The Siren's Daughter, Part 2 (v1)

Here's part two.

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I stepped over the short trimmed grass and packed dirt. It was strange; cemeteries always seemed to change a person’s mood. Simply walking between the graves often left one solemn and reminiscing, even if they were blind with rage when they first arrived. Yet, every time I walked through a cemetery, I couldn’t help but feel guilt and regret.

I found myself walking to the same spot I walked to every time I visited that cemetery. At least once a week I would visit their graves with Razelin and we would pay our respects in silence, sometimes for an hour. When I saw her kneeling in front of her sister’s grave, I realized what troubled her. I draped her cloak around her and knelt down beside her.

She wrapped herself in her cloak as a cold breeze blew past, never taking her eyes off her mother and sister’s grave. The inscription on her sister’s tombstone stabbed at me like a dozen knives.

CASSANDRA VISELLE ATRAEA
1094 N.E. – 1114 N.E.

“It’s been a year, hasn’t it?”

She nodded. “I remember when Mom used to teach us how to dance.”

“The three of you used to perform for us when I visited with your father. I looked forward to it every time,” I reminisced.

“We really did love to dance. Even after mom died, my sister and I would dance when she wasn’t working. She would also tell me all of the interesting stories she heard from travelers she met.”

She shuddered suddenly, gripping the silver pendant that dangled around her neck, her cloak pulled tightly against her body. Her eyes brimmed with tears. “It’s my fault…If she didn’t have to take care of me, then—”

I wanted to hold her and comfort her, as I’ve wanted to many times before. Every time I saw her cry, every time I saw her sad, I wanted to comfort her, but I never could…not after what I witnessed in that house. Doing so would only bring her discomfort and make her more distant than she already was. Knowing not what to do, I tried to comfort her with words. “Neither you, nor your sister, asked to be put into that position.”

“I know…it’s just, if she didn’t have to worry about me, then she wouldn’t have had to work so much. Then maybe… maybe it wouldn’t have happened…”

I forced a stern tone. “Don’t blame yourself, Razelin. Neither of your parents would blame you for the things that have happened, nor your sister. And I know they wouldn’t want you to blame yourself, either.”

She continued staring at her sister’s grave, caressing her silver pendant. Her eyes glistened a sweet but hollow beauty. Her face was oddly haunting, bringing words of her father’s to mind. "After I became your father’s apprentice, I was ordered to arrest a man for slave trading. When I found him, he was with his two children. A son and daughter, no older than eight. When I told him the charges he faced, he tried to attack me in front of his own children. I had no choice but to defend myself, and I ended up killing him.”

Razelin looked at me puzzled as I continued. “His children’s cries…their faces…they haunted me every night. That was when your father told me, ‘The world is a painful place, but you did a good thing. While you may have brought his family sadness, you saved dozens, if not hundreds, of potential victims to his slave trade. Our job is to make this Empire the best we can for people. It’s a hard role to play, one with many sorrows, but someone must bear that weight on their shoulders. Fear and anguish only breaks a person if they let it. So stay strong.’”

She lowered her gaze in silence, contemplating her father’s words. The wind gently lifted her smooth light brown hair.

“I may not know what happened, but you can’t let it ruin your life. Accept your past and let it make you stronger.”

Her eyes slowly found me. Anxiety crept over me when I looked into her grave expression. After a moment, she averted her eyes, whispering weakly, almost inaudibly. “Can you take me there…?”

I stared at her in disbelief. Ever since the day I found her there, I’ve wondered what exactly what happened in that house. I had my suspicions, but what I feared most was learning that my suspicions were correct. My body cried out at me to decline her request. Taking her to that house would undoubtedly bring back horrific memories. However, I think it was the fear of finding out the truth that frightened me the most. No, I couldn’t decline. It’s just as her father had said. If Razelin was willing to face her fears, then I had to be as well. I closed my eyes and nodded.

We walked down the paved road into the residential district. The sun descended beyond the horizon, the sky glowing a luminous red. The long shadows of the trees and houses loomed over us as the chilly winds licking our flesh. I glanced at Razelin who walked beside me, still clinging her pendant. As we grew closer to the abandoned house, she began to tremble violently. We stood in front of the threshold, staring at the faded wooden walls of the house. Dark green vines began encroaching upon the walls from its base, creeping into the battered windows.

“Are you sure you want to do this?”



First: The Siren's Daughter, Part 1 (v1)
Next: The Siren's Daughter, Part 3 (v1)