"Falling"

You Shouldn't Have Come

The soldiers drag Bella all the way to the back of the camp. They have a tight grip on her arms, but not enough to hurt her, showing that they still respect that she is their Princess.

She wonders how did they get to that point and the only conclusion she comes to is that her father has gone insane with grief. Once upon a time, her father had been a caring man, at least towards Kimberly, but that all but disappeared when her sister died. And now she is bound to join her.

They reach the back of the camp and Bella sees the cages. In one of them, a figure is sitting in one of the corners to the back, slumped forward. She would recognize that figure anywhere. Bella calls out Jensen's name and, slowly, he lifts his head to her.

The door to the cage next to him opens and she is shoved inside, the guards leaving once the door is tightly shut. Bella looks at Jensen and realizes he has been beaten badly. On top of the injuries she can see, such as a black eyes, a cut under his eye and a busted lip, the way he holds his side lets Bella know that he most likely has a few broken ribs.

If all of that wasn't bad enough, the way he looks at her and their surroundings tells her that he can hardly process what is happening around him. Whatever her father did to him has injured his head as well.

-"What're you doing here?" - He looks at her through hooded eyes, as he crawls over to her.

-"I came to try and free you. Jensen, are you okay? What did my father do to you?"

-"You shouldn't have come."

-"I wasn't going to stand by and do nothing to help you. You're my husband. I will do whatever is takes to save you."

-"I'm past saving, Bella. You should've stayed at the Castle where you were safe." - He reaches a hand out and caresses her face. -"At least, I get to see you before I die."

-"I haven't lost hope to get us both out of here." - She leans into his touch.

-"Why are you in a cage?"

-"I was pleading with my father when I told him about us. He accused me of treason and sent me here to wait for my execution."

-"He's bluffing. He won't kill you. You'll be alright."

-"I'm not so sure."

-"He won't take that chance. When I was first put here, I overheard some of the guards saying that his wife wasn't pregnant after all, which makes you his only heir." - Bella is surprised by this, but thinks that maybe she can use it as leverage. Jensen leans against the bars, his eyes looking down. -"I wish we had more time together. I love you."

-"Don't give up. We will make it out. Please, I can't do this without you. We need you." - There's tears in her eyes.

-"You and my family will be okay. My family will look after you."

-"I'm not talking about your family." - Tears now fall freely down her cheeks.

-"What'd you mean?"

-"Jensen... I'm pregnant."

-"Are you sure?" - His eyes are now on her.

-"The Royal Healer confirmed it this morning." - She smiles softly at him through her tears.

-"We're going to have a baby." - He smiles back, a hand caressing her face.

-"We're going to have a baby."

-"I love you. Please, forgive me." - There's a clarity in his eyes that wasn't there a minute ago.

-"Why?"

-"Guard!!!"

-"What're you doing?"

Jensen doesn't answer and Bella sees the guard approaching the cages.

-"What do you want?"

-"Tell the King I need to speak with him." - Jensen says, his voice strong, before the guard leaves.

-"Jensen. What're you doing?"

-"What I have to do." - He crawls away from her, avoiding her eyes.

-"Please don't do this." - He doesn't answer, his eyes locked on the path where he is expecting to see the guard appear. -"I can't and won't do this without you. Think about what you're doing. Jensen, I don't want our child to grow up without their father, please."

Jensen remains silent and Bella knows that there's nothing she can say that will change his mind. He will sacrifice himself so she and their unborn child can survive. All she can hope now is that Josh can find a way to free them both, before it's too late.