Chapter 22

‘Run, run!’ 

She spoke to her legs, which jumped to action. The wind rustled past as she was making her way through the woods, she needed to get away from whatever it was. Behind her, she could hear heavy footsteps getting closer and it only propelled her to run faster. Sooner than she thought, she burst into a clearing, she paused to listen. Nothing.

Then just as she was about to take a step, the torch in her hand exposed a face having a saber-tooth like that of a tiger. Then it was all bleak and blank.

Divina had been passed out for three hours after she had seen the inhumane figure. Darren who was manipulated by Blackclaw to achieve his own ends held a smug smile. It had been easier than he had first thought. In fact, he hadn’t had to lift a finger. Only to carrier her to her cell. Of course, he picked the smelliest and one out of them all. He wanted her to suffer. 

Blackclaw entered the cell that Divina was placed in, and he smiled. He couldn’t believe his luck. Prophecy had foretold that she would be enormously powerful even for him. But he had little or no problems in capturing her. It was indeed game time. He moved closer to her and sniffed her examining her closely.

“She is quite beautiful,’’ he said aloud unexpectedly.

He recovered sharply from the sincere admire he had to curtail himself from giving his prisoner any further compliments, after all she was condemned to death. If he didn’t need to kill her to ensure his own survival, she would have indeed made a great pet. General Blackclaw collected the bucket of water Darren had and rained it hard on Divina.

“Jeez,’’ Divina exclaimed suddenly regaining consciousness.

“Welcome to the party prophecy seeker!” Blackclaw said mockingly

“Where am I? Who are you?” Divina asked as tears began to well up in her eyes. She had never been so afraid in her life. 

“Where you are . . .?”

“I wouldn’t bother about that, little girl’’

“Release me please, I have not done anything wrong,’’ she pleaded.

Blackclaw let out a sinister smile.

Divina caught a glimpse of Darren her ex with the corner of her eye, and she turned swiftly to confirm.

“Darren, what!” Divina looked perplexed.

“Hello Divina,” Darren replied emerging from the corner of the room with a smirk on his face.

“Finally, I got my chance to pay you for what you’ve done. An eye for an eye,”

“Please, Daren untie me,”

“Untie? You really don’t know who you are. Just as innocent as you look,” he grunted. 

Darren was still a jerk. Just a bigger one than before. Divina couldn’t believe at one point she loved to be on his arm and to be called his girl. Now she looked at him in disgust. 

Blackclaw interrupted both of them and instructed that Divina should be kept under lock and key until he was ready to deal with her. Divina got a chill down her spine with the way Blackclaw had said “Deal with her,” like she was nothing but a piece of property. 

***

Back home Amy walked into the house after an exceptionally long day. It was indeed an awfully long day as she was moving from one store to another getting the right ingredients for the rite of passage which would bring to the fore Divina’s powers. She strutted into the house and laid the groceries on the kitchen table calling out to Divina.

“Hey pumpkin am home,” she said turning to go to the kitchen.

Amy had spent several minutes in the kitchen arranging the groceries without any reply from Divina. She called out the second time

‘’Divina dear, Mum is home,’’

Still no response from her daughter, Amy decided to go check on her. She climbed upstairs and she knocked on Divina’s door. She got no response. 

“Sleeping, are we? “Amy said peeping into the room.

Amy received the greatest shock of her life; Divina’s bed was empty and there was a note indicating where she was.

“This can’t be,” she thought. 

“I begged her not to go outside, I told her it was too dangerous,” Why didn’t she listen?

Immediately, panic set in as thoughts of different events happening to her daughter came rushing into her perturbed mind. Hastily she picked up her phone and dialed the only one person who she knew was incredibly good at finding people, her ex-husband.

“Hello Aiden, I can’t find her,’’ she said dejectedly.

“What! Amy, I thought you told her the dangers involved in going out?”

“Believe me Aiden I did but,’’ she couldn’t continue as tears rolled out effortlessly and sobs escaped from her mouth. She felt helpless.

Aiden knowing full well how emotional his ex-wife was, knew better than to push things further.

“Calm down Amy, I will find our daughter. I promise you,’’ he reassured her. Amy didn’t have the same hope she heard in his voice. The fight with Blackclaw could be the one they couldn’t beat. Divina wasn’t ready.

“Please Aiden, please find her,’’ she begged trying to latch onto his hope. 

Aiden after ending the call set to motion immediately. He put a call through to Vanir and he wasn’t too surprised with the outcome.

“He has her man,’’ Vanir said.

“Am goanna kill Blackclaw if he lays a finger on my girl,’’ Aiden said clenching his fist.

“We will have to work together brother,’’ he continued.

“Are you ready to battle Vanir?’’

“Hell, yeah man. I want my daughter’s back,’’

“Good, am goanna update you soon,” Aiden said dropping the call. They both wanted the same thing. Their babies’ home and safe. They would fight to the death to ensure that happened. 

***

It had been two days since Divina has been kept in Blackclaw’s company. She noticed other girls in other cells being murdered and she was tired of being tied up. She decided to make a frantic effort to get herself released.

“Hey Darren, are you happy to see me like this?’’

“I thought I meant something to you,” She did mean something to him but that was a long time ago. Nothing she could say could change his mind. Daren’s soul had been buried in evil. Divina wasn’t the cause for all those but an external force. He yearned for power more than he could get or control. Being who he was, was a blessing which he enjoyed and cherished. To him, Divina was just another pawn. 

Darren moved closer to the cell and gave Divina a hard look.

“Oh, don’t play yourself Divina, that trick isn’t goanna work,” he said turning his back on her. 

“What happened to you Darren, you were once good, kind and-”

“You broke my heart Divina, that’s what happened and am going to get my revenge now,’’ he strutted away.

“I gave you everything Darren, but I don’t know you anymore, killing those innocent people. . .’’ she said tearfully.

“No one is innocent Divina. We all have black stains on our heart!” he yelled at her his cheeks puffing out with uncontrolled rage. 

“Stay away from the girl,’’ Blackclaw entered and declared with a female behind him. Divina knew it was a female by the pitter patter of her heals on the stone floor. 

Divina noticed that the lady behind Blackclaw was trying as much as possible to hide herself from Divina. She stayed behind Blackclaw with her face turned to the shadows. 

“I would like to introduce you to….”

“My mum?’’ Divina said as the lady left Blackclaw’s shadow.

“Your Mum indeed,’’ he said drawing the sinister laughter from the rest of the group.

Divina was confused, she had seen this woman before in her dreams and she looked exactly like her Mum. Different questions roamed her mind. The lady reading Divina’s mind gave her the needed answers.

“I am your Mum’s twin sister,’’ she said without blinking.

“I abducted her when she was young and raised her to do my biddings,’’ Blackclaw said with glee.

Oh yes Divina could now remember that her Mum and Dad had bruised the idea of a twin sister when they were disclosing the truth about her kind to her.

“So, you too just kill innocent people like him?’’ she inquired. 

“No one is innocent little girl, life is unfair,’’ she remarked.

Words were thrown at each other and Blackclaw told her that she would be history tomorrow because tomorrow was the full moon, and it was the perfect time to drain her power and kill her.

“Dad, Mum-where are you guys?” She sobbed quietly.

“No one can save you little witch,’’ the witch twin sister said with disgust.

“Such a weak and naive little girl,” she added.