Chapter 7

ISLA

"You must be hungry," the delicious aroma of roasted rabbit wafted through my nose as Luca thrust a piece of the meat to my face. My stomach growled in response and I bowed my head in embarrassment as I reached for the meat.

I gulped the meat hungrily, ripping the warm, tender flesh from the little bones– my teeth and tongue fighting to have a taste of the meat in my mouth.

"Who are you exactly?" Luca asked and I suddenly realized that he was still there. I had been so focused on the meat that I had totally forgotten him.

My teeth had stopped moving as I slowly met his eyes looking down at me.

"Your identity is really a cause for concern. Especially those eyes of yours," he explained.and I lowered my eyes from his, suddenly feeling so self conscious at them.

"Zane thinks you're a witch and would love to have your head as a trophy it is be–"

"I am not a witch!" My voice was tense and so was my entire body.

"You've mentioned that before. So who are you? And what were you running away from when we bumped into you earlier today?" He inquired.

I forced the piece of flesh i had been chewing down my throat which seemed to have suddenly become too small for food to pass.

I knew who I was but I could not tell him that. I could not let on my identity even though I badly wanted to reveal myself to Zane.

The sound of ravens singing began abruptly fromt tree to tree like an unplanned orchestra and the entire forest resounded with their eerie song.

"Raven," I blurted out. "My name is Raven," I repeated.

"Like your hair," he said, nodding his head slightly towards my silky black hair and I nodded, happy he did not realize I had formed the name from the singing ravens.

"So what are you Raven?" He asked and I knew I had to cook a story immediately. My eyes darted around, trying to find some tale but my head was as black as a new notebook.

Luca was watching me keenly, his brows furrowed and my heart started to beat wildly. He had finally caught me. My eyes roamed around more frantically but this time I wasn't looking for a story, I was looking for an escape route.

"Its okay, you don't need to tell me anything. You are tired as it is, I can hear your heart beating rapidly," his voice was comforting like warm milk on a rainy day.

"Have some rest and we would talk tomorrow," he said then walked away. Finally, I could breathe once again and I drew in as much air as I could take.

He walked over to Zane, said a couple of words to him and when Zane did not respond, he walked away, but I kept on looking at Zane– my mate whom I never got the chance to marry and who wanted me dead just as much as I needed to have him dead.

He did not look like the man who had saved me. He looked way older and tired, his eyes heavy with sorrow. I watched him for a long time but never for once did he look at me even though his eyes wandered around me. There was a time I thought I had caught him looking at me but it turned out he had just been looking into the distance above my head.

And then I saw him pull it out. It was the scarf he had gifted me the night I was killed. It was a dainty little thing made out of silk and embroidered with gold. I remember thinking it was the most beautiful thing ever made as my hands caressed the embroidery on it. It had been on my neck the time I was killed and in the dark, I could make out the stains of blood on the scarf.

I watched through tear filled eyes as he held the blood stained scarf to his face, buring his face in it. He stayed that way for a couple of minutes before carefully folding the scarf and dropping it back into his bag. And then he turned and laid on his side, pulling an expensive blanket over him.

My cheeks itched as the tears which had earlier pooled in my eyes flowed down my face and it was then I realized that I had been crying. I was dead and there was only one person whom was hurt and I was supposed to kill him. How could life be so cruel to me?

Weak from sadness and being manhandled by Zane, I took turned on my side, my back facing Zane's back and I cuddled up into a ball and soon drifted into sleep, my sadness and misfortune lulling me to sleep like a lullaby.

I thought it was a dream at first till I felt the pain gnawing at my brain causing me to jump awake.

My body was curled up in the most fetal position as my back burned with the most unimaginable pain I had ever felt. It seemed someone was setting my back ablaze with hot coals and the same time, someone was pouring cold ice on the back.

"Do you want the pain to stop?" I heard his voice, a tingle in my ear before I saw him.

Eamon appeared in a mist, his gray hair flowing in and out of reality like smoke drifting into the air. He was right here and it was like he wasn't.

"Make it stop!" I cried through clenched teeth as I writhe like a snake trying to get the pain to stop.

"I will. After you kill Zane," he replied.

I was gasping in pain, my entire body alive with pain and I looked at his devilish handsome face, floating just inches from mine and I said, "I won't!"

His beautiful features twisted into a frown and his eyes bore into me.

"You must," his voice was soft but I could hear the terrible warning his soft voice carried and like on control, another sharp pain jabbed through my back and it was as if I was going to die.

"You tricked me! You tricked me you bastard! You didn't tell me I was going to kill Zane!" I shouted as I writhe in pain.

"But you have agreed to the contract and you must finish it! Now you will go and kill him!" His voice was dangerously still but the pain I was feeling made it unable for me to care.

He shook his head in pity as he watched me scream in pain.

"You can save yourself from all this with only one stab," his voice sounded like he could not bear to see me suffer and he wanted to ease my pain.

"This pain will go one until you do what you're supposed to do and every midnight, the pain will get worse till it consumes you and all that is left is nothing."

He put his hands inside his pocket anf drew out a sheath. Taking off the sheet, he pulled out a silver dagger, its gleam almost blinding me with its shine.

"Take this and end your pain," he commanded.

"I. Will. Never. Kill. Zane!" Each word i spoke was pushed out by my pain.

Eamon's eyes flashed dark with anger and a chill suddenly spread through my body from my head to my toe. Then all of a sudden, the pain stopped.

I was trying to lift myself off when I felt something entering my body. I tried to fight it off but it was no use and then I began to fight with myself to gain control of my body.

"Stop trying to fight me. I have taken control of your body and since you won't kill Zane, I will kill him instead," Eamon's voice said inside my head.

I tried to respond but it was as if I no longer had control over my body. I watched myself grab the silver dagger in my hand and I got up from the bed. I looked directly towards Zane and I started to march towards him.

I tried my best to stop myself but I walked steadily anf determined, the dagger held tightly in my hands.

I was a few feet from him and I knew it was too late– I was going to kill Zane with my two hands. I watched as my hands slowly lifted the dagger up till it was above my head and ready to land in Zane's heart.

"What do you think you're doing?" The angry voice of a man brought me to my senses.