Spyglass

Chapter 3

So when I get into the carriage and Nick starts kissing me I'm surprised. I barely notice the carriage is moving. Nick pulls away just long enough to whisper, "I love you." And then we're kissing again. Entirely too soon the carriage stops. I sigh and sit back.

"That was nice." I look at him but Nick is frowning.

"We can't possibly be there yet." Nick glances outside. His face whitens. Then he turns to me and smiles. "Katelyn Gweneth Alcott. That is the most beautiful name in the world."

Nick kisses my nose and steps out of the carriage. I wait. I can hear voices and then my heart stops. The sound of a fist connecting with skin and bullets sliding into the barrel of a gun.

I scream and climb out of the carriage. Two British officers grab me and roughly drag me to the side of the road. They raise their guns.

"No! Wait! Stop! She doesn't know anything! That's my fiancé!" Nick yells. A man holds a gun to Nick's chest.

My world goes red. I judge how much force is required to knock out the two men beside me and apply it. I am barely aware of what I'm doing until I hear a gunshot and the sound of a body hitting the ground.

I turn and scream louder than I ever have before. I rush over to Nick's limp form, but I can see the warm light rapidly fading form his beautiful green eyes. I know there is nothing I can do but I do it anyways. I rip the bottom of my navy colored silk dress that this dying angel gave me as an engagement present. I press the silk to the wound and lay his head in my lap. I stroke his hair with one hand and I speak to him quietly. About small things: How I felt when he said I looked beautiful; how adorable it was when he got jealous thinking that another man was flirting and inviting me to dinner; how everything would be okay. We would be married in one month.

I am not sure when I started crying or when the only thing I cared about left me. When the light left his eyes completely and his faint smile disappeared. All I know is that the boy I love is now a corpse and the men responsible are 3 feet away.

I take a shaky breath. My mind is racing. I want these men gone. Dead or far away- I don't care. They just need to be gone. And I want to be personally responsible for it. This isn't just Nick. I realize that this has been happening and will continue to happen under British rule. Nick is what helped me realize what I want to be.

I lower Nick's head to the ground. With his eyes reflecting the starlight I can almost imagine that his is alive; watching the stars with me. I close my eyes and stand. The two men I fought aren't moving. Good. The man who shot Nick is cleaning up the area. I see him slip the carriage driver a few shillings. My hands curl into fists.

Before I can think about the consequences I launch myself at the driver. I scream things at him that made the officer pause in shock. I somehow end up standing over the driver; kicking him again and again. When I feel some one grab me from behind I punch low and hard. The officer groans and I turn around. I memorize every detail of his face. Then I knock him out.