Chapter 01
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Announcement
CW: Mentions of abuse / child abuse. Nothing too graphic and it is quite brief.

 

Elena

 

The candlelight cast dancing shadows around the room, distracting me from the bowl that had been placed on the desk before me. A single drop of wax was slowly dripping to the wooden surface, solidifying into a milky bead as it made contact.

My mind flashed back to earlier this evening when The Razor had demanded I see him in his ‘office’. To me, that always meant that I was in trouble and likely to be punished.

Those were memories of him striking me across the face, over and over. When he was angry, he loved to find brutal ways to express it, and this time he had been especially savage.

I cast my eyes down into the gently rippling water, catching a rare glimpse of my face. There hadn’t been any need for this inspection to know that my left eye was bloody and almost swollen shut – every nerve was already screaming that fact. Surveying myself a little more closely, I spotted the bruises on my cheeks as they were starting to come through.

My nose looked like it had been broken. A cursory poke with my finger confirmed that touching it was agony and I sucked in a sharp breath through clenched teeth.

For most people, this would have taken several weeks to heal, and even then imperfectly. But for me?

My fingertips caressed the edge of a welt underneath my eye, and I allowed the healing essence that I felt within the room to flow into my hand. The feeling made my skin tingle, but it soothed away the prickling sting. I knew I’d be sneezing for hours after I fixed my poor snoot.

This was the part of me that made me special and was the only reason that The Razor kept me around. From what I’d been told, being able to heal people with a touch was rare. The line of business that he worked in was filled with danger so he made use of my skills a lot.

Turning to peer around the rest of the room, I noticed the basic furnishings, but it still felt like home. It was the only place I’d known and it was where I’d lived ever since The Razor had taken me in after my parents had died.

There was an aged wooden bed in the corner, with its simple yet soft linen sheets – I had a girl that came to change them every few days. Tucked away in another corner was an ancient-looking timber wardrobe, where I kept the few items of clothing that I was allowed to possess.

A bang at the door and the rattle of a key as it wiggled around in the lock drew my attention fully back to the present. It was quite rare for anyone to visit me, and only a select few would have a key for my door. Those that did were never too worried about seeing my face, but sometimes I preferred to keep it hidden anyway.

This time, though, I was too busy to allow my insecurities to overwhelm me. Whoever it was would have to just put up with looking at my hideousness.

I glanced towards the door as it opened, spying the harangued face of Sonny, one of The Razor’s trusted lieutenants. He was old, like mid-twenties maybe thirties, with shaggy brown hair that was beginning to recede. Height-wise, he was maybe half a foot taller than me, so pretty short for a fully grown adult.

“‘Ere’s your dinner,” he growled at me, setting down a meagre plate that mostly consisted of vegetables and gristly meat.

It looks like he’s still angry.

“Oh boy, I can’t wait,” I retorted to him, sarcasm thick and heavy.

He snorted, turning to look me in the eye, but I saw him flinch and avert his gaze almost instantly. Ouch.

“You gotta stop pissin’ the boss off, Ellie. You’ve got a special gift and you pay ‘im back by usin’ it when he asks.”

“Whatever. The prick had it comin’,” I answered back, returning my attention to my reflection in the water. Sure enough, my nose started to itch as soon as I began to restore it to its ugly old form.

Sonny wasn’t leaving yet, so I cast a sidewards glance at him. He was watching me again, his eyes wide and filled with fascination at the sight of my nose casually morphing itself back into place.

“No one liked the man, but he was damn good at ‘is job,” Sonny eventually continued once he’d snapped out of his stare.

I could feel my temper beginning to rise, the fingers of my other hand gripping painfully at the edge of the rough wooden stool.

“He was found stabbed after tryin’ to assault a young girl,” I snarled back through gritted teeth.

“And you jus’ let ‘im die,” Sonny accused, his words harsh with disapproval.

I began to sneeze, turning my head away from my visitor out of a twisted sense of courtesy.

After a few more achoos, I was able to ask, “Are you just here to lecture me, or are you goin’ to piss off?”

There was silence from Sonny’s side of the room, and I dared to chance a look in his direction before another spasm of sneezes overwhelmed me. He was still regarding my face, assessing me, but the fury that I’d seen before had dissolved into passive acceptance except for a faint downturn at the corners of his mouth.

“The boss is talkin’ about sellin’ you off, y’know?”

“There’s always been talk about sellin’ me,” I replied, dismissively. “It’s how he shows he loves me.” 

In reality, ever since I could remember he’d use the threat of selling me off whenever I did something that he didn’t like. Every single time the threat had been an idle one.

“This time’s different though. He means it.”

I knew he meant it, that was why I’d planned to finally make my escape once most people were asleep. I’d been planning it for years, but tonight was the night.

When I didn’t reply, he let out a loud grumbling sigh and turned to leave. “I hope things work out for you, Ellie, I really do,” he remarked, pulling the door open again.

“Ta-ra, Sonny,” I called back, giving him a small, mock salute with my hand.

He grumbled and stepped out, shutting the door firmly behind him. I heard the click of the key being turned in the lock again, and then he was gone.

