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  “I thought you were dead, that I would be…left…with him!” Eliza had begun crying, but she furiously rubbed away the signs of weakness. Her skin was the color of the moon’s light, no hue of her own showing through as Zachariah pulled her hands from her face, forcing her to look at him in return. His own tanned skin was lighter than usual but still showed the stark contrast between the two.

  “No, I am not. I am very much alive, and I…I am so sorry to have failed in protecting you, Eliza.” Shadows of a different nature unfolded upon Zachariah’s face before the clouds enveloped them in darkness once more.

  “Save the talk for later, hide now!” Francis had taken Harriet’s reins from Zachariah, urging the two on. Voices rang out from within the forest, too close for anyone’s comfort. Francis led the horses to the edge and released Harriet, slapping the horse and sending her running along the forest’s edge and the cliffs. Eliza opened her mouth to protest but was muted without a chance to speak, Zachariah’s gloved hand covering her mouth as he hurried her towards the sound of rushing waters. More clouds parted and silvered light washed away the darkness, revealing an aged bridge waiting before them.

  “Hurry across. I’ll cut the line and take care of them here.” Francis rushed the two, funneling them onto the decrepit bridge.

  Eliza tried backing away after taking her first few steps forward, the boards creaking with uncertainty, but Zachariah urged her forward. Even though the clouds were clearing, they were blind to what waited ahead as a steady fog kept its vigil over the river and its canyon.

  Zachariah stopped only to turn back to the gray and white fog. “Come with us, Francis. We can cut the bridge from the other side.”

  Francis stepped forward just enough to appear as a darkened shadow in the thick fog. “Then they would know and come for you without question.” Zachariah was certain he heard a slight sadness in the man’s voice. “Now hurry, they’re just upon us all now. Give a good shake when you reach t’other side, and wait for my signal.”

  Eliza had hurried ahead, more fearful of falling through the ancient boards if she loitered any longer, fearful of the ropes finally surrendering to the unexpected weight, fearful of Reegan…

  “ELIZA-AAA!” Reegan’s voice shot through the night, through the fog and into Eliza’s fearful heart. It felt as though ice had been pushed through her veins and her stomach curdled its contents, but Zachariah pushed her along, almost picking her up to reach the other side. “I know you’re out here. Come back. You are in no condition to be out in such a state.” They had almost reached the other side when his voice called out once more, “Think of the baby, Eliza!” Zachariah slowed his pace, his grip tightening around her arms as Eliza sucked in a deep breath, realizing he did not know. Without fail, though, he took them the last few feet to the other side, shaking the bridge violently.

  Zachariah turned to Eliza, both standing just beyond the edge of the thick fog. “I need you to scream when I tell you to.” Taking his place next to a large boulder sitting beside the anchors, Zachariah stooped down with hands pressed firmly against the stone and waited. Moments passed before a whistle carried across the divide. Zachariah turned and mouthed now to Eliza, and she released a scream, watching as the rope holding the bridge went lax, and Zachariah pushed the heavy boulder down into open expanse. The sound of the boulder hitting the water was what Zachariah had waited for before covering Eliza’s mouth with his hand once more, ceasing her scream.

  “ELIZA!” Such panic came from Reegan’s voice Eliza wondered a moment whose it was before he yelled it once more, this time in fury. That voice she knew all too well. “Francis? Francis.”

  “Lord Reegan.”

  Eliza and Zachariah waited, listening over the rushing waters below as the voices were drowned out. They were not privy to whatever Francis was saying on the other side, only Reegan’s shouts.

  “WHY? Do you have any idea what you have done? All my years of careful planning, and you have ruined them!” Reegan was looming over Francis, his frame dwarfing the deadly man so he no longer felt threatening himself.

