Haunted dreams
Chapter 20
Winter is the worst! Sweeney decided after about seven hours of walking through a forest, the ground making a crunch under there feet with all the frozen leaves. It wasn't a pretty frozen forest either, with ice-cycles hanging from tree limbs, and white everywhere. It was dark, the trees were covered in ice but it didn't looked pretty, and it was cold, so cold. He could see his own breath. Jeramey was inside his coat, literally. It was the only way to keep the boy warm, hopefully he had plenty of air. He would whimper and move his arms and legs now and then which proved he was still alive.
It just had to be winter! Last time they went hiking for their lives to find a new home, it had been warm outside. And Sweeney was miserable then. To make matters worse Nellie kept sniffling. Sweeney prayed that she wasn't getting sick, bad stuff just keeps happening to them. They do deserve some bad luck I suppose, as a punishment.
Jeramey started crying, because he got hungry. "Switch." Nellie said taking Jeramey and putting him in her coat, where he started suckling, then falling asleep. They walked for another three hours before Sweeney dropped the bag. "Okay lets stop for the night."
"No lets keep going." Nellie complained.
"We've been walking for ten hours, my legs are going to fall off. Besides aren't you hungry?"
"Well lets eat, sit down for awhile, and keep going."
"No we're staying here and getting some sleep."
Nellie sighed. She didn't want to sleep until she was in her new home.
"How are you not tired?" Sweeney asked her.
She was tired, very much, but she was afraid if they fell asleep in this weather they wouldn't wake up.
"I'm not sleeping! I won't wake up." She told him.
"Yes, just list off all the negative things, that's going to help." He answered sarcastically. He looked at her and sighed. She looked pale, her lips were a dark pink, almost purple, and her nose and cheeks were red. She was shivering her little butt off, she looked so beautiful. He wanted her, he didn't care if it was cold out, he wanted her so bad right now. He put his hand around her neck and pulled her to him, and kissed her lips. Both of their lips were chapped, almost bleeding from the cold. He kept her in his embrace. "We'll sleep like this. All snuggled up, that your not going to freeze, I promise. Now rest." She sighed, and kissed him again as her answer to him.
They sat down, their backs up against a tree. They were wrapped in a blanket together, but they were still freezing. They ate some bread and cheese. It still had a salty taste to it, where all their belongings got thrown into the sea.
"I'd kill for some hot soup right now." Sweeney said.
"Kill who?" She smiled at her joke. Sweeney smiled too and kissed her cheek.
"Anyone." He answered. Nellie rested her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes. Sweeney peeked under the blanket to where Jeramey was asleep in their laps. "At least one of us is warm." Which he was, Jeramey was the only one who still had his normal color in his face. Sweeney and Nellie looked like zombies. Pale skin, rosy noses, dark circles under there eyes.
"Shouldn't we try to build a fire?" Nellie asked shakily as if her voice was frozen. Building a fire would be a good idea, but he didn't want to risk somebody seeing the smoke, somebody like the law.
"Just try to get some sleep."
They drifted in and out of consciousness all night. They kept their fingers interlocked tightly together, so if Sweeney felt Nellie's hand go limp he would know to immediately do everything in his power to get her to wake up. They pulled the blanket up over there heads which made it a little more warmer, and slept until the snow shown in the sky.
The next day they continued walking until they finally saw the town of Wexford on the horizon. Only about 20 miles away Sweeney figured. They were almost there.
They stopped to rest now and then but they kept moving. Nellie refused to sleep, with the town so close in their reach. And Sweeney honestly agreed with her. Why sleep on the hard frozen ground, when he could be in a warm bed by tonight?
Two hours in it started snowing. Four hours in and Nellie kept sniffling and coughing. Eight hours in and she collapsed.
"Nellie." Sweeney didn't have the energy to scream. She was exhausted and probably sick. She needed rest, but they were right there! The entrance to the city was a few feet a way. "Come on Nellie get up we're almost there." He shook her. But she wouldn't budge.
Fear clenched at his heart. "Nellie." His voice came out somewhere between a whisper and a screech. He slapped her across the face. She only moaned. "Come on get up." He said weakly. She opened her eyes and she looked past him, to the sky, dazed, expressionless.
