How stupid.
She continued walking, hands in the pockets of her black pants, passing right by a cake store. If that didn't tell her how broken up about it she was, nothing would. Tears threatened to pass through her eyes, and Amalia did nothing to stop them. She was just so tired. Blinking, the tears were set loose, stinging her eyes.
A quiet scream rang out from a distance away.
Amalia looked around for the source, but all she could see was the hustle and bustle of the merchant stalls, nothing out of place for the time of day. Pulling her right hand out of her pocket, she wiped at her eyes as she tried to focus on the scream she had heard. And again! The scream rang out again, from the left. Amalia took off at a run.
It was probably just a kid playing, of course. She remembered playing and screaming with Yesenia, and angrily shoved the memory out of her mind. At least in this, she thought, let me be free of her. At least for now. She ran through the streets and ducked into alleyways, confident she was getting closer to the source of the screams - a confidence boosted by the fact that the screams were getting louder. Emerging from the latest alley, she froze at what she saw - a group of children playing and laughing as they kicked a ball around. Heaving a sigh, Amalia shook her head. Of course. She turned to leave when she heard the scream again, and, being this close, knew it to be no child's scream of joy.
It was a scream of pure, unadulterated fear.
She took off at a run again, towards the sound of the scream that for some reason no one else seemed to hear. She approached a dark alleyway, grabbing onto the corner of the building and whirling inside. She noticed two things almost immediately. The first was a foot disappearing around the opposite corner. The second was a crumpled figure laying in the darkness. As she ran up to the figure, she slipped on something slick and fell to her hands and knees.
"Help me...." The figure, now identifiable as a woman, pleaded quietly. Amalia urged her eyes to adjust to the darkness. "What's wrong?" Amalia demanded of the woman as her eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness. Her eyes widened in horror as she was able to see what was directly in front of her. The woman's clothes were ripped and stained with blood, as was her - doubtlessly otherwise pretty - blonde hair. Amalia lifted her shaking hands off the ground and stared at the blood dripping from them. She opened her mouth to speak, but no words would come. The woman stared helplessly up at her. "Please...." she murmured as she lifted a bloody hand to the green haired girl, seeking help, but the hand dropped to her side and the life faded from her eyes. For a moment there was silence - a dead woman and a girl unable to speak.
Then Amalia screamed.
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The Garrison soldiers had many questions for her when they found the two. They knew she hadn't done it - there was no motive, no weapon, no reason to stay behind. Amalia answered to the best of her ability, still shaken from seeing the woman - they had identified her as Mrs. Spinner, the wife of a wealthy merchant - die before her eyes. As the soldiers turned to leave, she called after them. "You'll find him, right...?" She was referring to the killer, and two of them shared a look before giving her a reassuring smile. "Of course we will, sweety." The female soldier announced.
But Amalia wasn't convinced. The smile was the kind that a parent supplied a scared child, that there were no monsters under the bed. Just like a parent, they had little to no inclination to search for the monster, even if this one was undoubtedly real. Amalia felt something break inside her, but she said nothing. She shifted her gaze to the weeping Mr. Spinner. The man was a widower now, and these soldiers likely wouldn't do anything about it. A quiet fury rose up in her, replacing her fear, and still she said nothing.
What was there to say?
