18

Dawn

I woke up to the sound of deep rumbling. Once again, my wrists hurt and my vision was foggy. This time the pain didn't stop after I opened my eyes.

Harsh streaks of sunlight threatened to blind me, while my wrists felt like they were being sewn in with silver.

I stifled a sob and touched the right one. A jolt of silvery pain shot through my finger as I made contact with it. There was no physical sign on my wrists but the finger I'd used to touch it was badly injured. It hurt so much that I found myself rushing back to the stream I'd used the night before to douse my burning hands in.

The pain dissipated as soon as I submerged my hands in the cool water. I threw my head back and tried to bite back my tears.

What was this? It only seemed to get worse.

My hands remained in the flowing water for a long time. I was scared to pull it out because the pain might return.

It was only after several minutes had passed that I realized how late I was. The rays of the morning sun filtered thro