Hi again! A brief warning: this chapter will probably be upsetting to some, so viewer discretion is advised. Read on and enjoy.

Lady Ravanna- Thanks for reviewing!

NolaLynne91- Thank you! School is starting to get busy, but I'll try to update as often as possible.

A Guest- I'm so glad you still like the story =)

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Thor had seen the wagon long before it stopped. Still, he pretended not to notice them, silently thanking God for sending him more supplies.

I was wise to let the horses rest. You've never led me astray, Lord!

With how prejudiced people already were against the Native Americans, he could easily make these strangers look like victims of an attack. He saw a man step off the distant wagon from the corner of his eye, but continued observing his own apparatus. Then, every fiber in his form practically exploded with shock when he heard the man shout out to him.

"Hello there!"

Malloye…

The Swede quickly recognized that despicable voice. His surprise turned into eagerness and joy in a matter of seconds. If Brendan was there, Catrina surely resided in that wagon, along with Eabha. Though his original plan was to search for her upon establishing his upcoming position of power at Fort Smith, it appeared that he wouldn't have to go through such efforts after all. He'd never doubted the existence of God, but now, his belief was further escalated. His wife had returned to him! Brendan obviously didn't know who he was yet, so it would be easy to act before he found out.

I didn't think it would be so soon, but…it's finally time! Eabha, welcome home.

Thor turned around immediately after hearing the man's greeting.

"Oh, hello!" He made sure to maintain the American dialect he'd recently developed. "Thank God you're here."

"Something wrong?"

"Yes, I…I think it's the wheel." He bent down and looked towards his wagon. "It got stuck, and now it won't turn at all."

"I'll be there in a moment," Brendan replied. "Let me get my tools."

"Thank you so much, sir."

The Swede looked down at the wheel for another moment, rapidly piecing together his plan. Then, he saw Catrina hop down and make her way towards him as her spouse went to the back of their wagon.

"Is it the axle?" she asked as she approached.

"Why, I don't know, ma'am." Thor bent down and tugged at the axle's middle, subtly shielding his face. "The wheel is what won't move, so how can it be the axle?"

Catrina smiled to herself, going around the horses to the side of the wagon that wasn't facing her family.

"You'd be surprised." She bent over to look at the wheel as the man stepped behind her. "Even with how thick they are, they're pretty breakable."

Though she couldn't really see anything wrong with the wheel or the axle, she kept searching. However, she was suddenly shocked out of her concentration when the stranger's hand covered her mouth and his free arm went around her lower neck.

"Perhaps," he whispered in an all too familiar accent. "But there are many things far more breakable than axles."

Before Catrina had the chance to consider screaming or struggling, it was abruptly over.

OOOOOOOOOOOO

"Who d'you think that man is?"

Brendan shrugged as he rummaged under some trinkets at the back of the wagon.

"There's many travelers around these parts, lassie. I'm surprised it took us this long to see anyone."

"I hope he's friendly."

"Seems that way. And even if he's a grump, he's a grump in need. It's best to help your fellow man, especially if he's not perfect. People might just return the favor."

He glanced up at his daughter and smiled.

"Always remember that, all right?"

The girl nodded, returning the grin. Finally, the tool bag was located.

"Ah, here they are."

Just then, Brendan was distracted by a noise coming from the distant wagon. The tall stranger stepped out from behind it, looking at the unseen ground in fright.

"Ma'am!" He turned to the Malloye wagon, his eyes widened. "Sir, your wife! I think she fainted!"

"What?" Brendan let go of the bag. "Catrina?"

"Mama?"

Eabha went to climb out of the wagon, but her father held a hand up.

"Stay with the child, Eabha!"

With that, he quickly ran to the other wagon. The strange man stepped behind him and spoke.

"She was looking, but she just collapsed."

"Cat?"

Brendan bent down over the still form of his wife. He tried to scoop her up, but her head hung back in a sickeningly loose manner. After carefully setting her down, he moved both hands to her face. Though her eyes were slightly opened, there was absolutely no movement in them. Upon feeling her neck, Brendan's insides sunk as he realized it was broken.

"N-no…Cattie…"

He was far too distracted by his utter anguish to think about how and why it had occurred. Unfortunately for him, that was when the attack began.

Before the smaller man could do anything, the stranger forced him onto his back next to Catrina's corpse and moved his large hands to his neck. Brendan started to frantically claw at his wrists, but the fingers tightened around his throat, completely cutting off his breathing. When he stared at the villain's face, he was horrified to see the animalistic and demonic Thor Gundersen above him, alive and all too well. Though his thoughts were hopelessly scattered, he tried to yell for Eabha to escape. But despite his desperate efforts, all that came out were strangled wheezes.

Before long, he started losing control of his thinking. The comprehension of his rapidly approaching demise weighed down on him like the crushing ocean, and everything began going out of focus. All Brendan knew was terror. Terror at his wife's murder, terror at his own death, terror at the world caving in on him. But most of all, he felt an all-consuming panic for Eabha and Branna. This murderous son of a bitch was going to hurt his daughter again, along with his grandchild. And there wasn't a thing he could do to protect them.

