It feels like I've been run over by a truck, though that's putting it mildly. Every muscle in my body screams in protest as I slowly move my body into a sitting position. I don't open my eyes. The fear of what I might see there makes me feel like the five-year-old me again, who couldn't have ever looked her father in the eye. With that thought in mind, I grit my teeth and slowly open my eyes. The sight in front of me would have made me gag if the smell of blood weren't already doing so.

His body looks like it's been through hell; the person who killed him had done quite an artistic job of it. His body is unrecognizable; every limb has been separated and diced into pieces. The only recognizable organ is his heart, which, courtesy of his killer, has been stored in a jar. The heart eater really is a monster… funny how that just so happens to be me.

I get up from my sitting position and quickly make my way to the jar. I can still feel the way his heart had been beating as I had wrapped my hand around it. The feel of the warm blood oozing onto my black gloves—I lick my lips at the thought. The door crashes open, the sound makes me jump and quickly look at the dead body at my feet. I heave a sigh of relief at the sight of my father's lifeless body. He hasn't come back from the dead. Which leaves me with one problem.

I slowly move my gaze to the people standing at the door, at the same moment a skinny body slams into my chest. The creature's small 

hands tighten around my neck, choking me, but I wrap my hands around her bony shoulders, falling on my knees to give her access.

“Renata,” the sound of my name coming out of those lips once again almost makes me break down into never-ending sobs. But instead, I 

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brace myself and slowly look at the two men standing at the door, Lucian and Ivan.

“Where was she?” My voice comes out calm but threatening at the same time. They are tense. Ivan, a big man for his age, steps forward.

“We found her in the dungeon,” his voice is gruff and small, at odds with his size. I swallow and hold Elisa tighter, closing my eyes.

“Thank you, Lucian, Ivan. If not for you… she wouldn't be alive.” I hear a sharp intake of breath. I knew my thanks would surprise them, but I don't care. Elisa is my life. I’m on my feet in seconds, and quickly make my way towards them. Elisa is still in my hands, most likely asleep.

“Let's go, before the guards arrive.”

***

The feel of the cold air on my flushed skin sends a shiver of pleasure down my spine. I sigh, looking down at Elisa’s still form on the bed. Honestly, it's a miracle she can sleep after everything she's gone through. Her blonde hair falls across her forehead, making her face 

look smaller than it already is. He's a monster for torturing a 5-year-old, all of this just to make me beg for his mercy. If only he knew that the heart eater was actually his daughter, the daughter he had been feeding for 18 years.

The thought forces an involuntary laugh to leave my throat. I turn around until I'm facing my reflection in the mirror. I stare at the bright 

blue-eyed girl in front of me. Her black hair falls in waves, cupping her face, making her look innocent with those eyes. I wonder when everything went to hell. Just how did I turn into this… this monster?

I look away from that girl, disgust filling my mouth with bile. I walk out of the inn ignoring the men that try to grab my hands or any part of me that they can lay their vile hands on. The smell of alcohol and tobacco overpowers my fey senses. The stench follows me until I'm out, the cold air on my face. I run home on light feet, slipping into my underthings on instinct and before I know it I’m in bed as my eyes start to close. I'm vaguely aware of the jar tucked under my bed safe from any prying eyes. I could swear that the beating heart still echoes the beats it used to take, I shiver at the thought snuggling into my pillow as sleep finally takes me into its waiting grasp.