Chapter 5

We both walk into the mountain entrance this time and no one stops me. Krag is standing in the circle we were in earlier. Come Jayna. I walk towards him. He grabs me by my arm. His grip is tight and beggining to hurt. Ouch I yell. He doesn’t let go. You're hurting me. He doesnt let go and he doesn’t say anything. He just stares at me and continues to hold my arm. Let go of me I yell. Nothing. I scream and kick at his shin. He blocks it. I claw at his hand with my other free hand. He slaps my hand away and throws me to the ground.

I get up and turn to run and he is in front of me before I even take the first step. Leave me alone! Get away from me! He pushes me. I stumble back and just stare at him. Stop ! I yell. He moves forward again and pushes me again. Stop! Leave me alone! Another push. I scream and charge towards him. I kick and claw at him. Why did you leave me! Who killed you?! I hate you! I hate you! Im going to kill them!Im going to kill them! They took my mom! They took my mom! Tears are running down my face and I still fight. I fight until I have no energy left. I fall to my knees and look up to a sky I cant see and say please come back.

My vision starts to clear from the cloudy haze of red in front of my eyes. I look around to see Krag sitting in the middle of the circle. His eyes are closed and his body is still. His arms has small scratches on them but he pays them no mind. His clothes are halfway off of him but he doesnt even try to fix them. He opens his eyes and stares straight at me and nods. Suddenly I feel soft hands on my shoulder. I turn to look into the face of Asha.

Her face is sympathetic now. Her eyes show emotion it didn’t before. I notice all the other girls are here now too. Did they see what I did? I hold my head down in shame. Asha, Moro, and Laya help me to sit around the circle. They all have a look on their faces I finally recognize. A look of loss and sorrow. Everyone sits and closes their eyes. Their bodies become still. No sounds are

heard except what nature makes. I look at Krag and he is staring right back at me. He nods and closes his eyes. I want this peace that they have found. I need it. So I too close my eyes and become as still as I can. Except my tears and sniffles make my body shake uncontrollably. After what seems like hours of sitting like this, my face is finally dry. My mind still rages with thoughts of my mom and who killed her but I don’t think those thoughts ever go away.

My knife makes a clean cut across the guard's throat and I feel a twinge of excitement as I shove my knife into the mouth of a guard directly across from him. . I pull out my silencer and continue to move down into the building without a sound. The hallway is quiet but I know there are two guards at each door on each floor. I make quick work of the last two floors and head towards my prize. There is a suite on the first floor reserved for only him and I am finally going to skin that bastard alive. My sources have confirmed that he was seen here less than two hours ago.

I enter into the room the suite is connected to. The smell hits me first. It always does. It smells like a dead body this time instead of urine like the last time. Ive been tracking him for five years now and every time I find one of his ..his.. I don’t even know what to call them. A few times I would find young girls who have urinated on themselves over and over sitting in a corner. Other rooms would have women who were completely naked but have slash marks all over their bodies. Some would be healed some were fresh wounds. My previous life as a marine prepares you for battle but what Ive seen in these place I find are beyond what I ever encountered in the military.

The women don’t even look at me as I enter the room, they never do. They move as if in a trance. I ve learned that these women are beyond my help and all I can give them is the blood of their captor. It’s added fuel onto the fire on top of keeping Jayna safe. I push open the adjoining master suite with my silencer ready but the full force of the dead smell hits me so hard I stumble back. I quickly gain my senses back and look around and see no one in the room, not a soul is there.. Alive. In the king size bed there is a women and a young girl who looks like Jayna and her mother. Their breasts have been cut off and their vaginas obstructed. In blood above the bed on the wall is written MINE.

I’m holding the gun so tight I know the print of the gun will stay in my hand for days. Im losing feeling in my hand from how hard my fists are closed. I turn around and walk out the building. The women fall in line behind me like they've done every other time. Why? I don’t know. We walk out the building. I pull out my phone and call Krag. He answers on the first ring. How many? Six I say. When? Tomorrow. I will find him Krag. No you won’t he says. It’s not for you to do. He hangs up like he does every other time I say that. Krag takes every girl ive found in these hell holes. I never ask what he does with them and he never tells me

I go to see Jayna every few weeks. She seems different everytime I see her. Almost as if she is growing stronger and bolder. We talk easier now about her life with the other girls but she never tells me what her training entails. As long as she is happy and safe I dont care. She use to ask me every time I saw her when I would take her away, but after that first year she stopped. She knows I love her and would do anything for her but she needs to be with Krag until I finish this.

I think about the letter that Maya left for Jayna and the letter she left for me. I never read Jayna’s letter nor mines. I can’t bring myself to read her words or imagine her voice as she writes the words. After five years I still can’t. Im curious but not enough to read it. I just need to focus on one thing and that is killing that bastard.Everytime I ask Krag what he means by its not for me to do. He doesn’t give me an answer. It doesn’t stop me from searching for Shaitan and I never will. It is my job, I have to protect Jayna. Only me.

Asha please! Come on we never get to go anywhere. That’s because you have to….yeah yeah yeah..Jayna has heard this speech a thousand times and doesn’t want to hear it again. Jayna don’t you think we want to go out too? Says Moro but we just cant. Not yet anyway says Laya conversationally. Laya warns Asha. What do you mean not yet asks Jayna. Nothing, we just got to be patient Jayna.

