Saraphine

Chapter Twenty-Six

Chapter Twenty-Six

Saraphine fastened the back of Ellen's dress, mindful of the web of bruises along her shoulders. "Miss Ellen..." she began warily.

Ellen met her gaze in the gilded mirror. "Yes?"

Nibbling her lip, Saraphine picked up the silver-backed brush and began working it through Ellen's blond hair. "Have you ever thought of leaving?"

Blue eyes narrowed in the mirror. "Leaving?"

Saraphine nodded. "Yes. Leaving this place. Leaving him."

Ellen's gaze dropped. "No. He would kill me if I dared. He has made that very clear. I mean nothing to him and yet he will not let me go."

Saraphine began styling Ellen's hair into a fancy coif. "That's why you don't tell him you're leaving. You run away. You escape."

Ellen's head snapped up and her eyes were wide. "Run away? Are you mad? He'd track me down and...."

Saraphine wasn't sure if her next move was the correct one. If she was wrong, it would cost both her and Daniel their freedom, and, possibly, their lives. But Saraphine had to try. No woman deserved to go through what Ellen was enduring.

"Daniel and I are running. Tomorrow night. Come with us."

The silence that followed was deafening. Was Saraphine going to regret her words? Had she just put Daniel's life at risk?

"I... you're running away?" Ellen whispered.

Saraphine nodded. Her trembling hands were greatly hindering her progress with Ellen's hair.

"But you can't leave, Saraphine. You're a slave. You belong on this plantation."

Saraphine squared her shoulders. In the mirror she looked a lady with as much poise and dignity as any of the so-called angels she'd watched dance countless times. "I am a woman. I am a human. I will not remain here with that man and let him destroy what happiness I do have. And he will, Ellen. He is going to destroy this place and every person in it."

A tear slid down Ellen's pale cheek. "I see now, Saraphine. This is wrong. Slavery is wrong. Forcing people to do your bidding, ripping families apart, treating a person like they are some kind of animal is wrong. I can see all that now."

"It opens your eyes when you're the one enslaved, I suppose."

Ellen stood from her chair and pulled Saraphine into a tight hug. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

Saraphine remained stiff and, slowly, Ellen pulled away. "I don't want your apologies, Ellen. You were born into this life just the same as I was." Saraphine shook her head. "No, I don't want your apology. What I want is your company or your silence."

A frown creased Ellen's brow. "What do you mean company or silence?"

Laying the brush on the polished vanity, Saraphine turned to face Ellen once more and folded her hands. "I wish you would come with us and escape that man. But, if you cannot, then promise me your silence. Promise me you will not tell your husband our plan."

Ellen averted her gaze quickly. She wrapped her arms tight around herself and walked to the window. Saraphine was let to simply stand and wonder what it was running through Ellen's mind. She prayed she hadn't just made a grave mistake.

After countless long and agonizing moments, Ellen turned to face her once again. "You took a great risk in telling me the truth."

Saraphine hoped the fear wasn't plain to see on her face. "Yes, I did. Am I going to regret it?"

Ellen shook her head and Saraphine released the breath she'd been holding. "I wish to come with you," Ellen admitted. "Daniel and I could even pose as husband and wife traveling with our slave. We might actually get away."

"We will get away. We have to." Saraphine knew there had to be more to life than this place.

"When are we leaving?" Ellen asked.

"Daniel and I were going to meet at midnight beneath the big oak." Ellen nodded, clearly aware of their favorite place. "Meet us there."

"I'll be there."

Saraphine paused as she headed for the door. "This journey will be a hard and dangerous one. Are you certain you can endure it?"

Ellen squared her shoulders and met Saraphine's gaze full force. "I'm sure."

Saraphine simply nodded and left the room. Now she merely had to worry about just how angry Daniel would be when he discovered she had arranged a traveling companion.

***

"You did what?" Daniel demanded, his anger at about the level Saraphine had anticipated.

"I couldn't simply leave her here with him."

"You damn well could have done exactly that," he countered, pacing the lamp lit room. "She is the one that chose to marry him. My cousin made her own bed."

Saraphine remained perched on the edge of the bed, taking in the grace with which Daniel's lithe body moved when he was angry.

"He tricked her, Daniel. She thought the man loved her. He changed the moment she changed her last name did. She is covered in bruises and absolutely terrified for her life."

"He won't kill her," Daniel muttered as if even he knew the argument was weak.

"He killed her father to gain quick ownership of this place. And with those new men he hired, it won't be long before more die."

Saraphine stood and still Daniel's pacing by pressing her palms to his broad chest. "Daniel, we know what it is to live in a prison. Can you really say it right for another to suffer that fate?"

Daniel heaved out a great sigh. "Her family...."

"Is no longer here and Ellen is not the girl she once was."

"But, Saraphine, what if she tells him?"

Saraphine laid a gentle hand to Daniel's tense jaw. "She won't."

His gray eyes revealed his doubt. "But what if she does?"

"She wants freedom just as badly as we do. Trust me. Please?"

Daniel's gaze softened as he pulled her into his arms. "You I trust with my life. It's my spoiled, selfish cousin I don't trust."

Saraphine listened to the steady beat of his heart. "It's all going to be alright, Daniel. We'll leave tomorrow, we'll find our freedom and we'll finally have a real future."

Daniel didn't offer any further opinion on the matter. Instead, he found her lips with his and they came together on the bed in a joining full of nervous hope for the future they both so desperately longed for.