Now you know who the mysterious couple is. I hope you are enjoying the story as much as I'm enjoying writing it. Please comment and let me know. I don't mind constructive criticism either. How else will I improve my writing :)

She smiled as she sat on her stool before the mirror. Life was hard but her husband was good. Her Charles was sitting on the bed watching her brush out her hair with dreamy eyes. Nobody had ever looked at her as if she were the prettiest thing they had ever seen. He did. They caught eyes and both blushed, feeling foolish she blew out the candle and climbed into bed.

The morning started early. Charles was out of bed before she was. Up long before the sun, he was out in the barn starting his chores. She dressed and did her hair then slipped out into the kitchen. They had been married six months now and so many things had changed. Most of the farm chores she had to do were now old hand to her. Charles was a good teacher. She smiled thinking of last night as she cut the thick rye bread and placed some cheese on the table to go with it. Neither had admitted it yet, however she believed she had found love with Charles. He was a good man and she was thankful for him.

Heavy boots sounded on the steps and a moment later the door was thrown open to admit the two men. Charles was taller than his father now, but he was still very thin. She made sure to give him an extra helping so his body could keep up with his energetic self. He grinned and winked at her making sure she had enough before digging into his food. She blushed and smiled to herself before sitting down and enjoying her own meal.

The men finished fast and left the table in a hurry. Usually there was little conversation as they ate. Either the men were too rushed or to tired to talk much. There was always so much to do on a farm.

Charles waved from where he was repairing the barn roof, and she waved back before continuing on with her chores.

A loud shout in the yard brought her running back out. During the few minutes she had been inside her husband had found deep trouble! He was facing down two armed men, both considerably larger than he was. Out of the corner of her eye she spotted another man sneaking around behind the barn. Her breath caught in her throat, there was no way Charles could deal with this on his own. She had to do something. Pushing down her panic she hurried back inside and grabbed the shotgun aiming it out the window. The man hidden behind the barn was aiming at her husband. She only had one chance. Heart pounding and hands shaking she raised her own weapon, aimed, and pulled the trigger. She wasn't sure if she had hit anything, but for now Charles was safe from the gunman.

Pulling herself together she looked for her husband. He was fighting off one of the men, while his father had taken on another. She silently screamed into her hand as yet another man set the barn aflame. How many men were there, and how long could Charles hold them off? He wasn't invincible even though he acted like he was. Not knowing how to reload the gun, and cursing the fact she never learned, she rushed back outside. The man by the barn had disappeared. Praying her husband would keep the men at bay she snuck around to the barn doors to let the animals go. She could hear their shrill screams above the sounds of the fight and it broke her heart. Pulling open the door with all her might, she was nearly knocked over by the blast of heat that slammed into her. Rushing into the burning building she tried to ignore the loud roaring and snapping of the fire. Instead her whole focus was on the few animals inside. They were terrified, and some refused to move. The fire was getting worse and it felt like she had been in the barn for an eternity. Finally the last animal was out and she could leave.

Back outside she noticed her husband was noticeably lagging and the bandits were taking advantage of that. She wished there was something else she could do. She was not made for hiding, but the last thing her husband needed was the bandits using her to their advantage. So she watched tensely from her hiding spot praying that Charles would come out of this alive.

It didn't matter what Constance was doing she was always beautiful. As he was fixing the barn roof he stopped to watch her as she stepped outside to do her chores. Her glorious red hair shown brightly in the sunshine making her seem so alive and on fire. Constance hadn't said anything about it, but he knew he was falling for her. He also knew she was happy. A couple of times he had caught her singing as she did her chores. He had taken her hand and they had danced around the kitchen. She was such a joy. She brought such happiness into the house after death had taken it away. The sound of riders jolted him out of his dreams. Climbing down from his perch he went to meet them. The men were dressed nicer than most men around the area. He didn't recognize either of them. Obviously they were not farmers. Their beautifully crafted swords flashed in the sunlight and caught his eye. Were they friends or foe?