No! God, please…!

OOOOOOOOOOOO

After a few minutes, Eabha started to worry a little bit. There was no visible movement over by the other wagon. She cleared her throat, leaned out the back, and spoke up.

"Papa?" There was no response, so she tried again. "Mama, are you all right?"

Nothing. The girl's heart pounded loudly in her chest. Still, she wanted to remain composed for the sake of her daughter.

"Father, answer me!"

Upon not getting a reply of any sort, the frightened young woman's suspicions were confirmed. Whoever this stranger was, he didn't have honorable intentions.

He must be a robber or something! They're probably gagged…

She gently covered Branna with a nearby blanket, found her father's rifle, made sure it was loaded, and hopped down onto the grass. After stepping next to the ox and scratching him calmingly behind his ear, she approached the foreign wagon. But there still wasn't any sign of movement.

"I…I have a gun," she said, trying to keep the fear out of her voice. "Try anything, and I'll shoot!"

Eabha stepped even closer, and before she knew it, she was right next to the wooden structure. Her gut told her that the criminal was hiding behind it, along with her captured parents. She took a careful breath, backed up a little bit, and yelled again.

"I'm coming around the back. If you keep your hands up, I won't hurt you."

With no further warning, the girl cocked the rifle and went to the other side. However, the stranger wasn't there. Her eyes impulsively went down a few seconds later. It took a moment for her brain to register the sight of the two lifeless bodies, but once it hit her, everything seemed to implode. Unable to speak, Eabha dropped the weapon and threw herself upon her parents. She could only desperately shake them and whisper their names over and over again. Even when she knew they were gone, her pleas for them to wake up didn't stop. Her body started seizing up, and as soon as the realization finally exploded in her mind, she let out a horrid wail.

It felt as if hours had passed, but it had only been a few seconds. Still, the anguished woman didn't notice. At that moment, the unbearable reality of her family's deaths was all she knew. She sobbed against Brendan's chest, clinging onto Catrina's slackened arm for dear life. This couldn't possibly be real. Just minutes beforehand, everything was fine. The four of them were on their wagon, living their perfect existence. And now, it had all gone up in hellish flames.

Eabha eventually sat up, unsure about how long she'd been crying. It was nearly impossible to compose herself enough to catch her breath. The shock and agony was completely numbing her soul. However, she was suddenly aware of someone standing behind her. For a moment, she embraced the idea of being murdered.

What's the point? There's nothing left.

Despite this, the girl made herself turn around and look the monster in the face before she died. But upon taking in the living form of her disguised husband, all the strength slipped out of her.

He…no…

There were too many feelings coursing through her body for her to center on anything in particular, but after several seconds, something deep within her screamed at her to retrieve the rifle. Though Eabha knew she wouldn't reach it in time, she attempted to do so anyways, only for the Swede to snatch the firearm. While he unloaded the gun and flung it away, the young woman tearfully stumbled to her feet and started running towards her wagon. She'd regained just enough of her focus to think about getting Branna to safety. Unfortunately, Thor was on her in moments.

OOOOOOOOOOO

It didn't take any effort for him to catch up with his wife. He quickly caught her in his arms and let himself fall into the grass, dragging her with him. After tangling her limbs with his and pulling her tightly against him, he simply kept her like this as she thrashed and screamed.

Thor's excitement had finally calmed enough to relish every bit of his ecstasy. He didn't think it would be nearly this easy to get Eabha's bothersome parents out of the way, but it was simpler than he thought. It wasn't quite as hard to snap Catrina's neck as it was with the Dutsons, which surprised him slightly.

Probably the thrilling rush of it all…

And choking the life out of that cuss of a man was heaven on earth. God's wisdom had truly prevailed, as always. It was His way of not only reuniting Thor with his spouse, but also giving him the pleasure of exterminating the ones who tried to destroy his and Eabha's divine union.

After a moment, the Swede noticed the flatness of the girl's stomach. His unborn had just entered his mind when the sound of shrill crying reached his ears.

"Ah!" he exclaimed, beaming down at the distraught Eabha. "Our little baby, yeah?"

"No, no!"

Eabha struggled as Thor started dragging her towards the Malloye wagon, but it was no use. She could only cry helplessly. In a matter of moments, her spouse was opening the back flap and glancing around the shelter's interior. It didn't take him long to find the poorly hidden basket just inches from him. Upon flinging the blanket away, Thor saw his child for the first time.

Despite being nearly overcome by his happiness and pride, he didn't lose his grip on Eabha. In fact, he was able to keep her still while moving his free hand to tenderly touch the baby's soft hair.

"No!" Eabha barked furiously. "Get away from her!"

Her…a girl!

The Swede caressed his daughter's rounded face, oblivious to everything but the three of them.

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