Thread: Dancing with Death. Enos and ParallyzingLullaby

The young woman remained stiff and pressed to the wall until the man in front of her faded away completely. Releasing the breath she was holding Arianna allowed herself to slowly drop down onto her rump where she wrapped her arms around her knees and cried. What in the world was happening to her? Several months had passed since the last time she saw the handsome devil that tried to convince her to join him in death. She figured he expected her to flop over and give up on life when the going got tough, when death seemed to be all around her and she felt no hope for happiness in her future, but she was stronger than that. That was until her life was turned upside down. It was late into the night and Arianna couldnt seem to get to sleep. She wandered around the house, walked in the gardens and drank some soothing tea but nothing seemed to work. Releasing a frustrated sigh she began walking back to her room but paused when she heard a strange gurgling sound, it was link someone was choking. Filled with worry Arianna began to sprint in the direction of the sounds. Panic seized her while her heart pound against her ribcage frantically. When she reached her fathers study the door was slightly open. The young woman was about to shove the door open wider when she saw her father knelt on the ground over another man, he was clutching a bloody knife tightly and had a terrifyingly vicious look on his face. I she hadnt known any better she wouldnt have recognized the man as her father. What in the world had he done? He killed someone but why, what happen? She knew from the look on his face it wasnt self defense but a vicious attack designed to attack the other man. Placing her hand over her mouth she jerks herself back from the crack in the door and quickly but silently runs to her room. She hadnt slept at all that night and when morning came around and her was gone to the company she made her way to his study. Entering the room she half expected to see a stained carpet or overturned furniture, perhaps the police or a maid but no. The office looked as though it hadnt been touched at all. Frowning the young woman ran over the her fathers desk and searched the top for the knife or any evidence to prove she hadnt gone insane but she couldnt find anything. Moving her attention from the drawers she already searched she looked at the one her father always kept locked. Kneeling she slid her hand along the bottom of the underside of the desk and smiled when she found the secret key. She had discovered the key when she was playing hide and seek as a child. At that time she was so young an nave and because of her near death when she was ten her family always treated her well, gave her everything she ever wanted. But now, her father was keeping horrible secrets from her. Arianna frowned even more so as she wiggled the key into the lock and opened the drawer. Her eyes widened when she saw the knife in a display case, fully cleaned and tucked away like a precious keepsake. Moving her hand past the knife she reached for some papers that caught her eye. What she read on those papers confirmed her suspicion and made the dread she felt all the more powerful. There in front of her on this thin strip of paper was a contract between her father and a local slave trader. Her father had agreed to send slaves into the familys underground storage where they would be killed. What puzzled her more than anything was why her father would do such a thing. What did he have to gain from killing people? She didnt understand. Confused she tucked all the papers into the drawer and put the key back where she found it. With shaky hands she pushed her hair back from her wet face. Frowning she pulled her hand back and looked down at the moisture, she hadnt even realized she was crying.