"Something I can do for you gentlemen?"

They didn't answer and instantly he became suspicious. Drawing his sword he challenged them with a shout. The men ganged up on him and suddenly he realized this wasn't going to end well. The clash of metal on metal was loud in his ears and he winced at the heavy-handed blows the men doled out. They swiped and kicked at him trying to knock his own sword out of his hand. This was no gentlemanly fighting it was rather a fight to the death. He was fighting trained men. It wouldn't take long for the two of them to overwhelm him. He just didn't have the endurance in him for a long fight. In the back of his mind he wondered how many men he was facing? As if to answer his question the barn went up in flames. Obviously there was at least one more. Already his arm ached and his shirt was wet with blood and sweat. He needed help. He couldn't keep Constance safe by himself.

"Please don't let them find Constance," he prayed silently, as he continued to fight with all he had.

He was loosing ground fast. Where was everyone? A shout distracted his opponent just enough that he was able to land a hit. Using his reflexes he danced out of the way of the man's retaliation. He didn't have to look. The shout had been his father. Now he only had to focus on one man. Still his body was exhausted and hurting. He couldn't count how many times he had almost been killed in a matter of minutes. A shot startled everyone out of their fighting rhythm. Franticly looking around for a body he noticed the raider by the barn was dead. The only person who was around to fire that shot was Constance. His woman was a gem, a brave, wonderful, beautiful gem.

But the fight wasn't over yet. He was just a farm boy and they were trained men. The fight intensified almost as if they knew he was at his end. He felt a sharp pulse of pain in his side and a warm rush of blood. This was it. He tried to dance away from the heavy-handed blows but his body had become sluggish and uncooperative.

The fiery pain took over his body and darkness washed over him echoing Constance's scream, "Charles D'Artagnan!

The men had left, but not before they had killed her husband and burnt their farm. Constance stood frozen staring at the destruction around her. The farm was gone. One of the fields was ablaze and the others were sure to follow.

"Charles," she whispered longing for his arms to encircle her. But he was gone and she was alone. Not even her father-in-law had lived through the fight. She rushed across the yard to kneel at her husband's side gently cradling his pale face in her hands.

"Oh Charles I loved you," she whispered with tears streaming down her face. "I loved you so much you were so good to me! I never got to tell you that."

Her whole body ached with her sorrow and loneliness. She could barely see his hansom face through her tears. What was she supposed to do now? Where could she go? How could she… A soft moan of pain to stopped her grief in its tracts.

"Charles? Charles! Oh Charles!"

Hastily wiping her tears away she checked for his pulse. Finding it she tried to hold back her tears. This time they were tears of joy, but they wouldn't help the situation. Blood pooled under her husbands body making her gulp. He was alive, but for how long? Loosing that amount of blood wasn't healthy. He could still die and Constance wasn't sure she could take seeing him slip away again. A wife wasn't supposed to watch her husband die twice! She needed to do something fast! She needed to bind up his wounds and go for help. Shaking herself out of her fog, she did just that, kissing her husbands pale cheek, she ran for his life.

The nearest neighbor was a mile away. Would she be able to reach them in time? Would Charles still be alive when she got back? Her breath came out in harsh pants as she raced through the field taking a short cut to their neighbor's road. If she had the energy she would have cried when she saw them headed her way. As it was all she could do was wave them on. They had seen the smoke and were coming to help. Their timing may just have saved her Charles life! After she met them everything seemed to happen in a blur. Charles was carefully loaded into a wagon and taken to the neighbors, his father was readied for burial, and the doctor came to examine her husband. Through it all she clung to the man she had married. The man she had thought she had lost. Never in her life would she forget that feeling of agony. She had a feeling it would haunt her dreams for days to come.

Leaning over Charles she whispered in his ear "You must survive, I can't go on without you. Come back to me and know that I love you!"

TBC