Aimée

The girl screamed into the gag as the knife shot through the scratchy fabric millimetres from her face. A pair of tanned, muscular hands made their way into the hole and ripped away the sack. Fresh air and light flooded her senses. Despite the rope around her wrists and ankles, she shuddered with relief and the sheer beauty of being alive.

One tanned hand grabbed her by the throat and shoved he up against a tree. She whimpered and squirmed, eyes flickering around the brightly lit forest. The man the hands were attached was only average height, but large with muscle, not fat. He stepped back and looked her up and down, then pulled out a dagger. The girl squeezed closed her eyes, praying that she'd soon wake up. She felt him move closer.

The gag was roughly cut away from her mouth. She let out a dry, dusty breath, then gasped one in.

"How old are you, girl?" the man asked in Italian-accented English.

She squinted up at, struggling to recall ten years of English lessons. "Quinze... Fifteen. Quindici," she added for good measure.

He nodded. "I have a daughter."

Slowly, she nodded back and tentatively smiled.

"She's only eight though," he added gruffly. She stopped smiling and nodded faster - some kind of insane reflex.

He dropped the knife to his side. "Questo non è giusto," he muttered.

The girl was frozen.

He let go of her neck. She slumped to the ground. He crouched beside her and waved the knife in her face. "You know who I am?"

He nodded.

"Speak, girl!"

"Yes!" she gasped. "YesIknowwhoyouam!"

He leaned back looking satisfied. "Bene. You know who hired me?"

Again she nodded. "Lucia?" Who else?

He smiled. "Your inheritance. She wants it, so bad."

A tear slipped down her cheek.

His smile disappeared. "You know what I do?"

A full-blown sob escaped this time. "Oui."

"Non è giusto." He stood up. "Say I let you go. You run away. You disappear. Quietly. You know it is good to do this, si?"

More nodding. "Si. Si. Yes. Oui."

"Because you've heard of me. And you know that if I decide to find you, and finish the job properly, next time I won't hesitate. Next time..."

He lay the knife flat across her chest.

"... I cut your heart out and send it to your family. Like I was paid to do. Capito?"

"Oui! Yes! Si!"

He smiled. The sun was setting. He flipped her onto her stomach. For a second she froze up again with terror, then he cut loose her bonds. She collapsed, sobbing.

The man straightened up. "The highway's south."

She felt something soft and heavy drop onto her back. She could do nothing but shake.

He walked off without his coat, taking the sack and useless pieces of cloth with him. "Io sono un uomo buono." he muttered. I'm a good man.

The girl lay crying as icy darkness conquered the forest.

You might have guessed I've only had one years lessons in Italian and French and Google Translate to help me! Anyway, if you speak these languages better than me and you have better suggestions for translations. Aaaaand you also might've guessed this is going to be based on a very common fairy tale...