Chapter 4 – Confession in the Night
Loreena had her head down as she continued her story. "All through the trial they kept asking me questions, but I would not speak." She shuddered, "They told people that the nearby village had been stricken with a plague, and my village was to blame because of our way of life. They had asked me if I enjoyed tormenting the good people of Christ and satisfying my Lord Lucifer. I didn't say anything so the guards who captured me took me to the torture chambers and placed me in the chair with spikes. The red robed inquistioner who led the attack on my village was in there as well." She felt the tears come but managed to hold them back. "He took my chin and I felt a chill like never before, his voice was as chilling he said 'I don't wish to hurt you but I will do what God has commanded Moses all those centuries ago.'"
"He took my left hand and stroked it for a minute, then with incredible force, bent my fingers back and snapped them horribly. I felt a low scream emerge from deep within. After a few minutes the inquistioner spoke again, 'Are you a servent of Lucifer, therefore an enemy of Christ and all we stand for?' I just sat there sobbing silently feeling my fingers leaking with my blood and throbbing." Loreena stopped to stare at her dislocated fingers trying not to move them. "Then he pulled me up with incredible force and undid my dress making it tear in some places and it fell to the ground. I could feel the eyes of the guards leering at me and I could feel the tears coming. 'We are looking for a brownish spot on her body, this is where the Dark one has touched her, thus giving her, the powers to harm others.' The guards and the inquisitioner took turns cutting and groping my body looking for something that made no sense, then the fat guard found a mole on the side of my shoulderblade. The inquistioner asked for a needle and he plunged it into my mole. When it didn't bleed he told me to put my clothes on, which was a relief for my part."
Loreena had looked down at her leg as she continued to speak. "Then they took the leg brace they use to torture prisoners and strapped it to my leg and began constricting it. I felt the pain rising considerably as it tightened, the brace started crushing my shin bone and tearing through my skin. I was seeing nothing but blurry red and hearing myself screaming, but my screaming did not cease my pain, nor the pain of my fellow villagers getting mercilessly slaughtered. The bone tore through my skin with a sickening snap and I felt like vomiting. The inquisitioner stopped the machine and asked again, 'Are you a servent of Lucifer, therefore an enemy of Christ and all we stand for?' I spoke for the first time that day, ' No, I would never use my powers to hurt anybody, not even you for what you do to me and others like me, I do not hate you or your God, and I do not know who this Lucifer is but he is no god I would ever follow.' The guards and the inquisitioner were silent for a few minutes, then the lanky guard drew his sword in anger, 'do not contradict the inquistioner bride of Satan' and slashed across my face causing blindness in one eye. The inquisitioner pushed away the guard, 'That's enough she's said what I want to hear, take her to her cell, she will be executed in three days.' The guards picked me up roughly and dragged me to my cell all the while fondling my breasts and chuckling under their breaths. They threw me into this cell roughly and this is where I've been since then."
Loreena must have forgotten that Brother Williams was sitting there listening to her story because when she looked up he was sitting there shaking a little bit. Loreena asked him what was wrong. Williams looked in her eyes, his face was whiter than a bedsheet, and eyes were red from weeping silently. "I didn't know…I….I'm sorry….I'm truly sorry for what happened to you. I must be frank, until I first came here I have never met a witch before, I just became a priest, I've been studying this faith all my life, the Bible says, "thou shalt not suffer a witch to live", but you've never once shown me any fear. You couldn't have hurt me or anyone in this faith or any, because that would have caused you pain as well. If our Lord Jesus Christ was alive today, he would weep for what has become of his followers, he would not have allowed this, but how would I know this, all I know of Jesus is what I've been taught all my life by the Church." Loreena calmed him down and spoke. "I know not everyone is like those who destroyed my village, nor like those in this prison, I knew this the moment you stepped into my cell. You have a good soul, I see you becoming something great in your life."
Williams continued, "But what if I become like those who hurt you I don't want to tell innocent people they are going to Hell, I should abandon my priesthood if such a time should arise." Loreena grew angry, "No Williams do not abandon what you spent your life doing, your god would not want that, nor would the Lord and Lady, they love you even if you don't believe in them, besides do not worry about how you will do in this life, you will live a new life on this planet when you die if you cause no harm to people." Williams felt a little better but something horrible struck his mind. "But you will die at dawn tomorrow, and you are innocent, I have to tell these people to let you go, I don't want to see you die." Loreena held down her head, "You knew this was to happen my friend", Williams replied, "Yes, but I..I cannot accept it." Loreena smiled, "I will die anyway, my wounds will not let me live through tomorrow, I can feel the world darken a little as the blood flees my body, but do not weep for me I will always be on this planet with the spirits that we feel everyday. I want you to look under my pillow when they take me tomorrow, my mother's pendent. Take it with you, and tell the world about my people." Williams nodded his head, "I promise you I will, milady." They looked outside as the first rays of light began to pour into the cell.