Sarah inhaled and steadied herself, using Nancy as support. She sat back from the horse, so she was sitting upright. She was silent but her eyes still scanned the forest. Slowly, she reached behind her and drew an arrow.
Snap!
Her bow was at the ready.
“They’re coming,” Sarah whispered.
She turned to the left and aimed upward. Releasing the arrow, it landed in the center of her stuffed target.
Satisfaction washed over her.
“You’ll have to do better than that!” she screamed and reached for another arrow.
Once Sarah had returned from Lyrica, Ethlen and Franklin, along with the other creatures she had played with in the forest as a child, had helped her turn the woods into a training ground. Though she found herself mostly on her back at the start, their strategies were becoming predictable. And she had become stronger.
She grinned.
There was a chill from behind. Sarah dropped forward and tucked her head beside Nancy’s while the air shifted above her. Sarah shot up and readied her bow. As the stuffed target swung backwards, Sarah released her arrow, piercing its head.
The target fell to the ground. Sarah already had another arrow mounted. She kicked Nancy in her sides and the horse ran farther into the forest. Targets fell down from the trees, surrounding her like the cursed wolves had done once before.
The arrows were light in her hands, almost weightless with how fast they left her; one after the other, flying through the sky and puncturing her stuffed enemies. Sarah did not count how many targets had appeared. At the slightest sound, there was the quickest flash of a color and an arrow was already soaring through the air. She only stopped when her arrows were gone and her hands were grasping nothing.
Now they’ll wait until—
There was a noise to her left. The target flew straight at her, knocking Sarah to the ground, shoulder first. She balled her fists at the sudden pain but kept quiet. A branch above her creaked. She pulled her daddy’s knife from her ankle and jumped to her feet, then charged toward the target. With the knife raised, Sarah leapt and pushed the blade into the target’s throat. They dropped to the ground.
Her knees crashed into the earth yet she didn’t have a moment to feel them.
“Nancy!” She raced toward the horse who had been standing in the trees several yards away. At the sight of Sarah running, her horse galloped in her direction. When there was less than a yard separating them, Sarah pushed herself off the ground and reached for Nancy’s neck. Once her arm was wrapped around the horse’s neck, she pulled herself onto the animal’s back. Nancy didn’t hesitate at the sudden weight.
“Alright, so they changed things up. We can still finish!”
Together, they raced deeper into the trees. Sarah braced herself. Her hands were sweating and her breathing was becoming rapid.
“Here it comes,” she said.
A low hanging branch appeared in the distance. Sarah locked her eyes on it. They grew closer.
“Now!” With Nancy still galloping, Sarah moved, so she was squatting on the horse’s back. She kept low and stretched her arms out, until she could press the tips of her fingers into Nancy’s neck.
There was only a short distance. Keeping steady, Sarah rose on the horse’s back. She did a few quick steps, then jumped. What felt like several minutes passed before the bark scraped against her palms.
Sarah tightened her hold, waiting for Nancy to turn around but the branch grew limp.
It snapped.
Crossing her arms in preparation for the impact, Sarah sailed to the forest floor. She slammed against the earth and tumbled over three times, before landing by Mother Tree.
She groaned. Nancy nuzzled Sarah.
“I’m okay, Nancy.” She reached up and stroked the horse’s nose. “I’m just a little sore is all.”
Sarah sat up, her back cracking as she did so. She stretched her arms out, then leaned against Mother Tree with Nancy standing beside her. She looked up at what was left of the broken branch.
“I really need to work on that. My flimsy arms don’t have any strength in them, though. Doesn’t help much.”
Nancy clomped her hooves and blew from her nose.
“Yes, I know it’s not all about physical strength. Still, it can’t hurt, Nancy.”
Sarah placed her palm flat against Mother Tree. She inhaled the scent of the forest, allowing the calm to take her. Their energies flowed in and out of one another, moving across the woods.
Mother Tree was old. Her spirit was strong.
