A Higher Cost: Part Two
"No, please… Don't hurt me!" A frail man begs her as he looked at her in fear.
"I'm not going to hurt you." She said reassuringly as she approached him but then he just cowers away from her.
"Help! Help me!" He screamed.
"There she is!"
"She's come to terrorize us again!"
She turns to see a small angry mob of survivors inching up to her and blocking her way. She is confused by the violent approach to her.
"What are you talking about?" She asked and the frail man runs from behind her to join the rest of the mob.
"Don't play your evil tricks on us." Hissed a dirt covered survivor. "We've already had enough of that."
"I honestly have no idea what you're referring to." She insists but they refuse to listen to her as they cried for her blood. "I've only come to help."
"That's not what you said last time."
"Yeah, it was more along the lines of 'you have no right to live."'
"What?! I wouldn't say that? I wouldn't do any of this!"
"Lies!"
"We have to stop her!"
"Kill her!"
The crowd kept chanting and roaring for the Queen's demise despite her urgent pleas.
"What the bloody hell is going on?!" Walter shouted as he barged past the mob and stood in front of her.
"Walter! But we thought you were on our side." Said one of the survivors in shock.
"Maybe she's used her powers to warp his mind."
"Or he's turned against us."
"Is that it, Walter? You're a traitor now?"
"Hold it! I asked what's going on here?!" Walter shouted.
"The vile Queen tried to destroy us!" The frail man cried.
"What?!" Said Walter and the Queen.
"She came here with a horde of hobbes and ransacked the place. Killed a few of us and then stole our supplies!"
"…Or destroyed them."
"That's ridiculous!" Walter shouted.
"You don't believe us?!" Said a thin woman. "You'd rather cohort with that horrid wench?"
"We saw it with our own eyes!" Cried an elderly man.
"He's definitely betrayed us."
"We can't let them live."
"I say we get them!"
The angry mob closed in on Walter and the Queen, she was stuck on what to do. She didn't want to harm the civilians but she doesn't want it to cost hers and Walter's life either.
They hear a horse's whinny and the mob split in panic as a horse and cart came through.
"Get on then!" John shouted.
They didn't need to be told twice as they hopped onto the cart and Ted whips at the reigns. The survivors were outraged and tried to give chase through the camp.
"What did you do?!" John shouted.
"Hell if I knew!" She shouted as she was saddened by her people wanting her dead. They could see Reaver in the distance who was quickly snatched up by Walter and the Queen as they passed by.
"They're working with Reaver!" Shouted an appalled survivor.
"Traitors!"
"So I see you found the survivors." Reaver said.
"Yeah but they're not too fond of the sight of us." She said.
They went through a forest and the survivors stopped as they crossed the trees. They carried going forwards until the survivors were no more than just a speck.
"Great, I think we lost them." Ted said as he glanced back quickly.
"Ted, watch out!" John cried.
As Ted caught a glimpse of a figure, he tried to stop the cart too quickly and eventually lost control as the wheel splintered and broke. Everyone was thrown out of the cart and painfully onto the ground.
"Ow, shit. Is everyone ok?" John asked as he rubbed his neck.
"Define ok." Said an irritable Reaver as he brushed himself off.
"I'm good." Ted said as he stretched and felt something click. "I think… Your Majesty?"
"I'm ok; I had Walter break my fall." She said as she got up off Walter. "Sorry…"
"It's alright. Better me than you." Walter said as he tenderly sat up.
"It's going to take ages to walk back." Sighed Ted.
"What startled you idiots anyway?" Walter said furiously.
"It better be a good answer." Reaver said as tapped at his pistol.
"Real scary, Reaver." John said as he rolled his eyes while Ted was less brave.
"Well, you wouldn't believe us but we saw Hugh…" Ted said. "A bit worse for wear though, poor bastard…"
Walter and Reaver looked at them in disbelief while the Queen looked at them worriedly.
"What have you been smoking?" Walter asked.
"I think they have to stop drinking that sewage water they call beer." Reaver said bitterly.
"But it's true!" Ted insisted.
"We did see him." John said as he scratched his head in uncertainty.
"It doesn't matter." She said. "We have to get back to base and since we're making the journey by foot, we better start now." She said.
The men took what they could find of their scattered ammo and supplies before setting off through the forest.
When night falls, they were only half way back. They decide to make a camp in the forest and they settle to sleep. Walter sleeps beside the Queen and on her other side (much to Walter's annoyance,) is Reaver sleeping closely beside her (much to her surprise.)
She finds herself in a dark room.
"Hello?" She shouted. "Anybody here?"
She decides to walk around, not that she can tell if she's actually going anywhere in the never ending darkness. She eventually comes in contact with something hard and the room is suddenly lit brightly by an unknown source of light.
She looks at herself in the mirror in front on her.
"How odd, I don't remember seeing…" as she looks around, she sees she's surrounded by her own reflection.
"Mirrors…" She said suspiciously.
As if her words triggered something, the mirrors started to melt and her reflection became distorted in the mess. She gasps as she sees figures crawling out of the mess of the mirrors and started to inch towards her.
She saw that these 'figures' were reflections of her but they looked like they've been through hell. They were scarred, burned or dismembered. There was one without a head and another with her eyes and mouth sewed shut. She backed away from them in fear and once again, bumps into something solid and cool.
