The Siren's Daughter, Part 8 (v1)

This is...part 8 right?

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When I saw Devin’s face, my body froze in shock. To see a familiar face after so long… a face that I trusted... I was overwhelmed. I was at a loss for words. I didn’t know how to react, or what to say. I could only stare back at him, confused and frightened, yet relieved.

Clyde regained his bearings. He pushed me back against the glass cabinet, which caused it to shatter and shower over me. Small shards of glass pierced my bare back as I fell forward on the ground. He grabbed the vase from the table near him and smashed it into the side of Devin’s head. Devin stumbled in a daze from the blow as blood seeped down from the side of his head. Clyde pinned Devin onto the ground, strangling him.

“You should’ve minded your own business,” Clyde growled.

I watched in horror as Devin struggled for air. I had to do something. I had to help him. I grabbed the knife from amidst the pile of glass and stabbed Clyde’s back. Again, and again, I stabbed him. I knew I had done enough, but I couldn’t stop myself. I could do nothing but weep uncontrollably as I watched myself stab him over and over again, until my body wore itself out.

* * *

Razelin looked back at the mirror and gazed at her reflection. She lightly touched her cheek, as if she were unsure if it were real. I wanted to comfort her in some way, but I was speechless. I hadn’t the slightest idea of what I even wanted to say, much less how to say it. How was I supposed to respond to such a story? Having learned the truth about her mother and sister’s occupation…having undergone such atrocities… what could I have possibly said to comfort her?

“All my life people have been hiding things from me. Even my sister kept things secret from me.” She turned toward me. “Why, Devin?”

“We wanted to protect you,” I assured her.

“Protect me from what?”

“You were young, Razelin… we didn’t want to ruin your outlook on life—”

“And what good did it do me?” she demanded. “Tell me, what did hiding all of those things do to help me? Did it help me to not know what my sister did? Did it help me when she wouldn’t come home all night and I was left worried, not knowing where she was? Did it help that I didn’t know about her work, or her frequent visits from Clyde?”

I averted my eyes in shame and shook my head. Razelin was right. In the end, hiding everything from her only ended up making her life worse. If she had known about Clyde, and the fact that he was a potential threat, she could have avoided her cruel fate. It was naïve of us to believe that shielding her from reality would grant her a happier life. And because of that, she suffered for our ignorance.

“What else has everyone been hiding from me?” she demanded. “Why did my father rarely visit? Why did no one ever talk to me about him?”

I swallowed nervously as I rubbed the back of my hands. “Your father was a very busy man. He was usually at the castle serving as the Silver Guard.”

“I know you’re not telling me something.”

I gazed into Razelin’s eyes, searching for the little girl who always used to greet me with a smile full of life and energy, but that little girl was gone. She was growing into a young woman, one who had experienced cruelties that none deserved. She wanted to hear the truth, and would settle for no less.

“You’re right. You deserve to know the truth.”



First: The Siren's Daughter, Part 1 (v1)
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Next: The Siren's Daughter, Part 9 (v1)