Changing Her Stars

Chapter Two

Her freedom lasted all of one day before her father’s soldiers found her in the forest. They had used sniffing dogs that had easily picked up her scent. Leira hadn’t learned how to survive in the wild as a noble lady of high society, and so, she was caught quickly. The fact that she had gotten as far as she did was a great feat in and of itself.

She was roughly manhandled and thrown in front of her father, whose face was so contorted in anger that she barely recognized him.

“You f*****g disgrace of a daughter! I should have let you rot in that forest and be eaten by wild animals! Do you even know the trouble you caused? Do you know how it made me look when your husband-to-be reported you missing? He could have broken off the wedding! I should have let you die, you f*****g b***h. Luckily for you, I smoothed things over, claiming you were ill. The only reason you’re still breathing is because of how much money he offered for you,” her father ranted at her.

Leira could endure the abusive words he spewed at her. She had heard far worse. However, she wasn’t expecting the swift kick he delivered into her stomach. She cried out in pain, curling into herself as he kicked her in the head next. She raised her hands to protect herself, which left her open for another kick.

“Get her out of sight,” he spat.

Leira felt gruff hands grab her shoulders and arms and carry her away. Her eyes were blurred by tears, but she felt them drag her down stairs, and then the stench hit her nostrils. They had taken her to the dungeon. Blood, sweat, and old urine smells hit her nose, and she gagged, wanting to vomit.

“Get used ta it b***h,” one of the soldiers laughed. “You’ll live juss like them beggars ‘ere ina sec.”

He and the other soldier laughed at her expense. She then heard creaking and metal clanking together. They threw her into one of the cells, where she slumped into the hay covered floor. Her hand smashed into something brown and soft. She ignored it, understanding it was better not to know. Leira thought that would be it, but the guards had other plans.

One of the men crunched her fingers under his boot while the other connected his ironclad boot into her chest.

“Lord Freemont sends his regards,” one of them chuckled, spitting on her.

“Just remember, not ta face. All this can be covered and will heal. But ta face gotta stay presteeeen.”

“Yeah, yeah. Grab that whip, wouldya?”

Leira lost count of how many times she felt the sharp pain of her skin splitting. She let the darkness envelope her so that she could escape the agony.

Icy cold water splashed onto her face, waking her with a start. She saw her father’s grim face staring at her. He still looked pissed.

Leira opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out.

“You look like a dead, floppy fish when you do that. Shut your mouth,” her father yelled at her.

She did.

“Your punishment will be severe but swift. You will beg me for forgiveness. You will crawl on your hands and knees if you have to in order to appease me. And, you will thank your lucky stars that I ever had an ounce of affection for you.”

She nodded quickly.

“Then, you will beg your husband for forgiveness. You will do whatever it takes to gain his favor. Your body may be the only trick you’ll have, so you’ll sate his appetite if it’s the last thing you do. You will never disgrace me again. Understood?”

She nodded again, fear filling her body.

“And then I never want to see your face again. There will be no more chances after this. Understood?”

She nodded, for a third time.

He approached her, causing her to jerk backwards, and hissed as her wounds on her back opened.

He grabbed her neck, squeezing tightly. “Why don’t you answer me? Aren’t you a lady? Didn’t I pay good money for your lessons?”

Leira saw black spots in her vision, but answered, “I-I’m s-s-sorry, Fath-ther.”

His face showed disgust as he slammed her into the stone wall. She instantly felt dizzy as pain exploded from her head. She felt something warm trickle down her neck.

“Are you a f*****g stutterer now?” her father roared at her. “I DID NOT RAISE A STUPID STUTTERER!”

Leira focused all her strength into saying, “You did not.”

He slammed her head into the wall once, twice, three times before dropping her to the ground.

“He’s coming in three days to get her. I don’t much care what you do to her until then, but make sure to have the physician see to her before he arrives. She needs to be cleaned up and presentable,” he ordered.

She watched as his figure retreated and the cell door locked behind him. Her eyes felt heavy, but her head felt slick. Something was pooling under her ear as she laid on her side where he had left her. She was tired, so very tired. Leira let herself succumb to her drowsiness. She thought that she would be fine if she never woke up again.

