"We are leaving!
Mira screamed at Joya's face.
"Where do we go, Mother?! Joya was rather too calm.
"I don't care where we go. I wonder what this man exploits your body for—little or nothing in return." Mira's face looked wrinkled, the suffering showing on her face, her complexion paler.
"We have to do what we can for survival." Joya was trying to be logical.
"You have made enough money; we will survive on that." Mira sat up properly on the worn-out and detached bed.
She gazed at her left leg; it took a while, but it was slowly healing.
"I will never forgive myself if anything happens to you. Pack up; we will leave by dawn." Mira was adamant. Joya sighed, then walked out of the small room, and then came back with a cup of milk of opium poppy.
She sat down beside her mother…
"Here, drink this…
Mira pushed the cup away from her mouth.
"You must take me for a fool if you think I do not know what you intend." Mira scowled.
"Do you not want to get better so we can leave? Joya asked, playing dumb.
"You know very well when you give me milk of the poppy to drink, it clouds my thoughts and makes me sleepy. If you think you will be able to escape my wrath this time, you are wrong, Joya." Mira had a fierce gaze."
"You want us to venture into the wild and get eaten by beasts! Are you not tired of the lags we get from the long journey? Joya raked her hand through her long black hair.
"We…will return to Canna. Queen Yumi will take us back.
"She is dead, Mother! You sit here all day, not aware of the news flying around being carried by the wind." Joya was folding some clothes, and her pace increased.
Mira blinked her eyes. Her lashes were becoming wet with tears.
"Yumi…is dead? She was dumbstruck. As if hit by someone, she felt a suppression enveloping her chest; she could no longer breathe, and her lungs seemed to have narrowed.
Joya flung the clothes she was about to fold aside and rushed to where her mother was.
"Mother…Mother, look at me." Joya's heart ached.
"Why are you reacting like this?! Joya was panicking. She gazed at her mother, who seemed to be having a heart attack. Suddenly Mira became unconscious, her breath slowly stabilizing.
Joya shut her eyes, her disheveled hair sticking to her sweaty face.
She was tired, tired of living. Tired of the unknown memories that kept haunting her. She gazed at her mother one more time before covering her up with the thin sheet, then walked out of the room.
Joya was outside the small house gathering sticks around when a man walked up to her.
"You there, cunt." He said that and then spat saliva on the ground.
"Sleep with me, ten silver coins for a night." He said, coming closer, but Joya shifted away. The man in front of her reeked of alcohol.
"I am not interested." She simply said, walking past him with the bundle of sticks in her hand.
"Not interested? The man staggering frantically turned around to look at her.
"My cock is throbbing, and suddenly you are not interested. I didn't walk all the way from across the street to be rejected by a whore." He suddenly walked up to her, tugged at the sleeve of her dress, and tore it.
The sticks in Joya's hand faltered, scattering all over the floor. It was evening, but the sky was a little dark. People passing by won't mind that she was being harassed. It was a lawless village; people did as they pleased.
"Let me go, you fool." Joya said, but the man slapped her across the face and pushed her into the house.
"You are nothing but a common whore! He said, using his hand to yank her hair.
Joya's hand rested firmly on the wall as she supported herself trying to get away from him. She crumbled on the floor, and her hand landed on a wooden spoon.
The man crouched down to her level, trying to lift her dress, but she used the spoon to hit the man in the head.
"Who are you calling a whore? I did it to survive! She screamed, her eyes stinging with tears.
She pushed the man away. When she saw that the man was coming after her, she looked around; the small kitchen was lit up with a single candle. Her gaze fell on a small knife, and she reached out to it.
"When I get you in bed, I am going to fuck the living daylight out of you, girl." His accent pricked the ears.
Joya grabbed the knife; almost immediately the man grabbed her hair from behind. Swiftly turning around, Joya plugged the knife into the stomach of the man, fearlessly digging the blade of the knife until she saw blood sprouting out.
Her forehead was wounded and swollen, and her dress was torn. Her breath was etched as she slowly removed her hand from the knife and watched as the man fell on the floor groaning in pain.
The man howled, clenching his stomach. Joya gazed at him void of any emotions as the realization of what she just did dawned on her.
There was noise coming from inside the house. Rustling and footsteps, slight groans and sighs. Mira's face popped into view as she dragged herself towards the kitchen limping, then rested on the frame of the door, exhausted.
When she saw what Joya had done, she shut her eyes, frustrated.
"Mother, you are supposed to be in bed…
"We have to leave…now! Mira said, wiping the sweat on her face away.
"You can't walk; we won't survive out there…
"Can you hear yourself, Joya?! Mira was frustrated.
"You just killed a man." Mira said in a low tone, emphasizingthe killing part.
"You know very well we are in a lawless town; you have killed this man, and these people will come after you wanting to draw out blood. I won't let that happen…not when I am alive.
Joya sniffed, trying to hold her tears back; she wiped her face with the remaining part of her dress, then turned to look at her mother.
"I will get the cart ready."
...…
The wheels of the cart kiss the dust as it moves. The uneven road is making the ride bumpy.
