Rebellious Princess
I pulled up the security feed.
The screen flickered to life.
A whip cracked again and again against Sera's back, each strike slicing the air like a blade.
She never screamed, and never begged.
She only bit her lip until the blood ran, her body rigid with defiance, until, finally, she collapsed.
My chest caved in on itself. I couldn't see through the blur in my eyes.
No wonder her eyes that day had been so empty, so distant, as if I were already a stranger to her.