Her face was red, her eyes were dark, and her lips...were blue. She had frost forming in her hair. "I can't go anymore" she whispered weakly.
She was dying.
Sweeney had Jeramey in his coat again, the baby hadn't moved in awhile either. Sweeney looked up at the sky, at the stars. Is this a nightmare? Has all of this been a nightmare?
He looked down at Nellie and her eyes were closed. An angry, annoyed, and fearful growl came from deep inside his throat. He was not going to lose his family, not again!
"Nellie." He screeched. He looked up at the town, just two feet in front of them. He tried to carry her, but he fell down. He just didn't have the strength. "No." He started to cry, and could feel his tears turn to ice on his cheeks. "Help!" He screamed as loud as he could. "Help!" No one was coming, no one heard him. He kept on screaming the best he could, but his throat kept clenching up, he just wasn't loud enough.
He looked at Nellie again, and felt her pulse. She was still alive. He needed her to wake up, to come back to him. He needed to do everything in his power to wake her up.
He started to pull her skirts up, and unbuckle his pants. He didn't want to (well actually yes he did, it's been awhile) but he had to. He had to do this or she would die.
Jeramey was still under the coat between them, and he started crying.
What he was about to do would wake her up, it was also a way to keep warm.
He thrusted into her. Hard.
It was so dry. But it was so warm. And it worked, she gasped and opened her eyes. Though she still looked dazed, and didn't say anything.
Sweeney lifted his head and he let out a scream, a loud one this time. He had strength again. His adrenalin kicked in. "HELP!"
He saw a light turn on, some one with a torch was facing them.
"Quick someone help get them to a physician." He heard a voice say.
He pulled out of Nellie, seconds later two men came up and pulled the two of them to their feet and helped carry them into the town.
"My son." Sweeney said, weak again. A woman was there and she unbuttoned his coat and held the child.
Sweeney's head bobbed down, he saw the ground moving under him, and then darkness.
Sweeney jerked his head up, his eyes wide, and he gasped. He was in a hospital. Suddenly everything that happened came rushing back to him. He held his head a groaned. Then he remembered his wife. He turned his head and there she was laying in the bed next to him. She was sleeping, and she looked pale, as if she were sick. Her hand was hanging off of the bed. He reached out and grabbed it. At least now she felt warm.
The opening of the door made Sweeney jump. The doctor walked in, a clipboard in his hands. The man looked up at Sweeney and smiled.
"Ah I see your awake. The sailor, Jack, said that you two were thrown off of his ship. How terrible. You walked through the forest, I'm guessing?"
Sweeney nodded.
"Well anyway, you two almost froze to death out there. Good thing that man saw you out of his house window when he did."
"I'm doctor Killian by the way." He said shaking Sweeney's hand. "Welcome to Wexford."
"Where's my son?" Sweeney demanded.
"He is in the nursery, he's being well taken care of, and his fine."
"Can you bring him to me?" Sweeney asked.
"Yes, I'll have the nurse bring him." Doctor Killian left the room. Sweeney moved into a sitting position and slowly stood up. God he's legs hurt! Too much walking, in cold.
A few minutes later a nurse came in with Jeramey. "I'm so sorry." She said.
Sweeney's eyes grew wide with fear.
"He said he's first word. And you weren't there to hear it."
Sweeney sighed, putting a hand to his chest. Realizing what the nurse just said he looked at Jeramey in her arms, playing with a toy, and smiled. He said his first word! Sweeney took him in his arms and kissed his forehead.
"You spoke Jeramey?" He asked the baby smiling. Jeramey just looked up and gave his father his classic toothless grin.
"He woke up and looked around confused, then said Dadda as if asking where you were. He's a smart baby, he is." Said nurse said smiling.
"Thank you" he smiled at the nurse, who smiled again and left the room. Sweeney turned to Nellie laying in the bed and his smile faltered.
"And we're back to her not waking up, Jeramey." Sweeney said sadly. As his son played with his finger.
Nellie just loves to be a sleeping beauty doesn't she? Please review! :)