Mira was seated in front of the cart, wrapped up with a thin bedsheet. Joya was holding the reins connected to the donkeys.
"We will go east." Joya whispered.
"I know you are doing what you can for us to survive. Joya, promise me you will never give your body in return for money." Mira's voice was hoarse and shaky, filled with pain.
Joya thought about her words for a while.
"Not even when starvation comes knocking on our door?
"For no reason at all! Mira's voice was firm.
"I promise, I won't sell my body anymore." Joya said please to her mother.
After traveling for hours, they finally pulled up and pitched their tents near a tree; they played side by side inside the tent and then drifted to sleep.
"You have lovely hair, my queen." The maid said, combing Katie's hair.
Katie was seated on a stool in front of the mirror.
"The king has invited me to his chamber this night; I feel nervous." Katie admitted. Her pretty face was sour with worry.
"You will do just fine, my queen." The maid said, brushing Katie's hair.
Like a broken record…
"Ahh! It was Katie screaming as the whip fell on her back. Her hair clinging to her sweat.
The scene changes again.
This time sexual moans could be heard, as Katie was devoured by a man that was not the king; it was the male servant.
"Hey, the goddess! Katie screamed before bringing the poison to her mouth.
"A queen has to do what is necessary to survive in the harem, Katie. Don't hold back, dear…" Now the face of the person talking to Katie was a bit blurry.
"Katie! Katie! Oh, Queen Katie! She is the queen of beauty!
Joya shoots up from her sleep, a rivulet of sweat beaming on her face. She glances at her side and can hear the steady breathing of Mira.
Voices from outside the tents could also be heard. Joya wiped her face with her dress and pricked her ear to listen to the noise coming from outside.
Through the walls of the tent she could see the faint flames of fire torches and pitchforks.
"Mother! Mother! Joya began to tap Mira lightly on her shoulder, and the latter turned in her sleep.
"They are coming; they are coming after us." Joya rose to her feet, her body quaking. The sleep in Mira's eyes suddenly disappeared; she wanted to stand up but realized it would still be difficult to walk because one of her legs was injured.
"Joya… Joya, listen to me. Take the small bag; it has some fruits and water. Take the back route of the tent and flee! Mira said seating up.
"Mother, what are you even saying? I won't leave you here by yourself; I killed that man, and I will face the repercussion."
"Do you want to die, Joya?! Mira's eyes stung with tears.
"You are the best thing that has ever happened to me, look… Just listen to me…
"No, no, no, you can't make me do this." Joya shook her head from side to side stubbornly. Then she crouched beside her mother to help her rise to her feet.
"Get up, Mother…why are you like this? Get up! Tears were now streaming down Joya's face. Mira was purposely refusing to stand up.
"If they shed my blood, they won't be satisfied. They might rape you, or even worse, kill you. Now why would I let that happen? Mira cupped Joya's face with her hand.
"Run, my child! Run! Don't look back, don't stop, keep running. If the gods will it, you will get out alive." Mira said and then pushed Joya away.
Joya swiftly rises to her feet; she grabs the small bag at the corner of the tent. Then looked back to gaze at her mother in the tent. Her swollen left leg, her wrinkled face…her suffering.
"What is a surname? Joya asked, lingering at the door of the tent.
"Leave, Joya!
"Tell me my surname, Mother! Tears clouded Joya's eyes.
"Jehosphat…Joya Jehosphat! Mira screamed without thinking, and Joya nodded curtly, wiping her tears with the back of her hands; she finally left the tent. Making her way in the opposite direction, she began to run, her feet bare without any shoes, an anklet tied around her ankle.
Her long dark hair swayed in the wind. The worn-out plain gown she was wearing raised up as she dove through the forest.
Just then she heard a scream, the scream of her mother, Mira. She paused in her steps; she couldn't do it. How could she run away?
She turned around, making her way through the bushes; she could hear some voices coming in her direction. So she moved around the bush for a while, playing little games.
When she could no longer hear the voices, she made her way to the tent, but what she saw outside the tent made her blood run cold.
It was the head of Mira separated from her body lying on the ground. Joya saw a dagger in the stomach of her mother's corpse; she simply walked over to it and removed it.
Mira died with her eyes open. When Joya saw this, she walked up to the head on the ground and shut the eyes of her mother.
Then, turning away without looking back, Joya made her way through the bushes. Her eyes were drained of life, her lips chapped, her face sweaty, and her hair disheveled with dry leaves in it. Her hand and legs bruised, her feet bleeding, her stomach churning, but she continues to walk like a living corpse until she feels the sea wind hit her face.
She had walked into an open space; her eyes now gazed at the endless sea beyond. The moon and the sky reflecting on the waves of the sea. Her feet made contact with the sand on the seashore, the dagger she was holding on to dripping blood.
Like someone in a trance, Joya walked towards the direction of the sea, the coldness of the wind enveloping her. She dipped her leg into the water and continued to walk forward, refusing to stop her body from getting lost inside the water with every step she took.
The current of the sea almost sweeps her fragile body away. Her face was buried in the water of the salty sea, her dress getting soaked and clinging to the shape of her body, her breathing coming to a fleeting stop.