  “You didn’t trust me, Lord Reegan? To complete the job meself? You sent an assassin after me.” Now Francis was yelling in return, building up his confidence as he proceeded. “Your assassin got to Zachariah first, but I caught him unawares. He told me the truth of it.” With his one eye bulging, veins embossing his skin, and reddening face, Francis knew he had to make the moment as believable as possible. “I always make my marks, Lord Reegan, and I don’t take kindly to double crossings.”

  “You…what?” Lord Reegan laughed the question out. “YOU? YOU? You, who is loyal only to the highest bidder, and I have paid you well, claim you disapprove of a double cross?” Reegan’s laugh was harsh, a brutal cacophony that filled the foggy void between the two groups. “So you thought what, Francis? You would kill my wife and unborn child?”

  “I’m not such a monster. I planned to just steal her away but…” Francis fidgeted, a nervous twitch as he looked to the ground and all around him. “The bridge…it should have held her.”

  Reegan cast a glowering expression on Francis’ pathetic form. Musing a moment, Reegan chuckled, stepping closer to Francis again, a hair’s breath away from the man. “She knows how to swim, Francis. Do you?” Grabbing the man’s shabby jacket, Reegan gripped Francis, lifting him from the ground and thrusting the grown man over the cliff into the raging river below. One final scream of surprise escaped the man before he became victim to the unruly river.

  “DAMNIT!” The men waiting behind Reegan shuffled uneasily, waiting to see if anyone else would be used to relieve his torment. Instead, Reegan stood a moment, rubbing his forehead between his finger and thumb before straightening and smiling, a disturbing exhibition of sudden joy making the men feel distressed at the sudden change. “At least there is always Pearl, with my first child. Let us return, plans have simply changed!”

  Across the way, Zachariah picked Eliza up from behind, hand covering her mouth, and hauled her away while nearly smothering her to keep her from crying out. He felt the loss of Francis keenly, and a growing concern mounted with regard to Pearl and her unborn child, but he knew they had to be clear of the area to avoid being noticed.

  “Please, Eliza, save your lamentations for when we are far enough away so they cannot hear you.” He stopped by a trio of horses that had been tied off. “Do you understand? We cannot get caught here, now, after such efforts and sacrifice have been made.” Zachariah set Eliza down and turned her around, removing his hand from her mouth and praying silently she would not make a sound. He feared they might somehow hear her through the growing distance, even over the ravenous river below.

  “Pearl…” the name was taken up with a violent gust of wind, siphoning the last of Eliza’s strength, and she collapsed with Zachariah catching her.

  A full day passed before Eliza woke, finding herself wrapped in blankets on a bed, confined to a dark room. The musty smell of old decay filled her nostrils, bringing up what little contents remained in her stomach. She felt hunger gripping her stomach; she was starving and nauseated and exhausted and…completely drained emotionally. Freedom was hers, but it had cost Francis his life. A light broke through the darkness of the room, revealing she lay upon a framed bed. Faded, brittle wood surrounded her, as well as stone walls invaded by vines and mildew; molding spores she could smell nearby crippled her desire to move. She feared what else she might stir up from the materials that covered her body.

  “Finally.” Zachariah’s frame stood in the brilliant light, casting his shadow long across the room. “You must eat…for the baby.”

  Though he seemed to struggle with the very word, the idea, Eliza did not know how he personally felt regarding what would be his cousin. Zachariah stood, holding a tray distressed from years of weathering the elements, with a bowl of some type of soup or stew and a crust of bread. The smells filled the space between the two, causing Eliza to raise herself to try and peek at the contents.
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  “There hasn’t been much available out here. It seems most of the wildlife has deserted the area. I took a ride a few hours farther south and was able to catch a rabbit. I hope you don’t mind rabbit stew.”

  “Thank you, Zachariah, for everything.” A light blush tickled across the bridge of her nose, spreading out as a butterfly across the tops of her cheeks. She gratefully accepted the tray, which allowed Zachariah to take a step back and watch her carefully. “Where are we?” Eliza took a spoonful of the food and thanked the heavens it continued its downward course; as of late her appetite had proven brutally fickle and violent.