Nancy grunted and Sarah opened her eyes, pulling herself back into the real world. The horse looked to the sky which had turned a lighter blue.
It was time for school.
Sighing, Sarah picked herself off the ground and rubbed her aching shoulder.
“Ready to ride?” She smiled at Nancy, then jumped up while grabbing a hold of the horse’s mane. A sharp pain shot through her shoulder and her grip loosened. Nancy moved in the direction Sarah pulled her, spinning the young woman in a circle.
Unable to find a good hold, Sarah was tossed from Nancy’s side. Her head slammed against Mother Tree’s trunk, making first impact. All the air left her body. She slumped downward until the stars rested above her vision. They seemed shinier. Brighter.
Sarah attempted to move but her body refused. There was only the pain in her head anchoring her to the ground.
The stars dulled. The sky faded and lovely blue took its place.
It had been a long time since Sarah felt this freedom. All around her there was nothing but space, space she was rooted in. She stretched and it felt like she had many arms that were touching everywhere. She knew this feeling. She had been here before.
“Sarah? Sarah?”
Who was calling her?
“Sarah!”
“Yes? Who are you?”
It was like a light switch was slowly turning off. Darkness creeped from the edges of the blue, overtaking it until only a small area remained. That was where the voice called her from.
Sarah followed the voice. She peered through the circle of blue, not certain if she wanted to see what was on the other side.
There was an elderly woman. Her image was unsteady but she was looking up at Sarah.
“It is dangerous here,” the woman stated. “They lied, Sarah.”
Sarah squinted and peered through the little blue.
“If you can hear me, please, come back.”
The woman was hunched over with a long braid that hung down her back. Her face was covered in wrinkles, especially laugh lines.
“I know her.”
Everything began shaking. Sarah fought to remain stable; the woman seemed so familiar.
“Please, Chosen One.”
“Gan?”
The world became tremors and then nothing.
Sarah rested her head against Nancy’s side as they made their way home. The sky was still a shaded blue above them.
When she awoke from her dream, she could move again. She had a nice sized lump on her head but there was no blood. No need to waste money on a doctor.
Considering the odd dream she had though, maybe Sarah hit her head just a little too hard. Or was it a memory? Gan had reached out to her the firt stime in the blue world, hadn’t she?
Sarah shook herself. All the memories were blurring together as time went on.
The house came into view. Sarah crossed her fingers as she carefully stepped onto the porch. There was no noise from the kitchen and all the rooms remained dark. Opening the screen door, she paused.
“No need for sneaking, Sarah. I’ve been waiting since dawn.” Lucille’s voice sent shivers down Sarah’s spine like a wet blanket in the winter.
She suppressed a groan and stepped inside the kitchen. “Hi, Mama.”
Lucille was leaning against the sink. Her hair was unkempt, there were dark circles under her eyes, and she was still in her nightgown. Apparently, she had been up much earlier
than dawn.
Sarah cast her eyes to the floor and rubbed her arm. “I was going to go and…school’s starting, so—”
“I thought you said you would stop this, Sarafina.”
“Mama, I said I would try.”
“Well, you ain’t trying hard enough, are you?” Lucille had her arms crossed. Veins protruded along her fists.
She stood from the sink and placed her hand on its rim. Sarah stared up at her. There was an exhaustion in her mother’s eyes that was more apparent than the dark circles.
“Sarah, I have asked you not to go frolicking in the woods. It’s dangerous and what if one of the neighbors saw you?” The scowl on her mother’s face also coated her words.
Sarah bit her tongue. “Mama, I’d have to travel miles to get to the closest neighbor,” she replied. “No one is going to see me.”
“It’s still not acceptable, Sarah,” her mother snapped, slamming her hand against the sink. “You aren’t some wild child. You’re supposed to be a young lady.”
“Why can’t I just be Sarah?” she shouted. “Wouldn’t that be okay?”
Lucille was silent.
“I like it out in the woods,” Sarah continued. “It’s…where I feel at peace.”
