*Chapter may be disturbing to some readers. Portrays violence and abuse.*
Aldreera was staring blankly into her godmother's eyes . What were the right words? What was she supposed to do?
Her godmother didn't wait another moment and flung her hand toward Aldreera's face, the smack colliding with enough force to throw her to the floor. Looking into her godmother's eyes once more. Aldreera was afraid.
"Just let me go and I'll never come back again. Please I-I won't te…" she pleaded but, before Aldreera could finish her sentence her godmother kicked her. Aldreera gasped for breath and held her stomach.
"You naughty little girl. What makes you think I am going to let you get away so easily? Have I pampered you so, to make a spoiled child? You will regret this, little wench. Take her to the cellar. Retrieve all the tools for correction and place them on the table. While you're at it tie her to the floor." The guards hiding around the corner jumped into motion as Aldreera felt the warmth slip from her cheeks. The two men in simple black clothes grabbed her arms and pulled her down the stairs like she was a dog on a leash.
"Godmother! Godmother, please!" Aldreera screamed. She struggled to catch her feet on solid ground to resist, but the two grown men did not budge to her flailing movements. Her cries could be heard throughout the castle as she was dragged to the deepest and darkest parts of the cellar. Tears made lines down her face as her eyes began to redden from crying.
They tied her to the floor. The lights did not work in this part of the castle so the room was lit with candles making the dark corners seem even more eerie. The stone protruding from the floor cut into Aldreera's ankles as she sat with her legs underneath her in a triangular manner. Oh, how she wished she could sit on the soft-cut marble floors of the laundry room again.
Aldreera had been tied for no more than five minutes when the large wooden door with thick black hinges creaked open to reveal her godmother standing on the opposite side. Aldreera let out a small whimper as tears pricked the corners of her green eyes. Words were on the tip of her tongue before she swallowed them, holding back the please that would fall on deaf ears.
Aldreera knew how things went in the cellar. She'd had her fair share of beatings and whippings from her Godmother, but this time, Aldreera knew those past times were nothing like what was about to happen to her.
Her godmother entered the room, glanced at Aldreera and without any words, started to the table and picked up something that jingled and clanked. The godmother turned around to reveal some sort of contraption. The piece was made out of metal and looked to be able to pry something open.
Aldreera's godmother looked at her with pleasure in her eyes and finally spoke.
"Should I pry open that cute little mouth of yours and remove that squirming, slippery tongue first?," before she finished the sentence her godmother turned back to the table and picked something else up, showing it to her with an even bigger grin, "Or should I remove some fingers and toes? Ooooo… maybe an eye? Or an ear!" And with this, her godmother snapped the bolt-cutters closed right in front of her, making Aldreera jump and scurry back as far as the chain would allow, pulling and kicking at the chain around her ankle. As her godmother watched in good fun a noise happened at the door and a voice sounded, urgent and strained. "Madam. Madam there is an urgent matter happening in the maids' living quarters that may need your attention."
"What is so urgent that requires me at this moment? I'm in the middle of a discipline session." Her godmother turned and opened the door. The maid whispered something into her ear and in a sheer instance her godmother vanished through the corridors, clicking her heels as she went. Aldreera could feel her complexion coming back into her face and her thoughts were more clear. What took my godmother away in such a hurry? Then an unforeseen image popped into her mind's eye. It was the jewel that she had kept away inside her bag, laying it on top of her clothing for it to be easily found by anyone who opens it. Aldreera didn't realize she wouldn't be taken straight to the orphanage, but locked up and tortured. Then all of her stuff would be rummaged through by all of the maids and servants for anything suspicious. They would surely find something today, Aldreera thought with a heavy heart.