  Zachariah stepped away, heading directly for one of the dark curtains that had managed to survive the decay of time, and pulled back the drapery to reveal the room in its dusty grandeur. “This is…was my family’s castle. These lands used to belong to me and my family, but of course all that has changed now. My family home and lands have become the largest cemetery in all of our kingdom. No one resides within these borders any longer.”

  Eliza slowed her eating, taking in his words. “No one? How large is…was…your family’s claim?” Looking to the figure of Zachariah standing in the particles of dust and light, Eliza took in the room. The bed she was in was centered in the room, much larger than she had realized. What had once been, undoubtedly, the master’s chambers had, at some point, been used as storage. Large pieces of furniture had been shuffled in and stacked precariously; some had rotted away and collapsed in one upon the other. Against the opposite corner from where Zachariah stood was a stack of paintings, leaning against the wall. Colors that had once been a brilliant golden sheen and dark black in rugs and tapestries were now charred remains, dulled and faded over time. Eliza realized one of the odors she had smelled must have been from a fire.

  “More than others approved, apparently. We owned the land this castle sits within, and the mineral rights within the mines. All villages, towns, and the few farmlands that could be cultivated within the mountainous ranges belonged to my family. Right up to the passes that let out on the other side.” Zachariah walked farther along, pulling back the next drapery and providing new dimensions to the room. The corner of the room he had at last revealed had been tidied up. It was not exactly picturesque for what it should have been, but it was cozy in its own fashion with a black winged-back chair next to a semi-decent table. Paper, ink, and quill had been set aside. The waning daylight revealed a massive fireplace taking up the majority of the space between the two windows. It was a heavy, dark stone with a massive mantle attached. Beautifully crafted, the fireplace and its companion mantle signified the beauty that had been prevalent long ago.

  “Yet there is no one, in all these lands? How can you be sure?” Eliza felt a twinge of despair; their being the only two people in such a massive expanse of land seemed unfathomable.

  “I am certain. I spent years visiting these lands, at a time when I was certain I would earn back what was rightfully mine. There is no one left. If they weren’t killed when my parents were, then they left not long after of their own accord. Who would stay for a land with no lord to protect them? No lord or lady to guide them, give them shelter and help them through the harsh winters? A rumor spread, even before my parents died, that the lands were cursed. Simpleminded people are easily fooled.” Zachariah grimaced at the words.

  “If—I’m sorry Zachariah, for your loss, but—if there are no people, and the animals seem to have gone, then what are we to do? Will we remain here, or is there anywhere else we can go?”

  Turning his back to her, Zachariah stood staring out the window at the ghosts of his memories playing happily below. “Before you arrived, I made myself busy. I sent word to your parents and their Clansman, Jerisen. I have yet to receive word back but expect they will arrive within the next few days.”

  At that Eliza set down her spoon, her appetite curbed under the reminder she had lost her family. “They will not come, Zachariah.” Her voice betrayed her emotions, sounding devoid of emotion and hard.

  “Why ever not? I informed them of what Reegan has planned. I do not imagine they would stay—” Zachariah turned back around to be pinned in place by Eliza’s bright blue eyes shimmering with the threat of bursting. “It’s too late.” He exhaled the words, pain and torment seeming to fill his own face. “I am truly, terribly sorry, Eliza. I thought I had more time—” He broke off and turned back around, his arms crossed and tightly gripping so his knuckles turned white. They almost matched the snow that had begun to fall lightly outside.

  “It is not your fault. My father took such a risk in trusting Reegan, and I know neither he nor my mother truly trusted him. He had his reasons for choosing the paths he did, so I have stopped questioning his faults, and already accepted I must move forward.” With a shaky breath in and out, Eliza forced herself to finish the stew and bread as quickly as she could.

  “Did Reegan say nothing of finding my letters, then?”

  Eliza scoffed at his question. “The only things Reegan was willing to tell me were those which he was certain would hurt or break me.”

