Hail

Fourteen

The scream is high-pitched and desperate and permeates this wonderful bubble of bliss in which we are encased while in each other's arms. We jump apart, startled by the scream that continues to echo around us. The horses stamp their feet as the noise continues, the sound and despair making them uneasy. This is the sound of pain and agony. It is coming from the trees that stand on our left and I instantly start walking toward it. Broderick's hand closes around my arm, pulling me to a stop. "Wait." I can see the tension in his posture, the alertness in his stance. His eyes are trained on the shadows that lie beyond the trees. 

'There is someone that needs help, we have to go help them." I say it as though it is obvious. We are here. We cannot leave whoever is in such pain to such a terrible fate. They are in need of help. The screaming continues, making all other thought difficult to focus on. I have never heard such screams. I pull my arm from Broderick, I have to help whoever is in such distress. I move away from the horses and start across the meadow.

Broderick follows close behind. "We should get help. It's not safe. I promised nothing would happen to you. We do not know what lies beyond." I look at him and can see his worry, but I know he can see my determination. My father would say that I am being headstrong or stubborn or foolish. He would say that it is unwise for someone to walk into danger when it is unnecessary.

The scream has stopped and the silence seems to crash around us. We pause for a moment, just a second of looking at each other, trying to figure out what we should do next. We both look to the trees, wondering if we should dare to enter their shade.

"I'll get the horses." Broderick starts the short walk back to the horses, as I stay frozen, my eyes still on the trees. I look to Broderick, and know that he is right. It isn't safe. We should leave. We should get help. We only have the weapon of Broderick's sword and one sword may not be enough strength. We do not know what lies beyond and there is no one here to come to our aid should we need it.

The scream comes again. Somehow it seems louder than before. I do not let myself think, I start running forward. There is fear pulling at me, fear at what I might find, but I cannot leave whoever is so desperate to whatever dreadful fate is awaiting them. I cannot pretend that I do not hear their screams.

I have a head start on Broderick but he easily catches me, putting himself between me and the trees. I am prepared for him to reach for my arm and cause me to stop, but he doesn't. His eyes are on the trees, and I know that he cannot ignore these screams either.

We enter the shadow of the trees and it takes a moment for my eyes to adjust from the bright meadow. Broderick stops beside me, his sword already drawn from its scabbard, his arm out in front of me to keep me slightly behind him. The screams echo around us and I push forward, deeper into the shadows, keeping up with his pace. My feet almost slip when I come to a sudden stop, my hands reaching out to a tree to regain my balance without creating unnecessary noise.

There are three men in the space, all ragged and dirty and armed. One tries to hold a woman, the one responsible for the screams. Her head is bleeding and parts of her dress have been torn. A man stands behind her with a knife at her throat, not killing her, but not letting her move much either. They apparently believe that they were far enough away from everyone that they are not concerned with her screams. My eyes travel from her to struggle a couple of feet away. There is a man on the ground, two others standing near him. The man is crumpled on the ground, he is not moving and blood is everywhere around him. One man holds a bloody sword near his neck, evidence of the damage and death that have occurred. The other is rummaging through the crumpled man's pockets. My eyes dart back to the woman who is still screaming, trying to find a way out of her captor's grip, the panic clear on her face.