Lucille slouched over and shook her head. The veins in her hands shrunk, no longer ready to burst at the seams.
Finally, she turned her head up again and looked at her daughter.
“You are such a disappointment, Sarafina.”
Sarah’s throat tightened as she took in a sharp breath. Her mother’s words were wrapping around her neck like a python, causing her lips to purse as the pain swelled inside her.
“I should beat you. I would if I thought it would do any good,” Lucille said.
Sarah turned away, trying to control the temper in her voice. “Mama, stop.”
“There is something very wrong with you, girl,” she continued. “What type of child runs away? Disappears for a year, leaving her parents worried sick? Only you. You!”
Sarah spun back around and charged forward, her blue eyes bright with anger. “The kind who has you for a mother,” she snapped. “You can beat me all you like but I will never make you happy. You know that. I know it and I don’t care.”
Lucille paled. Her lips became thin pink lines, while her eyes doubled in size. She took several steps away from her daughter, until she was pressed against the wall.
Sarah raised a brow. “Mama?”
“I see you now,” Lucille whispered. She was shaking. “I see you, Devil Child.”
“I am not a devil child!” Sarah screamed. The house creaked around them.
“See?” Lucille said. “I always knew it, just didn’t want to believe it because I’m your mama. I…I birthed you but I knew.” She pointed a trembling finger at Sarah. “You were always an odd baby. No one even knows where you got that red hair from. It’s a sign. You—”
“Lucille!”
Lucille and Sarah turned to the stairs. Paul was standing on the third step staring down at them.
“Sarah, go get ready for school,” he commanded. “Lucille, start cooking breakfast.”
“Paul, she—”
“I said, cook breakfast.”
Sarah looked between her parents. Lucille did not move but the veins in her hands were ready to burst again.
Paul shook his head and moved to sit at the table where he stared at his wife. He turned, reached over, and squeezed her hand. She looked down at him.
“Make breakfast, Lucille.”
She paused, gave him a short nod, and turned to the sink.
Sarah didn’t wait a moment longer. She darted up the stairs and into the bathroom. Quickly, she undressed and washed up. She tried to find comfort in the warm water that soothed her aches, but her mind remained focused on what her mother had said.
She shivered. Each word felt like it was laced in venom. Yet one hurt more than the others.
Devil Child.
Chapter 3
Several hours had passed since Sarah’s shouting match with her mother. She had tip-toed between her bedroom and bathroom while she prepared for school. Now standing in the bathroom, Sarah realized the residual rage from their argument had her on edge, including a few strands of her wild hair.
For the most part, Sarah’s curly red hair was tamed into one long braid. It fell past her shoulders and a bit before the mid of her back. She smoothed her hands over the braid in an attempt to conceal any untamed curls. The effort was futile. She would tuck one curl away, only for another to spring to life.
Sarah placed her hands on her hips and sighed.
“What’s the point?” she asked her reflection. She gazed over her bright red hair, noting how it was starting to take on an orange tint now that summer wasn’t too far away. She shook her head.
With her index finger, Sarah took her rebellious curls and twirled them, so they hung free around her.
She looked at her reflection in the mirror and shrugged.
Guess fitting in isn’t part of the plan.
Sarah grabbed her bookbag before heading down the stairs. Her father had left already and Lucille was sitting in the kitchen picking at her food. She looked up, but Sarah averted her gaze. She was nearly running to the door when her mother finally spoke.
“Sarah?”
Her name suddenly felt like a curse.
“Yes?” She kept her eyes forward, focused on the woods beyond her home.
“Uh…have a good day in school, okay?” Lucille’s voice was shaky, almost forcefully sweet.
“I will.” Sarah shot from the kitchen like she was running for the last piece of Huckleberry pie. She kept pumping her legs until she was deep in the forest.
Once her heart had settled and her lungs could take in the air with ease, Sarah felt safer in her home away from home. Flowers were blooming all across the forest, decorating the woods. Birds chirped, bees buzzed, and there was a nice breeze every now-and-again. Spring was alive and kicking.
