The sound of the wind rushing through the Oak trees sent a shiver through her body. She didn't know why but the atmosphere tonight was making her rethink running away from home. She had no choice, the fires of the burning bodies were too much to bear, and she could not face the townsfolk after what she had seen.

The men had come to the house at night, torches held high as if the thought it would hold some unseen force back. "Elizabeth Smith, come out before us so we may accuse you." A priest had yelled as she herself sunk lower in the tall grass. 

What is this?

Why would the church come to our house at this time of night?

She almost gasped when her mother opened the front door, knowing that something bad would happen. "But Father, what would be so important at this time of night?" Elizabeth asked, fear expressed upon her face in a fleeting moment.

A man parted from the group and stopped abruptly in front of the door. "You've been accused of witchcraft, your whole family is to be charged." The man struggled to stay calm in from of the woman. "I'm sorry Liz, but it is decreed by the church that we must take you in to be tried. "Like that girl in Bretford, or the man in Wilmington? Its a trial leading straight to death!" 

The priest finally stepped forward, a cross swinging between his closed hands. 

"As said by William and witnessed by Mary, you have been accused of witchery and of being a servant of Satan himself." His husky voice echoed in the air like a thunderclap.

The young girl tried not to rustle the grass as she choked back a whimper.