Not long after her godmother left the small room, she could hear footsteps coming down the corridor again, however, they were not like her godmothers, but heavy and manly wearing a thick-soled boot. The footsteps stopped at the door, making Aldreera's heart race again. Her eyebrows furrowed, waiting for the person on the other side to come into the room and begin the experimental process of disciplining her. She waited but nothing happened. The man on the other side of the door must be a guard to be sure that she was unable to make a break for it. Aldreera sunk back down into a hunched position where she cradled her legs with her arms. Tears began to slip from her eyes. She couldn't take the stress any longer and began to cry. A cry that came from the stomach. At first it was just a whimper but, Aldreera couldn't hold the pain back any longer. She began to wail and cry like a little child would to its mother. Snot coming from her nose and shaking, the kind of shaking that couldn't be controlled. All Aldreera could think of was what would be inflicted upon her. Upon her body and what they would take from her. Blood?, fingers?, her innocence? After all she was only 17. But that didn't stop them from doing what they wanted to her. Her godmother would punish her the way that she saw fit and whatever her godmother thought would surely happen.
The door swung open to reveal her godmother standing on the other side holding something shiny between the slender fingers of her right hand.
When did she arrive? How did I not notice? Aldreera's pulse shot through the roof again and beat so loudly that the blood flowing through her heart could be heard in her ears.
"Look what we have here." Her godmother looked at the piece in her hand with a hint of rage. The godmother slithered into the room like a python about to wrap itself around its prey and squeeze until it stopped breathing. Aldreera could only watch her godmother move around to the table and pick something up.
"Do you know what this is that you have stolen from me?" The glare coming from her godmother's eyes made Aldreera tremble and lower her head. "Answer me you useless piece of trash!", Aldreera's godmother snapped and began to yell at her in pure rage. "Fine. If you don't want to talk let's see how this will make you speak." Before Aldreera could utter a word her godmother grabbed ahold of her foot and began to remove her shoe. Aldreera found it hard to wriggle free and began to whine in fear. Aldreera dare not talk back to her godmother but, finally gave in and said what she shouldn't.
"I found it." She whispered. "I-I found it in the laundry room among some dirty clothes. I promise I didn't know it was yours godmother. Please, don't hurt me. I didn't know." But before she could finish another plee her godmother slapped her across the face for the second time, leaving a mark bigger than the last.
"You think that's what I want to hear? You think I wouldn't have searched every nook and cranny for as precios of a gem as this is?" Her godmother stood leaving her there and letting what was said sink in. Aldreera bagan to cry again.
"Now you finally understand. I thought you were just a dumn broad but, you've proven me wrong time and time again. Now that you know what is going on I shouldn't have to explain myself any further. As for your punishment… I shall think it through tomorrow evening after dinner." And as her godmother said this she swung the door open and, glancing at the guard said, "No food or water for Aldreera until I come back. Keep the lights off and throw a snake or two in there while she sleeps."
The guard walked into the room, grabbed Aldreera's foot and tightened the shackle to the point where they began to dig into her skin. He looked at her with disgust and hatred. She did nothing wrong yet the entire castle seemed to be filled with loathsome eyes and evil intentions. All eyes were on her and all lips spoke her name.
For the next day Aldreera fell in and out of sleep wondering when the snakes would be added to her room. She kept herself awake by tapping the shackle on the wall she leaned against. The pain of the rough metal digging into her skin, making her bleed, was just enough to bear the agony of a sleepless night. Each time she clanked the metal onto the wall it sent a rush of pain radiating through her body making her grimace every time.
Aldreera was not one to shy away in face of pain. Often she was pushed and prodded by the other maids. Each one had their way with her, some of them adding extra chores to hers while they went off and played while other servants would purposefully trip her right as she got to the edge of the stairs just to laugh at how clumsy she could be. The one day when Aldreera was walking dirty clothes down to the laundry room a maid tripped her. She tried to throw the laundry to the side in hopes to save the clean wash but in the process had no way of catching herself. Aldreera woke up to see blood on the floor where her face landed. All the maids vanished in awe of thinking she died. Aldreera rushed to her room and found that a gash opened up on the side of her scalp right above her ear no bigger than a small paperclip. She bandaged and cleaned it as best she could, but the dizziness was still there.
Aldreera stared off into space as she fell in and out of sleep again and again. She tapped at the wall with her shackle for what seemed like days. Then as she was about to finally fall asleep the door to the room opened wide… revealing her godmother staring at her with evil intentions.
"Are you ready for your punishment, my little darling?"