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CHAPTER 2

Adelva opened her eyes slowly. With consciousness, came the pain and the realization of her surroundings. How long have I been unconscious, she wondered dazedly. An hour, or more? Her back was throbbing and she was lying on the ground near the place the Rotharae left her. She could hear their laughter still ringing in her ears as they watched her writhe, trying to free herself from Vyvyan's painful grip. She remembered the smell, the texture of the dung. She had tried to scream, but it only made the situation worse.

Nausea caused her to force herself up. Turning over, Adelva vomited. She panted and vomited again till her stomach cramped. Dragging herself up, she slowly moved towards the pond. A painful sob escaped her mouth as she crouched down to the edge of the pond. Her back hurt badly. She wiped her tears with her right arm and splashed water on her hands and face to clean them but she could not get rid of the stench. It was everywhere. She tried to breathe through her mouth to avoid the smell but all it did was to make the nausea return.

Think of something good, she told herself. Something to make this nausea go down, something to forget this smell.

It came to her then.

Closing her eyes to calm herself, she hummed the soothing lullaby her mother sang to her every night.

May angels watch over lil Dela, my hope, my life, my precious one,

My bundle of joy, my heart and soul, may sorrows ever touch you none,

Your laughter be full with cheerful delight,

Your smile so shiny, may it always stay bright,

Your heart with warmth and light be filled,

For that is what the heavens have willed,

May you soar at unparalleled height,

And shine like the biggest star, in the sky, alight,

If tears ever come, I will take them away,

If darkness befalls, I will stand in its way,

Fear not, my heart, sleep tight, be peaceful,

Dream love, dream hope, dream all things wonderful,

I will hold you forever in my loving embrace,

Each day, each night, each moment you can trace,

I pray, Almighty! Protect her with care,

If all else fails, it never will, it's a mothers prayer

Minutes ticked by as she sat hunched near the pond, dwelling in the calming memories of her mother. The urge to cry had finally stopped. Slowly, the nausea receded. She opened her eyes fully and looked at the sky. The sun was up. It was probably near mid morning. Adelva got up carefully. Her healing had finally kicked in. It was very slow but the pain had reduced somewhat. She took a little step cautiously. She could not fully straighten her back but it was a start, she thought. At least she could walk without tears falling down her face with each step.

With much awaited relief came the realization that her disappearance would have been noted by now. They would find her and she would be punished, she thought with a plummeting heart. It was not the punishment itself that worried Adelva but something much more hurtful - the disappointment on her father's face. How she wished he would give her a hug, a kiss or even a smile but try as she might, the best she ever achieved in getting was a slight nod and a brief glance when she cleared her lessons with highest grade last year. She had been very hopeful that day and had worn her best dress. Rutacia, the maid, had even dressed her hair in ringlets adorned with silk ribbons. She had impatiently waited for the return of her father and had paced in the entrance hall for hours but when he came through the door, he walked past her as if she was transparent. Adelva had sulked and cried in her mother's lap. That would have been the end of it all had not her mother called her to dine with her father in the private dining room. She had sat through the dinner trying to muster up strength to raise a voice but had failed seeing the deafening silence at the table. Smiling at her with encouragement and pride, her mother had then slowly announced the news to her father. The reaction had not been what she secretly hoped for but it was also not the frown of disappointment or expression of indifference that she normally saw. She slept happy that night thinking and exaggerating the silent reaction she got from her father but now she dreaded going home and facing him.

She slowly started limping towards the dirt track that lead to the backside of her home all the way trying to think up possible ways to cover the truth. She thought of making up a story about kidnapping but it sounded silly even to her young mind. She finally settled on a tale dealing with unexpected sleepwalking and awaking in a ditch filled with horse muck a little distance from her house. This would also explain injury to her back, she thought with relief.