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Elizabeth was heading towards Town Square to check reports a week later when she heard horses from behind her. When she turned to look, she saw her mother, and Ryan. Never before had she been so happy to see them. She turned away quickly as they’re eyes turned her way. But she wasn’t quick enough. Seconds later someone ran up behind her, and threw their arms around her.
“Elizabeth!” Ariel cried.
Elizabeth pushed her mothers arms off of her and took a step away before turning around to face her crying mother.
“Mommy,” she said whimpering, and letting her mother hug her.
After minutes of crying and hugging, Ryan got off his horse and came over to them.
“We have to find Jack, and leave.”
”We can’t,” Elizabeth said, wiping her eyes. “He has a house and everything. He’s worked so hard for this.”
”But don’t you want to come home?” Ariel asked.
“Yes, I do. Oh, how badly I do! But it’s Jack.”
”Elizabeth, we’ll give him the money back. We’ll sell the house for you, and get you whatever you want. Just come home.”
“Give me a few days. I have some things to wrap up here.”
”Anything, dear. We’ll be staying near here.”
”Ok,” Elizabeth said, bidding them goodbye, and heading back to the shop.
She walked in and rushed by Polly, not hearing his welcome. She marched right over to Katherine, and pulled her to the kitchen table.
“What is it, Molly?”
“I have a lot of explaining to do. I do hope you’ll forgive me. You’ve taken such great care of me all these weeks. I just need you to do me one last favor, and listen.”
Katherine nodded, and sat down. Elizabeth sat down across from her, and began from the beginning.
“My name is Elizabeth. Charlie’s name is Jack. We’ve been running from Kanta authorities since we got here. And how we got here, was because of the war. My father is the Leader of Koura, and I was fighting in the war. Jack was a family friend, until he sold out Koura and my family for money to support his family. Since then, he’s given me hints about what’s going on, because he loves me, and there’s a price on my head. He tried to protect me from the Leader of Kanta’s guards by leading me through the borders to the cliffs. There, I met Red, the most famous Talented hunter ever.” She paused and took a breath.
“There, he tried to kill Jack in front of me, to hurt me. I’m a Talented, so I fought back, having him stab me, and cut me, and beat me till I was barely able to move. I killed him when we fell over the cliff. It was Jack who saved me from a watery grave, and we washed up onto Kanta shores. Then he proceeded to get me dry clothes at your store. We used the excuse of being married, because we were scared of being found, and killed. So we made the alias’ Molly and Charlie. Jack lied when he said I was pregnant, and not finding a way out, I got pregnant. And now I’m stuck having a child when I’m only seventeen. My mother and my fathers’ best tracker are in the city. They found me, and want me to come home.”
There was silence. The uneasy silence that follows a shocking confession.
“That’s why you dyed your hair,” Katherine finally said, quietly.
Elizabeth nodded.
“Well, I’m glad your going home,” Katherine said.
“So you forgive me? For lying?”
”Well of course! You had no other choice. I would of done the same.”
”Thank you,” Elizabeth said standing up, going over to Katherine, and giving her a hug.
“When are you leaving?” Katherine asked once Elizabeth was seated again.
“A few days. I need to tell Jack. I hope he won’t be too crushed. After all, he did buy a house, and worked his tail off to keep it.”
”That’s not why,” Katherine said. “Your afraid of his reaction to going back to Kanta where there are many people who want harm to come to him.”
”That too,” Elizabeth said after a moments thought.
“Well, you can stay here as long as you need to. If you need time to tell Jack, your welcome to stay until that day comes.”
Elizabeth nodded.
“It must be wonderful to see your mom after a month of hiding.”
”Yes it is.”
There was another silence, and Katherine broke it again by standing up, and taking a few things out from the icebox, and placing them on the cutting board.
“Maybe you should go take a nap,” Katherine suggested, peeling potatoes. “So you’re well rested for when Jack comes home.”
Elizabeth agreed, and went off to her room.
Early that night, Katherine came to wake Elizabeth up. She was trembling terribly, and was crying.
“Elizabeth,” she sobbed. “Wake up, oh please wake up.”
Elizabeth opened her eyes and looked at Katherine, and when she saw the state she was in, she sat up, wide-awake.
“What’s wrong? What happened?”
“Come, come with me,” she said grabbing her arms and pulling her out of bed.
“Let me get my night robe first,” Elizabeth said.
“No time, just come, please!”
”What’s wrong?”
”Just come.”
When they were in the hall, they heard noises from downstairs, and things toppling over.
“Someone’s down there, and I don’t think Polly’s there,”
“Stay here, and stay in my room with the door locked. There’s a knife under Jack’s pillow.”
”No, Elizabeth, stay here,” Katherine whispered as Elizabeth opened the door to the stairs and closed it after her.
Elizabeth slowly walked down the stairs, taking them one step at a time. There was no light, so she kept her back pressed against the wall. When she reached the bottom, she could hear men’s muffled voices on the other side. She slowly opened the door, and saw men looking for the door she was behind. A shelf was pushed up against the door so she couldn’t open it all the way, but she managed to slip out, and closed it softly behind her, and pushed the shelf the rest of the way, blocking it. She crept around the edge of the room, staying out of sight when suddenly; a light was brought into the room. She quickly dashed into an aisle, and hid.
She still crept along the aisle, making her way closer and closer to the men, when she suddenly heard Jack’s voice, and it stopped her.
“She’s not here.”
“You’re lying,” a man said, which followed with a cry from Jack.
“I’m not lying, she’s not here.”
Another cry.
“If you don’t tell the truth, we’ll torch the place.”
There was another cry of pain, and something wet and liquid hit the floor, and continued to fall. It sounded almost like a dripping pipe.
“Gimme the knife. He won’t talk, so we’ll kill him, and leave him. That’ll get that Koura brat’s attention.”
”No!” She screamed, stepping out from the aisle into their view.
“Well look at this!” One of them said. “She came to us to save her little friend here.” He was standing by the mouth of an aisle.
“Let go of him,” she said.
“And why would I do that?” the man that was holding him said.
“Or I’ll get angry.”
They all laughed. They were all wearing black, and were all around the same build. Ten large and chubby men.
Elizabeth didn’t find it very funny, so she began walking closer to them. The man holding Jack grabbed a knife, and pressed the tip of it into Jack’s throat. Blood dripped out, and that’s when Elizabeth got a good look at Jack. His face was a mass bruise. His nose was bleeding heavily, and one of his eyes was swollen shut. His clothing was ripped, and he was on his knee’s, being held from behind. Various slash wound were inflicted on his chest, and caused his light blue shirt to stain red.
“Let him go,” she repeated, and walked closer. The knife was pushed even more and Jack gasped.
“I warned you,” she said, blasting the man with the knife away. While the men stared at their fallen criminal, Elizabeth punched the man by the aisle, and was instantly ambushed by the rest of the men. She was grabbed so roughly; their fingers left marks on her arms, legs, and midriff. At least Jack was abandoned, and safe for the time being while they threatened her, and inflicted her with punches to the chest and stomach.
Worrying for the baby for the first time, she got them all off of her with a blast, and ran in front of Jack as they stood up. A few of them took out weapons, and a rope was also taken out. Jack was leaning against the counter, and grabbed onto Elizabeth’s leg and pointed to the door when she looked at him. When she turned her gaze to the door, the entire window, door, wood frames and window display came hurdling into the shop. A beam came flying towards Jack and Elizabeth had a few seconds to stand in their path. End results were Elizabeth knocked unconscious, and thrown into a shelf.
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