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  “They will have to fit,” Marsha said, struggling.

  “If you say so,” Licenta said. Then, turning to Anna she whispered, “It’s never gonna fit. Trust me.”

  “I heard that!”

  At that moment Aerial came through the door with another bunch of roses, she passed them to Marsha. “You have another admirer.”

  “YAY!” Marsha squealed and looked at the little letter attached. There was silence, not the normal squealing, then a huge smile appeared on Marsha’s face, “It’s not for me,” she said, teasingly.

  “Huh?” Aerial turned around. Licenta and Anna both looked at Marsha in astonishment

 

  “It’s for you, Aerial,” Marsha said, handing them over.

  Licenta ran to Aerial’s side, leaning over to read the card.

  To Aerial

  Love from

  A Secret Admirer

  Marsha squealed in delight and ran over to hug the still open mouthed Aerial. Licenta backed off, in case Marsh decided to hug her too. Looking back at Anna’s bed she saw Anna sitting there hoping to hear the news, but too shy to ask.

  Licenta smiled mischievously and said loud enough for Anna to hear and also to embarrass Aerial, “So, who do you think your secret admirer is?”

  Anna, understanding what happened, grinned at the idea of the search for the secret admirer. Aerial just stood there still in shock.

  After much laughter and joking around the four girls decided to walk to the garden, where another two friends were waiting for them.

  Anna looked at the two friends. Arwen she had met before, but there was a boy there also. He had messy brown hair and glasses hiding his intelligent, yet venomous green eyes.

  Licenta was the first to introduce their other friend, “Sullivan, guess what Aerial got?”

  Sullivan recognized the evil glint in Licenta’s eyes and played along. “What?” he asked.

  “Aerial’s got an admirer,” Licenta said in a teasing voice of a six year old as she sat down on a picnic bench.

 

  Arwen smiled, Aerial was one of the nicest people she had ever met. It was no wonder she had an admirer.

  “I have admirers also,” Marsha said, trying to put her point across.

 

  “Yeah, but you ALWAYS have admirers,” Arwen joked.

  “Yeah, like remember your last birthday you wrote thank you cards to everyone who sent you a present. You used up all of my pens as well as your own!” Licenta said, laughing.

  “Well your pens were running out anyway,” Marsha said, sticking her tongue out.

  “I bought them the day before,” Licenta replied, with her eyebrow raised.

  “Okay okay, I owe you pens, I’ll buy them later. Happy?”

  “Very,” Licenta said, smiling.

  Anna watched all her new friends, she felt so happy just to be here now. She felt like she was safe.

  Chapter 7

  Darkness flooded through the corners of her eyes. She could see the whole scene unfolding, except this wasn't a play; it was a memory.

  Greasy smiles and evil eyes. Cold hands grabbed her by the wrist.

  Mocking voices came through the darkness. “Let her see what’s happening to her dear papa.”

  She was pushed roughly into a room. Her eyes widened when she saw her father strapped to a chair, the rope burning into his wrists. His head was down, his proud face hidden by his hair drooping over his eyes.

  Another door opened and a man came through. He was strong and muscular, and smiled as he entered to room. Not a warming smile, but a smile that made a cold shiver run down Anna’s back.

  He went over to the bench and picked up a whip. It was stained red from earlier use.

  With a gesture the men behind the chair untied her father, and turned him around for the man with the whip. The man’s arm went up and the whip came down.

  The sound echoed around the room and her father shuddered under the pressure. A new wound appeared as his flesh tore to shreds and blood began to flow.

  Again the whip went up and came down. An inaudible sound came from her father, then sniggering from the men.

  “How do you like that then?”

  “Now you know what its like if you don’t listen to Vacont.”

  Her father stayed silent to their mocking. The whip went up and came down.

  After more fresh cuts in the skin the mocking came again.

  “You can stay silent all you want but this is not going to stop what’s going to happen to you and your family.”

  Her father looked up his torturers, his eyes that were normally dead at their mocking were now defiantly staring at them.

  “What you going to do?” sneered one man.

  “Your daughter has seen your heroic efforts, but that’s not going to save either of you.”

  Her father turned around to see Anna, who had been hiding in the shadows watching the whole time.

  “Anna!” Her father cried out. It was the first word he had said in this room. He hadn’t wanted to have his daughter see his pain. He hadn’t wanted his daughter to have these nightmares.

  But she did, and she lived them every night.

  Chapter 8

  “You have another gift,” announced Licenta as she opened the door to their room. Her hand already held one chocolate that was destined for her mouth.

  “Hey, those are for Aerial!” Marsha called out.

  “I’m sure she doesn’t mind if I have one,” Licenta said, whilst offering one to Anna. Aerial nodded her approval, so Anna took one happily and let the soft chocolate melt in her mouth.

  After the chocolate had been passed around to all roommates it finally reached Aerial, three chocolates less than it began. It was a beautifully wrapped chocolate box with an un-tied ribbon, which would have been tied on nicely before Licenta got to it. There was a card attached.

