Two Halves of a Cracked Heart

They came in the night. They destroyed my home. They took everything. The only thing I had left was the locket hidden beneath my torn bloodstained nightgown. Whose blood was it? Friend, foe or family? I shook my head brushing the thought away before it could consume me. It didn’t matter. I just had to keep running. I had no destination. No family left alive or any friends who could help. Everyone I knew was gone. They died in the raid for me. I escaped. I was broken, bleeding and bruised but I was alive. And hanging around my neck was the only thing that mattered.

Were they still looking for it? How long until they noticed it was gone? How long until they started hunting me again?

My mother’s last words sang through my head on a constant loop. “Run, Orina. You are our only hope. Never stop running.”

The image of her bashed and bloodied body cradled in my lap pushed me on through the woods. Every crack and crunch through the forest terrain made my heart sink deeper into my stomach. I just had to keep moving. But I knew I wouldn’t last long out here. My lunges burned in my chest. Most likely just from exhaustion after hours of running, but I suspected the smoke, which had nearly suffocated me, also had an impact. The headache was becoming worse and my tongue felt like sandpaper in my mouth. I was dehydrated. Water was my first necessity. Remembering my tutor’s lessons, I closed my eyes and listened to the sounds around me. my ears zoned in on the sound of trickling water somewhere close by.

The sun was setting. Tracking me would be harder once dark, but so would running. I need to find water, set up camp for the night and finally tend to my aching wounds which burned with each frantic step.

I was close to crawling when I eventually found the small stream. I would have cried if my body had enough water for tears. I didn’t waste any time stripping off before I wadded my way into the icy freshwaters. I sighed in relief, swallowing as much water as I could. Then I saw the blood. Red flowed off my body and I was almost sad to see the last piece of my family wash away down the stream. I shut my eyes until the stinging feeling of tears vanished. I would not allow any more tears to fall today. I had to be strong.

I drank deeply until my belly was full to the point where hunger was no longer an issue and when the sun had almost completely sunk, I emerged. I sat on the bank of the stream ringing out my long dark hair and listened to the sounds around me. Animals called out to each other across the woodland, but I found no sound of pursuit. For now, I was safe. I found a small hollow in the rocks surrounding the water and found a couple of full branches to conceal my spot for the night. Only once I had settled into my spot had I noticed my mistake. I was still soaking wet and the night was too cold for me to survive in only my thin wet nightgown. Without another thought, I tore apart one of the branches and quickly built a small fire that would help keep me alive during the cold autumn night. In the firelight, I was finally able to examine my wounds and fix up the worst of them.

It wasn’t as bad as expected. Some scratches, bruises and burns along with a few deep cuts that might require stitches. I cleaned my cuts and bound them with strips I tore from my nightgown. The bruises and burns would heal in time. The worst injury was probably my ankle. There wasn’t much I could do about it out here. I simply prayed it was only sprained and wrapped it tightly in another red-stained strip.

After my brief analysis, I snuggled into my nook and allowed myself to unclasp the locket from my neck. This plain ugly thing had cost me everything. The silver glinted in the firelight illuminating the crack carving through the centre of the heart. I thought I heard a branch snap somewhere in the distance, but I was distracted. Caught up in gazing at the locket which I loved and loathed more than anything. It wasn’t until the locket was snatched from my hands that I realised I had been found. They found me.

“There she is!” exclaimed Daniel, the King's bastard child and only heir. He looked down at me with glowing sadistic eyes and that smirk that had always bothered me. “Hello, Little Thief.”

“Hello Tyrant,” I responded hiding my fear behind a smirk of my own. “Long time, no see.”

His laugh made my stomach turn. “I forgot how much fun you are, Orina. Thank you for finally giving back what belongs to me.”

“You gave that to me!” I shouted jumping to my feet. His guards instantly had their weapons turned on me, but I didn’t back down. Maybe it would be better if they killed me now. Then they wouldn’t be able to use the stupid locket for anything.

“Did I?” he asked raising an eyebrow. His eyes glowed with satisfaction. He had won. “Restrain her. She’s coming with us.”

I resisted as best I could as his guards grabbed me and strapped a pair of iron cuffs around my wrists. “Why do you want it anyway?” I asked feigning obliviousness. “It’s just a worthless ugly necklace.”

“Oh, you and I know it is so much more than that,” said Daniel holding up the locket into the light of the moon, until the heart appeared to be glowing. This locket…is the key.”