Trisha Khandelwal

Drama Thriller Children

4  

Trisha Khandelwal

Drama Thriller Children

The valley of death

The valley of death

3 mins
392


Delilah walked carefully, feet wobbling with every step she took. The rope shook and her arms ached from being held out so long, but she didn't dare let them down. The moment she would, she would fall to her death.


"Look one, look all! Watch as this young girl walks the tightrope across the valley of death! The valley in which many have fallen, but not one has returned! Only thirty coins for a seat, and if you are one of the first ten to arrive, then you can save yourself ten coins!"


She was dressed in a colorful outfit and a feathery headgear, lean arms flung out for balance, and a set of blazing eyes. Delilah didn't know if she felt more frightened or focused. The rope was in front of her, beneath her, and behind her. Everywhere else was empty and below that...


Below that, she didn't want to know what lay.


There was a roar in her ear. It was from the great crowd that had gathered to watch the show, but it could have been from the beat of her heart. Every move was a dare, a gamble on her life. To walk out of it alive would be nothing short of a miracle.


The rope swayed dangerously as Delilah cautiously toed it. Little by little, with a mantra in her head and a gripping fear in her heart, she conquered the rope, but for a step more. The final gamble. The step that led to safety. Her arms were trembling with exhaustion, and she almost fell I'm relieved.


But something stopped her from going. 


What would happen if she got to safety? Nothing would change. She would be made to gamble on her life again tomorrow by her master. She would be pushed around and ridiculed. She would be given no place to sleep again. 


Someday her luck would run out. Someday, her feet would slip and she would be gone before she knew it. 


But what if she did. Her life was in her hands now. It was her choice whether to wait till her luck ran out or escape from it herself. Both ways ended in her death, but one of them led to regret while the other led to freedom. 


"Move girl! What are you waiting for?! I have placed my bets on you!" 


Delilah looked down.


A dark fog churned in the drop that made her heart stop. 


"Girl move!"


"What is she doing?"


"Does she have a death wish or something?"


"Fall, come on, fall!"


"Oh dear, there goes my money."


"Ah, I can't watch this!"


Various people in the crowd shouted and cursed at her, but there was only a fog in Delilah's mind. A vicious creeping doubt. 


"It will be a miracle for her to live!" Someone shouted from the crowd.


It snapped Delilah out of her reverie. She brought herself back and leaped to the ground, collapsing into the safety of the earth. 


A deafening cheer arose from the crowd while some parted with their money, disgruntled over their loss. 


Delilah had won. She had crossed the valley of death and survived another day. She was well alive and safe. However, she clutched around her, dragging fistfuls of soft mud to her chest, hoping it was a black fog instead. 


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