felt like that wasn’t enough so she silently prayed to everyone who will listen. The man inched closer to the truck and swiftly moved his lantern from side to side. Right as he was turning around, the light landed on the truck door where he noticed a freshly small hand print. She listened as his steps came to a halt. The door opened. There is no way I could overthrow him in a fair fight. She looked over the side of the truck as he was still looking inside and used all of her will power to push that screwdriver in his neck. He was too quick for her and she missed a little bit. It was better than nothing though. His upper arm started gushing blood but that didn’t seem to faze him one bit. He grabbed her wrists and pulled her out of the truck. “Here!” the man yelled and several others came running inside, weapons ready to be used if necessary. She was struggling to break free. She looked like a wild animal, hair disheveled, shot eyes, dirt all over her face and bare feet. The screwdriver was ripped out of her hands. “No, no, no, please… let me go. I can’t go back there.” she said, as she twisted and turned with quick writhing movements. “You don’t understand. We’re not safe there. We, we can’t… please.”. She looked into the man’s eyes and for a fraction of a second, he seemed to change his mind and let her go. But he didn’t understand who she was referring to. “We” …I know that she was the only one to escape. Maybe they were right, maybe she really is crazy. Seeing that he still pulled her closer to the doorway, she dropped to the ground and when he tried to pull her up, she bit him. He loosened his grip and she seized this opportunity and made a reach for his gun. Some were backing away, palms up, some were frozen in place but with one hand on their guns. “Don’t move. I just want to leave. You don’t understand…” she said, tears pouring down her pale cheeks like streams of fresh mountain water. “I don’t want to hurt anyone. I need to leave. I need to leave that house behind. You don’t know what they do there. Just step out of my way and you’ll never see me again. Us again…”. A fraction of a second passed and it was enough for the man to silently nod towards her while she looked down to her belly. The others understood. They lifted up their guns. The noise of the bullets leaving the guns filled the night. The man looked almost sad as she collapsed to the ground. “Poor thing. Lift her up and hide the body. We’ll tell them that she escaped.” She wasn’t supposed to die there and not live her life. Especially not after all that time.

Someone, in another part of the country, still wept atop an worn by time photo of a little girl with pale skin.