  “Then maybe the others received my word. Let’s not give up hope just yet, Eliza.” Turning his own blue eyes on Eliza, he waited for her to return the gaze; his own desire to know she had not given up entirely was overwhelming. She did not fail him as she put on a brave face, smiled and firmly nodded, cheeks puffed out with bread, which caused Zachariah to burst out in laughter.

  Swallowing as much as she dared, Eliza huffed, “What? I was trying to be serious.”

  “I know, I apologize. Thank you for that. I believe it is safe enough to get the fire going. Do pray, Eliza, that someone received my messages.”

  His serious turn in tone caught Eliza, the uncertainty having turned her stomach upside down. As he built the fire, Eliza only wrapped herself within the blankets, resting as he requested when she tried to help start the fire.

  A WEEK PASSED after the revelation of just how dire their situation was, and then other people arrived. Xavier was leading many, if not most, of the people from Eliza’s home in the first wave. Eliza nearly ran down the frosted path when she recognized his familiar, friendly face. His eyes were the first thing she saw, those amber jewels that peered at her with the most genuine smile she had ever encountered. Even as his gaze settled upon her small budding belly, he refused to let their reunion be marred in any fashion.

  “Eliza!” His voice deepened all the more, his height a solid six inches taller than the last time she had seen him, but she would always recognize Xavier. Inappropriate as it might have been, Eliza nearly toppled the solid now-man of her friend over as she threw herself at him, knowing he would return the warm embrace. As anticipated, he did not miss a beat and picked her up, lifting her feet off the ground in a scooping grasp.

  “Oh!” Eliza laughed, full and hearty for the first time in months. A shaking took control of her frame as tears matched the laughter and Xavier carefully set her down. “I feared I would never see you again, any of you.” Familiar faces crested around Xavier, faces somewhat aged but familiar all the same to Eliza.

  “We are here, and more are yet to come, Lady Eliza.” Xavier took a more formal approach as the rest of the caravan filtered past. Hands reached out gently patting, firmly embracing Eliza’s arms and shoulders with words of blessing and praises for her safety. “I cannot stay, though.” Xavier tipped his head in a slight bow to someone behind Eliza.

  She turned, finding Zachariah grinning, wearily, but bearing the signs his own prayers had been answered.

  “Would you like my assistance, then? Is your father on his way, too?” Zachariah searched Xavier’s face, his voice unusually betraying his visual calm.

  “My father is on his way, but he chose to remain as the last to ensure all others made it out safely. I will be returning to the midway point. If you are willing to accompany me, you can guide the next group, and I will gather the one after that. I suspect my father will guide the last.” Relief broke through Zac
hariah’s false calm as he quickly nodded.

  “Of course. How many people have been…have made it in total?”

  Eliza stood, looking between the two men and their exchange. She unconsciously rubbed her budding stomach, the motions keeping her in a happy, calm state of her own.

  “Near seven hundred have been secured, with half of that coming here and the other already taken to the sea.”

  “Why are they abandoning our home?” Eliza’s rubbing had increased in speed, her eyebrows knit in concern.

  “You don’t know?” Xavier’s disbelief came without restraint, causing the creases in Eliza’s forehead to deepen.

  “So it would seem I do not, so what is it I am so unaware of?”

  Irritation was clearly expressed and nervously received as Zachariah and Xavier looked to one another. Their exchange of looks spoke the words they refused.

  “Out with it, what has happened to my home?”

  “I told you I…sort of…knew of Reegan’s plans, and with your people’s arrival it proves he was not in jest. Reegan is planning to overtake your home. It is something he has always desired, an excellent position for fortification and the best access to the sea this continent has.” Zachariah’s lips formed a thin, crooked line, uncertain of what to expect from Eliza in her present state.

  “That was his desire all along…” Eliza pulled her cloak tightly around her body. A chilling breeze cut through the row of moving people as they headed for the dilapidated castle, their new home.