She looks over her shoulder to see another mirror and watched in panic as her own images got closer. She heard the disturbing way their breath rattled and their desperate gasps for air. She suddenly feels hands grab her from behind, pinning her to the mirror. The more she struggled, the more hands seemed to grip her tightly until she literally couldn't move.
She felt helpless as her clones were only inches away…
She gasped for air.
"What's wrong? Is it the baby?" Walter asked startled from his sleep.
"No, you fool." She said irritably. "I just had a nightmare, that's all. Go back to sleep."
Walter rests his head down.
"No… No. I'll stay up with…" He muttered sleepily but his words soon turned into snoring.
It was still night time and the camp fire was flickering and the crackle of it only kept her up. She gives up and sits beside the fire, watching the embers burn away.
"You alright?"
She jumped and sees John approaching her.
"Sorry, sorry." He chuckled slightly as he sat beside her.
"Don't do that!" She said as she playfully punched him in the arm.
"I said I'm sorry, you wild beast." He said grinning. "No wonder you and Reaver were married."
"Don't remind me. Or Walter." She said, smiling.
"I won't, don't worry." He said and he caught her shivering.
He takes off his beaten jacket and wraps it around her.
"Can't have you freezing, especially not with that child still inside you. Walter would kill me."
"Thanks." She chuckled slightly. "You'll make a woman very happy one day."
"Yeah…" He said as he looked into the fire with a sad smile as the glow of flames highlighted his hazel eyes.
There was an awkward silence and she couldn't help but feel like she should apologize to John.
"Y'know, you wearing that jacket really reminds me of my Jackie." He said as he glances at her.
"Jackie?"
"My wife. Well, she was my wife." He said as he looked down in sadness. "She gave me that jacket when I joined the army and I wore it everywhere I went because it reminded me of her. When it was ripped, she'd sew it back to new and she always thought it was funny how a Jackie got me a jacket. I don't know what was so funny, but it was always worth seeing her smile." He chuckled with his eyes watering.
"She was beautiful but she was even more radiant when she smiled. The kind of smile that can hit you from miles and you'd fall for her, well not you personally, I mean…" He sighed. "Sorry, I must be boring you with my babble…"
"No, not at all." She said smiling warmly. "I know so little about you; it's good to hear you talk about yourself. But, what happened? You used past tense when you said she was your wife."
"Ever heard of the saying 'bad luck comes in threes'?" He asked. "Well, mine came and it was the worst day of my life. Jackie and I were trying for years for a child and one day we were blessed by Avos and she was pregnant. We got ourselves all excited and bought a bigger house, some more furniture and some clothes for our little one. The only thing we couldn't decide on, were names…" He tittered but it couldn't hide his tears. "It came to the big day and I was only meant to be chasing up some bandits, but Skorm damn, they were tough. They've been around for years, knew Bowerstone's nooks and crannies like the back of their hands and fighting may as well have been walking for them. While we were trying to catch them, they caught us out and gave us a good beating. A few men died and the rest were left half dead with me included. I was in a coma for three months and that's how I got the scar above my eye, but the worst thing I could've done was I finally came out of it…" His voice started to break as he thought of the dreadful day. She puts her hand on his shoulders as her eyes welled up. "… I had to find out that my wife, my Jackie… had died during child birth. My son didn't make it either. Both of them… gone. I couldn't even say goodbye and I hate myself every day for not being there for her. I'm always haunted that my cheerful Jackie was scared for hers and our child's life that day and I couldn't comfort her. She died helpless and that wasn't my Jackie, it wasn't a fitting death, she should have lived a full and happy life…" He broke down in tears.
She pulls him close to her and holds him like she would with Logan.
"I didn't…. I couldn't even set eyes on my son…" He cried.
He wept into her arms as he kept blaming himself.
"It wasn't your fault," She said through tears. "You are a good man and you were a great husband and I have no doubt in my mind that you would have made a loving father, but you cannot take responsibility over something that was beyond your control. You have to forgive yourself, Jackie would have wanted that."
He cried silently as she held him close until eventually he could feel the sadness ebb away. They sat in silence as she cradled John, listening to the crackle of the fire and the rhythmic snoring of Walter.
"I'm sorry if I've depressed you." John said as he wiped his damp face.
"I'm glad you trusted me enough to be open with me." She said. "I'm sorry to hear about your tragedy though…"
"It's ok; I think everybody has some kind of burden that they're carrying." John said as he looked at her knowingly. She looked to Reaver and thought how true that may be. "Thank you for listening to me. I feel a little easier now." He got up and helps her up.
She took off the jacket and gave it back to John who smiled gratefully at her. She settles between Walter and Reaver but before she lay down, John whispered to her,
"I hope Avos blesses you and your family for years to come. Take care of yourself and the baby, ok?" He said before walking away to settle down for the night.
She thought about how lonely Logan must be. No father to be there with him and no mother to catch his tears. A single tear rolled down her cheek as she thought how far away her child is from her. She wanted nothing more than to hold him right now, but this was for his protection. She rubbed her stomach and thought about how she took Walter for granted for being there with her throughout the pregnancy so far. Even though it hasn't been long and it drove her crazy, he was only worrying for hers and the child's safety. She smiled at Walter who was fast asleep and snoring as usual before kissing his forehead lightly.
"Thank you." She whispered before snuggling into his arms and closing her eyes.