  Aerial gently picked up the card. It was embossed with roses on the front and on the inside there was the familiar handwriting.

  To Aerial

  Love from

  A Secret Admirer

 

  Aerial smiled at the message. She picked up a chocolate and ate it as she re-read the card. It was nice to have a secret admirer, but it was also slightly unsettling. Who was he? And why did he like her?

  Aerial looked back at the box, ready to choose another chocolate. She noticed something at the bottom of the box that was sticking out. Moving the chocolate aside she picked up the piece of paper.

  Opening the folded paper, she found more familiar handwriting,

  Would you like to meet?

  Sunday, 1pm. The school doors

  Aerial looked at the note in surprise, blinking a few times. She put the chocolate box carefully on her bed and stood up. She passed the note to Licenta, who was lying against the head of her bed reading a fantasy book. Licenta took the note with a look of surprise as she was drawn back into the real world.

  Licenta read the note and a huge smile emerged on her face.

  “You HAVE to go,” she said.

  “Go to what?” Marsha asked, as she looked at Aerials stunned face and Licenta’s mischievous smile.

  The note was passed to her and soon Marsha was agreeing and encouraging Aerial to go.

  “This will be so good for you.”

  “But…but… I don’t even know who he is."

  “We aren’t letting you go alone,” Licenta said. “I ain’t gonna trust him just because he sent you chocolate.”

  Anna was passed the note and soon she too had a grin on her face. She would like to meet this ‘secret admirer’ as much as all the other girls.

  She grabbed her notebook and wrote in huge letters:

  COUNT ME IN!

  Her roommates read the note and Licenta smiled. “So it’s agreed, we're going!”

  Chapter 9

  A few hours later, the group of four girls were outside the gate waiting for this secret admirer. Aerial had
changed clothes twice and Marsha three times, even though it wasn’t her secret admirer. Aerial was in a pair of jeans and a white blossoming t-shirt, which fitted her perfectly. Marsha was in a pink top and a black skirt, while Licenta was in dark green pants and a dark blue t-shirt. Finally, Anna was in jeans with a plain black t-shirt, which had fitted her mood when the social worker gave it to her.

  The sun was shining through the clouds and the morning's rain was drying off the trees. It was a good time to go to town and just have a snack, and this was exactly what Tom was thinking as he walked towards the school gate.

  Tom had been admiring Aerial for a while but he could never work up the courage to ask her out. She was always around her friends, and it would be even more embarrassing if there were witnesses to his failure, so he came up with the idea of a secret admirer. He had found it fitting as he didn’t have to meet face to face and, in the end, it was more romantic.

  As the gates came into view Tom saw four girls, three he knew and one he did not. Approaching the girls he suddenly felt nervous and slightly wished he had not turned up. This was the moment of truth.

  The four girls continued talking about random topics until Anna saw a boy walking up the path and pointed. The four turned and looked in unison. The boy had black hair and was dressed in jeans and a brown t-shirt. Aerial recognized him as someone who she had seen at a café once but she had never met him before.

  “So this is your secret admirer,” Licenta said, smiling and nudging Aerial.

  Aerial smiled, she could see that he was nervous; a sign that he wasn’t arrogant.

  “Um….Hello, my name is Tom Blackwood,” the boy said nervously as he put his hand out in greeting to Aerial. “As you might have guessed, I’m your secret admirer.” He laughed nervously.

  A squeal came from behind, “He is so adorable!” Marsha cried. She pushed herself the two and shook Tom’s hand, “Hi! I’m Marsha, and this is Licenta, and Anna, and of course you know Aerial.”

  Licenta burst out laughing. “You’ll have to excuse her. So, what do you want to do?” She asked, pushing Marsha out of the way.

  “Well…. I was thinking we could go to a café I know in the town.” Tom was still slightly shaken up by Marsha’s outburst.

  “Sounds good with me,” Licenta said, appointing herself leader of the little group. “Lead on”

  Tom lead the group into town with Aerial. They talked softly in front while Licenta, Marsha and Anna joked around at the back.

  They were taken to a little café with umbrellas in tables and menus full of milkshakes and sweet cakes. They were sat at a table and ordered five milkshakes; three chocolate and two strawberry.

  Laughter and joy came from the table as Tom quickly fitted in. There was only one mistake he made that afternoon. It was a mistake that would be remembered as a nightmare.

  “Why doesn’t Anna speak?”

  That was the subject which had been avoided so many times. The one question which had not been answered by Anna, for it hurt her to tell it. Anna’s smile disappeared into misery, into the memories of death and bloodshed.

  Her friends saw her reaction and the silence hung dead in the air. Someone finally spoke, to break the oppressing silence. “She can’t.”

  Tom knew he’d said the wrong thing and he tried to apologize. Despite Anna's reassurance he insisted that he was in the wrong. Yet, how can it have been Tom's fault? It was not his fault she couldn’t talk. No, it was Vacont’s fault. It was the soldiers fault, it was the fault of those who liked to torture for fun. Not Tom’s fault, not her friends fault. She felt herself fall back into darkness and misery.

