Chapter 1

Chapter 1
Melena Day 1
The wind whistled through the shrubbery that lined the field in which a doe stood quietly, nibbling on sweet grass. Her head perked up suddenly. Her large ears cocked towards the wind that brung sounds, smells and the vibrations of nearby movement. Sensing nothing amiss she bent her head back down to the stubby patches of grass, unaware she was being watched by four women laying in the grass around her. Two of them were to the right of the deer and the other to the left of it. Melena signaled to one of her daughters, who lay in the second group across from her. The three girls with Melena were fraternal triplets, all resembling their mother with long wavey locks of black hair and lightly tanned skin. The one she signaled to, Rose, slender and graceful, moved quietly into position with an arrow ready to fly from her taut bow. Penelope, the quickest of her daughters, was at that moment stepping out from her hiding place, spooking the deer into her sister's direction. Rose let two arrows fly in quick succession, delivering them successfully into the deers shoulder and thigh as it leapt past her. This, in turn, sent it tumbling down to the floor, directly in the path of their awaiting mother, who delivered the final blow with a big hunting knife she carried at her side. She opened the wounded animals jugular with the swift, practiced ease of a hunter. The deer's blood spilled into the grass like water, seeping into the earth.
They dropped to their knees in a small circle around the doe. They joined hands and anyone watching might think they had started a sceance for the very deer's soul. But it was the smallest of Melena's daughters, Lily, who spoke. Curvy like Penelope but graceful like Rose, she was petite and easily the smallest of her triplet sisters. At one point even Melena thought the tiny girl might not make it through the hardships her family would endure, but here she was, coming into her own.
"Thank you Mother Earth, for blessing us with this gift," Lily said the line with a smile and the other women mimicked the litte prayer of gratutude quickly.
They quietly started to get to their feet. The three daughters grabbing a different leg of the deer as Melena turned to look around at a noise she briefly heard in the distance. She suddenly felt the swoosh of air as a dart whizzed past her left ear. She spun around wildly to find the dart embedded in Rose's arm, who collapsed in a heap on the deers lifeless body. Lily screams just as she is jerked out of the way of another oncoming dart, jolted by the sudden movement of the deer and Rose falling. She curls into a ball on the ground and yelps again when a dart hits her thigh, then ceases movement. Penelope already having let go, drops into a crouching position using the deer as cover, just as her mother has. Some darts fly overhead, while others hit the deer.
Melena unhooks her backpack and slides it over to Penelope, looking straight into her eyes, she whispers, "Run" and leaps over the deers body, running towards their invisible agressors. "Mom!" Penelope screams out. But knowing she has to follow her mothers orders, she also leaps out of the hiding place, into the opposite direction.
Melena is hit in the neck with a dart, bringing her down hard, her whole body immediately paralyzed. She could only watch as Penelope ran swiftly into the trees, a dart hitting the backpack just as she disappeared from sight. Moments later she heard the crunching of dry leaves as footsteps approached her from behind. Three men by the sound of it. She thought about her daughters as the final moments of conciousness left her and she prayed Penelope had gotten away as she slipped into a deep paralyzing sleep.

Author's Note

first chapter of my novel

Reviews

[Ross McNiffe]

Hello. I enjoyed the first chapter. A great opening in my opinion, one that sets the scene nicely to go forth. I'm wondering about the time line and the setting, interested to see what they may be... no criticism so far, I don't think I've read enough.. So when's the next chapter is all I'm thinking?