Being mean to Sonny made me feel seven kinds of rotten inside, but I needed him to go and leave me alone. I still had things I needed to do to prepare for tonight, and I couldn’t do them with him snooping around.

 

~*~*~

 

I knew that it was time to implement my plan as soon as the lights outside my room were damped for the night. The faint glow that seeped underneath my door faded to darkness.

Lying on my bed, I twisted to the side and flopped over, my hand grabbing for the piece of a broken tray that I’d kept tucked in the bedframe for this exact occasion. My hair fell over my face, blocking my vision with a mass of my red locks, but I was able to find what I was looking for.

Ordinarily, I’d tie my hair up in a plaited bun, but that would take me too long and I needed to be swift.

When I held the piece of broken wood up near my face, I could just about make out the distinct shape of the teeth that I had painstakingly filed into its edge. I’d only tested its ability to work as a makeshift key for my door once before, but it had worked. Tempting fate too many times would probably have ended with it breaking in the lock, and me being punished for trying to escape.

But now was not the time for me to be overly cautious.

I slipped my woven mask on over my head, completing my outdoor garb. My legs were clad in a dark pair of loose-fitting canvas trousers, and they were paired with a grey tunic. The Razor never allowed me to wear anything colourful. 

It was also rare that I’d be permitted to leave the den, and completely unheard of that I’d be allowed out by myself. This would be the first time in my life that I’d had enough independence to wander the city alone.

The excitement was making my heart race, and I had to take a few steadying breaths to bring it under control.

Then, I slipped my wooden key into the lock. At first, there was only resistance and I dared not try to force it for fear of snapping it in some way. Instead, I patiently waggled it around until it unlocked with a gentle click.

It creaked quietly as I pried it open, inch by inch, peering through the gap to see if anyone was coming.

No one – the corridor was clear for now.

I opened it just wide enough to slip through, ensuring that I brought the key with me. When my guard eventually came for the evening, the first thing he would do was check to see if my door was locked. That meant that I had to relock it after me, too.

Click.

My beaming smile was hidden beneath my hood. It was likely so awful to look at that I’d have made anyone run for the hills, so I was lucky that no one could see it.

Rushlights had been set up along the walls at intervals, meaning that the corridors weren’t in complete darkness. Once your eyes had adjusted, it was easy enough to navigate.

Footsteps echoed through the stone passageways nearby, and I slipped into the nearest room to take cover. My heart pounded in my chest at the prospect of being caught, but thankfully the marching feet disappeared again.

I was just about to leave the room I’d hidden in when I noticed an odd aroma through the mask. Sniffing, I turned and spotted the source of the intriguing smells. In the darkness, I could make out shelves stuffed with herbal ingredients, leather-bound books that I had no idea how to read, and vials filled with what I suspected were colourful liquids.

Out of spite more than anything, I snatched up a few of the fancier looking bottles and one of the books, stuffing them into my voluminous cloak pockets. They should sell for a pretty penny once I was out of here – I had zero qualms about stealing from thieves and murderers.

Feeling very pleased with myself, I stepped from the alchemist’s room and towards the main entry stairs to the den. I’d never been allowed out at night time, so I had no idea how guarded it would be. Thinking about how little I really knew about anything had me momentarily unnerved, but I refused to allow myself to be fazed.

More shuffling footfalls were coming my way, and I had to dart around a corner to avoid being seen by whoever they belonged to. My heart was pounding so loudly that they should have been able to hear its thump-thumping as they passed, but they didn’t even pause to listen.

As I was preparing to step out again, a rough hand covered my mouth, while the other person pulled me back into the shadows.

I tried to scream, but the hand was clamped firmly, stopping all sound from escaping. There was no way I’d be able to bite them, either, with my mask on.

The prospect of such sudden failure and how easy I had been to defeat was causing my blood to boil in my veins, but just as I was about to lash out with a firm, booted kick, I heard a familiar voice whispering in my ear.

“‘Ey, ‘ey, calm down, Ellie. Shhh. Stop strugglin’.”

The sound of his voice made me freeze. Was that… Sonny?

I tried to speak, but everything was muffled as he still held a hand over my mouth.

“I’m gonna let you go, alright? But y’need to stop screamin’ and shoutin’.”

He did as he promised, and I immediately whispered, “What are you doin’? What do you want?”

There was an awkward silence between us, and he still held me with one arm.

“I want t’help you, Ellie. I wasn’t lyin’ when I said that I wanted things t’work out for you,” he whispered back, his voice imbued with some strange emotion I didn’t recognise.

“Then let me go, Sonny!” I hissed, beginning to struggle against him.

His arm loosened, and I was able to force my way free. I whirled on him, staring daggers through the small eye holes in my mask.

“Listen, Elena, you’re not gonna be able to leave the way you were goin’,” Sonny said, peering down at me. “Your only chance is to get to the kitchen and climb up the oven’s chimney. Everywhere else is gonna be locked tight until mornin’.”

I muttered under my breath. Was he telling the truth? Did he have any reason to lie? Although if he was trying to trick me, why hadn’t he just hauled me off to the boss already?