Yeah not my thing Asha. I will be twenty two in a few days I want to do something else then stay around here. Patience and me does not belong in the same room. We know! They all say together. They each start to laugh and the tension that was once in the room disappears as if it was never there. Moro snorkels like a pig and it makes everyone laugh harder. Fine Jayna says after calming down. But promise me you guys will at least think about it, just one night to go out into town.

Everyone shrugs and brushes me off like they usually do. We deserve this I push. Each of us deserve to be normal for just one night. A huge sigh escapes all four girls because the truth is they have no idea what normal is. Yeah..normal,, whispers Laya. Like meet a man, fall in love, get married, have kids, and live in a big house normal huh Jayna she says with a little bite to the end of my name.

I didn’t mean it like that Laya. You know that. Look Laya I’m sorry im just being pissy as usual im sorry. Laya quickly wipes away a tear from her face that she thinks no one notices but we always do. Laya’s older than us at twenty six. She’s seen a lot and done a lot but her demons haunt her more than most. Have you guys noticed that my boobs have shrunk? Says Moro Yep says Asha the left is bigger than the right. Laya snickers and im thankful for the distraction. Moro gives Asha the middle finger and rolls her eyes.

I decide to move onto another topic. So there is six girls this time I say more as a statement then a question. We continue to fix up the extra rooms for the girls who will be coming to stay with Krag. There is four to a room. It always surprises me how many caves exist up here. It must be like fifty people living here now I say to no one in particular. We make it work though. Everyone has a job or more like chore that keeps our little group running. It's more like a community of women really. Krag and Darwin being the only men.

How many more can we really take? says Moro. I don’t know we seem pretty full now but knowing Krag if more room is needed he will find it. No one is turned away says Laya. Where do we go from here ? says Moro to no one in particular. Moro being only a few years older than me at twenty shares the same wants I do. Are we going to live here forever? Will we ever get married or have kids? She sends Laya a “im sorry” look but continues. I just want to know what my future holds she finishes. A calm and steady voice answers before anyone else can answer. You all are here because of a threat you could not escape. Once that threat is no more, you are free to do as you want says Krag. Then he goes away as fast as he appeared. Leaving each of us thinking about our own situations and if we truly will ever be free.

We finish putting together the packages for the new girls and head out of the mountain. Asha leads and we follow. Asha’s pace speeds up and before you know it were jogging the same path she took me the first day I arrived. Except im beside Asha and not behind and I don’t fall or trip. My steps are steady and light. My breathing controlled. On days like this when our minds are clouded we dont stop at the top of the hill. We push ourselves and keep jogging. We don’t stop until we come to a place where there is plenty of space and grass.

Still there is no talking. We are all still in our heads. Moro stands in front of us and leads us into poses and stretches. None of us complain or cry out. Some of the poses use to cause me pain but not anymore. My eyes are closed and I inhale pushing my stomach out and exhale sucking my stomach in. My body feels loose and flexible. I don’t need to see the poses to know what we are doing. We all know them by heart. I sense Moro’s presence next to me and we all stand together and open our eyes exhaling as we do.

We then scatter like the wind on a spring night. Each of us going in a different direction.

I climb up the side of a bolder reach down on the side of it where it connects with another boulder and grab two short blades. I quickly jump down making no sound as my feet hit the ground and squeeze myself into the dark crevice of the shadowed side of a mountain. I have to suck in my stomach and breath small spurts of air in order to stay hidden in this small space, but I do. I close my eyes and listen for the others. I finally move from my spot knowing no one is around.

I move against the mountain slow and steady but still out of sight. I sense her before I see her. I turn swiftly with my blades up across my face making an X as Laya’s sword clangs against them. Im pushed back slightly by the force of her swing, but quickly recover. I push her back and launch my own attack. Sparks fly and metal clang. Our moves are swift and sure.

Silent and lethal. Sweat drips into my eyes but i make no move to wipe it away. The sting no longer bothers me. Laya does a split to avoid my blade from taking off her head and I block with my left blade to avoid a wound to my gut. We both nod ending this practice. Ive had plenty cuts from trainings and misplaced bones. Moro and Asha walk up next to us showing their own exertion and battle. We walk silently together back to our home.

As we enter I hear umpph from behind me. Then feel a gust of wind and know to block with my right arm and turn, effectively blocking a blow to the head from Krag. He nods and walks ahead of me. I look back to see Moro wearing a scowl on her face and wiping dirt from her pants. I shake my head because that was me for the first year I was here. He still catches me but not without a fight. We walk into the makeshift living room and settle into our spots. Krag is where he always is, in the middle of the circle. No one else ever joins us other than Laya, Asha, Moro, and me. I asked the girls why that is and they just shrug I don’t care as long as we stay this way.

I didn’t want to come here at first and couldn’t stand the harsh training. Now I couldn’t imagine not going through the trainings and being with the other girls. They ground me. I have peace here but I can’t stop thinking that that's all about to change. That the training is for a reason and that reason is long overdue, but what is the reason? Its been twenty years since my mom died. The man who killed her has never found me and is probably to busy running from my dad I mean Darwin to worry about me.

You