My eyes drew away from Father and traveled to the bed where Mother lay deathly still. Her skin was almost as white as the sheets and her once-beautiful face was now thinned and bony. Auburn curls danced along the edges of her face as she slept peacefully. The faintest rising and lowering of the sheets covering her was the only indication that death had not yet consumed her. When I had seen her long enough, I turned my father silently.
He rubbed a small cloth along his forehead, wiping away beads of sweat before speaking to us in an exhausted tone. “Girls, Lily is not responding to the medicines and I don't know for how much longer she will hold on. The curse upon our family — our lands — is evident. We may be forced to leave the farm and travel north to Lakis in order to find the healer we need.” He paused and looked at Mother sadly. “My only concern is ensuring that your mother will be strong enough to endure the long trip.”
I blinked in surprise. “Leave the farm?!” I had known this place all my life, not daring to venture beyond the birch forests.
Violet's mouth fell agape and she looked at him in disbelief. “Father!” she exclaimed. “Do you realize what you are saying?!”
“There has to be another way …” I muttered.
Father looked at both of us in turn and then sighed. “Your mother is dying. We will not find a cure by remaining here. Her life depends on us.”
“We cannot risk any further harm to her body, Father,” Violet protested, shaking her head. “Such a long journey will only worsen her condition.”
Father huffed. “Do you think I am not aware of that, Violet? This is all we can do for now — for her sake. Her body is not recovering; this is the only option we have at this point.” He paused and noticed my flustered expression. “I know you don't want to leave this place and all of our family's history behind, Jasmine.”
I glared at him, pursing my lips bitterly. “Grandpa entrusted you with this farm when he died eleven years ago,” I spat. “We all worked hard to maintain it like he would have wanted. Now you want to simply abandon it?!”
Father's gaze hardened at my words. “Believe me, Jasmine, this decision was not easy. However, your mother's health is my priority and I will not let this damnable blight take her away from me. Please understand my reasoning.”
I regarded him coldly. His words barely touched my mind and it showed in my firm stance and head held aloof, as though expecting him to further explain himself.
His hardened gaze never left mine and he continued in a sharp, more frustrated tone. “Jasmine, don't think I'm not aware of your resistance and hesitation in all of this. You were born and raised on this farm. For sixteen years, this place has been all that you've known, but there is a bigger and far more dangerous world outside these walls. Your mother's condition is not a normal sickness — it is a curse from the Blood Moon. Therefore, it is imperative that we take her to an appropriate physician in Lakis.”
I opened my mouth to speak out against his superstitious banter, but, instead, held my tongue. By the stern look in his hazel eyes, I knew it would be a futile attempt to convince him otherwise. After sighing helplessly, I gave him a faint, reluctant nod.
Father regarded the two of us once more and sighed heavily in frustration. “We will set out in two days,” he instructed. “This will give all of us ample time to prepare. Travel lightly and take only what you need. I do not know when we will return.”
I was the first to leave the room once he had dismissed us. Mother was not dead; but somehow, the air was heavy and rank as though death itself was looming nearby. I sought solace in the small confines of my bedroom, where I stared idly out the window at the Blood Moon, which was already nearing its peak with the approaching late hours.
My eyes drifted away from the skies momentarily and focused elsewhere around the room, trying to decide what to pack for the trip. I adored my books, which were lined neatly on the wooden shelf in one corner. In another corner, the door to my wardrobe was slightly ajar, revealing the laced fabrics of some of my favorite dresses. At the foot of my bed was a large wooden trunk, locked and secured. Atop the trunk was my beloved feline, Periwinkle, who slept soundly in a curled, onyx-colored, furry ball. Overall, my array of material possessions was oddly scarce. My family had always thought it strange for me to be the only child who was content with very little. I had long-since accepted the fact that I was unlike most children. My heart was morbid — devoid of such emotion and lust towards that which could not be taken so easily beyond the boundaries of life and death. In the end, I found peace with myself, knowing that I truly had nothing of value to lose in this empty life.
Chapter 3
The two grievous days that followed seemed like an eternity. Stepping outside of the manor for the last time, there was an empty void that swept over me and lingered eerily. We all packed what little belongings we were able to — excluding my own — and loaded a small hay cart. With Mother unable to walk long distances, we placed her comfortably within the nest of hay in the back of the cart.
Violet, unable to bear looking at her, finally broke the uneasy silence after regarding Father with a distressful gaze. “Father,” she requested sharply, “I would like for Jasmine to keep watch over Mother while we travel. It is not often they spend time together these days, after all.”
He raised a thin brow at her request then finally nodded; however, it was obvious in his eyes that I was the least of his worries. After waving us off dismissively to get situated in the cart, he went to the barn to gather the two remaining horses we owned.
Before the drought, we kept six horses, along with three cows, eight goats, seven chickens and three pigs. We were regrettably forced to either sell the other animals for food money, or slaughter them for our own food; however, Father was adamant about keeping at least two horses in case of an emergency.
I frowned at Violet for her sudden outburst once we were alone and said flatly, “That was unnecessary.”
She licked her lips in thought then met my glaring eyes. “Was it?” she contested. “I think you are deliberately distancing yourself from her and I don't like it. She is our mother and she needs us more than ever.”
“I am not ‘distancing myself’ from her,” I protested with narrowed eyes. “While I hold no objections to wanting to spend the last days with her, I do not want my memories of Mother to be tinged with the despair and suffering that currently afflicts her.”
Violet silently regarded my words in disbelief. Without further argument, she shrugged and reluctantly climbed in the back of the cart to sit at Mother's side.
Death was an uncomfortable feeling that Violet tried to embrace, unlike myself. I knew it would not be long before Mother would submit to the Eternal Sleep; it was eminent in her eyes, her body and all our failed efforts. Those few pleasant memories of seeing Mother's healthy, smiling face all those months ago were now replaced with a corpse-like image of the woman I used to love and adore.
We set out early in the morning before the sun had a chance to rise above the distant birch forests along the rolling hills of the countryside. I looked back at the stone-inlaid structure of the manor with sad eyes, not knowing if I would ever return here again. Part of me wanted to stay in this familiar place I had considered a sanctuary all my life; yet, another part of me felt adventurous and curious of what the rest of the world had to offer.