Movement jostled her and voices sounded, but her ears couldn’t discern what they said. Her eyes were still too heavy to open, but she felt like she was flying. Cold wind bit at her exposed and wounded flesh. She felt a rough hand on her forehead. There was mumbling. Anger? Shouting? She couldn’t tell nor did she really care. Leira let her mind drift in and out of the blackness. She was safe and warm in the cocoon of darkness. Her father wasn’t shouting at her or locking her up. No one was hurting her or forcing themselves on her. It was empty, but she was happy to be alone. She had learned how to cope in such scenarios.

The passing of time meant nothing to her in this state. She neither felt hungry nor cold. There were moments when her body wanted to wake up and move, but every time her eyes fluttered open for a second, she felt pain and stiffness in her joints. Flashes of different scenery passed by her in a blur. There were horses and men milling about. She saw the framework of a… carriage? And there was a man who kept appearing before her. His bright green eyes stared at her with his brow creased.

During her bouts of consciousness, even though her eyes remained closed, she could see that furrowed brow and those intense green eyes boring into her soul. It was unsettling. It was in that moment that she forced her eyes to open and accept whatever punishments awaited her. Leira was certain that her father would be furious with her for ignoring the world for as long as she did. Besides, she knew that he would marry her off as soon as his lie ran out of time.

Leira was astonished to find herself not in the cell she remembered being in, nor was she in the room that she’d been locked in at her father’s house. This was an entirely different room, and she felt intimidated for the sheer size of the room. She was laying in a large bed with a beautiful canopy hanging overhead. There was a sitting area set in front of large bay windows that looked out over the grounds and surrounding city. She saw an open door leading to a lavish bathroom and another to a closet. The room was decorated in a navy blue with small, light peach touches with gold accents. It felt rather manly to her tastes, and only served to confuse her further.

However, she was distracted by the windows. Her active imagination instantly began analyzing everything and picturing how she would paint the scenes below. Carefully extracting herself from the bed, she ignored the protests from her pain riddled body and crept to the windows. There was a built-in bench with cushions covering it that she gratefully sank into, and from her perch, she watched the bustling people go about their work. It looked to be late afternoon, as the sun’s rays elongated the shadows. There were huge trees towering over a small pond and what looked to be training fields in the distance. She was so completely mesmerized and absorbed by what she saw that she didn’t hear the door open and a maid walk in.

“M’lady!” the maid shrieked, causing Leira to practically jump out of her skin and fall onto the carpeted floor.

However, her back slammed into the wood panels of the bench and she felt woozy from the pain that shot all over her body. Her dizziness quickly turned to nausea and she vomited up the non-existent contents of her stomach, barely missing her lap.

“I’m so sorry!” the maid called, gently helping her up and avoiding the mess now on the floor. “I didn’t mean to frighten you. It was an accident! I was just so shocked to not see you in bed. Please don’t report me. I really didn’t mean it. Please forgive me. I’ll do anything you ask. Please, ma’am.”

Leira let the maid guide her back to the bed and gave her a weak smile. She felt for the maid, knowing it hadn’t been on purpose, and wanted to convey to her that everything would be alright, but when she opened her mouth, a coughing fit erupted from her instead, spewing specks of blood onto the sheets.

The maid’s face turned white with fear. “I’ll get the master and physician right away!”

Leira watched her run out of the room, the door closing hastily behind her. She felt tired, and with the maid no longer supporting her frame, she tilted to the side and landed face first into the soft mattress. Though, she didn’t mind. She just wanted to sleep.

“What do I pay you for if not to fix people?!” a loud voice roared, waking her from the slumber she hadn’t realized she’d fallen into.

She winced and attempted to turn, but there were quickly several pairs of hands keeping her from doing so. Whimpering, she drowsily tried to open her eyes, catching a small glimpse of a tall, dark haired man looming over a smaller, older man dressed in all white.

“M’lord,” a different, yet stern voice said. “I am doing the best that I can. Her wounds are severe. It seems as though there are internal damages. You must give her time to heal and rest.”

“It’s already been a week. How much longer must I wait?” the first asked.

“As long as she needs to recover. She needs sleep and time. Now look at that: it seems you’ve woken her up.”

Leira went to refute the man’s words, wanting to say that she was alright and could manage, but moments later, a warm and fuzzy feeling crept over her body and sent her back into the darkness from whence she came.