FREEDOM

CRACK

It only took two whips until I was screaming in pain; the silver stripped me of my skin with each hit. And by the time he reached ten, I was losing consciousness, but I couldn’t rest my head from the silver collar that was around my throat. The silver burned my skin, which helped me keep my eyes open. My blood splattered the walls, and I could feel the warmth dripping down my body. I cried loudly; the sound was so animistic as I panted. I looked up to see the spider still on the wall as I lowered my head and cried.

This was the year, this was the year I would die, I thought to myself. Silver kills werewolves, and I was already weak; I could barely keep myself up. My skin hissed as I fell into the post, letting the silver rest against my neck. My uncle’s taunts were drowned out by my screams as I clenched my fist. By fifteen whips, I fell over the post; the heavy wood went sideways from my weight. The wood followed me down and pinned me to the ground as I landed on my back. The only thing I could feel was the fire on my back and the warm liquid running down my body. And the only thing I could hear was my uncle’s curses and then silence as everything turned black.

“I didn’t kill her. I didn’t kill her, I swear,” I kept chanting it in my head. When I opened my eyes, I saw that the silver was off my body. I was on the bench of the cell, a place I had never slept on. The door of the cell was slightly opened and coated with my blood. On the ground, the dirt had turned into mud, and all I could smell was the iron scent. I should be dead. Why was my body still fighting? I couldn’t move, I barely had enough strength to open my eyes, ‘Grab the bag of food and shove it all in your mouth. ’ The voice demanded in my head.

Opening my eyes, I slowly turned my head and looked at the food at the far end of the aisle. It was so far away. ‘Maliya, listen to me, if we don’t do this, you will die. ’ The voice whimpered as I grunted to move my body even an inch. ‘Eat all the food and allow me to get away, I don’t want to die yet. ’ The voice cried.

Tears filled my eyes. I wanted to. I hated admitting it, but I wanted to die. I wanted my mother.r I miss her so much. But I wanted the sun and the fresh air. I could remember how green the forest was, and I wanted to see it again. Things I could barely remember were what I longed for. Warm tears fell down my cheek as I closed my eyes and bit my tongue. ‘I want to live, Maliya, let me take over and help us escape. ’ My wolf begged.

For my wolf. Taking in a deep breath, I pushed myself off the bench until I fell on the ground. I could taste blood fill my mouth as my face smacked against the concrete. My hands reached for the old food, and slowly I pushed my body towards the bag. Once I had it in my hand, I opened up the food and stuffed everything I could into my mouth. My stomach turned painfully, but I continued to chew as much as I could. Once I finished the food, I could feel my back start to burn strangely. ‘I need more. You need to eat the old food. The voice coaxed. 

The stale food I had just eaten made my stomach turn, and he disgusting taste lingered on my mouth. The stale bread tasted worse than it did earlier, and the old chunky oatmeal and the bowl of rice were worse. But I ignored the taste and moved slowly towards the corner of the cell. My hand reached towards the bag I threw my trash in and pulled out he remaining food from the week prior. The smell made me gag as I looked at the green color bread and dirt-covered rice.

Ignoring my twisting and sickened stomach, I opened my mouth and stuffed the food in and chewed quickly. I could feel the gritty feel of the dirt against my teeth as I closed my eyes. Eating this much food would make me throw up. And how I was gagging, I wouldn’t be surprised if I did throw up.

Once the food settled in my stomach, I felt my body start to move and shit. Unable to stop her from taking over, I close my eyes and allow my body to twist and break in different ways. I wanted to cry. I wanted to scream as my bones started to break and rearrange themselves. The wounds on my back didn’t help as they squished together and stretched.

Usually, we shift when we are younger; they say it’s easier to shift when we are younger. Since I was young, it had been painful. I couldn’t tell if the pain I felt was from the whipping or if it was the shift. But I did know one thing, I wasn’t in control, SHE was. And she let it be known that she refused to let my mouth open to throw up the food I had just ingested. It was a moment of pure hell. But the moment was over.

And once the shift was complete, my wolf walked out of the cell without any pain. The wounds my uncle inflicted were on my body, not on her. She didn’t feel any pain besides the hunger to find meat. She walked out of the cell and walked up the clear stairs freely. The roof of the cell was opened, and she happily walked through it.

Once her paws touched the dead grass around the opening, she went into a sprint. Worry filled my body, but not hers. My wolf was finally free, and she was determined not to allow anyone to take away her freedom.