A different way

Chapter 1

Lincoln sat on a fallen tree, looking out at the river that was trickling over the tips of his boots. He carried me for two days straight I was in and out of consciousness the second day mostly from the blood loss. We had gone too far north on our way to the ocean, and started to backtrack.
The past week or so I've started to slow our pace, but not by choice, I just couldn't keep up as I used to. My leg has had a long time to heal from the when I got shot with that arrow about 3 months ago. So it couldn't be that, I wasn't even limping anymore. And we just couldn't figure it out. I had some suspicions but I had no way of confirming anything. But I was pretty sure that I didn't have the flu.
Lincoln was fixated on something across the river so at first he didn't notice when I moved to stand up.
I started making my way around our makeshift camp to sit by him. But before I made it more than 3 feet from where I was sleeping I bolted into the trees and lost whatever dinner I had left in me.
He was behind me in an instant. I knew he'd be even more worried about me, and he was suspicious because he could tell I knew more than I let on. I didn't know how much he suspected but I don't think he's jumped to the same conclusions I had.
I reached behind me to push him away, but he grabbed my hand and kissed it.
He'd became so much more over protective these past weeks or so, because more than once we've had to stop our traveling to make camp for a couple hours. I've been getting more sick lately it comes in flashes; one minute I'm joking around the next I'm bent over holding onto a tree and puking my guts up.
I knew I was late. By at least 2 months. I hadn't told him yet, mostly because I didn't want to be right. I wish my mind was just playing tricks on me. Then again it wasn't that far of a stretch. The sickness, not being able to keep up as much, and I'm not as thin as I was when we were at the drop ship. It's the only explanation.
We didn't really have anything to prevent this kind of situation, but we had always tried to be so careful. Never going too far. Except once, obviously. And I wasn't about to suggest finding a way of getting rid of it. Not after my childhood. This thing, this baby, would never be unwanted or unloved.
After my stomach was practically empty, Lincoln helped me to my feet.
"What's going on? And don't tell me that everything is fine." I turned around to look at him but before I could open my mouth to even begin to say anything, I saw movement over Lincoln's shoulder.
I craned my neck to look around him, then a figure emerged from the brush across the river.
He reacted faster than I'd seen him react since the battle between our people. He grabbed his knife and pushed me behind him. I gripped at his shirt as he scanned the trees. Somewhere around us a branch snapped and Lincoln whirrled around and grabbed me by the shoulders.
"Stay here, I'll be right back." He gave me his knife and pulled out another. He splashed across the shallow river and disappeared into the trees. I started to follow him but then stopped when I heard footsteps behind me.
The next few seconds happened so fast the blurred around me.
I tripped over something, a branch maybe. And fell on my face.
But before I could hit the ground someone grabbed onto the collar of my jacket. They yanked me to my feet but I wasn't fast enough to turn around and see my attacker before they blinded folded me. I was grabbed around the arms and held tight.
I kicked out blindly at my attackers. Screamed for Lincoln. I heard them laugh. There were two of them, men I assumed; they spoke in rapid grounder to each other. Most of which I couldn't follow. I was learning their culture/language, but at a slow pace, I caught a few words like 'girl', and words that frightened me like 'share.'
I screamed and thrashed and as if by some miracle I fell out of his hold and onto the ground. I tore the blind fold off and saw them. Two men almost giants to my short figure. They dressed in furs that were unknown to me, of all different colors. They had those skull looking masks on, so I couldn't see their faces. But that also told me they were warriors, and they new English. I screamed Lincolns name again, as
That miracle was short-lived as one of them stepped over top of me and lowered himself down until he was almost sitting on my abdomen. I panicked at the thought of them crushing my baby. I scooted backwards a scream pressing on the tip of my tongue when I ran into the boots of the man that grabbed me.
He raised a foot and kicked me in the head, making it hard to concentrate on fighting back. My head fell back down to the ground with a thud. I closed my eyes as one of them grabbed my arms and held them to the ground. A whimper escaped my lips at the other unzipped my jacket and took it off. In my tank top and jeans I felt as exposed as I would be in my under clothes. I screamed again as they laughed at me, this time I screamed Lincolnshire name hoping he had gone looking for me and was close enough to hear.
A hand tried to cress my cheek but I wrenched it out of their grasp and got a slap in the face for it. His hands were wandering up my tank top and I whimpered and prayed for someone, Lincoln, anyone to come save me. The hand disappeared from under my shirt as did the pressure holding me down.
Without looking up at my savior I stood up and bolted, straight back the way I came. 2 steps, that's how many it took for someone to react and grab my arm before I could get up enough speed to start sprinting.
I was yanked back and found myself looking into unfamiliar blue eyes. I didn't yank my arm out of her grip but I flinched when she reached out to my forehead. I hadn't noticed the pain so when her hand came away sticky with blood. Her mouth moved but I didn't hear a sound come out. I moved my hand back up to my head, there was a gash pretty deep, and blood was flowing freely.