Vacant Eyes

Vacant Eyes
Lilieth 
That can't be Anice, standing several feet away from me, at the far end of the corridor of the three-bedroom house we're occupying—one that belongs to Draven, but that he vacated for us—half-hidden by the rough stone wall. 
Her face is gaunt and pale, and the look in her eyes is vacant. That's not what shocks me, though.
It's the fact that she's here to begin with. 
Without thinking, I start toward her. My heart's racing, and every emotion in the book floods my mind. I can't think straight—all I know is that I have to get closer to her. 
I don't even know why yet. 
Anice nearly cowers away from me when I'm standing only a few feet away. My eyes drag across her face and body, taking in the state of her. It's pitiful. I barely recognize her. If she hadn't said my name, I would never have guessed that this person was her. 
What have they done to her?
My eyes lock on hers, and I keep waiting for something to happen. Anything, really. But no emotion takes control of my mind and tells me what to do—they're still a mess inside of me. 
Then, my mouth moves. "Corey might never wake up. If he does, he might never walk again. Deo lost her baby. People lost their lives. Houses were destroyed. The pack house is gone."
I don't know what I expect her to do with this information, but she stares back at me blankly. The person standing across from me is a stranger. 
This can't be Anice. 
I place my hand over my mouth, and a sob spills out of me. Just one. "It's your fault. It's all your fault. I can't even..."
I turn away from her and thread my fingers through my hair. Suddenly, I feel dizzy. I clutch the sides of my head and hope that I won't land on my face. 
But then Anice says, "I'm sorry."
I whirl around sharply, eyes wide. "Sorry? You're sorry? What does that do? How does it fix things!?"
My yelling makes her look away and start to run. I follow her all the way to the small living room, where she wraps her thin arms around herself and looks at the floor. 
When I approach her, a pained sound leaves her lips and she puts even more distance between us like she's afraid I'll hurt her. 
This position allows me to see the top of her head, and the sight is so gruesome that I race outside and throw up near some bushes. Her scalp is covered in horrible scabs, like they cut off pieces of it. I didn't even notice how thin her hair is until now. 
I lean against the outside wall and sink to the ground. This house is in the middle of the woods, not too far away from the pack, but I can't see the village from here. I'd have to walk downhill to find it. Plus, there are no lights, so it's even harder to see. 
I want to bawl my eyes out, but I don't know how to. I'm not even sure why. 
Someone steps out of the house. Anice. I don't look up at her face, but I recognize the dress she's wearing. She sits right by me, and when I glance at her face, I see that her eyes are practically glued to her lap. 
Then, she lifts her head to meet my gaze and offers me a small smile. 
There's nothing behind her eyes. Absolutely nothing. 
Wenton wasn't lying...that sick bastard was telling the truth. I don't know what they've done to her, but this person sitting next to me isn't my sister, and that realization alone crushes me to the point where my chest feels tight and I can't fucking breathe. A wave of devastation crashes into me, and the sense that all is lost and nothing will ever be the same again hits me from out of nowhere. 
How can I hate someone who doesn't even know who they are?
I know this isn't an act—I know it. They tortured her to the point where she isn't herself. I don't know if I should be angry or devastated, but what I do know is that I don't feel like she deserved it. My heart won't allow me to think that way.
Maybe I'm too much of a fool with a weak resolve. 
Or it could be that I'm too tired to make the right decisions right now. 
My desire is to put an arm around her and hold her close. By the goddess, I want things to go back to the way they were—back to when she was my little sister and I combed and styled her hair while we talked about her latest crush. But she betrayed us and hurt us in ways that can't be forgiven. Yet, here I am, conflicted as I stare at her, an endless stream of tears cascading down my face. 
How does one deal with such a situation? What's the right decision here?
A figure is approaching us from the dark trees, but the person is walking so slowly that I don't feel alarmed. Once they're close enough, I realize that it's Golen. He stops a short distance away from us, watching with an expression I can't read. Then, he inches closer to Anice, takes her arm softly, and drags her to her feet. 
They head inside, and I'm all alone. The air is cool against my skin, and it dries my tears. My face would've stayed dry if I weren't constantly crying. 
I only move from this position when Cadeon approaches me. The sight of his face is a comfort. I stand up, my legs numb from being in the same position for too long, and I wrap my arms around him. 
"Take me away from here," I whisper. "Please. I can't stand it."
Without a word or questioning my request, we head toward the dark trees together. I just need some time to breathe and think about this without any distractions. 
This was a shitty end to what will probably go down as the worst day of my entire life. 
I tell him what happened. He knew she'd arrived, but he didn't know how bad things were. He holds me while I explain exactly what I felt—talking about it makes me relive the memory, and I cry even harder because it's so painful to me. 
"It's like she...it's like she died, Cadeon," I finally admit. "I don't think there's any coming back from...goddess, you have to see her. That's not Anice. She's gone. They killed her. That's the only way I can describe what happened to her. I..."
I sink my teeth into my bottom lip and shake my head. I can't continue. 
By the goddess.