“Ugh. Fine,” I whined. “Why are you helpin’ me, anyhow?”

“I already told you, now go!” he replied, shooing me back into the corridor.

Muttering expletives under my breath, I did as he’d suggested and scurried off in the direction of the kitchen.

 

~*~*~

 

The room I was looking for was all the way over on the other side of the den, but I managed to sneak, hide and misdirect my way there. Honestly, the people that The Razor recruited were never particularly bright, but those relegated to the night shift were dumber than most. As soon as I realised just how useless they were my heart gave up trying to jump out of my chest and settled into the dull ache of anxiety instead.

Peering in through the doorway, all I could see was darkness. I was pretty familiar with the layout of the kitchen, though – I’d had to help out here plenty of times when I was little.

The oven was in the far corner, and I could see the faint glow of embers as I drew closer. Oh great, this was going to be uncomfortably warm.

My hood mask was just going to make it impossible to breathe, so I reluctantly pulled it free and shoved it away in a different pocket.

I do love pockets.

Being careful not to create a mess, I stooped down low and climbed into the brick hearth and peered upwards. Previously, I’d complained that The Razor always tried to make me look intimidating, which included big stompy boots, but they’d finally come in use.

So, thank you, you bald b-.

The sounds of voices in the corridor outside interrupted my train of thought. Without any further hesitation, I reached up to grab a handhold on the uneven brick that formed the chimney and pulled myself gingerly upwards towards freedom.

The space was tight, and I had to be careful not to catch my cloak on anything jutting out from the flue. My tiny stature was rarely a boon, but at this moment I was glad to be small.

I pulled my leg up and out of view a single heartbeat before the echoes changed resonance, letting me know whoever had been talking was now inside the kitchen proper.

“- it’s gonna happen tonight, as y’said?” the younger-sounding male voice asked. I couldn’t make out any more footsteps, so I assumed that they’d stopped just this side of the door.

“Aye, like I said. I was told t’keep him out of it, though,” a deeper voice answered.

Neither of them immediately jumped out at me as belonging to someone I was familiar with, but that didn’t mean we’d never met. My nose was starting to itch again, and twitching it wasn’t helping. I stopped breathing altogether to alleviate it but kept right on listening.

“Why’d y’think they don’t want him to know?” the first voice wondered.

“I heard it’s ‘cause he forked something important up all them years ago, and they still don’t trust him,” came the reply.

My fingers were already starting to cramp up, but I dared not move for fear of them discovering me. I hoped this wouldn’t take them too long, the absolute chatterboxes.

“They don’t trust him with all that money. I reckon his time’s coming up soon,” the second voice continued, clearing his throat quietly.

I was astonished at what I was hearing – I thought all the boys loved The Razor. At least, that’s what they always said whenever I could hear them. They’d never had a boss that was so smart and ruthless. He was renowned throughout the underworld as one of the ones you went to when you needed something done.

A sneeze caught me off guard, sneaking up on me from out of nowhere, and I struggled to smother it by burying my nose into my sleeve.

There was silence out in the kitchen, and I waited with bated breath for them to notice me.

“Did y’hear that?”

“Yeah, someone’s listenin’. We’d best move on,” was the older man’s reply.

I inhaled deeply to calm my nerves and waited for a minute or so before I continued my climb upwards, towards the dim reddish light that was still outlining the chimney top.

Loud shouting reverberated up to me once I was about three-quarters of the way. The words were indistinct, but I could pick up the tone pretty easily. They were pissed off about something. I carried on upwards, handhold following on from foothold, repeated over and over until my mind went blank with the monotony.

When at last I reached the top, I hauled myself out into a dark and dank alleyway. It looked like the entrance to the chimney was supposed to have been covered with a grate of some kind, but it had been left to one side at some point. The bars had rusted through, anyway, and would have broken without too much effort.

Pain lanced through my arms and legs, and I groaned. I gave myself a few minutes to recover, jabbing my first two fingers into the aching muscles as I let the healing energies flow through me. The blissful sense of relief was immediate.

No one had ever been able to tell me how to do the healing that I did – I was entirely self-taught.

My thoughts turned to what I was going to do next, only to realise that I hadn’t thought this far ahead – crap.

I took in a deep breath of the chill city air, dusted my clothes down to try to remove some of the soot, then crept towards the adjoining street.

As I peered cautiously over a low wall, I noticed that the road was mostly empty, with one or two late evening stragglers bustling along the cobbled pavement. There weren’t any signs of horses or carts here, not that I knew if they passed through here normally. I was clueless as to how the world worked.

Seeing no sign of any of the gang members – at least the ones I knew by sight – I emerged into the thoroughfare 

The few people that were out at this hour kept glancing at me nervously, and it took me a little while to realise that I was unsettling them. Embarrassed, I scuttled back down the next alleyway, keeping to the strengthening shadows.

Even if everyone else found me repulsive or unwelcome, at the very least I could enjoy the newfound freedom that I’d earned. I was never going back, and if he tried to force me then he’d regret it.

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