Sohalia stumbled from the alley and onto the side street, tears running down her face. Her blouse and skirt were ripped and bedraggled and stained with blood, and her hair fell in a disheveled mess down her back. She paused outside the alley, her eyes glassy with shock, and looked around. She could go back to the Silk Houses to find help, but wouldn't that just make things worse? Murderer, her inner voice whispered. No. She couldn't go back there.
It seemed wrong, somehow, to let the man she'd killed lie alone in some alley, waiting to be found by whomever was unfortunate enough to stumble across him. But she didn't know what else to do. It seemed like forever that she stood there, numb, when in actuality it was only a minute or two; approaching footsteps warned her of company, and she twirled to face her newest adversary, painfully aware of the fact that her dagger was still buried in the man's side in the alley and that she was now completely defenseless. "S-stay back!" she warned, flinching away from the approaching figure.
It seemed wrong, somehow, to let the man she'd killed lie alone in some alley, waiting to be found by whomever was unfortunate enough to stumble across him. But she didn't know what else to do. It seemed like forever that she stood there, numb, when in actuality it was only a minute or two; approaching footsteps warned her of company, and she twirled to face her newest adversary, painfully aware of the fact that her dagger was still buried in the man's side in the alley and that she was now completely defenseless. "S-stay back!" she warned, flinching away from the approaching figure.