Sarah hopped over logs and skipped over rocks, making her way to school. Hidden and alone in the woods, Sarah felt more secure than she ever did in the old schoolhouse. The kids hadn’t been any kinder once she returned after “missing” for a year.
Everyone wanted to know where she had gone, what she had done, and, of course, why she had left in the first place. Sarah dreamed of telling her father the truth, telling him the whole crazy adventure. She wanted to tell him how much she had missed him and how she had had nightmares about never seeing him again.
She wanted to but Sarah was no fool. If her mother heard her breathe a word of the truth, she would be ready with the straight jacket.
No, Sarah had to keep the truth to herself, no matter how lonely it could be.
The school bell rang. Sarah picked up her dress and raced down the path that brought her to the back door. The school halls were already flooded with her peers who were bunched into various groups along the hallway. Sarah made eye contact with no one. She tugged her bag tight on her shoulder and marched down the hall toward her classroom.
Elaine and her flock had already occupied the space. They were perched on their desks squawking loudly with Elaine at the center: beautiful blonde hair, light blue eyes, cross-legged, and wearing an ear-to-ear smile.
“It’s the most wonderful thing I’ve ever seen, Elaine, really!”
“Thomas is such a gentleman. You’re so lucky!”
“Oh, I can’t wait to see you in a wedding dress, Elaine. We all know he’s going to ask.”
The girls were oh-ing over her like she was the prize cattle at the State Fair.
Sarah entered the room without notice and took her seat in the last row. She pulled her long braid to the side and stared out the window. No matter how badly she wanted to tune Elaine’s flock out, each time they mentioned Thomas, her ears leaned in for more.
Sarah had been the first to know about Thomas and Elaine, though not intentionally. One day, she’d stayed late after school,
working on a project. When she was done, Sarah left through the back door to cut through the woods. That’s when she saw them.
They’d been attempting to hide behind the stack of firewood but Sarah had seen them clear as day. Elaine was wearing her prettiest blue dress, the one with the nice lace trim. Thomas wore a green cuffed shirt that complemented his dark brown hair. And they were together. Their hands and lips were clasped together like they never had plans of parting.
Sarah had stayed hidden in the school until she heard them leave. She’d walked home that day in a daze. Yes, Thomas and Elaine were both well to do. Yes, Elaine was pretty and Thomas was as handsome as they come. It only made sense they would court.
Still, Sarah had hoped Thomas, with his gentle smile and dimpled cheeks, would want more than popularity or beauty. She had hoped he’d want her…
The final bell rang and the classroom filled with students. The teacher, Mr. Greensburg, came in for the first lesson of the day: Arithmetic.
“Good morning, class. I hope you all are prepared for today’s lesson,” he said, his mustache twitching with each word. “We’re continuing on with last week’s lesson and practicing our equations.”
He spun on his heels, grabbed a piece of chalk, and began writing lists of equations on the board.
Sarah grabbed a pencil from her desk and some paper. Her fingers were like dragonflies, zooming across the page in an attempt to keep up with Mr. Greensburg. He would stop every now-and-then to lecture about one equation before turning toward the blackboard again. Sarah listened while writing and wrote while listening until her fingers grew slack.
She tried writing faster yet her hand would not budge. She lifted her head from her papers. It felt as heavy as a three gallons of milk. The class blackboard was blurry. It had become nothing but lines of black and white that couldn’t stay in one place.
Sarah took a deep breath. She blinked rapidly, trying to gain focus again. The equations were falling off the blackboard and onto the classroom floor. Nothing was making sense.
She tried to grasp her pencil. Her hand remained stagnant, and then everything became light. Her vision was coated in that lovely blue again but this time there was no Gan, no trees, no Lyrica. Instead, Sarah heard wings flapping. The sound grew louder the longer she stayed in the blue until…
The Pariah Child- Sarafina's Return Page 2
