Nora

Reaching the outer edges of the city Flavius points to a little brown and white cottage sitting all by its lonesome near the outskirts of the city.

"That there is the commander's home,” he tells me.

As we get closer the faint smell of blood fills my nose. I stop and sniff the air, taking in the scent. Panic squirms in my stomach when I confirm what I’m smelling. Something is wrong! Without a moment to lose I take off sprinting to the commander's cottage. I force the door open forcefully causing it to bang against the wall. Looking in I note that the front room has been completely wrecked, there's blood splattered all over the floor and walls, and a man's severed hand is lying limp on the floor through the threshold of the cottage.

I turn away from the sight, the metallic smell of blood bothering my sharp senses. I place my hand over my nose to try and block the overwhelming smell. Flavius, noticing my reaction, races up to me, concern evident in his very stance.

"What's wrong?" He asks tentatively.

Still, in complete shock, I say, "When we came close to the house I smelt blood, a lot of blood." I point into the house and watch as he peers in his face suddenly consumed with shock and disgust.

“Highness, what's wrong?" I hear Daniel ask as he runs up to me.

I struggle to get the words out.

"I believe the command has been killed,” I croak out.

Daniel doesn't say anything as I sink to the ground burying my hands in my face.

There was hope before. A tiny flicker against the wind. And with the eagerness of a child I reached for it, without a thought that the future could be an unworkable road. I feel that if I continue to try, it will be a journey into a land devoid of hope. It is one thing to look back and realize I was in darkness, but it's quite another to look ahead and realize that my days of joy are numbered. This despair that suddenly washes over me is a heady blackness; the ways forward I had thought possible have vanished to black like they were never there at all. The notion of hope is beginning to feel meaningless.

I never wanted to be in this city but since coming here I thought things were finally beginning to fall into place, but nothing is ever that easy. I thought I’d finally have the chance to find who killed my brother and bring justice to them.

I jump at the feeling of a warm hand touching my shoulder. The touch is calm and comforting causing me to lean into it.

"Don't be too upset just yet Ellie, we still have yet to check inside,” Flavius says.

His rich silky voice surrounds me like a warm blanket on a cold winter morning. I look up at him shocked by the name he calls me, a name only my brother ever used. But with his comforting words, I find a small ember of hope beginning to bloom in me once more.

Looking up at him with a slight smirk I arch my brow, "Ellie? Really?" I question the nickname.

"Yeah, I thought it suited you, not to mention calling you by your full name feels far too formal,” he reasons.

I smile at his words.

"Most people just call me Nora,” I tell him.

He chuckles and a brilliant smile covers his face lighting up his dark features.

"Does this mean I'm special?" He muses.

Standing I place a hand on his shoulder pulling my face closer to his.

"I suppose it does,” I purr lowly.

Walking past him I head into the cottage. I'm dizzy with the smell of blood the farther I walk in. Kicking the detached hand out of my path I head down a hallway, and the sight that greets me is anything but pretty. The commander's body is lying cold and stiff in a chair. His blue eyes are dull and misted with clouds of death. It’s obvious he’s been dead for some time. At first glance his cause of death is apparent, the chances of it being natural are slim to none. This man has been tortured. His body is covered in a thin layer of blood and filth. His skin is rough and rigid where his hand has been gruesomely hacked off. Whoever did this to him obviously has no knowledge of torture, with the way they went about torturing him, he probably died before they ever got any information.

I walk closer farther examining the body, the one hand that he has left is missing all the fingernails, and there are burns along his chest and left shoulder with multiple stab wounds covering his torso and stomach, most likely the cause of his death. Turning away from the body I laugh, causing Flavius and Daniel to look at me strangely.

"Forgive me, but I fail to see what's so funny about the situation," Flavius inquires with a sideways glance.

"The commander was a fighter he didn't give up even when he drew his last breath,” I say amazed.

Flavius looks confused at my words.

"What makes you say that?" He asks.

"You can tell by the condition of the house and the commander's body that whoever was here didn't get the information they wanted from him if they had the house wouldn't be in shambles and the commander's body would have less injury's. I must applaud him most would have given up without a fight seeing their impending death,” I explain.

Flavius looks confused at my words.

"This is funny to you why?" Flavius questions.

I look up at the ceiling pretending to think about his question.

"I guess you could say that I found some satisfaction in knowing that whoever was here did not have an easy time,” I explain.

Flavius shakes his head.

"Most people wouldn't think about that, in a place like this,” Flavius points out.

"Well, little human I am not most people,” I retort.

"There is no denying that,” he says with a smile.

"We should look around to see if anything of importance was left behind,” I say.

Both Daniel and Flavius nod and fan out to begin searching. I go back down the hallway passing the commander I head into a bedroom. The room is in the same condition as the rest of the house. Blankets and pillows have been thrown off the bed and the mattress has been cut open. Whoever was here searched thoroughly, but to have done all this is a matter of hours without being caught would have been impossible. They couldn't have been alone.

I begin by searching the desk that's in the back of the room. All the drawers are hanging open with papers and writing utensils scattered everywhere. I carefully look through the papers but I find nothing of importance. Moving to the bed area I continue my search. Lifting the sheets, a familiar smell wafts my way. There is something unsettling about the familiar jasmine and cherry blossom perfume scent that's lingering in the room. There is only one person who I know that wears that scent.

My heart's pulsing with happiness. I've caught you and now you can't get away, you will suffer just as I have, I think cynically.

Suddenly Flavius's voice calls from the other room.

"Ellie comes, I believe I've found something,” he says.

I rush out and meet Flavius and Daniel in the front room. They are standing shoulder to shoulder, Flavius is holding a small leather-bound journal in his hands. The journal is beaten and torn from what I can only assume is from years of use.

"What have you found?" I question, walking closer.

"It's the commander's journals, there’s forty-eight of them some dating all the way back to when he was a child," Daniel says.

I furrow my brows, "Why does that matter?"

"Because he's been keeping up with his writing every day, but there's one part in his fortieth journal for eight years ago that's missing. The pages have been torn out,” Daniel explains.

"Pages from what part of the year?" I ask.

"The pages that were taken date around mid summers when his men were killed and he resigned,” Flavius answers.

Looking at me with worried eyes Flavius asks, "Who do you think could have come and taken the pages?”

I smile, "Don't worry we won't have to look for this person very hard; I already know who they are,” I announce.

Daniel looks at me, gleaming with hopefulness.

"You know who did this? But how? And who?" Daniel questions me faster than I can answer.

Chuckling, I reply, "It was her 'lady’ Gwen."

At my words, Daniel stares at me in disbelief, "Are...are you sure it's her?" Daniel asks nervously.

I reply with a malicious grin, “Positive."

"How can you be so sure," Daniel queries me.

"She may have covered her tracks well," I explain, unable to contain my widening smile, "Yet there was one little error in the way she did things,” I say.

"How exactly did she mess up," Flavius presses.

"She left her scent behind, and I recognized it,” I say.