  The evening lightened up when their cakes arrived, but still there was the unspoken issue. Tom felt the guilt for bringing up the question hanging over his head, whilst the other girls felt nothing but pity for Anna.

  At the end of the afternoon tea, Aerial thanked Tom and they swapped phone numbers so they could keep in contact.

  “Call me any time you like,” Aerial said and the four girls left to go back to the boarding house. They left behind a secret admirer who was pleased that he had talked to Aerial face to face, but one who also felt guilty because he hurt one of her friends.

  With mixed emotions Tom left the café once the four girls left his sight. He would definitely call Aerial later.

  Chapter 10

  The room was dark as only a small amount of light filtered through the muck stained window. The stench that lingered in the room stung her nose. It smelt of fear and torture.

  Anna looked around her, there were utensils on tables. Some of them were already covered in blood. The wet blood of recent use dripped off them as well as red stains of old pain.

  She heard screaming. Her fathers screaming. “LET HER GO!” The words echoed in the room.

  But no, the men did not let her go. She had just become a teenager and for her thirteenth birthday she was not going to be able to talk ever again.

  Her father tried to fight off the men that held him, tried to reach out to his beautiful baby child, but too many men held him down and he was helpless to do anything but watch.

  The shadows crept in and Anna felt fear seize her heart. She tried to get away but she was tied down and her body was feeble and frail. The shadows came closer and closer, and the screaming came louder until it was ringing in her ears.

  "LET HER GO.

  SHE’S JUST THIRTEEN.

  SHE DIDN’T DO ANYTHING, I DID.

  TORTURE ME INSTEAD.

  SHE IS INNOCENT."

  But the shadows just laughed at her father. He was the one who had betrayed them in their war and they were going to teach him the hard way that no one crossed Vacont. To watch his only daughter go through searing pain in front of his eyes, and to be helpless to do anything but watch.

  Blood lay on her tongue.

  The last taste she ever had on her tongue was blood. Blood of the people tortured before her and her blood.

  This was her memory. This is why she couldn’t talk.

  Chapter 11

  “Anna! Wake up!” A voiced called out to her from beyond her nightmare which clung to her with cold hands.

  “Anna!” Another voice called and the warm covers were ripped off. A cold hand shook her trying to wake her up.

  She was still unconscious, trapped in the blackness of her nightmares but she could hear the voices as they tried to wake her up.

  “Anna!!!”

  Aerial opened her eyes; she had heard someone scream. Looking to her side she saw Anna fighting with her covers, being strangled by them. Getting quickly out of bed Aerial was the first at Anna’s bedside.

  “Anna! Wake up!” Aerial cried, trying to get the blankets off her, but this only made Anna struggle more.

  “Anna!” Licenta called as she tried to help Aerial pull the blankets off Anna’s pale, fraught body, this time with success. They ripped off the blankets to reveal Anna with pajamas, cold and wet with sweat as she cried aloud in her sleep.

  Marsha was terrified and had run out of their room to get help. Aerial and Licenta tried to wake Anna up by shaking her. “Anna!!” They pleaded as they tried as hard as they could, but she would not wake.

  Marsha came back in with the boarding teacher, who rushed in hurriedly. She put her hand against Anna’s head, only to retract it quickly. She called out to the girls. “Get some wet towels quickly and get the nurse.”

  Licenta ran out of the room to find the boarding nurse. Her heart felt like it was in her throat as she pelted down the cold, dark corridors. Finally getting to the Nurse’s office she banged relentlessly on the door. Everything felt like it was in slow motion and every second she waited for the nurse she was terrified that Anna would get worse.

  The nurse came to the door in her white sleeping gown to see a terrified Licenta, who blurted, “My friend’s sick, she was screaming in her sleep and she is sweating, the teacher told me to get you!”

  Once the nurse had unravel
ed the rushed words, she grabbed her bag and Licenta led the way back to the room, half running but slow enough so the nurse would not get lost. When they got back, Anna had a wet towel on her head and Aerial and Marsha were looking scared out of their wits in the pale moon light.

  The teacher was relieved when she saw the nurse but the nurse clearly thought otherwise. She looked alarmed at Anna’s tossing body. “We need to get her awake, get some water and pass it to me.”

  In a tense period of time which was probably only a few second but felt like an hour to the girls, a cup of water was put into the nurse’s hand. The nurse gently poured the water onto Anna’s forehead so it soaked into her hair. The chilling sensation forced Anna awake. She woke to a room full of worried people and a wet pillow, but she was awake and she wasn’t in the clutches of the nightmare.

  The nurse quickly made Anna drink the rest of the water and sit up. Sitting up made her head feel like it was swimming, but she finished the water. The nurse checked her eyes with a small torch then gave her a thermometer to put in her mouth. The thermometers numbers went up quickly and finally it shrilly beeped. The nurse took the thermometer out of Anna’s mouth and shook her head. “You’re not going to for school for a while, not with this temperature.”